TODAY WE BUZZED OURSELVES OFF TO BISBEE

CAME ACROSS THIS MOON COLLAGE I PUT TOGETHER A YEAR AGO FROM PHOTOS I TOOK JUST A FEW MILES FROM THE RANCH…I ADDED THE COLORS USING PICASA
Don’t want to start the new year off with another repetitious wonderful weather report….so I won’t:))

WE HAVE A RIG FULL OF COACH POTATOES MOST OF THE TIME

PHEEBS, OUR FEARLESS WATCHDOG CAREFULLY GUARDS MY CAMERA EQUIPMENT
Took us a fancy to buzz off to Bisbee this morning.  We had heard of a great Pizza place so deliberately skipped breakfast, popped into Bisbee’s BELLA ROMA pizza and had ourselves a totally yummy medium size Pepperoni Pizza.  And, we ate the whole darn thing too:))

KELLY HEADS OUT THE DOOR AT BELLA ROMA PIZZA UNDER HER ‘RENEGADE’ COWBOY HAT
 
Kelly had some browsing to do so while she headed up the street I headed for THE BISBEE COFFEE COMPANY.  Don’t normally have a second coffee during the day anymore but figured I would make an exception today.  Nice and warm outside so I had my coffee and Blueberry muffin sitting in their cozy outside coffee court.  Not busy so it was a great opportunity to catch myself some more candid Bisbee ‘character’ photos.  Bisbee and Tombstone are great places for………‘characters’.
 
 

It was our second time away leaving Pheebs and the gang free to come & go in the Motorhome.  Upon our return Pheebs saw us coming down the road so ran to meet us at the closed gate.   Pearce and Gleeson used to do that but now like hanging out in our rig like a couple of big old coach potatoes.  Also had a little House Finch inside the rig when I came in the door.  Gently caught the little fellow, wished him well and carefully carried him outside where he flew merrily away.

NO, THAT IS NOT A BISBEE CHARACTER  >>>
Our Manulife insurance company phoned Saturday saying things have been cleared up and my upcoming Renal exam plus all expenses so far will now be paid for.  However, they said anything after this exam such as procedures would have to be strongly reviewed.  In other words, they will probably not pay for any surgical stuff but would fly me home to have medical procedures done in Canada where expenses are covered by our Ontario Hospital Insurance Plan .  So, that puts the ball back in our court and we will likely continue our travels as planned and return to Ontario sometime around the end of March as usual.  Of course, all this depends whether that large ‘whopper’ of a kidney stone decides to move again and also the results of Wednesdays Renal exam.  One thing is for sure….I will not be flying back to Ontario, regardless!!!!!!  Once home in the Spring we’ll deal with the medical issues, whatever they may turn out to be. 
So, bottom line……We are back on track for leaving the Ranch on January 15th and heading further west for destinations yet unknown.

 

AND, LET’S NOT FORGET THE BISBEE CARS
The Bayfield Bunch welcomes Mumtaz as our first Blog Follower of 2012.  Thanks for dropping by and being our first follower this year:))

MY VIEW FROM THE BISBEE COFFEE COMPANY OUTSIDE PATIO
Hopefully the ‘ShoutBox’ in our right hand column will not go missing for a few days.  We knew Shoutmix was making changes and the free Shoutbox was being discontinued.  We, and many readers like the ShoutBox feature so will retain it for $20 a year now.  Just hope it transitions from free to fee ok.

 
THESE HOLIDAY REVELERS WELCOME IN THE NEW YEAR ON BISBEE’S MAIN STREET TODAY
Managed to get a few ‘Cowboy Hat’ shots this morning while feeding and kibitzing with the Donkeys.  One of these days we will have to try getting ourselves a nice posed family portrait.  No easy feat when trying to do everything myself.

 

 
The Last Paragraph: With each passing year I am always glad to see the old year slip into history. Kind of like hitting the ‘refresh’ button on an internet site. Some things reassuringly remain the same and stay on the page while other familiarities vanish, bringing forth the challenge of nervous change. It is those changes that can add excitement to new horizons…….if one lets them:))

TONIGHT, AFTER TUCKING THE CHICKEN GANG IN I ENJOYED DOING A BIT OF STARGAZING UNDER WARMING ARIZONA SKIES
GROANER’S CORNER:((  An optimist stays up to see the New Year in. A pessimist waits to make sure the old one leaves.
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-Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
BAYFIELD BUNCH PHOTO ALBUMS https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295
The only thing better than right now  will someday be the memories of
right  now...AL.

TOMBSTONE TERRITORY

How nice to hear the sunrise tweeting of our little feathered bird friends right outside the rig’s window every morning.  Mother Nature’s relaxing and soothing way of starting another fine day.

Managed to get ourselves a couple trips in today.  The Elfrida dump was open till noon so we hauled a couple barrels of garbage over with Jeanie & Ray’s pick up truck.  The day was still early so figured it was a good day to make a run to Sierra Vista.

Made a trip to Big Bend in Texas back in late December of 04.  Since 06 we have been spending our winters in New Mexico, Arizona and California.  In all that time Kelly has never had a Cowboy hat.  Well, today was the day.  I was in need of a new hat myself so we headed for Spur Western Wear in Sierra Vista.  Never knew there was so much to learn about hats.  Spent nearly half an hour trying them on but in the end they just didn’t have the size I needed and Kelly didn’t find the kind she wanted.  Lady said their Tombstone store had my size.

Kelly had a little browsing to do in Marshall’s so I fell asleep in the Jeep out in the parking lot.  I kinda like when that happens. 

Hadn’t had any breakfast so headed ourselves into an eating place near Pet Smart called, ‘My Big Fat Greek Restaurant.  I’m always leery of these kinds of places.  Lotta big strange words on the menu so I stuck with a good old tried and true hamburger.  Kelly got a small pizza.  Kelly likes those kinds of foods but I’m always suspicious of any eating place that doesn’t have gravy on the menu.  Lotta noise coming out of the overhead speakers but Kelly said that was Greek music. Whatever!! I think next time we’ll head back to the Texas Road House.  Lots of good old mashed potatoes and gravy for AL over there…..10-4.

Rolled out of Sierra Vista for Tombstone somewhere around 2 in search of the Spur Western Ware store.  First time Kelly & I rolled into Tombstone was nearly 5 years to the day in late December 06.  Been there a couple more times since then over the past few years but we were really surprised at the change we saw in Tombstone today.  Maybe because it was a Saturday during the holiday season.  Lots of people on the main street.  Lots of cowboys, horses, stagecoaches, and people dressed up in the old west style.  They had a real active main street going on.

 
    
 
Made our way to SPUR WESTERN WEAR where a fella by the name of Dave was patient with us trying on hats.  Knew the kind I was looking for but hats for me are never easy to find.  I got a big head!!  No, nothing to do with Ego.  I just got a big head.  Not much in it but it’s still big.  Kinda like an empty air plane hanger.  Fortunately, after half a dozen tries we finally found a 7.5 hat that fit my balloon head.  Gracias.  My hat style is called a ‘Tombstone.’  And, how cool is that to buy a Tombstone hat right in the dusty little historic town of Tombstone Arizona itself.
 
 

KELLY TRIES ON COWBOY HATS AT SPUR WESTERN WARE
Kelly wasn’t so lucky.  She just couldn’t find a comfortable fit or style she liked.  Dave was good enough to direct us two doors down the boardwalk to RUSSELL'S ROADRUNNER.  Even a bigger selection of Cowboy hats in this store.  Kelly found a hat before I even made it inside.  I was outside running around cracking off pictures of all the interesting looking characters walking around.
 
 
  

I failed to get the store proprietors name but everyone in Tombstone looks like they are related to the Earps or McLaurys.  A personable fellow with longer white hair, a sense of humor, a knowledge of hats and a western looking vest type jacket to go with it all.  Gotta love the attitude of the town folks and shop keepers for keeping Tombstone….Tombstone.
 
RUSSELL’S ROADRUNNER STORE…LOTS OF HATS HERE
Back out on the street we heard some hollerin and yellin coming from up the street.  Seems the Earp Brothers were mixin it up with some of the Clanton boys.  The street quickly cleared as the arguing, pushing, and shoving continued down the street toward the OK Corral.  Doc Holliday was looking as wasted as Wyatt was looking dapper.  The McLaurys and Clanton boys made it down to the OK corral at the bottom end of Allen Street.  With the Earp Brothers and Doc in hot pursuit the arguing continued.

 
We knew there was going to be some serious gunfire soon because them boys sure was mad at each other.  Figured it would be a good time to high tail it out of town before we ended up with bullet holes in our new hats.  We did manage to snag an ice cream cone in our haste though.  Kudos to you Tombstone for keeping your little town and it’s legends alive:))  And, would you believe I never thought to take any pics of our new Cowboy hats today.  Stay tuned……….

 

 
Arrived back at the Ranch just in time to get the chickens milked and the dogs fed.  Our sunny day temps could not have been better and how nice to slip out at night now for a look at the stars.

Before I get to the last paragraph let me just wish everyone all the best for the new year.  A big thank you to all readers, friends, commenters, and folks sending emails for hanging in with me for yet another year.  We’ve had a few ups and downs along the way folks but maybe we can smooth out some of those downs in the New Year………..10-4:))         
        
The Last Paragraph: A year’s review in one paragraph, hmmmm.  The disappointment in not being able to swing a deal on the Lazy W Ranch.  Our days at Joshua State Park and Lone Pine California, Nevada’s Valley of Fire and Arizona’s Canyon de Chelly.  The terrible loss of Max and Checkers in April and the longest boring and most depressing summer I’ve ever had.  Finding Pheebe was a high point in August and getting back on the road again in mid November brought me out of my slump.  Ending the year with some medical issues casts a shadow into 2012.  Summing up…..Worst of the year was losing Max and Checkers:((  Best of the years was finding and bringing home the Pheebs:))  And, there it was…….2011.

AN AFTER DARK LOOK BACK UP THROUGH OUR WINDSHIELD
GROANER’S CORNER:((  A man walks into a bar and orders a shot then looks into his pocket. he does this over and over again. finally the bartender asks why he orders a shot and after drinking it he looks into his pocket.
The man responded "I have a picture of my wife in there and when she starts to look good…… I'll go home."  (By the way, women have been known to carry photos of their husbands in their purses for the same reason.)
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-Tourists see the world, travelers  experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
BAYFIELD BUNCH PHOTO ALBUMS https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295
The only thing better than right now  will someday be the memories of
right  now...AL.