Tuesday, February 21, 2006

A jaunt thru Skip land

At this time of year, the wash can be channeling water. For some reason or other, there's no water. We've only got a couple inches so far this year and this is not enough to get the creeks chuckling with the friction of water. So when I scamble over the rocks and boulders they are bone dry. I enjoy traveling along the water course for so many reasons but one of the ultra bounuses is that it allows me to see some of Skip's varous projects. He's got a bridge in the works. This one has been going for several months now. It wants to span the whole creek and stands 8 feet high in places. It is completely made with bare hands - Skip's hands and meant for walking only. It is surprisingly stable and maybe 25% completed.

Skip has another "project" which is located on one of the corners of the estate. When queried "Why here?" Skip quickly responded "Because this is where the stuff is."

For Skip, a pile of randomly collected pieces of lumber becomes a resource for him to explore shelter and structure. So now we have this structure in the corner now. This is basically Skip's form of inventory.

I stopped in Skip's hovel last night to find it lit up and sparkling from 20 candles or so placed in various nooks within the interior. The bath tub was steaming with hot water and his oven kept the air warm while outside the temperature slid and the wind howled. We ended up talking for 30 minutes or so. All I can remember is Skip telling me how much his curator, Linda, hates Dr Hyatt. Skip said something to the effect that the stuff Hyatt says can be such a threat to their belief structures that they have to shut the door completely any way they can.