While sitting in the Arctic Fox relaxing, I do that a lot, I heard the sound of a fighter jet approaching, I recognized it because it's been happening every once in a while for the last few days. I grabbed my camera and went outside, but since a jet fighter precedes its sound by a goodly amount it sounded like it was right overhead but in actuality the jet was way gone and just a speck on the horizon.

Having learned from past experience that they make three passes near the rodeo arena area I got my camera ready to take a picture of something going by at a high rate of speed and waited the couple of minutes it takes for him to drop his ordinance and return for his next bombing run.

Sure enough here he comes and I'm ready. He goes from a speck in the distance to making his turn near the arena in about four seconds, and he's only in range for me to get a picture for a second or two.

But here's what I thought was interesting. They're not actually flying over where I'm at, he  makes his turn back to the bombing range probably about 1/4 of a mile away from me so in all the times I've watched this show they've gone exactly the same way, and that's good because I know where to aim the camera, and believe me there's not much time to aim.

On his second pass he made the turn right where he always does, about 1/4 of a mile away with me standing near the Arctic Fox but out in an open area so my view doesn't get blocked by anything. I snapped a couple pictures and in the blink of an eye he's gone.

So here he comes on his third and final pass and I'm looking through the camera following him as he approaches but this time he makes his turn before he normally does and flies directly over my head low enough that I swear I could feel heat from the jet blast.

Now I don't know if I was purposely buzzed or not, but I was standing out in the open where I could easily be seen. The pilot has targeting electronics that can help him identify objects on the ground.  None of the jets that I've watched has ever flown directly over the rodeo arena before. And jet jockeys are not above turning boring training missions into something more fun.

But true or not I'm going to add getting buzzed by an F-16 to my list of stories to tell the Grandkids.

                                                                       theboondork 

I went driving around Ajo a little bit today taking pictures of random things. There's some wild flower blooms going on around here, nothing spectacular but more flowers than I've ever seen in the desert.

It was a nice warm day but kind of overcast for most of the day. It wasn't enough to affect the solar panels very much because I was fully charged by lunch.

I'm thinking I need to start moseying on down the road next week. I believe next week will be one month that I've been here in Ajo which seriously broke my two weeks and then move rule all to pieces. I think the problem has been that I just don't have any other place I'd rather be at the moment.

I'm a little bit afraid to head towards Tucson for fear of having to compete for a place to stay with all of the Escapee folks leaving the Escapade that ends this weekend, and since I don't think it's time for most people to be heading back north again there may be a lot of folks staying in the area.

Even though I have no idea where I'm going to go, I do know that I've got to get going. I like being here, it's starting to feel like a home, and that's a sure sign I need to ease on down the road, I just hope I do it before I take root and start having to pay property tax.

                                  theboondork

This morning I rode the little Beta 250 over to the mysterious Desert Circle about 1/4 of a mile from where I'm boondocked. I thought it would be cool to take a picture of the little motorcycle sitting on the circle.

When I got there I parked the motorcycle on the concrete and took the picture. After getting back on the little Beta I decided that since the circle looks like a tiny racetrack I would ride around it a few times and see how fast I could go without wobbling off the track. I made several circles around the track trying to go faster each time and quickly got to the point where I was scaring myself so I quit and went home.

Late that afternoon when it was just getting dark I went outside, set up my tripod and took a couple pictures of the almost full moon. Taking pictures of the moon is about the only time I ever set up a tripod, ordinarily it's too much effort.

When I was finished I noticed a bluish glow coming from the area of the mysterious Desert Circle, I thought it was odd that someone might be out there in the middle of nowhere and figured that since I could still see fairly clearly, because of the light from the moon, I would ride the little Beta over there and see what was going on.

As I got closer to the Desert Circle the light got brighter and I started thinking there was a vehicle there because it kind of looked like a single headlight from a motorcycle.

About then It suddenly occurred to me where I was, and what goes on in desolate places like this, and the thought of stumbling onto a drug deal caused me to come to a sliding stop a couple of hundred feet from the Desert Circle.

I didn't have any lights on and they did so I was pretty sure they couldn't see me. I turned on my camera, zoomed it out as far as it would go, snapped a picture, and hightailed it out of there.

By the time I got home the Desert Circle area was dark and I didn't see any headlights or taillights in any direction, but I kept my trusty Glock nearby just in case.

Once I started feeling safe again I put the Media-card with the picture I took on my computer, opened it up, and a cold chill ran down my spine.

Staring at me from within a ball of light was something not from this world, something with a human form, but obviously not human. A being not of this earth that had been inadvertently summoned to appear at the Desert Circle by a clueless motorcycle rider that had accidentally triggered a signal that brought an alien being to this desolate location.

What triggered the signal ? Was it riding around the circle a specific number of times, how many times? Was It the speed I drove around the circle that sent the signal ? Was it the phase of the moon ? And for what purpose did this Galactic traveler appear?

Or maybe this strange being was a different form of  human, one that will exist on earth thousands of years in the future, a human being so far advanced that he's no longer recognizable as one of us and has the ability to travel back and forth through time whenever he's summoned. 

Is his mission to return to the past when called and offer us, his ancient ancestors, the help we need to keep us on our path to the future? Or is it to destroy those that are a danger to the future of mankind ?

It looks like we will never know. I triggered the signal accidentally and have no desire to conjure up more things that go way beyond my understanding and control. It may be only luck that I survived this one visitation, but there's no guarantee that Mankind would survive the next.

                 theboondork