Get to know me - the realities and beliefs of Bob!

I wear glasses for reading – can’t see anything close up.

My absolute favorite person in the history of the world is my maternal Grandmother, Lula Belle.

I am fearful of falling, and fish with sharp teeth.

Since I really enjoyed making this list, I guess I am a bit of an egotist. Oh well. At least I know it.

I believe I miss the simplicity of times past. I like almost all things simple.

Mom and Dad 1938

I miss my parents.

My first real job, at age 14, was working for a Chinese grocer as a bag boy and pop bottle sorter.

My childhood nickname was Bobby. Nobody calls me that anymore, probably only close friends.

My distant ancestry is mostly Scot, plus English of various types and some German.

I was a stud-muffin in grade school. I lost that before the 9th grade. This is one of my biggest regrets, but we are who we are.

The last time I climbed a tree, I had a most difficult time getting back down.

I have faced imminent death and remained calm, maybe too calm. I do not believe I am afraid of death.

I am partially descended from a noble British family (Carey). But aren't we all?

If I become interested in something, I tend to be obsessive about it for a time.


I have seen whales swimming in the sea.

One of my favorite things to do as a boy was to fly a kite.

I have been a failure at “relationships” with women.

The greatest sense of freedom I have ever experienced was piloting my own airplane.

I loathe telling others what to do, even when I have opinions about it.


I would abolish capital punishment. There is no correcting mistakes once you've executed a person. Plus, if killing is wrong, then it is unequivocally wrong. Not that I don't think some of them deserve to die for what they did.


I love darkness; I am not afraid. I figure if I can’t see it, it can’t see me.

Perhaps because I am from a hot dry climate, I really enjoy cold, wet, dramatic weather.  If it rains, I want to sit and watch it.

I am a predator with tools and an attitude, I figure it is safer for me than whatever I meet, man or beast.

Attitude is everything.

I am a farmer at heart in that I have an emotional tie to “my” land. I descend from farmers who were rooted to their land. These are my origins and I feel them strongly.

I am a bit of a hillbilly and I am OK with that. I do not value artificial or affected sophistication.

When ill, I am a big baby. Still, I take care of myself when that happens and am uncomfortable if others make a fuss over me.


Sometimes I wonder if I am normal, or crazy. I think it is a fine line. I think I tilt dangerously toward crazy sometimes.


I hate stupidity, bigotry and intolerance.


I avoid conflict if at all possible.


Until pushed beyond my limits, I carry anger internally.


I have a rather mercurial, temperamental personality.


My temper is often short, so I try to cultivate patience.


I am not normally a physically violent person, but I have no compunctions about self defense, or defense of others.

Life's biggest surprise was how short it really is.


I find myself good company (this means I do not usually mind being alone).


My public face is extroverted, but this is artificial and a result of my profession. My natural tendency is the opposite.


I am painfully awkward and shy in initiating romantic relationships. If I’m interested, I’m in trouble.


I thought I was a homophobe, but I have inadvertently grown to love a “gay” person (or two). Who would have thought?


I believe that humans are gradually and relentlessly destroying this planet and there is no hope. Zero. 

Mother Nature wins in the end, in a universal sense, no matter what.


While life is an unnatural aberration (from a universal perspective), I still believe it is universal.


We humans, despite our inherent hubris, are not the center of the universe.


I am not a good prospect for any woman to marry, nor at this stage of my life do I wish to be.


I believe a truly good person looks after the needs of others, before and instead of their own. I am not always a "truly good person."

I am a sleeping machine.


I do not believe in ghosts, nor do I think an individual or conscious afterlife is a logical assumption. I could be wrong.

I fully comprehend and believe in the normality and likely finality of death.


I am a casual seeker of truth, but I refuse to be wedded to belief systems that seem ludicrous and in any event, cannot be proven. I will wait until truth reveals itself while understanding it may not ever do so.


I am agnostic, but I increasingly lean toward unapologetic atheism.


If God exists, he is pretty much a “hands-off” God. The good and the bad that we encounter are random and simply part of the experience. 


I believe that humor is the oil of life, although some people do not “get” my particular brand of lubrication.


It is important not to take things too seriously - in the end, no one gets out alive.

Politically, I am very conservative, in a classical sense.

Liberal or conservative, the most important considerations in selecting a leader are steadfastness, integrity and honesty.

I am not a nationalist.


The golden rule is paramount.


Integrity is everything.

I can like chick flicks.

Intelligence does not seem to be universal, but ignorance is. I am continually amazed by how ignorant and unthinking so many of us are.

I should have been a sea captain (or at least an able-seaman), about 175 years ago. Ahoy, matey!


There is perhaps nothing quite as musically perfect as a Handel gavotte or minuet.


Beethoven’s 5th Piano Concerto (the "Emperor"), specifically the 2nd movement, is the single most perfect and beautiful piece of music ever written.


“Evangelina” (Hoyt Axton) is also pretty cool; I would like to meet a girl named Evangelina so I could sing it to her.


I love motorcycles, airplanes, trains, motorcars and ships. Pretty much anything you can use to get from point A to point B. Speed is a plus.


I own a slingshot. Beware, you Grackles!

I know the words to almost every Gordon Lightfoot song I've ever heard.  There are hundreds.


It’s Ford or Chevy for me, not BMW, Lexus or Mercedes. I prefer pick-ups, although the scarcity of cheap petrol may force me to rethink this... [at present, I own a truck that can get 30 mpg! Yay!]

While I have been lost a few times, I have a very well-developed sense of direction.  I can usually always find my way around on land.


If I could be a bird or an animal, it would be a bear. A grizzly bear. The biggest, baddest, bawdiest grizzly. Or maybe a seagull, except for the diet. I do love that "soaring and surfing" thing they've got going on...


As I get older, I no longer enjoy "cold" as I used to.  My favorite place these days seems to be in front of my portable heater.


Beaches are good. I love the beach, although I don’t usually stay on the beach too long. Gotta keep moving.


For me, abortion is personally unthinkable. It runs counter to everything I believe about morality and right. 


I like the idea of fishing. But I’m not certain the execution of fishing interests me.


I find the idea of simplification – even a monastic life – attractive.


I love sleeping outside – nothing but a starry sky, a fading fire, a cot and a sleeping bag. Oh, and a fluffy pillow.

Hubbard Glacier

I have seen glaciers!  Did you know they are sky-blue?


I shall be cremated. My mortal remains should not be a burden unto the earth.


I do not hunt or kill. Leave the critters be. Even the snakes and bugs. But not Grackles. I will fling a rock in their direction every time I get the chance. Keep them bastards nervous and moving!


When sitting or waiting, I might read anything, even cereal boxes. Anything at hand.


I have little interest in fixing things, or in spectator sports, with few exceptions. My son, however, seems to have inherited these genes. It is possible he got them from his mother. 


I am a western boy. I want to be up high and immersed in an expansive view clear to the horizon. When I am east of the Mississippi I often feel smothered by trees.


I strive to create a tiny bit of order in the overwhelming chaos of life and my surroundings.

In that direction, I am a loathsome housekeeper. 


I like salads but rarely eat them. Too much trouble to make and they never make a completely satisfying meal. Where’s the beef!


I do not drink, generally. Never tasted anything alcoholic I liked at all. 


I have tried and mostly failed to develop a liking for coffee. I still occasionally drink it just for the effects. Given a choice of hot drinks, I prefer cafe mocha or cocoa.


I can kick a tin can for blocks and/or jump squarely in a puddle.


I will not intentionally step on a sidewalk crack.


I’m not a vegetarian but I do feel somewhat sorry for the critters I eat. I hope they had a good life. Please pass the sauce.


I never read the fortune in a fortune cookie. Nor anything remotely connected to astrology. Reality is my bailiwick. I do however, invariably eat the cookie, and yours too, if you are not looking.


I will change the T.P. roll to the proper orientation if it isn’t so already.


Sometimes I drive on the wrong side of the road just for fun.


Notwithstanding the last entry, my IQ has been calculated at 149 on at least one test. That's within the top 1%. (fat lot of good this has done me).


I would happily spend hours or days riding ferries.


I eat chocolate and drink cola at the same time – in almost any conceivable combination. I will pour Coke on chocolate ice cream for example. These two flavors are perfectly complementary.


I happily eat in cheap-dive Chinese buffet restaurants.

I love traditional music, especially fiddles, banjos and bagpipes.

I can easily get "lost" in the wonders of a night-time sky.


I cannot sleep on airplanes – too interested in what is going on – people, the aircraft’s machinery, the sounds and processes of flight, etc. I keep track of progress by identifying things on the ground wherever possible. I carry a map onto the airplane for this purpose.

If you are flying, I will flight-track your aircraft from start to finish.


I will not eat pineapple on pizza. In fact, the only toppings that should be legal on pizza are sausage (Italiano), pepperoni, and maybe mushrooms or black olives. Perhaps a bit of tomato. No fish, no fruit. There really should be laws for these things.


I am the cookie man.


I love to sing; unfortunately I have a voice like a toad. I do not distinguish between guy songs and girl songs. I sing ALL the parts. I will sing with Johnny Cash, his daughter, Paul Simon or Leslie Gore any one without any qualms whatsoever, as long as I am totally alone where you cannot hear me.


If money were no object… I’d be continually on the road in a great road car, perhaps a sporty Mustang, or a Northstar-powered Cadillac coupe. I would not come home for months. Trans-Canada highway, anyone?

I can drive at least 1,500 miles almost any direction within the USA from my home with no map or GPS, without losing my way.


I am not an adventurous eater. No sushi, no wild game. No slimy stuff.


I have jumped out of a perfectly good airplane, on purpose.


A life without chocolate is like… um… er….well it wouldn’t be a good thing.


Bob is to library as itty bitty bug is to Venus Flytrap.


Bob is to beach as ant is to picnic.


I love barbecue. I can make killer pork ribs.


Favorite foods – perfectly roasted or smoked meats; a home-made taco or chile relleno; home-made hash browns; a sauté of fresh corn with peppers and onions; a warm spinach salad; a perfect apple pie. I also love beanie-weenie.  Buttered, salted popcorn. Oh, and grilled or fried chicken!


I shower, rather than bathe. Long and hot and soapy as a general rule. This is a requirement before meeting the world in any way, each and every day. I must be C-L-E-A-N. Even at camp.


I love good films and loathe trash films. I have a world class collection of my favorite movies on DVD.


Life is too short to speed through.  While I enjoy driving or riding fast, I am more often the driver everyone else is passing. Live the moment!


I cannot tolerate negative attitudes and narrow uncomprehending minds and will separate myself from those afflicted with them.


I do not swim well. I can flounder along, perhaps well enough to save my life for a short time if necessary. Or perhaps not. All is not lost; I can FLOAT!


I would avoid a dental cleaning (if permitted) much as I would a guillotine. A root canal is unthinkable.


I have walked 25 miles to swim in icy cold, turquoise blue waterfall waters so clear they were like mineral glass.


I can easily spend the morning in bed, with only a tinge of remorse for the squandered time. I will do this tomorrow, if at all possible.


I cannot imagine myself as completely retired. Meaningful work is a requirement for quality of life, whether paid or not.

I have been told I am a great teacher.


I prefer to sleep in a cold room, under blankets. I feel like dying when I am too warm inside a room. I get headaches and feel “pressure.”


Mindlessness angers me; clear thought and situational awareness are primary virtues.

I love history, especially of the last millennium in the American West.


I am most definitely claustrophobic.


I'm still a John Wayne fan.


I have a deep love for the earth, its creatures and its surroundings.  To be alive on the Earth is gold.