Me, neither. I just finished Rocky Mountain High, which details an entrepeneur’s rocky experience trying to establish a hemp farm. Aside from the author’s skill at storytelling, I simultaneously cringed and high-fived his surgically accurate depiction of the cowboy myth whose reign is long last expiration date. The unfortunately also-accurate chronicling of many small farmers’ starry-eyed (greedy), unrealistic ambitions that lacked basic business planning came as a shock, despite my own predictions that the much-hyped new industry would crash quickly.
Now I am reading The Taste for Poison, which describes several poisons and the murderous uses of them, both old cases and recent ones. It combines biology with true crime, and it’s packed with info I never knew. Scary, too!
Next after that will be The Raven’s Gift, by Jon Turk, whom some here already know from his beautiful expedition writing. His Cold Oceans should be on every cold-saltwater long-distance paddler’s reading list. I will always remember his visceral portrayal of being spacially and visually disoriented in an environment where literally all the surroundings are white, gray, blue—and highly reflective, not to mention liquid, too. Just reading it made me feel unmoored.
I’m not sure reading has anything at all to do with cocooning (Or quitting anything). It, for me at least, has more to do with available time. I always have a book in a dry bag with my change of clothes. Love reading if I draw the duty of watching boats while a shuttle is being run or holing up in the tent on a rainy day snoozing and reading.
BTW, has anyone here read “Brave the Wild River”? Seems like something that would be of interest to at least some folks here. I just became aware of it - a story of two women botanists who did the first survey of the plant life of the Grand Canyon. Seems like it could be a good read.
Thursday we arrived home from an extended trip to Wyoming. The 4th of July fireworks show in Rock Springs was 49 degrees with a 10-15 mph wind. We were wearing coats and multiple layers.
In Florida, it was a cool 89 this morning. Next week 94+ with humidity. The “feels like” temp the other day was 114.5 degrees. It’s not hibernation, but altered lifestyle. Do your outside in the morning, earlier the better. Be inside by noon and things work better. Of course I’m luckily retired and can do that schedule. Paddling season is to do the springs and take plenty of swim breaks.
with a dog.