Desire Lines
Longing defines the storied heart. Contentment is pleasant enough, but it kills story. “And they lived happily ever after.” Fukuyama arrived at this realization, though his dystopia — unlike those of Orwell or Huxley — was unintended. But he knew it: the end of striving is the End of History. The End of His Story. The thing longed for may itself be contentment. It may be escape therefrom. It may be power or freedom from power’s yoke. It may be passion, or thrill, or love. It may be water or fire, air or earth. It may be utterly intangible. It doesn&#

Unpacking the Central Valley “dust bowl” lies
The last few months have seen a flurry of astroturf protests of federal court decisions to protect the critically endangered Delta Smelt, and California’s marginally less-threatened salmon runs. Some of the wealthiest individuals in the country, heirs to huge and massively subsidized agricultural holdings on poisoned land that should never have seen a plow, have cast the last-minute move to save the Bay-Delta ecosystem and its inhabitants as a“Congress-Created Dustbowl,”

A year full of Joshua trees
Forgive the crass commercialism, and I won’t even mention that thing that happens toward the end of the year with the orgy of consumption and the stress and the Carol of the Bells driving you into a tightly choreographed stabbing frenzy, but 2010 is coming up. You’ll need a calendar. Other people you know will as well. I have one for sale with my photos on them. Actually, I have more than one, but each one is the same. They’re all collectively called “Sentinels of the Mojave.” A sample page, from Se

Hey, desert-related blogs!
There are a whole lot of slots waiting to be filled in the Nature Blog Network‘s largely deserted Desert category. At the moment, it’s just Coyote Crossing and the wonderful Desert Survivor blog. Getting listed there is a great chance to get some like-minded readers. There are some requirements, described in the below-cut-n-pasted text: 1. Your site must be a BLOG

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[decided to repost this from here - CC] We need your trust, o dearest one your trust, and then your bank account by war my country is undone and though I have gained an amount of treasure fit to see me through these times of war and civil strife I turn, o dearest one, to you to aid me and my dying wife. My name is BAXTER JOSEPH SMITH NGORO ENTER SENDER’S NAME. My father found employment with our Ministry of Fish and Game and when our ruler was deposed my father gave to me a key saying “dea