The Caregiver’s Tales
Tiny essays on life, nature, grief and other things that catch my fancy in the Texas Hill Country. Here’s how it all got started.
Tags
- .River 1
- 290 1
- A Resolution 1
- AAA 3
- AC Unit 1
- ALS 1
- ASCII 1
- Abandoned 1
- Abundance 2
- Abyss 1
- Acceleration 1
- Acceptance 2
- Accomodation 1
- Accomplishments 1
- Aches 1
- Acid 1
- Action 1
- Activity 1
- Adjusting 2
- Adoption 2
- Adrift 1
- Advice 1
- Again 1
- Agarita 1
- Age 7
- Ageless 1
- Ages 1
- Aging 6
- Air 1
- Air-tags 1
- Aircraft 1
- Alexa 1
- Aliens 2
- Alone 3
- Alpine 1
- Alvin 2
- Ambition 1
- Ancient Seas 1
- Anderson Fair 1
- Android 1
- Angels 5
- Anger 2
- Angles 1
- Animals 1
- Ankle 1
- Anniversary 3
- Anticipation 6
- Antiviral Meds 1
- Ants 1
- Anxiety 2
The Experience
Had a metaphysical experience in Big Bend last week. On our first day in the park, we were driving around looking at the sights. There were four of us in the truck. I saw a display sign, the sort they have all throughout the park, and asked to stop. The driver obliged.
Green Rock
Let’s call it the mystery of the green rocks. We spotted them all over Big Bend last week as we drove in and out of the park and walked it’s hills.
The Walk
There were doubts. There were fears. There was the mind grappling with the incomprehensible. Could I walk a long and winding path of approximately 13 miles that rose into the sky 3,000 feet. I was unable to imagine what it would be like. Then I did it.
Then and Now
Went on a walk yesterday in the hills of Big Bend. The landscape where we walked was all ancient ash and lava flows, sculpted over 40 million years by the wind and rain.
Wondering
It’s cold this morning by Texas standards. The temperature is in the 40s. The sky is clear and there’s hardly a breeze.
The Big Prune
Boy, when mother nature decides to prune trees, she goes all in. I went to help a friend in Wimberley clear fallen limbs from the recent ice storm. I worked about four hours around three or four trees. I kept my chain saw humming and filled a 16-ft trailer with four foot high sides with branches.
Foraging
Got out the old push mower and mowed a bit yesterday, then took a nice long walk over the hills and dales of our little town. Clocked in at a little over an hour for 3.32 miles. Gained about 135 feet of elevation.
Quiet Day
Woke to the sound of rain this morning. It’s still coming down, in a slow, measured pace. And it’s a cold rain, which makes little difference to the ground or the bluebonnets in the back pasture, and they are profuse.
Exploring
Bought a book yesterday. It’s sure to keep me up nights. The Anatomy of a Paleozoic Basin: The Permian Basin, USA. I mean, we’re talking about a story that happens over the course of 540 million years.
Monday
My new schedule seems to be agreeing with me. Weekends are free of alarm clocks and the pressure of writing. Weekdays still find me at the keyboard before daylight, but I’m sleeping later and better so that’s a win.
Family Day
We had a nice family Christmas yesterday although we missed the brother, son, and middle child. He was home ill. We ate, we drank and made merry then swapped presents. It was fun all the way around.
I’m Ready
Still wet. Still cold. Going to get colder still. The forecast low Thursday is 14. I’d say that will be a hard freeze. A squeeze the life out of everything freeze.
Cold Day
It’s in the 30s. I know some of my readers will think, oh to be there, but to be fair, it’s still cold. So, it’s sort of a shared experience. Except no snow.
On the Trail
Home again. Home again. I love being on the road. I love being home. There is nothing quite like your own bed. But then again, there is nothing like sleeping on a trailer’s dining room table that folds into a bed, especially if you have a self-inflating mattress, which I do.
The Canyon
Went for a walk to the far reaches of McKittrick Canyon yesterday in Guadalupe Mountains state park. The day was cool, the breezes constant and the beauty nearly overwhelming.
On The Trail
Watched the blood moon of a full lunar eclipse this morning. It was hanging in the clear skies over the Guadalupe Mountains. I tell you; I have fallen well and truly in love with West Texas.
Sundown
Went to the hills just south of town to watch the sun go down yesterday. There were big clouds all around. I thought they might make for a nice show. They did.
Cold Front
The wind blew, the lightning flashed, and it rained. One tenth of an inch. A tiny bit anticlimactic. Now the wind is blowing like it has something to celebrate.
Big Thought
The wind is still howling this morning. Knocking the trees around and just generally being a nuisance. There’s a good chance it will rain today. But I’ve been there before. And when you’re in a time of drought, it can be a cruel hoax.
Windy Days
The south wind blew yesterday. Shook the trees. Chased leaves across the yard. Ran it’s fingers through my hair. It’s still at it this morning. A mass of air rushing across the land in a big hurry.