Thankful

Shauna & I sat outside last night as the sun was going down. We had the new patio set all put together and were sitting at it enjoying the cool breeze and the quiet and we both proclaimed how lucky we were to live in Rural Nevada.

The sky was an inky blue, thanks to a late afternoon storm that passed over us. And the clouds...it looked as though a painter had bounced over the sky with a brush dipped in white paint, then muddled it with a pale gray. There were just a few stars in the sky, the rest wouldn't be showing themselves for a little while. The moon was a thin bright white crescent. The setting sun was casting it's orange-red glow along the Ruby Mountains, turning them a brilliant deep dark red.

The only noise was the laughter of kids playing down the street mixed with the whinnies (sp?) from neighbohood horses and Gunner from next door barking at a bird that dared to sit atop his kennel.

All mixed together, it makes for a peaceful existence. And one that I am thankful for everyday.

I get to drive to work every morning and see cattle grazing in fields green with sage and tall grass. And every once in a while, I am lucky enough to catch real cowboys and cowgirls on real horses driving cattle along the cattle path that runs next to the 'highway'. One of the horses we pass on the way to work had her foal this past week. Every morning for the past few months we've look closely to see if she's had her baby...What a nice surprise to see the cute gangly baby!

You see, Elko County is steeped in the rich tradition of ranching and farming. With names that go back to the beginnings of the area. Even with the gold mines that are hidden from view, way up in the hills, the ranchers have maintained their lands and the two have learned to coexist.

We might complain about the lack of variety as far as shopping here in Elko. We might complain that we have no Carl's Jr. But I don't miss the pollution clouding the sky, the hustle and bustle of city life nor do I miss tall buildings obscuring my views.

Yes, sometimes I miss the smell of the sea air wafting over the Redwood trees of my hometown in California. And living in a house that's surrounded by the mighty giants of trees. But when I get a hankerin' for the smell of redwood, I head to Home Depot and stand in front of the redwood planks and take deep breaths. And when I long for the smells of the beach, I open up the container of sand from Capitola, CA that Jessica brought me from her vacation last year.

What are you thankful for about where you live?