Thoughts about Idaho

Shoshone Falls from two angles

rainbow over Idaho flats Snake River Canyon Twin Falls Bridge

I was going to Grinch today about one thing and another. But a Facebook friend muttered something about scenery in Idaho. I'm posting a couple of pictures I took up there two years ago.

That was actually one heck of a trip. Fran and I drove from Little Rock to San Antonio, TX (there's one in New Mexico too) along the Blue Bonnet Trail. Although the blue bonnets were only just beginning to show, the dogwoods were marvelous and quite a few other wild flowers were earlier bloomers than the legendary blue bonnets.

From San Antonio, we headed west to Las Vegas, NV (there's one in New Mexico too), thence north. We drove over the Hoover Dam. On the way there, we saw a herd of about 30 deer crossing the highway. Traffic in both directions had stopped to let them cross. I grabbed my camera and was so excited that I took a picture of the pavement instead of the deer. They just jumped the fence on the other side of the highway and disappeared into the landscape.

Northern Nevada is pretty grim. But March snow storms livened things up for us. By about four in the afternoon, it was getting dark and still snowing. We were just a few miles from Twin Falls. We made it there, checked into a motel, ate and hit the sack.

The next morning, we were going to meet Arielle's hockey team in Boise. As we were driving out of town, we crossed the bridge over the Snake River Canyon. The view was so spectacular that I got across the bridge, made a 'U' turn and drove back to the visitor's center. We learned (or were reminded) that Evil Kneivil had tried to jump it on a motorcycle and had to parachute to safety on his first try. Parasailors and bungie jumpers used the bridge as a "jump off" point. The canyon and falls were fantastic.

We decided that we'd drive west through the canyon instead of heading straight to Boise. It was a good decision. The canyon bottom is fertile land. Farms and ranches are strung out along the canyon bottom. There are hundreds of springs making falls down the north side of the canyon. It was simply beautiful.

That's a part of Idaho you shouldn't miss. The northern, mountains are quite another wonderful view. There are small lakes and wonderful fishing streams. I'm told that the hunting is very good there too. It's just rich mountain pine land and I love it no matter where I find it.

various thoughts on different things

I'm in St. Louis for the third time this summer. The drive from Little Rock was, for the most part uneventful. But there were a few close calls I saw from impatient drivers who did not wait for a clear sight distance to pass slower vehicles. That reminded me of a couple of days ago when I was almost hit head-on by a driver who swerved into oncoming traffic (on a four lane road) to pass another car.

That incident made me think of other times that my life could have been ended. Most of these times were the result of either luck or split-second decisions on my part or someone else. Examples: I fell once and my head missed a sharp protruding rock by inches; There was an accident at a plant where I was working, before I could go to check on people, someone handed me a gas mask (the accident was a leak in an ammonia tank). Onthese occasions, it was just one little thing that meant the difference for me.

Science fiction writers have thought about these decision points that change a life, sometimes, a world. Would WWII have come about if Hitler had died during WWI? If Moses had turned right instead of left, would Israel have all the oil? The theory proposed by the writers referred to in the first sentence of this paragraph is that each time we make a decision, our world moves onto a different track. The movement and our consciousness move, but on another track, an "us" makes a different decision and so on. Naturally, if some of the movers and shakers of history had not existed, our world might have been quite different. One good friend, John Dalmas explored what the world might have been like if the Normans had lost the battle of Hastings in 1066. He has not written that yet. But I'm looking forward to the result when he does.

If you want to try some of these "what if" histories" look for Harry Harrision, Harry Turtledove or just search under "alternate history".

I watched the crops as I was driving north yesterday. It reminded me that my wheat was in the elevator and had been sold. Last year, there was a huge price spike during harvest. I think it was caused by the use of corn to make gasahol (is that the right spelling?) The demand for the one grain lifted the price of alternate food grains like wheat, rice etcetera.

I had confidently predicted to a friend that the corn demand would have no impact on the poor of the third world. Boy, was I wrong. Even though the demand for corn is still great, the markets have adjusted to a more level phase. That is what makes commodity dealers rich and why I do not even try to play in the commodity market. Of course, the stock market recently underwent some confidence shaking moves. The difference is that you can hold a stock until its price goes back up or the company goes out of business. If you buy futures in a commodity, when that future matures, you must either buy the commodity or sell at a loss.

It is odd how a few things can make a huge difference in our perception of things. I'm staying at a Sheraton hotel in Clayton, MO. The room is large and clean, but there is no refrigerator or microwave and the bathroom is quite small. Those three details made me think, "what a lousy hotel" at first. I got over it, but I'm still not happy about the fridge.

There were several other topics in my mind when I began typing this. They have all gone away and so will... for a little while.