Didn't get an entry in yesterday... kept trying, but Andrew was apparently having server problems.

Had a fairly good morning yesterday, checking three strutting grounds at the far west end of the gas patch (or rather, my part of the patch. The gas patch actually extends another good 150-200 miles west). The grouse at the second lek were unusually skittish. They flushed immdiately when I crested over the hill about ¹/₂-mile east of them. Grouse have flushed easily here before, and I don't know why. There are other leks where you can drive onto the lek itself, and not flush birds. They just kind of shuffle out of the way, giving you dirty looks as you drive through their morning territory. But not the birds on this strutting ground.

All I could tell is that there were at least 18 cocks, and roughly 32 birds total. Maybe they get spooked by my dust cloud?

Also managed to come across nine of our desert elk, elk that have probably never seen a tree in their life. In generations, actually. Oddly enough, the first group was three young bulls, all of which still had their antlers! Those should have been shed by now. The last group was less than two miles away, and consisted of three bulls that had all shed their antlers and were showing the velvet nubs for the new set. Do bulls segregate themselves according to antler style? "Those of you with last year's antlers have to hang out together, and when you start getting the new year's style, then you can join us cool guys?"

This morning was also spent checking leks in the gas patch, closer to home. That means more sleep! Those ten fewer minutes of commuting time can really matter.

Truck had been feeling really rough the past few days, or the roads unusually bad, so I checked underneath after the last lek. Both front shocks had ripped out of their brackets, so we were essentially running with no shocks in the front for at least three days. No wonder.

Stopped at the dealership, and they agreed, shocks work best when they are connected to the truck at both ends.

Shop manager was a little leary of the heeler sisters, and they needed the truck for several hours, so I drove to where the wife parks and transferred the heelers to the SUV. Then back to the Ford shop.

One of the good things about working for this outfit: folks know you need your truck. I have yet to run across a repair shop that won't do everything to get us fixed and running again (including bumping back the work they promised on your personal rigs). Once had a mechanic sacrifice his Saturday deer hunt to work on my rig, just because he figured it was more important to have me out there working than have him out there hunting.

I did paperwork while downing a couple lattes at the local coffee shop while the Ford folks hammered and welded. I rarely frequent this place, but son #1 runs a tab, and the wife is a regular. I didn't know how to order her special concoction, which I like, so settled for a mocha. When I asked to have it added to the family tab, the gal apologized for not recognizing me. Seems she could have told me what the wife's favorite was, if she had known who I was married to. Didn't know she was that much of a patron.

One of our spring storms hit as I was walking back to the Ford place. First black thunder, then rain, then hail, then light snow, then heavy wet snow, and then rain again. And sunlight. All in 30 minutes. And all sideways. Dealership guys got real nervous when they saw the hail.

Good side of the whole thing was that it left me in town at lunchtime, and I got to have lunch with the wife. At the restaurant that just recently went smokeless. Rumour has it that the last remaining smokers' paradise is also planning on being smoke free soon. Wow! And without legislative force.

Since this is fairly short and routine, I have tackled the first five questions of jennygel's personality profile (no, your browser is not malfunctioning... I intentionally didn't link to her diary, since she has abandoned it for Real Life. Will that day come for me? Soon, or later?)

1) Living arrangement: Married 20+ years

2) What book are you reading now? Should have answered this question at a more impressive time. Right now, it's Star Trek: The Lost Years by J.M. Dillard. Bought it on the Carlsbad trip, and never opened it until we got back. I really should have made an entry of all the things I bought on the trip.

3) What's on your mouse pad? Grime. Otherwise plain grey.

4) Favorite board game? With whom? Does dominoes count?

5) Favorite Magazines? Time, Discover, National Geographic, Smithsonian, Scientific American, Playboy (in that order).