Tag Archives: Commentary

Why I Wander America

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How many times over the past five years have I driven down a backroad on a sunny morning, to a place I have never been; just me, no other vehicles, and I find I am overwhelmed by what I see and where I am, I am so grateful that I get to do this. On the backroads of America there is a peace I have not found any other place (except for a little cottage on the Molokai channel). I get to experience places and things most people will never know.

It now occurs to me that I have never explained why I spend two-thirds of my time wandering around America.

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Precision Ag at Desert Claim Farms

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2002-07-24

I left Portland on the 17th, and after a couple of stops found myself on US Highway 2 crossing the continental divide at Marais Pass south of Glacier National Park. US-2 parallels the Canadian border from Seattle to the Michigan UP. I would follow it as far as Duluth. Local residents call it the High Line.

This is the golden triangle of the Montana High Desert and is mostly flat and filled with thousands of square miles of wheat, barley, hay and other crops that can grow without irrigation.

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Heads of State

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In the summer of 1970 I took my first vacation. Ever. I had a new yellow Fiat 124 Spider convertible that I packed with a tent, a duffel of gear and a cooler, and headed west from Detroit. It was maybe the second or third day out; cold, constant rain and dark. I saw the sign that said Mount Rushmore and decided to pass on setting up camp in the rain. I pulled the car up an incline on the verge of a side road to make reclining easier and quickly fell asleep.

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Ron’s Summer 2022 Begins

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Lincoln Highway Marker

I leave in the next few days for another 3-4 month trip into the great west. The only thing I know about this trip so far is I will follow the Lincoln Highway west from Iowa. If you want to follow along, there is an interactive map and a lot of information at the Lincoln Highway Association.

The Lincoln Highway was the first coast-to-coast route that started in Times Square and ended in Lincoln Park, San Francisco, passing through 14 states on the way.

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And That’s the Way It Is…

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Ten or so years ago I quit watching television news — both network and cable. I was often fed up with the drivel that was forced on the viewer as “news” and for me, the last straw was a segment about Paris Hilton doing something dumb and completely irrelevant as “news”. There were more productive ways to spend my time. As it turned out, I was none the worse for being “uninformed.” Although it was a few months before I discovered that Glenn Frey had died — OK, just “Take It Easy.”

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Just Because You Can?

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A while back I had occasion to review the design of a very high-end residence hall facility at an institution of higher learning I can’t name. It is not in the US, so it is unlikely your alma-mater.

There seemed to be no limit on the budget. Each room was equipped with full digital video/voice/data and Internet connectivity. Outside each room a digital touchscreen “whiteboard” where the occupant could leave messages for their buds, who could then leave replies.

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