I want to buy some chickens, preferrably hens.
The idea of individual sovereignty carries with it the responsibility of becoming independent, both from outside governmental forces and economic needs. The bicycle has been known for its juxtaposition to punk rock and other underground movements. Bikes are freedom. We don’t have to ask permission to ride them. We don’t pay taxes to get stickers so the man won’t accost us. There is no need to support big business or to pollute the environment to transport ourselves by bike. Bikes are independence.
Driving home from Tucson, I had some time to think. I started pondering influences and how we can be sovereign. Many influences we have little or no control over because of the societal pressures and consequences attached to avoiding them. We can, as in we have the ability, to stop paying taxes. Unfortunately, the man will come and toss our sorry ass in jail. We can choose to be completely free, but we cannot peacefully remove the consequences, yet. Individual sovereignty begins slowly. I know it sucks, but we must begin somewhere. I will begin with eggs.
Self-sufficiency is essential for independence existence. While driving home this really hit me hard. I began to think of all the ways I depend on others for my existence and how I can declare my sovereignty from them. It occurred to me that over the past century, man’s ability to provide for himself has slipped out of his hands. I may be the exception but I don’t know many people who have gardens. Growing up, my grandfather always had an awesome garden and I’m sure he was able to provide for a large part of his sustenance from his work in the soil. I know I ate a lot of peas. I, two generations later, have no such ability. I do not know when to plant or what to plant. My idea of the harvest is ordering pizza.
After all the bouncing around in my head, these thoughts made me commit to pedal my way to work, to get some chickens, and to break out the rotatiller and plant a garden. I will learn to do what was second nature only a few decades ago. I will be sovereign.
Anybody selling chickens? lukas@mooseknuckleralliance.org
Thursday at 6 p.m. I left the bike shop. Cimarron was waiting for me with her suitcases outside when I got to her house and we headed out for the long drive to Tucson. Cimarron jabbered the whole way and did make majority of the trip go by faster. Until we got to Phoenix then she passed out. I guess the caffeine she had drank fissled. It was like a machine running out of gas. She sputtered a few times, but then, she was done. So, the straight long rode from Phoenix was driven while both of us slept, not really sure how we got there. We rolled up to the Pratt-Chacon house at about 2:30 a.m., 578 miles later.
Friday was more enjoyable. After breakfast and the what-nots of the morning, Bryce and I went out and rode what I believe is known as the 50 Year Trail. Definitely different than what I am used to around here, but still fun. The most challenging parts were maintaining myself outside of the reach of the cacti surrounding the trail and the insanely steep grunts. Most of the grunts were actually sustained climbs that are just as steep or steeper than our grunts out on the Goose. I cleaned some and walked some. What are you going to do? The trail weaved its way through the cacti, which either grew over the trail or the trail was designed to be mean. Twelve inches between prickly pears making a 45 degree turn is scary and difficult. Bloody desert.
The Pratt man proved that it is more difficult to land a rigid 29′r than most would think. We were about 2/3 of the way done when we came up on an off camber jump. He attempted it, I took the pictures, and the front wheel suffered the consequences. Check it.
That night we watched Clerks. I hadn’t ever seen it, definitely one to check out if you haven’t yet. Cimarron made some awesome pasta that I wasn’t able to truly enjoy because I had stuffed myself with chips and salsa. Sleep was good.
Saturday, all three of us, Bryce, Cimarron and myself, jumped in the Jeep and went to the Tucson mountains where Bryce had been doing some trail work. After Friday’s ride, I wasn’t as gungho to start, but the legs loosened up nicely and I really enjoyed the ride. Coming down a drainage we almost ran smack dab into a horse’s ass. From what we learned later, the horse had been injured and had to be put down the night before. It wasn’t exactly my favorite image from the trip but one that you don’t see very often. The night’s entertainment consisted of a Sushi bar about a block from the house and sitting around a fire in the backyard. And of course doing it all very noisely.
Sunday was our day of rest. Cimarron went out for a ride but Bryce and I just sat around the house all day, really all day. Cimarron and Bryce cooked up some killer barbecue (I ate veggie burgers) and then we played board games. I kicked some ass at Monopoly and then got my ass kicked at Life. It had been a while since I had played the latter. The picture on the box is hilarious, a family of four sitting around a table in sweaters and button-up shirts. Who gets dressed up to play board games with the fam?
Today was a long slow drive through Arizona. I don’t think Jeeps were designed for road trips, or at least, not for very long ones. Beautiful drive through some places I hadn’t seen for a couple of months and some I hadn’t seen in years (Kaibab). We made it to S.G. at 5:30 p.m.
I didn’t make it to Mexico but a great weekend anyways.
Peace.
P.S. The Mooseknuckler Alliance night rides will begin this Wednesday. We will meet at Red Rock Bicycle at 7:30 p.m. Email me your questions lukas@mooseknuckleralliance.org.
Sen. Inhofe is an idiot. In an interview with Fox News he claimed that the “hoax” of global warming was being propogated by the Weather Channel to keep people scared. Apparently, if we aren’t scared we wouldn’t ever watch the weather and the channel would then be out of business. I’m sure they are pulling a huge profit for this one. I haven’t been able to find the video or transcript of the interview, but you can read the AP’s coverage here. It is interesting how semantically agile the current administration has been. I won’t bore you with the list but it’s there. My two recent favorites are troop aumentation and emboldening the terrorist. I really should start a list. I would but I’m sure someone has already.
http://www.climatecrisis.net/ Check it out and decide for yourselves. This is something we all need to research and get the facts on. We can’t trust the government to get it to us.
In a bit lighter news, I head off for Tucson tomorrow to pick up the emboldened terrorist Pratt. It’s gonna be a long drive. Cimarron and I are leaving as soon as I clock out at the shop. It may be a day or two before I post again but I promise to have fotos and lots of stories. I would really like to make it down to Mexico again, at least for a morning or something. Being that close and not entering Latin America is just wrong and I don’t think it is something that I could stand for.
Declare your Sovereignty.
