Animal Dreams - Barbara Kingsolver

What to do on a blustery day with showers except photographing the light and shadows of life.

Just find a warm place inside and read.

Being a fan of Barbara Kingsolver’s writing I was pleasantly surprised to find her book in a small town for $2. I have read five of her books, this being the sixth one. She writes rich stories, with a tapestry of characters which ring true. In Animal Dreams Codi, the main character is at a juncture in her life, and goes back to Grace, Arizona where she grew up with her sister Hallie, who is in Nicaragua, helping the people with  their crops, and a distant father. Codi is in the habit of running to another place when life doesn’t turn out the way she wanted. One could say it is all about the luxury of forgiveness and living a sweet life so one has sweet dreams... Her memories seems unreal until the day she fully participates in life with loss, love and belonging. Some quotes which touched my heart:

* I couldn’t ask Emelina for directions to my own childhood home; I didn’t want her to know how badly dislocated I was. I’d always had trouble recalling certain specifics of childhood, but didn’t realize until now that I couldn’t even recognize them at point-blank range.

* Children robbed of love will dwell on magic.

* ”Insomnia’s different,” I said.  “You know the light that comes on when you open the refrigerator door? Just imagine it stays on all the time, even after you close the door. That’s what it’s like in my head. The light stays on.”

* The winter rains would soon dry up. Then there would not be another drop till July. During those brittle months the taste and smell of rain would be lost to us, beyond the recollection of children and the deepest root tips of trees. That is the way of the seasons in a desert place.

My Grace is Chloride, AZ.

Cowboy dreams of wild horses

 I had seen wild mustangs before and yes they used to hang out along the back road to Mineral Park, AZ. They used to be a bit higher up but clearly visible. And then, they were gone. Three, four, maybe five years I didn't find them. Yet now low and behold, they are grazing even near the road's edge. Driving gently and stopping in order not to scare them away we watched them grazing while keeping an eye on the car.

There are still two cowboys running cattle in this area and it is obviously free range land.

One is from Quail Springs Ranch.

It is still cowboy country  and culture with places like the Dambar where good cowboy food can be had in a rustic and pleasant ambiente.

No war with Iran

The poem by Fred Schywek in German and in English is the transformation by a younger poetry generation poet of the controversial long poem by Gunter Grass published in the Süddeutsche Zeitung, the largest quality paper in Germany and in La Republica (Italy). In this political poem Günter Grass speaks against the fact that the Israeli government claims the right for a first atomic strike against Iran. Source Tagesschau.

 *

Warum why

Warum

schweige ich

verschweige

lang

was offensichtlich

im Planspiel

geübt

an deren Ende

als Lebende

wir allenfalls

Fußnuß

Why why

Why

do I keep silent

hush up

a long time

what obviously

has been practiced

in a planning game

at the end of which

living creatures

we certainly

footnut

Seven things to do... in small towns

In a small town with no road going through, all off them stopping at a mountain, at tailings or a wash there isn't much to do. Favorite activities are improvements: Putting up a water tank with a backhoe and resting under the result.

 One could browse the local shop which holds surprises but no fresh food. I found a second had copy of Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver. I have read several of her novels and some of her essays: great work. The first one was Pigs in Heaven starting at the Hoover Dam, the very first time I crossed it.

Women gathering to discus the last and to prepare the next event at the local VFW. One is a biker chick, one is a belly dancer, an American Sign Language educational assistant, a poet, a cook and a former cow girl...

 You could watch the changes in the Alpenglow on the mountain or watch another splendid sunset...

And on Sunday nights there is a free movie at the theater: Easter Sunday it was the wonderfully moving Green fried tomatoes...

I don't know about other small towns, but here there is a special spirit which brings people together.

And now I go back to my book...

Small Town Bake Sale

To me this is an iconic picture of a small town in the West: The swamp cooler sticking out the window, the ladies in the shadow wearing their shades. Also I love seeing the king cap white pickup truck and when  you click on the picture you'll notice the quad...

The guys, members of the E Clampus Vitus are up the mountain to paint the C in bright white so that when one walks around one is reminded of where one is.

The women, in real community spirit have been baking: I got Brownies, pound cake, chocolate-chip-almond bars, and peanut butter  and raisin cookies. They also have fresh white bread. One lady proudly shows us her blueberry muffins... Note the red nails and the bangles.

Of course the obligatory warning is posted that all the goodies are not from a health authority inspected kitchen...
I have eaten some of my stash I took along and can assure you the quality is excellent. So munching along while blogging I help pay for the white paint and the 'brotherhood' of a day out on the mountain.
Small town... great people

Digger Daves - The bar almost open

 This is Digger Daves place and people are rooting for him to open up in April. The place was dingy, dirty and the food only good when grandma came in to cook... The place was closed because of a gambling habit of the owner and defaulting on his deliveries. Already the outside at night looks warm and cozy, inviting.

 The inside is a more than pleasant surprise: old horse tack on the ceiling, antlers, old water valves, a marvelous glass collection and a warm atmosphere. Big plans for the food:
A clean kitchen, well thought out, safe and lots of enthusiasm from the cook...

 In one of the pinball machines a pack rat made its nest.  That happens, when humans move out, animals move in...

 View of the bar and two back country horsemen behind the mirror. I can see  the hustle and bustle of the place, hearing laughter and joy and banter around the pool table. Dori had her birthday, Dave backed a marvelous chocolate cake; here together lighting the  sparkling candles.
A fun time among friends...

On the road again- Up the flyway - Las Vegas and down the highway

Flying over Colorado and Northern Arizona the sun catches some mountain peaks. here and there still patches of snow.

Touching down in fun and gun crazy Las Vegas

The contrast between the architecture of opulence and beggars on the sidewalk, between a perfect world based on greed and habits supposed to bring joy... I did sleep once with my dog Vee in the motel 8 across the street. The door of the room was repaired with cardboard and everything was screwed down... Hookers and dealers walked around all night.

The photographer takes his job seriously taking in the surroundings sitting not on a manicured lawn but on Astroturf.
Even the hedges on the Tropicana are plastic

Inside view of the MGM's dark, rich ambiente. Light flashing, Internet gambling with Internet croupiers talking to the people strolling by.

The grand scale and life games of craps... and then to the car leaving Las Vegas crossing the by pass over the Hoover Dam and the glorious desert landscapes no Casino can compete with.