Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Monday, June 27, 2011

Random Thoughts From Sula


I haven't done one of these in a while.  My thoughts have been just as random as always, but not so interesting.

·        “Season” is a very loose term in Montana.  Each part of the two years I’ve been here has been unseasonably something or other—dry, cold, wet, warm.  If we ever get “normal” weather, I’m going to declare it’s unseasonably seasonal.


·         I have a natural tendency to confuse my proclivities and my propensities.

·        Sometimes I have the oldies station on Sirius when they play one of those sappy 70s songs about a lost loved one or pet—Shannon, by Henry Gross; Wildfire, by Michael Martin Murphy; or Honey, by Bobby Goldsboro—and I can’t get to the radio fast enough. 

·         Why don’t know-it-alls know people don’t like know-it-alls?

·         Every time I hear someone say "I thought to myself . . ."  I wonder who else can you think to.




Monday, June 20, 2011

The music is back on in Sula!

Edit (July 5, 2011):  We've recently found out that the remainder of the season at the Jump has been cancelled.  Bummer. . . .

Sula's artsy amphitheater, which is now known as The Jump, opened its summer concert season on Saturday with Milton Menasco and the Big Fiasco, a Bozeman-based trio that plays an energetic blend of original reggae, country, rock and blues.

The Jump is my favorite place for live musicI'm too old and curmudgeonly for crowded bars full of people trying too hard to be seen or prowling around on the make.   The open design of the Jump and its smaller, more laid-back crowd make for an enjoyable evening with a community feel. It's a great place to connect with friends and to enjoy:

the band . . .

the backdrop . . .

and the beverages.

Milton Menasco and the Big Fiasco are a fun group, with groovy, make-you-wanna-dance music.  Frontman and songwriter Milton Menasco is an excellent musician, and he's also a free spirit, as evidenced by his Facebook page, which says his religion is Miltoneism.

Guitar face!  He was rocking the wah-wah pedal on this one.

John Sanders lays down a fluid bass line with tasteful runs that add plenty of depth and texture.

Adam Greenberg drives an authentic reggae beat with effective use of toms and well-timed rim shots.

Milton catches some air.

Hang time!  Milton's wife, Amanda, says this is about as high as he gets.

It was a fun show and a great evening.  We caught up with some friends we hadn't seen since the final concert of last year, and we enjoyed a lot of good music.

Party on!



Friday, June 17, 2011

Spring, occasionally

The pattern continues: One nice, sunny day followed by a week of cool, gray and wet.  This was one of the sunny days.

The hottest it's been all year (about 76).

White-tailed buck reaching for horsehair lichen in the tree (early morning).

Don't go away mad.

The chipmunks are out.

Heading to town.

 Whatchoo lookin at.

No pictures from town (nobody wants to see that).

Moon rise.


Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Like a growing soul

the moon rises toward fullness, shrouded in mystery. 

Monday, June 13, 2011

Mule deer fawn

It's that time of year. 


Mama says "Time to go!"

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Carpe Diem

I found this skull and flower on a recent hike, and they reminded me of the old Robert Herrick poem To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time.


GATHER ye rosebuds while ye may,

Old time is still a-flying;

And the same flower that smiles today

Tomorrow will be dying.
. . . .

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Water and fire in the sky

These pics appear in the order I took them, showing the contrast between the darkened ridge to the northwest, silhouetted by a fiery sunset beyond, and broken storm clouds to the east, spreading a rainbow across the evening sky.








When it's cold outside, I've got the month of . . . June? (sound of record needle scratching)


Snowy morning in Sula.



Wednesday, June 1, 2011

Dead wood

It's a good practice to cut up and burn any downed trees on your property before summer gets rolling so there's not a lot of dried fuel on the ground when fire season starts.  Most folks throw their wood into large slash piles and torch it all at once.  I favor the more philosophical approach of burning it one campfire at a time.