NOT MUCH TO WRITE ABOUT:((

With not a lot going on these days I’m a little hard pressed to think of things to write about & my photos around the house & property are getting a bit repetitive.   Only thing I can tell you about today is that I planted Renee’s cactus plus potted a lot of the small arms that fell off it.

MAIN CACTUS IS IN THE GROUND

MY POTTING TABLE THIS MORNING

FOR ME THIS WAS AN ENJOYABLE WAY TO SPEND SOME TIME THIS MORNING

LUCKILY I HAD LOTS OF PLASTIC POTS AROUND

Jodee from ON THE ROAD ABODE asked in a comment question. “Did I miss a post where you've decided not to sell the little place, or are you just relaxing for a few weeks before making that move”?…………We are still in decision mode Jodee.

GROANER’S CORNER:(( The psychology instructor had just finished a lecture on mental health and was giving an oral test.
Speaking specifically about manic depression, she asked, "How would you diagnose a patient who walks back and forth screaming at the top of his lungs one minute, then sits in a chair weeping uncontrollably the next?" A young man in the rear raised his hand and answered, "A basketball coach?"

RENEE & DAVE, JANNA & MIKE, A NEW CACTUS, & IT WAS ON THE COLD SIDE TODAY

Sun & cloud mixed with blustery afternoon winds made for a cool day when the sun was out & a cold day when it wasn’t.  Fellow RVing friend Renee over at North Ranch emailed us earlier about a cactus she didn’t want & would we like it.  Sure did so we were off over to North Ranch at 9:30.  Had us a visit with Renee & husband Dave before digging up the cactus & loading it into the Jeep.  Nice folks these two.  While there we saw Nina & Paul just rolling out for Quartzsite.  We waved but they didn’t see us.

THE WHEELING IT CREW HEADING OUT THIS MORNING

I’LL GET THIS CACTUS FELLOW PLANTED IN THE MORNING

Leaving Renee & Dave’s we cruised around North Ranch looking for Janna & Mike’s new digs passing Jim & Ellie Meachams place.  Didn’t see a vehicle at Mike & Pat McFalls but we did spot Janna & Mikes yellow Jeep hiding behind their garage further down the street so pulled in & knocked on the door.  They were both up to their ears in house renovations & were hard at it but said they needed a break from the days activities anyway so gave us a house tour.  Sure have a nice place there for sure & it’s been made even nicer since Mike put in some big bright windows & knocked out some interior walls.  We had us a sit down outside & got caught up on everything.  Janna’s hoping to have her kitchen all put back together by Thanksgiving & in the meantime they are living in their Motorhome parked behind the house.

VIEW FROM OUR BACKYARD ABOVE & FRONT YARD BELOW

We were back home by 1 o’clock & I decided I’d plant the new cactus Wednesday morning when I’m hoping it will be warmer.  With Remembrance Day coming up there has been a lot of war history on TV & I always like to watch that every year so my afternoon was spent inside except for a short walk around outside to grab me a few photos for tonight’s post.

THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF OUR PROPERTY

Joe & Betty from Joe & Betty's Adventures just received some devastating medical news & life has suddenly thrown them a nasty curve.  It is one of those things that can happen to any one of us at any time.  Our thoughts are with Joe & Betty as they make their way through these difficulties.

THESE ARE MY WORKING PILES OF EARTH & COLORED GRAVEL

Got so cold in the house today we had to finally turn on our 2 baseboard mounted $megawatt$ gobbling space heaters but oh my did that warmth ever feel good.  Even Hoppy had his ear muffs on Russ:))  Looks like we are in for sunny skies & warmer temps Wednesday with each coming day edging us up closer to the low 70’s.

OUR FRONT CACTUS GARDEN IS A SLOW GROWING WORK IN PROGRESS

  GROANER’S CORNER:((  Did You Know::

- If you don't pay your exorcist, you get repossessed.
- You  will feel stuck with your debt if you can't budge it.
- Every calendar's days are numbered.
- Once you've seen one shopping center, you've seen a mall.
- Acupuncture is a jab well done.
- Paddy said to Mick, "Christmas is on Friday this year". Mick says, "Let's hope it's not the 13th then."
- My friend just hired an Eastern European cleaner. It took her 5 hours to hoover the house. Turns out she was a Slovak!
- I've been charged with murder for killing a man with sandpaper. To be honest I only intended to rough him up a bit!

NICE TO SEE FELLOW RV BLOGGERS NINA & PAUL AS WELL AS THEIR DOG POLLY THIS MORNING:))

Nina, Paul, & Polly from WHEELING IT rolled in this morning at 9:30 & minutes later we were all out for a walk.  Nina in an email Sunday had suggested a doggy walk in the desert this morning & of course that was right up our alley.  It’s only half a block walk to the open desert for us & along the way a stray dog decided to come along.  Of course Pheebs was in her glory with 2 doggy Pals to play with.  And play they sure did. 

THAT’S THE STRAY DOGGY ON THE RIGHT

POLLY IN THE FOREGROUND THEN PHEEBS THEN THEIR STRAY PAL OUT THERE IN THE WATER

It seems each time we meet Nina & Paul our friendship draws closer & I was very aware of that this morning.   We have a lot of things in common of course & our conversations are always meaningful, heartfelt & educational.  After our doggy walk we all sat on the front porch for awhile & I felt very comfortable & glad they had dropped in to see us.  One of our favorite RV Blogging couples for sure.  You have got to see Nina’s awe inspiring photos from the south rim of the Grand Canyon & be sure to read about how she got those photos in 8 Easy South Rim Photography Tips.  This Gal knows her way around a camera:))

THIS BODY OF WATER IS CALLED A ‘TANK’ OUT HERE IN THE WEST & IT PROVIDES WATER FOR FREE RANGE CATTLE

WE NEVER RUN OUT OF THINGS TO TALK ABOUT

THE DOGGY GUYS HAD THEMSELVES A BLAST

A NICE HOUR OF RELAXING CONVERSATION ON OUR FRONT PORCH THIS MORNING & IF YOU LOOK CLOSE YOU CAN SEE PHEEBS UNDER THAT TABLE BELOW THE WINDOW

BYE GUYS & IT’S VERY POSSIBLE OUR PATHS MAY CROSS AGAIN SOMEWHERE THIS WINTER:))

Trimmed up another Palo Verde tree & picked up a few more Mesquite bean piles.  Nice to have something to do & no deadline for the do to be done.

I tipped back in my gravity chair behind the shed beside a prickly pear cactus patch with camera in my lap for a few bird photos this afternoon.  Just totally enjoyed Arizona’s warm sun on my skin with a light cooling breeze to make it my kinda day.  With so many happy little birds twittering in the trees all around it’s so easy to just doze off for awhile.  And I do have some nice little dozes sitting there until an occasional fluttering of wee wings brushing past my ear brings me back to where I am. And when I think about where I am I am quite happy to be exactly right where I am:))

WILL YOU GET YOUR BEAK OUT OF MY EAR PLEASE

 

MY FAVORITE OUTSIDE RELAXING SPOT FOR TAKING BIRD PHOTOS & YOU CAN SEE THE BIRD FEEDER ABOVE THE BIRD BATH & SLIGHTLY TO THE RIGHT AT TOP OF PHOTO

Thanks to the ‘Guest’ in our Shout Box for straightening me out on my celestial sighting early Monday morning.  Guest said, “Al, a meteor is a small solid extraterrestrial body that enters Earth's atmosphere. A meteorite is what remains of a meteor that has landed on the surface of the Earth. And a meteoroid is a meteor before it enters Earth's atmosphere”….Always good to learn new things but the key is remembering those good things one has learned.

WILL YOU GUYS QUIT ROCKING THE BOAT

SSSHHHHH, I DON’T THINK SHE KNOWS WE’RE OVER HERE

HI TOOTS

Thanks to readers for their comments, shouts, & emails concerning possible solutions for our rig’s on-going & perplexing problem regarding the Motorhome’s occasional loss of power on mountainous grades.  It is definitely an annoying & stressful problem for us & one I’m not so sure we will ever get to the bottom of.

 

DON’T EVEN ASK ME HOW LONG I LOOKED FOR MY NEW WORK GLOVES TODAY…..OF COURSE I FINALLY DID FIND THEM RIGHT WHERE I HAD LEFT THEM EARLIER THIS MORNING!!!!

Question in our Shout Box from Don asking, “Re: the header photo, where does the road go at the far end? To the right, left, or straight? And what road is it so I can look it up on Google Earth?…………. The highway running from Mexican Hat to Monument Valley is 163 & in my photo that road at the far end deaks to the right going around that large rock formation straight ahead called Brigham’s Tomb then kind of straightens out a bit & wanders across the State line into & the small community of Monument Valley.  If you keep going on that highway it takes you to the town of Kayenta.  Here are the Google Earth coordinates for the very spot I took the photo from Don…….37*06’ 05.22” N by 109*59’ 27.00” W

For the past 8 winter seasons we have always headed to one of our favorite boondocking spots just outside of Borrego Springs California.  The ‘Clark Dry Lake Bed’ area has been a popular spot for RV’ers with lots of wide open spaces for everyone.  However, changes are afoot there.  Nina & Paul have been talking to some folks who said Anza State Park along with the Anza-Borrego Foundation have taken over the area & have posted new rules & they are not necessarily boondocker friendly rules.  Just wondering if any of our readers are in that area at the moment & could get back to us on what is actually going on there right now.  Dogs on leashes??  No campfires??  RV’s have to be parked one vehicle length from the road etc. etc.  Say it isn’t so, say it isn’t so……………:((

PEEK-A-BOO

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A Few One Liners Tonight::

- We need a 12-step group for compulsive talkers. They could call it On Anon Anon.

- So what if I can’t spell Armageddon? It’s not the end of the world.

- Halloween is the beginning of the holiday shopping season for women. The beginning of the holiday shopping season for men is Christmas Eve.

- My parents didn’t want to move to Florida, but they turned 70 and that’s the law.

- I dressed my dog up as a cat for Halloween. Now he won’t come when I call him.

OUR LAST TRAVEL DAY FROM CAMERON TO CONGRESS AZ LAST TUESDAY WAS NOT WITHOUT INCIDENT……………

IT WAS 4:45 THIS AFTERNOON & TODAY’S SUN WAS RAPIDLY HEADED FOR THE HORIZON WHEN I REALIZED I HADN’T TAKEN A SINGLE PHOTO ALL DAY SO GRABBED A CAMERA & QUICKLY SHOT UP A FEW CACTUS PLANTS IN OUR YARD….THIS PARTICULAR ONE I PLANTED THIS AFTERNOON

I wasted a perfectly good wish this morning.  Out with Pheebs about 5:30 a.m. standing in our front yard under a canopy of twinkling stars from horizon to horizon I spotted & watched something streak across the sky near the Moon.  It was a meteorite commonly called a shooting star.  Ahhh, now I must make a wish & without even a milli-seconds thought two words popped into my head before I could even think about a wish.  ‘World Peace.’  Well I knew right away I had just wasted a perfectly good wish on something that will never happen.  At least not in my time or anyone else’s time I know.  Had I only wished for something realistically possible I might have had a chance of it coming true……………….

 

PLANTED THIS CACTUS ON THE LEFT TODAY AS WELL

Started my yard clean-up an hour earlier this morning therefore wearing myself out an earlier this morning.  The upper half of me doesn’t really wear out but the bottom half does.  When I get up in the morning my legs are generally reasonably good with no pains, aches, or stiffness but as soon as I start using my legs they begin to stiffen up & get sore.  Yes my weight plays a small part in that but it’s the darn arthritis that is my Achilles heal.  Came in , rested my legs for an hour & was back outside again this time planting 3 cactus plants Kelly had brought home Saturday.  I’m sure glad I bought myself a brand new pair of heavy duty CAT work gloves before arriving here in the land of prickly cactus plants nearly a week ago.

I THINK SOME OF MY JOSHUA TREES I PLANTED LAST WINTER JUST MIGHT MAKE IT  AFTER ALL

Here’s a little something I didn’t share with readers that happened to us on our last day traveling from Cameron to Congress Arizona last Tuesday.  When we rolled into Cameron Monday afternoon we had half a tank of fuel in the rig & I didn’t plan on adding any fuel until we reached the Chino Valley.  Easier on the rig to travel with a lighter gas tank out here in these hills & mountainous grades.  It was a Conoco gas station we decided to stay at for the night & quickly forgetting my previous gas decision reasoned if we filled up at the Conoco we wouldn’t have to fill up again before reaching Congress.  Of course I totally forgot about the loooooooooong grade climbing up to Flagstaff Arizona.

A nice morning as we rolled out of Cameron heading South.  Had maybe driven an hour when I could see the looooong grade a few miles ahead climbing higher & higher up towards Flagstaff.  I was sure hoping we would make it up that grade….but we didn’t.  About half or maybe two thirds of the way we began slowing down despite being in our second lowest gear.  The rig gave a jerk & I immediately felt the loss of power as the gas pedal went to the floor.  Hobbled off to the side of the road & shut it down.  Waited about 30 seconds then re-started the rig just like we had been told to do to re-set the computer.  I pulled the gearshift into it’s lowest gear but the Big EEE struggled to gain speed & for the next 20 minutes or so we became a traffic hazard on a 4 lane highway in more ways than one.

A year ago when this same loss of power happened for the first time west of Kingman Az. we also lost our turn signals & 4-way flashers & dam if the same thing didn’t happen to us again Tuesday morning in the Flagstaff traffic.  There we were struggling along at about half power or less with no emergency flashers to let drivers approaching from behind know we were only doing about 30 mph tops.  And no turn signals to change lanes & we did need to change lanes several times because we were confused as to how to reach I-40.  Our Garmin GPS had given us a bum steer a year ago coming into Flagstaff along this route causing us to become lost for about half an hour before finding our way out of Flagstaff amazingly headed in the right direction. 

JOSHUA TREE >>>>>>>>

Luckily we were able to follow the overhead signs to a traffic light with arrows pointing to I-40 west.  And fortunately we were in the correct left hand turning lane.  At that red light I shut the rig off again & re-started it in hopes the computer would re-set itself which it did.  Also another piece of luck when I could see the on-ramp headed down to I-40 & not up to I-40.  The Big EEE made the left turn & entered the right turning lane managing to regain her composure on that downhill ramp as we entered I-40 just a flyin.  The rig ran perfectly fine for most of the rest of the way home.  Climbed up out of Prescott on half a dozen steep little grades on Iron Springs road Okay but then coming through the little whistle stop of Skull Valley we again lost power while slowing for a set of train tracks on a ‘downgrade.’  Very disappointing.  Found a spot to pull over on the narrow road, shut it down, re-started it & we were good to go the rest of the way.  By this time we were both so, so, so, tired & frustrated that when we reached Congress I just never blogged about it until now.  I’m convinced it is not a mechanical problem with the rig as much as it is a computer fuel mixture problem of some kind.  So as it stands right now we have no turn signals or flashers on the rig again.  Last year in Slab City one of the Slabbers there fixed the problem for us by installing a new ‘flasher’ unit so looks like we’ll have to haul the rig down to the Congress garage & have a new flasher unit installed again so who knows what kind of an electrical Gremlin lurks in the dash of our rig.  Until Flagstaff the Motorhome had performed flawlessly……………….

Nina, Paul, & Polly from WHEELING-IT are headed over in the morning for a doggy walk in the desert about a half block behind our house.  Pheebs will be happy to see Polly again & of course Kelly & I will be happy to see the Wheeling-It crew again as well.  We saw Nina & Paul in Borrego Springs last winter & they boondocked just up the end of Ghost Town Road from us 2 winters ago.  And if I remember correctly we saw them over at North Ranch at Janna & Mike’s last winter as well.  Of course my memory is not to be counted on but at least that’s how I think it was……………..

JUST PLANTED THIS CACTUS TODAY AS WELL

GROANER’S CORNER:(( An exciting new development in marine biology promised to extend the lifespan of an endangered species of porpoise. In fact, the data suggested that if a specific kind of African seagull, freshly out of the egg, was fed to the porpoises every day without fail, they would actually live forever!  The big challenge was to gather this food supply, this equivalent of chicken dinners for oceanic mammals, on a regular basis. There were many problems, including the fact that it could be dangerous, as these seagulls were found near water holes where all sorts of large game animals congregated.  But this was an important ecological breakthrough, so teams were sent out right away. They worked diligently to supply the necessary small fowl.  One afternoon, an intrepid gull-gatherer on his way back to base from the water hole encountered a pride of lions taking their afternoon nap.  As they were blocking his way, and his day's catch of seagull hatchlings was needed right away, he carefully stepped over the lions that were directly in his path.  That spelled the end of the experiment. The porpoises, deprived of their special diet, not only did not live forever, but they also became extinct. That was because an alert game control officer had spotted the team member, arrested him, confiscated his equipment and baggage, and charged him with……....’Transporting young gulls across sedate lions for immortal porpoises’.