Archive for ‘January, 2009’

On whiskey and words

I am a lover of both language and whiskey. Both have been acquired tastes, both continually honed as I get older.

I am re-trying John Steinbeck. “Travels with Charley: In Search of America” led me back. It is the source of the quote:

I am in love with Montana – for other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, even some affection but with Montana it is love, and it’s difficult to analyze love when you’re in it.

…an obvious favorite of mine and one I’ve had framed in my home since shortly after moving to Montana in early 1994 and additionally a must read for all rv’rs.

I loved “Ahab’s Wife” despite it being on Oprah’s list… I loved it for the story, for the words, for a richness of words describing simple things in an ordinary and yet extraordinary life – all fiction – spawned from a single line from Moby Dick.

Back to whiskey…

I think my first whiskey was J&B Scotch. I tried it out of a romantic affinity for some character in some book. I was in my mid-20’s. It was the start.

I have never been a mixed drink person. But straight spirits, those I enjoy. It is, though, the whiskeys that I truly love. As my reading evolved, and my budget, so did my exploration of whiskey. A Dick Francis book led me to try Laphroaig Scotch – an Islay single malt. A Patricia Cornwell book led me to Bushmills Black. Fast forward to the blog world and Dooce* and my current favorite, Maker’s Mark bourbon.

Reader, JJNorth commented on “Just a walk in the woods” with this quote:

‘It’s the beauty that fills me with wonder,
it’s the stillness that fills me with peace.’ RS

I was entranced by the words. But who is RS? Thank goodness for Google! RS is Robert Service and those beautiful two lines are excerpts from his poem titled “The Spell of the Yukon”.

My Google search led me to Dennis McCarthy’s site named: “Sippin’ Poems: A Drinker’s Companion to English Verse.” – Perfect!

Dennis suggests Rye with “The Spell of the Yukon”…so yet another whiskey to explore.

The last four lines of the last stanza of “The Spell of the Yukon”:

It’s the great, big, broad land ‘way up yonder,
It’s the forests where silence has lease;
It’s the beauty that thrills me with wonder,
It’s the stillness that fills me with peace.

In reprise…”Just another walk in the woods”

* a disclaimer: I stopped reading Dooce but I am grateful for the introduction to Maker’s Mark.

Alpenglow…again

This is what I see from the window behind my desk as the alpenglow begins its fiery show. It does not happen every evening. A combination of clear skies in the right place to allow the setting sun’s reflecting rays to light sky and mountain tops – a small miracle of the right conditions – creates the glow which ranges from a pale pink to a vivid orangeish magenta. This night (January 14, 2009), I saw the glow through the trees and as on many other nights ran out to see what I could see and capture. For me, it is like sunrise and sunset – I never tire of watching the changing color and light.

Alpenglow…again.

Road Trip

Five years ago…if you had told me that I would someday own an RV and LOVE rving, I would have said you were nuts.

I own an RV and I LOVE rving!

I even love a 200 mile round trip just to take the beast to a dealer for repair. I don’t love needing the repair, but it was operator error ( Damaging steps ) so I can’t blame the rv. I also didn’t “LOVE” the Jeep hookup yesterday as it was 6 below zero while I was doing it. Don’t let that sunshine fool you – it was cold! And things that normally swivel and extend didn’t want to do that. A hammer and a few choice words convinced them otherwise. The good news was that I wasn’t all hot and sweaty after the hookup…

I packed a lunch, my camera, my laptop – loaded Karl…no steps…I’m glad I’ve kept up with my strength training – and off we went. Destination, Missoula – 100 miles south.

The stop light in Bigfork…too bad about that view, huh?

Although cold, it was clear and sunny and a gorgeous day for the drive which skirts Flathead Lake for 35 miles before going through Polson, Montana and then a beautiful valley with the Mission Mountains to the east and the Bitteroots to the West.

Between Bigfork and Polson, I stopped at a pullout along the lake to allow 2 following cars to pass and to do a safety check.

We continued on. I had planned on a lunch stop south of Ronan, but the pullout there was not plowed. I ended up going all the way to the dealer in Missoula and having lunch in their parking lot. I unhooked the Jeep, checked in with service, transferred computer and camera to the Jeep, took a walk with Karl and then we started back towards home.

The Missions were beautiful – loaded with snow. A thin cloud layer lay about a third of the way between their jutting peaks and the valley floor. I didn’t stop – there are times when I just like to look.

**Added 7:30 a.m. 1/27 – I just visited fellow Montana blogger Montucky – he headed to the city yesterday also, albeit from a different direction. His post in the link is a gorgeous capture of the Missions – worth the click!

I did stop at a scenic lookout just before Polson. It is not somewhere I’ve ever stopped before, although it has the first view of the lake and the entrance to the Flathead Valley.

Home is 39 miles north of Polson. We arrived there in time for a walk before sunset.