Thoughts from the south end of Navajo Lake

Still life with stove

The sun is rising over the lake.  My coffee mug is half-full.  Some not-so-random thoughts:

Boondocking lets me stay places I'd otherwise miss.  It makes possible an overnight stop in a parking lot while I'm on my way from point A to point B.  It brings with it a nice sense of independence, and a little environmental smugness.

But I'm really liking it here at the state park, with electricity and water.  I took a shower in the community shower house.  Not very hot water, but a long soaking shower which got the road grime mostly gone.  I can make it as bright as I want in here at night and not think about battery use.  I can listen to music and NPR as much as I want.  I can use the laptop. And my big revelation from yesterday: I can run the furnace.  The Beast has a pretty efficient little furnace; it runs off a thermostat just like at home.  The fan uses quite a bit of juice of juice (4 amps is a lot in this world) so it's not a good routine option for boondocking.  I've been using the Portable Buddy catalytic heater for chilly mornings.  It works pretty good, but I'm not all that fond of using the disposable fuel containers. I suspect that the furnace is actually an environmentally better way to get warm in the morning.  But maybe that's just rationalization: I certainly like that it's quick and easy. Hey, my carbon footprint for this enterprise is already beyond redemption!

I'm still somewhere between amused and appalled that I let myself get way off route the other day by blindly following the GPS.  Lessons learned, I hope, and pretty small cost.

Some one of you asked what I do all day, if I'm not out hiking around.  It's pretty simple:  I read, I listen to music, I go for short walks, I talk to people walking their dogs (and their dogs!) I watch the sun rise and set.  I watch clouds go by.  I watch birds and squirrels.  I read and send email, and write blog posts. I cook things: I made biscuits from scratch for breakfast this morning.

I stay away from Facebook, mostly.  I continue my at-home habit of a post-prandial nap.  I think about life, the universe, and the phenomenon of Donald Trump.  I spend time in what might be called meditation, although to the outsider it might look a lot like spacing out.

It's not for everyone. I think some people would find it blindly boring. But it suits me, for now.