Spring, Dust and Mayans

The sunshine felt good today as it shed the last grasps of winter in-lue of the summer rays.  The threats of spring snow seem a distant memory of weeks gone by as the dust rises from the outdoor arena.  Spring is in full bloom, while the first baby of the year runs a few feet farther from her mother every day exploring the new world.  The eternal season of hope is upon us and all around are the promises of good things to come.  The last spring of the Mayan calendar, the 2,012 of our current system.  So here we sit in the changing times looking forward to the future.  I wonder if the Mayan’s realized it would be a Presidential election year?

The real interesting thing in realation to all this is the Mayans figured their civilization would survive 1,112 years longer than it did.  The last leaders of the collapsing empire seeing the inevitable began to offer people as sacrifice to change the fate of their rule.  Unable to appease the Gods the mighty civilization that was too big to fail became a part of history.  The great cities reclaimed by the Jungle, a unified language split into over 70 variations.  Unimaginable wealth buried in the tombs of the greats of the past.  While those who survived the great fall continued to live off the land, clinging to their “guns and religion”.

I suspect if the Mayans got the whole end of the world right, those who know how to farm, hunt and survive off the land will keep praying and living happily into the year 2013.  CEO’s, Lawyers, and a host of others who offer relatively useless services will disappear in despair.  Reclaimed by the jungle the great cities of our civilization reduced to nothing more than a mix of stone and history. If people are not producing something productive and beneficial they need to be called what they are, useless.  Much like the leaders of self absorbed civilizations of the past. I fear many who try to lead us, really aim to sacrifice us to their Gods of power and hate. 

I am glad the sun felt really good today and we are in a season of change.  I love riding outside, having the sun sting my winter white skin.  I enjoy looking at the pasture and seeing my baby run and play but staying ever so vigilant of where mom is.  I am not worried about the end of the world, so far everyone has miss calculated that.  I am still sure the cup is half full.  Not sure what riding in a dusty arena has to do with the history of the Mayans but sure don’t want to be like them.  Still think its funny they predicted the end of the world the same time as a presidential election.

From the Dark to the Light

In the distance is the outline of a man walking his horse; the bright arena lights however do not show color or the details of whom he is.  The horse follows quietly with his head low slowly swaying the reins side to side.  He methodically moves to his destination and in a few steps is out of my sight.  Walking on the edge of the shadow I never come to know who he is only the shape of his body and the willingness of his horse to follow.  Now vanished from my sight I ponder what is ahead for this team of mysterious nature.  The amazing 1000 pound animal and his 150 pound director. Off they go to work to train to find harmony, hoping that tomorrow they might win a chance to compete in the Finals and win a prize.  The work of a night at the horse show.

Often I fill we travel on the edge of light moving forward striving to come to something great.  Others sit farther in the darkness and question, judge, support, mock. Some rest inside the lighted arena already part of the great chase for fame and fortune.  The practice pen will determine in large part how things will go tomorrow.  Yet often the worst night before becomes the greatest run of ones life in the morning.  Sometimes it’s a long walk from the stalls to the pen and an even longer walk back to the same stall after.  Regardless of outcomes there always is a walk.

Right now a lot of folks are sitting in the dark waiting.  A few have already won a prize and gone home while others are pounding it out trying to find success tomorrow. I do see though long periods of no one taking a walk. It is inherently obvious that to get to the practice pen to get ready to show we need to walk.  So why are you sitting in the dark by the stall wondering who is that dark silhouette walking.  Why are you not saddled up and walking?  In my particular case at the moment the practice pen is only open to riders who show tomorrow so I have to wait until 11:00 p.m.  This however is reality my thoughts are more figurative.

When is it time to move forward and put the things that trouble us in the past?  The obvious answer is now, but what if the arena is closed to us at the moment because its not our turn, what do we do as we sit and wait?  Clean stalls, read a book, visit with friends and call the wife. When that is done we write in a blog read another book visit with another friend, all the while doing something but not moving toward what we want we are just waiting.  But then again there is a right time for action and is it now?

I am starting to understand there is a time and a season for everything.  There is a time to practice, a time to show. There is always a time to clean stalls.  There is a time in our life we need to struggle, financially, spiritually, physically, and emotionally.  We do this so when the season for money, spirituality, health and success come we embrace them and make the most of them.  Sometimes it really sucks sitting in the bad waiting for the season of the good, but just as 11:00 will come in just under an hour so to will the good times.  The great depression created the greatest generation, I know the great recession will aid in producing another great generation if when the time comes we get in the practice pen, then give it our all in the show pen.  Life is a season for gaining wisdom; we are gaining a lot right now.  Sometimes we need to just look a little harder at how to get from the dark stalls to the light.  We all however have drew up at a certain time and when it’s our turn we will be ready, as long as we take that walk from the dark to the light.

To love and hate a truck

A couple years ago the time had come to purchase a new truck.  After a long search I found a new Ford F-450, Diesel, crew cab, 4x4 dually, for a good price.  From the start I have had a love hate relationship with the truck.  For starters the truck is white a color I hate.  The interior however is King Ranch leather with heated seats, DVD, navigation, and satellite radio all things I love.  The truck has great power, handles amazingly and the dually gives me the stability while pulling my six horse trailer, all things I love when the truck is running.  The thing I hate is the trips to the service shop and gas stations.  The truck has an exhaust system that traps particles then injects fuel into the exhaust to burn the particles to decrease emissions.  When it works the exhaust cleaning system makes it so I get about 5 miles a gallon.  When it does not work the truck shuts to half power and I have to pull over, turn it off, and hope the computer resets.  If it does not I have to take the truck to the repair shop ( 6 trips for this in just over three years.)  In addition to the poor fuel economy the strain on the engine from the exhaust clean has caused two cooling systems in the truck to crack and need replaced.  I hate the truck.

A couple months ago I had a friend tell me about an exhaust delete kit I could put on the truck.  Basically it is a chip that tells the truck's computer the exhaust is clean and replaces the muffler system with and old standard one.  I took my friends advice a week ago and put the kit in.  My truck now runs cooler and has doubled its fuel economy to 10 mpg while pulling my big six-horse trailer, and 16 mpg when just driving it around.

While driving to Houston Texas and actually passing gas stations I could not help but think of the irony in my truck and the government.  New government regulations are aiming to force car companies to improve the fuel economy in cars, while other government regulations from the EPA made my truck get 5 miles a gallon.  Things like this make me love and hate my government.

I spend my life outside working with the creations of this world.  One of my favorite things to do is pack up some horses and head into the Rocky Mountains and enjoy old growth forests and listen to the Elk bugle.  My 5-year-old son knows if we pack it in we pack it out. I want to decrease my "carbon footprint" and be a good steward of the land.  I also need to be able to afford to drive to the mountains and horse shows.

The truck shows us a solution.  If we get rid of half the government regulations we currently have and allow after market solutions to help performance through the private sector mileage improves.  If I am only slightly increasing my emissions, about 2% in this case, but decreasing my oil consumption by half we are on a good track to finding a balanced solution on how to drive my truck were I need to go and protecting the places I want to go.  With practical solutions to radical ideas we can also start to end the love hate relationship we currently have with our government.  The best part is I now just love my truck.