I want to share a few pictures I took on my latest excursion. Can you blame me for never wanting to leave this place?

Some of you may wonder what a Virginian like me is doing way out west and how I became a cowgirl. Well, for starters, I believe it was always in me. From when I was very little I remember wanting to be a cowgirl. I finally got some red boots and a cute cowgirl outfit when I was five. At eight I was begging my aunts to let me ride their horses. When I finally settled out west I realized that it suited me just fine. There's something about the vast open spaces, the big sky, the huge looming mountains that pull you in and won't release you easily.
One of my favorite novels is The Virginian by Owen Wister. He was the first American novelist to write about the American cowboy and all "westerns" were spawn from his great masterpiece. I am so enamored by the protagonist, who we only know as "the Virginian." We don't know much about his life before he came to be a cowboy. He talks of having moved around a lot since the age of 14. What we do learn about him is that he embodies the archetypical cowboy of the American West; the tall, dark and handsome young man, a man of few words, who has nerves of steal and a high moral code that he lives by. If only more men were like him!
At one point in the story, The Virginian is talking to his friend who is the "narrator" of the story. They talk about Wyoming; the vastness of it, the wide open spaces, and, the inevitable lonesomeness of the place. The Virginian asks his friend if he likes the lonesomeness. He tells him he likes it.
"I could not live without it now." The Virginian says, "This has got into my system." He sweeps his hand out at the vast space of world, "I went back home to see my folks onced. Mother was dyin' slow, and she wanted me. I stayed a year. But them Virginia mountains could please me no more. Afteh she was gone, I told my brothers and sisters good-by. We like each other well enough, but I reckon I'll not go back."
The Virginia mountains can't please me either and for the same reason. The west has got into my system. I need wide space and big sky. I need sage brush and huge mountains, canyons and red rock. I need my land and my animals and my lonesomeness. After all, I'm a cowgirl. - The Virginian

You Don't See My Roosters Walking Arm in Arm

November 20,2008
Woke up to strong east canyon winds barreling down the mountain. I thought for sure the chicken coop would blow over. Now it's sunny and warmer and the wind has done a great job blowing all the leaves off my patio. Nature's cleaning lady.
I heard on the radio recently that the California Supreme Court is considering overturning Proposition 8. What a surprise. This whole thing fills me with disgust. First of all, the whole homosexuality thing in general. Most of us understand that it is not natural. I've never seen my roosters or rams going at it with one another. Most Christians would also admit that it is a sin. The last (and only) time homosexual marriage was recognized by a government was right before the flood. Yeah, right before the wicked were destroyed.
In my simple cowgirl pea brain I see it as a perversion. Just like pedophilia or bestiality. Gays and Lesbians want us to believe that it is normal and I know they have an agenda. They feel we are singling them out and treating them as second-class citizens if we don't share their point of view. They rant and rave about how they have rights. Yes, the same rights as we do. I'm not allowed to marry a woman either. (Not like I'd want to, I prefer my Cowboy)
What happened after the proposition passed was, to put it mildly, over the top.
As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints I was sickened over how fellow LDS were treated. There were businessmen who donated no more than $100 to prop 8 and lost their jobs over it. People trying to attend the temple were heckled. Protesters blamed the "Mormon" Church for not separating church and state. Incidentally, the LDS church did not donate any money, it was private individuals of the "Mormon" faith.
What the gay and lesbian community don't like to hear is no. And they will be very devious if they don't get their way. Like sending envelopes of white powder to several LDS temples and the Knights of Columbus.
We need to trust democracy. We need to trust that the majority will chose that which is right. We need to defend not only what's right but what is good in the sight of our God. Although I have friend that are gay, I cannot condone what they do. I love the sinner and hate the sin. I defend marriage as an institution originating in heaven. If we do not defend marriage between a man and a woman we will see the complete collapse of the family. The worst thing in the world is for good men and women to do nothing.

The Maverick Cowgirl

Nov. 18, 2008
I thought by way of introduction I should first offer a definition of what a maverick is. The general usage of the term today means, "an unbranded range animal, especially a motherless calf....A person who thinks independently, a lone dissenter, a non-conformist or rebel." The name originated from a Texas cattleman named Samuel Maverick. He was a Texas lawyer, politician, land baron, and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. Maverick was considered independent minded by his fellow ranchers because he refused to brand his cattle. (It may have just been laziness on his part but his name came to mean someone who thinks independently.)
I for one feel that I am indeed a maverick because I choose to think independently and will always remain a non-conformist to popular worldly views. I am a defiant cowgirl that believes in God and will always defend the right. My words are my rifle. I will always say it like it is, I will never mince words or try to sound politically correct. I am a staunch Christian conservative cowgirl who is ".. not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ; for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth."
It's time for my voice to be heard because I think I represent the majority of Americans who choose to remain silent. I am the voice of the lone cowgirl who is tired of tolerating madness. Hopefully I will learn that I am not alone.
The Virginian