Blue Sheep, Red Wolves, Telluride is a Broken Society, Thoughts from the Arena

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
— Theodore Roosevelt

Good morning from Telluride, CO; we slept in; we deem this our last little vacation before our busy season; please excuse my tardiness; we got to bed early and slept late. So I’ll pen some soup, work a little and then head out to enjoy this little town.  We had an adventure getting here, it’s usually a five-and-a-half-hour trip from home, but we turned it into an eight-hour experience using a detour from 50 that took us around the mountains and had us coming in from the south.  But the gift was I got to spend all that time with my wife.

Our Air B and B  is excellent; it’s small with a bunk bed overhead; they are very creative with their spaces here in Telluride.  We have a lovely table, kitchen and our living room is under our bed.  When we arrived, I put on School of Rock while we got things in order.  We had a drink here to celebrate our arrival and then headed to the first place that my friend Joshua and I found a month ago when visiting for the Jazz Fest.  That trip inspired this trip, so I’m using the same playbook.

We dined at Charlie’s restaurant, I met his last visit, Reed was our bartender, we had some great food and drink before heading back home, but first, we had to get some toiletries.  We walked into the store and were asked if we had masks; we said no, we’re vaccinated, we were asked to leave.  I said, “can I get my stuff?” the answer was no.  I said, “do you have a mask?” The reply “yes, but they are $10.00?” I said, “are you serious?”

My wife calmly grabbed my hand and led me out of the store.  We needed a bottle of wine, I thought of all the stores, they might be a little more open to my fresh maskless face, but nope, he asked I leave as well.  But he did do me a solid, and we conducted business as I stood outside, I got a nice Zinfandel to sip at home, and he apologized again and again.

So I thought maybe I’m missing something; perhaps they have had a mass death wave here in San Miguel County, Colorado.  Might I be wrong?   So here are your numbers folks, 2 cases a day are reported in the ENTIRE county, and we have lost two people over the last seven days due to Covid.  I suspect those 2 had other issues, like cancer, may be an auto accident, or were attacked by a rabid dog, but at death, they tested positive.  I am angry and upset, but I won’t let it ruin our time here; I’ll keep quiet, but this is about as authoritarian as you can get. 

I’ll not yell or blame the people, they are following orders, but I would like to find one store or shop that does not discriminate against those of us with a mind.  I’m not a sheep, I’m a wolf, and wolves ignore the opinions of sheep.  But then the laws are made by sheep, and the wolves must either follow or move to the hills.  The hills have no great restaurants nor shopping, so I’m a wolf stuck in the land of sheep, growling and howling, asking where is common sense.  This trip will be my last forage into the grounds of the blue.

I’m not sure what to do with this energy, I know what is right, I am a logical fellow, but it seems that the majority are following “Lying Tony’s whims and mistruths.”  Back home in Confier, we have sense; no masks are required; I should point out I live in a Conservative community; this will be my last trek to a liberal community until the world wakes up.  I can only surmise that sheep are blue and wolves are red. 

I’m sure my liberal friends are screaming at me, I might have triggered some, maybe causing mental health issues, but my God, people, wake up. My conservative friends are saying things like, “thank God he is speaking up; I can’t talk due to my wife, job, life, or community.  If you are in a position that you are not afraid to share your views, join me in pointing out this lunacy.  

Exciting times my friends, I’ll have a written record of my thoughts and ideas, and history will show my ideas and thoughts correct, or my tombstone might say, “Boy was he wrong.”  And I’ll take my chances; I have a brain, I can read, this political theater is repulsive to many.

I must roll, I have email to attend to, one of my clients has a new controller I’ll need to set up a meeting.  I have to review some information for a couple of clients, but after that, I’ll shower, spend some particular time with my wife before heading out to grab some brunch, and then find some trinkets to help us remember our time here. Finally, we will hike sans masks and breath in the fresh air while snickering at those that wear masks outside, sheep, I say, nothing more than scared baby sheep waiting to get eaten by the mighty wolves in future times.

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
— Theodore Roosevelt