Wednesday, November 16, 2016

BUMPING ALONG UP SHORT SHARP GRAVELY GRADES AND TUMBLING DOWN THROUGH DRY SANDY GULLEYS

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Our day dawned with a high cloud cover and a slight drop in morning temperatures giving the early part of our day a bit of a gloomy look.  Knowing sunshine is best for bringing out the desert colors I couldn’t decide what to do this morning but with Pheebs following me around everywhere about 2 inches behind me I figured I’d better take her for a Jeep ride somewhere. 

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KIND OF A GLOOMY LOOKING GRAY DAY AS WE MAKE OUR WAY AROUND THE EAST SIDE OF WICKENBURG AZ

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VULTURE PEAK ABOUT A DOZEN MILES ON THE HORIZON WITH WICKENBURG IN THE FOREGROUND ABOUT HALF A DOZEN MILES AWAY

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OUR MORNING’S DRIVE WILL TAKE US RIGHT ON DOWN THERE THROUGH THOSE HILLS THEN OFF TO THE LEFT

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THE DRY SANDY RIVER BED OF THE HASSAYAMPA RIVER HEADING INTO WICKENBURG’S SOUTHEAST SIDE

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After washing Libby a couple days ago I knew she was looking way too shiny for rural Arizona so we headed off in the direction of Wickenburg.  Figured we’d take the long way around the east side of Wickenburg to McDonalds in the South end.  Hauled ourselves off highway 93 & headed east on good old dusty Scenic Loop Drive and that pretty much took care of Libby’s shine in short order.  This is a route Pheebs and I have traveled many times both ways so there wasn’t a whole lot of new anything for us to see and with overcast skies the desert colors certainly were not poppin.

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Always nice to be off the paved roads and out of the maniac ‘go-fast’ traffic.  Bumping along up short sharp gravely grades and tumbling down through dry sandy gulleys we took in the surrounding desert scenery with a couple leg stretch stops thrown in along the way.  Not one vehicle did we see in the 40 minutes we spent winding our way southward through the Saguaros, Mesquite, and Palo Verde trees.  Bonus.

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SURE IS NICE FOR US GUYS TO BE BACK IN SAGUARO LAND AGAIN

Had it in mind to grab us a couple McDonald Burritos and a coffee and that is exactly what we did after swinging way around Wickenburg and coming into McD’s the backway from the South.  Sitting in the parking lot we shared one Burrito and agreed to save the other one for later.

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FROM SOUTH OF WICKENBURG I SPOTTED THE DATE CREEK MOUNTAINS ON THE DISTANT HORIZON NEARLY 20 MILES AWAY AND AT THE FOOT OF THOSE MOUNTAINS IS OUR LITTLE BURG OF CONGRESS ARIZONA

From McDonalds we whirled ourselves half way around a big round-a-bout then swung us down the main street of Wickenburg heading for the TSC store at the other end of town.  Needed some birdseed.  Boy those 50 pound bags of birdseed seem to be getting heavier each year.  What are they doing, putting concrete blocks in the bottoms of the bags or what.  We were back home before 11.

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HEADING WEST ON WICKENBURG’S MAIN STREET

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HEY WITH THOSE PALM TREES IT’S KINDA LOOKING LIKE SARASOTA FLORIDA HERE:))

Skies finally cleared a wee bit and with a nice cool breeze blowing I was energized enough to tackle a few outside tasks.  Aired up the wheelbarrow tire and off I went moving some dirt around.  Trimmed some Mesquite and Palo Verde branches for awhile and by 1 o’clock I was back inside enjoying my cool cushy recliner.

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WICKENBURG’S SOUTHERN MOST ROUND-A-BOUT HAS THIS COWBOY AND HORSE STATUE AS IT’S CENTERPIECE…..THERE ARE 3 ROUND-A-BOUTS ON HIGHWAY 93 BY-PASSING WICKENBURG

It has taken nearly a week but we are both beginning to feel slightly normal again now that we have had our feet on the ground for a few days.  As you well know we have a house to sell and some of our time has been taken up with regards to that.  I’m not going to blog about what is or isn’t going on because I did that last March and things backfired on old Mr. Blabberfingers here and I don’t want to make that same mistake again.  Just know that we are moving forward with our original decision over a year ago to sell the house.  Right now we have no idea if we’ll still be here for another month or two or if we’ll still be here at the end of next March again.  No idea at all………………….

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TEDDY BEAR CHOLLAS ALTHOUGH LOOKING PRETTY ARE ABSOLUTELY DEADLY IF YOU BRUSH UP AGAINST ONE….IT LITERALLY EMBEDS ITSELF IN YOU CAUSING SOME VERY GREAT PAIN

Not a lot else going on for now so don’t be surprised if I come up short on a blog post or two over the next little while.  When I woke up this morning I thought maybe I would just skip tonight’s post but of course here I am blabbering on and on again.  If it’s an addiction I have then at least it is an enjoyable one:))

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OUR BACKYARD SUNSET TONIGHT

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A 60-year-old man went to a doctor for a check-up. The doctor told him, "You're in terrific shape. There's nothing wrong with you. Why, you might live forever; you have the body of a 35-year-old. By the way, how old was your father when he died?"  The 60-year-old responded, "Did I say he was dead?"  The doctor was surprised and asked, "How old is he and is he very active?"  The 60-year-old responded, "Well, he is 82 years old and he still goes skiing three times a season and surfing three times a week during the summer."  The doctor couldn't believe it! So he said, "Well, how old was your grandfather when he died?"  The 60-year-old responded again, "Did I say he was dead?"  The doctor was astonished. He said, "You mean to tell me you are 60 years old and both your father and your grandfather are alive? Is your grandfather very active?"  The 60-year-old said, "He goes skiing at least once a season and surfing once a week during the summer. Not only that," said the patient, "my grandfather is 106 years old, and next week he is getting married again."  The doctor said, "At 106 years why on earth would your grandfather want to get married?"  His patient looked up at the doctor and said, "Did I say he wanted to?"

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The owner of a small New York sandwich deli was being questioned by an IRS agent about his tax return. He had reported a net profit of $80,000 for the year.  "Why don't you people leave me alone?" the deli owner said. "I work like a dog, everyone in my family helps out, the place is only closed three days a year. And you want to know how I made $80,000?"  "It's not your income that bothers us," the agent said. "It's these travel deductions. You listed six trips to Florida for you and your wife."  "Oh, that," the owner said smiling. "It is a legitimate business expense because we also deliver."

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Tuesday, November 15, 2016

GRATEFUL FOR THESE QUIET RESTFUL DAYS WHICH ARE UPON US AT THE MOMENT

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ONLY PHOTOS I HAVE FOR TONIGHT’S POST ARE OF THE SUPER MOON SETTING BEHIND OUR HOUSE THIS MORNING

Our weather has been great here in Congress since arriving late last week.  Sunny Arizona skies with temps hovering around the low 80’s during the day.  A bit hot for me so anything I have to do outside I like to do before 10 a.m. or after 5 p.m.  Best part of hotter days are the wonderful warm nights they bring.  And of course the very much most best part of all is the dry air.  No humidity.  I can walk around without my clothes sticking to me and for me that is just the best.  Our temps will be dropping into the low 70’s shortly and that will be even more bestest for me:))

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Got myself into a bit of ‘hot water’ for this line in my Monday night post, “Kelly prefers walking around the neighborhood earlier in the morning with Pheebs and chatting it up with a few folks along the way”.  Kelly does prefer walking around the neighborhood with Pheebs in the morning but was quick to remind me ‘chatting it up with folks along the way’ is definitely not a priority for her.  She’s right of course and I should have worded my sentence more carefully.  My bad.

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We headed off to Wickenburg’s Safeway store first thing this morning in search of some groceraries.  I don’t mind grocery stores as long as the isles aren’t clogged with inattentive buzzed out shopping cart drivers.  I always try to pick a cart with a battering ram on the front and a big ‘Aaa-uuuuga’ horn on the side.  It works.  But OMG they had it soooooo cold in that Safeway store even the staff were huddled around half a dozen big candles in the meat department.  Grabbed a couple coffee’s at Charbucks on the way out and boy oh boy why do I keep buying that burnt tasting stuff anyway!!  I’m needing a good swift kick in the you know what to get myself smartened up about that Charbucks thing!!.  Kelly noticed a new ‘Goodwill’ store in the old Alco location so a quick stop there as Kelly slipped in and checked it out.  We were back home before 11 with a very happy little dog waiting at the door.  Her tail was wagging so vigorously even our 2 tall front yard Saguaros were bent half over from the resulting wind. 

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A special ‘Shout Out’ to Facebook users for their ‘likes’ regarding my blog posts from time to time.  Not a big Facebook person myself but I do see your ‘likes’ and I do thank you folks for that:))

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We had ourselves another gratefully quiet relaxing afternoon with nothing more going on than reading, listening to soothing music and managing to grab ourselves a few afternoon zzzzzz’s.  We are both very much appreciating these quiet much needed days that are upon us right now.  Are we too late to join a high mountain Tibetan Monastery and disappear from life forever…………..

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GROANER’S CORNER:((  A dog thinks: Hey, these people I live with feed me, love me, provide me with a nice warm, dry house, pet me, and take good care of me... They must be Gods!   A cat thinks: Hey, these people I live with feed me, love me, provide me with a nice warm, dry house, pet me, and take good care of me... I must be a God!

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Why did the Siamese twins visit England? They wanted to give the other twin a chance to drive!

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Knock Knock
Who's there?
Hacienda!
Hacienda who?
Hacienda the story!
Knock Knock
Who's there?
Hagar!
Hagar who?
Hagar, you with the stars in your eyes....!
Knock Knock
Who's there?
Haifa!
Haifa who?
Haifa cake is better than none!
Knock Knock
Who's there?
Hair!
Hair who?
Hair today, gone tomorrow!
Knock Knock
Who's there?
Haiti!
Haiti who?
Haiti see a good thing go to waste!

Monday, November 14, 2016

PHEEBS AND I KICKED OURSELVES UP A BIT OF DESERT DUST THIS MORNING

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KICKING UP A BIT OF DESERT DUST THIS MORNING

Six thirty a.m. this morning found me in my recliner feeling much better and watching another episode of Corner Gas my all time favorite half hour situation comedy.  I have seen all the episodes over the years 2,3, and 4 times but the gang still brings a smile to my face every time I see them.  Our satellite TV provider is Canadian based Shaw Direct so we do get a lot of Canadian programing here in Arizona and Corner Gas was a Canadian Production.

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A GREAT FEELING BEING BACK OUT ONTO THE DESERT ROADS AGAIN

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I had Pheebs in the Jeep by 8 and we headed out into the desert a block behind our house.  It is out here away from the paved streets and houses I prefer to walk with Pheebs.  Always quiet with Mother Nature providing us with all we want to see or hear.  No people noise.  We generally drive for a bit then get out and take ourselves for a walk and this morning we did what we generally do.  How nice to again be walking among the large Saguaros and green branches of the many Palo Verde trees.  Very slim chance of running into any people and for me that’s the best part of my walk.  Kelly prefers walking around the neighborhood earlier in the morning with Pheebs and chatting it up with a few folks along the way so it’s always a win/win situation for Pheebers because it often turns into a ‘two walk’ morning for her.DSC_0004

LEAVING THE JEEP PARKED UPPER RIGHT WE HEADED OFF WALKING

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SAGUAROS AND PALO VERDE TREES

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ALWAYS SO NICE TO BE IN THE LAND OF GIANT SAGUAROS WALKING AMONG THEM

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Not wanting to push my ‘feeling better’ too far we walked us around in a short half mile loop after parking the Jeep.  Only living thing we saw was a big black cow.  Because I was finally feeling better everything just looked so much nicer to me this morning.  When one is not feeling up to par often times their surroundings do not look as good as they normally do.  Well at least that’s how it is for me.

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ONE BIG BLACK COW

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ONE HAS TO BE ALWAYS VERY VIGILANT OF THE MANY THINGS IN THE DESERT THAT CAN JUMP OUT AND GIVE ONE A NASTY JAB

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Back home I slipped Libby around to the south side of the house in the Big EEE’s cool morning shadow, hauled out my bucket and hose and gave her a good wash.  The Jeep was quite a mess with lotsa road grime on it after being towed over 4000 miles.  Always amazes me how good vehicles look after a simple wash.  Kinda like people I guess.

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PURPLE CACTUS IN THE SONORAN DESERT

Sun was a tad warm for me to be plowing around outside doing yardwork so I kept myself in the nice cool house taking advantage of these relaxing days for right now. Did read for awhile on the front porch and actually dozed off for a bit waking up with my Kindle still in my hand open.  Finished that book about half an hour later.  It was about another one of Britain's fine young fighter pilots (Ginger Lacey) before, during and after the Battle Of Britain in the summer of 1940. 

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DROVE BY AUNT JEAN’S PILE OF BOULDERS

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JEAN’S BOULDERS WITH WICKENBURG’S VULTURE PEAK IN THE BACKGROUND TOP LEFT

Found out this afternoon from John in St. Thomas Ontario, fellow RV Blogger Ivan and Jan Hogeveen in Bayfield that actress Janet Wright has died.  Janet played Emma Leroy on my favorite situation comedy series Corner Gas which I had just watched earlier this morning.  Thank you Janet for all the good times you brought us as Dog River’s Emma Leroy.

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SHAKY MOONRISE WITH A HAND HELD 300MM LENS

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A FEW STEADIER HAND HELD 300MM SHOTS

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Sat on our front porch and watched the Super Moon come up over the Weaver Mountains for the second night in a row.  Just as awe inspiring as the Moonrise is also the same Moon setting in the West about 12 hours later.  I think most folks miss that.DSC_0006

GROANER’S CORNER:(( Late one night, a mugger wearing a ski mask jumped into the path of a well-dressed man and stuck a gun in his ribs. "Give me your money," he demanded. Indignant, the affluent man replied, "You can't do this - I'm a United States Congressman!"  "In that case," replied the mugger, "give me MY money!"

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A kindergarten teacher was observing her classroom of children while they drew. She would occasionally walk around to see each child's artwork. As she got to one little girl who was working diligently, she asked what the drawing was.  The girl replied, "I'm drawing God."  The teacher paused and said, "but no one knows what God looks like."  Without missing a beat, or looking up from her drawing the girl replied, "They will in a minute."