Shoved around somewhat crudely by email, I accomplished something. I drove down to the unhappy mountain town where they have a branch of my bank, and I officially slapped down tens of thousands of dollars on the promised Land far away, where I hope someday to dwell. <\/p>\n
You could cluck and say it only took me a few hours, but I assure you that in life energy terms, it did take one full day.<\/p>\n
There were rewards. The first and most obvious being that I’m a real landowner now, for the first time in my life. Mortgages don’t count–I’ve only ever had one of those, and I’m sitting in it, and it’s half paid off.<\/p>\n
Not so for the first lot at six thousand feet. I bled for it. It’s mine, for no more bleeding than a couple hundred a year in taxes going forward. <\/p>\n
There was also the reward of good coffee and decent food.<\/p>\n
Then on the way back, the rain began to hit for real. <\/p>\n
There’s been plenty of it, too much of it, up in Prettytown. The flooding went viral nationally. But out in the Desierto Pintado it has talked a big game and failed to fall to earth. <\/p>\n
Until today. <\/p>\n
The land is home to birds: quail and roadrunner at the least. There is room for one more hummingbird, if not a colony of the sweet little bastards. <\/p>\n