7/28/5 - Longview to Salem

The loadin' dock foreman was really steamed. It didn't help that it was 90-plus outside, and I suppose all of our tempers were up.
"I've about had it with you and your crap T******n," he suddenly told me with a classic sneer. "Ya need to get your load and hit the f-in' road."
And just as I was wonderin' what bug suddenly flew up his ass, my buddy Pat, just in from Idaho, reminded me that the boys from upstairs were doin' their yearly reviews.
"It mustn't have gone too well I suppose," Pat said with a hint of delight in his voice. It seemed to tickle me as well.
On my way back back from Salem , I really noticed the late summer evening with all of those dark navy-blue to pink color gradations in the sky. I decided to stop for a quick glass of beer at the Goble Tavern before headin' to my Ranier motel for the night.
And there he was. After walkin' in, the first person I see bellied-up to the bar, all by himself, was the loadin' dock foreman.
My instinct was to turn around and grab a six-pack at the Quik-Mart to drink in my motel room, but all I wanted was one glass of beer. I groaned and mustered up a little bit of gumption.
"Tough day, eh?" I said in my somewhat unsettled surprise introduction as I sat down next him.
He started chucklin' to himself while starin' into his glass of Bud. "I suppose you could say that T******n, I didn't know that you were a god-damm fortune-teller, but I s'ppose I should expect that kinda thing from you."
"You know what," I began a bit impatiently , "let's just knock the usual shit off for about twenty-minutes here and try not to insult each other."
"It's a deal T******n," he said. It seemed like neither of us said nothin' for almost an eternity until he broke our silence.
"I s'ppose all of us spend everyday grindin our asses off and never bother to notice that everyone else is too," he said with remarkable philosophical insight.
"I suppose so," I grunted back.
"I'm sorry Tom, I don't mean to be a bastard alla-thetime, I'm just too worked up everyday to pretend to give a shit when I'm tired."
And there IT was. All of my resentment and hatred for this guy just seemed to float away after he said that. I think it was the first time he called me by my first name.
We spent a good twenty minutes talkin' together about some funny crap goin' on at the yard, the office boys upstairs, our girl-friend/wives, and we even mourned the talk of the Goble surviving yet another upcoming management change.
After all this, as I swallowed my last gulp of beer while standin' up and pullin' my keys out of my trousers, the loadin' dock turned and said sheepishly, "It'll be back to our usual grind tomorrow, so no hard feelin's when I snap at you, ok T******n?" he said kindly.
"Fair enough," I smiled back, patting him on his back. I threw a ten on the bar and told the bartender to be sure his next couple of beers were on me.
-Tom

7/17/5 - Home

It is time for us to look in the mirror. With each day that passes, that person looking back at you is responsible for ALL lives being lost in Iraq. Not only the lives of our brave solders on the ground and in the air, but thousands of innocent Iraqis caught up in the war that was started with lies from President Bush, Cheney and the rest.
We as a nation have to start facing the fact that our silence makes us complicit in this illegal war started by the Bush administration.
Every day more and more proof is coming to light, that Bush used fear and untruth(s) to make us believe that war was the right thing to do. Bush never planned on a peaceful resolution to Iraq. Facts were "being fixed" around his policy, (look up the Downing street memos) and as these "facts" become known while we allow this administration to function status quo, we become more complicit in the death toll that is mounting.
Look in the mirror and ask yourself if you want to be responsible for the deaths of thousands of innocent people. If your answer is no, then it is time to voice your opinion to whomever will listen. It is time to call your congressmen and women and say enough is enough. To do nothing puts the blood of our troops and the stench of war on your hands. We need a serious investigation and inquiry into why we are in this war. Stand up and be counted. The world is watching us and the blame is being handed down to us. What we do from this point on defines who we are as a nation and what we want to be remembered as. It's not unpatriotic to demand the truth.

7/8/5 - Astoria to Portland

Meth, meth, METH...
I've seen it around truck stops for years and seen the consequences on drivers...Not good.
I saw at least five meth-types tweakin' around town as I was passin' through the other day...Not good.
Can local law enforcement deal with meth effectively? The answer around the coffee shop was a resoundin' "NO!!"...Not good.
It seems one approach by certain St Helens business investors is to develop and mentor the very kinds of services that traditionally cater to ID theft and other meth-related crimes...Not good.
The above pictures taken from the Jail Inmate Census link are people who have been arrested for manufacturing meth. Manufacting! Do you know how bad this is?? Do you know of the toxic effects of a house down your street that is manufacturing meth? Do you know what condemned meth cookhouses do to the value of your neighborhoods? Not good.
What will the good people of St Helens do to tackle this problem?
"I'll ya what, we sure better getter done with this Sheriff's Levy comin' in November," somebody said between sips of coffee.
He's right. It may be crucial to this community. Take care of things here.
Tom

7/3/5 - Longview to Portland

Here's an interestin' fellow I ran across the other day.
Paul Fortayon, a California High School teacher, left Astoria to bicycle 3,622 miles to Portsmouth, N.H., where he plans to arrive somewhere around Aug. 8.
A mountain and road cycling enthusiast for several years, Paul is using his cross country bike trips to raise "as much money as I can" for the American Cancer Society in memory of his beloved grandmother, Carla "Nonna" Ferro, who died of colon cancer in February.
"Through the years, Nonna told me about the many adventures in her life, and she always told me to take risks and seek new experiences; she overcame many challenges herself when she came to America from northern Italy and made a life for herself and our family."
About 40 other cyclists began the coast-to-coast ride with Fortayon. An additional 39 cyclists are expected to join them along the way as they travel through Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ontario, New York, Vermont and New Hampshire.
Paul and the group traveled about 69 miles the first day to St. Helens and was going to proceed to Welches, and onto Prineville, Ore. He expected to be averaging some 100 miles per day.
"The first leg of this trip has been awesome," he emailed. "Highlights so far have been riding along the Columbia River, riding in the Mt. Hood Forest and climbing more than 5,000 feet, and riding alongside a pack of wild horses for about 10 miles."
Just another guy passin' through town the other day! Didja notice?
Keep your eye on things in town, ya hear? Don't know whatcha might miss.
Tom