Missive #361

The exploration and conquest of the Pacific Northwest is the dominant theme of Land of Giants, a book which (in the words of William O. Douglas) “gives one a sense of participation in moulding the manifest destiny of America.” English and Spanish sea dogs seeking a northwest passage to the Orient were the first comers; then, following Bering’s explorations, Russian fur traders descended on the Aleutians.A very good Northwest America history. It has been written by a historian but not an academic although he was a teacher for a time during his very checkered carrier. He wrote 40 books about the American West which I hope to get around to reading. In turn, the Lewis and Clark expedition, the activities of the great fur companies, and “Oregon fever” spurred on overland traffic westward; and as gold silver, and copper drew thousands more into the new land, railroads and steamship lines grew up to serve the mushrooming settlements. Land of Giants tells also of the tragic squeeze play on the Indians, the rise of the fishing and lumber industries, the development of modern power and reclamation projects, and the struggles of the conservationists to preserve natural resources and wild life. — Book promo

I have a busy day today. I’ll first drive to Sierra Visa where I can gas up Desperado and the get some breakfast at Taco Giro. After breakfast I’ll pick up an order I had placed online with the Sierra Vista Food Co-op (I’ll have more to say about them in future postings). Then stopped at my bank and my UPS Store before going to the VA Clinic. At the VA I needed to make a eye appointment for April and also talk to them about getting help with the VA dual verification sign in requirements. As of now I can not sign in to My HealthyVA so no Secure Messages, no ability to change my mail address no contact other than face to face.

If time permits I’ll also go to VA Audio and drop of my hearing aids for repair; the right one has not worked for about a month now. Again time allowed, I’ll go to Wal*Mart Vision and get them to put my reading glasses prescription in an old frame that fits much better than what I have been using. Maybe even have time to stop at the AT&T store and see what they have to offer that will replace Verizon. I don’t expect much from them but they will not have to offer much to get me to change; Verizon ‘WIFI service’ has gone down a lot since I first sign up and AT&Ts has improved if I can believe what I read and hear.

I then drive to Naco, MX where I have a dental appointment to get my permanent front teeth bridge. I don’t know what to expect so will write about the experience in another post.

Shoppers at Costco stores around the country are reported to be panic buying water, paper towels, toilet paper and other essentials over concerns brought on by the International Longshoremen’s Association’s strike affecting East and Gulf Coast ports. Some stores have lines of customers waiting to get in that extend to the parking lot. It is not ‘shoppers’ that are doing this, it is the same people that did the same thing when faced with CIVID supply link disruptions. They are sick, thank goodness I do not have toilet paper on my shopping list and I do my own water distillation.