tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-48416688341523308672024-03-13T04:27:01.450-06:00Where The Motorhome Takes Us...Comments on current life and previous travels from a retired couple who live in their 40' 5th wheel trailer.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-33420795949294975862017-03-21T20:13:00.004-06:002017-03-21T20:13:52.490-06:00Corpus Christi<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="450" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m18!1m12!1m3!1d451379.8069126094!2d-97.39235507220629!3d27.889550300900293!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x866852431bc591b5%3A0x4e1d806a29938a24!2sAransas+Pass%2C+TX!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1490132083099" style="border: 0;" width="600"></iframe>
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So while we were still at Bay View RV Resort, we needed to take a trip to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corpus_Christi,_Texas" target="_blank">Corpus Christi</a>, which was the real reason that we were going to that part of Texas to begin with. But after spending all the time that we spent in Rockport and Fulton seeing all the sights there, we didn't have a lot of time left for <a href="http://www.visitcorpuschristitx.org/index.aspx?gclid=Cj0KEQjwnsPGBRDo4c6RqK-Oqu8BEiQAwNviCZkcJC_qAcBHV2SvqHBelsf-uxGB56cWX5fMo8HvaB4aAnFF8P8HAQ" target="_blank">Corpus Christi</a>. I mean there were plenty of things to see there, just that we had a limited amount of time, and it wasn't as close as we thought we'd be staying. <br />
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So we figured we'd take a trip from Rockport southwest down TX-35 down to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aransas_Pass,_Texas" target="_blank">Aransas Pass</a>, head southeast on the Redfish Bay Causeway, TX-361 to the <a href="http://www.stxmaps.com/go/port-aransas-ferry.html" target="_blank">Port Aransas ferry crossing</a>. Even though at that time there were three ferries crossing the ship channel, it took about 1/2 an hour to be loaded onto the ferry to head over to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Port_Aransas,_Texas" target="_blank">Port Aransas</a>. We tooled around a little, then continued southwest on 361 on the barrier island called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustang_Island_State_Park" target="_blank">Mustang Island</a>. It's called that because there were at one point many wild horses on the island, with the story being told that horses were brought there and left by Spanish explorers. There aren't any wild horses there now. Lots of homes, rv parks, motels and condominiums as well instead. And sand also since there's a beach.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-meZSxL8JEqo/WNHUcoTYPeI/AAAAAAAADCE/LROaOpTGY7YOXVl_V30Fo2e8WSubZmDGACLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-meZSxL8JEqo/WNHUcoTYPeI/AAAAAAAADCE/LROaOpTGY7YOXVl_V30Fo2e8WSubZmDGACLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B005.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heading south out of Aransas Pass.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-422cw4tpRd8/WNHUu4P2evI/AAAAAAAADCI/fP-RoacvDe8bEVw-ekfB6mQ1a2DUPYxVwCLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-422cw4tpRd8/WNHUu4P2evI/AAAAAAAADCI/fP-RoacvDe8bEVw-ekfB6mQ1a2DUPYxVwCLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B010.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What a day for a drive, huh? Of course, right now, we're stopped at the ferry landing, so we're not really driving right at this moment, ok?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xREUzH6L3As/WNHVScJzuFI/AAAAAAAADCQ/edaK9dRsdfkQ3JxZcATAUBszys9ODFqjQCLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B014.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-xREUzH6L3As/WNHVScJzuFI/AAAAAAAADCQ/edaK9dRsdfkQ3JxZcATAUBszys9ODFqjQCLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B014.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Waiting for the ferry to unload.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ddtlN0VPdGw/WNHViNSutOI/AAAAAAAADCU/BivRivSeXVcuw-TmEsg10wt8xmqb_BZ8wCLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B015.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ddtlN0VPdGw/WNHViNSutOI/AAAAAAAADCU/BivRivSeXVcuw-TmEsg10wt8xmqb_BZ8wCLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B015.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our ferry. Not sure who he was, couldn't find out anything doing a cursory internet search, but he got a small ferry named after him. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Welcoming sign (really, it's a water tank) after getting off the ferry in Port Aransas, Tx.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Apparently I have a pasture in Port Aransas, Tx. Actually, it's a recommended nature preserve, click <a href="http://www.cityofportaransas.org/nature_preserve.cfm" target="_blank">here</a>!</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Port Aransas has a building with a octopus on the roof...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A-Owk6_oN28/WNHXrAVXevI/AAAAAAAADCs/C9m8xLDWuGItgPDC_X65Ikq7kjg6HhN2ACLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-A-Owk6_oN28/WNHXrAVXevI/AAAAAAAADCs/C9m8xLDWuGItgPDC_X65Ikq7kjg6HhN2ACLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B024.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">And a shark coming out of the ground to welcome folks to a store.</td></tr>
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If ya look at the above map, you can see that Mustang Island is really part of another island, Padre Island. Or maybe it's the other way around with Padre Island being part of Mustang Island. Route 361 goes the length of it and t's into Park Rd 22, where we turned left to travel further southwest, making our way to <a href="http://www.nuecesbeachparks.com/padreballipark.html" target="_blank">Padre Balli Park</a> where we had a lunch of Subway sandwiches and walked the doggies for a while. We thought a lot of Padre Balli Park as there were quite a few roomy RV sites there, although it looked like a parking lot with 30 amp and water only hookups, not unlike a lot of other RV parks. But it's only $25/night, or $150/week, it's not bad for staying at the beach.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eI0SL1wEuiA/WNHYyBTgNeI/AAAAAAAADC0/3xemPqjpY1gwFjX3xtmRTfyBBqXSDtLSACLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eI0SL1wEuiA/WNHYyBTgNeI/AAAAAAAADC0/3xemPqjpY1gwFjX3xtmRTfyBBqXSDtLSACLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B026.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach at Padre Island, used by people and motorized vehicles.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mztx4MJZgVM/WNHZSV4HGtI/AAAAAAAADC8/y7ZQOe_e6ww4Oq2WOkcirxA5NSimAqqOwCLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Mztx4MJZgVM/WNHZSV4HGtI/AAAAAAAADC8/y7ZQOe_e6ww4Oq2WOkcirxA5NSimAqqOwCLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B032.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The beach at Padre Balli Park with <a href="http://www.visitcorpuschristitx.org/see-and-do/beaches/pier-balli-park/" target="_blank">Bob Hall Pier</a> in the background extending 1,240' into the Gulf of Mexico...</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C8iu3V8AsGo/WNHauoWuZsI/AAAAAAAADDI/sOmHbGTJmDgij0Dus456ozENMHzGxLMpgCLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-C8iu3V8AsGo/WNHauoWuZsI/AAAAAAAADDI/sOmHbGTJmDgij0Dus456ozENMHzGxLMpgCLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B036.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">with <a href="http://www.mikelmays.com/" target="_blank">Mikel May's</a> just off the beach.</td></tr>
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As it was getting further on in the day, we went through Corpus Christi towards the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Lexington_(CV-16)" target="_blank">USS Lexington</a>, which is now a floating museum. You can find out more information about the museum part by clicking <a href="https://www.usslexington.com/" target="_blank">here</a>. We toured it until it we'd seen just about everything we could see on the ship, which was a bunch, and it was getting near closing time anyway. It was very interesting seeing the many parts of it and getting to know a little about it's history. It was nicknamed "The Blue Ghost" due to it's camouflage and the fact that the previous Lexington (CV-2) had been scuttled on May 8, 1942, and the new Lexington (CV-16) arrived at Pearl Harbor on August 9, 1943 to take part in the remainder of war in the Pacific. It was decommissioned in April of 1947, recommissioned in August of 1955, and decommissioned again in November of 1991, when it was donated to the City of Corpus Christi as a museum ship. It was very interesting to see the various parts of the ship and compare them to what I remember of the USS Wabash, which was more than a few years newer, but not necessarily better. If you're in the area of Corpus Christi, I recommend that you take the time to tour the USS Lexington, especially if you're a history buff. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ecgqycnv2G8/WNHbQD8ypsI/AAAAAAAADDM/HIHp0bm-gzkwzz2JnICpj2ITt1gPmVPQwCEw/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B045.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Ecgqycnv2G8/WNHbQD8ypsI/AAAAAAAADDM/HIHp0bm-gzkwzz2JnICpj2ITt1gPmVPQwCEw/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B045.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Picture of the USS Lexington taken as we're traveling over the Harbor Bridge. That's why it isn't centered well. Sorry.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvBveuel2kc/WNHbwob9djI/AAAAAAAADDU/0BlAsRD2OCYAerb_6v2FgnxSuRFzmusHQCLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B048.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-mvBveuel2kc/WNHbwob9djI/AAAAAAAADDU/0BlAsRD2OCYAerb_6v2FgnxSuRFzmusHQCLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B048.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">USS Lexington Stats.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lfFcBTx9YT0/WNHcUacJPCI/AAAAAAAADDc/krqWHRTi2Oo2XtPfpFvJXke5xperpG78ACLcB/s1600/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B056.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lfFcBTx9YT0/WNHcUacJPCI/AAAAAAAADDc/krqWHRTi2Oo2XtPfpFvJXke5xperpG78ACLcB/s640/Corpus%2BChristi%2Bday%2Btrip%2B056.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katie in the XO's chair on the bridge. Or is it the CO's chair?</td></tr>
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Our day was going to last longer as we wanted to stay in Corpus Christi and watch the lights turn on on the Harbor Bridge crossing the Corpus Christi Ship Channel. This is a nightly event, and you can see a short youtube.com video about it by clicking <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7O_phiQiWSA" target="_blank">here</a>, and see images of it <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=corpus+christi+bridge+lights&safe=off&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi-yp-h9ujSAhUURWMKHRQwAecQsAQILw&biw=1516&bih=746" target="_blank">here</a>. The lights were installed in December of 2011 and have since been thought of as one of Corpus Christi's iconic landmarks. We were just too tired to stay and see it as we had to go some 30 miles to get back home, and I wanted to find an HEB with their freshly squeezed orange juice. But as the HEBs in the area aren't that big, I didn't get any. Darn the bad luck!<br />
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Our time was running out there and we headed to Carlsbad Caverns in a couple of days. More about that later. </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-9714686784599262822017-03-15T17:29:00.000-06:002017-03-15T17:29:04.341-06:00Rockport, Texas<div style="text-align: justify;">
<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockport,_Texas" target="_blank">Rockport, Texas</a> is a small town of less than 9,000 folks. We originally wanted to go to Corpus Christi, but as <a href="http://www.coastresorts.com/" target="_blank">Coast to Coast</a> didn't have a park there but in Rockport instead, which is about 30 miles NE of Corpus Christi, and the price was only $10/night, we stayed at Bay View RV Resort near Rockport. Actually, it was a little further up the coast nearer the village of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fulton,_Texas" target="_blank">Fulton</a>, with a population of around 1,300. I think of all the places we stayed at in Texas, we enjoyed our time in Rockport / Fulton, and Corpus Christi best. The climate was mild with the high temps being in the 60's with lots of blue sky, and lots of nice, friendly folks as well. There was even a sign on one of the buildings saying "Welcome Winter Texans", so I'm guessing that we're Texans now as we were there in the winter. Goody for us. The rest of y'all eat yer heart out, ok?</div>
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Bay View RV Resort was the second resort that we stayed at using our Coast to Coast membership on our trip. It wasn't a bad park with the office and the maintenance staff helping us a lot by letting us get the right camping spot after rejecting two other spots. And when we tried to get out of the second spot, the ground was so soft that we got stuck. If it hadn't been for the maintenance staff bringing their skidsteer to our rescue, we'd have been stuck for a lot longer than 10 minutes! It just wasn't the same as what we'd come to expect at Eastlake RV resort back in Houston. But it was only $10/night, right? What was I expecting! <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uvRt8sblZFs/WMnJI7z2UCI/AAAAAAAADBg/PgcOo3_PTUkOo9NcCVDqoyLfIKQKb4VNgCLcB/s1600/Texas%2BMaritime%2BMuseum%2B025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uvRt8sblZFs/WMnJI7z2UCI/AAAAAAAADBg/PgcOo3_PTUkOo9NcCVDqoyLfIKQKb4VNgCLcB/s640/Texas%2BMaritime%2BMuseum%2B025.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Our campsite at Bay View Resort in Fulton, Tx. From the look on Katie's face, I'm thinking she was wondering what I was expecting from a campsite as well! The campsite we had just tried was in the background where the motor home is seen. </td></tr>
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As we were driving NE on TX 35 up the coast from Rockport on our way to Bay View RV Resort, we noticed a sign at a bar saying "belt sander racing". After scratching our heads because we'd never heard of that sport before, we asked a couple of folks about it while we were in Rockport in the following days. And they weren't really sure about it either. So I looked it up. The bar, <a href="http://www.legendssaloontx.com/" target="_blank">Legends Saloon</a>, has them every 1st and 3rd Saturday of the month from October through April. It turns out there is quite a following with various <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=belt%20sander%20racing%20association#safe=off&q=belt+sander+racing&*" target="_blank">belt sander racing associations</a> as well as videos on <a href="http://youtube.com/">youtube.com</a>. But I think that the best belt sander race is when the racers sit on the sander while it speeds down the course, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Oq0KQNz2qY" target="_blank">like this one</a>. Anyway, we never went there, but I'm thinking that it would've been a lot of fun!</div>
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The community of Rockport has a lot of "Winter Texans" there, a lot of them in RVs. There were many RV parks there, along with condos, apartments, and houses for rent. There were a couple of museums there as well, probably more, but I'm only gonna talk about the ones that we went to. The first one being the <a href="http://www.rockportartcenter.com/main/" target="_blank">Rockport Center for the Arts</a>. It isn't a large place, I'm thinking that it's actually a former house for someone who willed it to the City of Rockport to be used as it is now. Although they had a permanent collection, little of it was shown when we were there as the museum was being used to display art works of the local artists. Anyone who came in was invited to vote which piece of art was the best one, be it a painting, photo, sculpture, or mixed medium. The below photos are of the the best ones that I saw. </div>
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Sorry, I don't remember the titles of the exhibits, or why I thought they were of note. Regardless, I thought they were very good. </div>
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The other museum we saw was the <a href="http://texasmaritimemuseum.org/" target="_blank">Texas Maritime Museum</a>, which was across the street from the Rockport Center for the Arts, as you can see from one of the photos below. There are four main exhibits there, as you'll be able to see from the link, with the biggest one being the LaSalle Odyssey exhibit.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A model of the La Belle, part of the La Salle Odyssey. The real La Belle was found on the bottom of Matagorda Bay, some 50 miles to the north east in 1995 after being sunk in 1686. After being discovered and excavated from the bay, the relics were distributed to seven museums along the Texas coast from Corpus Christi up to Matagorda County Museum.</td></tr>
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Another of the exhibits had to do with outboard motors. There was quite a display of outboard motors, and I'm sorry that I didn't get a picture of it. But I did get a picture with a brief history of them, and the man who picked up the ball and ran with it, Ole Evenrude.</div>
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If ya click on the link for the Maritime Museum, you can see a photo of what the outside looks like with a slight replica of a lighthouse with a railing around the top, which is an observation deck. It offers quite a view of the town of Rockport as well as Aransas Bay and Little Bay. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking southeast to the Rockport Center for the Arts. Aransas Bay is in the background, and our big Ram 2500 is parked in the center of the picture.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking further to the southeast towards Aransas Bay. The white building in the distance is the <a href="http://www.rockportaquarium.com/" target="_blank">Aquarium at Rockport Harbor</a>, a small but good aquarium run by volunteers in Rockport.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Looking northeast from the Maritime Museum. Texas route 35 is on the left side. The body of water is the extreme southwest corner of Little Bay. On the right side is the <a href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/tip/1296" target="_blank">Big Blue Crab</a>. Below is a slightly, better picture of it.</td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Big Blue Crab of Rockport, Texas. Click on the link above for more information. </td></tr>
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As we love to visit mansions wherever we go, we found that Fulton had one as well. <a href="http://www.thc.texas.gov/historic-sites/fulton-mansion-state-historic-site" target="_blank">The Fulton Mansion</a> is located at 317 Fulton Beach Road in Rockport, where in 1874 - 1877, George and Harriet Fulton built their dream home. It was built with hot and cold indoor plumbing, steel beams supporting the floor, and five inch pine planks laid offset on top of one another in the walls to withstand hurricanes. I don't have a good picture of the front, but if you click on the link above or <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=fulton+mansion&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwid6OGS5s7SAhVIjlQKHb8kBRsQ_AUICSgC&biw=1520&bih=746" target="_blank">here</a>, you can see lots of pictures of it.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">View of the Fulton Mansion, from the back where the visitors center is located, <span style="font-size: 12.8px;">named "Oakhurst" because of all the oak trees in the area</span><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">. This is looking east towards Aransas Bay, which you can see in the distance.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is a poster showing the lighting, plumbing and heating features of Oakhurst. Ya may need to expand it to be able to read it easily.</td></tr>
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The mansion had a long a varied career after the Fultons left it, so that at one time, the yard in front of the mansion was an RV park. The Texas Historical Commission took over running and maintaining it in 2008, and when were there, there were docents on the 1st and 2nd floors in period dress telling about the Fulton family, the mansion, as well as trivia surrounding the it. The basement is a self guided thing, and the third floor is used as offices and inaccessible to the public. But if you're in the area of Rockport, or Fulton, or even Corpus Christi or other cities to the north or northeast, be sure to drop in there. Like lots of other mansions, it's a marvel to see.<br />
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Ok, I'm thinking this post is a really long one as well as being late in being posted. Wait patiently for the next one which will be shorter talking about Corpus Christi.<br />
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Padre Island</div>
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art community and museums in Rockport</div>
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Corpus Christi bridge light show</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-59563657853038318922017-03-08T17:20:00.003-07:002017-03-08T17:20:55.192-07:00San Antonio<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ok, now that I've got the pictures of Larry, Moe and Curly out of the way, we can go on to more current events in our trek to staying at Emerald Cove Resort near Parker, Az. </div>
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We left Canyon Lake about the time that a cold snap was coming down to Texas, and we couldn't stay in the campsite we were staying in there as it had a previous reservation for the day we were leaving. So rather than pack up and move to another campsite that may or may not have fit us at the resort we were staying at, we just decided to move on down the road where it would be closer to our destination at that time, which was Rockport, Tx. And we couldn't go there because our Coast 2 Coast reservation at Bay View RV Resort wasn't available until a couple of days later. Besides, the further south ya go, the warmer it gets, right? Well, maybe not.</div>
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So after packing up and travelling the 50 miles southwest to River Walk RV park, we only hooked up our electricity as connecting the water or sewer were unnecessary as we had plenty of fresh water and tank space on board. Along the same lines, we did a minimal of setting up because we were only gonna be there for two days. Then, not wanting our spare time to go to waste, we sought out the <a href="https://www.mcnayart.org/" target="_blank">McNay Art Museum</a> which we thought would provide us with a couple of hours of looking at different paintings. And while it did that, we thought it'd have more historic paintings in it, which it didn't. I mean there were historic paintings there, but the founder of the museum, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marion_Koogler_McNay" target="_blank">Marion Koogler McNay</a>, wanted the museum to be a modern art museum, so there were more pieces of modern art, which doesn't mean as much to us, than historic art. So we were somewhat disappointed for not being able to see more, but that sometimes happens when ya go to an art museum. </div>
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Getting back to the rig, we noticed that it was getting cold enough that the furnace needed to be turned on. However, the furnace didn't want to turn on, even though I'd set the thermostat higher. It was then that I decided to check how much propane we had left in the tanks, and found all three tanks to be empty. As it was going to get below freezing that night, it was very important that we have propane for the furnace to work and keep the pipes in the basement from freezing. I disconnected two of the tanks, put them in the car and set out on my trek to find a place to refill those two tanks. My first stop was to go to the office to see if they would be able to tell me where to go to find a refill spot. I went to the resort office to find out where propane was readily available in the area, and found the staff bundled up trying to stay warm with electric heaters blowing in their direction. I was blessed to find out there is a convenience store less than half a mile away with pre-filled 20 pound bottles of propane. However, the price was outrageous at $30 a bottle. But it was a convenience store, right? So I really shouldn't have cared about the price. NOT! What's more, the bottles were kinda light, and I later found out that the bottles sold there aren't always filled completely, which kinda added insult to injury. So while them pre-filled bottles are convenient, ya really pay for it! That is that's how it was at that convenience store. I'm thinking that it'd be a little different price at Wal-Mart, or some other big box store that sells them.</div>
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Not letting any days go to waste while we were there in San Antonio, we ventured out the next day with the idea of seeing a couple of things at least. Maybe the Alamo. Doing our research, we found there was <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Sam_Houston" target="_blank">Fort Sam Houston</a> located a couple of miles away. I don't know why we didn't quite understand that it was a working US Army fort rather than a historic point, but we didn't, and drove up thinking that we'd be able to get a tour of the facility. However, when we got to the main gate, there was a sign pointing to where visitors would check in. And when we went to check in to see what we could see, the man behind the counter looked at us kinda weird and said that we'd have to wait till a certain time that I don't remember now. As we didn't want to just sit around, we headed on down the road to see the <a href="http://www.getcreativesanantonio.com/Explore-San-Antonio/Spanish-Governors-Palace" target="_blank">Spanish Governor's Palace</a> in downtown San Antonio. Parking is at a premium there, and we decided that the cost of parking wasn't worth the cost of seeing the palace, but you can see it if you click on the link above, or see pictures by clicking <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=spanish+governor%27s+palace&safe=off&biw=1520&bih=730&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjRi_ukzbPSAhXnqlQKHWWcDdEQ_AUIBygC" target="_blank">here</a>. It had an interesting history before it became famous for what it was, being a bar, a clothing store, a produce market, a tailor shop, and a school. <br />
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So we headed off to see the Spanish frontier missions of Mission Concepcion and Mission San Jose. Just like the missions of California. The first three below are Mission Concepcion, with the ones below it being Mission San Jose. <br />
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Didn't know it at the time, but there are active congregations there which is why there are lights inside.<br />
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Ok, there ya have the blog posting I've been "working" on getting done for the past ...how many days! I hate it when I forget things. Hope all are well, next post will be coming...</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-88954951122594690192017-02-14T13:24:00.004-07:002017-02-17T11:32:42.768-07:00Back in Houston<div style="text-align: justify;">
So, going back through my pictures, I found some that I wanted to show but couldn't find previously because I downloaded the pictures from my camera in alphabetical order rather than chronological order. As a result, I didn't know where to look for what I wanted to find. However, in going through all those pictures for other stuff, I was able to find them. Here we go!</div>
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On December 10 2016, we ventured out to the Houston downtown area where the Houston Heritage Society held it's <a href="http://www.heritagesociety.org/54th-annual-candlelight-tour/" target="_blank">54th Annual Candlelight Tour</a>. The tour consists of touring several old houses and a church which have been moved to <a href="http://www.heritagesociety.org/sam-houston-park/" target="_blank">Sam Houston Park</a> (<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9TnKYTuzQY" target="_blank">here's another link</a> to a youtube.com video about Sam Houston Park) as well as seeing the jolly old elf, and vendor booths set up for the season. In those old buildings, there were folks in period dress telling the visitors to the park a short history of the family, or families, that lived in those homes, as well as relevant events that happened during that time period, not unlike what is found in other living history museums. </div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dn6lpbrODwg/WJ8z-lLWiKI/AAAAAAAAC5o/kCi7iQj7Y8kQmDfHMaSSTd8kxuW3Da71wCEw/s1600/Houston%2Bnight%2Bof%2Blights%2Bbefore%2BChristmas%2B003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dn6lpbrODwg/WJ8z-lLWiKI/AAAAAAAAC5o/kCi7iQj7Y8kQmDfHMaSSTd8kxuW3Da71wCEw/s640/Houston%2Bnight%2Bof%2Blights%2Bbefore%2BChristmas%2B003.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katie posing with the blacksmith.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ki6kbZZ4t0Y/WJ80dD0oPLI/AAAAAAAAC5s/ZWnBIYyWWRUvulvRTXQiCOzqln1cy7RZwCLcB/s1600/Houston%2Bnight%2Bof%2Blights%2Bbefore%2BChristmas%2B005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ki6kbZZ4t0Y/WJ80dD0oPLI/AAAAAAAAC5s/ZWnBIYyWWRUvulvRTXQiCOzqln1cy7RZwCLcB/s640/Houston%2Bnight%2Bof%2Blights%2Bbefore%2BChristmas%2B005.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This man was depicting <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Marsh_Rice" target="_blank">William Marsh Rice</a>, one of the wealthiest men in Houston in the latter part of the 19th century.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZJGavRzejXc/WJ88qbokTBI/AAAAAAAAC6I/kT4C7KnVE7UL9Ud8bdByyBMk7LHDGZ-mgCLcB/s1600/Houston%2Bnight%2Bof%2Blights%2Bbefore%2BChristmas%2B011.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZJGavRzejXc/WJ88qbokTBI/AAAAAAAAC6I/kT4C7KnVE7UL9Ud8bdByyBMk7LHDGZ-mgCLcB/s640/Houston%2Bnight%2Bof%2Blights%2Bbefore%2BChristmas%2B011.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Inside the <a href="http://www.heritagesociety.org/stjohnchurch/" target="_blank">St. John church</a>. The pastor (an actual pastor in real life) told about the history of the church, and how many european immigrants came through Galveston, then north through Houston to live in the area. To his right (left in the picture) is part of the <a href="http://www.houstonboychoir.org/" target="_blank">Houston Boy Choir</a>, which sang a couple of Christmas carols during the 15 minutes or so we were in the church building.</td></tr>
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With the exception of one house, <a href="http://www.heritagesociety.org/pillot-house/" target="_blank">the Pillot House</a>, we were able to tour each one and get a short visit with each of the docents there. It was an enjoyable late afternoon, albeit being a little cold, that we spent in downtown Houston. <br />
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The offices at Eastlake RV Resort had, just like many other places, cards and pamphlets showing the various tourist attractions in the area. One of those was for <a href="http://www.aquariumrestaurants.com/downtownaquariumhouston/default.asp" target="_blank">The Aquarium</a>, a seafood restaurant, also in downtown Houston, just a few blocks away from Sam Houston Park. It's actually more than a restaurant as it has a HUGE aquarium in it, and if you go to Kemah, Texas, or Denver, Colorado, or Nashville, Tennessee, you'll find other Aquarium restaurants also. In addition to the restaurant in Houston, you'll find a small amusement park complete with a ferris wheel and miniature train. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Katie in front of The Aquarium by the ...fish statues. Any idea of what kind of fish they are? ...Well, besides statuefish, ok?</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WMBqWx841JI/WKJrvxnDiWI/AAAAAAAAC7Y/ZI2B0cFHxZ8aI-l0WA3sG-7X9ZPu8jRZwCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WMBqWx841JI/WKJrvxnDiWI/AAAAAAAAC7Y/ZI2B0cFHxZ8aI-l0WA3sG-7X9ZPu8jRZwCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B033.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Entrance to the amusement park of The Aquarium. Note the skyscrapers of downtown Houston in the distance. The statuefish Katie was standing in front of is out of sight to the right.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z68X9t-A68U/WKJvETZ_w4I/AAAAAAAAC7o/LeqAlcV8aYQ0-hfaS8Mqblxvv21-c6u1ACLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B039.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-z68X9t-A68U/WKJvETZ_w4I/AAAAAAAAC7o/LeqAlcV8aYQ0-hfaS8Mqblxvv21-c6u1ACLcB/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B039.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the carousel. Note the lack of horses, or ostriches, or benches. Only aquatic life that lives somewhere in or near the state of Texas!</td></tr>
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The food at The Aquarium was kinda spendy, but as in most cases, ya get what ya pay for. So it was pretty good. But the view from our table was more impressive than the food because we were about eight feet from one of the large tanks of marine life. So we had a real good view of the fish swimming by.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bbr_CXgXQrA/WKJ2k_j6C6I/AAAAAAAAC74/7FkIiTHigo8e_mlVvu-7IJiLoB5F7xuFQCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B054.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-bbr_CXgXQrA/WKJ2k_j6C6I/AAAAAAAAC74/7FkIiTHigo8e_mlVvu-7IJiLoB5F7xuFQCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B054.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...Like this unicorn fish.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YlmsB9FSdhM/WKJ5VY1EJ-I/AAAAAAAAC8E/HFla0AnWLc8fhMEEUd3Q0aCXFp9WzV9xwCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-YlmsB9FSdhM/WKJ5VY1EJ-I/AAAAAAAAC8E/HFla0AnWLc8fhMEEUd3Q0aCXFp9WzV9xwCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B050.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">...or this humphead wrasse, and two of the many sting rays in the tank.</td></tr>
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And then, there were fish that weren't moving, just staying in one place, and seemed to be watching folks eat their food. In this case, the folks were Katie and I. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JnQp9Wh9Zko/WKJ7MxWDhwI/AAAAAAAAC8g/eBkqoKfmg_srwv7i0B1D2rlZ_pWPSLNlwCEw/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JnQp9Wh9Zko/WKJ7MxWDhwI/AAAAAAAAC8g/eBkqoKfmg_srwv7i0B1D2rlZ_pWPSLNlwCEw/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B053.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These three Queensland groupers pretty much just stayed in front of us all the time we were eating. I'm thinking that they're Queensland groupers at least. We were both hoping that they were amused by watching us eat, maybe crack a smile or something like wink an eye, or have a twitch of some kind... But their facial expressions never changed. I nicknamed them Larry, Moe, and Curly. In the lower left corner is an electric ray, something I didn't know existed until I did research on the fish in this picture. There is a stingray swimming by above Larry, Moe and Curly. </td></tr>
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Not much else to say about our time in Houston, but I did want to mention a couple of eateries that we went to that we enjoyed. They were both Mexican restaurants, the first one was <a href="http://www.loscucos.com/" target="_blank">Los Cucos Mexican Cafe</a>, which is a chain with most locations in Texas, but one in Las Vegas, Nevada, and another one in Sandy, Utah. The Humble location we went to served food that was very good, and there was a fiesta, sports bar ambiance with several screens throughout the restaurant and bar, probably being able to serve better than 150 meals at a time. The second eatery was also located in Humble, but was a much smaller operation being in a strip mall. <a href="http://www.manuelsmexicanrestaurant.com/index.html" target="_blank">Manuel's Mexican Restaurant and Taqueria</a> located a few miles east of where Los Cucos was, and only has two locations in Houston and Humbolt, with the Houston location having a capacity of less than a hundred. What it lacked in serving space it makes up for in really good tasting food, and it was my favorite of the two. As a result, we frequented it more than Los Cucos. <br />
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So now I'm done returning to Houston, I'll get up to date as time goes by. <br />
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I'll end by saying a cowboy goodbye by saying "Y'all come back now!"</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-28795668286075436472017-01-28T20:14:00.000-07:002017-01-28T20:38:13.223-07:00Canyon Lake<div style="text-align: justify;">
From Galveston, we headed west about 250 miles to the town of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canyon_Lake,_Texas" target="_blank">Canyon Lake</a>, to stay at <a href="http://www.lakepointervresort.org/" target="_blank">Lake Pointe Resort</a>, where we stayed for six days. By using our Coast to Coast membership, we were able to stay there for only $5/night rather than the regular $45/night, plus a fee of $.12 a kw hour. The park had lots of amenities that we like, like a pool, and trails to hike. Although it was too cold to use the pool at that point, it was quite a large pool for a resort that size, which from what I could tell, was less than 100 RV spaces. When we got there, we didn't realize just how big our rig is. But it barely fit under a branch of one of the trees in the first campsite we went to. After we moved to another campsite that didn't have anything over our roof, we felt a lot better. The big pull for this area, if not this resort, is the number of deer that freely roam the area. When I'd take the dogs out at night and in the morning, I could always count several deer not more than 30' away from us. One morning, I counted 21 deer lurking around other rigs and in the trees. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Deer herd at Lake Pointe Resort in the morning. Sorry the picture is so dark. I count 10 deer, how many do you count?</td></tr>
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We stayed at Lake Pointe because it was in the between Austin and San Antonio as we thought we might be going to San Antonio, but it didn't happen as we kept doing things in Austin. One of the goals we had while we're traveling was to go to the capitol buildings of all the states we go to. We haven't always done that in a few states, but we were able to do so in Texas. It was kinda drizzly the Saturday that we went. When we go there, we saw signs pointing to the capitol visitors center, and since it was kinda on the way to the capitol building, we went there first. Turns out that the visitor center was in the old General Land Office building, and it was remarkable as William Sidney Porter, better known by his pen name of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O._Henry" target="_blank">O. Henry</a>, worked there from 1887 - 1891. One of the many rooms there was devoted to him, telling his life story.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Old Texas General Land Office building, located on the grounds of the Texas capitol building in Austin, Tx.</td></tr>
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There are free tours through the capitol building given every 15 minutes, if I recall correctly. For a reason I don't remember, the tour didn't include a lot of the building, only going to the rotunda, the House of Representatives chamber, and the Senate Chamber. However, the tour guide still told us a bunch of stuff about the history of Texas. </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Surrender of Santa Anna" by William Henry Huddle in the Texas State capitol building foyer. General Sam Houston, commander in chief of the Texas Army, is lying on the ground injured extending his hand to General Santa Anna of the Mexican Army. The surrender took place on April 21, 1836.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-u1KYKVxHMpQ/WIoq6y_dxmI/AAAAAAAAC2U/75UaFWN_tekpczsnKtV0LYiu2-lKgss9gCLcB/s1600/Austin%252C%2BTexas%2BCapitol%2Bbuilding%2B018.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-u1KYKVxHMpQ/WIoq6y_dxmI/AAAAAAAAC2U/75UaFWN_tekpczsnKtV0LYiu2-lKgss9gCLcB/s640/Austin%252C%2BTexas%2BCapitol%2Bbuilding%2B018.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Star of the Republic of Texas on the floor of the capitol building. This was featured at the end of the movie "The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas" where Dom Deluise (or a dummy that looked like him) went sliding across the floor to rest in the middle of the star. The capitol building started to be built in 1885, and was opened to the public on April 21, 1888.</td></tr>
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After visiting the capitol building, we did some lunch thing, and then headed to the Lyndon Baines Johnson library on the grounds of the University of Texas at Austin. It's interesting to visit places like that to learn more about the person, as well as the history that was made while that person was alive. The folks that worked there thought very much of LBJ, and probably knew more than lots of other folks by a long shot. I don't remember that much about him, except that he was president during the Viet Nam War, and declined being nominated for a 2nd full term of being President. The folks at the library said that he was one of the busiest presidents the US has ever had, and accomplished a lot. So much so that he only live four years after he left office. I didn't take a lot of pictures at the library, but here's a couple of them.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">LBJ howling with his dog, Yuki, while his grandson looks on. Not sure if the grandson was amazed by the harmony of the duet, or who looked better: LBJ or the dog. Apparently LBJ did this a bit as you can see <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=lbj+howling&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjt-ryqhObRAhUnjlQKHdLXDUwQ_AUICCgB&biw=1516&bih=730" target="_blank">here</a>, along with a bunch of other photos of him.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-M__EreiNn6Y/WI0vnFW0QEI/AAAAAAAAC28/Jzqs7Te1rMMpzKywqgnCQIhDd6m-IdlXgCLcB/s1600/Austin%252C%2BTexas%2BCapitol%2Bbuilding%2B030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-M__EreiNn6Y/WI0vnFW0QEI/AAAAAAAAC28/Jzqs7Te1rMMpzKywqgnCQIhDd6m-IdlXgCLcB/s640/Austin%252C%2BTexas%2BCapitol%2Bbuilding%2B030.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">LBJ's 1965 stretch Lincoln Continental limo. <a href="https://roadmiles.wordpress.com/2013/11/05/lbjs-1965-presidential-limo-is-a-rolling-piece-of-history/" target="_blank">This limo</a> is plain compared to <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Presidential_state_car_(United_States)" target="_blank">"The Beast"</a>, the current Presidential State Car (...limo).</td></tr>
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We did go back to Austin another day to have lunch with a fellow gas sniffer, Debbie, as she was in the area near Austin, and we wouldn't be seeing her again for some time, if ever. Debbie came to Houston from Salt Lake City also, but after we got there. So we were able to show her a few things about Houston, and she was able to show us a few more things about gas sniffing and the company we work for since she's been doing the job for a few years now. <br />
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Debbie recommended to us, as did Katie's sister, Karen, that we go to <a href="http://www.visitfredericksburgtx.com/?gclid=CjwKEAiAn7HEBRDHwNqitoWqsQcSJAADWmI2igJ2VPQ5bVPvtFDuuiwRNv4heCDt5uQXfeUjarCKURoCkrbw_wcB" target="_blank">Fredericksburg</a> while we were that close to it, as it's a quaint small town that we'd enjoy going to. It's about 65 miles northwest of Canyon Lake, so we were able to make it there in just a little over an hour. There are several things that we were told about to see while we were there, including art galleries, <a href="http://www.pacificwarmuseum.org/" target="_blank">the National Museum of the Pacific War</a>, <a href="http://www.pacificwarmuseum.org/your-visit/admiral-nimitz-museum/" target="_blank">Admiral Nimitz Museum</a>, and just taking a stroll up Main Street. So we did that the next day.<br />
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Naturally, the first thing that ya go to in any town is the visitor center where ya can see all kinds of things, especially the little cards and flyers telling of places that ya might like to go see after ya leave the visitor center. <a href="http://www.visitfred.com/" target="_blank">Fredericksburg visitor center</a> was very nice with lots of information to share to visitors there. It was cold that day, but Katie was happy to be in the visitor center where they hadn't taken down their Christmas tree yet, as it wasn't January 1st yet. Take a look!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mn6YumTbnuo/WI01NW7DhzI/AAAAAAAAC3M/8vuq1x7YpSEIa6rccMrOxSjlZ8UcO_uJACLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Mn6YumTbnuo/WI01NW7DhzI/AAAAAAAAC3M/8vuq1x7YpSEIa6rccMrOxSjlZ8UcO_uJACLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B003.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">What a happy wifey!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lqYd7dE8Aws/WI01RjjlB7I/AAAAAAAAC3Q/BtybpFXQojcyexZNiA5Xw81Nzat3OaA7ACLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lqYd7dE8Aws/WI01RjjlB7I/AAAAAAAAC3Q/BtybpFXQojcyexZNiA5Xw81Nzat3OaA7ACLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B004.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">There's many more cards and flyers of places to go and see that can't be seen here. So why is Katie looking at her phone? I don't know either...</td></tr>
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The National Museum of the Pacific War is located right across the street from the visitor center, so it wasn't hard to find at all. In case you were wondering, this is merely another way of saying that it's a museum about World War II in the Pacific Ocean. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-841dJNyEKo4/WI03I8pwGsI/AAAAAAAAC3c/p3NMdxUTy7wXk9NDf0nWwS8cVU2RWEDVwCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-841dJNyEKo4/WI03I8pwGsI/AAAAAAAAC3c/p3NMdxUTy7wXk9NDf0nWwS8cVU2RWEDVwCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B005.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I couldn't get a wide enough shot, but there are several WWII artifacts from the war in the front. You can see a little more if you <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=national+museum+of+the+pacific+war&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi_9ZGZjebRAhUHi1QKHZcYDAYQ_AUICSgC&biw=1516&bih=730" target="_blank">click here</a>.</td></tr>
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The National Museum of the Pacific War turned out to be <i>very</i> extensive and sobering. In it, we found information not only on every battle of the war in the Pacific, but the history of the nations involved in WWII in the pacific, including the US, leading up to it. The exhibits are done well, and the price of admission is well worth the education ya get while you're in the museum. But remember that this museum is about war and the horrors of it. It's not really for the faint of heart, and it could easily take six hours or more to go through everything there. At the time we went, there was also an exhibit on <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norman_Rockwell" target="_blank">Norman Rockwell</a>, the artist who's paintings were on the covers of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Saturday_Evening_Post" target="_blank">The Saturday Evening Post</a> for many years. His life history was given, along with copies of at least 15 of his paintings during the WWII years.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Dmp4B30SwZY/WI07yOvEUHI/AAAAAAAAC3s/799NnosXy2EuhZScyy7YyCPPox410AWZACLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B009.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Dmp4B30SwZY/WI07yOvEUHI/AAAAAAAAC3s/799NnosXy2EuhZScyy7YyCPPox410AWZACLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B009.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willie Gillis: <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Service_Organizations" target="_blank">USO</a> Willie Gillis is a fictional character created by Normal Rockwell during WWII on the cover of the Saturday Evening Post.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K-SnbBAvN48/WI084V7fTCI/AAAAAAAAC30/XG4XCLt28m8hR_U1xy0eqEYL3K-_O543wCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B010.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-K-SnbBAvN48/WI084V7fTCI/AAAAAAAAC30/XG4XCLt28m8hR_U1xy0eqEYL3K-_O543wCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B010.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Willie Gillis in Church</td></tr>
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The Admiril Nimitz Museum was part of the National Museum of the Pacific War (NMPW), in that you could include admission to it by getting a ticket at the NMPW. Being a former US Navy man, I found it interesting to go to this museum, which is much smaller than the NMPW, that tells about the life of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chester_W._Nimitz" target="_blank">Chester Nimitz</a>. It only took about 1/2 an hour - 45 minutes to go through it all, and it wasn't quite as visually stimulating as the NMPW, but it was very informative telling about his life starting in 1885 when he was born, his life in Fredericksburg, joining the Navy, rise in the rank to become fleet admiral in 1944, being instrumental in the victories in the Pacific, postwar retirement in 1947, and death in early 1966, as well as a few other items along the way. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MOg-sBvWhAQ/WI1CzqUpIlI/AAAAAAAAC4M/m-4Q-qh7cZoWn0beTqKAao1bGQig3JM5ACEw/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B024.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-MOg-sBvWhAQ/WI1CzqUpIlI/AAAAAAAAC4M/m-4Q-qh7cZoWn0beTqKAao1bGQig3JM5ACEw/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B024.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is the plaque across the street from the Nimitz Hotel. I thought I had a picture of the Nimitz Hotel because it's a unique looking structure, but I didn't. <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=nimitz+hotel&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiTu92_rebRAhXlslQKHelUCmIQ_AUICSgC&biw=1516&bih=730#imgrc=-bTKsmyjHR9DuM%3A" target="_blank">Here's a link</a> to a picture of it still the same.</td></tr>
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<span style="text-align: center;">Following are other pictures of Fredericksburg.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5zF58Q8w7DU/WI1bP-LpnII/AAAAAAAAC48/O8RIvBfxFPI-k1oW4j8BPT-GeIXbOmQGQCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5zF58Q8w7DU/WI1bP-LpnII/AAAAAAAAC48/O8RIvBfxFPI-k1oW4j8BPT-GeIXbOmQGQCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B029.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QKQk6BGDxrQ/WI1bTMN3aDI/AAAAAAAAC5A/s76B0tYo-yYB00tuwzvGP0QmKiKC26C0gCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B030.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-QKQk6BGDxrQ/WI1bTMN3aDI/AAAAAAAAC5A/s76B0tYo-yYB00tuwzvGP0QmKiKC26C0gCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B030.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VzInUB4B-00/WI1HO2YFnOI/AAAAAAAAC4g/l07YrfCwPPg7hO-SilwA6s2GfPsPG7WwQCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B036.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-VzInUB4B-00/WI1HO2YFnOI/AAAAAAAAC4g/l07YrfCwPPg7hO-SilwA6s2GfPsPG7WwQCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B036.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ReedVuvOcKk/WI1HOjO0R0I/AAAAAAAAC4c/y_czbn7sQYEKjGrXCGJMjJ1pIFdWIyeTQCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B037.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ReedVuvOcKk/WI1HOjO0R0I/AAAAAAAAC4c/y_czbn7sQYEKjGrXCGJMjJ1pIFdWIyeTQCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B037.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wX7obYG2NKA/WI1HW0kLivI/AAAAAAAAC4k/_P44zQCHXbo5xv9F1zaY47idWOattplUwCLcB/s1600/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B035.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wX7obYG2NKA/WI1HW0kLivI/AAAAAAAAC4k/_P44zQCHXbo5xv9F1zaY47idWOattplUwCLcB/s640/Museum%2Bof%2Bthe%2BPacific%2BWar%2B035.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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After walking 1/2 way up Main Street, we were both getting pooped, so we went to the other side of the street and headed back to the car for our trip home. On the way there, we stopped in the hamlet of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luckenbach,_Texas" target="_blank">Luckenbach</a>, which I only know of because I heard the song <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luckenbach,_Texas_(Back_to_the_Basics_of_Love)" target="_blank">"Luckenbach, Tx", or "Back to the Basics of Love"</a> . From what I was able to tell, there really wasn't a lot to the hamlet, only two buildings, and the population is only three. <a href="http://www.luckenbachtexas.com/" target="_blank">But if you go to the website of Luckenbach, Texas</a>, you can see there's lots of things happening for a town of only three people! Wow!<br />
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Lastly, I wanna mention about our time in Canyon Lake, Texas, was the church we went to while we were there. While we try to attend worship services everywhere we go, this church, <a href="http://cowboysforjesus.com/" target="_blank">Cowboys for Jesus Church</a>, will stick with me for a long time. Really friendly people, good message, and even though there is a praise band that was made up of a man and two women, the good old hymns were sung. And on the last verse, they dropped out so it was sung acapella with folks harmonizing. Really sounded great! They have a lot going on there, including archery instruction, which Katie and I made use of. Overall, I'd say that attending there was the frosting on the cake for out time at Canyon Lake, Tx.<br />
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So if you have the chance to go to Canyon Lake, Lake Pointe Resort isn't a bad place to stay. The town of Canyon Lake isn't very big, but it has a large grocery store, several gas stations, and assorted shops and restaurants. In addition to condos or motels for lodging, there's several RV parks or resorts available for RVers. We enjoyed our time there, and I'm thinking you would also.<br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-8977235481922520412017-01-25T12:09:00.001-07:002017-01-25T12:09:51.910-07:00Galveston<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hello again. </div>
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When our job in Houston ended on the 22nd of December, we traveled south to Galveston to stay for a week, figuring on seeing several of the sights there, and enjoying staying pretty darn close to the beach. We found a site at <a href="http://sandpiperrvresort.com/" target="_blank">Sandpiper RV Resort</a> which was about 500' away from the water, but for some reason didn't put out the patio deck of our rig. As it turned out, it was often foggy, and very humid, and we wouldn't have enjoyed being outside as much as we would've wanted. In addition, the mosquitoes were relentless, and being out in them would've made things very unenjoyable. From what we read about while sightseeing in Galveston, mosquitoes have been relentless there forever. </div>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r9gaD4tr3BU/WIewGneDvbI/AAAAAAAACzs/x7YddKIjrrYofEOpkux_PpxS6F2FexIqQCEw/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-r9gaD4tr3BU/WIewGneDvbI/AAAAAAAACzs/x7YddKIjrrYofEOpkux_PpxS6F2FexIqQCEw/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B002.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">RV site at Sandpiper RV Resort in Galveston, Tx. Notice the moisture on the vehicles, it was that way everyday of our stay there. Can't see the ocean from this viewpoint, but it's on the other side of our site about 500'.</td></tr>
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The first morning after we got there, we went for a walk along the beach before the sun came up, because one of the brochures we got telling about Galveston, said we had to see a sunrise and sunset there. We got to see the ocean (duh!) as the sun came up, as in the next pic, just like we were supposed to do.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ODWRnL0HJM8/WIeyIuxjyTI/AAAAAAAACz4/Gzx4fRIeCB849qLnCYx9L6b1zpowYIpyACLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B022.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ODWRnL0HJM8/WIeyIuxjyTI/AAAAAAAACz4/Gzx4fRIeCB849qLnCYx9L6b1zpowYIpyACLcB/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B022.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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While we were walking on the beach, we noticed houses on stilts nearby. This was our first exposure to houses that were on stilts in Texas. We didn't understand exactly how important those stilts were until we went to a couple of the touristy places and found out about the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1900_Galveston_hurricane" target="_blank">hurricane that hit Galveston on September 8, 1900</a> and killed upwards of 6,000 people overnight. So, even though there is a sea wall where most of the city proper is, apparently the ocean can still make a deep push onto the island, and the following pix show what the houses close to the beach look like.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aAKjfDe4qbY/WIe_ju6VtHI/AAAAAAAAC0I/pePRFNhLCbc1iCX0k8vsLju90aihp9KiwCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B025.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aAKjfDe4qbY/WIe_ju6VtHI/AAAAAAAAC0I/pePRFNhLCbc1iCX0k8vsLju90aihp9KiwCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B1st%2Bday%2B025.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">These homes are either rentals or vacation homes, I'm thinking. Humongo jobs about 12', or higher, off the sand of the beach next to where we were staying.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9iD3VMRh7qU/WIfAHDc_43I/AAAAAAAAC0M/86ed1EQNh7oyhIaROEoQ1XGP9YQGnB2ZQCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B006.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9iD3VMRh7qU/WIfAHDc_43I/AAAAAAAAC0M/86ed1EQNh7oyhIaROEoQ1XGP9YQGnB2ZQCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B006.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Homes on stilts further southwest from our campsite. Lots of homes this way in the area.</td></tr>
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The above pix were on the beach side of the road. But the picture below was on the opposite side of the road. Maybe the architect wanted to be able to float away.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-g0CE2vuq2ts/WIfAxADw9_I/AAAAAAAAC0Q/o9YV7caKkxoaTGqtWfsBE4ppwdC6WFQpwCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-g0CE2vuq2ts/WIfAxADw9_I/AAAAAAAAC0Q/o9YV7caKkxoaTGqtWfsBE4ppwdC6WFQpwCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B005.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Not sure if it floats or not. But it's unique!</td></tr>
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As Galveston was, at one point, where more affluent folks lived many years ago, there were a couple of mansions still there: the <a href="http://www.moodymansion.org/" target="_blank">Willis-Moody Mansion</a>, originally built by Narcissa Willis who built the home after her husband, Richard, passed away in 1893, with the purpose of having room for all of her family to come live with her. As she was estranged from her children for doing so with her deceased husband's fortune, none of them returned to live with her, and she lived in it for six years with a single housekeeper until her death in 1899. Her daughter put it up for sale and had several bidders, among them <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Lewis_Moody_Jr." target="_blank">William Lewis Moody, Jr.</a>, whose bid was $20,000 for the $100,000 home. After the Galveston hurricane, all bids were pulled except Moody's. The Moody family move in shortly thereafter, and William lived there until his death in 1954, at which time, his daughter, Mary Moody Northen acquired it and lived there until three years prior to her death in 1986.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UqKyd5avcAw/WIfPUtw4w9I/AAAAAAAAC0o/uCYUre9DRTsd3gIUsPRiCIcEP2e37Ne7gCLcB/s1600/Galveston%2B028.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UqKyd5avcAw/WIfPUtw4w9I/AAAAAAAAC0o/uCYUre9DRTsd3gIUsPRiCIcEP2e37Ne7gCLcB/s640/Galveston%2B028.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Willis-Moody Mansion, sometimes known as just the Moody Mansion. Mr. William Lewis Moody, Jr., was a philanthropist and entrepreneur founding a bank, an insurance company, and a large charitable foundation.</td></tr>
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And Bishop's Palace, which was the former Gresham Castle. Built for $250,000 from 1886 - 1892, it's now valued at $5.5 million. The picture below doesn't do it justice for the opulence it had when it was built with steel framed walls that were up to 23" thick after the stone was added, and featured chandeliers that had gas and electric lamp fixtures. For more, and better, pictures, <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=bishop%27s+palace&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiundbx7dvRAhVn8IMKHQ3dDjwQ_AUICCgB&biw=1516&bih=730" target="_blank">I suggest going here.</a> </div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bishop's Palace.</td></tr>
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We also spent time going to <a href="http://www.oceanstaroec.com/" target="_blank">Ocean Star offshore drilling rig museum</a> on the north side of Galveston. Prior to this, I didn't realize how much money is spent, and work is done trying to find oil offshore. The museum is a great place to learn all about how oil companies go about doing that, and what life is like on an offshore oil rig. It's a great place to learn all about that stuff, especially after seeing the movie <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1860357/?ref_=nv_sr_1" target="_blank">Deepwater Horizon</a>. <br />
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We liked being in Galveston, despite the constant humidity and fog which rolled in whenever it felt like it. The worst part was the mosquitoes, as both of us had to host about 20 of them suckers with our blood while we were there. But I'm thinking that if we'd stayed at a different RV park, one that was known for being next to a mosquito breeding ground (doing the research next time at <a href="http://www.rvparkreviews.com/" target="_blank">RV Park Reviews</a>, or something along the same lines.) would help. It's a viable vacation or day off place to go to with a long beach, although it isn't very deep at times, lots of restaurants and lodging, and an amusement park, <a href="http://www.pleasurepier.com/" target="_blank">Galveston Island Historic Pleasure Pier</a>. If you're into history, there's quite a bit there and some really beautiful old homes that have been refurbished nicely. Folks are friendly and courteous, and welcome visitors, as was evidenced by the numerous folks that visited Galveston while we were there. I'm sure they'd welcome you if you went there also.</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-55919545516909815082017-01-23T18:49:00.000-07:002017-01-23T18:49:10.210-07:00<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hello folks, maybe you noticed that things have changed with the image at the top of the post. This has come about because we no longer have a moho, but a toho (towed home) instead. We changed our home because the 1999 Winnebago Chieftain we had was getting old so not everything worked the way it did when it was new, and it no longer fit our needs. Which was sad because I'd always thought (and many RVers still do) that a motor home rather than a trailer was, and is, the way to travel for several reason: Lots of room for friends and family to travel with ya whereas if ya have a trailer, you can't get up and move around in a truck or car pulling a trailer; Your refrigerator, bathroom, and beds are easily available for anyone except the driver while you are going down the freeway without having to stop, get out of your towing vehicle and get in the trailer, only to have to get back out of the trailer and back in the towing vehicle in order to get going again; Backing into a campsite is much easier than trying to back a trailer into a campsite; And motor homes are always being compared to as the "RV Standard" rather than a trailer.</div>
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However, a trailer doesn't have the extra motor, transmission, drive line, etc that a motor home has, and it doesn't make sense to have it if you are gonna be stopped for weeks or months at a time as they just sit and don't get the exercise they need. A trailer also will give you better space utilization than a motor home will because the area where the driver and passenger are, and any space forward isn't utilized as living or storage as it is in a trailer. In addition, the engine and transmission, etc take up space as well. Getting a trailer into a campsite is a learning curve for newbees, but with practice (i.e., doing it over and over because ya can't get it right the first time, or second time, or ...), it can be done easily enough to take much less time than when ya first start backing it. Needless to say, it can be an exercise in frustration for the neophyte. Probably best to take the easy way (no guts or glory way, ok?) and opt for the big rig, pull through campsite. </div>
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But now, we have a trailer. (And a 3/4 ton pickup truck to pull the trailer. Which has the extra engine, transmission, driveline, etc. But it's used in the job I work, so it doesn't just sit like it would if it was a motor home. Go figure...) It's Highland Ridge's Open Range 3X388RKS. It has the largest amount of kitchen space that I've seen in any RV, a patio deck that drops down on the curb side so we just have to walk through a sliding glass door rather than walk down steps to get to the outside chairs (...it's an old person thing, ok?), and a 58" TV in the living room. It has a king size bed so the walking area around the bed is really for sideways stepping as there's not much room there. Compared to our previous bed, it's longer and wider, which is nice for the doggies when they want to snuggle, but the lack of room to maneuver around the bed isn't the best. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IU_nycEfhYk&t=20s">Here is a video</a> of the 3X388RKS from Haylett RV in Coldwater, Michigan. Although the salesman tells a lot about it, realize that ours has the patio option whereas the one he's showing doesn't. As with anything that's new and complicated, such as an RV or automobile, there are foibles that come with it. Ours had an awning that didn't have all the parts so it wouldn't work correctly, an oven that didn't (and still doesn't) want to go to the temperature that we select, and a shower door that leaks on the floor because the door guide on the bottom isn't sealed correctly. The awning and oven have been taken care of (kinda on the oven), and we're working with the shower door. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ljnouzi2grE/WIYzqyFPugI/AAAAAAAACy0/erNcZgfaOMsJwLaS6XGxblIj0cwXm8i_gCLcB/s1600/3X388RKS%2Bfloor%2Bplan.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="304" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ljnouzi2grE/WIYzqyFPugI/AAAAAAAACy0/erNcZgfaOMsJwLaS6XGxblIj0cwXm8i_gCLcB/s640/3X388RKS%2Bfloor%2Bplan.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Floor plan of our new rig, Open Range 3X388RKS. Bear in mind we don't have the u-lounge on the street side, but two recliners which we move out into the floor area opposite the TV, and that area is where Katie has her painting stuff.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-44KODc29auQ/WIYsrP5qFUI/AAAAAAAACyc/x3l0BX5ZWwMjhnIYedVG05LpNKnllC6TACLcB/s1600/001.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-44KODc29auQ/WIYsrP5qFUI/AAAAAAAACyc/x3l0BX5ZWwMjhnIYedVG05LpNKnllC6TACLcB/s640/001.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New kitchen that's about four times the size of the galley we had in the moho. 21 cubic foot refrigerator and pantry is off to the left out of site. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Patio deck with awning. </td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">58" TV above the electric fireplace, which has been useful when the outside temperatures were in the 20's, as they were in San Antonio.</td></tr>
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Because we live in a 5th wheel trailer now, it makes sense to change the name of the blog to something like "where we take the trailer home" or "where the trailer home follows us". And I tried to do just that. But since it's been so long since I've explored the workings of a blog, I couldn't figure out how to do what was necessary to start a new blog carrying the same features and gadgets on the side like I have now. So... you're kinda stuck with it, ok? Just remember that we live in the 5th wheel now, ok, not the moho. Good!</div>
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Enough of the new rig. We've been busy working in order to get our financial ducks in a row so we could get the new rig, employed by Southern Cross, a company that contracts with utilities, gas utilities for our purpose, to survey natural gas lines and meters. It's mandated by the US Department of Transportation to be done on a regular basis between 1 to 5 years. They've been good to us paying us a good wage, in addition to mileage and paying for our rent in an RV park. We did the survey for Salt Lake City last spring, then moved up to Logan for the summer. It wasn't uncommon for us to walk between 5 - 8 miles every day with some days being even longer. We carried a specialized instrument which detects hydrocarbons to let us know that there was something flammable in the area where we were surveying. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZyTBpDnnvE" target="_blank"> Here's a video of it in action on youtube.com</a> (watch as much of it as ya feel like watching, ok?) If the leak was above ground on the pipes, we'd spray it down with soapy water and note where the bubbles were, and report it. If we couldn't find it above ground, we had to use another instrument to find it under ground. We also carried a tablet computer which had maps showing us where the gas pipes were (supposed to be) located, and always had other related gear in our vehicles. The gas lines for the gas utility for most, if not all, of Utah, are conveniently located in the streets and front or side yards making the survey easy to do, allowing us to go to more than 120 houses a day. </div>
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We took a break beginning October 1st to go see family for a few days, and then pick up our new rig in southern California. About a week into October, we were asked by our manager in Salt Lake City if we'd go to Houston to help out in a new survey there. I'm thinking that we just didn't quite feel at ease about not working since we'd been hard at it for seven months, so we said "Sure! Let's do it!" As a result, we had very little time after we picked up our new rig to travel back up to Salt Lake City to move stuff from our moho into our toho (we still haven't found places for everything!), and start our four day journey to Houston.<br />
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The job in Houston was similar to what we did in Salt Lake City and Logan with the exception that all the utilities for 99.99% of the houses are in the backyards. So a lot of time was spent knocking on doors to let folks know that we were needing to get into their backyards to check the gas main running along the fence and the gas service line to the meter. If someone wasn't home, we did the best we could to let ourselves into the backyard, and we were usually successful in doing that. There were a few times when folks didn't answer the door and we made our way into their backyard, but the homeowner was home and discovered us when we were in the backyard, which produced an awkward situation. Most folks were ok with what we were doing after it was explained to them what was being done, but one woman told me to leave and called 911. I met with the police officers after they left the lady and told them what I was doing, and what had happened, and they were totally ok with it. Made my day much better after they left with smiles on their faces. Turns out there've been folks (bad guys really) that had a uniform like UPS, or the gas company, and had gotten into houses as a result, and either looted the house, or inflicted damage to the person at home. And the fact that it was prior to Christmas when there were Christmas trees with presents under them, deliveries made with packages left at the door, etc., only exasperated the situation. So I can't blame anyone there for being cautious about someone lurking about in their back yard, even though I had lots of identification to prove who I was.<br />
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Right now, we're awaiting orders on when we're to arrive in Salt Lake City to start the survey there again. Spending most of the time in the Parker, Az., area with short trips to southern California to see our son, Jeff, and Katie's family.<br />
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Although our time in Houston was mainly spent working, we were able to check out a couple of touristy things. One of them was the Battleship Texas, BB35, which is now a museum and moored near the Houston ship channel, right next to the San Jacinto Monument where the decisive battle for Texas independence took place in 1836. The battleship is now a museum which shows what life was like on a ship during the time from WW I - WWII. I found it interesting because it served near Okinawa in World War II where my father was serving in the Army Air Corp. It was also the only ship to serve in World War I as well as World War II. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hgIgJyzPS0Q/WIaZlNqX_HI/AAAAAAAACzM/GM5le1FedZgHTkagD7g1MKrZW-QKIDfdQCLcB/s1600/Battleship%2BTexas%2Band%2BSan%2BJacinto%2BMonument%2B002.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hgIgJyzPS0Q/WIaZlNqX_HI/AAAAAAAACzM/GM5le1FedZgHTkagD7g1MKrZW-QKIDfdQCLcB/s640/Battleship%2BTexas%2Band%2BSan%2BJacinto%2BMonument%2B002.JPG" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Battleship Texas, BB35</td></tr>
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Just to the southeast of where the battleship is the San Jacinto Battleground State Historic Site where the Republic of Texas won the battle for it's independence from Mexico. There's a 570' tall monument there that's 15' taller than the Washington Monument that has an elevator to the observation deck<br />
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It was very interesting to find that we were that near the battlefield where Texas got it's independence, and a lot of the rest of our time in Texas had to do with it's history, or figures of it's history. More on that in the next post.<br />
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Until then, as they say in Texas,<br />
That's all she wrote!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-22287770733825404592015-10-25T09:09:00.001-06:002015-10-25T22:26:52.450-06:00Time for a new post, already?<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">Hey everyone, we've been busy doing things, working basically. However, we stopped working on the 20th of October and now I have a little time to catch up with a few things, this blog being one of them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">After the 2nd month at Medora, things there became routine but not boring by any means. My job was a pretty sweet gig, and I enjoyed it a bunch. I mean driving a riding lawn mower 98% of the time has got to be good, right? Yeah, there were times that I wasn't mowing, like when I had to help with the tee service, or when there was spraying of noxious weeds to be done. But for the most part, I was riding a lawn mower, often times, lost in my own thoughts, or thinking of a song while I was doing it. While mowing isn't that big of a deal and most anyone could do it, the job had to be done to a certain standard and I'm thinking that I did a fairly good job of it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">I got to know several other workers there in the golf course maintenance department, good folks all of them.</span></div>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">Here are Juan on the left and Emma on the right. Emma interned for the summer after graduating from North Dakota State University in Fargo, ND, and was in charge of remodeling the foliage at the hole markers this summer.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: large;">Above are from the left, Kyle, Raul, and Jake. Kyle is a student at trade school so he left early in September to attend it, as did many other young adults in college or university. From what I was told by Raul, he was planning on leaving shortly after we did, and I'm thinking that Jake stayed until they shut down the golf course in October heading for either Alaska or California. Raul and Juan, as well as Vicente and Luis who I wasn't able to get pictures of, left family in Mexico to come work at Medora for the summer months. We was surprised to learn that there were so many folks in Medora who come there on work Visas.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">This is Kyle, the golf course superintendent, who supervised the maintenance of the golf course. He did a great job of this, and it wasn't uncommon for us groundskeepers to receive compliments on the condition of the course. The picture doesn't do him justice. Sorry.</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Kyle, his assistant AJ, and equipment manager Dan, work year round, with the brunt of their work being in the summer, obviously. Wasn't able to get pictures of AJ and Dan as they moved pretty fast and my camera couldn't focus on them. Regardless, they were conscientious of the importance of their job and did it well. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Meanwhile, Katie was cashiering at the Medora Chuckwagon Buffet. She became well known by most of the folks who worked for Theodore Roosevelt Medora Foundation (TRMF) as they'd come there for lunch, if not dinner also, often times breakfast as well. If I needed to know something pertaining to TRMF, I'd ask her and if she didn't now the answer, would find out the answer in a day or so by asking the people she knew, which was A LOT! </span></div>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">This is Vivian from Taiwan on the left, Katie is on the right. Vivian worked with Katie for several weeks before being transferred from the Chuckwagon to the Pizza Parlor across the street. She, along with 10 other young folks from Taiwan, came to work in Medora for the summer. This picture was taken in the Pizza Parlor with Vivian and Katie wearing their work uniforms. Maybe you figured that out by the name badges they were wearing. Maybe...</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">These are the folks that ran the Chuckwagon with Anthony, the chef on the left, from the Union of South Africa, and Michelle from Ireland on the right, who was in charge of the cashiers and clean up crew. Michelle was Katie's supervisor. Good people, and great to get to know them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There were a few interesting things going on in Medora besides work. One was a daily show of a Teddy Roosevelt impersonators <a href="http://www.teddyrooseveltshow.com/about.html" target="_blank">Joe Wiegand</a> and <a href="http://troosevelt1904.com/" target="_blank">Larry Marble</a>. Joe would do the TR shows at the Old Town Hall six days a week, and Larry and his wife, Julia, would take over on Joe's day off. Larry and Julia would also tour around the town on weekends greeting folks as TR would do, and Julia would host an afternoon tea at the <a href="https://www.medora.com/do/history/von-hoffman-house/" target="_blank">von Hoffman</a> house on Saturdays telling about TR from the perspective of TR's second wife, Edith. All three of the impersonators did their parts well, and it was always a very interesting show. If you're going to be anywhere near Medora during the summer, this is one of the things that you should be seeing. </span></div>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">Larry and Julia Marble as Teddy and Edith Roosevelt at the Old Town Hall in Medora. This is a show not to be missed.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Another item that was interesting to me was the wildlife. Deer were abundant all over the place, and it wasn't uncommon to see them in or along side the road in the morning. One of our neighbors in the campground planted a garden and was very disappointed to see that the veggies she was growing were being eaten by deer as she could tell by the hoof prints in the dirt next to the veggies. I didn't realize they were fast also, as one of them decided to race the van taking us workers to the golf course in the morning, keeping up with it up to 35 mph. Not sure why it didn't just turn left away from the road though. I'm thinking they just aren't the brightest animals after this summer, whadya think? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Every now and then, I'd see a coyote on the golf course in the early morning, and they could be heard in the evening as well. Owls could be seen rarely also. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-az7ylD5jpJA/Vi2YaO7Xs3I/AAAAAAAAB4E/0eljjQ1YXgY/s1600/IMG_20150429_175954.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-az7ylD5jpJA/Vi2YaO7Xs3I/AAAAAAAAB4E/0eljjQ1YXgY/s640/IMG_20150429_175954.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">Bison were in Theodore Roosevelt National Park, adjacent to Medora. Here one is seen at Cottonwood Campground. During the summer months, it was hard to find them during the day due to the heat, so it was better to look for them early in the morning or in the evening just before sunset. They roam freely in the park, not caring if they're on or off the road. If you're driving on the same road they're in front of you on, it'd be best if you care though.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vE7BsMREDbM/Vi2anIiGxII/AAAAAAAAB4U/esA7Uh8MPyI/s1600/IMG_20150708_094117.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vE7BsMREDbM/Vi2anIiGxII/AAAAAAAAB4U/esA7Uh8MPyI/s640/IMG_20150708_094117.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">Another popular animal there are jack rabbits. For the most part, they were like most wild animals that shy away from humans, or other animals larger than them. However, on the tee for the 15th hole were jack rabbits that were more than just a little bit tamer as evidenced by this picture of Juan getting up close to take a picture of a jack rabbit eating breakfast. He was about a foot away when the jack rabbit decided that he'd had enough of Juan and left for the safer surroundings of the grasses around the tee. Emma was another bunny enthusiast, and had the nickname of "The Bunny Whisperer" as she would always try to touch one every time she was on the 15th hole, calling to them as if they understood what she was saying. I guess the bunnies did understand her, because it seemed to work to a certain extent! I wasn't really wild about the idea of touching them because jack rabbits are wild animals who don't take baths in an effort to keep themselves clean. And free from parasites and dirt. ...Get my drift?</span></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;"> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kg1dA6Qfvac/Vi2dI39fInI/AAAAAAAAB4k/xwpoFn6frzo/s1600/IMG_20150827_090923.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="466" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kg1dA6Qfvac/Vi2dI39fInI/AAAAAAAAB4k/xwpoFn6frzo/s640/IMG_20150827_090923.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">There were chipmunks at Bully Pulpit Golf course, as I'm sure they were elsewhere, but they seemed to be more prolific there. They'd usually make themselves known by running out on the paved golf cart path in front of me as I'd drive a cart along it. Not really sure why they'd want to do this, I mean they could've turned into the grass at any point to get out of my way, but usually went many feet rather than just a couple feet to seek safety. From what I was able to find out about them, this the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Least_chipmunk" target="_blank">Least Chipmunk</a> species.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Working in the early mornings meant that I usually started work before the sun came up, so I'd be there for the sunrise, which was often quite nice. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i90c4Yd-iYU/Vi2fI9b_ZbI/AAAAAAAAB40/GFDjAIcuVEs/s1600/IMG_20150809_054123.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="466" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-i90c4Yd-iYU/Vi2fI9b_ZbI/AAAAAAAAB40/GFDjAIcuVEs/s640/IMG_20150809_054123.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">This is one of those spectacular sunrises taken from the third hole.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There is a river going through the area called the Scenic Little Missouri River. I'm not sure why it's not just the Little Missouri River, from what I could tell, it wasn't all that scenic. But apparently the folks in charge of the signs telling everyone what it is decided that it was scenic. </span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2sPnpGQ98Nk/Vi2gfagP1LI/AAAAAAAAB5A/ELhWyfcLi6I/s1600/IMG_20150910_064430.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="466" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-2sPnpGQ98Nk/Vi2gfagP1LI/AAAAAAAAB5A/ELhWyfcLi6I/s640/IMG_20150910_064430.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: large;">Taking that into account, this is a picture of the Scenic Little Missouri River on a cold morning when the temperature of the water was warmer than the air temperature. This was taken from the third hole as well, looking north towards Medora. And I'm glad that I'm warmer now.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td><td class="tr-caption"></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: large;">That's about it for now. Hope this posting finds everyone well.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-77204210660550053902015-07-05T19:31:00.003-06:002015-07-05T19:31:43.542-06:00Month Two in Medora, North Dakota<div style="text-align: justify;">
Hey everybody, we've been here in Medora now for just more than two months. It's been pretty good for the both of us, with the biggest complaint being that Katie and I don't get to spend very much time together. In other working gigs that we've done, we've never had this much separation during the work day. Which isn't bad in the long run, it's just an inconvenience as I don't get to spend as much time as I would like to spend with Katie. Ya see, in my job as a lawn care worker (...sometimes called a grounds keeper at a golf course, ok?) there has to be folks that work in the afternoon and early evening because that is usually when there are fewer folks on the golf course and more mowing can be done as opposed to the early parts of the day when there is more dew on the grass and more golfers wanting to be there when the temps are cooler. So my work schedule has one - two days a week when I'm gone in the afternoon and early evening. Katie's work schedule has usually been a daily split shift with her going to work for a couple hours, coming home, and then back to work, sometimes until 9 PM at night. Lately, we haven't been able to spend as much time together as I'd like because of those work schedules. Having said that, it's only gonna be for less than another three months, so it's a doable thing. Good for that.</div>
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On our few days off together, as well as the Sundays that I work from 5:30 - 9:30 AM or less, we try to see a little bit more of North Dakota than what we've seen so far. If it's a Sunday, we've been going to Dickinson for a ...healthful, ...nutritious, ...wholesome breakfast at the golden arches, McDonalds. Yeah, it's probably not the best cuisine for us, but we're currently liking their steak McMuffin. That, and their coffee, is what we'll have on Sunday mornings. Then we go to church at Evangelical Bible Church of Dickinson. After church, we'll hit a market for our weekly shopping, either Wal-Mart, Family Fare Supermarket, or the new Cash Wise market. We'd been shopping at Wal-Mart as they have just about everything we'd possibly ever want, but thought we'd try the Family Fare store, and found it to be more expensive than Wal-Mart. But this last Sunday, we tried Cash Wise, which is like a small Winco Foods with the same variety, food display, and ...feeling that Winco provides, although they aren't owned by the same company from what I learned from an employee. Not that anyone really cares, but we'll probably be shopping at Cash Wise more in the future while we're in Medora. </div>
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After shopping, we try to find a place that we haven't been to see. On last Saturday, we went to see the Enchanted Highway, which is a stretch of road from I-94 on the north to Regent on the south. What makes it enchanted is the seven humongous scrap metal sculptures off the side of the road. The sculptor, <a href="http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2008/12/17/health-and-family/country-gentleman-gardening/north-dakotas-enchanted-highway.html" target="_blank">Gary Greff</a>, sculpted them in an effort to stop his home town of Regent becoming a ghost town. That's where we started our journey stopping at the <a href="http://www.saturdayeveningpost.com/2008/12/17/health-and-family/country-gentleman-gardening/north-dakotas-enchanted-highway.html" target="_blank">Enchanted Castle Hotel</a> first, which was a former school that's been remodeled in a castle like way.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GcyImch8SNM/VZLEcIZYyyI/AAAAAAAABvY/OEqowsc0ZRA/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B020.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-GcyImch8SNM/VZLEcIZYyyI/AAAAAAAABvY/OEqowsc0ZRA/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B020.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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As you can see from the outside of it, it was a school</div>
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And the former school house before that is just a few feet away as well.</div>
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While this was a weekend, there just weren't that many folks at the Castle, not even someone at the front desk (I'm guessing that they were just out and about the property). We only saw a custodian who wasn't able to answer our questions about the history of the castle as he had just moved there. But from the websites I've visited, the Enchanted Castle gets high marks for hospitality and food as well.</div>
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From there we went to the <a href="http://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2155" target="_blank">Enchanted Highway Gift Shop</a>, which had not only memorabilia about the highway, but ice cream as well. No, we didn't imbibe in it as we had plans for lunch later on.</div>
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Across the street were various other touristy shops that weren't open on Saturday. Strangely enough, the convenience store on the far right in the photo below wasn't open either, although the gas pumps looked like someone could get gas from them. Not that it's bad, just that we've never seen a convenience store that wasn't open on the weekend.</div>
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We didn't realize it, but there is a sculpture right next to the Enchanted Highway Gift Shop that I didn't show much of in the previous photo of it. I guess it's a mechanized sculpture as the figures moved about while we were looking at it. Just can't show it in a photo, ya know?<br />
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We wandered around the town a little more to see what it was like and found the office of the Cannonball Company. At first, I thought that they must make shotgun ammunition, and this was only their offices rather than their manufacturing plant. I was quite wrong as the <a href="http://www.cannonballcompany.com/default.aspx" target="_blank">Cannonball Company </a>hosts hunting expeditions for pheasant, white tail deer, grouse and partridge, and prairie dog. I can see hunting the pheasant, white tail deer, grouse and partridge, but I'm baffled about hunting prairie dog. I don't think that I'd be doing any hunting of them, or eating of them, but apparently <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=hunting+prairie+dog&safe=off&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=E9mZVfS4NYHIsQWpt42gCA&ved=0CB4QsAQ&biw=1366&bih=670" target="_blank">it's a big sport in some places</a>.<br />
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From there, we headed north for a couple of miles to find the Tin Family. I was pleasantly surprised to find that all of the sculptures have good parking, and most have a sheltered picnic table as well. The figures here are anchored to the ground with telephone poles, the man stands 45' high, the woman 44' high, and the boy is only 23' high.<br />
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Going a few more miles up the road is the sculpture of Teddy Roosevelt Rides Again, which is made of 1 3/4" well pipe, stands 51' high and weighs about 9,000 pounds. In the photo, it shows a bulletin board in the lower right corner telling about the other sculptures, as well as the Enchanted Highway RV Park which offers a full hook up for only $20/night, which isn't bad if ya need that.<br />
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We'd seen a lot of yellow fields that day and thought that it was mustard growing. But when we checked in the gift shop in Regent, we were told that it was canola, and you can read about it <a href="http://www.uscanola.com/what-is-canola/" target="_blank">here</a> if ya don't know much about it.<br />
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The next sculpture was Pheasants on the Prairie with the rooster being 40' tall and 70' long. Humongous birds.<br />
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Fisherman's Dream is the title of the next sculpture, and it shows a lot of work with a few fish, a boat with a fisherman in it, as well as underwater vegetation also.<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3xpkjWG5Pq4/VZSXb3aHkwI/AAAAAAAABxs/4v5rAEv8rKk/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B046.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3xpkjWG5Pq4/VZSXb3aHkwI/AAAAAAAABxs/4v5rAEv8rKk/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B046.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Grasshopper's In The Field was the next sculpture up the road, with a humongous grasshopper and two smaller ones that are still large enough to gobble me up, and still go for more folks my size. Off to the right are littler ones even yet that are mounted on springs that little folks can sit on and go back and forth.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4FU4UgMcJvM/VZnArW4yEtI/AAAAAAAAByw/hn6HOXNQtRw/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B047.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-4FU4UgMcJvM/VZnArW4yEtI/AAAAAAAAByw/hn6HOXNQtRw/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B047.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The town of Lefor was up the road a bit. It had a population of over 200 at one time, mostly of Hungarian descent, but has turned into a ghost town kinda over the years. It was founded in 1890 and named for the first postmaster, Adam Lefor. Here is the sign on the road.<br />
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-majVLthuNd8/VZnGmBDb_XI/AAAAAAAABzE/L4pTPd1uZfs/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B049.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-majVLthuNd8/VZnGmBDb_XI/AAAAAAAABzE/L4pTPd1uZfs/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B049.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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And here is the claim to fame for Lefor, St. Elizabeth's Catholic Church. Quite a large one as you might be able to tell in the second picture (which was taken looking into the rear view mirror).<br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-by0qqHF3r0k/VZnHLtfNq2I/AAAAAAAABzM/CJXajXgtqdo/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-by0qqHF3r0k/VZnHLtfNq2I/AAAAAAAABzM/CJXajXgtqdo/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B050.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SB8K1pi_8q0/VZnHYltgOgI/AAAAAAAABzU/j-deX-gtQOs/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B052.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-SB8K1pi_8q0/VZnHYltgOgI/AAAAAAAABzU/j-deX-gtQOs/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B052.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
Quite a large building for an unincorporated community, imho.<br />
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Next up the road is Deer Crossing. As is with all the other sculptures, this one is really big as well, as you may be able to tell by looking at Katie in the lower left corner. The buck is 75' tall and the doe is 50' tall, and they're both held up with many really large guy-wires.<br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RBeu68ERtf8/VZnI8_wMsRI/AAAAAAAABzg/zwqPO4BE7ko/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B053.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RBeu68ERtf8/VZnI8_wMsRI/AAAAAAAABzg/zwqPO4BE7ko/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B053.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Just a little distance up the road was another town, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gladstone,_North_Dakota" target="_blank">Gladstone</a>, which was incorporated in 1882 and named for the British Prime Minister <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Ewart_Gladstone" target="_blank">William Gladstone</a>, a liberal British politician in the 19th century. The 2010 population of Gladstone was 239, so I'm thinking that it's now about the size of what Lefor used to be. Not a bad place, it was just like the other bergs that we went through on that day in that there wasn't a lot of anything going on. <br />
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5DeddFVSat0/VZnLQxKgiGI/AAAAAAAABz4/CvM15dpNkWs/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B058.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-5DeddFVSat0/VZnLQxKgiGI/AAAAAAAABz4/CvM15dpNkWs/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B058.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The last sculpture can be seen from I-94 as well as the Enchanted Highway. "Geese In Flight" is, in my opinion, the most famous sculpture as more people see it than any of the other sculptures. It holds the record in the Guiness Book of Records as the Largest Scrap Metal Sculpture being 110' tall and 154' long. The wingspan of the largest goose is 30' and the whole sculpture weighs in at almost 79 tons. To me, it is the most impressive of all the sculptures. <br />
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-617r60-T10k/VZnNDHpvpVI/AAAAAAAAB0I/CMwTpG10_KE/s1600/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B066.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-617r60-T10k/VZnNDHpvpVI/AAAAAAAAB0I/CMwTpG10_KE/s640/Enchanted%2BHighway%2B066.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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From there, we headed back home which was about 47 miles to the west on I-94. Not a bad day to see some of the stuff in North Dakota, huh? <br />
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Hope you had a great day, and enjoyed reading about the Enchanted Highway. Be blessed!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-5056236771652168262015-05-21T20:03:00.002-06:002015-05-21T20:03:47.278-06:00We're in Medora!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Now that you know where we're at, you might be wondering where <a href="http://www.medora.com/" target="_blank">Medora</a> is. Well, there are three Medoras in the US in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medora,_Illinois" target="_blank">Illinois</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medora,_Indiana" target="_blank">Indiana</a>, and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medora,_North_Dakota" target="_blank">North Dakota</a> which is where we're at. We're here for our summer and early fall employment gig. We arrived here about two weeks ago on the 29th of April after a hard ride from Clearfield, Ut, which was 812 miles stopping overnight at Idaho Falls, Idaho, and Billings, Mt., on our way here. The folks in the HR department of <a href="http://www.medora.com/about/about-tr-medora-foundation/" target="_blank">Theodore Roosevelt Medroa Foundation (TRMF)</a> were very accommodating upon our arrival and offered us a room in the Badlands Motel as they weren't sure if the water was turned on in the Medora Campground where we're staying. Well, ...the water <i>was</i> turned on, but we took up the offer for about a hour to just use the shower in the motel room, which really felt good as there was an unlimited amount of hot water as opposed to only the six gallons of hot water that we have in the moho. Once the showers were completed, we went back to the moho and finished up setting up our campsite. </div>
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The next day we were formally employed by TRMF by filling out the forms needed, and then took a ride around the city, in particular where we were gonna be working at, with me at the <a href="http://www.medora.com/do/outdoor/bully-pulpit-golf-course/" target="_blank">Bully Pulpit Golf Course</a> three miles south of the city, and Katie at the <a href="http://www.medora.com/eat/family/chuckwagon-western-buffet/" target="_blank">Chuckwagon Buffet</a> in downtown Medora. We both started work the next day with Katie only getting a few hours as the buffet is only open those few hours right now, but will open more as the summer nears, and me getting two full days of work in. Since then, the buffet has been open more and more so Katie's been getting more hours. My work hours haven't really haven't changed, but the weather affecting my working has changed from summer back to winter with a snow storm in the area just Sunday night, leaving us with lows in the 20's both Sunday and Monday night. Having said all that above, I'm gonna say that work so far has been pretty good with the exception of the weather.</div>
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As Katie's job is being a cashier at the only eatery in town that's open for lunch presently, she's getting the opportunity to meet just about everyone who works for TRMF. And then when all the diners leave, she does the cleanup stuff, and assists in the kitchen. I, on the other hand, take part in the golf course mowing, cleaning and setting up the tees, and other things having to do with golf course maintenance. Not a bad gig, huh?</div>
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While the town of Medora has a history from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marquis_de_Mores" target="_blank">Marquis di Mores</a> coming to the area in March of 1883 to ranch and try other business ventures and naming the city after his wife, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medora_Vallambrosa,_Marquise_de_Mores" target="_blank">Medora von Hoffman</a>, it has it's most current claim to fame from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theodore_Roosevelt" target="_blank">Theodore Roosevelt </a>when he came to Medora in October of the same year and afterwards as well. From his visits in 1883 and 1903 and love for the area, the north unit of Theodore Roosevelt National Memorial Park was established in 1947, with the south unit being established in 1949. There is also history here from 1864 when General Alfred Sully fought the Sioux a few miles south of Medora, and from 1876 when Lieutenant-Colonel George Custer passed through on his way west to the Little Bighorn.</div>
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With the population of Medora being only 129 as of 2013, it's not all that big, with a downtown of only a couple of handfuls of blocks, and a total area of land only a third of a square mile. Here's pictures of some of the buildings.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: small;">This is the Rough Riders Hotel. It was originally the Metropolitan Hotel when it was built in 1885-86, and changed to Rough Riders Hotel in 1903 in honor of Theodore Roosevelt’s Rough Riders and their service in the Spanish-American War. Renovated in 1965, and again in 2009 adding 68 more rooms.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">On the left side of this picture, you can see the east side of the Rough Riders Hotel, where you'd go if you were going into the lobby. From the center to the right is the Medora Post Office (zipcode 58645), the First State Bank of Golva, and the Congregational Church.</span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">This is the Demores Elementary School which has a student body of about 40 from Pre-K through eighth grade. It also houses the 15, 000 square foot Billings County Resource Center Library</span>. <span style="font-size: small;">Looks pretty nice, huh? See the sign in the foreground? See it better in the next picture.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">Looks kinda old fashioned, huh? This is why I like the new one better.</span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">Just a couple blocks away from the Rough Riders Hotel are these buildings. On the left is the Sacajawea Trading post, which is one of a few variety stores in town. Next to that is the old Medora Fire Station which looks kinda small, if ya asks me. The new fire station was dedicated a few days before our arrival here, and you can read more about it <a href="http://www.thedickinsonpress.com/news/local/3714852-medora-fire-department-invites-public" target="_blank">here</a>. The Town Hall on the right is where various plays are put on, including "Bully! The Play" in which Teddy Roosevelt comes to life. It's received many good reviews, maybe if you're in the area that'd be a good thing to take in.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">Of course ya can't have a small town without the customary convenience store. Don't know that it has any special history or not. But it's the main store in town.</span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">The place to eat in town where the vast majority of folks eat at right now is the Chuckwagon Buffet. Having said that, with the exception of Theodore's Dining Room at the Rough Rider's Hotel, to the best of my knowledge, this is the only eatery serving breakfast, lunch and dinner right now. And this is where Katie works.</span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">And this is Katie at work. Only this was after the rush of lunch so there wasn't anyone in line. If there were, she wouldn't have been looking at me taking this picture.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: small;">Here's the food line with a couple entrees each meal. Beverages are on the right out of sight. The food is very good, and you can have as much as you want.</span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></td></tr>
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<tr align="justify"><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-size: small;">Lastly, here's what the campground looks like without campers in it. There's been many folks working on cleaning it up from the winter months, and improving it by putting a new general store in it that includes a laundromat. I'm not showing the swimming pool, or other play areas that are at the entrance to the campground, but they're there waiting for residents and visitors to use</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Ok! Having said all that, realize that not all the stores are shown here, and there aren't a lot of visitors and shoppers here right now either. Starting on the Memorial Day weekend, there's gonna be lots more folks cruising up and down the streets, camping in the campground, golfing at the golf course, eating at the eateries, hoteling at the hotel (...?), etc., etc., etc. In other words, ...I don't think it's gonna be quite as quiet as it is now. So if you wanted to get here and have the place to yourself, I think that time is gone for the moment. But if you enjoy being around friendly folks who enjoy having you visit them, Medora may be for you. And if ya come, make sure ya lets us know so we can see ya!</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Have a blessed day!</span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-57220899374843684862015-04-15T21:04:00.000-06:002015-04-16T09:20:21.907-06:00Beware the Ides of April...<div style="text-align: justify;">
As it just might snow! And that's exactly what it did in Clearfield, Ut. As I recall, it wasn't supposed to be more than a possibility of snow, but it turned into a "winter storm advisory" lasting through the night with the ground covered with maybe 2" in places. And while it wasn't a lot, it was more than was expected, especially since it was in the upper 60's yesterday. </div>
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Because Katie and I are gonna be working at Theodore Roosevelt National Park this summer, we won't be able to make it to the Dickson family reunion which is held every two years, with this year being the year to have it in the summer. As a result, I'd be missing seeing folks in the family that I hadn't seen in some time. So last Thursday, the 9th of April, after dropping Riley and Avery off at school, I headed up towards <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McMinnville,_Oregon" target="_blank">McMinnville, Or</a> to see my sister, Elaine, and stay at her house for four days for the purpose of seeing as many folks as possible in lieu of being at the reunion. She was kind enough to offer me room and board for those four days, as well as coordinate getting my son, Jon, my other sisters June & Shirley, and other family members to her house on Saturday for the mini reunion. I arrived in McMinnville around 7 PM that evening ready to start my stay. </div>
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In addition to the mini reunion, Elaine had a few things for me to do at her house and we started doing them on Saturday morning. For lunch, we headed over to <a href="http://www.mcmenamins.com/" target="_blank">McMenamins</a> restaurant in downtown McMinnville, and ate on the top of the <a href="http://www.mcmenamins.com/HotelOregon" target="_blank">Hotel Oregon</a> where McMenamins is located. Being up four stories affords a pretty good view from the top, and we were able to see the countryside well. After lunch, Elaine led Jon and I on a tour of downtown McMinnville. It was interesting seeing the various shops that were along 3rd street. Half way down 3rd street, we met Ben Franklin sitting on a bench, and got our picture taken with him. <span id="goog_305074883"></span><span id="goog_305074884"></span></div>
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Elaine felt like she needed to get close to Ben also. So ...she did.</div>
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We had a lunch on Saturday with my sisters, June & Shirley, along with June's husband, Steve Taylor. Their daughter and granddaughter, Stephanie and Aureliana, joined us a little bit later. After lunch, other folks started arriving: my cousin Kenneth Dickson and his wife, Rosa Lee, another cousin Keith Dickson and his wife Carol. In addition, Kenneth's daughter, Darla Bowman and husband John, as well as his son Kenny Dickson and his wife Kerry. It was a good time being able to see how everyone is doing and especially great to see them since I won't be with them this summer.</div>
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Starting from the left, Rosa Lee Dickson (Kenneth's wife), Shirley Dickson (my middle sister), June Taylor (my youngest sister), Kenneth Dickson (Rosa Lee's husband), Kenny Dickson (Kenneth and Rosa Lee's son). </div>
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Starting from the left, John Bowman (Darla's husband), Kerry Dickson (Kenny's wife), Rosa Lee & Shirley.<br />
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Starting from the left: Darla Bowman (John's wife, and Kenneth and Rosa Lee's daughter), Jon Dickson (my second son), Carol Dickson (Keith Dickson's wife), and Keith Dickson (Carol's husband). Steve Taylor was off to the left out of sight in Elaine's kitchen, and you can see Elaine leaning against the door frame on the right side of the picture. <br />
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As you can tell, these pictures were un-posed, and everyone was deep in thought. Except maybe for Jon who looks like he was smiling about something... I'm thinking that I thought about taking pictures after Stephanie and Aureliana had left. Poor timing on my part.</div>
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On Sunday, we went to worship with June, Stephanie, and Aureliana, and had lunch with June & Steve afterwards. On Monday, we finished up the projects that Elaine wanted done, and then went to the <a href="http://evergreenmuseum.org/" target="_blank">Evergreen Aviation Museum</a> to relax and see the Hughes H-4 Hercules, aka, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hughes_H-4_Hercules" target="_blank">Spruce Goose</a>, as well as other exhibits there. We spent a lot of time in the Space Museum, but managed to get a tour of the flight deck of the Spruce Goose and have pictures taken before we had to leave to take Jon home in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Helens,_Oregon" target="_blank">St. Helens</a>, some 60 miles away. After having pizza from <a href="http://www.sunshinepizza.net/" target="_blank">Sunshine Pizza Exchange</a>, we dropped him off. In the picture below, that's me on the left doing my best Howard Hughes' impression. Pretty good, huh?</div>
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The ride back to Clearfield, Utah the next day was a long one. I got up at 4:30 PDT (really 5:30 MDT) to start on my trek home. After spending time going through the little towns along the way to I-5 going to Portland (<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lafayette,_Oregon" target="_blank">Lafayette</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dundee,_Oregon" target="_blank">Dundee</a>, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newberg,_Oregon" target="_blank">Newberg</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sherwood,_Oregon" target="_blank">Sherwood</a>) (and I could've gone through <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tigard,_Oregon" target="_blank">Tigard</a> also, but I didn't want to spend the extra 1/2 hour to 45 minutes to get through it!), I got gas and was on my way. I decided to go on the north side of the Columbia River this time rather than the south side as I did when I went to McMinnville earlier, so went to Vancover and turned right on route 14. Once again, there were many small towns along the way, including <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Washougal,_Washington" target="_blank">Washougal</a> and <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Salmon,_Washington" target="_blank">White Salmon</a>, where my father, Charles Kenneth Dickson, lived growing up. I thought the trip on route 14 was more picturesque than the stretch of I84 opposite it on the Oregon side. I highly recommend it if you're traveling east or west along the Columbia. If ya have an RV, ya need to be aware that there's a couple of tunnels along the way that need to be negotiated though. </div>
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There was a snow storm on the mountains around the Idaho - Utah border that I had to go through. Luckily, it wasn't cold enough for the snow to stick. Much. And the snow plows were out in force, spreading sand and/or gravel, and ready to do plowing when the need arose. (Sadly, that snow storm is the one that stayed with me all the way to Clearfield, and is still here now at 9 PM. Weather.com says that there was a high of 44 here today, but I didn't see it. They also say that the high tomorrow will be 57. Not really sure if I believe them on that either.) I arrived here about 7:30 PM which means that my trip was about 14 hours long. After giving Katie a big hug and taking a shower, I ate, and then collapsed into bed. Regardless of how long the drive was both ways, it was good to see family again. </div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-43900130701945792015-04-05T15:55:00.001-06:002015-04-05T16:03:23.765-06:00Happy Easter!<div style="text-align: justify;">
As Christians, Katie and I celebrate Easter, which is one of the most joyous events for Christians. When I was a kid, I remember having Easter egg hunts and coloring Easter eggs, although I never got into the coloring of the eggs much at all. Kinda boring and stinky, if ya ask me. But I really loved the hymns sung at Church worship services, and as I got older, the different choral works also. As I've grown in my Christian faith, I've come to appreciate what Christ did for me many years ago, as well as his resurrection. Each Easter brings more meaning to my faith, so it is with joy that I look forward to Easter celebrations.</div>
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We've been with Amanda and her family now for three weeks now. Wasn't sure how long it'd been till I looked at the calendar and computed when we left Tucson, Az. It's been long enough now that we had to drain the tanks yesterday, and in the same trip filled up the gas tank so we'll be all set for our journey on April 27th when we head up to Medora, ND. The weather here was great the first few days, but this last week the nights have been cold in the 30's, and the days not much warmer with the highs in the 50's. One day it was very windy which made the cooler temps that much cooler. Maybe spring is just trying to get back to normal temps rather than going back into summer temps so soon, ya think? We try to take walks in the morning, and this is what it looked like one of those days looking east on a cloudy day.</div>
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Looks kinda dreary, huh? But the trees were blooming, as they still are today. Maybe it'd look better on a sunny day, ya think?<br />
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Our days have been filled with making things easier for Amanda and Shelby with us taking care of some household chores, and me taking the boys to and from school. That's been a fun time for me as we've been able to talk about a few things, particularly RV's. There's one RV lot we go by, and I always tell Avery that there's motorhomes there, to which he replies that "he knows" they're all trailers. Riley is supposed to help me out as he's older and is able to see the motorhomes, but he's just gone along with Avery. They've even come up with a theory that motorhomes are bad, and they've had an effect on Katie and me. It's all in fun with many laughs along the way though. I made popcorn for them, and they've determined that I make the best popcorn, even better than movie theater popcorn. There's really no secret to it except that it isn't microwave popcorn, but the real thing. Then last week, I made waffles for them, and I'm now the best waffle maker also. Can't take credit for that as Amanda got the mix and the iron, all I did was mix it up. I guess my point being that actually "making" things to eat is better than using a microwave or toaster to heat up food. Like they were many years ago before convenience food was invented. </div>
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We did go up to Meridian, ID., for a memorial service for Katie's niece, Allison, who was involved in an auto accident earlier in March. While it was a somber even, it was good to see Katie's brother and sister in law, Ken and Lori, as well as her sister, Karen, and her husband, Bill, also. Ken and Lori's great grandson, Mikey, also celebrated his 2nd birthday so the trip was good for that also. On the way up there, we went through a wind storm that brought up many, many tumbleweeds from along the highway, and points beyond it seemed like there were so many of them, I didn't try to avoid them and our car wound up with a moustache.</div>
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A couple of blogs ago, I spoke about getting a different rig for us as our mighty Chieftain is ...not as it once was. As much as we've been for RVing in a moho, the time has come that we're believing that a 5th wheel trailer would give us more usable room than a moho as there's space taken up at the front end of a moho that can't be utilized easily. Plus there's the added expense of paying for the running gear of a moho which usually isn't used that often, especially if we go somewhere and just sit for weeks to months at a time; I mean it's an extra engine and drive train that we'd have to take care of. Registration fees tend to be less for a 5th wheel than for a moho also. </div>
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This represents quite a change for us as there's a few things that don't occur in 5th wheels that occur in motorhomes. In particular, they usually weigh more than the dinghy that is towed behind the moho which is used for traveling around when the moho is setup at the campsite. The vast majority of 5th wheels will weigh more than the truck that pulls them. More than half of the mohos made will have fiberglass roofs, where they're available only in the crem dela crem of 5th wheels (the rest of the 5th wheels have a rubber roof, or something similar). Setup and tear down at a campsite is usually easier and quicker in a moho by far. When traveling, food can easily be procured from the refrigerator, and heated up if needed, for all the passengers of the moho. Bathroom stops aren't necessary, except for the driver, because the bathroom is traveling with the driver and passenger rather than in a vehicle behind them. These are some of the reasons that we've always thought of having a moho rather than a 5th wheel, it's just always made sense to us.</div>
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5th wheels can cost upwards of $150,000, such as <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-DRV-LUXURY-SUITES-Mobile-Suites-44-Houston-114390826" target="_blank">this one</a>. As with just about anything in life, ya gets what ya pays for with very good quality and high end features being found in the rigs at the upper end of the price spectrum. We're not looking for those rigs as they don't always have what we want anyway, but more the ones that are at the middle part of the price spectrum instead. In my opinion, any RV that is made at the lower end of the price spectrum is made for young families that want to get started in the RVing experience, and not for the rigors of full time living in it. So we'll be paying for something that will hopefully be able to stand the test of time in that middle zone.</div>
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There's a few different genres of 5th wheels in the market now. The most common would be the one with the <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-Jayco-Pinnacle-36RSQS-113565406" target="_blank">bedroom in the front of the rig</a>, followed by the bathroom as we go towards the back, and finally the living area which includes the kitchen and eating area as well. Lately, another style has come out where <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-Keystone-Montana-3791RD-113843454" target="_blank">the living area and bedroom are switched</a> so the living area is raised above the kitchen in the middle. In a few models like this, the bedroom is also raised in the back of the trailer enabling the manufacture to allow for a hefty amount of storage under the bedroom as well as the living room. Another trend is to have <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-Jayco-Pinnacle-36FBTS-Front-Bath-Triple-Slide-114138389" target="_blank">a large bathroom in the front of the rig</a> with a half bath amidships. <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-Heartland-CYCLONE-4200-114078899" target="_blank">Toy haulers</a> are another style which offer an abundance of space in the back of the rig for toys such as ...bikes and trikes clear up to cars and lots of things in between. On most of them, there is one or two large bunks that come down from the ceiling allowing for sleeping in the garage as well. Many toy haulers have the ability to turn the tailgate into a patio for outdoor seating on the same level as the rest of the rig so ya don't have to got down steps to get to your outdoor chair, or up them to get another piece of chicken. Another style would be the rigs with bunk rooms, which are usually placed either amidships or in the extreme back. <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-Coachmen-Brookstone-395RL-114329658" target="_blank">Having the bunk room in the middle</a> still allows the living room to be in the back, which seems to be a little more desirable for us. <a href="http://www.rvtrader.com/listing/2015-Palomino-COLUMBUS-385BH-113313622" target="_blank">Although with the bunk room in the back</a>, it's larger and there is a possibility of more bunks, or often times there will be an abbreviated outdoor kitchen under the upper bunk on the curb side. </div>
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Having said that, as far as we're concerned, the floor plans in 5th wheels come in two different styles: the ones with the dining area on the curb side, and the ones with the dining area on the street side, and this includes toy haulers. We prefer to have one with the dining area on the curb side, which just happens to be the side that would have our campsite on it. These floor plans also can allow for seeing who might be coming to your door a little easier as well. We also want the living area to be in the rear of the rig if possible. That criteria narrows down the field a bunch. </div>
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As you may recall, one of the reasons for the change in RVs is to have more room, mainly for Katie's painting. If there is a bunk room or garage available, it could be used as Katie's studio, in addition to providing extra storage space which sometimes happens when paintings are made and space is needed for them. Plus if other folks choose to stay with us, we'd have extra space for them to sleep. Without the bunk room or garage, Katie would have to set up her easel somewhere in the rig, probably in the living area where a recliner would be removed. She's not too keen on this idea, wanting the ability to close things off when needed. In considering toy haulers, it seems as though they aren't always set up for full time RVing, although they have pretty good construction. Their interior storage seems to be set up for the occasional weekend outing or vacation still the same, and their TV viewing angles aren't optimum with it usually being 90 degrees to the right or left of how folks are sitting. They're very heavy, and have no slides in the garage, although they do allow for extra sleeping with extra beds. But their cost is higher than we want to spend, and they weigh more than we want to tow. That leaves a bunk room 5th wheel as our choice.</div>
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So, that's where we're at right now in that we know what style of 5th wheel we're gonna want to get. We've narrowed the field down further to less than 10 rigs, but as they 2016s are coming out soon, the homework we've done so far may very well be for naught if there are new models with more of what we want in them. Might have to do a bunch more research, ya think?</div>
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Have a blessed day!</div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-87254869763484708222015-03-22T10:01:00.001-06:002015-03-22T10:06:40.784-06:00Granddaughter's arrival!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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This last Friday, the 20th of March, our daughter Amanda, and her husband James, took the awaited trip to the hospital around 8 PM to deliver their 2nd daughter, Shelby Marie. Shortly after Mom and Dad got situated at the hospital, she arrived, all 7 pounds, 2 ounces of her. There weren't any complications with mother or daughter, so it was a blessing to have a quick, easy delivery. Yesterday, Mom, Dad, and Shelby were visited by Katie, Riley, Avery, Aubrey, and myself in three different shifts as we couldn't all fit in our car at one time. </div>
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Not quite sure how Shelby likes the bow in her hair right then. Then again, maybe she just doesn't care about it either. Looks cute, huh? </div>
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The good, (bigger) brother, Riley, enjoyed his visit and holding her, as did the other good, (not <span style="color: #0000ee;"><span style="color: black;">quite as </span><span style="color: #0000ee;"><span style="color: black;">big) brother, Avery. I see lots of educating for Shelby taking place</span> </span></span>with these two boys. Not sure how much teaching of life went on with their visits, but it's probably only a matter of time.<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3NZkgqb4hmI/VQ7fKVjNckI/AAAAAAAABmI/SjGKKfsvhv8/s1600/Shelby%2BMarie%2BFord%2B005.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3NZkgqb4hmI/VQ7fKVjNckI/AAAAAAAABmI/SjGKKfsvhv8/s1600/Shelby%2BMarie%2BFord%2B005.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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And finally, the old man showed up and James took a picture of Shelby and me. He said I wasn't smiling, I thought I was doing a pretty good job of it. Maybe I was more concerned with not dropping her, ya think? Or keeping my eyes open with that bright light from the flash. </div>
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Other than the expected arrival of Shelby, can't say that we've done a lot of other stuff. Mostly we've been filling in for Amanda by taking the boys to and from school, having fun with them and Aubrey, and doing other stuff. Right now, we're awaiting the homecoming and just taking care of the three other kids, which can be a challenge at times. Luckily, Riley and Avery are doing the boy thing in the basement with the computer, and Aubrey is inspecting the carpet for things that I didn't pick up when I vacuumed it yesterday. You know, grandparent stuff. So this blog isn't gonna have a lot in it. As a matter of fact, this is about it!</div>
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So have a blessed day!Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-46682759140218915392015-03-18T19:30:00.000-06:002015-03-18T19:36:25.662-06:00Back in Clearfield for Grandchild #6!<div style="text-align: justify;">
We had a nice, relaxing time at <a href="http://www.sunriseresorts.com/resort-locations/ridgeview-rv-resort/" target="_blank">Ridgeview RV Resort</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bullhead_City,_Arizona" target="_blank">Bullhead City, Az</a> for three days. Can't say that we did a lot as Katie was still recuperating from her eight days of classes at Creative Painting in Las Vegas the previous week. Got to enjoy a really good thunderstorm on the 3rd which filled up all the washes that went through the resort with fairly fast flowing water (go ahead, say that quickly three times!). As a lot of the resort is on hills, there was quite a bit of dirt taken away by the downpour that ended up in the Colorado River. </div>
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On the 4th, we packed up and headed for <a href="http://carefreerv.net/" target="_blank">Carefree Manor</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apache_Junction,_Arizona" target="_blank">Apache Junction, Az.</a>, a few miles east of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix,_Arizona" target="_blank">Phoenix</a>, and not far from the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superstition_Mountains" target="_blank">Superstition Mountains</a> which can barely be seen in the picture below. </div>
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Carefree Manor is like a lot of other resorts in Arizona with a lot of folks that come to the warmer climate of Arizona in the winter time and then head back home. Or some may live there all the time. The photos above and below show that not all of the dwellings are RVs that move with a lot of the homes being manufactured homes, or RVs that no longer travel. It's an older, but nicer, resort that has been kept up fairly well through the years, and we could tell that there was a community there of folks have known each other for some time.</div>
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We traveled around a little in Phoenix and the surrounding area and noticed that the traffic lanes of the streets and freeways seem to be narrower than they are in most of the other places we've been too. Made for some exciting moments of driving there. </div>
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We left on Saturday, the 7th, to go to <a href="http://www.pimacountyfair.com/" target="_blank">Pima County Fairgrounds</a> southeast of Tucson in preparation of going to the Escapade. After disconnecting our car from the moho, we headed to a spot at the end of a row that wasn't all that far from the exhibit halls, so it was fairly nice. While we were <a href="http://www.legendsofamerica.com/rv-boondocking.html" target="_blank">boondocking </a>with no hookups, there was plenty of room for us to take us and our dogs for a walk when the time was right. Once we were set up, we found our way to the registration desk to take care of the needed paperwork that comes with a rally. All the folks that helped us were quite friendly, and we felt at home quickly. As it was our first Escapade, we were given hugs by all the folks who'd been to previous Escapades. Then we wandered around a little, taking in the sights and sounds of the RV show section that was hosted by <a href="http://www.rvcountry.com/" target="_blank">Paul Evert's RV</a>. There were some rigs there that were kinda interesting, but as we didn't see the one that had the flashing neon sign saying, "Get Me! Get Me!" over and over, we didn't spend anymore time there than necessary and headed for home. Darn the bad luck!</div>
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When Sunday morning rolled around, we headed for <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tombstone,_Arizona" target="_blank">Tombstone</a>, 55 miles to the southeast, to meet up with
Rayn & Jon, who worked with us at Amazon.com this last year. Yes, they really do smile a lot.</div>
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We had a good time with them going wandering around Tombstone, and eating some great food at <a href="http://www.bignosekates.info/" target="_blank">Big Nose Kate's Saloon</a>. <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Big_Nose_Kate" target="_blank">Big Nose Kate</a> was the common law wife of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doc_Holliday" target="_blank">Doc Holliday</a>, who was a friend of <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wyatt_Earp" target="_blank">Wyatt Earp</a> and his brothers, and took part in the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gunfight_at_the_O.K._Corral" target="_blank">Gunfight at the OK Corral.</a> Then we wandered around the town some more. It was interesting to think that if Tombstone hadn't had a 30 second shootout on October 26, 1881, Tombstone wouldn't have as much tourism as it does now. There were lots of tourists from out of town there as evidenced by the number of cars in the various parking lots and on the streets. There were a lot of folks dressed in period clothing, like this woman,</div>
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or, these two folks.<br />
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A few of the streets were blocked off so gunfight skits could be put on.<br />
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All the while, there are stagecoaches or horse drawn wagons cruising up and down the other streets with the driver telling about the history and lore of Tombstone. In the photo below, the driver of the stagecoach looks like he's "asleep at the wheel", but he was just so animated in his story telling, that I wasn't able to get a picture of him with his head up, which it really was at times. Other times, it was kinda lolling around, but all the while he was lettin' the riders of the coach know what he was supposed to be lettin' them know. BUT those riders were missing the show that the driver was putting on outside that bystanders, like Katie, Rayn, Jon and I, could see. Not gonna say it was hilarious, but it was certainly more entertaining than just listening to him talk. </div>
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On our way back to our moho, we had ice cream with Rayn & Jon back in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benson,_Arizona" target="_blank">Benson</a>, which is between Tombstone and Tucson, at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/OldBensonIceCreamStop?ref=br_tf" target="_blank">The Old Benson Ice Cream Stop</a>. There were ...I dunno, like 50 flavors of soft serve, but less than 10 flavors of the hard stuff. Which was kinda backwards because most ice cream shops have it the other way around, ya know? ...That doesn't mean that it wasn't outstanding ice cream still the same. It was yummy! If you're ever in the area of Tombstone, or Tucson, or other towns in the area, go the distance to Benson and have some ice cream at The Old Benson Ice Cream Stop, I'm pretty sure you'll enjoy it a bunch if ya have any desire at all for the cold, sweet stuff. As Rayn & Jon are ice cream aficionados, they said they'd be coming back there again during their stay since they were camped fairly close by. Can't say that I blame them, we would've also except that we were further away. That, and we don't really need ice cream to make us look much better than we already do! LOL!</div>
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So the Escapade started for real on Monday morning and ran through Thursday. We saw several seminars on various topics that interested us and quite a few other folks as well, be they full time or part time RVers, and I suspect there were some wanna-be Rvers as well. The entertainment on Sunday evening was something I'd been looking forward to seeing ever since I heard what it was. Ron and Kay Rivoli of the <a href="http://www.rivolirevue.com/" target="_blank">Rivoli Review</a>, who are also full time RVers, sang songs and told jokes, and everyone enjoyed it. They were outstanding, and there was many a time I had a tear in my eye during their songs. A couple of years ago, they had a song "<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEJfS1v-fU0" target="_blank">Press 1 for English</a>" which was very popular. Wednesday evening's entertainment was a talent show featuring those of us who were brave enough to get up in front of over 1,000 folks and perform musically or verbally. I was one of them after being urged by both Katie and Rayn to enter the show. The ovation I received after I was a real blessing, and I'm putting more time into playing my accordion now as a result. Who knows, maybe I'll get up enough nerve to actually start playing in public more now. </div>
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Thursday morning, we packed up and headed north getting as far as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cedar_City,_Utah" target="_blank">Cedar City. Ut.</a>, before we stopped for the night at Camp Walmart. On the way up, we saw snow on the ground around Flagstaff, and it was in Cedar City as well. Luckily, those two places were the only places that it was cold. Bright and early Friday morning, we left Cedar City for Clearfield, and we got here around noon. There was salt all over the car and the bottom half of the moho, so we stopped at a car wash to get it off of each vehicle. We got to Amanda's home expecting to have her fourth baby be born at any moment. However, here we sit, it's Wednesday, and Shelby hasn't decided it's time for her to get into the real world yet. James helped me get the moho situated in their driveway that night, so I think we're pretty well set. Since our arrival here, we've been busy, but I can't say that it's been non-stop. It's not like we're on vacation as we're doing things to make Amanda's daily routine a little easier, as well as spending time with everyone. </div>
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A couple of things I didn't mention previously because I don't remember exactly when it happened. We were notified of our summer employment at <a href="http://www.nps.gov/thro/index.htm" target="_blank">Theodore Roosevelt National Park</a> in <a href="http://www.medora.com/" target="_blank">Medora, ND </a>somewhere along the way. Katie's gonna be cashiering at the <a href="http://www.medora.com/eat/family/chuckwagon-western-buffet/" target="_blank">Chuckwagon Buffet</a> which is less than a mile from where we'll be staying (<a href="http://www.medora.com/stay/camping/medora-campground/" target="_blank">Medora Camp Ground</a>), and I'll be mowing the greens at the <a href="http://www.medora.com/do/outdoor/bully-pulpit-golf-course/" target="_blank">Bully Pulpit Golf Course</a> about five miles south of Medora. It pays a little more than our gig did last summer at Red Stone Cabins, and we won't be on call all the time, so we're thinking it'll be better for us. The next item is that we're gonna be employed at the sugar beet harvest the first two weeks of October in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glendive,_Montana" target="_blank">Glendive, Mt.</a> This gig is gonna be kinda hard as the days are 12 hours long, and there are no days off during the harvest. But it's only about two weeks and the pay is pretty good with time and a half being paid after eight hours Monday - Friday, and all day Saturday and Sunday. So we're hoping to make somewhere around $6k for those two weeks. Both of these gigs pay for our full hookup sites, so that's an added blessing. </div>
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Now then the reason for us going back to work like this is that our mighty Chieftain is 16 years old now, and things are not staying quite like they are when it's new. In addition, it doesn't fit our needs anymore. So we're hoping to pay the balance down on the moho and hopefully pay off the car as we're gonna need to be as much in the black as possible when we trade things for our new rig, which at this point, seems that it'll be a 1-ton pickup pulling a long 5th wheel trailer. Don't know which brands yet, but we're looking at the heavy duty rigs and trucks (which can be a lot of fun, ya know?).</div>
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Be good and blessed!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-83186113133054014932015-03-02T19:28:00.000-07:002015-03-02T19:32:46.577-07:00It's been that long? Wow!<div style="text-align: justify;">
I know that it's been a long time since I put ...fingers to my computer (as opposed to pen to paper), and I've meant to put my thoughts and our travels on the computer, but I just never quite got to it. I'll try to fix that now.<br />
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We left Desert Hot Springs and went to Lake Havasu <a href="http://www.coloradoriveradventures.com/" target="_blank">Colorado River Adventures (CRA)</a> on February 1 to stay there for 14 days.<br />
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<span id="goog_1817708462"></span><span id="goog_1817708463"></span>This is where we originally bought into membership camping a few years ago. We've used our CRA membership resorts, along with membership resorts in the <a href="http://www.thousandtrails.com/" target="_blank">Thousand Trails</a> system, in our travels with us paying a yearly fee and then camping in those resorts for free. I like free. The Lake Havasu resort had a pool and a hot tub that we used just about everyday. We spent several days playing Pickleball in the city of Lake Havasu after finding out where it was played. The folks there really enjoy their Pickleball, and you may enjoy <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PT1F2Dnn1I" target="_blank">this link</a> to a youtube.com video telling about the beginning of Pickleball if you don't know it. <br />
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Half way through our time in Lake Havasu, Katie's sister, Karen, and her husband, Bill, came from Lakewood, Ca., to join us for a couple of days. It was good seeing them, as it is always. In the picture below, Katie's on the left, Bill is in the center, and Karen is on the right. Just so you know, Bill is able to stand up straight, he doesn't always lean to his left, ok?<br />
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We went down to London Bridge to check out the sights and sounds of the village there. Part of the sounds was this cornet player under the bridge where there was excellent acoustics. The trumpeter played older songs, and did it quite well.<br />
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Another sound to hear was the owner of a hat shop who bringing in just about anyone who could hear his voice to sell them ...what else, hats! Because I was looking for a hat that I could shade my eyes with and kinda mold it to whatever else needed to be covered for whatever reason, I got one. Here's a picture of Katie and I with me wearing my new hat. Ain't I dashing? Ok, use your imagination, ok? Oh yeah, that's the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/London_Bridge" target="_blank">London Bridge</a> behind us, that was bought and brought over here by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_P._McCulloch" target="_blank">Robert McCulloch</a> as in McCulloch chain saws, in 1971, you can read about it <a href="http://www.havasumagazine.com/history_of_lake_havasu_city.htm" target="_blank">here</a>. <br />
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We went back to the moho and spent a couple of hours visiting with Bill and Karen having a good time. It was sad to see them go home the next day, but we were very grateful that we were able to see them as we don't see them as often as we used to.<br />
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On February 15th, we went to Las Vegas Thousand Trails for two weeks. Now, Lake Havasu CRA and LV Thousand Trails were similar in that they both were gravel with a little grass in designated spaces. But LV 1K trails is smaller so the space for each rv is smaller. With no disrespect, I'd say that it's like a gravel parking lot with rv hookups, which isn't unique among a lot of rv resorts. Lake Havasu was larger, and the rv spots had a little more segregation in that they weren't all on the same level, with a little more room. Las Vegas 1K Trails also has more noise as the planes from McCarran Airport would take off each night passing over that area of town, and the noise from emergency vehicles going up and down Boulder Hwy was enough to keep me from sleeping as soundly if we hadn't been there. We rarely heard sounds like airliners or emergency vehicles in Lake Havasu. <br />
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The first week, we spent time seeing friends and just kinda taking it easy. The second week was a week long learning time for Katie at the yearly <a href="http://vegaspaint.com/" target="_blank">Creative Painting</a> convention held at the <a href="http://www.troplv.com/" target="_blank">Tropicana Hotel</a>. She took a lot of classes in the various aspects of painting or drawing, as well as being excited about what she really loves to do. It was a hard week for her as a couple of the days she had classes were from 8 AM until 9 or 10 PM, kinda for me also as I missed her. But I was able to spend time singing with the choir of <a href="http://gracepclv.org/" target="_blank">Grace Presbyterian Church</a> for their rehearsal, as well as taking part in worship on Sunday morning. It felt so good to sing again, I'm very thankful for that talent. Overall, we had a good time in Las Vegas, and it was good to see and do all the things we did there. The moho is even more full of her paintings as she painted another painting in each class she took. I do wish that we could've seen friends that we'd been looking forward to seeing, but weren't able to as things just didn't work out. But that gives us a good reason to come back.<br />
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Thinking about all the wet paintings that Katie's brought home, it got me to thinking how artists carry and protect their wet paintings. So I came up with an idea for a carrier for wet canvases that I think that other artists could use. It didn't quite come out as well as I'd hoped, but it's merely a rough draft right now. Hopefully, down the road, all the rough edges will be smoothed out, and it'll look a whole bunch better than it does right now. Stay tuned for the exciting showing!<br />
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We left for <a href="http://www.sunriseresorts.com/resort-locations/ridgeview-rv-resort/" target="_blank">Ridgeview RV Resort</a> after Katie's last class on Sunday, the 1st of March. It was supposed to be after 5 PM, but it worked out that it was closer to 7 PM, which meant traveling in the dark. I don't mind driving in the dark, but if we're moving from one resort to the next resort, I prefer to do it when it's light out rather than dark. Something about being able to see as much as possible while moving our home, ya know? Having called the resort earlier in the day, I knew what site was going to be ours by the time we got there, but it was late and dark, and the rain wasn't making it fun to set up. So we found our spot, pulled in, hooked up electricity, extended the slides, moved stuff off the bed so we could sleep, and went to bed. Leveling, hooking up water and sewer, and connecting the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtpTIYR9mxo" target="_blank">Dish Tailgater</a> were put off until the next day.<br />
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When I did get up the next day, there was a drizzle coming down softly enough that we couldn't hear it hit the roof inside the moho, but when I stepped outside to walk the doggies I knew very well what was going on. It's rained off and on all day for the most part. Even had a good thunder storm. Around 4 PM, it cleared off some and the ground semi dried out. Here is what it looks like here. The mountains in the background in the top photo are in Nevada.<br />
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We're gonna be here for another day and a half, and then head to Phoenix for another three days, before we go to the <a href="http://www.escapees.com/escapade/" target="_blank">Escapee Escapade</a> in Tucson. Lookin' forward to that.</div>
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Be blessed and good.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-91858890783360078162015-01-28T16:23:00.000-07:002015-01-28T16:44:42.308-07:00Two Catalinas<div style="text-align: justify;">
We took our three day cruise to Catalina, California (the first Catalina) and Ensenada, Baja California, Mexico on January 18th thru the 22nd. While the cruise was, indeed, a cruise, and it was better by far than any cruise I took while in the Navy, I can't say that it met our expectations as far as what we thought it would be like. Katie wanted to know if she'd be able to take a cruise at all because she's prone to motion sickness, and she found out that with the help of <a href="http://www.bonine.com/" target="_blank">Bonine</a> and ginger tablets, she was able to ..."stomach" the rocking motions. So with that bridge crossed, we'll set about figuring out if we're gonna take a cruise get to Alaska in the future. Way in the future.</div>
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The ship we went on was Carnival's Imagination, an 855' long ship with a crew of 920, capable of carrying up to 2,634 passengers, with 14 decks. A big ship! Service aboard the ship was very good, with every crew member we met having a smile for us and wanting to do
what they could to make our cruise as comfortable as possible. And for the
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We just didn't feel like it was the right scene for us though, kinda like we didn't quite fit in. And our dinner food wasn't to our liking either, with the exception of our last night on board. It looked nice though, so the appearance was good. And the serving staff was great, and would've done anything to help us out, even bring us other food. But we just couldn't see eating more that we weren't sure we'd like either.</div>
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We took excursions at each of the ports we visited (Catalina Island & Ensenada, Mexico) with the tour of Catalina being more exciting than Ensenada, two days later. It was in a <a href="http://www.cruiseportinsider.com/avex14.html" target="_blank">50's Flxible bus</a> so it was a little nostalgic, and the tour driver told us about the history of the company that made it. As most of the island is mountainous, very shortly after we boarded the bus, it was taking us climbing up the steep hills on a narrow road that was built for stage coaches back when the <a href="http://socialarchive.iath.virginia.edu/xtf/view?docId=banning-family-cr.xml" target="_blank">Banning</a> family owned the island. The bus driver told us about them and how they fit into the history of the island and Los Angeles, along with the next owner of the island, the gum magnate <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Wrigley,_Jr." target="_blank">William Wrigley, Jr.</a>, and now the current one, the <a href="http://www.catalinaconservancy.org/" target="_blank">Catalina Conservancy</a>. I didn't think that the tour would actually take more than an hour, but it filled up more than three hours easily as we meandered on the back roads of the island, taking us to the west side of the island, through the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/10/dining/on-santa-catalina-island-a-winemaking-couples-costly-pursuit.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0" target="_blank">new winery that's being built by Jeff Rusack</a> (he married Allison Wrigley, grand daughter of William Wrigley, Jr.), and finally to the <a href="http://www.catalinaconservancy.org/index.php?s=visit&p=airport_in_the_sky" target="_blank">Airport in the Sky. </a> The tour ended with the bus going back down the road that we went up, which is lined with Eucalyptus trees on the cliff side. The road winds around the hills with lots of sharp curves so the bus couldn't go very fast at all. But you can see what that narrow, stage coach road looks like here,</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hXdLcLHFfB0/VMcRGwRNSuI/AAAAAAAABeU/fg-qsbfM2n8/s1600/Catalina%2BIsland%2B091.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hXdLcLHFfB0/VMcRGwRNSuI/AAAAAAAABeU/fg-qsbfM2n8/s1600/Catalina%2BIsland%2B091.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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and also <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZjjocJOyjVQ" target="_blank">in this video</a> that was taken by someone going down the hill to Avalon on a bicycle. We didn't go nearly as fast as this cyclist did.</div>
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On the day we went to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ensenada,_Baja_California" target="_blank">Ensenada</a>, we got off the ship twice. The first time was just to go walk around the city to see what we could see. </div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5oP3vjD5b38/VMcXzjazmXI/AAAAAAAABes/31falv-BVBQ/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B032.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5oP3vjD5b38/VMcXzjazmXI/AAAAAAAABes/31falv-BVBQ/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B032.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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There was a Catholic Church that we went to see because it was something we could see from the ship, that I didn't get a good picture of before I left the ship and this picture is of it when we're a couple of blocks away. </div>
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By looking on the internet, I found out that it is the Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church. Big on the outside, and pretty big on the inside as well.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V7SAgzmA1Eg/VMgZ_RQ_fgI/AAAAAAAABfI/H5RJMDqh27A/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B023.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-V7SAgzmA1Eg/VMgZ_RQ_fgI/AAAAAAAABfI/H5RJMDqh27A/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B023.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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After that, we just wandered around a little looking for the touristy shopping district after that, and on the way, we were in the mood for soft serve ice cream. And being as we found the local, friendly, soft serve ice creamery, we stopped in to get some. Yep, McDonalds. Not as good as DQ, but it works still the same.</div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vSZ4Hsuyg28/VMgaraluyfI/AAAAAAAABfQ/XU0h9BBf2CA/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B026.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vSZ4Hsuyg28/VMgaraluyfI/AAAAAAAABfQ/XU0h9BBf2CA/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B026.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Ironically enough, they didn't want to take our $20 bill although they had the exchange rate posted on the wall, and the person in front of us used US dollars to pay for his fare. Oh, well! Can't say that I really needed the extra calories right then anyway.</div>
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We went back to the ship and enjoyed one of the hot tubs while the majority of the other passengers were off the ship, then headed out for the afternoon excursion, which was going to the blow hole, called La Bufadora by the locals. The tour guide on the bus was very knowledgeable of the area and told us lots of facts, such as: fuel for cars and trucks is controlled by the government so shopping for the best price doesn't really mean anything; the area of Ensenada is three times the size of Mexico City, yet has a population of less than 1/2 a million while Mexico City's population is over 8 million; much of the vegetables that are eaten by the US are grown in Ensenada. There were other facts that she told to everyone, but I just don't remember them all! (Darn the bad luck!)</div>
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The blowhole, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Bufadora" target="_blank">La Bufadora</a>, is a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blowhole_%28geology%29" target="_blank">marine geyser</a>, one of four such geysers in the world. When we first got to the viewing platform, there wasn't much going on. I mean we could hear it blowing, but there wasn't any water being shot up in the air. Kinda like we could hear something BIG breathing. Then it started getting more active, with more and more mist shooting up. The tour guide said that once every seven "breaths" water would shoot up. I didn't count, but I think that she was correct as water did shoot up about that often for the amount of time we were there. If ya follow <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=la+bufadora&safe=off&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=5SHIVLy_FoWcNpi6g3g&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAw&biw=1366&bih=670" target="_blank">this link for La Bufadora</a>, you can see bunches of pictures, which are probably better than what I took, which looks like below, or you can watch a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QWTnm-caprs" target="_blank">youtube video here</a> to see what it's like from the water.</div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f0S0d10poa0/VMgiwrWNHGI/AAAAAAAABfg/JbnwPU0dJWo/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-f0S0d10poa0/VMgiwrWNHGI/AAAAAAAABfg/JbnwPU0dJWo/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B059.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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I didn't enjoy the walk from the bus to the viewing platform and back as we were constantly badgered and harangued by the vendors along the way to buy their stuff. Not that the stuff wasn't good, or that they wouldn't have made a good deal for us. I just prefer to be left alone unless I'm needing help picking out what I want when I go shopping. And I wasn't shopping then. But it was like a swap meet - flea market kinda place, but with more aggressive vendors. Then again, maybe I'm just getting old and don't wanna be bothered like that, ya think?</div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Aah5ZyHGKXI/VMglAacumqI/AAAAAAAABf0/UViC0pscvPE/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B070.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Aah5ZyHGKXI/VMglAacumqI/AAAAAAAABf0/UViC0pscvPE/s1600/Ensenada%2C%2BMexico%2B070.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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There was a big cat in one of the eateries along the way, and I snapped a picture before the owner told me not to. But I'm glad that he had a leash on still the same. Ya can't see it as it hidden behind the cat.</div>
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I didn't think to ask what it was, anyone know? I'm thinking a Jaguar. Seemed friendly enough, didn't pounce on me when I was about four feet in front of him getting ready to take my second picture. </div>
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Shortly after arriving back at the ship just before 4 PM, it pulled out, bound for Long Beach, Ca. Now one of the TV channels that the ship provided was different aspects of the ship, like a live view from the bridge of where we were going, what was happening on the Lido deck, a map of where we were, and other assorted pieces of information, with one of them being the speed of the ship. Prior to that night, I watched it because there just wasn't much on that I wanted to watch. And the speed that the ship would usually go at was about 6.2 knots, which equals about 7.13 mph. You know, just a nice lazy pace as there was plenty of time to get to where the ship was going to next. Well, as we had more than a few miles or so to go that night (Google Maps says 193 miles), I guess the boys and girls on the bridge found the gas pedal and really stepped on it. We were doing as high as 13 knots (almost 15 mph!!!!) at times during the night so we'd be able to get to Long Beach at 6:20 the next morning, which was Thursday. Not exactly break neck speed, but it was moving much faster than it had previously. </div>
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We were able to depart the ship unannounced shortly after they put the gangway up to the third deck, sometime around 8:30 or so. Katie's sister, Karen, picked us up a few minutes later. There were many things to do that day, so we sped through getting the dogs from their kennel, having breakfast with Karen and her husband, Bill, driving to the moho and getting food to eat in the moho, and driving to the second Catalina, <a href="http://www.catalinasparvresort.com/" target="_blank">Catalina Spa & RV Resort</a> in Desert Hot Springs, Ca. After very little time, we found a spot near the edge of the resort so we could leave the resort easily to walk the dogs without leashes, and then just collapsed as we were both quite tired. Katie from all the things that we'd been doing, and me from all the excitement of the ship going twice as fast as it had previously. </div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DKA6J-aAipc/VMk-nrIlVrI/AAAAAAAABgE/tyDLPIjLtK8/s1600/IMG_1528.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-DKA6J-aAipc/VMk-nrIlVrI/AAAAAAAABgE/tyDLPIjLtK8/s1600/IMG_1528.JPG" height="426" width="640" /></a></div>
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Didn't even look for the hot tub until the next day, so ya know how tired we really were. Now that we've been here six days, we're finding the resort to be very nice. The pools are wonderful, the hot tub is very hot, and the folks here seem to be nice as well. I might add that the pools and hot tubs have water supplied by a their mineral hot springs well at 130 degrees, and it eventually gets to the hot tubs where it is changed several times a day, and to the pool where the water is changed several times a week. The water doesn't stink like water from other hot springs might, which adds to the enjoyment of being in it. So far, there've been LOTS of adults in the adult pool about 100' away from us every night since we've been here. I think that we'll be very happy staying here until Sunday. If you click on the link above, you'll be able to see pictures of it, and if ya click the right buttons, even see a slide show of what it's like. I recommend this resort if you're wanting a good place to stay in this neck of the woods... er, desert I mean.</div>
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We'd seen <a href="http://www.usapa.org/what-is-pickleball/" target="_blank">Pickleball</a> played when we were in <a href="http://www.rvonthego.com/california/wilderness-lakes-rv-resort/" target="_blank">Wilderness Lakes in Menifee, Ca.,</a> some time ago, and I told Katie that I'd taken a Pickleball class when I was living in Portland, Oregon. She was intrigued enough at what we saw that she bought a set of paddles and balls for it a couple of Christmas' ago, and we hadn't thought much about getting them used last year because we were so busy with work, and so far this year because we just hadn't gotten around to it. However, a couple of nights ago, we met a woman in the pool who plays it daily at the courts here, and invited us to play. I went last night and had a blast, and Katie went with me to the morning session and had fun as well. I'm thinking we'll be doing it again since it's as much fun as it is. Our biggest problem so far is that we keep thinking that the paddle and ball will have the same characteristics that racquetball stuff has: the paddle is shorter, and the ball isn't nearly as lively. But I'm thinking that we'll get used to it if we play it often enough.</div>
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Ok, that's about it for now. We'll be staying here until Sunday when we travel to Lake Havasu in Arizona. Be blessed.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-12154010627718484512015-01-13T14:45:00.003-07:002015-01-28T16:47:22.938-07:00Bolsa Chica State Beach, here we come!<div style="text-align: justify;">
OK! How y'all been? Hoping well. We're getting back into the swing of things in the moho again. We <i>had</i> been feeling that it was odd not going to work everyday since we've been doing it since the end of April of last year. So we were kinda lost at times in the last couple of weeks in that we just didn't quite know what to do with ourselves. It's starting to pass though. Whew! I got some nifty wood working stuff for Christmas, and have started to use some of it, and doing some other things, hopefully this blog as well. Gotta get some more pix still. Darn the bad luck!</div>
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Wilderness Lakes was nice, not just for the hot tub and the water fowl that like to talk politics at weird hours, but there were a lot of good folks there, and we'd see them everyday when we'd walk around the park, which was about 1.2 miles. We've decided to take part in a 5k or two, maybe more, later this year, and it was great way to start training. For those of you who've done a 5k already, if you've got some hints or something along those lines on how to train an old man who hasn't run any distance for 30 years, please send them. Thanks.</div>
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The campers and staff at Wilderness Lakes seemed quite nice for the most part. Got to talk to our neighbors a little, and found out that one of them was gonna be a camp host at <a href="http://www.oregonstateparks.org/index.cfm?do=parkPage.dsp_parkPage&parkId=58" target="_blank">Harris Beach State Park</a> in Oregon during the time that we're gonna be there. So we'll connect up with them as well while we're there. The other neighbor we didn't get to talk with much, but they had very friendly dogs and came to greet me when I was outside one time. <br />
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As I said last week, we were backed up next to the a canal where there were ducks, geese, and other water fowl that I wasn't able to identify (not that I know those birds well anyway!). One of those unidentified birds acted like he owned our campsite and the new neighbors. In the picture below, it's the bird on the power pedestal, and from what I can tell it's a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_heron" target="_blank">night heron</a>. This bird seemed to like to perch on the power pedestal, the neighbors picnic table, our picnic table, the neighbors tent, etc..., it was always in the area. Sorry the picture is so bad, didn't quite have the nack for getting the good picture at that time. Darn the bad luck!</div>
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After we dropped Jeff off at Teen Challenge Benedict Castle in Riverside the previous Saturday, we picked him up a week later to spend the day with him. It was good to talk to him and find out about his first week of work, which he feels pretty good about. We went to the <a href="http://creationsd.org/" target="_blank">Creation Museum</a> in Santee, Ca., spending more than a couple hours there, then went to see my nephew, David, in San Diego spending several hours with him and having a great meal before traveling back to Riverside to drop Jeff off again.</div>
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Although the hot tub at Wilderness Lakes was hard to leave, we did so Sunday morning first to go to worship with Jeff at Benedict Castle, and then to travel the 75 miles to <a href="http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=642" target="_blank">Bolsa Chica State Beach</a> on the coast of California, getting here around 4 PM. The drive wasn't as hairy as we've taken part in on other freeways of southern California, although there was more than enough traffic for us, as we prefer the back country roads with little traffic. Upon getting here, we were able to pull into our spot and get set up with a minimal amount of trouble which was in the form of a puddle in the back of the space we pulled into. This puddle precluded me from hooking up the water hose as I just didn't feel like stepping into the puddle and getting my feet wet. Yes, you can color me a wimp as I'm at the beach now and should be ok with getting my feet wet, right? Nope! The puddle was from a storm that had gone through earlier Saturday, but was gone later Sunday night. Not to worry, I connected the water hose Monday morning, although we had plenty of fresh water in our tank still the same. </div>
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For those of you who haven't been to Bolsa Chica, it's basically an asphalt parking lot for RVs as you can see in the picture below. The hookups are for water and electric only, but the dump station is in another parking lot on the way out.<br />
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The view of the ocean out our front window looks like below. Although we're about 100 yards away from the water, it's still a great place to be near to it, and Katie wanted to come here for that very reason. <br />
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If you look closely at the above picture, you should notice a wanna-be barricade pylon in the fence opening allowing you to get to a walkway, or to get to the beach. When we got up Monday morning, we found road de-constructing machinery all over the place, and they took out the pavement of the walkway which the pylon is keeping folks from getting to. Currently, it looks like the below picture. I'm thinking they'll be putting asphalt down tomorrow and the walkway will be opened for public usage on Thursday (two days from today). Not all of the 3.9 mile walkway is torn up right now, just the part in front of the campground and a couple of other parking lots south of where we're at right now.<br />
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Katie is spending time with her sister, Karen, today doing some shopping for our upcoming cruise starting on Sunday. Having cruised in the Navy, I'm looking forward to all the things that my ship, the USS Wabash, didn't have. I'm thinking it won't be hard to find many improvements in shipboard life from what I had in the Navy 30 years ago when it was a luxury to have the middle bunk of three bunks! <br />
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Not a whole lot else is happening right now, with the exception of folks waling by, or driving their rigs into the campground (parking lot, really, ok?). Looks like our neighbor to the south is coming in and they're getting ready to park next to us. I'm gonna watch.<br />
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Have a blessed day.</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-76006289010699375692015-01-06T20:56:00.001-07:002015-01-28T22:23:18.248-07:00<div style="text-align: justify;">
WOW! In checking the last entry in my blog, I can see that it's been about a year since my last entry! Betcher wonderin' why it's been so long, huh? Lemme' see here... Would ya believe that I've been busy? How about would ya believe that I didn't have good internet access? How about I just didn't feel like it because there were other things that I wanted to do more? How about all of the above? </div>
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The last post had us getting Katie's Dad, Ken, into a different care facility for him. It was a good place with good folks in it, and Ken seemed fairly happy in it as well. However, a couple of weeks after he got there, he fell out of bed and broke his hip. He had the hip repaired, but his health had started to decline by then, and he passed away on April 16th. Katie and I stayed at his place until the end of April when we had to leave for a job at <a href="http://redstonecabins.com/" target="_blank">Red Stone Cabins</a> in <a href="http://stateparks.utah.gov/park/kodachrome-basin-state-park" target="_blank">Kodachrome Basin State Park</a>, near <a href="http://www.nps.gov/brca/index.htm" target="_blank">Bryce National Park</a>, in Utah. We got most of his stuff sold or taken care of with help from Katie's brother, Ken, her sister, Karen, and her brother in law, Bill, so when we left there was very little remaining to be taken care of. </div>
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The job that we went to was at <a href="http://www.redstonecabins.com/" target="_blank">Red Stone Cabins</a> where we cleaned the six guest cabins, and worked in the camp store for both the guests there and the campers who were camping at <a href="http://stateparks.utah.gov/park/kodachrome-basin-state-park" target="_blank">Kodachrome Basin State Park</a> campground. It was a paying job that lasted for five months, which was a good point. One of the bad points is that it was a 200 mile round trip to go to a grocery store like Smith's or Walmart. There were closer markets, but I think we were spoiled for certain items and really wanted those things at times. </div>
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While we were there, the town of <a href="http://www.townoftropicut.gov/" target="_blank">Tropic, Utah</a>, which was about 14 miles away from where we were staying, had its' first farmer's market. Or it attempted to do so at least, as there were several other events going on in other places that took a lot of the folks away from Tropic. What's more, it was held early enough that there was no produce that any farmers brought to the market. As Katie's been painting for some time now, she finally decided to come out of the closet and try to sell her paintings. Within the first ten minutes of the market being open, she'd sold two of her paintings, and had a commission for another painting! As there were very few folks attending the market, it was a blessing that she sold what she did, but that was all she sold also. Still the same, she's a professional artist now with business cards and a website (<a href="http://www.katiedickson-art.com/">www.katiedickson-art.com</a>), and hopefully some tax deductions as well. </div>
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We ended our employment at Red Stone Cabins in the end of September thinking that we'd be starting work at <a href="http://amazon.com/">Amazon.com</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernley,_Nevada" target="_blank">Fernley, Nv.</a>, at the first of October for the Christmas season. That didn't quite happen as business wasn't quite what they'd planned it to be, and they didn't need us until the 2nd half of October. With that much time available, Katie found out about an art festival in Escalante, Ut., which is about 43 miles NE on scenic hwy 12, and decided to take part in it by competing in the plein air competition. While, she didn't win anything, her painting sold which was another feather in her cap. While we were in Escalante, we stayed at the <a href="http://www.shootingstar-rvresort.com/" target="_blank">Shooting Star RV Park</a>, which was an outstanding place to stay. There are several (vintage?) Airstream travel trailers which the owners rent out, in addition to several RV spaces available to folks like us. The biggest thing they have is a drive-in movie screen which is used three nights a week showing movies. AND there are vintage cars that you can sit in to watch the movies for that extra nostalgia feeling. Excellent place to stay if ya happen to be going to Escalante, or to the area.</div>
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We were due to be in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fernley,_Nevada" target="_blank">Fernley, Nv.</a>, on the 19th of October, so between the time we left Escalante and needed to be in Fernley, we spent time with Amanda and her family. We got to Fernley on the 19th to get ourselves all set up for which Amazon had no trouble paying for. We had a week of training, and then started working for real. While it was much harder work than just about anything we'd ever done previously, working for Amazon.com has many perks, among them paying for campground rent and getting good pay, and being treated fairly good also. We walked several miles each day in a 500,000 square foot warehouse stowing items in bins that other folks would come along and take out so they could be sent to the Amazon.com shoppers. Had to do stretching exercises every morning and after lunch, and also had to do mandatory overtime several weeks making for a work week of 50 hours. Met some good people, most of whom were about our age or older, but there were a few that were much younger as well, all of them living in their RVs for the season. Although it snowed in Fernley last year, it didn't snow this year while we were there, although it did get down to 9 degrees one night, and wasn't always a whole lot warmer. </div>
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On the 18th of December, we left Fernley to travel almost 500 miles south to <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Redlands,_California" target="_blank">Redlands, Ca.</a>, so we could see Jeff graduate from Teen Challenge Ministry Institute, and move him to his new residence at Benedict Castle, in Riverside, Ca., on the 21st. On the 22nd, we left southern California again traveling 700 miles north to spend the next two weeks with our daughter and her family north of Salt Lake City celebrating Christmas, New Year, and the 2nd birthday of our granddaughter, Aubrey. On the 4th of January, we left Salt Lake City to take Jeff back to his new job, which he started on the 5th. There was WAY to much traveling being done in the last month. Glad to be in one spot again.</div>
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So we picked up the moho out of storage in Cherry Valley, and drove it about 30 miles to Menifee, Ca., ending up at Wilderness Lakes Campground, which we've been to several other times. Wilderness Lakes has water ...for lack of a better term, ditches that run through a little of it, and it's stocked with fish, and is used by ducks, geese, and other birds (The website calls them canals... But they're really ...ditches, ok?) We've never camped by the water, but thought about it this time because there was a couple of spots open by the water when we were picking out our spot. </div>
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Let me back track a little here to say a little bit about the geese that are here, which are <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_goose" target="_blank">Canada geese</a>. When we hit the road in 2011, we worked at <a href="https://www.adventurelandpark.com/" target="_blank">Adventureland amusement park</a> in Altoona, Ia, which had several water features in the park, which attracted the geese as well as other water foul. I hadn't thought much about them, but found out that they're more than a little vocal at times. What's more, when they would be on the track of the park's train which circles one of the lakes, them geese would just sit on the track like they owned it, and then get up and out of the way only to make sounds which, to me, sounded much like someone muttering nasty little mutterings at the train driver ...which was me. Strangely enough, even though three years have passed since we were exposed to them, those birds haven't changed at all, even though we're some 1700 miles away from Altoona, Ia, the same thing is still happening with those geese! </div>
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We became re<span style="font-family: inherit;">acquainted</span> with how vocal those geese are on our first night at about 10 PM when they started holding several discussions on ...politics I'm thinking right next to our rig. When one discussion would end, ducks would immediately quack as if they were saying "ha ha ha!", and this happened several times over the course of an hour or so. I don't think that they solved any problems with their discussions though as when I got up the next morning, our political situation was still the same. Since then, they haven't had those discussions near our rig, and I'm hoping that they've been holding them elsewhere, and they'll continue to hold them there.</div>
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Ok, so I've brought y'all up to date. Don't know when I'll be blogging again, but as we're supposed to be doing more traveling this year, I'm hoping to keep myself busy with various projects, blogging included. Have a blessed day.</div>
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Charley</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-48036985876207439952014-01-10T10:41:00.000-07:002014-01-10T10:44:59.466-07:00Moving day and beyond.<div style="text-align: justify;">
One of the main reasons that we came to Phelan is the health condition of Katie's Dad, Ken Brungardt. As you know from my last posting, he was living at <a href="http://www.koelschseniorcommunities.com/sterling-inn/" target="_blank">Sterling Inn</a> in Victorville, but it wasn't quite to his liking as it wasn't quite as near to his yorkie, Boomer, as he wanted to be. So last Saturday, we set out to find a place that was closer to Boomer. It wasn't all that hard of a thing to do as the internet made the job so much easier. In looking up assisted care facilities, we saw a list of several, of which only one stood out that would be where we needed it to be, <a href="http://www.sierravistaseniorliving.com/" target="_blank">Sierra Vista Retirement</a>. Katie called and scheduled an appointment for a tour later that day, and we were off to see it. </div>
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After meeting with the nice lady who gave us the tour, Kimberly, we found that Sierra Vista would indeed be the place where, not only would Ken be nearer to Boomer, but we felt that he'd feel more at home as well. Tentative arrangements were made for a move in for Ken on Tuesday. We went to tell him about what we'd found, and arrived at dinner time. At that point, Ken wasn't feeling too good, so we told him the minimum and left, which was kinda a letdown as we were rather excited about what we'd found. </div>
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Sunday, we went to worship at <a href="http://agharvestphelan.org/" target="_blank">Harvest Christian Center</a>, then had lunch at the local <a href="http://www.wienerschnitzel.com/" target="_blank">der Wienerschnitzel</a> in Phelan, then headed home for some relaxation time. </div>
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Monday saw us heading down to Riverside early enough at 8 AM for our day of errands with Jeff. Our first stop was at <a href="https://plus.google.com/109145486327698674988/about?gl=us&hl=en" target="_blank">Garcia Farms</a> fruit stand for oranges. We found this fruit stand by accident in early spring of 2013 after spending Sunday worship time with Jeff at <a href="http://www.benedictcastle.com/" target="_blank">Benedict Castle</a> Teen Challenge. When we left Clearfield in March of 2013, we'd been eating some fairly good <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Cuties" target="_blank">Cuties</a> that were juicy and sweet, but small as they're only mandarin oranges. We couldn't believe our luck getting oranges that were sweeter and bigger to boot at Garcia's then, and it was so good to have them again. Yummy in the tummy! And on top of that, they're good for us! If anyone is in the area of Riverside, I urge you to check out the oranges there at Garcia Farms fruit stand, you'll find the address and a map on the link above.</div>
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We then headed to see Jeff who needed an updated identification from DMV of California. While he was doing that, we headed over to the local salad joint, <a href="http://www.souplantation.com/" target="_blank">Souplantation</a> for a much needed salad bar experience like we haven't had since we went to Utah. When we were done, we picked Jeff back up, fed him lunch, did another errand for him, and recruited Karen & Bill, Katie's sister and bro-in-law, to show us around the local disc golf course and play as well at <a href="http://www.longbeach.gov/park/parks_and_open_spaces/parks/el_dorado_park_west.asp" target="_blank">El Dorado Regional Park</a>, which is a great place to throw them discs around. Had an excellent round getting 10 pars, a high for me at this course. The park staff must've move the baskets closer to the tee's as I don't think that my throws are getting stronger. Then again, maybe I'm wrong, ya think? We spent as much time as we could into the evening with Karen & Bill, but around 8 PM, had to leave so we could be home for a good night's rest before moving Ken on Tuesday.</div>
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Tuesday morning arrived with more than a little trepidation for us. When we left Ken Saturday evening, we weren't quite sure how he'd take to the idea of moving, although that is what he'd said he wanted previously. After praying about the task ahead of us, we went to see him. Ken was a little hesitant at first about making this move, although we told him again that we'd be closer to his dog. After getting reassurance from a friend that it'd be better, he acquiesced by saying he'd try it out. With thankful hearts, and a large sigh of relief, the move took place quite easily from there on out. While his new apartment is smaller, it provides everything that is needed as you can see in the photo below.</div>
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The move in continued on Wednesday with Katie and myself bringing Ken back to his house to pick up a few additional items that he wanted to make his apartment more to his liking, along with clothes that he wanted. Thursday found Karen coming up to spend some time with him and helping to finish the moving in process. She and Katie were so excited to be able to spend time with Ken that they posed pretty good, doncha think?</div>
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They even got Ken to pose pretty good as well.</div>
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So our plan for the day is do laundry and maybe hit a movie at one of the <a href="http://www.cinemark.com/theatre-detail.aspx?node_id=1474" target="_blank">Cinemark</a> theaters in the Victorville area. It's hard to beat a day of laundry and movies, huh? What a way to start the weekend!</div>
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Have a blessed day!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-73542886287425932582014-01-03T21:32:00.002-07:002014-01-04T10:54:37.648-07:00Life in the last week.So we left Amanda's house in Clearfield, Utah only one week ago but it seems more like it's been at least two weeks. This departure was interesting in that it was done in too much haste to put what we'd taken out of the moho back in it. So in thinking about how much stuff we had moved into Amanda's house, I was drastically wrong, especially when it came to the amount of kitchen stuff that Katie had moved. Although we got up around 7 AM and started taking stuff back to the moho, the scheduled leaving time of somewhere after 9 AM became quite awhile after 9, closer to 10:30 as I recall. Aside from repacking the stuff in the moho in a manner which didn't lead to us knowing where all that was when we tried to find it later on, the moho entrance steps didn't come up quite like they were supposed to when the engine was started, and were damaged when I tried to move forward. Yep, oversight on my part. Luckily the stairs still work although they're a little bent backwards.<br />
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After filling the moho up with gas while Katie and Jeff went to get lunch for us, it was about 11:20, and we were finally able to hit the road. Our stopping point for the night was 1000 Trails in Las Vegas, where we'd get gas as well. The 444 miles between Clearfield and Las Vegas took the better part of eight hours going at moho traveling speed, about 60 mph for us, but since we were gaining an hour going from Mountain Time to Pacific Time, it was good that we had that hour to use. We ate at <a href="http://www.raisingcanes.com/" target="_blank">Cane's Chicken Fingers</a> near <a href="http://www.unlv.edu/" target="_blank">UNLV</a>, Katie's favorite. I was going for the <a href="http://www.macayo.com/" target="_blank">Macayo Vegas</a> on Charleston, but Katie had had her hopes up for weeks now, and Jeff chose to support her rather than me so we went with the chicken fingers. They were good anyway, and the fries were great! I'd forgotten about them!<br />
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The remaining 200 miles or so were done the next day, Saturday, with us leaving around 10 AM and getting to Katie's Dad's place shortly before 2 PM. At that point, I did the normal setup, including leveling the rig, extending the slides and connecting the electrical power and the water. But before I could turn on the water, I had to plug in the hot water heater element which was taken out when the moho was winterized at the beginning of October upon arrival at Amanda's house. That being completed, and everything else being presentable, we got in the car and headed for Katie's sister's house in Lakewood, Ca where we'd be spending the night. By the time we got there, it was dark, and I was tired, so I went to bed shortly after we got there. I was also feeling a little under the weather, with a slight tickle in my throat, so I thought that my rest would alleviate it.<br />
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Sunday morning, we left Karen & Bill's house to take Jeff to Teen Challenge Ministry Institute for worship, and for Jeff's admittance into the institute. The worship service was outstanding, although the music was entirely too loud. Regardless how his old parents felt, Jeff felt the the music was great still the same! After worship, Jeff moved into his assigned space and we left to go to <a href="http://www.eltorito.com/" target="_blank">El Torito</a> at the <a href="http://www.redondopier.com/" target="_blank">Redondo Beach Pier</a> for the last meal we'd have with Jeff for a little while. We had the Sunday Brunch which had a good variety of Mexican entries and a couple of American ones as well. Overall, the meal was quite good. But all good things must come to an end, so we took Jeff back to TCMI, and then headed back up to the moho in <a href="https://maps.google.com/maps?q=8078+Sonora+Rd,+Phelan,+CA&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&channel=fflb&ie=UTF-8&ei=zTPIUs3BK6O42gXjwYDQCw&ved=0CAoQ_AUoAg" target="_blank">Phelan, Ca</a>., getting there late and going to bed shortly after we got there.<br />
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Monday morning, we started finding things in the moho that were thrown into it in haste just days earlier. After visiting with Adrian, Katie's nephew who lives in Katie's Dads house at the property, we left to visit Ken at his convalescent home, <a href="http://www.koelschseniorcommunities.com/sterling-inn/" target="_blank">Sterling Inn</a>, in Victorville, Ca., about 18 miles away. We visited with him for a couple of hours, and headed back to the moho for the evening. Tuesday and Wednesday, I don't remember what we did, but we went places and did things, I'm sure.<br />
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Thursday, Katie's sister and bro-in-law from Lakewood, Karen and Bill came up to spend time with Ken and then spend some constructive game time with us playing <a href="https://www.ilovetenzi.com/" target="_blank">Tenzi</a>, a dice game that we got from my sister, Elaine, as a Hanukkah gift while we were with her for Thanksgiving. While the game is a fun fast paced game, we did mostly individual scoring as we didn't know what else to do. In addition to keep the brain sharp by scanning the die after each throw, it's also physical as the die have to be picked up continuously and thrown again in a small space (unless ya wanna take more of your time doing your scanning!), so we viewed the evening as a real good time for the four of us. <br />
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Friday, we had an errand to run with Ken and took him to lunch. Took a little while to get back to Sterling Inn so it was kinda late when we left when we dropped him off. But we'd been talking to him about the phone he has which seems to be awfully quiet when it rings, so he never knows when someone is calling him. Both Katie and I tried unsuccessfully to make the ringer louder. Then Ken even tried to do the same thing with the same results. So while he was getting his dinner, we took his phone to the AT&T store so a professional to do what we couldn't do. When we got there, the first thing the salesperson did was try to sell us a remote detection and alarm system which could be accessed through the phone. After we interrupted the salesperson and firmly told him that we didn't want to hear about this system, but only needed the ring to be louder, the salesperson proceeded to find a ringtone on the phone that Ken would notice at a volume that may get the attention of more than just Ken. This is exactly what we needed, so we took the phone back to Ken and Katie showed him (and several people around Ken) how well the ringer worked now. The day's chores were done, and we went back to the moho. Katie made fried potatoes with onions, peppers, and italian sausage to which my tummy was very happy. Hers too!<br />
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Ok, it's Saturday morning already. There's, once again, a couple of errands that we've got to do so we're gonna head out shortly. <br />
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Have a blessed day! Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-64743508947333882252013-12-19T15:34:00.002-07:002013-12-27T07:57:42.146-07:00I'm back ...once again!<div style="text-align: justify;">
There've been a few things going on in my life in the last few days, hence the lack of posts. Sorry for the lack of them, but when you're busy working on life things, there isn't a minimal amount of time for things like this. And since life is still going on, this post will be minimal also.<br />
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Here's a list of things that are happening:<br />
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<li>Jeff got the racquetball gear from the far side of the moho, and we played. Had a great time playing with him. Not gonna say who won. Played again the Saturday before Christmas with two guys from church, had another great time. Not gonna say who won then also. I was just so grateful to be able to play again and have a great time.</li>
<li>Christmas came yesterday, so shopping was being done. A lot of it was done before November so it wasn't that big of a deal to do the remaining. And we were able to get it done when there weren't a lot of shoppers at Wal-Mart, or maybe they hired more checkers (ya think?), or we checked out at the auto service counter saving time since the lines are shorter and it's a shorter distance to get to our car. </li>
<li>The lung-nose gunk seems to have come back into the Ford household, so we've been partakers of it again. Hasn't affected us too much, but my voice is now rather croaky, rather than smooth and mellow (it was that way once, wasn't it?).</li>
<li>The health of Katie's Dad (Ken) has been declining to the point that he's now in a care facility. So we'd been thinking about what he needs most of all, as well as feeling led by God, and we're leaving Amanda's house tomorrow to go to Phelan, Ca., to assess his situation there, and make a determination of what we will be doing to aid him. As a result, don't know when the next posting will be.</li>
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There've been other things that have happened as well, but I'm not gonna try to remember them. The above points are the main things. So having said that, I hope Christmas was good for everyone.<br />
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Have a blessed day! </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-45306977637197008082013-12-16T16:50:00.000-07:002013-12-16T16:53:09.476-07:00House Christmas lighting!<div style="text-align: justify;">
The weather for the last few days has been just plain cold. However, yesterday it started to warm up causing <b>bunches</b> of snow and ice (snice) to melt. Streets that had been kinda covered with snice started to clear up, and as Monday afternoon the streets are pretty much cleared up with some snow still next to the curb. But by the time the next system is due to hit us on Thursday (that's what the weather folks are saying right now at least!), the roads should be pretty free of any snice, and since there'll be bunches of sunshine between now and then, we may even have DRY streets! Life is good, huh? Well, at least until Thursday when the precipitation is supposed to get here again. </div>
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So... as I said, Saturday's weather wasn't quite as warm as it is today. BUT that was the day that was allocated to hang Christmas lights on the outside of the house. Gotta commend James and Jeff as they did most of the work by getting up on the roof, and literally lying in the snow on the roof to put the lights on the house. Yes, it was dryer on the ground where I was. But my hands got cold because I don't have insulated gloves, that makes a difference, doesn't it? Probably nowhere near as cold as James and Jeff got as Jeff got wet clear through all his clothes, and I don't think James was far from it also. But the lights got up, and look like this:</div>
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(The handsome young man in front of the house is Avery looking down the street.) That's 2 lines of red C7 lights held on to the gutter or vinyl siding on the side of the roof with a clip that has a little hooky thing that is used to hold four lines of icicle lights. A neighbor promptly came over and congratulated James for having such an interesting bunch of lights. Now the important thing to remember about most folks here is that they put their Christmas lights up shortly after Halloween as it's still warm then. They aren't turned on until after Thanksgiving though, and they don't have to face hanging the lights in the snow and cold. Like some people do... Ok, that's what happened Saturday.</div>
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Since Jeff been here, he has gone to a "Life Group" which is a small group at church, and he met someone there for me to play racquetball with, although I'm not quite sure when as he's a pilot at Hill AFB, and works quite a bit. So hopefully we'll be able to match our schedules somewhere in the coming weeks and/or months to be able to get some serious exercise done. ...Not that I need it, or anything like that, right! Having said that, it's gonna be good to get my racquet and other gear out of the moho. Now the trick to that is that I've got them in one of the basement storage compartments on the street side, which at this time is like 6" away from a fence. ...Just not sure if I can get that compartment door open enough to get my stuff out. Have to take a crack at it later in the heat of the day tomorrow when more of the snice is melted, maybe even leaving the driveway clear. Here's what it looks like now.</div>
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<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0yF_VO5Ca28/Uq93PrcOGyI/AAAAAAAABTE/IocvXMPEdj0/s1600/Space+between+motorhome+&+fence+003.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="426" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-0yF_VO5Ca28/Uq93PrcOGyI/AAAAAAAABTE/IocvXMPEdj0/s640/Space+between+motorhome+&+fence+003.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Ya think I'm gonna be able to squeeze in there? I dunno... What's more, I don't know that Jeff will be able to squeeze in there either, even though there's less of him than there is of me. I may need to move the moho out to the street just to get the racquetball stuff out. I don't wanna do that as it's kinda set up now, and while the process may not be all that much, it's kinda more than what I really wanted to do. Remember, I'm retired, ok?</div>
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Update on the health of the folks in the Ford residence: Everyone is pretty much done with the hacking and growing gunk in various parts of our bodies, which is good. However, Katie started doing the coughing and hacking thing late Saturday night and couldn't stop. Finally I told her to try putting Vicks Vaporub on her feet and then putting socks on. Odd as it may sound, it worked. I counted the seconds (as best I could) and she coughed again for a little bit after 1 1/2 minutes, and then went to sleep. Now then, this procedure isn't always thought to be very smart, <a href="http://www.geekosystem.com/vicks-rubbing-feet/" target="_blank">as seen here</a>, BUT it worked. Or at least seemed to work, enough so that Katie got a good nights rest. So I'm gonna say that it may very well be weird, ...but I'm thinking it's an ok way to get a good nights rest. Anyone out there tried it? If so, what do you think of it? </div>
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So much for the current conditions.</div>
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The Travelogue - July 2012</div>
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Amanda and her family came to camp with us for a few days near the end of July. This wasn't an odd thing for camp hosts as a lot of the families of the hosts came to visit them quite a bit of the time. By the time that they got to see us, we'd tried out the lake a couple of times with our blow up <a href="http://www.hobiecat.com/mirage/mirage-i14t/" target="_blank">Hobie Mirage i14T</a> kayak, and got to have quite a bit of fun with it going across the lake and back again. Amanda and her family had a boat previously and love being on the water. Their boat had a motor though, and they didn't have to worry about getting tired when crossing the lake from paddling or peddling the mirage system. Of course they had to buy the gas for the engine, but that's beside the point, right? </div>
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So, we went down the 100' or so to the lake and put the kayak in the water. Here's what it looked like.</div>
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Here they are out in the depths of the lake (golly, maybe four feet deep or so, not very far from the beach) with James using paddles rather than the mirage system (you can see the foot pedals for it right behind Amanda) while he calls out a cadence for Amanda to sync with him (They do look like they know what they're doing, don't they?). As you can see Riley and Avery are busy looking out for the dreaded Bear Lake monster (Oh no!) </div>
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As you can see, James is pretty excited about being back on the water. Dja think that this might be his impression of "the life"? Well, maybe... But the kayak doesn't have much of a galley, let alone a place to sleep. Probably a good thing he was only there for a short time, huh?</div>
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Here's Katie and I giving Avery boat ride. Maybe you can see that we aren't quite in sync paddling like Amanda and James were. And the look on my face is that of "how did this happen"? After 26 years of marriage, I'm not really sure how it happened, I just know that it does every now and then on a regular and unspecified basis. Regardless of the unsyncness, Avery had a great time. So did Katie and I.</div>
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Grandpa helping Avery to use the mirage drive pedals. I think it's gonna be a few years before he's able to reach the pedals without having some pillow behind him. In this case, it's the world reknowned Grandpa pillow, which is sometimes adjustable depending on the amount of padding the Grandpa has. If you look past Avery and Grandpa, you'll see Riley, and Amanda & James, with James clowning around a little. Luckily for them, the Bear Lake monster doesn't go into water that shallow during the day. </div>
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Here's Amanda driving the kayak having a pretty good time. The hills in the background are on the east side of the lake, less than 10 miles from the Utah - Wyoming border.<br />
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The next day would see James leaving for home, and the rest of us going to the National Oregon/California Trail Center in Montpelier, Id. </div>
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Have a blessed day! </div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-51429093164741099142013-12-13T14:50:00.001-07:002013-12-13T14:50:07.057-07:00Lions & Tigers, and Bear Lake Monsters! Oh My!<div style="text-align: justify;">
Ok, before I get into the guts and glory of the title of this blog, in particular the Bear Lake Monsters (...who cares about lions and tigers anyway?), I gotta cover a couple of things. </div>
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First of all, I'd appreciate it if readers would put their email addresses in the box to the right labeled "FOLLOW BY EMAIL". This would allow me to stop putting email addresses in a box in my settings which has me sending this to only 10 folks. Thanks.</div>
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Secondly, if you're gonna wanna do gift shopping at Amazon.com which has some pretty good deals, I'd appreciate it if you'd click on one of the Amazon links on the right side, and on the bottom of the blog. As it lets Amazon know that you got to them through my blog, they send a small bit my way; not a lot, but a little.<br />
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Thirdly, if you've sent me a comment to a post, I'm sorry but I haven't figured out how to answer the comments yet, so I haven't been able to respond to them. I'm still in the process of learning how to do all this stuff, please be patient. Thanks.<br />
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The Travelogue June of 2012<br />
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Now to the Bear Lake Monster. Raise your hand if you did any research on the Bear Lake Monster, ok? If you raised your hand, you get a gold star. Not sure how I'm gonna get it to ya, or where you're gonna put the gold star if you were to get it, I'm really thinking that point is mute (sorry to get your hopes up if ya were thinking you were gonna get one). So, the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bear_Lake_monster" target="_blank">Bear Lake Monster</a> has various tales about it, obviously every single one of them true, depending on who ya ask. Maybe... One of the tales links the <a href="http://www.nessie.co.uk/" target="_blank">Loch Ness Monster</a> to the monster at Bear Lake, which sounds pretty preposterous, if ya ask me. Rather than try to give you a synopsis of each story, here's a <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=Bear+Lake+Monster&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a" target="_blank">link to Google's search results</a> for the legends of the Bear Lake Monster. Remember, each story is factual... kinda. Because there's really a lake, ok?<br />
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We saw what was a facsimile of the monster, but I didn't take a picture of it. Not sure why I didn't do that! Luckily, <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=Bear+Lake+Monster&safe=off&client=firefox-a&hs=nyE&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=QlqrUuGrO47eoASR44LICw&ved=0CDQQsAQ&biw=1366&bih=703" target="_blank">Google has a few images</a> of it, here are a couple of them.<br />
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Ugly looking facsimile, huh? This facsimile was parked in the overflow parking area of the state park, and had been there for more than a couple of years, and was looking for a new owner, as I recall. Just to let ya know that it was a real facsimile, it had a couple of outboard motors attached to it's butt, I mean stern. Looking at the inside of the facsimile were benches for a few people. Obviously, if this was the real thing, folks wouldn't choose to ride in a monster where his stomach would be! <br />
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Ok. On to more ...real stuff. The weekend after our arrival at BLSP, we were asked as part of our duties to help out in the office with the campers and picnickers. Turns out there was a big event that weekend, the <a href="http://bbsctri.com/mountain-tropic" target="_blank">Mountain Tropic Triathlon</a> took place there at the lake. If you click on the previous link, you'll find out more about it, and see some more pictures of BLSP as well. While Katie was indoctrinated in helping in the office with the various campers and picnickers that were coming in, I got to go down to the parking lot to direct traffic so the runners and bikers could be as unfettered as possible going to and from their courses. Apparently, I did a great jog at directing vehicular traffic and making it easier for the competitors as the director of the event came up to telling me what a great job I was doing. That was a good thing to do, but she didn't do anything for the mosquitoes that were feasting on me while I was keeping my hands in the air waving at folks wanting to get in or out. And it may have been that there just wasn't anyone wanting to get out in front of traffic like that, so I can't really say that I was doing that great of a job. It wasn't that big of a deal to me as I'd done it a few times while I was working for the City of Las Vegas, and sometimes had to be in traffic letting folks know where they could go and where they couldn't go. Anyway, Katie learned all about the office procedures, and I got a little sunburn and bug bitten. <br />
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Another thing that was kinda exciting for us was what we'd done to the moho before we got up to BLSP. When we'd hit the road, we'd removed the dining table as we just didn't like the way it took up room or worked. We didn't have a good replacement for the table and had endured sitting at plastic tables that we set up and took down every time we stopped at a campsite and left the campsite. We'd already replaced the sofa, and set up the TV in an entertainment center across from the sofa for a better TV watching angle, so we were familiar with doing change in the rig and weren't afraid of doing more. The solution for the dining table finally hit us when we were at Amanda's prior to going to BLSP in the form of two 24" base kitchen cabinets from <a href="http://www.ikea.com/us/en/" target="_blank">Ikea</a>, along with two 6' lengths of countertop. By putting the cabinets on the floor aproximately 24" apart, and putting table legs on one end of one of the lengths trimmed to fit with the other end supported by the cabinet sides, we were able to have a dining area and increase the storage space by quite a bit. The galley drawers that Winnebago put in our Chieftain 35U weren't wide enough for a silverware tray, but we now had a drawer big enough for LOTS of silverware space, in addition to another drawer for ...more of Katie's kitchen stuff. The storage space in the cabinets, as well as the space between them, were used for ...more of Katie's kitchen stuff. (No, she didn't suffer a whole lot when she had to downsize her kitchen toy collection.) Here's a couple of pictures showing the finished product.<br />
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The dining area slides in under the countertop when the slide comes in. We think we did a fairly good job of making the dining area much better than it was and increasing the galley storage space quite a bit.<br />
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Have a blessed day!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-88025585432120705852013-12-10T20:29:00.001-07:002013-12-10T20:29:20.315-07:00Still cold!<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="font-size: large;">That's right, it's still cold here in Clearfield, Ut. Not that it isn't supposed to be because it's Utah, right? But I was hopin' that it wouldn't be so cold at this point. Yes, we could get the moho cranked up and head south, but that just isn't in the cards right now. So I guess I've got to suck it up and find ways to stay warm. No, I'm not gonna start shoveling snow again while the snow blower is working, because the snow blower is faster than shoveling, and does a better job as well. Yesterday, I used the snow blower for about 20 minutes or so, and found that I was sweating when I was done. There, I can stay warm doing that. That lasts for about 20 minutes or so, but only when there is new snow, and that isn't in the weather forecast for the next week. So, I'm still stuck with sucking it up. Maybe I'll try sucking it up with long underwear on while I stay inside...</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The Travelogue - The end of June 2012</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Ok, the BIG annual event happening in Garden City, Ut., is <a href="http://www.gardencityut.us/rasberry-days-2011.htm" target="_blank">Raspberry Days</a> which is held on the first Saturday in August every year, along with the Thursday and Friday before. As there are many raspberry fields in that area, it's only natural that they'd celebrate the berry as it enhances the economy, and it's good for ya also being high in fiber, manganese, and vitamin C. There are a few small eateries in Garden City and in the surrounding area that sell raspberry milkshakes, among many other flavors as well. Most of those eateries serve various other fare as well, but what impressed me a bunch are how the milkshakes are so thick, AND they make them "over the top". At first, I didn't know what that meant, and the best I could come up with is that they are over the top with flavor, or something along those lines. But I was wrong, and found out that the milkshakes are made in such a way that they are up to an inch higher than the top of the cup when they're served, kinda like these...</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZXNWhCx6ouQ/Uqe4caYUlUI/AAAAAAAABQk/2wK1AUSSGbU/s1600/milkshakes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="424" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ZXNWhCx6ouQ/Uqe4caYUlUI/AAAAAAAABQk/2wK1AUSSGbU/s640/milkshakes.jpg" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">... except they're thicker than these by a long shot. As a matter of fact, when these thick shakes are made, they look like they've been <i>molded</i> that way. Now because of what I'm saying here about these milkshakes, it may open up a bunch of comments about how I haven't been to very much of the country because somebody might have seen them somewhere else, and know about them already. Ok. So be it, I haven't been to much of the country. But I'm still hoping to see a bunch more. Maybe I'll even see other places that have milkshakes over the top there also. And if they had raspberry milkshakes, the journey there would be that much better. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">...Not quite sure how I managed to get from Raspberry Days to milkshakes that are over the top, but I did. And in the process, I failed to mention the different festivities that we missed while we were there, which would be the parade, beauty pageant, fun run, fireworks and other things which would be mentioned on the website linked above. In spending time with other Utahns, we were able to find that many people enjoy going there and have a great time. So if you're ever in the area around the 1st weekend of August, I suggest that you take part and see the festival. Get a raspberry milkshake also, ok?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Other things that we saw at Bear Lake are lighthouses. I don't think they all work though. Here's one:</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f2h7TkyQ6FY/Uqe69i9vLGI/AAAAAAAABQw/wr0oHsWQVMI/s1600/IMG_0514.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-f2h7TkyQ6FY/Uqe69i9vLGI/AAAAAAAABQw/wr0oHsWQVMI/s640/IMG_0514.JPG" width="480" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">It's located on the SW corner of Bear Lake, near a few buildings called Pickleville, so it's called the Pickleville lighthouse. Next to the Pickleville lighthouse is the <a href="http://www.picklevilleplayhouse.com/bearlake.html" target="_blank">Pickleville Playhouse</a>, which isn't where a bunch of people go to play as much as people go there to see plays and/or eat dinner as dinner is served there for those who want to have dinner also. If you click on the link, you'll be able to find prices and what's playing there. If you're able to find something on the Pickleville lighthouse, please pass it on to me. I'm thinking that it was made to promote the housing development that is near there, but it's also possible that I could be wrong. Kinda slight though, right? </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">There are other lighthouses also with one being inoperable and two others that are working. The one that isn't operable is north of Garden City on the west side of the lake and is visible from the road as you travel north on highway 89, but I don't remember exactly where. But in Garden City, Harbor Village Resort has a working lighthouse, and on the east side of Bear Lake at Bear Lake Aquatics Base, which is run by the Boy Scouts, there is another lighthouse which is operable as well. For more information about these lighthouses, go to <a href="http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/lighthouse/ut.htm" target="_blank">this link</a>. I mentioned lighthouses previously when we were in Celina, Oh., and when we got here, we just thought it was kinda neat that there were more lighthouses on Bear Lake, even though we didn't think that they were really that necessary. But apparently they are. In talking with folks that live in Garden City, there have been storms that came up quite quickly, and I suppose that if a boater was on the lake just prior to the sun going down and a storm came up, there may be some degree of difficulty in getting back to a marina, and those lighthouses might come in handy to guide those boaters in. But since I'm not a boater, I don't know that stuff. Any thoughts on having lighthouses on that lake from anyone?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The pictures that I used a couple of posts ago (26 degrees...) were taken at the Bear Lake overlook (on highway 89 also) after we'd been at Bear Lake for a couple of weeks, and we wanted to get out and see some of the sights around the lake. The overlook is well equipped with the usual restrooms, and tourist information and was manned when we went there. Here's a picture of a fine looking gentleman</span></div>
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-89um4Fe5xeg/UqfKZdpYVQI/AAAAAAAABRA/Q_mOyYJRyUY/s1600/IMG_0521.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-89um4Fe5xeg/UqfKZdpYVQI/AAAAAAAABRA/Q_mOyYJRyUY/s640/IMG_0521.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">standing in front of the overlook facility. Not quite sure why the fine looking gentleman was looking so dour, have to as him about it next time I see him.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And here's a picture of some of the wildlife that's at the overlook:</span></div>
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<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2IftfCevruQ/UqfK0coy0OI/AAAAAAAABRI/OuPjMWYmnY0/s1600/IMG_0524.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-2IftfCevruQ/UqfK0coy0OI/AAAAAAAABRI/OuPjMWYmnY0/s640/IMG_0524.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">We'd been told that there were large wildlife in the area, namely moose, but all the time we were at Bear Lake, we never saw one. Maybe because there aren't any moose feeders like there are for hummingbirds, ya think? Imagine getting a picture of a moose in mid-step... Naw, don't because it isn't anywhere near the same as a bird in mid-flight, <i>anytime!</i> Having said that, it still would've been neat to see a moose. Maybe somewhere else down the road.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As we drove around the lake, there were more than a handful of tractors, predominantly <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farmall" target="_blank">Farmall</a>, and here is what one of them looks like.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hmPgVQbbYgg/UqfMoN1LmdI/AAAAAAAABRk/mzQfSlkxdhk/s1600/IMG_0548.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-hmPgVQbbYgg/UqfMoN1LmdI/AAAAAAAABRk/mzQfSlkxdhk/s640/IMG_0548.JPG" width="640" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">As I recall, all of the Farmall tractors that we saw were red, and this one is at the boat rental facility at Bear Lake State Park, adjacent to the campground where we were camp hosting. It was used to take the rental motorboats into the lake so they could be launched from the boat trailer the boats are stored on, and they were used because of the high ground clearance that the tractor has for the engine. I'm guessing that at some point in time in the past, there was a Farmall dealer in the area, and anyone who needed a tractor would get it from that dealer. Obviously, they were a good brand and continue to work well as I don't think that there were a lot of those tractors that were living in tall grass as we drove around the lake, indicating that they weren't used for some time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">The beach at Bear Lake State Park was pretty nice at the time, although the lake was high and had been that way for a couple of years when we got there. Here's a picture of the beach at the park.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WLL5GSMnbWU/UqfPURjohGI/AAAAAAAABRw/iCSEBbb3Ki4/s1600/IMG_0545.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WLL5GSMnbWU/UqfPURjohGI/AAAAAAAABRw/iCSEBbb3Ki4/s640/IMG_0545.JPG" width="640" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: large;">As you can see from the picture, the date is the 15th of July, 2012 at 11:27. As this was a Sunday, there were usually more folks using the beach, so this was an easy day there. Don't remember if the weather was inclement, although all we can see are little fluffy clouds below some hazy clouds. Maybe everyone who was gonna go there heard about the Bear Lake Monster and didn't want to chance meeting up with it, ya think? </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">So... what was the Bear Lake Monster?</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">Have a blessed day!</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4841668834152330867.post-81678317911649113672013-12-07T16:48:00.000-07:002013-12-07T16:48:11.371-07:00Avery's 6th birthday party<div style="text-align: justify;">
Avery had his 6th birthday party today with 6 friends and Riley to help him celebrate. The plans that Amanda & Katie came to fruition and there was a great time for all. As you can see from the pictures, it was done in a Curious George fashion. That monkey sure is a lucky monkey!</div>
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Birthday decorations including the monkey pinata, who wasn't that lucky of a monkey!</div>
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Birthday boy Avery with birthday boy food: Italian cheese bread from Little Ceasars.</div>
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Old folks attempting to solve the world's problems. From the left, Katie, Charley, Pastor Matt, James, & Jeff. No, not all of the world's problems were solved in this session. Maybe next time, ya think?</div>
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All during the time of the party, it had been snowing, and since there's a winter storm warning in effect for Clearfield, it's probably gonna keep snowing through the night. As I did last year when I snowed, I grabbed one of the snow shovels handy and started doing what retired guys do best: shoveling snow. Well, maybe they don't always do that best, but it's right up near the top, huh? Jeff saw how much fun I was having and grabbed another shovel and found out how much fun he could have as well. In no time, we had the walk in front of the house cleared, as well as in front of a couple of houses each way on the street. </div>
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Somewhere along the line, he decided that he wanted me to have a snowball fight with him, or something which involved having snow flying towards me, be it from a hand or a shovel. As I'm not completely 100% healthy yet, I didn't partake in exchanging snow with him in ways which weren't going to keep me as warm as I'd wanted to keep myself. Darn the bad luck for him, goody for me! </div>
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I seem to remember that whenever my oldest son, Ken, would get together with me, he'd try to tickle me for some unknown reason, I know I never, ever tickled him when he was younger. He just wants to take advantage of me now that he's got a few inches on me! Having said that, I'm also thinking that he'd probably be on Jeff's side in trying to get me to have snow go down the back of my neck, or places which I don't normally put snow. Silly boys!</div>
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Last January, we had bunches of snow as well, and in looking in James' garage I found a snow thrower. After putting gas in the tank, I was able to get it started, and started throwing some snow. </div>
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a39qk7WjCtE/UqOv6i8pyRI/AAAAAAAABPk/2OYIn2_MlGE/s1600/IMG_2012.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-a39qk7WjCtE/UqOv6i8pyRI/AAAAAAAABPk/2OYIn2_MlGE/s640/IMG_2012.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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The snow thrower did a real good job of making the snow a whole lot less than it was before the snow thrower went along. Although retired men love to shovel snow, throwing snow this way is so much better.</div>
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If ya look closely, you'll see that I'm blowing the snow towards the left of the picture, and that the wind is blowing the snow back towards me. This is the same thing as spitting in the wind, a habit which just isn't the smartest thing to do. Luckily, I only did this row and turned around the other way so I wouldn't be inhaling the snow.</div>
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Well, after the party was over with, James and I visited the snow thrower again getting it running so I could use it again in the coming days. As it's gonna snow throughout the night, I'm pretty sure that I'll be using it early in the morning so we can get out to the street to go to church. All you other retired boys and girls, eat your hearts out that you don't get to do this fun stuff!</div>
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Have a blessed day!</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17758475378982525770noreply@blogger.com0