“What the hell?” I grumbled, rolling over to look at my alarm clock.

Something had awakened me from a deep sleep. Though I had another 40-minutes before my alarm went off, reluctantly I crawled from bed and stumbled to the toilet.

As I stood there I thought about what it was that had woke me up – a noise, maybe. But I couldn’t even begin to identify what sort of sound it had been – if there had been one at all.

Still half asleep. I returned to bed, flopping amid the tangle of covers and sheets, hoping to will myself back into the ‘land of dreams.’ More than half an hour later and several false starts I surrendered with the complaint of, “Screw it!”

Slipping off the edge of the bed and heading to the bathroom once again, I turned on the shower. As per my ritual I started at the top, wetting and rubbing soap into my hair.

“Dad!” came Kyle’s voice as he poked his head in the bathroom, “You’re gonna have to cut it short. Gary’s here. He says Alan’s dead.”

Having forgotten my son had spent the night, I jump at the sound of his voice. Quickly recovering, I responded “Okay. Pour him a cup of coffee and I’ll be right out.”

Once dressed, I walked out into the living room where Kyle was listening to how my next door neighbor Alan had died of a heart attack earlier that morning. Gary said he had to get back next door and asked if we’d watch his three-year-old son for him.

Hours later Gary, his wife Autumn (who is Alan’s daughter) and I sat on my front porch talking about the days events. Gary, looking at his cell phone commented, “Yeah, Autumn’s mother called me at 7:49 this morning.”

“Really? I woke up at 7:50 to a strange sound or something.” I replied. “Weird, huh?”

That’s when I decided to check something. Since my alarm clock is battery operated, I brought it outside and after comparing the two devices we learned my alarm clock was running a minute faster than Gary’s phone.

It was a moment of goose bumps.

Slightly north and west of Spanish Springs and the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony in Northern Nevada is a hillside gash called Stormy Canyon. Over the years civilization in the form of a rock-crushing operation has slowly encroached on the once isolated area.

Ancient game trails, once used as a foot path by the local Indians and later by roaming cattle, crisscross the hillside leading to the canyon. You have to take your time and look for the signs, but they are there, etched into the hard-packed earth, between the rocks and the scrub brush, eons ago.

The canyon slopes up hill some two to three hundred feet in elevation, and that is why when I hike it, I tend to stay off the canyon’s floor. In Nevada, as with most arid regions, distant thunderstorms can spring up and create a ‘gully-washer,’ sweeping anything and everything in its path away within seconds.

One afternoon, I hiked into the mouth of the canyon, working the north side of the canyon’s slope looking for signs of the old one, who roamed the lands long before it was ‘settled’ by the White man. I had walked about 20 minutes, when I saw a man standing some fifty years south and below my position.

At first I thought I’d run into an ‘old desert rat,’ long-haired and handmade clothing, long since avoiding the trappings of society. Many men and women have found their bliss living in the wilds of Nevada and it isn’t uncommon to see a person like this, if you keep your eyes open.

However, when we made eye-contact, I sensed something was different about this man. I was overcome with the feeling that he belonged to the land, something far different from being at one with oneself in the desert environment.

Stopping, I raised my right hand in the traditional sign of coming in peace. He raised his hand and signed the same.

It was my intention to weave my way between the sage and stone to where he stood so we could talk. I looked down to check my footing for but a second.

At the same time, a huge bird soared above my head, casting a darkened shadow along the ground ahead of my path. And when I looked up in the man’s direction – he was gone.

It took me about two-minutes to reach the canyon’s bottom and the place where the man once stood.  I looked for sign to see which direction he had gone – and I could find nothing – not a footprint anywhere.

Far above me, caught in a warm desert air draft and lifting ever higher, I spied a large hawk sailing away.

Senator Harry Reid is up to his old tricks again – muddy the waters and create confusion where there is none. This time, he’s defending Clinton’s health, by pointing out that Donald Trump brags about eating fast food every day and isn’t “slim and trim.”

This comes after Clinton was supposedly diagnosed with ‘pneumonia’ on Friday and disclosed on Sunday, only after she collapsed while quickly leaving the September 11 memorial service in New York early because she was ‘feeling overheated.’

“She has pneumonia,” the Nevada Democrat stated. “And she’s well. She’s, you know, it’s curable. No one denies that. She’s off the campaign trail for a few days. She probably needed to rest anyway.”

He added that reporters should “look at his health a bit.”

“You’ve all been unfair to Hillary,” Reid complained. “She submitted a multiple-page report from a doctor. A good doctor talking about what medicine she’s on, and been pretty clear. She has had pneumonia. She’s going to submit something more. But look at Donald Trump, at his medical records, which are nonexistent, just like his cheating people on his contributions to charities.”

Reid told reporters at a Tuesday press conference that they should focus more on Trump’s charities “and what he’s done to cheat people.”

And of course, right on cue – the Progressive media began the task of altering the narrative of the news cycle away from Clinton’s piss-poor health to the possibility of Trump’s dishonest dealings when it comes to his donations to various charities. This is the same media that refuses to challenge Clinton on her foundation’s charity work.

Clinton had planned to campaign in Las Vegas, however the man who hopes to be America’s first male First Lady, Bill Clinton, will headline the event in her place.

The cease-fire agreement signed between the U.S. and Russia in Syria’s civil war, needs a little clarity about what it really means. But first a little background on how we got to this point.

In Egypt, the Obama administration had the Muslim Brotherhood help in the removal of Hosni Mubarak. In Libya, the administration enlisted al-Qaida affiliates, to topple Muammar Gaddafi, enabled by U.S. air support and weapons.

In Syria, the administration sought help from Sunni opposition forces which consist of Daesh (ISIS) and the Al Nusra Front, also an al-Qaida affiliate, to topple the Assad regime, by offering them air support and weapons. But it didn’t go as planned as Russia intervened on behalf of Assad.

With the agreement in place, the Kurds have, for all intent and purpose, been abandoned by the Obama administration. They’ll need protection from Iran’s Quds Forces and that county’s proxy army, Hezbollah, as well as from Turkey’s President Erdogan who wants annihilate the Kurds for interfering with his Daesh (ISIS) and other Sunni Islamic alliance that sought to overthrow Assad.

And who’ll give them that protection – Russia’s Vladimir Putin, who holds all the cards, militarily and politically, in the Middle East.

Thirty-one Honor Flight Veterans were welcomed home at the Reno Tahoe International Airport in Nevada by community members on Sunday afternoon. Along with the homecoming, airport officials also commemorated the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks.

President Obama used his Weekly Address and the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks to take a jab at Donald Trump, saying, “We cannot give in to those who would divide us.” He also praised his administration for victories seen during his tenure.

Hillary Clinton left the 9/11 memorial ceremony early on Sunday because of a medical episode. Clinton appeared to faint on her way into her van and had to be helped by her security. Her campaign issued a statement saying she “felt overheated.”

Six-Flags in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, received bomb/shooting threat prompting an evacuation of the park. Police are investigating the origin and validity of the phone call. They also searched the park, but didn’t find anything.

Tennessee Titans Avery Williamson wore his custom cleats made to honor the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks despite of being was told they violated the NFL’s uniform policy. The league threatened to fine him if he wore them. No word from the NFL yet.

The Air Academy Federal Credit Union has dropped Denver Broncos linebacker Brandon Marshall as its spokesperson after he kneeled in protest during the National Anthem. The credit union serves mainly members of the military and their families.

The Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party has filed a lawsuit to remove Donald Trump’s name from November’s ballot. They allege the Minnesota Republican Party didn’t follow state law selecting electors and alternate electors.

A man walking his dog in Sydney, Australia Saturday was stabbed multiple times by a Muslim man inspired by Islamic State. Ihsas Khan is charged with committing a terrorist attack and attempted murder. He also tried to stab officers as they arrested him.

A car containing several gas canisters was found Saturday outside the Bar Yohaye Jewish Community Synagogue in Marseille, France. Police initially feared the vehicle was booby-trapped but no trigger mechanism was found and the vehicle isn’t stolen.

A Muslim was forcibly repatriated after refusing to swear allegiance to the constitution during an Italian citizenships ceremony. The man who acted as secretary of the Muslim Community of Treviso was put on a plane to Casablanca, Morocco, on Wednesday.

With our country going to hell in a hand basket, Hillary has told us exactly what will be in it when it gets there.

Two possible cases of Hansen’s disease, otherwise known as leprosy, are under investigation in the Jurupa Unified School District, Riverside, California. Now the Riverside County Public Health Department is working to investigate and confirm whether the diagnoses are accurate.

The disease, which is spread through saliva or nasal mucus, mainly affects the eyes, the upper respiratory tract, and the surface nerves of the skin, which can eventually destroy the sensation in, for example, the feet, hands or face. Most online information sources list Africa and Asia as the two continents where the disease is most prevalent.

In addition to the recent report from California, there were several cases also reported in Florida, Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia. The outbreak in the southern states was blamed on the lowly armadillo, the only non-human creature that’s known to carry the bacteria that causes leprosy.

This conclusion was drawn from a study conducted by Dr. Richard W. Truman and published in the New England Journal of Medicine, linking 30-40 cases of leprosy in the U.S. to armadillos. Meanwhile, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention claims there are 6,500 cases of leprosy throughout the U.S.

This leaves 6,460 to 6,470 cases not caused by armadillos run-amok, including the two suspected cases in California. It’s the one thing not being mentioned by the Progressive media as they supposedly report on this Biblical disease – the Obama administration’s unlawful refugee resettlement program.

Nevada’s Senator Harry Reid continues to support Obamacare, which is becoming increasingly unaffordable for many Americans. Reid spoke shortly after Republicans denounced the latest round of Obamacare premium hikes and the dwindling choices for consumers.

“Obamacare has been terrific for this country,” Reid said. “Is it perfect? No, but if we’d had just a tiny bit of cooperation, just a little bit of cooperation from the Republicans, it would be better.”

“But all they’ve done is wish it hadn’t passed because it’s been one of the most substantial things to happen in America since Social Security and Medicare,” he added. “And so what did they do? Vote 70 times to defund it. And we know what Einstein said: someone that keeps doing the same thing over and over again is a sign of insanity.”

In August, the Department of Health and Human Services said an estimated 73 percent of HealthCare.gov consumers could still purchase a plan for less than $75 per month, even if all premiums increase by double digits. That’s because the majority of subscribers get tax credits to keep their premiums “affordable.”

But even for those with affordable premiums, access to health care’s limited by high Obamacare deductibles. And even though one Arizona county has no Obamacare options at all for 2017, Reid continued to lie:

“News is out today that 92 percent of Americans now have health insurance. Think what it was before Obamacare. Parents no longer have to worry about their children having insurance until they’re age 26. Parents with children who have diabetes, women who are — women no longer have to worry about being able to be forced to pay more for their insurance.”

Yup, Obamacare is such a good deal that Harry and his Capitol Hill cronies, including President Obama are exempt from having to buy into the same program that every other America is now forced to participate in.

The Obama administration is spending another $10 million to register new immigrant voters on top of the $19 million it’s already spent. The money, fully approved by a Progressive-Republican led Congress, is to be distributed the by the Department of Homeland Security’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS.)

The DHS has been promoting its “citizen integration” grant program all year, offering big bucks to recruit new groups that can offer immigrants the services they need to become citizens with full voting rights. In this case, integration means being taught how to live, work and function in the U.S. while living separate from the native-born culture.

Since 2009, USCIS has doled out $63 million in grants to prepare more than 156,000 immigrants for U.S. citizenship. Meanwhile, the administration is working with “Welcoming America,” (funded by George Soros) to help communities ‘accept’ new immigrant populations.

The secretive mission of “Welcoming America,” is to actually plant politically active immigrant and refugee populations in cities and towns across the nation. As this happens, all 18 federal agencies are participating by contributing resources and creating programs to help these ‘politically-active’ immigrants.

Mind you, all of this is subsidized by the American taxpayer – that’s you and me – and we’re now being forced to watch as our traditional American values give way Progressive ideology of social justice.

President Obama has promised Laos $90 million over the next three years to help remove unexploded munitions the U.S. dropped over the country during the Vietnam War.

You gotta realize we haven’t dropped a single bomb on that country since 1973. What the hell have they been doing for the last 43-years?

And how the eff does he plan to do this? And finally where or who gave him this authority?

We are already living on a system built of fiat currency in fiat economy. And there are no bills before Congress asking for this money.

Obama thinks he’s a fucking king and we are his dumb-ass subjects. It is time to sell your cloak, if you haven’t already, to save this nation.