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Cold Splinters is heading to the southwest section of these United of States for Christmas, so there might be some crickets around these parts for the next week or so. Have a wonderful holiday and we'll see you in 2013. It's gonna be a real good one.
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I'll meet you in the Organ PipesAll alone on a winter's nightYou'll say, "Come Home."I'll stay.You won't.
The Western National Parks Association has published some pretty wonderful books since it was founded in 1938. (Back then they were called the Southwest Monuments Association.) They now operate bookstores at 66 NPS sites throughout the western United States with a flagship/headquarters in Tucson. I've found and bought a bunch of these while traveling these last few years - Flowers of the Southwest Mesas, Flowers of the Southwest Deserts, 70 Common Cacti, 100 Roadside Flowers - and they're pretty darn easy on the eyes. You can see more old covers at the NPS' website here and you can order books, patches and a whole lotta Prickly Pear Cactus Candy directly from the WNPA here.Thanks WNPA.
One of my favorite and most unnecessary purchases in the history of having a CS eBay account. Though I suppose you can never have too many copies, right?MP3: Bombino - Tenere (The Desert, My Home)
A few weeks back, I was held up in southwest Texas - Big Bend National Park, to be exact - with Mikael Kennedy, writing a story for the wonderful Garden and Gun. (It'll be out later this summer, so stay tuned.) With work and travel and bla bla bla, this last Thursday was the first time that Mikael and I were able to get together since our little adventure. A winning combination of Guinness and Ful Medames.We both had books for one another, each one slightly commemorative of the Great Big Dry Nothing that was home for a few nights. I gave him a copy of The Desert Is Theirs and he gave me Twelve Lessons Of The Desert. Mikeal met Sam Richardson, the book's author, while down in Taos, NM two weeks ago, and after telling him about our time in Terlingua, Richardson directed him to the local book store.Twelve Lessons is a "collection of aphorisms, nature notes and essays written over a period of 17 years by river guide, artist, writer and storyteller Sam Richardson." I haven't started it yet, but when I do, I'll make sure to do a full report. In the meantime, learn more about Sam here.Thanks Mikael.
If you're in the area, head on over to Alpine, Texas this Friday and Saturday for the 26th Annual Texas Cowboy Poetry Festival. Hells bells, there's even a tribute to Marty Robbins on Friday morning! (Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs was a major part of the soundtrack for Cold Splinters' Texas adventure. They even sold the album at the Panther Junction Visitor Center in BBNP.) Ima miss you Deep West Texas.MP3: Marty Robbins - They're Hanging Me TonightMP3: Marty Robbins - Running Gun