This Ain't No Party

Montana is beautiful. It is beautiful beyond anything I had ever seen and it is beautiful beyond anything I can ever accurately describe. I wake up every morning and still can't believe I am here.

For the average citizen (of which I am one) it is very unregulated by the government on what you can and can not do. They seem to let common sense rule and it seems to work. Imagine that.

The people here are nice for the most part. There is no inner-city pretense bullshit to deal with. Douchebags and bagettes are minimal. People say hi to complete strangers. They stop to ask if you need help if you are pulled off the road. People who work in retail stores are pleasant and polite. It's a whole different planet than the one I had become so used to.

With the exception of an oil spill or two and some old mining towns cum Superfund sites, it's a very clean state, not fucked up by people for the most part. The cattle ranchers have the power here so occasionally the residents and some wildlife loses out. This part isn't good but it's unavoidable in a state where less than a million people live and ranchers foot a huge part of the tax bill.

Making a living here is hard. I'm guessing that 60% or better of the jobs are blue-collar back-breaking jobs. People don't get wealthy working here. They get by.

It can be deadly here. The rattler above was taken in my driveway after he rattled and lunged at me and the dog. There's wolves, bears, mountain lions, and poisonous reptiles. You have to keep your wits about you or you could end up dead pretty easily.

The weather can be harsh. Like 60mph+ winds in -20˚F temperatures. You can be dead in minutes. I had many days like this this past winter.

After I photographed the above snake, I took the shovel out of my truck and beat him to death. He had no fear of me and made no attempt at fleeing. If I didn't get him, he would eventually get me or my dog.

After I killed him, I stood in the middle of the road in a surreal moment of "Where the hell am I that I just had to beat a snake to death?", and I slowly whispered the word Montana into the wind.