I Must Be Gettin' Old...

Yesterday, I took a ride to a college town, about 30 miles from me.
I went there to try and find a used book store that I had once been to, and to visit the town's bicycle shop ('cause we don't have one, in the Land of Enlightenment). Well the book store wasn't there, but the bike shop was, and on my way back home, I stopped at a gun shop. The place
was crowded and as I was parousing the wares I came across an old
Remington Model 514 .22 single-shot rifle. It was in pretty good shape and with a price on it of only $59.00, I was considering buying it. There
was only one problem with it, it was a bolt action, and some durn hillbilly replaced the bolt handle with a screw! It was certainly functional, and had a kind of bubba charm to it, but... something inside
of me said not to go for it. It wasn't so much the cosmetics, I could've probably scrounged up a replacement bolt for it, but rather, well, I seem
to have discovered that I'm not really that much into guns anymore.
Oh, I'm not opposed to them, and what I'd really want to get is out of my reach at the moment; I suppose that I've finally given up on that part of my life. I used to always have guns around, and I always would go out on my days off and do some plinking. Nowadays, not so much. I much prefer to keep quiet as I go wandering, I guess that's why I've taken to the sling in a big way. As I've gotten older, things have changed, and I'm not so keen to break the silence with gunfire anymore. I would hope that
my change of heart is a sign of maturity and not because of the whims
of a hoplophobic society. In any event, I must be getting old...

Joshua

While surfing the net, I came across the name of an author of a series of books, a couple of which I had read. The man's name is Joseph Girzone, a retired Catholic priest who wrote the Joshua series. At the behest of an old friend of mine, I read Joshua, and found it quite inspirational. For those who've never heard of or read it, Joshua is a modern pararble about Jesus, who appears in a small American town, and sets out to transform the lives of those who He comes across. It really is a good book, right up my alley.
Girzone goes into great detail about Joshua's lifestyle, which is, obviously,
quite simple. The book itself does little actual preaching, instead it uses
anecdotes to get its points across; and though it was written by a Catholic
priest, the story itself is universal in its appeal. The only other book by Girzone I read is, Never Alone, which is autobiographical in nature, detail-
ing Girzone's life shortly after his retirement from the priesthood. Altogether, another inspirational piece. Even though I, myself, am a former
Catholic, I would not hesitate to recommend either of these books to anyone, regardless of whatever spiritual persuasion they would happen to be.

The Sling Thing

Ever since I was a kid, I've like primitive weaponry. I've shot bows, thrown spears, even
made an atlatl once, but the one primitive weapon which I prefer is the sling. Not the rubber-band thingy(that's a sling-shot or hand catapult), but the "shepherd's sling", like the thing
David used to kill Goliath with. Simply, a sling is a pouch with two cords attached. To use it, you
place a stone or some other suitable projectile in the pocket, or "pouch", grasp both cords with the same hand, wind-up and let it go. (I should mention that one cord remains attached to either the finger or wrist). Slings have the power to do a lot of damage, Roman Army medics even devised a special instrument to extract lead sling projectiles from casualties. These simple weapons were used for millenia throughout the world, and are still in use today. Slinging stones
is an enjoyable way to spend some time, it's quiet and challenging; and some slings are so well- made, they're works of folk-art in their own right. Incidentally, the pic to the right is that of a Neolithic Slinger, from where, I don't know, obviously some cave wall somewhere; so taking up the sling puts you in some very ancient company....btw, if you'd like to learn more,
go to: www.Slinging.org.

America-Third World Future?

By the end of the fourth century A.D., the world's greatest superpower, the Roman Empire,
was on its last legs. Barbarian incursions, costly wars, corrupt bureaucrats and aging infrastructure all contributed to its demise...sound familiar? Today, the United States is facing a
similar situation. We have all the problems that the ancient Romans did, plus a few more unique
to our century. If things don't improve, which is highly unlikely given the present administration's hell-bent-for-leather spending spree, we are going to find ourselves in a woeful
position. Our nation will not fall to hordes of barbarians, but rather, collection agents, from all those countries who own our debt. The prosperity which we enjoy today will evaporate like a
morning fog, leaving us looking more like sub-Saharan Africa than the greatest nation of modern
times. Given the way the economy is controlled, and given the fact that the majority of Americans live on credit, the people of the United States are going to be in for the shock of their
lives. No longer will anyone be able to afford the luxurious lifestyle to which they have become
accustom. Housing, autos, recreation, all those costly, big-ticket items which most people see as
necessities will be out of reach of most, if not all. We'll all be reduced to living like those in the
Third World, relying on human powered mobility, living in small ramshackle dwellings. This is
probably an over-dramatic scenario, but then again, if you're prepared for the worst, anything less will seem like a blessing. It pays to live simply, so that by doing so it will soften the blow
when it finally does hit the fan.

Bohemian

I almost never wear a suit. The last time I wore one was a couple of years ago, to a wedding. I hate suits. I used to have to wear a tie everyday to high school, and it sucked.
Conversely, I actually like uniforms, but only in certain circumstances. When I'm at home, I tend to dress, well, like a slob. I usually wear carpenter pants and a t-shirt and sneakers. If it's
chilly I'll wear an old denim shirt or a flannel; that's how I'd like to be buried, no damn suit for me; I'll come back to haunt whoever buries me in a G-damn suit! I used to be a redneck, jeans and boots; but over the years, I've come to dislike jeans most of the time; they're just too damn hot! Hence, the carpenters. As for shoes, I really, really want to get a pair of Birkies, but I'll settle for a good pair of new Sanuks. They are totally cool, in a kinda bummy- like way. Reminds me of my vo-tech teacher( I took masonry), he always said," doesn't matter what you do, even if you're a bum, just be a good one". I guess I've kinda taken that to heart, 'cause that's what I am-
a good bum. Truth be told, I hate convention. I don't want to be like everybody else, I never have. I remember being in grade school, thinking, "I don't want to follow the crowd". Case in point, when I was in fourth grade everybody loved Kiss, I didn't, just on principle,( I still don't,
I think their music sucks, although I must admit Gene Simmons is a cool guy, in a greedy,
narcissistic way). I just didn't want to be a member of the herd. If there was any way to describe
myself, I suppose Bohemian would be just as good as any. But...it goes WAY beyond just fashion.
I take that course everywhere in my life. I'm lazy by nature, I really hate work, I'll do it, sometimes I want to, but more often than not, I just want to chill. I love it when somebody I work with tells me, " man, I got a lot of work to do this weekend", that cracks me up! Dude, you
just put 40 hours in, why in the hell do you want to do more? Not me! Oh, I'll do my shit, like
wash clothes, dishes, etc., but other work?, nah! not for me. Yeah, I'm not rich, but then again, I
don't want to be either. I have to go with Thoreau on this one. He definitely was one for the ages!
The older I get, the less stuff I get I excited about. I gots more to say, but I'll save it fer another time. Just remember, keep it simple, and you'll never be over burdened.

May You Live in Interesting Times

When I was a teen-ager, I got into history in a big way. This was way before video games

or computers, so my media of choice was the venerable book. I literally wore out my library

card borrowing various books on a myriad of historical subjects. Within a short time, I, in my

naivete', began to bemoan the fact that" we live in boring times". In my ridiculous opinion

nothing of any exciting or "romantic" effect happened anymore. Sure, we had history, but it was

all so lame! No hordes of barbarians sweeping across the plains, no great armies converging to

give battle, no invasions of conquest; ugh! it was just all so boring. Little did I know just how

not boring the future was to become. In the ensuing thirty years, since I had that dumb

thought, I've witnessed some of the most important pivitol events of history. The "evil

empire" of the Soviet Union collapsed, Germany was re-united, the nations of Europe formed a

of union of their own, the U.S. had itself embroiled in five wars, and we, as a nation, elected the

first black Marxist president, who promises to end the Republic for all time. Yes, we certainly

live in interesting times, I just hope I live long enough to see some of the wrongs righted.

Ever Find Yourself on the Wrong path?

As you go through life, you choose. You choose your path, you choose which way to face the

world, you choose how you want to live. Sometimes you can face the world in the right direction,

sometimes you can live the right way, but yet, the path you're on is totally wrong. That's my

problem. I try to be positive, ever hopeful, I don't want to hurt anyone, and I certainly don't

want to interfere with anyone's life; but I am most certainly on the wrong path. I swallowed the

BIG LIE hook, line and sinker. If anyone young reads this , I have some advice for you:

NEVER go into debt, don't be in a big rush to get married, and be even slower to have kids,

don't waste time going to college, unless you can get it paid for, and it's a truly timeless and

universal area of study, like the medical field, better off going to a trade school or the military.

Don't buy into all that 9-to-5 career bullshit, and all the associated detrimis that goes along

with it( big house, car, etc.), stay fluid and lean; you'll be better off in the long run. Finally,

try to live a simple life, you'd be surprised just how little you actually need to survive, and even

be happy. The less stuff you have, the less you'll have to lug around; trust me on this, it once

took me five months to move. I wish I could've followed my own advice when it mattered, but

like they say," live and learn". The best thing is- follow your heart, listen to your gut and don't

follow the herd.