Tied to the Post Blog
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- September 20, 2025
Now that I am officially a senior citizen, having achieved the advanced age of 65 last year, I have become suspicious of old people and their resistance to change. In our small town the mean age is approximately 68 years, and many of our locals like things . . . just . . . the . . . way . . . they . . . are. “Keep Bluff, Bluff” is the town’s unofficial motto, and strict fidelity to the past the objective.
Most Bluffoons, as community members are fondly known, are settled in their habits and avoid anything that alters their routine, changes their financial outlook, or upsets their schedule. As Colonel Hathi from Walt Disney’s The Jungle Book might say about Bluff, “Predictability, predictability’s the thing!” Fossilized, petrified, and ossified are terms I have heard used to describe our policies, and I worry these adjectives will be applied to me as well as my neighbors.
To delay complete and irrevocable calcification of my own views, I engage with young people whenever possible. Fortunately,
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- July 24, 2025
Those who know me best realize organized religion and I are at times incompatible. I am confident it is because of my rebel streak, that doesn’t like being told what to do or how and when to do it. I often joke with Twin Rocks Trading Post patrons that I am here on Sunday because I would otherwise have to attend mass and answer for those things I don’t want to disclose, admit, or otherwise ask forgiveness for. The customers just shake their heads, knowing I will ultimately answer for my obstinance. I intuitively know it too, but, like many things in my life, I continue kicking that can down the road, hoping when my time comes God will be compassionate and kind.
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- December 16, 2024In the 1960s Olympia Beer Company developed the successful marketing slogan, “It’s the water... and a lot more.” After 125 years of continuously making beer, however, the Tumwater Washington brewer discontinued production in January 2021. Falling demand and a flood of industry challenges put an end to their business. It was a dark day for beer drinkers, and an economic blow to people of the Pacific Northwest.
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- September 02, 2024One of the most common questions we hear at Twin Rocks Trading Post is, “So what do Navajo people think about that?” “That,” can encompass a wide variety of topics from art to culture to race relations to Bears Ears National Monument to local and national politics. There are, of course, a few concerns that arise when trying to address the inquiry: 1. It assumes all Navajo people are the same, with identical opinions; 2. That I have any insight into what Navajo people are actually thinking; and 3. That the answer is universal, static, unchanging. As Priscilla has confirmed, none of the assumptions is accurate, and all can be dangerous.
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- August 09, 2024Last Monday evening I was scrolling through YouTube, looking for information about the 2024 Paris Olympics. Growing up in rural Utah, I have always been fascinated by the City of Lights, and have many times attempted to find myself relaxing on its historic avenues at outdoor cafés, drinking coffee, leisurely reading the news, and eating croissants with butter and jam. Unfortunately, every time I attempt to schedule a trip something gets in the way, and I have never visited France.
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- June 29, 2024No matter where you travel on the vast Navajo Nation horses run wild. There are old ones, young ones, big ones, and small ones, but almost never are there fat, healthy-looking animals on the range. I have often wondered how they survive in this difficult environment, where there seems precious little feed and even less water. But somehow they persist. Despite the heat, the cold, the brutal wind, and even the pounding dust, and regardless of their apparent neglect, there they are, ever-present. For many reasons, horses have become a permanent fixture of the Navajo environment and its people.
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- May 31, 2024Jana, Pearl, Opal, and I frequently watch the news in the early mornings before we leave the house for work; Jana to train budding artists at Whitehorse High School, and Pearl, Opal, and I to entertain guests at Twin Rocks Trading Post. While there are some uplifting stories, much of the today’s reporting focuses on the current electoral malaise. For me, the broadcasts are like coming across a trainwreck with bodies strewn across the landscape; while you know you should look away, you simply can’t and are consequently left with horrific images seared into your memory. While this unfortunate political situation began decades ago, it has certainly accelerated since 2016, and although we may disagree on the cause we all understand the effect.
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- May 03, 2024The other day Priscilla had had enough. “Aaugh,” she muttered loudly, sounding a lot like Charlie Brown. I half expected her to follow up with, “Rats!” “Whaaaat?” I inquired from the safety of my office. It’s never a good idea to get sideways with Priscilla, so I remained seated and didn’t venture out to discover the source of her frustration. “There is white hair everywhere,” she continued. “That’s because we’re old,” I said, somewhat defensively. “Not you and me, Pearl and Opal.” “Oh yeah, they’re old too,” I said.
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- April 12, 2024The first time I felt the tug of a spiral was in the late 1970s, when I was still in college. The object of my attention was the Spiral Jetty, a land art installation designed and built by American sculptor Robert Smithson. Completed almost 55 years ago, the Jetty, located on the northeastern shore of the Great Salt Lake, is built of mud, salt crystals, and basalt rock. Its spiral fascinated me, and I remember feeling there was something deep, visceral, almost magical about it. Not long after my introduction to the Spiral Jetty, I was walking through a regional mall in Farmington, New Mexico, back when malls were a thing. In the central foyer, with clothing stores and candy shops all around, I stumbled onto a Spiral Wishing Well, which was a fundraising project for a local charity. As I stood looking on, people dropped their coins in a slot, and the pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters circled round and round, ultimately dropping through a hole in the bottom of the well. I was once again
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- March 22, 2024A 2020 survey of Bluff residents found that, on average, we are over 68 years of age. Although there are only about 250 citizens in town, that still adds up to a lot of years. This finding has led to many wisecracks about memory, or the lack thereof, in our community. I would relate a few of the jokes, but I can’t remember the punchlines. Thankfully I have Priscilla to back me up when I forget something important at the trading post. She, however, is older than I, so I am not sure how long that system will hold up.
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At the Intersection
September 20, 2025 -
Jesus in a Basket
July 24, 2025 -
It’s the Light, and a lot More
December 16, 2024 -
It’s a Mystery to Me
September 2, 2024 -
An Old-Time Traveler
August 9, 2024