Thursday, April 07, 2011

A GOOD OLD SPRING YARD WORK DAY.....LOVE IT:))

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SO HAPPY TO SEE THAT WHITE STUFF GETTING OUT OF TOWN!!

My spirits were so lifted this morning when I caught the first glimpse of morning sunshine filtering through the pine trees.  Whenever we return from our winters in the southwest I always seem to go through a post trip blues state with this year being a rather bit too bluesy.  I think it was all the snow & cold rainy days plus road lag from our hurried trip home.   If we even remotely think of, or I write something about coming home before April 15th next year I want someone out there to seek us out, hunt us down & come give me a darn good swift kick in the ass!!!!  And yes, I know I used the 'A' word!!

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SO NICE TO BE SURROUNDED BY THE COLOR GREEN AGAIN:)) 
With that ‘butt’ thought in mind I took mine outside this morning & began the big Spring clean up.  Can’t tell you how much that improved my attitude just being out in the fresh air doing something physically productive finally.  Love to get on the end of a lawn rake & a wheelbarrow.  So gratifying to begin making visible progress on the yard mess.  Great to feel the muscles getting a little sore, a little tight & a little tired.  I love dat feeling:))  Still patches of snow on the ground but I was able to work around them.  The snow load off our roof in the back yard is another story & I figure another 2 weeks before that is all melted.  We hit a high around 55F under sunny skies so it ended up a very productive outside day.
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THIS BLONK OF ICE & SNOW ON OUR FRONT DECK CAME OFF OUR ROOF & WAS NEARLY TWICE THIS SIZE A WEEK AGO

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TODAY I WAS ABLE TO FINALLY CHOP IT UP & SHOVE IT OFF THE DECK...A LOT OF WEIGHT THERE
From nostalgia in Seligman Arizona to lunch on the banks of the Colorado River to a lone Rattlesnake getting close.  JOE & NANCY are having themselves a fine time in their new Jeep Wrangler exploring Arizona’s unendingly beautiful landscape.  As Joe says, “Doesn't get any better I don't reckon.”  And in my opinion he is so right:))

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FRONT YARD IS SLOWLY EMERGING FROM WINTER'S SIBERIAN LANDSCAPE

For all you horse people out there, be sure to check out John’s post over at THROUGH GATES OF GRACE about their visit to the Kentucky Horse Park just outside of Lexington, Kentucky.
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<<< WE CAN STILL SKATE ON THE FROG POND

Two new Followers to welcome today.  Andy Altes has joined us as well as Mary Jo at LIFE IS A DANCE.  Welcome aboard folks:))

And, a few more questions from readers......  A couple people noticed a photo in Wednesday’s blog showing Kelly walking with 5 dogs.  This was taken while we were ranch sitting near McNeal Arizona & the two black dogs on each side of Kelly are the Ranch dogs.  That’s Gleason on the left & Pearce on the right.  Both dogs were named after area ghost towns.  And of course the other three Desperados are our very own Bayfield Bums.  Another reader wonders about boon docking sites near Bayfield.  Unfortunately, boon docking is a relatively unknown word up here in this Canada place.  Best & most abundant boon docking sites are in Arizona & California.  Seems the further east one goes, the less land for free camping.  In our area I know of no place where people can boon dock.  If it isn’t Crown Land up here, it is farm land.  With our boon docking preferences we ourselves would likely find it hard traveling in Canada finding quiet free out of the way places to stay.  I’m sure there probably are some spots but we are not familiar with them.  Ontario & Arizona are two different planets & I will blog about why I think that is shortly.
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MIGHT JUST GET ALL THE BIRD FEEDERS UP & RUMBLING TOMORROW TOO 

Phil wondered about my mention of a Mini Minor in Wednesdays blog.  Did I mean a Morris Minor?  Well, actually both terms are correct…MORRIS MINI MINOR.   I actually had two of them & one had the starter button under the driver’s seat.

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THERE IS A BIG MOTORCYCLE LURKING BACK THERE THAT IS JUST ITCHING TO GET OUT & BURN UP SOME ROADS:)) 

Russ wondered about the positions of  constellations in the night sky between where we are in Ontario & Arizona.....I find that it is a wee bit disorienting because I am used to seeing star patterns & constellations in specific areas of the night sky here.  Down south, those positions are changed slightly.  In Ontario I am used to seeing the constellation Orion lower in the southern sky but in Arizona, although Orion is still there, he is much higher in the sky.  I cannot see some of the horizon's northern stars & I see one's on the southern horizon that are not familiar.  The night sky is still basically the same but the positioning is off just enough to disorient me some nights when I first look up.  It takes awhile to change the night sky map in my head from northeast to southwest.

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BAMBOO GRASS CAN BE KINDA MESSY IN THE SPRING >>>

I had another question from a reader regarding my thoughts on taking Candid Photos.  I do have some thoughts on that alright & I will answer those questions in tomorrow night's blog.  My brain seems to be running out of oxygen right now thanks to all the super great outside yard work exercise I got today.  I love dat stuff:))

DSC_0013 <<< GONNA BE A COUPLE MORE WEEKS BEFORE ALL THIS ICE & SNOW MELTS ON THE SHADED NORTH SIDE OF THE HOUSE
About the 14 new tires….4 went on our Santa Fe last summer & 4 went on our Jeep in October.  2 also went on the front of our Motorhome in October & 4 just went on the back of our Motor Home in Kingman, Arizona a couple weeks ago.  The old one’s were just looking soooooo bad & we were both soooooo uncomfortable with that!!
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LOOKS LIKE THE HEAVY SNOW LOAD THIS YEAR HAS BENT OVER MY DEAD TREE LIGHT POLE HANGER....YEP, GOT A LOT OF STUFF TO FIX THIS SPRING

GROANER’S CORNER:((  
After every flight, Qantas pilots fill out a form, called a "gripe sheet," which tells mechanics about problems with the aircraft. The mechanics correct the problems, document their repairs on the form, and then pilots review the gripe sheets before the next flight.

Never let it be said that ground crews lack a sense of humor. Here are some actual maintenance complaints submitted by Qantas' pilots (marked with a (P); and the solutions recorded (marked with an S) by maintenance engineers. By the way, Qantas is the only major airline that has never had an accident.

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P: Left inside main tire almost needs replacement.

S: Almost replaced left inside main tire.

P: Test flight OK, except auto-land very rough.

S: Auto-land not installed on this aircraft.

P: Something loose in cockpit.

S: Something tightened in cockpit.

P: Dead bugs on windshield.

S: Live bugs on back-order.

P: Autopilot in altitude-hold mode produces a 200 feet per minute descent.

S: Cannot reproduce problem on ground.

P: Evidence of leak on right main landing gear.

S: Evidence removed.

P: DME volume unbelievably loud.

S: DME volume set to more believable level.

P: Friction locks cause throttle levers to stick.

S: That's what they're for.

P: IFF inoperative.

S: IFF always inoperative in OFF mode.

P: Suspected crack in windshield.

S: Suspect you're right.

P: Number 3 engine missing.

S: Engine found on right wing after brief search.

P: Aircraft handles funny.

S: Aircraft warned to straighten up, fly right, and be serious.

P: Target radar hums.

S: Reprogrammed target radar with lyrics.

P: Mouse in cockpit.

S: Cat installed.

And the best one for last ...

P: Noise coming from under instrument panel, sounds like a midget pounding on something with a hammer.

S: Took hammer away from midget.

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...... AL.

18 comments:

  1. sounds like you have spring fever,
    we like this time for year also,it feels so good to be outside working.What a difference a few days made in your yard,I hope that's the last of the cold weather for you.

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  2. looks like you made a huge dent in the yard work today, Al..how great to be outside..shovelling and raking!..hope the last of snow is gone before too long!!..soon the birds will arrive, if not already??
    and thanks for answering my question with regards to the 'pooches' in the picture!!..have a good one!!

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  3. I will be the first one to remind you next year that you can't go home yet. Or at least take some time getting there.

    Hope those muscles aren't too sore tomorrow.

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  4. Hooray for Qantas Airlines!

    I'm looking forward to the pictures as you do your yard clean-up. That looks like a great place to spend the warmer months.

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  5. Seeing the snow melting shows me why you like to go South for the winter.

    I visited Winnipeg once and promised myself I would never live, or visit in winter, a place where public parking lots had engine block warmers!

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  6. After seeing all the snow you still have, I guess I'll quit complaining about the little unexpected skiff we got in Reno. So Al, can you wrap up some of that enthusiasm for yard work and mail it to Russ?? He seems to need just a tad more!! I'll bet your yard is a real sanctuary in the summer. Keep posting photos- love to see the progress.

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  7. Are you sure that you don't feel a tad guilty for leaving your garden to fend for itself all winter under such a snow burden?

    All that work in such a hurry removes the evidence of your neglect!!!

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  8. Thanks Al for the nice shout-out. I am really hoping that our snow will be gone in northern NY next week when we arrive home. For me, there is nothing like seeing the spring flowers and a walk in our woods. Of course, our puppy dogs love those walks too, according to them, there is always something good worth sniffing.

    John
    relaxedrush.blogspot.com

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  9. It will be nice to finally get rid of all the white stuff this year. I just had to let you know that your groaner had me in stitches this morning. Where do you find them? Keep up the good work.
    Doug.

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  10. I am happy to report that here in Dardenne Prairie it has now been two weeks since any evidence of snow of snow has disappeared, We did have two nights below freezing last week, but so far this week we don't have any projected. But best of all we have had several 70 degree days and one 80 with more predicted.It looks like spring is here, Since you are a couple hundred miles north in Latitude you may have a couple more weeks to wait, but it is definitely coming. be safe out there. Sam & Donna..

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  11. Well I've made the same mistake you did way back in the 90's. Used to go to Black Hill's way to early. I try not to get there before June 1ST, nowday's that I finally wised up. Even then we'll get a light snow or 2 in June...One 4TH of July it was 36* when we got out of bed... But by that tim it's gettin real HOT here, so what's a guy to do.. Easy on the Back there Al!

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  12. Hi Al
    Interesting read about todays groaner.

    http://www.snopes.com/travel/airline/squawk.asp

    Info at bottom of the page.

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  13. I'm gonna kick Michael's a** if he even thinks of bringing me home before MAY 1 next year, we have about six inches of new snow this morning, UGH!

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  14. Yep..there's nothing like working outside..I'd rather do that than the menial dishes and cleaning inside! Our snow is gone and little green stuff is poking out of the dirt all over...Time to get out the patio furniture and our screen porch ready to sitting in the AM..80 degress here this Sunday..with some severe storms..Ya gotta take the good with the bad!

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  15. Changing the subject -- your comment about boondocking in the eatern part of the countries is probably spot on, but we have learned that in the eastern part of the USA there are lots of little towns with neat little RV parks owned by the county or town that have at least some hookups and are either free, cheap, or pay by donation! Spend a full week in one beautiful little city park in Oklahoma, hookups, with a posted fee, but nowhere to pay it! No one came around, and we didn't go find city hall to offer!

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  16. Gee, there is less snow in Ontario, Canada than here in Rocky Point, Oregon! Loved seeing that snow load on the porch and loved that you finally got it off the porch. I, too, am having a bit more trouble settling in to being home, but I was only gone 3 weeks so have no excuse.

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  17. Looking at your pictures today, it seems like maybe May 1st would be a good time to head north next year.

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  18. Al, Thanks for the answer about the night sky. I would imagine that is hard to get used to when you're looking at the same things in different places. Glad the snow is melting. We've finally found some sunshine now, too.

    Stay relaxed, but work hard!

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