Catching up

 Been awhile since the ole Phoenix might rise.  

And it did all right

And life has been at a dizzying pace.

There have been too many things to mention them all.  I got married (again) to a long-lost love, moved away from Shasta County with a new job promotion, then moved back to Shasta County, and started back at my old job, albeit keeping the promotion.

3 acres, chickens, dog, cat, and garden.  I couldn't be happier.  Things are going quite well.  

Hoping to get a couple of goats this year.  we are all loving the room, space, and HUGE no neighbor views of the valley, including our most spectacular views of Mt. Shasta and Mt. Lassen.

INCREDIBLE

My son is back in the states after living in japan for 5 years.  My daughter is back in the states after living in Italy for the last 3-4 years.

We all survived the interesting 2020, as well as COVID in general, an election, and a historic fire season in California.  Here's hoping for a brighter, less confusing, more peaceful 2021.

Also hoping to keep this more updated, even though there is noone out there to read it.  LOL

2016 Update?

Looks like this is my 1st post on this blog in 2016. That is sad!

I hope to change that and do more posting for the rest of this year and 2017 and beyond.

To preserve my sanity, I write. I need my sanity right now.

Work this year has been steady but relatively fire-free on the Shasta-Trinity. Under 100 fires all for under 100 acres total is an excellent year for us.....unless you want lots of overtime, then not so much. I'm not interested in tons of OT, my time is more valuable.

New church this year, since Destiny fellowship disbanded. My new church is Little Country Church, or LCC. Great service, worship is ok, and they have tons of ministry programs for anyone and everyone. Really excited to fully integrate into this church.

Went on 4-5 backpack trips this year. All in my favorite Trinity Alps. I could link them, but I'm not going to. My guess is there are not many who still read this or even know it is here.

Still a single male and this worries me more as I progress in life. I feel like I have more to offer now, then I ever have in my life. I WANT to share life with someone, it's my favorite thing to do. Though I am not really actively looking, I would love to find someone. Person I share life with now is only my best friend, but she is a model of who I expect and deserve in life. She will find her man.

Still no cigarettes. Very proud that its been more than 6 months, can't even remember. I am still vaping, but now at the lowest nicotine you can get.

Also playing games a little more lately, as boredom is taking over, and games are good time killers. At least you are active while playing, unlike watching shows on the boob tube. Current games are PS4: Overwatch, Rebel Galaxy, Prominence Poker, NMS. And on the PC playing a little of Legion on WoW.

Running still whenever I get a chance. 8 miles average is my run. New shoes are Altra Lone Peak 3.0. Stand Up Paddling (SUP) often. Got a new hybrid bike this year, for riding mostly on pavement. Kona Splice. Crosstrek is doing wonderful and has been the best car I have ever owned. Like rails on a dirt road!

Already getting bored of writing this update so going to leave before I don't write for another year. We'll see how this works out.

Anyone still out there?

2014 Blogging

Well looking at this blog I see I've gone up and down in posting, with the latest almost an entire year without a post.  Natural considering my love for the outdoors has me outside DOING things more than at a computer.  2014 shouldn't change much, except that I want to blog more, inspired by some other bloggers that I follow.  I love writing and it clears my head of over-thinking.  So what can we expect for things to blog about in 2014?

Mostly outdoor stuff.  I hope to show how much fun the outdoors are, especially where I live, so close to so many things.  There is so much to do, why not share??!!

I also hope to share my love for food.  Good food! Healthy food!  I changed my diet and it changed my life, gave me energy and strength to do all of the things I love.  Food is simple and easy, out processed world of supermarkets has made it more complicated.  Simplify and have fun, your food will reward you ten-fold in feeling good!

Let's see how much blogging I can do in 2014!

June 2011

June is here!  While the fire season may not have kicked off here in Humboldt county, everywhere else is pretty active.  Our forest is almost depleted and down to drawdown numbers.  All of this means its been majorly busy sending these crews, engines, and overhead resources to all parts of the country.  We have people in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Alaska, Georgia, and Colorado.  Picking up some more overtime days (like today) which is nice.  Makes for shorter weekends but the extra money comes in handy 8)

Running is still going strong, my form changing has been developing nicely and every run seems to get better and stronger.  Almost all the initial aches and pains I was expecting from reading SO much have disappeared and am feeling most excellent.  I have a local Six rivers Running Club run this Saturday called the Dow's Prairie Run 2m/6.1m.  I am going to run the 6.1 miler.  Its free, kickback, and should be fun, incorporating it into my normal running routine.  Next week my training routine will be adding more miles to my routine each week as I switch from a 10k program to the 1/2 marathon training program.  I plan on my first 1/2 to be the Redwoods Marathon in October.  Soooo excited already.

In July I have a night race in Davis, CA called the Davis Mooo-n-Light race.  Sister and her husband, John will probably run it with me, as I've re-bitten them with the run-bug (they raced a lot of races in Guam).  Than in August, right before my weeklong backpacking trip, planning on running the Terrapin 5k (how can I resist a tye-dye tech shirt).

Last weekend I raced in the inaugural California Fun Run in Vacaville, CA with my sister and her husband.  Let me tell you about an unorganized race.  Firstly, they did not allow packet pickups at the race.  So we went to Mena's Bistro the evening before (this is a Mexican restaurant).  They had some volunteers working the table that knew absolutely zero about the race.  The carb dinner was pasta with or without meat sauce AND was double the price of their regular mexican menu (the carb meal was a special entree just for this event).  Needless to say, we all ordered a regular mexican fair.

Morning erupted with torrential downpours outside and was raining still pretty good on our way to the race.  Misty, Christy's dog was going to run with us as well.  By the time we got there, the rain had pretty much stopped, but everything was still soaked.  This course has a 5k, 10k, 1/2 and full marathons, and a 50k.  Each course followed different paths around and through the area.  Most of the volunteers for the race figured rain would scare the runners away and didn't show up.  Poor race organizers.  This meant many of the turning points were unclear and many people missed their turns or took the wrong direction. 

I didn't have any problems and found a very nice young lady to run most of the race with.  The course was half pavement and half dirt trail.  The trail sections were SOOO muddy.  I started down the trail and instantly my shoes were caked with mud.  A quick jump into the taller grass and everything went fine.  Overall, I really loved the run, didn't notice much of the disorganization, and improved my only previous time by 3 minutes.  YAAAYY!!

Weekly Yoga is now a part of my training routine and my body cannot believe how wonderful it feels after getting wrung for an hour.

Besides the race, last weekend was very busy socially.  I started my weekend off with a trip to Yreka to see my son, Sam graduate from high school!  Whoah, boy did he grow up quick!  Check out my album of the event as well as his high honors graduating.  GRATZ, SAM!! 

On this trip I brought with me about a 12 pack of my homemade Honey Porter.  I had several friends to drop these off at.  I started in Willow Creek, dropped 2 off on my way to Yreka.  Then in Vacaville my brother, sister, and I enjoyed a few.  Then immediately following the race I travelled to Yuba City to visit a friend and her family.  WooHoo, awesome family!  Felt like the ole days hangin out in the CCCs.  A short visit and a long trip home finally got me home.  Ive put over 2500 miles on my car since I got it!  Time to slow down.

Only had 2 days off this weekend (WEd/Thurs) and spent it starting AND finishing True Blood: Season 3.  What a ride! Love that series!  Being broke meant doing very little and really relaxing to awesome beautiful Fortuna days (gone today ). 

Lots of personal stuff going on.  Finally getting serious about quitting smoking (yes, a runner and still smoke) and its getting very close.  My coach at work has given me my final day, July 17th.  I'm trying to get them gone well before that date 8)  Will be so nice to be free of them! Socially, nothing new happening as my focus has shifted less to whats out there and more to whats inside (me).  I am reconnecting with more friends via Facebook, and so far these have been some of the bestest of friends to reconnect with.  Some I hardly knew years ago but have become great friends, others I hung out with and now are closer than ever.  LOVE IT!

Humboldt is still Humboldt.  I think when I came over here my idea of what it would be like was based on memories of 25 years ago going to college at HSU.  I have been disappointed overall with my return over here.  Going to give it some more time but already (thank you Forest Service for allowing me to go anywhere) looking elsewhere.  Before I got offered this position, my first choice was in Medford, OR and Lakeville, OR.  So starting to look across the border (again) and get out of this horrible state of California. 

My studio apartment is finally feeling more like home as I have brought many personal items back from Yreka to decorate and make my home more me!  I'm off on my own for good so might as well start living like it!  It took awhile to climb out of my shell when I first came over here, but now that I'm out (minus a few hiccups), lookout world!  I love chatting with folks so if we haven't talked in awhile, send me a note!

Love everyone!!

May is Here

The time is flying by.  May is here!  The fire season is set to kick off in this neck of the woods, and I can't wait for some business!  Winter has been boring, but the end of winter many thing changed the Humboldt lifestyle.  Running, hiking, a new car.  The car is probably by far the biggest of the bunch, as now I can explore around me the fullest, find new places and events to run, and discover hikes that take me deep into new territory. 

My first race was May 1st.  The Avenue of the Giants.  I was signed up for the 10k.  My son, Sam came over with his buddy, Dalton and family, to run the half-marathon as part of their senior project.  This turned out awesome.  I got to pick up Sam in Eureka and spend the day with him.  We watched a parade in Eureka, went to the Baymont for sushi, mmmmmmm, checked out College of the Redwoods, drove down to the race to pick up our race packets, then returned for Sam's first look at Dad's new place in Fortuna.  We went to Taco Loco, my favorite mexican in town, for a pre-race dinner.  Tasty!!

Race day was exciting, driving down to my first race.  Took off later than I wanted, but early enough to avoid too bad a jam for parking.  LOTS of people!  Was amazed at the number of people racing in each event.  Sam went looking for his friend, and I took off to the Marathon start to see if I could find Chandra, my friend running the marathon, and inspiration for returning to running.  Yeah, RIGHT!  Wasn't gonna find anyone with all those people!  I just soaked it all in and enjoyed the start, saw Sam and crew off shortly following on the Half, and got myself ready for my race, the last to start.

I was nervous and excited.  I had been nursing a sore knee and hadn't run the last few weeks.  I was in new shoes that had almost zero miles on them.  But I felt great!  Had 3 goals for the race: 1. Finish   2. Focus on form   3. Smile     I took off and didn't pay attention to anyone around me, just ran at my pace, with my form, steady.  I felt great.  I didn't need any drink at the aid stations and felt like my pace was good.  I had, of course, forgot to start my own stopwatch, grrrrr.  I just ran.  I kept a constant smile, that was very infectious, really enjoyed myself.  People passed me, I told them 'Great job!', I passed people, I said 'Great job'.  I was pretty cool.  Before I knew it I was at the halfway turn around.  I ate a few Power Blasts, and increased my pace ever so slightly.  On the way back I started to see the marathoners and half-marathoners.  I kept pumping away.  When I saw the bridge at the finish, I really started kickin it.  Came across the line with an official 56:16 for 6.2 miles.  A Personal Record (PR) for me, since its my first time ever.

I got my medal at the finish line and headed to the big bend in the course where marathoners were starting to come around.  From this point I could see both the marathoners or the half-marathoners.  Before long big tall Sam came jamming across the bridge, practically full sprint!  Sam finished his half-marathon at 1:53:37, awesome job, Sam!!!  Dalton came in a few minutes behind Sam, lookin good for not quite training as much as he had hoped.  They kicked it and were heading slowly homeward to Yreka.  Great times!!  I headed back to the bend and soon spotted Chandra reaching her half-way point with a big smile and looking  energetic and strong! Vroom, she was off! I sat around the finish line and enjoyed all the variety of people coming across the finish lines in their races.  Really neat experience.  Before I knew it, Chandra was coming to the finish line, a long 26.2 miles finally over.  I am in awe at anyone running that distance, and hope to one day reach that point.  Incredible!!

I finished the awesome day with more sushi at the Bayfront with Fern and Chandra, a couple Great Whites, and homeward.  I was so sore I could barely move.  I re-aggravated my knee a little but no where close to how it was, shouldn't be long before its stronger than before.

Already signed up for 2 more 10k runs down in Vacaville and Davis, where Christy and John live.  Be awesome to see them, share some brews, and I've been told, possibly enter the race with me.  I hope so, would be great!!  Also thinking of signing up for my first half-marathon Octoberish, the Redwoods one.  We'll see how the training, knee, and future races go to decide.

Another batch of beer is bubbling away.  Making a Honey Porter, from Austin Homebrew Supply (AHS). their recipes.  Great ingredients, really looking and tasting nice so far.  Just racked it into the glass carboy a few days ago, should be bottling next Thurs, 3 weeks aging for perfection.  

Started working the HIKE into my exercise routine.  Karen, my friend down south, inspired me to hit the hills, since she is non-stop pounding the trails into dust every day.  I got a nice trail book of the area (thx, Chandra!) and have been knocking out hikes, starting with ones close by.  I did some nice trails up in Russ Park in Ferndale, hit Centerville Beach North, trails through Rohnerville Park in FortunaMattole Rd, and hit Squaw Creek Ridge trail to Whiskey Flat Camp.  Was a nice 5.5 mile round trip.  Beautiful cool day.  Whiskey Flat was a neat grove of redwoods where an old whiskey still use to be during prohibition times.  My legs needed the hike, my knee didn't.  grrrrr, might have to solely bike for a few weeks till my knee is back. 

Have a ton of hikes planned, would be awfully nice to do them with someone, makes the time go so much quicker.  Also working on more runs.  My barefoot training is up to 30 second runs.  I have a new pair of 'barefoot' shoes.  They are not the five toe ones.  They are the Merrell Trail Gloves.  Love em.  Fit like a glove, zero drop, great soles and vibram tread.  Keeping my training short distances but it has helped my running form so much I incorporate some 'barefoot' training into every week.  Anyone who is interested in a great book, read  "Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen" by Christopher McDougall. This guy knows how to write a story!!  His storytelling is superb, fast-paced, compelling.  A truly incredible story for anyone.  


With the new car, got to visit back home.  Everyone is doing well.  Emily got lots of time driving in the new car, and shortly after I left, went through the Training Wheels program with a 97% completion!! AWESOME JOB!!  She is a great driver.  Little bit of time driving with mom now and she'll have her permit and license.  Sam has been incredibly busy with school, track, and his senior year.  I don't know how he keeps going.  Endless activities!!  Hope to head back over soon in spring/summer to help with a big garage sale that has been long overdue.  


Still haven't met any new friends in Humboldt.  Reconnected with a couple of friends in the area, Fern (Christy) and Chandra.  So its been nice to see some familiar faces now and again.  And to hear Fern, of course, on the local radio station, The Point, with her public service announcement!  Awesome!  Love it every time I hear it.  Reconnected with some others across the distances, which has been incredible.  really needing more of a social life here in Humboldt.  Really thought coming back over here I was somehow going to be coming back to something I remember from over 25 years ago.  HAAAHHAAA  Yeah, right!  I've changed, the world's changed, the area has really changed.  I relate to it in a whole different way.  But my newfound freedom in the car will allow me to explore and hopefully meet some new people.  We'll see.


For those who didn't know, my 'new' car is a used 2006 Hyundai Sonata, V6, fully loaded.  Really comfortable and plush car.  Rides like a dream.  For a V6 gets decent gas mileage.  Reset the computer when I drove it off the lot and have been able to maintain around 28 MPG so far.  Got 105,000 on it but from what I've read, this is break-in mileage for these cars.  Hope it sees a couple more hundred thousand before I give it up.  


Weather is starting to warm up a wee bit.  One more winter like we just went through, I will be looking for other living possibilities.  For someone into hiking and running, this last winter just killed me.  In the future: backpacking trip in August, 25 year reunion that I'm still unsure whether I'll attend (would be a great place to start doing some of that 'meeting people').  Few races, work.  I joined a local running club, the Six Rivers Running Club (they actually put on the Avenue marathon).  They have runs weekly, the only ones I can make are Saturday mornings through the Arcata Community Forest.  I should be able to make a few of those and look forward to it.  My bike that I cursed and parked should see some more activity while my knee gets fully healed.


Saw Thor in 3-D.  Was pretty awesome.  The story was so-so, but Marvel's 3-D experience was quite the trip.  Really enjoyed the 3-D, never ceases to amaze me.  This is in Real-D (not the red/green glasses) and is digital projected on a 30' tall screen.  Incredible!  With all the 3-D movies, I feel privileged to live near the only Real-D theater in Humboldt County to see these.  I'm shrinking.  All the activity has me down to 159.  Had to buy new pants because my old 36s I had to have a huge belt or pull them up.  32s are so much nicer.  Could use  a little more meat on my bones but no luck so far, no matter what I eat.  


Got some big upcoming events in the next month or so.  Really look forward to some incredible experiences and great times with some awesome possibilities.  We'll see how it goes!! Love everyone!

Busy Winter

Well this is long overdue post.  Helps my busy-mind to write this stuff, bear with me.  Winter in Humboldt has been very wet.  I love the rain but you need a break once in awhile, sheesh!  Made a batch of beer, an Oktoberfest, which was so awesome to be brewing again, gonna keep it going strong.  Ber turned out good, little over-carbonated, little weak on the alcohol (~4%) but 2 cases of good beer for around $25, can't beat it.

For the whole month of January I went to Ione, CA for the ECC dispatch academy.  Ione is a Calif State CalFire place, with a smidgen of Feds thrown in for good measure. Hmm how to describe a month at Ione....not possible.  It sucked but passed with flying colors.  Went to the sisters every weekend and being with family made the trip worth it.  Very nice.  Awesome at the Bolle's, great family!  Congratulations to John for his promotion, Christy will be close behind whether she wants it or not!

Now this month I have 2 separated weeks of training down in Sacramento area at McClellan at WFTC (Wildland Fire Training Center).  Its been fun.  These training you get to meet and network with lots of people.  Pouring rain since I got here.  This week is D-311 which is Initial Attack Dispatcher, teaches you what to expect when going to other forests as an IA dispatcher.  Week after next its D-310, which is Expanded Support Dispatch, basically being proficient on ROSS, EERAs and stuff for when you go on assignment.

The earthquake in Japan and following Tsunami reached our area on the Lost Coast.  Talk about a crazy-ass day that was.  Crescent City harbor got destroyed and we had resources (mostly CalFire) everywhere helping with evacuations and other things.  Was scary but nowhere as scary as to those in Japan.  Their nightmare will continue for some time.  I hope they stay strong.  I really respect the Japanese and their strength during adversity.

Bike is still running strong, changed my brakes for the 1st time, they needed it.  Also wrecked for the 1st time, if you are on FAcebook you saw the post.  No stitches or broken bones so really no big deal.  My bike left the pavement for one second, for 1 inch, with all the rain it was pure mush, wheel disappeared and into the road my face went.  LOL

Have I ever told you I hate travelling.  With the highest detest.  I hate it whenever I get places where there are any kinds of large populations.  ok anything south of Humboldt.  All the people just drive me crazy.  Don't see how people live in big cities, or even cities over 10k.  I hate it.  Hate all the people, cars, filth.

Family is doing well.;  Sam graduates from high school this year.  Still on his 4.0 streak, played soccer, now track starts back up.  Such a busy boy.  Emily has been doing awesome.  Applying for jobs at 15 and trying hard to get out in the world.  That girl will succeed no matter what she does.  Miss my dog.  But she keeps busy on her Dogbook page (check it out on FB, her name is Sage Ripper Buckner).

The only other big news I really don't want to get into quite yet, if ever.  Needless to say its been significant in changing my Humboldt life, giving me new energy and hope, and making life so much better to live!! 8D  Hate to jinx anything, so mums the word.

Still looking for a car, though with training it hasn't been going very well.  I think I have the money now for a good car, just gotta find one and sift through all the crap out there.  Plus a ride would be nice so that I can actually look at some of the more interesting ones.

Read a ton of books while in Ione.  I highly recommend The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.  I hate to admit you have to look in the teen section to find it.  Wow! great 3 book series.  I gave the series to my landlord's 11 year old and she loved it!  Also read the Starcraft archive by multiple authors.  Nice collection of great sci-fi stories based around Bizzard's Starcraft universe.  And than I read 2 of Ludlum's books.  Always a thrill ride with his books (think, author of the Bourne series).  My new game: Rift.  Very awesome, and I'm too tired to write what it deserves.  Trust me, one of the better MMOs out there right now, just released, no bugs, heavy population.  Enough, no one wants to hear about video games.

Looking forward to the future for the first time in awhile, looking forward to the next day!   Strange where you find things sometimes, and when.

And a special shout-out to CHINOOK!!  

Too tired for more.  CIAO

End of October

A lot going on even though things are slowing down, work at least, and things are shifting to winter mode. I needed to throw out an update because it is overdue.

So our fire season is over and seasonal employees have been laid off. The forest has shifted into its winter mode and this means a few changes for us in dispatch. One change is our schedule. We can now come in at 0700 and work our 10 hours. Getting off at 1730 (5:30 pm) is nicer than 1830 when most has closed in town. A lot of our daily routine has been eliminated and now we are working on projects geared towards next year's season. Prescribed burning is in high gear as we burn fuels and clean up the forest to keep it healthy and lessen the possibility of severe fires in specified areas.

The weather has been the defining element to the end of our fire season and the rain has arrived to Humboldt County. I've already had a few early morning dark and wet bike rides to work. My schedule also changed in the days I work. Instead of Fri-Mon I now am working Wed-Sat with Sun/Mon/Tues off. Finally nab part of a weekend which will be nice to be able to finally check out some of the varied things that happen on the weekends.

I finally got to make a trip home for about a week. With the change in my schedule I was able to find a week of time and only have to take 2 days of leave since I don't have much built up yet. It was fantastic to see the family and I got lots done. My honey-do list had been growing since I first started my new job so I got to work. I replaced a bunch of light switches and outlets in the house, fixed our fence in the front yard, stacked and cut a bunch of fire wood, fixed a shower head, fixed a toilet water valve, removed an old gutter, and some other odds and ends. Having projects to do was fun. Some of these should have been done long ago but, regardless, they got done finally.

Went to Medford with Sam and we went to see My Soul to Take in 3D. It was alright. Then we went to Lava Lanes and bowled a few games. The next day I spent with Emily driving around the roads near our house. She just got her driving permit and so I took her out and let her drive around for an hour or so. She did awesome! So it was a great trip home and so needed!

Fortuna has been ok. Sucks being away from family; sucks not knowing anyone; sucks not having a car. But otherwise being over here has been comfortable. My cooking has slowed down quite a bit recently. Cooking for one person is hard to get motivated for. So I've been lazy and eating out a lot. Its so easy to stop at one of the many Mexican restaurants and grab a huge burrito on the way home. Another favorite is a Safeway sandwich. I get the large during the day, eat half at work and have the other half for dinner.

Hard to live in Humboldt and enjoy good beer. Thus, my beer consumption has increased quite a bit since being over here. Its too easy while in Fortuna to drop by the brewery and have a pint or stop at the Lost Coast Brewery while in Eureka for a nice brew.

I'll be so glad when this election year is over. If you live in California you know what I mean. The stuff on tv is driving me nuts. Speaking of election year, we have Prop 19 this year, to legalize marijuana. This prop is messed up and written pretty poorly. However, they can fix those things later and polish it up. I'm eager to see the legal system get cleaned up and to clear up the prison system, which is far too overcrowded to have petty pot smokers locked up. If passed, however, Humboldt county here would be devastated I think. Marijuana is the number one industry up here because the price is profitable. Legalized, the market could potentially collapse and really hurt these growers. But Humboldt has an opportunity to make themselves known if it becomes legal. They already have the brand name recognition so all they need to do is make this a destination of choice for people around the world, similar to the Amsterdam.

Starcraft 2 is out! And Cataclysm is just around the corner! I love you Blizzard! Yes, I have been playing Starcraft 2 exclusively since it came out. They have really taken RTS to the next level! Incredible story, stunning CGI cinematics between campaign missions, and huge online play and community. I've also grown addicted to watching 'shout-casts' of games between pro players. The original Starcraft had a huge player base complete with world-wide tournaments and tens of thousands in prize money. In Korea it is still a daily game show. So with Starcraft 2 finally out, the tournament play has already kicked into high-gear and watching matches with the right commentator is really exciting.

Brought my bass over with me and have been spending more time practicing and thumping around on it. More than I have in a few years. Spent some time last week watching my landlord so some really cool pottery work. He has several kilns and I finally got to see him work with them. He had made some flower-vase type pieces and was doing something called 'glass shatter' or something along those lines. He applies the glaze, sticks it in a kiln. heats it up, then at a certain time, takes the piece out. The piece is then sprayed with misty water, the glaze cracks into fine little cracks as the water sizzles on its hot surface. He than takes the sizzling piece and puts it into a metal garbage can filled with newspaper or other highly flammable material. The material catches fire, the lid is placed on the can. Inside the can, the thickening smoke penetrates all of the fine cracks in the glaze and, when done, gives the coolest look to whatever its done to. Incredible process!

Fortuna recently got done with their annual apple festival. There is a local orchard and they have an annual event in town where you get to participate in making apple cider, tons of events and other things going on in town during this festival. I tell ya, Fortuna really has their town squared away. It is pretty, clean, low crime, and friendly people. It is the 'Friendly City' after all.

Got to check out the Somoa drag strip the other day. Will definitely be attending some drag racing next year. And its even a NHRA certified track! I was there helping out the EVO (Emergency Vehicle Operator) course we had going there. I was playing the dispatcher and creating lots of distracting fire traffic as the participants drove fire engines through a course with an evaluator on board, code-3, sirens blaring. It was fun.

Family has been fantastic. Sam is in his senior year of high school. Wow! He also got homecoming king this year. We just finished getting his senior pictures done and they turned out so good! Can't wait to share em. As of now Sam plans on going into the Air Force through the ROTC program. He may have to do a year at a junior college, however, to get some course work done that is required. Emily is the usual busy-bee with a million things going on all the time. Ang has been busy with work as well as holding down the fort which is a full-time job in itself.

Football season sucks. I've never seen such a good team (the 49ers) suck so much in a season. On the plus-side, in baseball, which I never watch, the Giants are 2-0 in World Series and I have been surprisingly enjoying the games so far.

A sage smudge is the best odor-hider around. Jelly Bellys are the best snack! I've been a die-hard satellite tv lover for years. However, if I lived over here I would have local cable. I love watching all the local advertising and local news. We have nothing in Yreka but our local channel which only shows select local events at random times.

This winter will be busy for me at work. They are sending me to lots of training, which is great! I'll get to go to Ione for Cal-Fire's academy, which Forest Service sends people to. It is for the dispatch part of the job. I'll be down there most of January. Then I get to go to McClellan for a couple week course and have a few week-long courses they are sending me to.

Nakedness is natural (and fun).

Taco Loco makes a burrito that's gotta weigh 5 pounds! Its HUGE! Keep your spirits up and stay optimistic. Reading several books at the moment: Starcraft II Heaven's Devils, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, and Galileo by Clive Barker.

Well I actually thought this would be longer but I've probably babbled enough already. Take care.

Another Day

So here's the weather that I read every day on my on-days, over the radio

This is for today June3, 2010

".DISCUSSION...
A WARM FRONT WILL PRODUCE LIGHT RAIN ACROSS THE DISTRICT THIS
AFTERNOON AND EVENING. GUSTY SOUTH WINDS WILL DEVELOP OVER
NORTHERN PORTIONS TONIGHT AHEAD OF AN APPROACHING COLD FRONT. THE
COLD FRONT WILL BRING WETTING RAINS TONIGHT AND FRIDAY
MORNING. DRIER CONDITIONS ARE EXPECTED SATURDAY.

CAZ201-040130-
NORTH COAST STRIP...FROM OREGON BORDER TO ROCKPORT CONSISTING OF
COASTAL SECTIONS OF DEL NORTE...HUMBOLDT...AND A SMALL PORTION OF
MENDOCINO COUNTY. INCLUDES PORTIONS OF CA NPS AND REDWOOD PARKS.-
231 AM PDT THU JUN 3 2010

.TODAY...
SKY/WEATHER.........ISOLATED SHOWERS IN THE MORNING. PATCHY FOG
AND DRIZZLE IN THE MORNING. RAIN IN THE
AFTERNOON.
MAX TEMPERATURE.....58-66 AT THE COAST...63-71 INLAND.
24 HR TREND......LITTLE CHANGE.
MIN HUMIDITY........84-94 PERCENT AT THE COAST...63-73 PERCENT
INLAND.
24 HR TREND......LITTLE CHANGE.
20-FOOT WINDS.......
VALLEYS/LWR SLOPES...LIGHT WINDS 2 TO 5 MPH...BECOMING SOUTH 5
TO 10 MPH...WITH GUSTS UP TO 20 MPH IN THE
AFTERNOON.
RIDGES/UPR SLOPES....VARIABLE WINDS 3 TO 7 MPH...BECOMING SOUTH 8 TO
13 MPH...WITH GUSTS UP TO 24 MPH IN THE
AFTERNOON.
LAL.................1.
CWR(>.10)...........90 PERCENT.

.TONIGHT...
SKY/WEATHER.........RAIN.
MIN TEMPERATURE.....50-59.
24 HR TREND......LITTLE CHANGE.
MAX HUMIDITY........92-100 PERCENT.
24 HR TREND......LITTLE CHANGE.
20-FOOT WINDS.......
VALLEYS/LWR SLOPES...SOUTH WINDS 10 TO 15 MPH...WITH GUSTS UP TO
30 MPH.
RIDGES/UPR SLOPES....SOUTH WINDS 10 TO 18 MPH...WITH GUSTS UP TO
32 MPH.
LAL.................1.
CWR(>.10)...........90 PERCENT.

.FRIDAY...
SKY/WEATHER.........RAIN IN THE MORNING...THEN SHOWERS LIKELY IN
THE AFTERNOON.
MAX TEMPERATURE.....56-64 AT THE COAST...62-70 INLAND.
MIN HUMIDITY........90-100 PERCENT AT THE COAST...65-75 PERCENT
INLAND.
20-FOOT WINDS.......
VALLEYS/LWR SLOPES...SOUTH WINDS 8 TO 13 MPH...WITH GUSTS UP TO
27 MPH.
RIDGES/UPR SLOPES....SOUTH WINDS 11 TO 16 MPH...WITH GUSTS UP TO
30 MPH.
LAL.................1.
CWR(>.10)...........90 PERCENT." I read that type of forecast for 2 other zones as well, making several zones together (since a few of the zones share the same weather).

So its been in the low 60s lately, raining alot still. But the 60 degree weather is so much more temperate than Yreka's freezing weather. And it stays this way year-round. Summer 65-75, winter 55-65. 20 degree difference whereas Yreka could go from 110 down to 10.

GO LAKERS!! waitin on game 1 tonight.

Only been on 6 days total but love the job so far. Right up my alley without the law enforcement side of things. Life seems so much more laid back already. So nice to get out of the law enforcement side of life. Dealing with fires only is more up my alley and reflects from back when I was a firefighter. I'm already picking things up quickly and really enjoy how things work. We dispatched several people to fires in Alaska almost exclusively from the computer. Orders come in from North-Ops (i Redding), we pull a query for our forest, and a list of names pops up as to who is qualified for that position.

It feels like electronically dispatching. We filled orders for a radio operator, strategic site manager, equipment recorder, helicopter crew-member, and 2 others. Made some people happy so early in the fire season. So within an hour of receiving th eorder, we had plane trips set up for them leaving the next day to Alaska; pretty cool!

Last night the family I live with invited me over for dinner; they smoked a turkey outside all day and we had that, mashed potatoes, corn, and a salad. Very awesome of them!! Rearranged my apartment. Been sipping off a my growler (have to get a pic up today of the Growler).

Did some work outside, goofed around, rdy to go back to work morrow. Laterz all

Fortuna May 2010

So here we go. Off on a new adventure; new place, new job, new everything. As you may or may not know, I was working part-time as a dispatcher for my police department. Part-time sucks; good check one week, small pay check the next. With no sign of a full-time position opening up anytime soon, I had begun looking for full-time work. Out of the blue, a position was listed on the Forest Service site for a full-time Fire Dispatcher (the exact thing my wife does) in Fortuna, CA. I decided to apply and felt that I was highly qualified with my past fire-fighting experience. One day while working I got a call to see whether I was still interested in the job. I stated 'yes' and a few hours later a call came in stating I had been accepted for the position.

The wife and I had talked extensively prior to this about all of the ramifications: how would our kids do if I took this job, how would we do, etc. Well the job is a big pay raise from my police dispatching job, with full benefits and retirement (plus my 5 years of army service would count toward this retirement.) The big bonus I saw was that it got me out of the law enforcement field where I was quickly getting burnt out having to deal with all the dumb-asses that are typical of the law enforcement field. Needless to say, I accepted the job.

Now this would be a 'returning home' for me since immediately after high school I went to Humboldt State University where I failed miserably after one year, more interested in 'out-of-school' activities rather than school. But I always felt that Humboldt County was home; it fit my mind-set and lifestyle, as well as being close to the coast which always has been close to my heart.

Fortuna is about 10 miles from the coast, inland, right along the Eel River. It is about 10 miles south of Eureka right along Hwy 101. The population is about 10,000 and little bigger than Yreka. The first thing I had to do was find a place to live since upon accepting the job, I was set to start within a months time. So I set forth for a few days to look for places to live. Being a homeowner for the past 20 years, I've been out of the rental scene for quite some time. I had no idea that the rental market was so depressed in this area. After 2 days I had nothing, Craigslist posting had started and I was getting depressed.

Within hours of leaving Fortuna back home I got a call of a cute-sounding place. It would be an attached studio apartment to a families' house, just outside of Fortuna. The family was real picky about who was going to live next to them as they had a 10 year old daughter (as well as 2 sons already out of the house). After talking extensively with them, I agreed to take the place, sight unseen.

Now I really began shitting bricks. I would be moving out here without my family, all alone and I was really getting scared. As my son put it "why would you want to move, you got it made here, part-time job, everything you want, lots of time to do whatever". He didn't see behind the scenes in that we weren't getting anywhere. This job, even with separate locations, would get us ahead.

So a week before my job was to start, I packed everything I thought I needed into our one car, and headed to Fortuna with the wife. I had my bike which would be my sole transportation while over there. After a beautiful, nut terribly long, 5 hour drive, we pulled up to my new home. I couldn't have dreamed of a more suitable place to live. The family that owns the property is very 'earthy' (o.k. kinda hippy-like) and the studio is gorgeous. It sits on about 3 acres, was built in the 70s, has huge windows everywhere, a deck around the whole place, and everywhere you look are Redwoods and other trees (see the pics I posted).

The place is so perfect. My wife was wonderful help getting the place cleaned up (our idea of clean is definitely different than other peoples), took me grocery shopping, and got me set up. Than she left. 8( all alone, all by myself. What the hell am I going to do. Well, a big plus to this place is all utilities are included in the low price. As well as cable and the internet. I had a week before my job started to explore, time the bike ride to work, etc. So day 2 I set out. Now getting to work takes about 10-15 mins on my bike and is a breeze, all downhill. Getting back is one mother fucking hell ride ending in a craptastic hill sure to humble any bike rider.

Look out Trail Machines! After doing this hill for every day after work (even walking my bike as it stand now) you'll be running after me on any future hills we encounter! There is a bus stop at the bottom of my hill and the wonderful thing is the local transit goes EVERYWHERE throughout Humboldt Count, as well as over to Redding and up to Del Norte County; all with easy bike racks on the front. What more could I ask for?

OK big pluses about living over here: the Eel River Brewery is right around the corner from my job. "Be Natural, Drink Naked" is their motto. First US brewery to be certified organic. The brewery where they mass-produce their beer is just down the road in Scotia but in Fortuna they have a cute pub where they make specialty bathes and serve the most awesome food I've ever had. I had their beer-steamed sausage made with local-made sausage and steamed in their own beer. Mouth-watering bliss! This will be a regular hangout for me. I've already been there twice to have a beer and get a 6 pack to restock the fridge. Friendly atmosphere makes me feel like home.

I am home. Away from the red-neck mind-set of Yreka and back to where my true mind-set and heart belongs. Back to a much more laid back vibe, back to 'my neck of the woods'. Today I went into town to get some more cereal and tea. After shopping I went to the brewery to enjoy 2 tall glasses of their own stout, 9.5% alcohol. Perfect conditions for my bike ride home. I didn't even attempt the hill this time, I walked my bike up, got home, stripped off all of my clothes, and laid out in my birthday suit on the grass in the sun, with nothing but Redwoods surrounding me. !!!! Heaven!

Yes, my family is a long ways away; visits probably won't happen for at least 6 months or more, but somehow I am at peace. PEACE! This is for the future of me and the family. Everyone will survive and get through it. My job is no cake-walk and will be hard with long hours and more than the scheduled 4-on, 3-off schedule I have now, especially once fire season kicks off here. I'll be working the 6 Rivers Forest area dispatching all of the local fire stations, law enforcement officers (LEOS), as well as ordering from all over the US for resources. None of that bothers me, I know I am perfect for this job and will perform exceptionally as I always do. I am a confident person. The biggest bother of this whole thing is leaving the family behind. I worry most about my 15 year old daughter who I cherish dearly. I hope she does ok and lifts herself through this. My exceptional son will do fine and continue his 4.0 and be off on his own shortly. I really miss my dog and hopes she does ok without me.

So here I am in the middle of Humboldt County with nothing but a bike for transportation. There are a couple people in the area I've known from the past: send me a note, let me know where you are, would love to see a familiar face amidst the isolation I feel now. I'll start feeling much better once work kicks in (this Sunday) and I can focus on work. did I mention: no more graveyards!!! Feds work days and this will be a welcome respite from the past spastic schedule of graveyards and days.

I am scared, nervous, excited: every emotion rolled into one. I love the vibe over here and it really suits me so much more than Yreka. Really going to love it over here just wish I could share it. OK kinda sharing it in this blog and that alone makes me feel better. Home is where the heart is and my heart has always been over here. Be nice to see my transformation back to who I feel I really am vs who Yreka had been turning me into. Hugs and kisses to everyone, especially my family. Hang tough and we'll keep Skyping all the time to keep close an din touch. I'm staying strong and I expect no less from you.

Thanks for hanging through such a long blog. Will continue to post new stuff. Peace out!