Important Announcement

After much thought, I have decided to suspend my blogging and discontinue any further entries until the financial crisis is averted. I will be leaving immediately in the morning for a remote trail where I can devote all my energy to solving the problems that have cropped up almost spontaneously for "my friends" in the real world.

Once I return from my sabbatical on the Powell Plateau (John Wesley, not Colin), I will do my best to tell you in numbing detail what my plan for (my own) economic stimulus will be later in October.

Seriously, I barely posted my last entry before two weeks had flown by. Part of the reason is that the accounting department has been reduced to Lorraine and me and a part-time cash clerk who filled that role last year when the lodge was operated by Xanterra, the other major player in this park and several in Utah. The result is that we are doing the jobs of four people in what should be a relaxing final few weeks. I am back to doing payables in my room at night to keep that area on track, while spending each day covering my normal responsibilities AND helping out with the cash deposit preparation when I have the time. At least I earn overtime, but in Arizona you must work a 48-hour week before it kicks in. How primitive is that??

Last weekend, I did enjoy a nice belated birthday dinner in Kanab, generously hosted by my dear friend, Willa Douglass, who, like me, is using this first foray into seasonal employment to determine if it is something we could do beyond this initial experience. And I think we both would answer in the affirmative. She is a former teacher, with a terrific sense of humor and a great appreciation for all things cultured and sophisticated. In other words, someone who you'd want to have at every family gathering so the conversation would not grow dull. And someone who would not let you off the hook if you were wavering from some goal or decision she knew would be best for you to pursue. In her younger days, she and her late husband had wonderful adventures, doing things like hiking into the Grand Canyon and staying for eleven days! Now, she travels extensively when she is not here doing such diverse tasks as operating the switchboard or writing the text all the guides use when tour busses have arranged for someone to "step-on" and provide commentary on the way to Point Imperial or Cape Royal. I will miss her when we part in October, but she will be continuing with Forever Resorts at Big Bend NP, so we will cross paths soon enough. Maybe she will come back here for another season, too.

Other than that, the winds were so high last week, the outdoors was not particularly enjoyable, so I simply drove a few forest roads looking for signs the aspens are about to explode in fall colors. There were a few isolated spots, but the real treat will come in a few days when we see the nighttime temps dip to freezing. I have a roll of slide film set aside simply for that moment alone. I'll share some digital images, too, in this space.

In a few hours, I do plan to spend the day on a nice daylong hike...but first I must fold the laundry. And I promise I will return to full-time posting as soon as I realize my absence from the blogosphere has barely been noticed.