kooskia, id.

Pronounced koos-key.

I met two people today from the greater Seattle area:

One guy I met in Grangeville, ID. He told me he had had his head cut open several times to remove a brain tumor, showing me the scars and everything. I thought this was an odd conversation topic to bring up within minutes of meeting a stranger, but ok. He then told me his favorite thing about living in this area was being able to drive his ATV where ever he liked without a helmet. I guess he is eager to have his head opened a fourth time?

The other guy was my Warmshowers host, Jim, the patriarch of a rural family numbering double digits. I really appreciate the values he instills in his family and the guests from abroad who live with him. They live close to the Earth with respect for the world and others in it. He fired up the sauna he built himself on his property and we did that for a while. He runs a gun parts company for a living and lives a 2nd Amendment lifestyle. I had never shot a gun in my life, being a Seattle Snowflake, so I expressed interest and he showed me how to safely handle a gun. I had the opportunity to shoot both an assault rifle and a hand gun. I had respect for the way he respects guns. It was an educational experience.