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Raven Jake Dawes
the Western Desert
Observations of a Western Legend
Interests: Raven Jake wanders the desert talkin' to rattlesnakes and picking up rocks. Along the way, he meets interestin' folks; some dead, some not. Raven Jake is partial to history, the natural sciences and the written word. He enjoys poetry shoot-outs and mining for art. Folks, do bear in mind that all the usual intellectual property and copyright stuff does apply; Jake takes a dim view of rustlin'. An' I ain't real fond of spammers. Be ye warned!
Recent Activity
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July 1, 2021: The enterprising townsfolk of Winslow, Arizona have come up with a genius way to court tourism: Standin' on the Corner Park. Now if you were born in Tunisia after 2005, you might not get the cultural reference, but for everyone else, the lyrics to Take It Easy... Continue reading
Posted Jul 27, 2021 at Raven Jake Dawes
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June 30, 2021: Ironic that the last post I blogged about and this one are both about the Grand Canyon, almost three years apart. These ground squirrels (Otospermophilus beecheyi) are persistent but I didn't feed him despite his cute, friendly shakedown. So what happens here is that the train rolls... Continue reading
Posted Jul 23, 2021 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Y'all, just so we're clear, $299 does not buy a sleeper berth and dining car benefits. You get a coach seat, access to the observation car and you can buy a limited range of snacks in the café car. There is a two-tier level of service on Amtrak and we... Continue reading
Posted Jul 23, 2021 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Look at how young and innocent and carefree we are there, hanging out on the San Bernardino Amtrak Platform on June 29 around 8 pm. Amtrak calls this line the "Southwest Chief" after the fabled flagship train of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway the Super Chief. We'll be... Continue reading
Posted Jul 23, 2021 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Howdy Folks, I haven't posted for a while - I think that the whole covid lockdown thing was just too much of a buzzkill for me to go out and get my adventure on much, but thanks to Moderna and a big incentive from Amtrak, Raven Jake is back. I'm... Continue reading
Posted Jul 22, 2021 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Although I am generally as frugal as I am ornery, for King Tut I had to make an exception. Even went full-boat with the IMAX movie package. Now I'm savin' my bottlecaps for some gold sandals. The treasures of Egypt make you think like that. If you're anywhere near Los... Continue reading
Posted Nov 16, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Seems like every time I go into AAA to pay my insurance. someone's hollerin' "Hey Raven Jake, when you goin' on the Grand Canyon Railway?" and handing me a brochure. Y'all know I love trains, but I've got beer tastes and a tap water budget. That changed August 4, 2018.... Continue reading
Posted Nov 16, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Y'all the primary reason for our little trip across Arizona was to scope out how Dragon and Zia's new ranch was takin' shape. For as long as we've known 'em - around 15 years - they've been wanting to get back to the land and set their souls free, and... Continue reading
Posted Nov 16, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Raven Jake at Hotel Congress Here I am at Hotel Congress, possibly the most haunted hotel in Tuscon, AZ. I say "possibly" because Tuscon is choc full o' ghosts, and I don't know where all of them hang out. Probably a couple of 'em are sittin' in those phone booths... Continue reading
Posted Aug 22, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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215 E. Allen Street Tombstone, Arizona 85638 USA Phone: (520) 732-1048 Folks, last time I was in Tombstone was around 2005 or so and I'm pleased to tell you, they ain't ruined it. As you can see up above, the Earp posse was fixin' to have a shootout at the... Continue reading
Posted Aug 11, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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That's a 9-foot ladder, y'all. I'm growin' some exotic Peruvian corn this year as a bit of an experiment and it just keeps getting taller and taller and tasselin' and don't show much interest in makin' kernels. Go figure. Gettin close to 16 feet tall now. Making some "toes" aka... Continue reading
Posted Aug 10, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Raven Jake in Bisbee, AZ Raven Jake on Main St, Bisbee Lavender Pit copper mine Well dang, folks! It's been quite a while since my last post and I'm going to have to make up for some lost time. As it happens, I just got back from an epic Arizona... Continue reading
Posted Aug 10, 2018 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Folks, there comes a time when camp food jut ain't gettin' it any more and you've got a hankerin' for something fancy. perhaps this impulse follows a soundbath at the Integratron. You don't know when it's going to hit. So if you're in the desert, but feeling like a gourmet... Continue reading
Posted Oct 16, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Y'all, I'm in the middle of a move and let me tell you, it's a rich voyage of discovery. Like King Tut's Tomb. Now I don't want to move anything that's going to go into go into another "maybe I'll fix this up someday..." pile. Time to roll up the... Continue reading
Posted Sep 28, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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After several years, it's time for the Old Spanish Trail Association's Annual Conference to return to California. This time we're in Barstow from October 5-8, 2017. Needless to say, I'll be there all weekend, doin' some bloggin' and visitin.' If you see me, come up and say "Hi!" Continue reading
Posted Sep 28, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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What do y'all think of my new house? This beauty just came up on the market, but I'm about $2.7 million light. Too bad, too because besides being the ultimate luxury Watusi Village I've always wanted, it also comes with some fine African art and a flock of flamingos. This... Continue reading
Posted Sep 8, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Happy 246th Birthday, Mission San Gabriel! We came down to represent the Friends of the Michael White Adobe at the Old Spanish Trail Association booth. Alex King's going to be here all weekend, so if you're around, make sure you drop in, say "hi" and learn a bit about the... Continue reading
Posted Sep 2, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Last summer while I was reading some of the classics, Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie came on up the list and I decided to revisit it. Be assured folks, that the version I read as a kid in the '50s ain't nothin' like the original. I think kids were... Continue reading
Posted May 4, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Y’All, in my interests of being historical, plus my natural thriftiness, I’ve been readin’ more and more public domain books. And some of the books I’ve been reading are by a feller named H. Rider Haggard, who besides being quite prolific, was also way ahead of his time in terms... Continue reading
Posted Mar 27, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Alright folks, don't be deceived by that perfect blood pressure on the monitor behind my shoulder. Couple of weeks back on January 25, I had a heart attack. I had a heart attack tryin' to be healthy, so you see what clean livin' will bring. Now as Raven Jake die-hards... Continue reading
Posted Feb 10, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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This here blanket started me on a path I wasn't even lookin' for. Jane wanted to get a blanket that looked like this poncho I bought in Mexico back in the '70s. Y'all have seen it. It's my favorite poncho, but a little the worse for wear. She probably thought... Continue reading
Posted Jan 29, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Just kiddin' y'all, I don't have a book club. Yet. It might be on the horizon. Lately I've been reading some oldies that I missed the first time around. You might have caught "The Big Sleep" a couple posts back. Now sometimes reading the oldies is uncomfortable. Sometimes it's because... Continue reading
Posted Jan 7, 2017 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Robolights is the artistic creation of Kenny Irwin (standing over there with me - we were lucky enough to spot him strollin' around), a lifelong Palm Springs resident who has been working on this masterwork for 30 years. Looking much like a dystopian Small World ride, Robolights examines the materialism... Continue reading
Posted Nov 27, 2016 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Y'all, I've been delving into the public domain for my reading material lately, and come to a couple of conclusions. (1) Those books that I thought I remembered reading in my youth are a lot different than I remember them, and I'm pretty sure I must have been reading the... Continue reading
Posted Aug 30, 2016 at Raven Jake Dawes
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Y'all I may have a web project coming up with the talented Michael A. Isaacs. Thanks to some Hollywood magic (aka costume and make up) your intrepid desert explorer, Raven Jake, is taking a ride on the wild side or possibly engaging in some unauthorized genetic engineering. First up: I'm... Continue reading
Posted Mar 1, 2016 at Raven Jake Dawes