It’s hot! We are currently suffering through a heat wave in northwest Arizona, it was 101 at 9 am today, with a high of 116 predicted. Now it didn’t get that hot, the highest I saw was 108, but that’s still hot, and we haven’t had any significant rain this season, inconvenient for us, but for the neighbors both big and small it’s life threatening. I put out some extra water to help, hopefully we all get through this together.

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Trucking along on a nameless highway, wearing my tee shirt I purchased from @overlandstyle on behalf of @swellrunner keeping comfortable and looking stylish, it’s what I do! 😂 check them out, they provide merchandise for a few well known overlanders on IG. Not a paid advertisement either 😂

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Today is Pioneer Day... what is Pioneer Day? It is an official holiday celebrated on July 24 in the American state of Utah, with some celebrations taking place in regions of surrounding states originally settled by Mormon pioneers. It commemorates the entry of Brigham Young and the first group of Mormon pioneers into the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847 so who cares? It’s kinda cool to take the day and remember the hardships that those early settlers faced in 1847. I had two families that were in the “Brigham train” that arrived that day. In fact the Westover and Bartholomew marriage was the first one recorded in the Great Salt Lake Valley... they were my great, great, great something or others. So today as I traveled in comfort with entertainment, air conditioning, and at seventy miles an hour, I thought about the those tired, stressed, hungry pioneers here to start a new life. From my homestead to yours, have a great Pioneer Day.

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“When you’re in the mountains, every day is Friday.” Henry David Thoreau. I may be the only person to actually confess to reading HDT work, I can also say I was not impressed, but I’ll still quote him every now and then 😊

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I was hanging with neighbors the other dayyyy. Ok I may have binged watch every Letterkenny episode there is, love that show, but I did hangout with the horses a little yesterday morning having a cup of coffee, and offered a few horse treats. They’re great company and never interrupt your stories, that’s important in a neighbor!

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Just enjoying a hot Arizona evening! It was triple digits again today, with little relief insight, but it makes for a nice sunset to sit and read a little😉 ———— Remember this Christians: God has put a limit on all adversity. Because you are a child of God, the Holy Spirit is living inside of you, and He knows how much you can bear. The psalmist said: “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all” (Ps. 34:19). And, “Just as a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust” (Ps. 103:13-14). Through adversity, God is molding you into a mature and effective servant. When you know Christ as your Savior, God sees you as a saint—sometimes struggling, sometimes falling, but justified, redeemed, forgiven, and reconciled to Him. He sees a person full of His unconditional love, indwelt by His presence, sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise, whose name is written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. No matter what dark moments you may walk through, be confident He’s going to bring you into the light. And when He does, it will certainly be worth it.

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I may not have all the goodies, I’m more of a keep it simple person, but my truck shares some very cool DNA with some other trucks out there. One such truck is owned by @swellrunner who I just received this cool patch from 😉 if you’re not following him you should! I suggest you check him out, you might want to pickup a patch as well 😊 ————- On a side note, I also received a new bottle of Off-Grid beard oil from @overlandbeardcompany and holy cow is it ever good! I highly recommend it to my bearded friends. —————- Ok that’s my product placement and endorsement for the week 🤪 hope everyone is enjoying the weekend.

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Someone was a little curious this morning. Every once in awhile the wild horses like to say hi. Especially if you have horse treats😉

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Local SAR rescue FOUND: MISSING PERSON / BLACK ROCK MOUNTAINS, ARIZONA STRIP



Just after noon on Monday (7/6), Lance Bush was located alive by the DPS Ranger Helicopter. Search and rescue teams had been searching for him in the vastly rugged wilderness area since early Sunday (7/5) morning. He had been in the area with a friend and had walked away from the vehicle he was riding in with only a bottle of Gatorade. Unable to locate him, his friend called the Mohave County Sheriff's Office for help – activating search and rescue. Search teams responded to the area early Sunday morning and began a route and location search for him. Between the ground teams and air teams thoroughly searching the remote area of the county, he was located in Sullivan Canyon and had traveled about  9 miles from where he was last seen. He had no supplies with him and was very fortunate to be found alive. He was very dehydrated and was transported to a local hospital for medical evaluation. Great job by everyone!

Jason Smith about.me/theoriginaljasonsmith

The day is coming.

In a few moments the day will arrive. It will roar down the track with the rising of the sun. The stillness of the dawn will be exchanged for the noise of the day. The calm of solitude will be replaced by the pounding pace of the human race. The refuge of the early morning will be invaded by decisions to be made and deadlines to be met. For the next twelve hours I will be exposed to the day’s demands. It is now that I must make a choice.

Because of Calvary, I’m free to choose. And so I choose.

I choose love. No occasion justifies hatred; no injustice warrants bitterness. Today I will love God and what God loves.

I choose joy. I will invite my God to be the God of circumstance. I will refuse the temptation to be cynical… the tool of the lazy thinker. I will refuse to see people as anything less than human beings, created by God. I will refuse to see any problem as anything less than an opportunity to see God.

I choose peace. I will live forgiven. I will forgive so that I may live.

I choose patience. I will overlook the inconveniences of the world. Instead of cursing the one who takes my place, I’ll invite Him to do so. Rather than complain that the wait is too long, I will thank God for a moment to pray. Instead of clinching my fist at new assignments, I will face them with joy and courage.

I choose kindness. I will be kind to the poor, for they are alone. Kind to the rich, for they are afraid. And kind to the unkind, for such is how God has treated me.

I choose goodness. I will go without a dollar before I take a dishonest one. I will be overlooked before I will boast. I will confess before I will accuse. 

I choose faithfulness. Today I will keep my promises. My debtors will not regret their trust. My associates will not question my word. My wife will not question my love. And my children will never fear that their father will not come home.

I choose gentleness. Nothing is won by force. I choose to be gentle. If I raise my voice, may it be only in praise. If I clench my fist, may it be only in prayer. If I make a demand, may it be only of myself.

I choose self-control. I am a spiritual being. After this body is dead, my spirit will soar. I refuse to let what will rot, rule the eternal. I choose self-control. I will be drunk only by joy. I will be impassioned only by my faith. I will be influenced only by God. I will be taught only by Christ. 

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithful-ness, gentleness, and self-control. To these I commit my day. If I succeed, I will give thanks. If I fail, I will seek His grace. And then, when this day is done, I will place my head on my pillow and rest.

Excerpted from Let the Journey Begin by Max Lucado © Thomas Nelson.

Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control... How I wish those traits were mine! I've read this a few dozen times since Sunday. I really wish I could say that these words described me in anyway. They just don't. At least not right now. The news and social media is wearing me down. People are just plain nasty to each other right now. The media is out of control and boosting peoples fear to the point that elected officials are declaring mandates to change our way of life! My only relief is that when "I fail, I will seek His grace, and then when the day is done, I will place my head on my pillow and rest."