TODAY I BEGAN READING ‘PARTY OF ONE: A LONER’S MANIFESTO’

FEMALE CARDINAL THIS MORNING

Had forgot to turn Big EEE’s furnace switch to ‘on’ Sunday night but no matter, our desert night only dropped to a balmy 50 degrees so Pheebs & I remained nicely comfortable.  The little Princess slept on the couch.  Outside water tap was forgotten as well so had to slip outside in my P.J.’s & give the faucet a turn before I could dip my head in the sink.  Did remember to fire up our hot water heater Sunday night though.  Bonus:))

AM GUESSING THIS FELLER TO BE A NORTHERN FLICKER IN OUR MESQUITE TREE THIS MORNING

   

A few months back I downloaded nearly half a dozen free books to my Kindle.  First 2 after a couple dozen paragraphs or so didn’t appeal to me but a book by Canadian author Delwin Mark Clark called, Does Anyone Remember Sundown Slim caught my wandering attention & held it captive long enough for me to finish his book.  Not my usual reading fare I thought but it was his writing style, simplicity of story, & memories it evoked of a young boy soon to be a man growing up back in the 50’s somewhere in British Columbia that drew me in.  Not often I read fiction anymore but I did enjoy this book.  To me his fiction spoke truth.  My next read began today with Party Of One: The Loner's Manifesto.   Already after only reading for half an hour I am thinking, ‘why didn’t I read this book years ago!!  But no matter, I’m reading it now & I am a happy reader thinking to myself…..'Aha I knew it all along’.  I particularly liked this ladies blogsite thoughts on the book…Live From Planet Paola. I could so identify when she writes, “The Internet is, for loners, an absolute and total miracle”.  Amen to that I say & I do feel I am a prime example of what this lady says:))

GAMBLE’S QUAIL

No doubt about it……certainly is nice to be hooked up to an unlimited water & electricity supply.  Although we are solar equipped our rig does have it’s limits.  Even with nicer comforts it still isn’t enough to make us seek out RV Parks while traveling.  Not unless of course we were the Parks only occupants.  We just don’t care for that close proximity of neighboring RV’ers just a few feet away,  people noise, or looking out a window seeing walled sides of other RV’s right there in our field of view.  Soon as we step out our door Pheebs has to be on a leash & that right there is a big no-no for us.  I do well understand dogs having to be leashed in tight communities & not be running willy-nilly through people’s sites so we just stay away from places where those kinds of rules are in effect.  RV Parks have their place & serve a great purpose to countless RV’ers.  Without them many people would not be able to travel.  We have actually stayed in a few nice RV Parks over the years & what made them acceptable for us to stay there was the fact it was off season & in all cases we were practically the only one’s there.  If we did have to stay in an RV Park setting for any length of time we would seek out State Parks.  They seem to be more nature oriented & sites are often roomier & maybe not as crowded.  We’re just not into the pools, hot tubs, clubhouse events, etc. etc.  Nice for folks who like all that stuff of course but just not our cup of tea.

I feel like such a big meanie every time I climb up our aluminum ladder to swoop more nesting materials off our side slide top.  A pair of Cactus Wrens keep flying in with grasses & small twigs trying to get a comfy feathered nest built & me the big old party pooper keeps thwarting their well & natural intentions.  I was up & down our aluminum ladder 4 times today sweeping out more nesting material.

CACTUS WREN

Have to say I spent most of my very relaxing day in our Motorhome just quietly reading, listening to music by Will Ackerman & a continuous chorus of cheerful birds outside my door.  Sun beaming through windows made for a warm coach while opened windows brought in cooling breezes.  I knew Leslie & Peter were preferring to do just about the same thing I was doing & just savor these warm Arizona days pursuing their favorites as well such as reading & relaxing.  Again, I am so fortunate my Kindle has drawn & enabled me to return once again after soooooo many years away to take up one my oldest favorite hobbies from years ago…..reading.  A big personal thanks to in this particular case………..technology:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A woman called the dean of the college that her freshman son was going to. "I'm worried. I don't know who my son can hang out with. He doesn't have the kind of money all the other students have."
“In that case”, the dean replied, "He can hang out with the faculty."

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Just in case our Commander-In-Chief decides to recall any of us military retirees, I have been trying on the old uniforms. I want to be ready.  So far only the socks fit.

OUR COMPANY ARRIVES AS PHEEBS & I LATER SETTLE IN FOR A SURREAL SUNDAY NIGHT IN THE BIG EEE:))

WE SURE HAVE A LOT OF SAGUAROS IN OUR NEIGHBORHOOD

First order of business this morning was moving my stuff from house to rig.  Shirts, socks, cereal, a case of peanut butter & a barrel of honey, milk, cranraspberry juice, Sirius satellite radio, Ipod, Bose boombox, etc. etc.  Not a lot of stuff but just enough to keep me comfortable for 5 nights while our company is here.  Did the same thing last couple years when Peter & Leslie came to visit as well as when Aunt Jean was here 2 winters ago.  Works well & I actually like hanging out by myself with Pheebs in the rig.  We’re like a coupla kids in a tree house Fort:))

PHEEBS LIKES TO LEAVE TOYS ON MY PILLOW SOME MORNINGS & I NEVER KNOW WHO I WILL FIND THERE…THIS MORNING IT WAS ‘SHUSTER THE ROOSTER’

A warm sunny relaxing low 70’s day when our company rolled in late this afternoon.  After spending a couple days in Las Vegas & touring Valley Of Fire Saturday it was time for them to slow down their pace for some R & R right here in our own dusty little western whistle stop of a town, Congress Arizona.  Where the desert breeze meets the mountain air.

JUST ROLLED IN AS KELLY HELPS BROTHER PETER WITH SOME LUGGAGE

 

HOW’S THIS FOR VALET SERVICE…OK, OK, I DID PUT MY CAMERA DOWN LONG ENOUGH TO CARRY IN A SUITCASE

KELLY, LESLIE, PETER, & THE FABULOUS PHEEBS WITH HER FRISBEE

 

GETTING CAUGHT UP ON ALL THE BACK HOME SPENCERPORT NEW YORK NEWS

Ever mindful of changing laws between our two countries our good friend & long time reader Don from Brandon Manitoba sent us this article which is of particular interest to Canadian Snowbirds.  Canadians Going To U.S. Need To Be Mindful Of Changes.   These seemingly changing chameleon like laws always seem to be an uncertain area of thinking for many RV folks. 

 

I AM HAVING QUITE A TIME WITH ONE OF OUR FINE FEATHERED LOCALS…KEEPS TRYING TO BUILD A NEST ATOP OUR SLIDE UNDER THE SLIDE COVER & I HAVE TO KEEP CLIMBING UP & UNBUILDING IT

Our first trip to Quartzsite Arizona was back in January of 2007 & we have been to or been through that little place every year since & sometimes 2 or 3 times a season.  We’ve done the big tent crowds, walked our legs off on seemingly endless miles of vendor’s stalls, probably dropped close to a thousand dollars there over the years, ate at most of the places including the 4 o’clock .25 cent hamburger joint.  Wonder if they still do that.  Been around to Quartzsite’s sightseeing places including the naked bookseller.  While boondocked in the desert south of Quartzsite we had a new awning put on our Damon one time plus had our Legacy Blue Flame heater hooked up we bought at Grannys.  Even had a honey wagon dump our gray & black tanks plus fill our fresh water tank out in the boonies one time as well.   Took out our Damon’s dinette, tub chair, & couch selling all that stuff to ‘The Gambler’ in town.  We’ve toughed out big winds & freezing cold nights.  Been rained on & scorched on as well.  One day we had to move 3 times because of other rigs parking too close to us.  (if you appear as a speck in my binoculars you are too damn close)  A couple years ago we bought an RV in the Q but let’s not go there.  For us Quartzsite now is just a quiet little whistle stop on our way to Borrego Springs, Yuma, or Arizona’s Kofa mountains.  And that’s just how we prefer the Q.  A place to pick up some gas, a coffee & a bite to eat at McDonalds before shoving off down the road.  No more mosh pit crowds for us, that novelty wore off a long time ago.  I did get a kick out of Doug & Yuma's Post when they both ventured into the Q Saturday.  His thoughts were mine exactly the first time Kelly & I went there.  What a zoo!!  But having said that I’m glad we did go all those times we did.  Gave us something to do, provided some excitement & enabled us to get a few things done with our coach that needed doing.  It was a good learning experience but neither one of us has a desire to go back & be a part of all those jostling crowds anymore.  Thanks for the memories Quartzsite:))

ALWAYS A LOT OF OLD RELICS AROUND FORMER MINING TOWN SITES

And speaking of Quartzsite: ‘Attention All Bloggers’!!!! This coming Saturday will mark the first ever 2015 Blogger-Fest.  The folks over at Just Wanderin in conjunction with a few other like minded RV Blogger’s will be hosting a get together Saturday January 24th from 1:30 to 3:30.  The folks from Wanderin say GPS coordinates & directions will be posted January 20th.  They went on to say, “This year we’ll be meeting at the end of  Plomosa Road.  Coordinates will soon follow as well as detailed directions but you’ll be able to tell you’re in the right place when you see all the yellow balloons”.  Plomosa Road mile marker 2.8.

It is Sunday night & I just can’t tell you how nice it is sitting here cozily in our Motorhome at my keyboard.  Favorite ambient tunes quietly wafting from my Ipod Bose beside me on a table.  Pheebs asleep on the couch lost in a world of wistfully delightful doggy dreams.  Soft lighting feathers down touching Toshiba’s keys lightly enough for me to see them.  Two warming candles flicker in a distant darkened corner.  It is one of those special moments where life’s memories come together just long enough to give me a fleeting moment of rare surreal calm & wellness with all.  How fortunate I am tonight to be a part of who I am……. 

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A friend of mine had resisted efforts to get him to run with our jogging group until his doctor told him he had to exercise. Shortly thereafter, he reluctantly joined us for our 5:30 AM jogs on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.  After a month of running, we decided that my friend might be hooked, especially when he said, "I've discovered what 'runner's euphoria' is."
When we questioned this he explained, "Runner's euphoria is what I experience at 5:30 AM on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays."

SUNDAY MORNING I MOVE OUT OF THE HOUSE :((…..:))

 

I liked Gaelyn’s thoughts when she wrapped up her latest post with the words “I’m not lost, just following an unfamiliar path”.  She ends her first paragraph with a question I’m sure we all can identify with, “I lost my way for a while.  Adjusting to the lack of direction.  Feeling on the edge of anxiety, what to do, where to GO.  Not life threatening mind you.  Not for the first time in my life.  Has this happened to you along life’s journey”?  My one word answer to Gaelyn would be a resounding ‘YES’.

Nice to see how well Doug over at Miss Adventure Travels & new bestest Pal Yuma are getting along & bonding so well.  I believe it was love at first sight for both these two & how heart warming to see things going so well between a man & his beloved dog:)) 

ONE LITTLE FELLA TAKES OFF & GAINS ALTITUDE WHILE ANOTHER COMES IN WITH FLAPS DOWN FOR A LANDING ON THE FEEDER

A few days ago I welcomed our latest Blog Follower Jan Mains to our travels but couldn’t find a blogsite for her on Google +.  Jan in a follow-up comment sent her & husband Bill’s site which is, Bill and Jan RVing the USA.  It seems Jan took a nasty tumble off a ladder just a few days after Christmas while putting Christmas decorations away & has severely shattered her heel which she has been told could take up to a year to mend.  Not the best way to start 2015 I’d say.

<<< GAMBLE QUAIL MALE

Sue B from BIGDAWG AND FREEWAY in a comment said, “nice looking cookies!..they must be for 'company”.  Sue hit the nail right on the head there.  Our company arrives Sunday & they are big cookie eaters for sure.  Of course Pheebs & I are moving out before Peter & Leslie arrive so I won’t be bothered by all those cookies around. (Peter is Kelly’s brother)  Not moving too far of course, just into our Motorhome till week’s end while Leslie & Peter use my bedroom with it’s big Queen size bed.  I’m looking forward to some nice alone time.  My TV my time, my music my time.  No music or TV my time as well.  My decisions, my priorities, my pleasures, my quiet.  And people just yards away if I’m needing a people fix.  When on the road traveling I usually find those people fixes by walking through a Walmart store for 20 minutes.  After that Walmart walk I usually need another 6 weeks to pull my frazzled nerves back together.  But those are Walmart walks & not Peter & Leslie:))

GAMBLE QUAIL FEMALE >>>

Kelly cooked up a big turkey yesterday & this morning I got put on carcass clean-up duty.  It was my first time doing this most unsavory & very greasy task & I was glad to hear Kelly say, “this is the last BIG turkey we will buy, too much work”!!  Up to my elbows in turkey grease I was glad to hear that which suits me fine just in case I would ever get stuck doing carcass clean-up again.  Sure am glad I have no interest in all that cooking stuff.  I’d sooner be outside playing in a pile of dirt any day.

  

GILA WOODPECKER LANDS ON OUR BIRD BATH FOR A DRINK

<<< THIS LOOKS LIKE A DOUBLE LANDING ON A NARROW RUNWAY

Took ourselves for a short 4 minute drive out to the end of Ghost Town Road again where we were a few days ago & had us a little rock scramble through, over, & around some boulders, Saguaros, & Palo Verde trees & lots of Prickly Pear Cactus.  From a distance we had spotted tell-tale signs of a mining dig & were curious to have a closer look at that.  Took us a wee bit of hiking but soon we were standing at the entrance of a mine shaft going straight into a Saguaro filled hillside.  I approached the entrance but stopped short when I picked up a faint but distinct animal smell.  Could be a Coyote den or maybe a Bobcat.  Not likely a Mountain Lion in these parts though.  Soft sand nearby showed small hoof prints & I knew they were not deer. Our suspicions immediately turned to Javelinas.  Those suspicions minutes later were confirmed when Kelly spotted 2 Javelinas moving through a patch of underbrush nearby.  We made sure Pheebs stayed right close to us as we continued our hike around the immediate area.  Probably spent close to an hour looking at things before returning back down Ghost Town Road to our house only minutes away.  It was nice to get out & grab a little leg exercise & enjoy today’s warming temperatures.

KELLY POINTS SOMETHING OUT IN THE DISTANCE

 

WE DID HAVE US A WEE BIT OF A ROCK SCRAMBLE THROUGH THESE BOULDERS

JEEP IN THE CENTER WITH CONGRESS AZ IN THE BACKGROUND

 

AN OLD MINE SHAFT ON THIS PIECE OF PROPERTY

IT WAS HERE I STOPPED WHEN I DETECTED A FAINT ANIMAL SMELL COMING FROM THE OLD MINE SHAFT

And what the heck’s going on over in Dardenne Prairie these days.  Well let’s just say Rigg’s is a bit upset & had this to say today, “For over a year I was the top dog, I was the only dog, then you allowed Sadie to come live with us”.  “Everything was going along just fine, WHY WHY did you let them bring Charlie to live with us”?.  Oh Dear sounds like Riggs is having a time of it over at Sam & Donna's House these days & they’ve got some funny pics of all the shenanigans too.

  

THESE TWO LITTLE CHAPS ARE ON FINAL APPROACH FOR THE BIRD FEEDER

Our weather has turned around nicely with sunny days & temperatures reaching 70 today.  I have also been keeping an eye on the temperatures & weather in California’s Mojave National Preserve & it’s looking good over that-a-way as well.  I’m hoping we can head up there around the end of this month.  It’s an area we have never been to before & because of the time of year I’m hoping there will not be too many if any people around.  Checking my Atlas I noticed this Preserve is only a hop, skip, & a jump from Death Valley National Park so that is another option for us.  We have been to & through Death Valley several times before but there’s a whole lot there we have never seen. 

GROANER’S CORNER:(( The personnel manager was impressing an applicant with a prospective job.
"We make parts for microscopes. You'll be required to work with lenses that are ten-thousandths of an inch thick."  "I can handle it," the applicant said, "I used to slice meat in a delicatessen."

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When he received a journal as a gift, my eight-year-old son was mystified. "Mom, what am I supposed to do with this? The pages are blank."  "You write down interesting stuff that happens to you," I said.  "Oh so it's like a blog on paper."

FACE TO FACE WITH TEMPTATION IN OUR KITCHEN!!

Aside from cleaning up our Jeeps interior, cleaning half of the Big EEE’s windows (north side only because of sun) & a smattering of other puttering about stuff our day remained rather uneventful.  Could have washed the Jeep but figured what’s the point it’ll just get all dusted up again anyway.  We don’t have the types of neighbors here who care about who has the shiniest car on the block anyway so we fit right in quite nicely with the locals:))

Set my telescope up today in anticipation of having a look at Comet Lovejoy tonight but with Lovejoy being nearly straight overhead my telescope mounted on my camera tripod will not tip back far enough for me to look straight up.  I had forgot about that but while I had it set up I did have myself a look around at a few other hot spots in the night sky such as Orion’s Nebulae.  Cool.

HOPE AT LEAST SOME OF THESE ALOE PLANTS I DUG INTO THE GROUND A FEW DAYS AGO SURVIVE >>>

Additional info on Jeep headlights……. Both lights were installed brand spanking new back on October 20th last year.  They are Wegner lights & the passenger side light quit working in less than 2 months.  Replaced it Thursday with a Sylvania light.  No idea if it is a better light or not it’s just what they sold us at O’Reilly Auto Parts in Wickenburg.

 

PLANTED MYSELF ANOTHER JOSHUA TREE THIS MORNING

I heard a familiar diesel engine rattling up Ghost Town Road about mid afternoon & figured that would be today’s UPS truck.  I figured right as it rolled up to our gate with a fella jumping out box in hand containing 2 brand new KC fog lights for our Jeep.  Later pulling them out of a plain brown box I thought they looked sooooo shiny new & our little Jeep looked sooooo dustily old.  When I get those sparkly new fog lights put on I will have to dump a bucket of road dirt over them to blend each light in with Jeepers cool & gravely country road demeanor.

 

 NEW FOG LIGHTS WILL MOUNT WHERE THE OLD ONES ARE NOW

THANKS MR. UPS GUY

I did face a rather dicey dilemma in our kitchen this afternoon though which did require a quick & correct decision on my part.  Kelly had been busy with kitchen things earlier & when I walked into the house at one point I was instantly aware of a most wonderful smell.  Into our kitchen I walked & there spread out on our counter were stacks upon stacks of freshly baked & still warm chocolate chip cookies.  Dozens of them I figure.  Of course my first impulse was to get as many of those cookies into my face as quick as possible before Kelly returned from wherever it was she was at.  Therein of course rested my dilemma.  Caught myself before succumbing to temptation long enough to give me pause.  I knew right off if I ate just one cookie my addictive nature would immediately kick in & I would have of course needed 10 more cookies right away.  If one cookie tastes so good just think how great nine more would taste.  Nope, for me the answer came back as an immediate NO!!  Knowing myself as I occasionally do there would be no eating of cookies today.  Had to pass on the tummy yummers & go eat an orange.  I’m still holding my weight under 200 pounds & I don’t want to mess that up.  I did have an ice cream cone a few weeks ago while at the Peanut Patch in Yuma but I knew that ice cream cone would not set off my addiction.  A cookie would!!

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A father picked up his six year old girl from Sunday School and asked. "What did you learn today?"  "Daddy, I learned about Jonah."  "What did you you learn about Jonah, sweetheart."  "He was swallowed by a big fish and ..... and lived there for three days and then .... then the big fish spit him up on the beach ..... alive," she replied.  "Now sweetheart," he said, "you don't believe that that really happened, do you?''  "Yes ... yes ... I do Daddy, it's true, it's true."  "Why do you believe it's true."  "Because the Bible says it is so it's true, it's true, Daddy."  "Well, sweetie, what if you're wrong and it's not true?"  "Daddy, I'll just have to ask Jonah when I get to heaven."  "But sweetie. If it isn't true, maybe Jonah isn't in heaven. What if he is in hell."  Then, Daddy, you will have to ask him!"

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- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.