The fort at the end of the world

Some kind of map in Grandpa's shed.  Hidden behind all the Christmas tree lights and gardening tools.  It's been there for years.  It tells you how to get to the fort at the end of the world.

The beginning of Summer

It's a bright blue sunny day.  Not a could in the sky.  Not one single cloud.  The sun starts to burn early in the morning and wakes most of the residents in the cove.  The old ones, the hard workers, the grandmothers and mothers and the children they watch all get up early with the sun and start stirring.  The sun can't wake the late night burners and dopers.  They stay asleep until the middle of the day and their yards are full of weeds, beer cans and old cars.  Hours before they even wake up, the legions of dog walkers stroll the neighborhood and judge everyone by the front yard.

Although I don't get up as early as the dog walkers, I rake the front yard sand and make it look like a zen garden.  Those judgy bitches will never have to worry about my front yard as long as it's my watch.  They carefully position their dog shit to add to the Zen Garden.  That's the dog walking crew, being all judgy and leaving shit all over the place.  What can you do?  I just rake and pick up the poo.  I'm sure the dog would just piss on a "Don't Shit Here" sign.

So there it is.  The sun burns across the sky.  Illuminating all.  If only I had the time to write it all down.

Reckless

It's seasonable cool this time of the year.  Within the next 2 months it will reach over 100 degrees and then stay there for several months.  We've still got some time and we might as well enjoy the present.  I open the french doors and walk out onto the courtyard and take a deep breath.  The air is fresh and crisp.  The neighborhood is super quiet.  It's mostly second homes or nice quiet couples.  It being located on a quiet street in a quiet neighborhood was the reason we moved here.  Los Angeles was too much for too little.  The moon is coming up and my dog wanders around sniffing the air.  She wanders off around the corner towards the pool.

The property is large, so I wander around it.  Strange desert weeds grow out of the wall and I light fire to them to prune them back.  It's not the optimal way to take care of these things, but it works.  It also makes for a nice fire display in the dark.

I hear the neighbors laughing and talking now.  It's been so long since the noise of Los Angeles that I actually miss it.  It's fun to hear people having a good time, and I even dream a little bit that I'm there with them.  Instead of just me and my dog in the courtyard, I'm hanging with smiles and listening to stories and then telling my own stories.  I laugh at funny things and boo at bad things and make new friends.   Soon, my laughing neighbors get in a car and drive off and I'm left by myself again.  Wandering the courtyard.

Trying to figure out the next move.  

What am I going to do with my life?  I need a profession.  I need something that will make the people that have signed up for my bullshit, something that will make them proud to have signed up for it.  I need to figure something out fast.

I wander about the yard, unconsciously following my dog around as I stare up into the stars.  Orion stands right up on the horizon of the St. Jacinto Mnts. as if protecting the Coachella Valley.   Leo is racing into space as the Twins are taking a more central role.  Taurus and Libra sparkle.  The Big Dipper spills it's contents all over the rest of this galactic arm.  Things are so clear out here.  

Not as clear as things in Pioneertown, but they're pretty clear.

I think I know what I have to do.

It's a beautiful day.

Thinking about America and it's place in the rest of the modern world.  Is it now more dangerous than ever to be alive with multiple threats? or has that dogma been preached to us throughout the centuries just to get us to move our asses a little faster.  The Atomic clock hangs over us at 3 minutes to midnight and still everyone is playing out their games without any real hurry as if there is plenty of time to work things out.

It's all fear mongering for one thing.  Don't believe the hype. 

We've got another 4 billion years until the sun explodes and takes the inner solar system with it.  Plenty of time to figure out how to explore the next level.