three hundred forty one

 

MIDDLE OF THE HERD

A theme has been moving through the rooms of AA lately, a call to stay in the middle of the herd. Several have left the herd and relapse through the past years of lock downs. This disruption made it difficult to stay in connection with other alcoholics. 

In person weekly meetings were limited to one or two compared to the regular 120.  Zoom became an alternative but it was a poor substitute for hugs, eye contact and holding hands in a circle prayer at the end of each meeting. Coffee shops and restaurants were closed so no meet ups or step work.

Isolation, binging on Netflix, eating too much, lack of activity, close quarters and working from home soon lost it's charm. Fifteen days stretched into years which gave the lone alcoholic the opportunity to quietly slip through the cracks. 

It's hard enough to stay connected but with the added isolation many more relapsed, suffered from depression and loneliness and sadly some died. Normally thirty people die of this disease every hour but through the blur of politics we will never know how many more lost their lives.

Unprotected and disconnected from the herd we were vulnerable, unaccountable and secretive. The lie rattling around in every alcoholics brain eventually made sense again so secret test drinking to sooth problems took many quietly out.

In Bend Oregon we have 26 legal recreational pot dispensaries. Through the wisdom of government package liquor stores and the pot stores were deemed essential services and remained open for business. Churches, AA, Al-Anon and NA meetings were not, what could possibly go wrong?

We did the best we could to stay connected, most of my friends survived but how many new people didn't have an opportunity to get sober. 

This year is coming to an end and who knows what next year will bring. The theme of getting in the middle of the herd rings true to most who survived. We do more texts through the day, phone calls to check in, a few more meetings with meals before or after, meeting for coffee, step work with sponsees and time with a sponsor all add to the safety of the herd.

We don't always talk "program" we do what I call "I give a shit" calls. A voice and a loving wisecrack that may evolve into a needed serious conversation. Just the act of doing this keeps us all connected.

We saw the damage the lock downs did when we weren't prepared so we are preparing for what ever the future holds. The pain of losing another friend to alcohol or death is too much to carry alone so we have no choice but to stay close together as a herd.

three hundred forty

 PRINCIPLES NOT PERSONALITIES

I have these on my desk next to my computer. I bought them on the Shayrl Attkissonn web site. I respect Sharyl because of her reporting integrity but I take her advice to do my own research, make up my own mind and think for myself. I read her reporting, but I do not assume she is always right I take her advice and research it.

Telling me the debate is over, the science is settled or claim everyone agrees, I take exception with these statements. These statements are designed to stop any debate. 

Any call for debate is called denial, misinformation, hate speech or  conspiracy theories. It has now been proven that any hint of opposing evidence has been censored. They do not debate or show their homework. They fear debate because their arguments and research may not hold up under scrutiny. If their arguments and research are solid they should welcome open debate to prove they are right. When they stoop to belittling insults and siting 20 year old polling, I'm not impressed. 

In spite of censorship there is information out there. It just takes a little more effort to find. Discerning the validity of sources is a little tricky but with a little scrutiny and common sense over time the facts will surface.

Many people trust a charismatic man or woman on a panel opinion show. If the panelist is from a particular ethnic group or race they are unquestionable experts. If they suffer from a handicap or illness, suffered a crime or performed a role in a movie, they are an unimpeachable experts and if they are anywhere on the gender or sexual preference spectrum, they can't be challenged. 

Asking questions is off limits and holding a different opinion can lose you a job or career. Yielding to the cult of personalities is the easier softer way. Seeking truth will get you banned, censored and unemployed.

Self censoring is everywhere today, I know I do it. If this blog had more then five followers I would already be in trouble and all I have revealed so far is the tip. 

My mission is like Shayrl's I want people to make the effort to research, make up their own mind and think for themselves.

Like Shayrl I'm not promoting my ideas or opinions. I express a few opinions but I welcome debate. I want to know the truth not build a following, I want you to have your own opinion, not someone else's. I look at these mugs everyday to remind me about principles not personalities and to earnestly seek for truth no matter where it leads.

I have lately put out opinions others may challenge. This blog is open to debate, I welcome it. If I don't have challengers, I'll begin to think I'm always right and that could turn me into an arragant jerk. If that happens I might qualify for a spot on a panel and that would be bad.

Oh, I forgot I'm not a "former prosecutor" so I guess I'm safe. 

three hundred thirty nine

MORMON CRICKETS

I heard about these when I was riding my bicycle through Nevada and Utah. I asked about the make shift corrugated steel fences around some of the houses on highway 50. They told stories about Mormon Crickets rampaging by the millions across the countryside. These fences were to stop them or make them bypass the houses.

They told me of blood red inch deep slime of dead crickets on the highways. They caused car accidents, ate crops, covered houses and made it almost impossible to enjoy the outdoors.

 

I thought it was just a good story to impress me but I heard the exact same story from several people. 

I grew up in eastern Ohio with mosquitos and flies. The summers in farming areas had clouds of flies and at dawn and dusk the mosquito swarms were unbearable. I had no idea how bad they were until I moved away.

I lived in Hawaii for four years. The insects in the tropics are everywhere so controlling them is just part of your day. There are some harmful ones but most are just a nuisance. The locals were much more tolerant but like me from Ohio bugs are just part of life.

Mormon crickets are actually not a cricket, they are Shield-backed Katydids. They are called crickets because the males make a cricket noise. They got the Mormon name because they destroyed the crops of Utah Mormon settlements in the 1800's. 

Three out of every ten years they emerge in large numbers depending on weather conditions and other factors. They eat every plant around them then rampage in search of food. They don't bite humans but they eat most plants, other insects and each other alive or dead. 

 

The four or five foot high corrugated steel fences are buried in the ground to prevent the wave of invaders from crawling under or climbing over to swarm the houses. I assume they work because most rural houses had them. They were unsightly which revealed the level of chaos happening when they were built.

The descriptions of road conditions during these swarms were the most interesting. As traffic killed a few the others crowed to eat then as more are killed the slime of the large juicy dead bugs grows and grows. They talked about multi car accidents with casualties and the red slime covering the cars and trucks.

I thought they were exaggerating but I can see how that could happen. They all told me it would be hard for me to ride my bike through these areas, I now agree.

Where ever you live there is something weird, horrible or interesting depending on your perspective. These critters are now being found in Oregon, but I'm not heading to Home Depot for supplies yet.

Video One link     Video Two link     Video Three Link

This video one shows Middle Gate Station near Fallon Nevada, I ate there on my way through Nevada on highway 50. This was my San Francisco to Maine trip.