tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79736553634953053932024-03-13T13:20:11.079-07:00Out West TalesThomas Firth BlogOutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.comBlogger44125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-16222466383638250372018-07-14T19:15:00.000-07:002018-07-15T06:09:23.866-07:00NORTH BY SOUTHWEST ( BY WESTEAST, BY…)
NORTH BY SOUTHWEST
( BY WESTEAST, BY…)
“Cañón de no Retorno,” he said, his cold, steely eyes piercing through me like a pair of daggers. “HA HA HA HAAAAaa, haaaa, haaaa, haaaa, haaa, haaa, haaa, haaaa, haaaa…”
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It was my own fault and I should have known better. OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-10918453410598261892017-08-14T11:30:00.001-07:002017-08-16T12:58:37.147-07:00WHAT GOES UP....
WHAT GOES UP…
I
couldn’t have been more lathered had I just ran the mile-and-an-eighth at
Pimlico with a ninety-pound jockey on my back, as I stood there with nothing
but a small, backpacker’s towel that was only slightly larger than a Del Taco napkin,
covering what essentially OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-3498213321135375102015-09-10T06:49:00.000-07:002015-09-10T11:11:51.244-07:00The Trip From Hell
To say it was the trip from hell would be a gross understatement. The Donner Party’s ill-fated attempt to trek over the Sierras seems slapdash by comparison. It was the vacation that Chevy Chase movies are made of, and a seven-month, covered wagon journey across the plains with Rosie O’Donnell would have been a welcomed respite. If it could go wrong, it did, and usually in OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-87784151044599394842014-12-04T13:16:00.001-08:002014-12-05T08:37:23.145-08:00HATS
HATS
The other day while out workin’
I was muckin’ out horse stalls and pens
When my wife hollered out, "Time for supper,
Get washed up, it’s time to come in."
I scrubbed up at the sink in the kitchen,
Then reached for a towel on the rack
When my dearly beloved informed me
"Honey, you need a new hat."
Confused, I said, "Huh?" and was certain
I’d misunderstood her decree.
But itOutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-39055228880367974002014-08-20T12:02:00.001-07:002014-08-20T12:02:36.140-07:00WHAT'S YOUR PASSION?
WHAT'S YOUR PASSION?
There is a distinct difference between a love and a passion when it comes to doing something you enjoy. If you love doing something, you do it as often as permitted, planning around your work schedule, family obligations etc., etc. With regards to passions, well passions are something different. Passions are a calling, something you must do, you are OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-4850682489009595232014-07-31T13:49:00.000-07:002014-07-31T15:02:09.613-07:00The Swimsuit That Wasn't.
THE SWIMSUIT THAT WASN'T
Thomas Wolfe once wrote, “You can never go home again.” No pun intended, but he was right, as that very thought hit home for me this past weekend.
It’s certainly no locked-in-a-vault secret that as a kid, growing up, I hated school. As far as I was concerned, it was a waste of my valuable time; time, I felt would no doubt have been better spent OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-45774102094897860892014-06-24T09:37:00.000-07:002014-06-24T09:37:09.428-07:00OF MULES AND MEN (and cussing.)
GRIP HOIST: A device designed to rudely awaken all muscles in one’s body that have been comfortably cradled in fat for the last 15 years. Also used occasionally for pulling things off of a hiking trail at the speed of a melting glacier. Usually operated by a colony of Silverback Apes; humans with less intelligence than a grapefruit have been known to utilize this medieval OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-37059658487343813742014-05-13T15:17:00.000-07:002014-05-13T15:17:12.470-07:00IN A FUNK.
There is something about the wind that puts me in a funk, especially when it blows out of the north. I can’t put my finger on it and I really don’t know why, but it’s a combination of depression, laziness, lack of energy, and the feeling of looking at my give-a-shit-o-meter and seeing it pegged at O.
This morning I shuffled out to feed the critters in my Uggs and jammies. Silently OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-87775066323126324612013-10-10T15:21:00.003-07:002013-10-10T15:21:34.176-07:00EASY AS LICK'IN BUTTER OFF A KNIFE
EASY AS LICK’IN BUTTER OFF A KNIFE
Saddles.... check. Rifle, license, ammo.... check. Bedroll.… check. Cold weather gear.… check. Groceries.… check. Toilet paper.... check and double check!
As I ready preparations for this year’s deer hunting pack trip into the Golden Trout Wilderness in the Sierras, nearly everything is ready. I say nearly everything OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-47650510474247233512013-05-05T15:19:00.000-07:002013-05-06T11:38:30.658-07:00THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW ABOUT THE GRAND CANYON
THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW ABOUT
THE GRAND CANYON
“You’re only as old as you feel,” someone once said. “Sixty is the new forty,” touted another. I’m pretty certain both these statements were spouted forth by some OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-56319169334803639202013-04-28T13:19:00.003-07:002013-04-28T13:19:52.180-07:00Weighing it.
I like it when my wife, Cathy, laughs. Most of the time her laughing is infectious,
but on rare occasion it can be downright annoying; like when I’m standing naked
in front of the mirror wondering what happened? Such was the case when some time ago, upon
informing my bride that I had decided to embark upon an adventure of sorts by
checking off one of the items near OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-28792088771562099132013-01-06T15:50:00.003-08:002013-01-06T16:14:35.930-08:00BON APPETIT
BON APPETIT
I am writing this month’s essay high atop Mt Kilimanjaro in Africa. The temperature is fifteen below zero up here and I’m freezing my keister. Yes, they do have snow here in Africa, I didn’t believe it either: that’s why I’m here. Maybe next time I’ll take Lilburn Merriwether’s word for it. Lilburn is my neighbor, and he’s also a know-it-all. The worst OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-35381810779536583552013-01-01T10:14:00.001-08:002013-01-01T10:14:50.299-08:00IT SEEMED LIKE A GOOD IDEA AT THE TIME
IT SEEMED
LIKE A GOOD IDEA
AT THE TIME
My life is full of “it seemed like a good idea at
the time” moments. Like when Lecil
Hadley and I packed into the Golden Trout Wilderness on our annual deer hunting
pack trip, and on a steep section of trail with a drop-off steeper than a cows
face to our right, I noticed the load on one of Leese’s pack mules began to
shift dramatically. &OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-48050634386166878422012-11-16T09:36:00.002-08:002012-11-16T09:42:51.136-08:00FOCUS....
FOCUS
You probably won’t believe this, but I have spent an inordinate amount of time this past weekend putting together a tremendous essay for this month’s story. The truth is; it’s been kind of a dry spell lately, and I’ve had trouble sitting down and focusing.
Anyway, I think I finally came up with OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-55449372547504778602012-11-10T07:20:00.004-08:002012-11-10T07:20:34.709-08:00HOW FAR WE'VE COME.
HOW FAR WE’VE COME,
AND HOW DO WE GET BACK?
When events happen such as Hurricane Sandy, Katrina, or any other of nature’s occurrences come along, they don't happen in a vacuum. They aren’t events that rush in, wreak havoc and then go away, leaving us to pick up where we left off. In fact, they change our world at the most basic levels, leaving us vulnerable and with the sudden OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-40140033729136664142012-09-09T16:16:00.004-07:002012-09-09T16:16:57.511-07:00GOT NUTTIN'
GOT NUTTIN’
Every so often I get slapped upside the back of the head with an overwhelming urge to write. It’s an uncontrollable feeling that wells up inside me and demands to substantiate itself through the power of words. When I sat down to write this month’s blog, I was in the throes of just such a feeling. Thankfully, it has passed.
So here it is; this month’s OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-83812846650130311392012-08-11T15:58:00.001-07:002012-08-11T16:00:37.476-07:00THE GREATEST GIFT
"Build ‘em faster than the enemy can sink ‘em." And they did!
This weekend past I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to travel back in time. Albeit only for the day, I got to travel back to a time shortly before I was born and peek into the lives of what my parents, aunts and uncles, my childhood friend’s parents, and their aunts and uncles experienced and lived OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-707218564244957682012-07-04T18:57:00.001-07:002012-07-04T19:11:47.926-07:00AS THE STONE TURNS
AS THE STONE TURNS
In today’s episode, Tom discovers the joy of a somewhat frustrating conversation with a directionally challenged 911 operator as he attempts to locate an elusive hospital hidden somewhere in the remote, high desert expanses on the outskirts of Pahrump, Nevada, all while going over his last will and testicle with his wife, Cathy, who is driving.
And now; As OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-17195523281880656262012-06-04T06:39:00.001-07:002012-06-04T19:25:16.882-07:00MAMMY
MAMMY
There I was, standing face to face, eyeball to eyeball with perhaps the single, most terrifying and feared animal on the face of the planet. Aboriginal pictographs found in New Mexico caves clearly show an abominable monster described in ancient Indian legend and handed down from generation to generation. A miscreant so despicable the mere mention OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-38606414826569391112012-04-15T09:47:00.002-07:002012-04-15T09:51:18.425-07:00DECISIONS, DECISIONS
DECISIONS, DECISIONS
Life is filled with stressful and difficult decisions. Imagine; do you lift the guard, turn the key, and push the red button to launch the missile, or do you wait just a little longer to hear from the Russian Premier and risk nuclear annihilation? Or how about this; your father and two brothers are working on the railroad tracks and do not see the Amtrak OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-13217503190098228502012-02-26T14:05:00.002-08:002012-02-26T14:17:55.228-08:00THE PLAN
THE PLAN
Sorry I haven't put anything out recently, but things have been a bit busy around here lately. It's that special time of the year when my savings account dwindles smaller than a hummingbird's purse from forking out large sums of hard-earned money to certain government agencies, and unless you're Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, or Congress, it's about as hard as herding cats to comeOutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-32131798982040147212012-01-01T09:29:00.001-08:002012-01-01T09:46:32.868-08:00ANOTHER YOUNG SOUL LOST TOO SOON
ANOTHER YOUNG SOUL
LOST TOO SOON
Into each person's life, at one time or another, tragedy befalls us all as it finds its way into our lives. As 2011 fades away like a politician's promise, bringing with it a renewed hope and outlook for the coming year, a pair of tragic events has had a dramatic and devastating effect on all of us here at the Firth camp. By the way things have wound down in OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-3718706537318921122011-12-24T10:30:00.001-08:002011-12-24T10:48:14.538-08:00OCCUPY HENHOUSE!!!
OCCUPY HENHOUSE.
I have two words for you this Christmas; chicken soup! As this Christmas season rapidly approaches the anticipated morning I awake and stumble to the tree, only to discover that crusty old curmudgeon in the red suit, Saint Nick, has once again failed to bring me anything on the list I'd carefully prepared and sent him back in March, I feel the need right now for some chicken OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-86833996652449159182011-11-20T13:50:00.001-08:002011-11-20T14:10:48.666-08:00PEOPLE ARE THE FUNNIEST CRITTERS
PEOPLE ARE THE FUNNIEST CRITTERS
My wife, Cathy, maintains that were she not present to drag me around to various functions and events, I would drop off the face of the earth and become a hermit. That is total nonsense, of course. I didn't sleep entirely through school. As I recall; history, geology, and physics clearly tell us the earth is not flat and that gravity would prevent me from OutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7973655363495305393.post-64557866718489092712011-09-30T15:40:00.001-07:002011-09-30T15:52:11.569-07:00THE SADDLE
Having not prepared anything for this month's nonsense I was outside saddling the horse and mules in a last-ditch effort to get them into shape for a deer hunting pack trip into the Kern in a couple of weeks. As I saddled my horse I gave my old saddle the once over and couldn't help but comment to myself how well she's held up over the years. Then it dawned on me; when all else fails, send 'emOutWest Taleshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14248211936311130384noreply@blogger.com0