Month 2, day 2, of a brief hiatus from our careers

A soft breeze sweeps through our detached Lance truck camper as it sits alone on the quiet yellow prairie about 45 miles south of Malta, Montana. "Aayy-meee-eee, what'cho wanna doo-oooo..." serenades my dog and me via a far-off AM radio station as I type directions to the Shonkin Sag's Lost Lake into my iPhone, which gets a miraculous LTE signal.

Aside from the pond that I've already fished and plan to possibly hit again tonight, this area's fishy potholes are at least an hour away by bumpy, slow-going gravel road, and the nearest public pump is in Malta. Conditions are poor anyhow - the tiny "tailwater" creek I tried to fish a couple days ago, that I'd heard was stacked with northern pike, was chalk dry. I could bike to the nearby Charles M. Russell Wildlife Management Area and imagine giraffes and elephants gallop in the distance, but I did that yesterday. An occasional bison or 12 ambles through this little campground, courtesy of the American Prairie Reserve. Coyotes, raptors, and prairie dogs are also abundant, as are animal feces and solitude.

I suppose I'd rather be fishing, but this undemanding moment is begging me to stay put and enjoy it. I guess I'll leave some things unaccomplished today.