MY SUNDAY CATCH UP POST

HOW NICE TO HAVE SUCH A GREAT SETTING TO WORK IN AT OUR NEIGHBOR'S PLACE

This is my Sunday post which will mainly be a photos post simply because I really didn’t do anything Sunday except for putting in a couple morning hours at the neighbor’s place behind us working on his property clean-up.
 

HAD ME SOME MIGHTY FINE HELP AGAIN THIS MORNING

I was reminded tonight of my early blogging days when commenter Martha said in part, "It seems like so many bloggers are quitting”.   Of course that set me to thinking of my early blogging days & all the great fellow Bloggers I remember from back then & how many are now gone.  Some just kind of slowly faded away while others wrote final blog farewells.  Some unfortunately passed on while a few others just kind of abruptly ended their blogs without further adieu.  My mind does not serve me well enough to remember everyone from those early days but I do remember having a feeling of ‘family’ with these folks.   Most of us were not only RV Newbies back then but we were also new to this new phenomena called Blogging.  Blogging??  What the heck was that.   Over time we finally did end up meeting some of those early RV Bloggers too.  I look back on those early days with much fondness now & amazingly enough we still have a few of those long ago fellow Bloggers as readers.  You guys are made of some pretty darn tough stuff………………………..:))

MY PORTABLE TOOL WAGON

I TRIMMED THIS PALO VERDE UP A YEAR AGO & NOW I CAN WALK UNDERNEATH IT

THIS IS ONE OF 6 PILES OF BRUSH I HAVE ON THE GO AT THE MOMENT

BEFORE I TRIMMED UP THIS PALO VERDE A COUPLE DAYS AGO THE HOUSE WAS NOT VISIBLE FROM THIS VIEW POINT

THIS PALO VERDE'S BRANCHES WERE UP AGAINST THE BACK OF THE HOUSE & ONE COULDN'T WALK BETWEEN THE HOUSE & TREE

I wrote my first post back in 06 on Microsoft’s short lived blog program called My Space.  I wrote most every day that first Snow Bird winter but those posts on My Space were never really seen by anyone.  It was a different time back then.  Wasn’t until September of 07 that I found Blogger & slowly began writing a few more posts here & there.  I did post most every day while we traveled that 07/08 winter but only wrote a few posts now & again through the summer of 08 & it wasn’t until December of that year that I kicked the blog into high gear & became a daily Blogger........Again, many thanks to you folks for all your kind words these past few days:))

STILL A NICE TOUCH OF AUTUMN GOING ON HERE

HORSE PENS AT THE BACK

Add caption

MY FAVORITE PART OF THE PROPERTY IS THIS JOSHUA TREE AREA

If you missed my Saturday post it is here...............WHOPPERED IN WICKENBURG

GROANERS CORNER:(( One day at the entrance to heaven, St. Peter saw a New York street gang.
walk up to the Pearly Gates. This being a first, St. Peter ran to God and said, "God,
there are some evil, thieving New Yorkers at the Pearly Gates. What do I do?".
God replied, "Just do what you normally do with that type. Re-direct them down to hell."
St. Peter went back to carry out the order and all of a sudden he comes running back yelling "God, God, they're gone, they're gone!"
"Who, the New Yorkers?".
"No, the Pearly Gates."

WHOPPERED IN WICKENBURG

MAYBE ON OUR NEXT OUTING WE'LL EXPLORE THE ROADS AROUND VULTURE PEAK

I at first decided to wait out the ‘Windows Live Writer’ problem hoping it would be a quick fix but after reading a few things here & there I doubt now it will be.  So I had a choice.  Either suck it up & try the Blogger format again or simply just disappear from Blogland once & for all.  Well I’m not quite ready to disappear just yet so here I go back to Blogger again & this is my Saturday catch up post.  I also knew that if I got too many days behind in my annual postings I would soon become discouraged & that would have likely lead to me simply quitting altogether.  I will post my Sunday post Monday at noon & that should get me caught up & back on track for Monday;s post Monday night.

JUST A NICE MORNING FOR A JEEP DRIVE IN THE DESERT

Stepping out our back door into an icy North wind Saturday morning reminded me instantly of a winter's day back home in Canada.  Spilling some water on my hands while filling our bird bath I had to quickly thrust them into my pockets for warmth.  Been a long while since my hands felt cold like that.  Our day was a mix of Sun & cloud & what little sunshine made it's way to Earth didn't seem to bring along much warmth with it.

WE HAD JUST THE NICEST SKIES TODAY

It's funny how Blog breaks don't seem to work so swell for me.  For whatever the reason leading to a Blog break I just can't seem to stay away from writing or taking photos.  Even with the current Live Writer/Google/Blogger problems going on I still could not leave my keyboard & cameras alone.  Even with not knowing when I might be able to publish a blog again there I was Saturday morning first thing writing the opening paragraph of this post.  A couple hours later with camera in hand Pheebs & I were out cruising through the desert looking for a few photos which again I wasn't sure I'd ever publish.  Strange how this blogging thing just gets into one's blood but then again for me it has always been in my blood even as a kid.  I have always been a writer of something or other but it’s just that I had some very long periods in my life between writings.  Had it not been for computers, the internet & this whole blogging thing I guess I would still be a frustrated writer guy stuck in my own closet…………………..

ALWAYS NICE COMING ACROSS WATER IN THE DESERT  & THIS BODY OF WATER CALLED A TANK IS FOR CATTLE

I do have my reasons why I do not like using Blogger to publish my posts but rather than me going through those reasons I'd like to direct you to Sherry's post over at In The Direction Of Our Dreams & let her tell you why she, I, & many others much prefer to use Live Writer rather than Blogger.  If push comes to shove I may consider Word Press but I’d rather not if I didn’t have to.  Oh & for many of us who started out years ago with Blogger then switched to Live Writer the reason we do not want to go back to Blogger is plain & simple, we know the difference.  Live Writer has simply a better designed platform which is easy to use with it’s many creative options to boot.

PHEEBS & I MADE OUR WAY BACK THROUGH THAT CANYON

Really didn't have any good idea as to where Pheebs & I were headed this morning when we rolled out our gate.  With an icy wind blowing I didn't think a walk in the desert was going to feel very nice so we just headed on down Ghost Town Road to the stop sign & hung a left over the RR tracks to the next stop sign & cranked a right. 

Heading in the direction of Wickenburg I figured we'd roll East out into the desert on Scenic Loop just south of the big spurs round-about on 93 so that's what we did.  Kelly, Pheebs, & I had done this road one time about 3 years ago but I couldn't remember where it lead to.  No matter, it was just a nice scenic morning for a drive with all the big blustery looking clouds in the sky. 

THERE'S A COUPLE RIGS BOONDOCKING TOP CENTER

Travelled ourselves slowly about 5 miles in a southwesterly direction before coming to the Boyd Ranch & a couple 'No Trespassing' signs.  Had been hoping to come across a road heading West in the direction of Wickenburg because by now I had me a destination in mind.  I didn't tell Pheebs though or she would have been flying around inside the Jeep upside down.


Turning around at the 'No Trespassing' sign we retraced our steps back along Scenic Loop Road to where I knew I could make a left turn onto Rincon Road.   I was on familiar turf now having just come this way from the opposite direction a few days ago.  Turning left again off Rincon Road into a dry wash I knew I was on Blue Tank Road which would eventually lead to Constellation Road which in turn would take us to our destination on highway 93 in the town of Wickenburg. 

THERE'S NO LETTING PHEEBS OUT HERE WITH ALL THE THAT NASTY TEDDY BEAR CHOLLA AROUND

HAD TO BE VERY CAREFUL WHERE I STEPPED AMONG ALL THES TEDDY BEAR CHOLLA.....ONE INATTENTIVE MOMENT & IT WOULD BE PAIN CITY!!

THE LONG WINDING DOWNHILL JEEP ROAD LEADING TO WICKENBURG

How nice again this morning to simply lolly-gag along at our own pace with windows down &  heater going just watching cloud shadows of all shapes lazily drifting along the mountain sides.  That's something one never gets to see in flat country.  Not another vehicle did we encounter on our Jeep road journey until we descended out of Wickenburg's surrounding hills down into the town.  But oh my how the traffic on highway 93 was so fierce as we traveled the short distance to our destination...........& Pheebs didn't suspect a thing.

MOTORING  THROUGH A DRY SANDY RIVER BED

It was Burger King's drive-thru that gave it away.  Pheebs is attuned to any kind of a drive-thru place & soon as I rolled up to the voice box the jig was up & she was all excited.  Got ourselves a Whopper with small fries & slid around to an end parking lot.  It was 11:45 a.m. & no Pheebs does not ever get any fries or parts of the bun.  Just a few small chunks of the meat paddy.

THIS LARGE PALM TREE OASIS STANDS DIRECTLY ACROSS THE ROAD FROM BURGER KING ON THE BANKS OF THE HASSAYAMPA RIVER

Half an hour later we rolled back through our gates & we were once again home after another enjoyable exploratory Jeep ride.  I'm thinking maybe next time we'll head ourselves on over to the Vulture Mountain Range & see if we can pick us up a few Jeep roads around Vulture Peak.  I hear there are some nice roads over that-a-way. 

WICKENBURG IS DEFINITELY CATTLE & HORSE COUNTRY

BIG SPURS CENTERPIECE FOR WICKENBURG'S NORTHERNMOST ROUND-A-BOUT ON HIGHWAY 93

Kelly's new Lenova laptop arrived on the UPS truck Friday afternoon so she was a busy Gal today getting it all set up.  Of course there were the usual bugs & glitches but she just kept at it dealing with each new set-up problem as it cropped up.  Oh what I wouldn't give to have just a tenth of her patience.  And of course all of her smarts too.................
 

GROANER'S CORNER:(( I met a guy who’s a walking economy.   The front of his hair is in recession, his stomach is a terrible victim of inflation, and the combination together are putting him into a deep depression!! 

----------
Harry walked over to the Priest after services, “You know Father, I am really stuck in a quandary I would like to attend church next week but I just can’t miss the big game next Sunday, it’s just out of the question.” “Oh Harry Harry” said the Priest putting his arm around Harry, “don’t you know? that’s what recorders are for.” Harry’s face lit up “you mean I could record your sermon?”---------------
------------
Two guys were playing golf, one of them was about to swing the golf club when he noticed a funeral procession going by on the street. The man stopped in mid-swing and closed his eyes and said a short prayer. The other man truly inspired, remarked, clearing his throat, “wow that was one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen.” “Well”, the other man said “I was married to her for 35 years.”

ONGOING LIVE WRITER, GOOGLE, & BLOGGER PROBLEMS

With the current problems going on with Google, Live Writer, & Blogger I've decided to just take a blog break & wait to see if & when they resolve their issues.  I've tried adding photos to Blogger but it just doesn't work.  Could be a Win 10 glitch I don't know.  Also tried the new 'Open Live Writer' & that returned error messages as well.  Anyway I don't feel like fighting with it so a blog break it is.............................. 

WE SEEM TO BE GOING THROUGH SOME KIND OF AN ADJUSTMENT PERIOD

======================================================================
Kept getting an error message when I tried to publish my post tonight with Live Writer so don't know if it's just me or everybody is having a problem.  I am using Blogger right now & when I tried adding tonight's photos it didn't seem to work so I'll try publishing this post with no photos. I'll keep trying to publish with Live Writer as usual so you may see this same post again only next time with my photos from today...........................
======================================================================
With gardening tools & a step ladder loaded into my wheelbarrow I headed my way over to our backyard neighbors place shortly after 9 a.m.  We have only ever seen our fellow Canadian neighbor from Alberta once since we bought the house in March of 2012 & he was only at his house 3 days.  But that’s Okay I like it that nobody is there. 

He did mention in an email last month that he’s thinking of selling his place because he’s so busy with his job in Alberta he never can get down here.  Of course we are hoping he doesn’t sell it simply because it’s nice not having anyone living behind us & we have free access to his property which is about 3 acres with a lovely stand of Joshua trees on it.  His driveway goes in right beside our south fence so not having neighbors vehicles coming & going in & out of that lane is a bonus us well.

At his request I am continuing the landscape maintenance of his property & I don’t mind doing that as long as the house & property remain vacant.  Well the property wasn’t quite vacant this morning & I did have some unexpected help when 4 individuals showed up.  They weren’t the 2 legged kind of helpers though so I didn’t mind them pitching in.

Concentrated my efforts on trimming 4 very overgrown Palo Verde trees around the back of the fellas house.  Branches from one tree were thick & growing onto the side of his house.  That’s all taken care of now.  Picked me up a new Bow Saw blade at TSC a couple days ago so it made my sawing of tree limbs much quicker & easier.  So nice to work away in the quiet morning air all by myself.  Had the neighbor been there I probably wouldn’t have gone over & trimmed the trees.  For me it’s all about just working away at my own pace by myself with no interruptions.  It’s pretty much always been that way through my working life.  Jobs where I worked alone were the jobs I always enjoyed most.  Guess it was one of the things that attracted me to so many driving jobs over the years.

I again didn’t push myself beyond my 2 hour limit so by 11 with the sun getting hotter I loaded my wheelbarrow back up & headed down the lane to a gate in our backyard.  Kelly had some lunch fixed up so that was a bonus.  Needless to say I didn’t do much for the rest of the afternoon.  Amazing how tired one can get when one is so out shape for this kind of physical work.

We still haven’t decided when or where to go with the Motorhome for our first winter side trip yet & we both seem to be dragging our feet on any travel plans.  As alluded to in several earlier posts our thinking has shifted somewhere in these past 8 months or so & I’m not just sure how or why that has happened but our thought patterns & priorities seem to be in a bit of an odd scramble as of late.  And not just me, Kelly as well.  I think our decision to sell our Congress house last summer then the gradual reversal of that decision once we arrived in Arizona points to a few uncertainties in our lives at the moment.  I hesitate to say it has anything to do with aging but of course I know it most definitely does.  Priorities & interests change as we move through our lives & it is a perfectly natural progression.  It is the transitioning & acceptance part of change that is sometimes the greatest challenge & the hardest to understand.  We are definitely going through some kind of an adjustment……………….

GROANER’S CORNER:(( 
Q: What room has no walls
A: A mushroom!
Q. What did the egg say to the frying pan?
A. “You crack me up”
Q. How do you communicate with a fish?
A. You drop it a line
Q. What did one eye say to the other?
A. Between me and you something smells.
Q. What is smarter than a talking bird?
A. A spelling bee

Someday you may lose your hair, you may lose your teeth, your money and even lose your mind. But one thing you will never lose – your good looks, coz you can never lose what you don’t have!

JEEP PROBLEMS ARE NOW FIXED & A VISIT WITH MIKE & PAT McFALL THIS AFTERNOON

I didn’t mind having to return to Wickenburg this morning.  Always enjoy taking in the South-west scenery as it rolls by my window.  And amazingly enough I even remembered to take my Kindle.  Had me a hankerin for some pancakes so stopped again at McDonalds & had me a sit down breakfast.   Jones Ford/Jeep is less than a mile from McDonalds & I was there well before my 10 o’clock appointment.  Went straight away to the waiting room & immersed myself into some Kindle reading.  Straight On Till Morning continues to hold my interest.

I’m afraid the next 3 hours turned my brain to mush as my ears were continuously assaulted by one loud jangling game show after another on an overhead overloud big screen TV.  I was soooooo glad to finally get out of there away from all those annoying bells & buzzers made so much worse by the zany frenzied hollering & yelling that goes along with those types of shows.  At least the fan motor & rear side window in the Jeep are fixed now but oh my at what cost.  Between the game show & repair bill trauma I felt totally drained by the time I arrived home.

Ivan has made it once again from the wilds of Alberta Canada to the Clark Dry Lake Bed east of Borrego Springs California.  He has wheels on the ground there right now & an update on what’s going on.  Borrego Springs ‘Booners’ might want to check out Ivan’s observations.

Had been thinking of & wanting to see Mike & Pat McFall since we arrived here last month.  We just wanted to visit with Mike & Pat themselves as opposed to the usual ‘happy hour’ time.    Both Mike & Pat have been battling serious medical problems these last years & life for them is now no longer what it once was.  Appreciated them giving us an hour & a half of their time this afternoon & I was glad we got to know them both a bit better today.

GROANER’S CORNER:((  I get enough exercise everyday just pushing my luck!