Notes

Listening to Oliver Anthony, Riding My Mountain Bike to Work 🚵‍♂️

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After last night’s rain that didn’t turn out to be too much it wasn’t a bad morning, though I got into the office a bit later then I would have hoped around 8:30 AM. But it’s fine, I cooked down a nice pot of black beans and rice and had some eggs with broccoli and onions.

I do wish I was on my way to West Virginia this year, ⛰ but with work and meetings I am much too busy for that, though I am thinking of heading out to Madison County for the Columbus Day Weekend assuming it’s not too wet. It would be a blast to ride some of the roads and Charles Baker, and also paddle Nine Mile Swamp. 🐸 Probably the colors are pretty good out in the hills of Madison County, they were getting pretty good at elevation in the hilltowns over the weekend. More cows and less coal then West Virigina but still fun. 🐄 I am hopeful next year, especially if I get a new truck and do not get too tighted up in owning a house or being a homesteder. 🚜 That house next to my parents house sold, but it would have been a mess to fix up and had too many neighbors even if it was cheap. You know, I do kind of like the smell of cow shit, and it’s legal to smoke pot in New York and be a stoned poney 🏇 at the State Horse Camp.

It seemed odd that I was home by 3 PM on Sunday, 🏠 but there was just shit to do before it got dark out, and I wanted to unpack and decompress before the week was done. I had a list of data jobs to run down at the library, and I was completely out of food but didn’t want to drive to the grocery store, ⛽ as I am low on fuel and I like biking to the grocery store as it forces me to make choices on what I buy. 🍎 It’s kind of a money saving strategy, I guess, plus it saves on fuel and the risk in getting in a crash. ‼ But maybe it’s kind of silly. 🤪 I also returned a bunch of beer cans, ♻ as that needs to be done so I got my $1.70 and it’s not like you can burn the cans.

I was so excited when they had fresh cranberries at Hannaford last night. 🔴 Seems silly but they’re such a seasonal treat. I ran home and made some delicious homemade pancakes with shredded cranberries, whole wheat flower, some stevia, baking powder and salt. 🥞 Lately I’ve been really into pancakes, using whole wheat flower and often hardy ingredients for dinner like chopped frozen vegetables 🥦 and soy sauce. Just like to try new things. Eggs were good for breakfast as was the coffee. ☕ Mornings are so dark these days. And Friday it’s off to Madison County for the next adventure. 🛻 I’ve been wanting to paddle Nine Mile Swamp for a number years — it was over a decade since I last dun it.

I wish it was easier to have truly creative thoughts, see the world clearer 💭

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I wish it was easier to understand the world, have a clear, lucid understanding of the world around me. See things the way they really are, find the deeper meaning. But it’s so darn hard, as most of the time I’m just trapped in the same frame of reference and even when I smoke I get more tired then inspired. I just wish there was something deeper and more profound to life.

Squaw Lake

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Exploring Squaw Lake at Moose River Plains.

Should having a psychedelic experience be required for employment?

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It’s an interesting question. While for many jobs, you want people to be fully sober before working, it seems like that having a past psychedelic experience might actually be an asset as it provides such a moment of clarity.

A chance to laugh and see the world in such clarity. Rich colors and details otherwise overlooked like the exact patterns in the clouds. While such experiences do not continue once the high has worn off, the memories and wonder remain and that’s an asset for any career where creativity matters.

Blue skies and no wind makes for a beautiful morning ☀️

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A cool autumn but not cold feeling without the wind and lots of sunshine.

Taking down camp 🏕️ once again but as soon as Friday morning if the weather is decent I’ll be back in the woods as I’m thinking of doing a long weekend up in Madison County at Charles Baker State Forest. 🚵 Thinking about riding trail and maybe bringing the kayak 🛶 and on Saturday or Sunday paddling up through Nine Mile Swamp.

Probably check out Huyck Preserve 🚶 midday then maybe log in and process some of the data jobs at the Rennselaerville Library, then head home unpack, shower 🚿 and hop on my bike 🚲 and ride down to Hannaford for at least enough groceries for the first half of the week. Monday I’ll go to the laundromat to have clean clothes for work and then Thursday get propane, supplies and fuel ⛽ for my truck in preparation for that Columbus Day Weekend trip to Madison County.

Who knows though, the hurricanes 🌀 down south could change track or other things happen between now and the end of the week to change my mind. But I would like to do a trip to Madison County when it’s still colorful, warm enough to kayak and the trails are still open at Charles Baker. But I do fully admit it will be a busy weekend for work so it won’t be all fun and games.

Just buy a house, it will be great 🏠

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Your the Director. You make good money, you’ve saved and invested, you could buy a house with cash or get it at a good interest rate if you wanted the tax advantages of letting your money grow in the markets.

Don’t you know it’s foolish to pay rent. You’re just making your landlord rich, paying his mortgage. Renting is a temporary thing you do or what you do when you have no other options because you’re poor. Did I mention it’s foolish? Think of all the money you would be saving, paying the bank and establishing equity in your own home.

You’re in your mid forties but you’re still riding your mountain bike to work most days, except when you take the bus and transfer over to the shuttle. You know like the drunkards and the poor who don’t own cars. You’re spending your weekends in the wilderness, smoking pot, drinking beer and burning shit. Listening to shitty old music. Even when it’s cold and snowy as you hate living in the city.

But I really don’t want a suburban house. I hate lawns, I hate carpeting and vinyl siding. It would be such a waste of money to buy a structure I hate, costs a ton to heat and light and I wouldn’t bother even making the most minimal of repairs because I hate it and it’s all just garbage to me.

I want a small cabin up in the wilderness wherey I can shoot and own whatever hand and long guns I want without special government permission, burn whatever garbage I want and not waste my time washing out plastic bottles and tins cans for fake recycling, have pigs, goats and any other livestock I want, grow cannabis and other feed stuffs. I don’t mind shitting in a bucket, chopping wood or fiddling around with batteries and solar as that’s that I do half the year when I’m not back in my cesspool apartment in the city!

It will happen some day. Not that far in the future. I can see my net worth increasing and my years of experience paying off at work. After all, not everybody becomes a director. The financial experts say I am a fool but they are not me. They don’t understand my love of the wilderness and the small towns, the freedom to live the life I want to live. The houses I see on Zillow are so distasteful as is everything New York State and the liberalism it all involves.