Order Restored

As planned. B called, I met him at the bottom of the hill. I thought on the way down that I'd be able to drive back in. Got the Jeep, stopped at the bank, and went with the full list. There's always a priority list, if I have to walk in, and a full list if I can drive. The full list included drinking water (I've been on melted snow for a couple of weeks) backup juice and whiskey, potatoes, sweet potatoes, salt-pork, eggs. Stopped at the pub for a beer and a bowl of beef stew and spent an hour talking with the staff there about the preparations for St. Patrick's Day which has become a big deal locally. Filled up with gas, picked up extra tobacco and papers. More or less completely re-supplied. I should have stopped at the library, but I figure to go out again, soon, and have lunch with TR. Bottom line is that I'm inordinately proud of getting the Jeep back, doing a big shop, and driving to my house, which, when you think about it, isn't really much to be proud of. Avocados were on sale so I bought several. Steak, baked potato, and avocado for dinner tonight. High on the hog. Trent, at the garage, gave me a couple of shotgun shells re-packed with rock salt, and advised me to start shooting trespassers. One of the mechanics recommended a bear trap. I've calmed down, though, and getting out felt good, replenishing the larder, taking off a layer of clothes, setting aside the sense of being violated. I just want to be left alone. In a flurry of activity I clean out the fridge, dump the ashes from the stove, and sweep the major traffic zones of accumulated crap. I stand to get a few hundred dollars back on my taxes, which will almost cover the cost of the gas tank. There should be a National Endowment fund for dental care and unexpected expenses for serious artists that live on less than $10,000 a year. I'd move to Norway if someone would supply the firewood (an errant thought, but true enough). In this world, the ridge, late winter, I'm merely a spectator. B said he went out and cut a dead tree, the day after the huge snow-storm, because he was out of wood; his survival quotient is actually several steps ahead of mine, I would have burned the dining-room chairs. I didn't step outside for a couple of days. Right now, I'm very tired, I was up all night trying to finish a paragraph, and I need to sleep. The frogs are very loud.