I dreamt of you

You were in my house, you were dancing in the living room with Kate Bush music in the back ground, your hair was long and flowing and you were glowing, you were so happy. As I walked in, you welcomed me with your invigorating smile, You said "it's ok". Then we were at the beach sitting on the rocks watching the sunset, we were talking, dreaming, sharing our lives and it was good.

Ya know I miss you, I might even miss being pissed off at you. I miss our conversations of what could be, who we are, who we were and who we want to be. you touched my soul and I can not forget that. You made a mark in my heart that said "I was here, Damn it"

I think its wonderful that you are having fun and creating a life outside your work. I hear you look spectacular and from the photo's I have seen: the rumors are true. That makes me really happy to see you with some hope and peace in your eyes.

I hope the bitterness and the anger is over and that we can return to a mutal appreciation of our lives however seperate they may be. When someone who is a force as strong as you are, comes along it's with great passion and energy. It is my hope that the passion and energy can be channelled into something good. I loved you, I adored you, I admired you, I put you on a pedestal that you could only fall from and for that I am sorry.

Thank you for visiting me in my dream. I miss you.....

Help! Please! Sick Puppy!

Penny Lane (my dog) is very sick. Dr. thinks it is poison from doggie beach. She might not make it through the week. Please send your healing energies.

And maybe some patitence. I have to sit with her 24/7 - give her sub-cutaneous fluids via a needle and iv tube and force feed her every hour, all while giving her the biggest pills I have ever seen every 6 hours. (Rex is with her now to give me a break) It is breaking my heart to watch her in so much pain. She is not her normal self - she lays on her back and heaves to breath. But she will wag her tail for me if she feels that I need it. She is still worried about me. I am not doing well.

What do I need religion for anyway?

another day on the path......It's been hard this week.

I was at very frustrated, and confused and ready to distract myself from this path all together. I got a rash of or should i say pile of crap on the Cauldron forum the other day. Stupid me thought I would post one of the questions that has been lurking around in my head since I have learned more about Gardner and his beliefs. I would have to say that I am definitely not on the "Wicca" path. But a few more things have happened to me since and I have taken a step back to look at my motivations for seeking in the first place.


I am going to share with you all so that if there is another "new seeker" that they may learn from my temporary departure:

I think I got too caught up in looking for a teacher that I actually started looking to "follow" something again. I was unconsciously looking for something or someone to "Submit" too, to take away my personal accountability, to detach myself from the inner Divine - It was as if I was trying to replace my relationship with Jesus with another Leader. Why though? Why am I or anyone for that matter drawn to "Religion". a pre-made, predetermined belief system. I guess I was looking for the easy way out.


I did figure this out though -

Wicca is a some what structured "religion" that someone has "made up" from many different sources. So to say that I was seeking out the "Wiccan" Path was saying that I was a follower of Gardner and his beliefs, which I know NOTHING about. and what I do know: hasn't really sat very well with me.

Pagan(ism) is an umbrella for all beliefs that don't line up with "Christianity", So i can't say I am following a "Pagan Path" because it's just not possible. Much to wide to "follow" - More of a "region" than a path

Witchcraft is a Tool - Just like a hammer is a tool of a carpenter. It's not a religion, something that is not understood. It is a tool used by many different belief systems. Including Catholicism, Wiccan, etc. Just like using a hammer doesn't make a believer in the "Hammer Path" . It's something to be used, something you do. It is a PRACTICE, To say I am following the "witches path" is also not possible that would be like following the path of the hammer.

What do I need religion for anyway? Why do I have to label it?


I am very glad that I realized that so early and I can now come back to my "research" with a new perspective - A journey in understanding, learning the differernt perspectives that us humans have. that is my path - To journey back before Catholicisim, Christianity, and the modern "church" - What were the different beliefs of all the people of the land. What did they have in common? What are the beliefs

I just got done watching Final Fantasy again from a tottally different perspective on Gaya as I am also reading a book about the "Sacred Paths" of the Native American Indians and their Earth Spirit beliefs. What a beautiful path that is. The words just seem to jump off the page into my heart with a very real energy. When I am reading this book, I am so "Excited". I feel electrified, wired almost, like i am going to Disneyland in the morning for the first time.

On the other hand I wonder if I am totally loosing my mind.........

Do I need to learn more about the native americans, where the "gaya" of the movie orginated from, checkout the Mayans, egyptians, tribal peoples of africa and other places.........Or do i need a psychiatrist?

in need of abundance energy!

if any of you could send good money wishes my way. Jessica (my
17 year old) turns 18 on March 21, she will be the first woman in our
family in many generations that didn't get pregnant before 18, she
graduates high school in June (and will be the first girl to graduate
in our known family history) and the first anything to graduate in the
past 3 generations. She is also running for Prom Queen (certainly the
only Prom Queen prospect in our family), she has also been accepted to
Syracuse University in NY, one of the top 10 schools in the World. As
some of you may know I have not worked since I hurt myself on my
sisters jet ski last July and I finally have surgery scheduled in Feb.
With all of the scholarships and grants we are still $6,000 short on
tuition. So these are my needs:

Jessica's prom dress (she picked out the most elegant, classy dress in
the world and looks breathtaking in it - and it has more fabric than
most of the other bandaid and cork dresses that are out there - the
total cost of prom comes to $509

Graduation package comes to $299 (photos, yearbook, sr. night,
graduation, cap & gown, etc)

$750 housing deposit for dorm - due Feb. 11th

$6,000 for tuition

$1,800 for braces (she has a horrible overbite - she can fit her entire
thumb between upper and lower teeth (genetic problem from dad)

and of course living expenses.

My income right now is limited to my $300 in child support and the
miniscule amount that I receive from Disability and Cal works, puts me
at about a $900 monthly income.

So any assistance you could send my way would be greatly appreciated- I
am not worried about it though - I just know that it will happen, she
will have all of her dreams realized. She is a hard worker, she has an
after school job, captain of cheerleading, ASB, Leadership training and
raising me - so she is quite busy and very appreciative of the help
that she gets, what little it is from me.

Thanks again!

Kymberley

Blog Police

I was writing an email to a new friend today and thought - wow I could save some time and just post this email - Is that impersonal? does that break any Blogger laws? Are the Blog Police coming to get me if I don't post an "original thought" - Is it not an original now because I hit apple a, apple c and apple v?? hmmm am I a reproductionist and not a real Blogger - which sorta leads me into the discusson of "am I stealing art when I look at someone elses work and get ideas of my how and turn what I see in their work into my own creation?

okay here i go - apple v and then the sirens blare
From: info@thefairypond.com
Subject: Re: Message From Daven : Re: Thankyou!
Date: January 18, 2005 10:53:13 PM PST
To: MessageNotification@tribe.net

I just watched "under the tuscan sun" It was a perfect ending to a perfect day. I woke up bright and early and went to the orthodontist with both my girls, their father and his new wife, the orthodontist said that the girls both need surgery to correct their overbites and that it isn't covered under the insurance (his new wifes choice of insurance as of Jan. 1st the girls had to stop going to the ortho/dentist that we had been seeing) then we were off to look at prom dresses - I thought the whole family would go since I "assumed" he would be paying for 1/2 of the dress. But no he didn't come he returned to his beautiful home in the oakland hills with his new wife and their new puppy. But Jessica tried on the most beautiful, Classy, elegant dress in the shop, it was the dress I picked and the dress that covered up the most skin, she was amazing in it - breathtaking actually and of course there is only 1 size 2 left in all of the USA and if we didn't buy it then it would probably be gone since every teenager in america wants this dress - then the price tag came and it came up to $509 - that's about $450 more than my wedding dress, and about $500 more than my checking account balance - Fine dress stores don't do lay away I found out. :( But we had a blast anyhow trying on every dress she could and taking beautiful pictures of her in them, with real expensive jewlery and tiara's - It is every little girls dream to get accepted to one of the top 5 colleges in the country and to be taken to your Senior Prom by Last Years Senior AllStar Jock who is madly in love with you and is also the most gorgeous man you have ever seen even if he is only 18, and to walk into that prom with the world at your feet. How can I not do this for her - I have to find $509 really fast - I have to get this dress for her some how.

Oh Im sorry did you say something in your email - gosh I am even self centered in email conversations. How bad is that?

ok let me read your email again - I am so sorry. - ah yes fighting - oh wait I have to tell you the rest - so after the prom dress thing we went to lunch at el torito and had tortilla soup (mine and Jesse's favorite thing (actually the only thing we have in common i think) It was a wonderful lunch - us three girls were happy and bright and cheerful and kind to each other and had conversations about boys and cars, and beaches and dogs, and prom and grades and college and sex and drugs and even a little rock and roll. ( I asked if the hip hop pop guy justin mcCartney was a beatles descendent) It was spectacular - then we came home - sam and I attempted to clean the pool (that's a whole other story) but determined that when we found a dead rat in the pool that even if we could get the filter and heater to work that it probably wouldn't be a good idea to jump in just yet. After that I piled the doggies and my boyfriend into the car to rush off to the beach and watch the sunset. It was a perfect day with a perfect ending. There was a little more that I will save for another theological discussion today I just want to revel in the glory that my kids actually had fun with me today and that I was able to have good, meaningful conversations with their dad and his wife without hating them or being snide and spiteful inside while pretending to smile to keep the peace.

ok so back to fighting vs. arguing - it is difficult and challenging - I think it's important to stop and make a conscious effort to look at your own actions, motives and words to make sure that they are lining up with the way you want to be seen by others (and yourself) - Sometimes we have to step back and say " you know I think I may have been out of line - what i am really trying to accomplish here is blah blah blah - can you forgive me and allow us to move past this moment into a happier more peaceful way of communicating?" It has happened three times today - once jojo had to say it to me, once I had to say it to my daughter Sam and to my joy and happiness I heard her say the same thing to her sister later on - (which is a huge change from the knock down drag out fights that those two have gotten into over the years - I could write a book about sibling fights and make millions)

Ok so where was I - Oh yeah You - Wood working - boring class - Yes I tried ceramics last year - I went 5 straight weeks with 90% elderly seniors, 2 richly bitchy hottie potties and a lovely young polish man who was working out his frustrations through ceramics. But then I had this accident and herniated some discs in my back and bending down to pick up a 25l bag of clay was out of the question - I hope to some day find a class that is on a little faster pace - closer to home and more oh i don't know just More I guess - It wasn't enough to keep me interested enough to put up with the pain. Oh well there are more classes more teachers and more opportunities somewhere else down the road.


Wow - I am not even stoned heheheheh - but if you don't mind I think I will cut and paste our conversation onto my blog today I haven't written anything in a few days and well this email just epitomizes me today -

Hope you are feeling much better - enjoy the weather - go to the beach - oh shit you are in vista - YOU HAVE TO GO TO THE OCEANSIDE PIER - THERE IS A HOMELESS GUY NAMED "SLOJO" HE IS DEAF AND HAS A BLACK DOG NAMED "MOJO" I LET MOJO MOUNT MY DOG PENNY TO MAKE PUPPIES AND THEN I HAD PROMISED SLOJO THAT HE COULD HAVE ONE OF THE PUPS - HE CHOSE CHICKEN - THAT'S ANOTHER STORY BUT ANYHOW MOJO AND HIS SON CHICKEN ARE THE BEST DOGS IN THE WORLD AND I WOULD LOVE IT IF YOU COULD JUST GO TO THE BEACH AND SEE THE PUP AND LET ME KNOW THAT THEY ARE OK?

so anytime this summer that you happen to make it to the beach for sunset - look near the pier - if you don't find chicken or have bad news I don't want it - okay? okay!


Well tata for now - I am off to read the 17 messages from the various message boards that i have been conversing with lately.

Have a great night - go tell your girlfriend how she makes you feel when you wake up in the morning and see her face and when you go to bed at night and feel her warm body next to yours. Tell her how she makes you feel when you are taking a shower and can't stop thinking of her beautiful body!


On Jan 18, 2005, at 8:54 PM, Daven wrote:

There's a new message in your Tribe.net inbox from Daven

Message details: Re: Thankyou!

Don't know if i remember much of last night's fight. Just another one, another pattern I suppose. Oh, that's right, it was about being open without the walls. One has a wall, which makes a reaction inside the other and then the stupid Details come. Details are the most annoying thing inside of fighting. Who cares who did what, it is the past and the reality is that every moment you can be born into loving conciousness again.
I have been trying to let go of the past lately. Being totally present helps so much, but getting there from being behind a wall is by far one of the hardest things I can imagine doing.
I agree with you, fighting is different from arguing. Fighting is screaming, pouting, being childish and throwing things. Arguing takes on more of an adult role I suppose. Still not being loving, but more on the way.
Need sleep, sick with something. Had my first woodworking class at palomar college today. The first class is always boring from going over rules and aplications and introductions. Had four hours of it today. I like the idea of doing it though. Just another art form to me.
Ever played with that kind of stuff?

Namaste!
Davers

nature imitating Art!

I went to the beach today and I was taken aback by the view in the sky - as the golden sun set on the horizon, the ocean was silver, the sand was golden but it was really the sky that really blew me away. There it was: the sky that I had painted earlier in the morning - the clouds looked as if they had come straight out of painter and the purple, blue, pink and orange were so vibrant and so distinct. I felt the goddess as I stood in awe of her beauty. I had created that sky and She was acknowledging my work - A job well done I heard - NOW KEEP GOING - I can create the sky everyday if I put my mind to it. There are many people out there making a living without cowtowing to the corporate world. A world I never fit in.

I can do this - I can paint all day - and support myself if I work at it - I can do this - I am ready to do this - This is who and what I am -

Moving away from the ocean doesn't really bother me either - because I know now that I can create what ever world I want to live in. Move to the desert start painting beaches: Move to the mountains start painting the City. I can move out into the bitter netherlands of this world and I can make it!

I don't have to go to church on Sunday to see the beauty of the world. And I should probably stay away from church if I want to see the beauty in people. I am not going to hell when I die, If hell is life with out church and organized religion then Bring it on! I say.

Take me out of this square cube and let my dreams lead me to a free and peaceful existence. I am so very glad that I don't have to "Share the word" any more and feel as if everything I do is offending someone somewhere. Although I am sure I am still offending people - it doesnt rule my life anymore or my actions. I don't react to people anymore - But wow can a beautiful view get a reaction out of me.


Woo Hoo

parts for the book Chapter 2

Sunday, January 09, 2005

10:20 AM - chapter 2 Current mood: chipper I arrived at a desolate patch of ground only dead sage and wormwood to surround my encampment but off in the distance i saw a familiar site - one that i had seen on a shirt that I had received for Christmas - how odd i thought as I sat mesmerized by the sun rising over the peak that was portrayed on my old navy thermal. I set up camp with the assistance of my companions for the week, often interrupted with the site of colorful canopies opening above us with bodies attached to them cheerfully landing in the desert oasis of the drop zone just a few yards from our site. It was beauty in it's purest form - so natural yet so uncommon. Most people don't "Fly" through the air with the greatest of ease - certainly not most people you know in your "normal" circle of friends. But here they were thousands of people from age 18 to 85 from as many different countries and walks of life as you can count all with one thing in common: the need for flight. Freedom from restriction, inhibition, and fear. Freedom from their daily lives, freedom from life itself. To fly above the clouds is the ultimate freedom the ultimate trust in yourself........ .......................................CHAPTER 2............................................................ I was awakened by the sun rising over the peak - not much different that the day before but a completely consuming view none the less. I made coffee and a fire as I watched the colorful canopies falling from the sky again and off in the northern horizon I saw a beautiful balloon rising above the desert and off into sky. I had brought an entire box of books I was planning to read. I had envisioned my desert retreat to be full of free time to sit and ponder my life’s path. Lazily reading and writing in my week of solitude. With Jojo dropping out of the sky and me on the ground indulging all my desires on peace and privacy. But of course that was impossible - How can you pick up a book and stare into the written pages of someone else’s story when there was a beautiful novel of my own to LIVE right now. There was an entire state of unexplored desert, mountains, canyons and peaks to be experienced in first person. So off we went, my son and my friend Mike hopped into the van with the dogs and decided to find an adventure of our own since falling from the sky was a financial impossibility. We went in search of the spiritual ruins at Casa Grande - A village built by the HoHoKam Indians right after the introduction of Christianity to their culture. These nomadic people tried a new lifestyle of community service. They built a large facility to house the entire villages needs and a trade center to fund their new community based way of life. They tried it for 50 years then decided that it would be better to return to their individual nomadic ways. Each family caring only for itself and staying separate from others - giving each family their privacy and self sufficient life style that had worked for them for thousands of years prior to their introduction to the "church" The ruins were poorly maintained by very caring individuals. They had filled the adobe cracks with colored cement and I felt violated by their restoration efforts. I sat and pondered their way of life. I was amused at how familiar their history was to me. I too had been taken in by the Christian ideals of working together for the good of the community as a whole. That my individuality was actually a hindrance to my spiritual path. I, like the Hohokam Indians, was supposed to accept my leaders interpretation of the “holy word”. I was to Submit – not only to the Pastor but also to my partner. Only “He” was the spiritual leader and me as a woman was supposed to be his support, his cushion, his lover, and his helpmate. Can you imagine convincing an entire race of people that their 10,000-year-old way of life was damming them to hell and that they must follow your new path in order to be saved from eternal damnation? They could do Nothing in order to save themselves that Had to follow the churches rules, they had to give up their personalities, their foundations, their values, their goals, their own curiosity and way of life to this new “god”. That must have been a very charismatic man who convinced them that their ways were wrong and that they needed to now to not rely on them selves but to rely upon this God of the sky that had created the earth only as a temporary resting place on their way to heaven. The Indians had previously thought that the earth was worthy of it’s own worship. They believed and acted as if they were one with the earth and to live in harmony with the ways of the earth and her seasons. The Indians believed that their actions had a direct effect on the environment around them. If their crops were in need of water then they would perform a ritual to ask the god of earth to rain down upon them. They were compelled to care for the earth – to be one with their surroundings. This planet was not a testing ground for a future place in the clouds. Their God was not jealous. Their God didn’t condemn them. Their God didn’t create them as sinners and evil beings. They had many Gods that dwelled within them and their surroundings – They did not worship the Land but they did believe that the earth and all of its beings, man, animal, plant, were one with the Gods. They themselves were Divine creatures created to live in synchronization with the ways of the world itself. It was an enlightening moment to realize that trying to fit in the Christian society and then falling away from those beliefs was not a problem just of my own but one that many before me had experienced as well. So we left the Casa Grande Ruins; but not before we inscribed our feelings into their history book of guests and comments. We headed northeast towards a towering range of red mountains. We later found out that we had headed into Devil’s Canyon along Superstition Highway. How odd I thought that I would be drawn to that area. As we traveled along the flat desert highway we enjoyed the view of many cacti, desert plant life and even the occasional wild cow. It was a beautiful site to see so much open land, undeveloped, uninhabited land, full of life and promises of a simpler way of life free from the daily grind of whose lawn is greener and whose driveway holds the better car. As we started up the mountain we passed an old mining town called Superior. It was the first village we had seen in over an hour, it was old and crippled. Many buildings decaying at their foundation, empty store fronts and a few elderly people walking along the sidewalk of a once Superior town and now a ghost town of dreams gone by. After we left the small town we continued our climb up the mountain with a bright shinning sun above us, Red Cliffs in front of us and flat desert land behind us. It was a beautiful view we thought as we turned the corner and found two massive bridges built in the early part of the 20th century. You could tell they were old because they were beautifully designed with arches, carvings and structural detail beyond the current functional designs of modern times. I wanted to stop and take in the view and Mike encouraged me. So we pulled over to the side of the road and got out of our carriage to take in the beauty of this gateway to the mountains ahead. We found several caves that were begging us to be explored. We crossed the highway and made our way down to the bridges foundation to stand in awe of its beautiful construction. We also imagined Jumping off of it into sky below. Could it be done? Would this structure allow us the fun and excitement of using it as a base for flying? Who built it? Why don’t they build bridges like that anymore? Obviously it was structurally sound – it had lasted almost a hundred years without falling down. Why can’t they bring that beauty into the urban jungle? Why can’t the concrete gardens of the cities be developed with such respect for its surroundings? Why is that cave over there calling me to enter? I must explore I thought as I climbed up the side of the mountain to enter into its inner sanctum via a hole carved into its side. We ventured on to this great cavern but found it blocked off by 20 ft tall pipes cemented into the mountain itself. Blocking us from the beauty within. Of course we couldn’t be stopped by this obstacle, we had to go in – the Cave was calling us. As I climbed up the poles I felt empowered to continue on. I had more energy than I had felt all year combined. I felt strong, strong as the mountain that I was about to enter. Once on the other side of this supposedly insurmountable gate I saw the great chasms into the inner part of the mountain but I also saw that these were not natural pathways to the center of earth but man made passages built to tear way the minerals found within the mountain itself. There were many mining paths – but all of them blocked from future exploration. We had stumbled upon a piece of history. Hundreds of men with the drive and power to steal away the heart of mountain one pick at a time. You could see the dreams of the miners as they went deeper and deeper into the mountain in hopes of finding its treasure. But now it was barren, desolate, stripped of its middle and unexplorable by our human hands. I sat at the edge of the cavern picking away at the walls with my fingers. Feeling the earth crumble in my hands. Could I find a treasure here? Could I stumble upon a left over nugget of whatever it was that these miners had gone after? I looked at the rocks and their formations. How did this mountain get here in the first place, why was it so sandy and easily broken apart. What history did the layers of earth piled on top of each other hold. What secrets were there? Could I find something new? Could I be the next discoverer of treasure? After a while it was back to the car – we weren’t prepared for our adventure, we had no flashlight, no water, and no food. Just a desire to explore what others had explored before us. We decided that we would continue on up the mountain. Surely if the base was this beautiful and exciting there must be more up above us. A couple of miles up the mountain we saw a sign for the Magma Mine Road – How inviting was that? We had to venture on. There were signs for campgrounds that intrigued us so on we went to see what was in store. The beauty of what we were to find is almost indescribable. The cacti gave way to beautiful manzanita bushes; the windy road was not often traveled by its appearance but had recently been cleared of roadside obstacles. Nature had infringed upon the path of asphalt and someone had to cut it away to prevent the mountain from consuming the passers by. We passed the campground and thought we would return later and continued up the road to see what else lye ahead. We came around a corner and found the most beautiful green oasis in the middle of a red mountain of brown desert plant life. Where did all this green come from we wondered as the mountain revealed a beautiful pond of water. Too small for a lake but too big for a watering hole – we named it the Desert Fairy Pond and vowed to also come back to it someday. We were on a mission to see where this road led us. We passed a car off on the side of the road with the windows tinted and the car rocking at a rhythmic pace. Awww desert lovers in a private retreat. We left them alone and continued up the road to the top of the mountain. A huge gate that said NO Trespassing greeted us. Hmmm that’s pretty much an invitation to explore further. So we parked the car and let the dogs out to play – at least we had an excuse if we were to get caught. “Sorry officer, our dogs took off under the gate chasing a bird so we had to enter to get our dogs back” we would say. The dogs led us to a security gate at the front of a very large factory. Not a car or a person in sight. There was a small office to house the guard that should have been attending this gate so off we were to explore what this factory was. Was it a secret government site where they did things unknown to society? What secrets lay beyond? I peered through the window to see a desk calendar. The page it was turned to was dated October 2004. Hmmm, no one has been here for two months I thought, so what the heck lets keep going – we used the dog excuse again as we pulled the chain link fence away so the dogs could pass first and we could follow “frantically trying to retrieve them” heheheh. We had stumbled up Superior Copper Mine that had been abruptly vacated just two months earlier. It looked as if there had been a crew there working the day before, tools lay around as if they were just used but they were rusted and held into place by the mountain that was attempting to reclaim its land by swallowing the facility with its desert growth. It was an eerie feeling – you could hear the voices of the mineworkers of the past as they made the factory work and the mountain give up its treasures. We explored much of the site and came upon many interesting artifacts. I found a lunch box – an old metal box like my grandfather used to keep on the railroad. I was fascinated that someone had once used it to hold their meals and now it had just fallen by the way side. What was this person holding their meals in now? Why would he just leave his lunch box sitting there – doesn’t he need it anymore? We ventured on to the mineshaft that seemed to go on forever. We threw a rock down the hole to see how deep it was – the rock banged and knocked against the sides of the hole for at least 20 seconds. We tried to figure out how the factory worked and sat their imagining ourselves in the middle of the mine with all the workers around tearing apart the mountain from the inside out. Why was it closed now? Had they stripped the mountain of its soul, was there nothing left to mine? Many questions remained unanswered and that’s just fine. I will continue to let my imagination tell the story of the superior copper mine. We pilfered several items that we had found, the lunchbox, a book left on a desk, a pair of boots left in a safety cabinet and a sign that was posted on the front of one building. It was the Creed of the company, their mission statement. It was so powerful to read these “rules” of conduct. Their mission seemed so pure and just – how did it end, why did it end, why weren’t their anymore workers to live by these rules. I had to take the sign, Stealing is not something I normally do but I wanted these rules to live on – to have a second purpose to remind us of the hard work these men and women did to strip the mountain of its treasure for our use. Once we done riffling through this vacated land we headed back to the car. This time paying more attention to the plant life that had recently been cut away from the road. We found gorgeous manzanita branches lying on the ground and took one each for ourselves to carve a wand from, to remind us of our adventure. As we piled back into the van with our newly found treasures – we found we were not alone. Apparently the Mine was not totally abandoned. There was a guard that made its twice-daily rounds to ensure that the mine was protected from looters like us. We quickly gathered up the dogs, covered our treasures and took off in the opposite direction of the guard as fast as we could without appearing so. What an adrenaline rush to get back to the highway undiscovered. We passed up the pond, and the campground and paid no attention to the car on the side of the road. This time we weren’t exploring we were running hastily away with our bounty. We felt like pirates as we approached the highway once again. Only to be greeted by a sheriff that had pulled off the road right next to us. We had two choices: we could either pull out in front of the sheriff as my previous blinker choice had indicated or we could change our path in the opposite direction of our temporary home and continue up the mountain. I felt it was better to continue on as planned and pull up right next to the sheriff. I figured if he was there for us that we would save ourselves the shock of the siren and just accept our destiny. As we pulled up next to the Sheriff, I noticed a trash can – So I decided it was a good time to clean out the car. Maybe the sheriff wasn’t there for us and we could just wait him out. Which we did, after the car was free from any trash and all of our bounty was conveniently hidden we continued back down the mountain the way we had come up and returned to our campsite in the flat desert lands. As we arrived back at our temporary home we enjoyed watching the canopies falling from the sky yet again. This time the sky was full of them – 40 or 50 I had thought. It was the sunset load in which several people jump for the last jump of the day – As they landed I counted over 50 people – 50 colorful canopies floating above us.