I was just thinking about all of my recent purchases and I remembered the fun I had shopping for a Collings for my brother. He wanted one from the time I had worked at Collings that both sounded great and was in good condition. Anyway after several months looking, I ended up finding a nice D1A that I had helped make at the SXSW guitar show in Autin that Blue Moon Music was selling. My brother gave me a credit card number and the deal was done. I got to have the "rush" from buying a great guitar, but didn't have to spend my own money. Luckily for me, he won't be out here to pick it up until June, so I get to play it. Awesome guitar. Wouldn't it be fun to be a professional shopper of guitars! Anywone else get to shop for someone else?

not for guitars, but I had an unlimited budget as a landscaper for a very famous movie star (I did his landscape gardening for seven years), and I could just go to a nursery, point at stuff, and say, please deliver this tomorrow. I still had to dig the holes, but it was a great gig, even though I made squat for wages. tom

Sonoman - At least you got to work outside and didn't have any remorse when you didn't get to keep the plants. Me on the other hand...I don't want to give up the D1A now! Oh well...I guess I'll have to settle for my D1A SB instead.

You're spot on. No remorse at all, even though the most I ever made was 15K a year working for a man who was making (probably still is) around forty million a year. But most of the time I had 800 virginal acres to myself, a 4-wheeler to do thistle control and "monitor" the Snake River levee, watch the eagles and the redtail hawks, talk to the coyotes who were ghosting along, just keepin' an eye on me. I saw things most people only see in movies, if at all. the money didn't matter. tom

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I saw things most people only see in movies, if at all. the money didn't matter. tom

Tom, sounds like a pretty cool gig to me!

My Dad told me a long time ago that "success is measured in happy, not dollars"....The older I get, the smarter my Dad gets!
GW

Tom,
my family started vacationing in the Tetons in the early 60's. My father was into climbing and he just fell in love with the area. After college in the early 90's I went to work on the mountain making burritos two days a week for something like $4.50/hr. I think I was bringing in about $250 a month, but my ski pass was paid for and I had a little savings. I have never felt so rich in my life. Every day at the end of the day watching the sun set I asked myself the same question, "why isn't everyone here?".

I still don't know why I left. That place is pure magic.

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the money didn't matter. tom

Then why bring it up?

Sire Beagle: I first saw Jackson Hole in August of 1964 and I was immediately and permanently gobsmacked. I worked in yellowstone the summers of 65 and 66, at jackson lake lodge the summer of 68, and then started bringing my wife (1970) and kids (all four) to camp and hike every summer. We finally just gave up and moved there in '85. they were the best years of our lives, at least so far. we'll be back on Antelope Flats in August. I will love that valley until the day I die, and, depending on theology, after that as well. tom

Tom, you are a lucky man. I am secretly scheming a way to bring the family back one day. The Vineyard is calling too, but my heart is in the mountains.

The next time I make it to my mother's house, I am going to go through my father's slides from the 50's and 60's. He bought a Leica in Germany in '48 and took it with him everywhere he went. He left behind thousands of magnificent alpine climbing and landscape shots from "back in the day".
Boy, Jackson sure has changed from when I was a kid. We used to stay at the Red Lion and then the Alpenhof when it opened. The village was really undeveloped then. At my father's funeral I told a story about eating chili and snickers bar by flickering stove light at the old half-way house on the mountain (the one that got swept away). It was damp, stinky, overcrowded and perfect. God, I miss those days.

Ben

Oops. Looks like I effected a board shift.