Hang on, I’m gonna throw this blog post in reverse — to yesterday on The Mountain, where scenes that bookended our Wednesday made quite an impression on me. I happen to think they’re worth sharing.
First came a memorable sunrise, made magical by low clouds lingering among the mountains. Deb captured these images:
I was on the phone with Deb during her drive Home, as usual. The sun had set. The horizon glowed. To my south, a crescent moon rose over Hall Mountain and Venus twinkled at me through the trees.
I love this time of year.
Okay, you can guess what I did first thing this morning, right? With the county burn ban lifted yesterday afternoon, it was time to light a fire in the barrel. I had quite the pile of combustible to dispatch.
It took three burns to make it all disappear.
Last weekend I mentioned having seen a number of folks burning before Marion and Baxter lifted their bans. I’m sure that absolutely horrified some of you. If you suspect that it didn’t bother me, you’re right — but do you understand why?
To begin with, every burn I saw was being done sensibly. I mean, no one wants to set their holler on fire and burn down their neighbors’ homesteads, and these people were tending their fires.
That’s what they’d do anyway, I reckon, ban or no ban.
The other thing that was going on was that all of these people were being ungovernable. As long as they and their neighbors agree that the burns were acceptable, I have no standing to object.
Another example, I think, are the guys who kayaked the lower Buffalo yesterday when it was well over flood stage. (A video is making the rounds on social media.) Was that reckless? Stupid? Disrespectful of rescue teams who’d have to risk their own lives to save a couple of idiots?
You could make an argument for all of the above. I’ll add ungovernable to the list.
And by the way, let’s not get too precious about people doing stupid shit and putting first responders in danger, okay? If it weren’t for dumbasses, half the EMTs and most search-and-rescue pros would be out of a job.
(Besides, y’all live for that shit. That’s where the best stories come from. You know it’s true.)
Running the Ranger down The Mountain this morning after finishing my burns, I met a white pickup on its way up. Driver and passenger were contractors for Entergy, our electric utility, evaluating whether or not overhead power lines had the required clearance.
The driver’s English was better than my Spanish, but his accent was thick. I did catch one word that made the encounter something other than casual.
“Spray.”
When clearing trees and other vegetation away from its lines, Entergy can either cut it back or spray herbicide. Its default method is herbicide, of course, because it’s cheaper and less labor-intensive.
Thing is, the spray kills everything it touches — and I mean everything. I’ve seen the result.
Landowners have the right to demand that herbicide not be used, but that requires knowing when it’s coming. There’s usually little warning, if any at all.
Fortunately, I was taking a spur-of-the-moment joyride in the buggy when this crew was in the area. I made it clear to them that Entergy did not have our permission to spray herbicide on our property.
I also told them that none of the other (four) landowners on our road would allow spraying, either.
When the conversation was over — and it was cordial — I scooted up to Deb’s cousin’s place and let him know. He passed the word to our neighbors.
They’re all grateful. They told me so.
Volunteer of the Day: Turkey Tail Fungus (Trametes versicolor). Coincidentally, we’d just watched Zac Bauer (An American Homestead on YouTube) talk about these “mushrooms” last night. More medicinal than culinary, this bracket fungus is all over my wood yard.
We’ll be harvesting some, drying it and vacuum-sealing it.
Take care of yourselves, Patriots. Stay calm. Stay sharp. Stay free.
#WiseUp #LibertyOrDeath #Ungovernable
#LetsGoBrandon #FJB