Sunday, November 09, 2014

I ENJOYED 7 STRAIGHT HOURS OF EDUCATIONAL TELEVISION TODAY

DSC_0007-001

A CANDID SHOT OF KELLY & PHEEBS THIS MORNING

The discontinued same-same barking dog route around the block which we gave up a month ago has actually turned out to be a good thing.  Each morning now finds us walking/hiking in a different section of desert.  This morning we Jeeped out to an area just north of House/Indian Rock.  The area around Indian Rock is a favorite hiking area because of it’s large boulders & rock formations.  Very pretty with all the varieties of cactus & long scenic views out over the desert floor.  But this morning we wanted to check out a rugged piece of road we had first come across a couple years ago.  Located it, parked the Jeep & headed off on foot.

DSC_0002

YES WE COULD TAKE THE JEEP DOWN THIS ROAD BUT AT WHAT COST

DSC_0001 DSC_0003

THIS ROUGH GULLIED & BOULDER LADEN ROAD LEADS TO A DISTANT VALLEY

DSC_0005

EASY TO SEE SOME OF THE DRIVING DIFFICULTIES HERE

It became apparent right away we would not be trying to head down this road with the Jeep.  We probably could have slowly made our way along it but no road is worth voluntarily risking damage to a vehicle.  Our Jeep is stock straight from the factory.  No monster tires & it’s not raised an extra couple feet off the ground with super duper shocks & all that stuff.  Not customized in any way so there is a limit to where we can go with it.  The smart thing is in knowing where a vehicle’s limits are & resisting that ever present young guy’s urge to just go do it anyway.

DSC_0011

THE CHALLENGING ROAD PICKS IT’S WAY THROUGH ROCKS & BOULDERS HEADING FOR THAT GAP ON THE HORIZON… LONG SHADOWS INDICATE AN EARLY MORNING HIKE

DSC_0007 DSC_0008

The road was rough underfoot with ruts, steep gulley's, jutting rocks & loose gravel.  Kelly found herself a dead Agave plant stock & used it as a walking support stick.  Pheebs & I went on ahead a bit to see if the road eased up a bit but it didn’t.  Only tracks on the ground were from ATV’s.  I could see the only way to make our way through this valley between tall rock strewn Saguaro Cactus was on an ATV.  No point in us going any further so we turned around & made our way back to the Jeep. 

DSC_0013-001

Temperatures were coming up as we bounced our way along the twisting windy roads leading back to Congress.  It had been another nice jaunt in the desert to an area we hadn’t walked before.  I always love seeing new stuff.

DSC_0009

KELLY FINDS AN OLD AGAVE PLANT & DECIDES TO MAKE A WALKING STICK OUT OF IT

DSC_0010 DSC_0016

HAD TO BREAK THE BOTTOM PRICKLY HALF OF THAT AGAVE OFF

DSC_0013

LOOSE STONES & GRAVEL MADE THESE STEEP DESCENTS DIFFICULT FOR KELLY

With Remembrance/Veteran’s day approaching the History channel had back to back programming on the history of World War 2.  I’ve always had an interest in history & years ago read countless books regarding the wars.  Today was one of those days as I sat for 6 hours watching an excellent Canadian series in 6 parts called D-Day To Victory & an hour watching a biography on British Air Ace Douglas Bader.  This is the fellow who flew with 2 wooden legs.  Much of the 6 segment series involves interviews with remaining Canadian, British, & American veterans & I find their stories so compelling.  In my book reading days it was mainly the American side of the war I read about but in these latter years it is the Canadian side of the war I have become more interested in & it is at this time of year around November 11th I look forward to watching the history channel to understand those harsh realities of that time.  I consider today’s 7 straight hours of history television the best 7 hours of television viewing I have spent for many years. 

DSC_0014

DSC_0015 DSC_0016

PHEEBS & I WENT ON AHEAD TO SEE IF THE ROAD GOT ANY BETTER & IT DIDN’T

DSC_0017

LOOKING BACK IN THE DIRECTION OF CONGRESS

And a word about the History channel.  Once a favorite television channel of mine years ago I have become so disappointed in the direction they have decided to go with their programming.  A show called ‘Pawn Stars’ has pretty well taken over this once fine & respected educational channel.  If I click on the history channel 10 times you can bet 9 of those times it will have the show ‘Pawn Stars on.’  The history channel fills about 90% of it’s air time with this show & another one called ‘Pickers’ or something.  Another wheeler-dealer format.  I’m not one who cares for these types of shows whatsoever!!!!

DSC_0030DSC_0031 DSC_0004-001DSC_0006

DSC_0032DSC_0034

DSC_0011-001

IT WAS A WEEK AGO SATURDAY WE HIKED UP THAT HILL ON THE LEFT

Figured the true test as to how well our new Omni antenna was working would be when we turned on our computers this morning.  Would there be a connection & if there was how strong would it be.  Happy to say we did have a strong internet connection & it was reasonably fast.  If nothing goes bump in the night I will optimistically crawl out on a limb here & say ‘yes’ our new Omni antenna as solved our internet connection & strength problems.  Several readers had a few questions.  TOM asks, “What is the GAIN on the Omni? IN radio or telecom, 3 db is twice the power. Also another thing with radio, is that the cable length is tuned. Is this the cable that came with the Omni”?  Don’t know the answer about GAIN & yes the 20’ cable came with the antenna.  DAVE asks, “Al, in the "Wi-Fi Settings" there are two choices -- 2.4GHz and 5.0GHz, have your tried both settings”?  Kelly is guessing we have the 2.4GHz but we’re not sure.  And IVAN had this caution about the antenna, “You may want to research/consider adding a ground wire or grounding block to your antenna cable ... I had a scanner antenna on my roof and it got hit by lightning. Blew off a bit of siding the coax ran under, and fried my computer even though it was not connected and was unplugged. Luckily, the coax burned off before much more damage could be done”. 

DSC_0036

And a note to KL…..like you I use the jpeg format for all my photos, not the Raw format.  Oh, & what did Kelly get at the North Ranch garage sale Saturday you ask…….one small green  plastic outside folding table to set beside her front porch chair to set her afternoon tea on.  Total garage sale expenditure….$2 & yes our Omni signal remained strong & reliable all day.  Bonus:))

DSC_0026

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A lady reflecting back on her annual summer vacation trek from Chicago to a cabin on a lake in Wisconsin has this memory.  Every year, it seems, we would get on a highway a few miles out of the city, and mom would wail, "Oh my goodness! I think left the iron on." And almost every year we would turn around and go back. But as I recall, not once was it was ever plugged in. She often had the same fear that all our earthly possessions would disappear in a fire caused by her forgetfulness.  When I was about 14 years old, we were headed out of Chicago for Lake Geneva, Wisconsin and, sure enough, Mom gasped, "I just know I left the iron on."  My father didn't say a word, just pulled over onto the shoulder of the road, got out, opened the trunk and handed her the iron.

16 comments:

  1. Love that last picture of Kelly and Pheebs. That's a keeper!!

    Glad the history channel is showing some real history in time for Veteran's/Remembrance Day. The farther we get away from those years, the less real it seems to each succeeding generation. We need to remember.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The first picture of Kelly & Pheebs is a lovely silhouette. If that's a road, I sure wouldn't want to see a trail. ;o)
    Another great groaner - thanks for all the chuckles and giggles as well as the wonderful photos.

    ReplyDelete
  3. TV is all about the demographics of those who are willing to watch it.. Unfortunately you are outside of that demographic.. Toooooo old... Over 54.. After that its proven that we don't buy near as much stuff... So they don't care about you, since they can't sell you anything..

    ReplyDelete
  4. Happy to hear your internet fix is working well.

    That was quite a walk you guys took today.

    I like WWI and WWII documentary movies also.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Great that your internet has sped up for you with those additions.
    TV? gave up on that years ago.

    ReplyDelete
  6. It ain't no road you been coming to. Rather looks like a wash to me. Smart thing to stay out of it with your Jeep. Love the shots of Kelly and Pheebs.

    ReplyDelete
  7. What lovely shots on your walk... you sure find some great places to photograph!

    As for the History Channel, I used to have cable about 20 years ago. It was one of my favorite stations. I spent a week at the daughter's house this month and watched her cable. I am sad to say all I found on the History channel was those pawn stars shows too. Sigh. So i tuned into HGtv and watched a great run of home fix it shows called Rehab Addict. Now that is my kind of tv! LOL

    ReplyDelete
  8. I get the History Channel plus one called History2. I can usually find a decent show on one or the other, but to tell the truth I'm getting pretty tired of the WW-II shows. Maybe after Veterans Day they will get back to other kinds of History, although it usually involves war somewhere, even if it's Alexander the Great!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Looks like a great area to hike - lots of lovely variety :-) Great pics of Kelly and Pheebs - that first one is stunning! Yep, I'm pretty tired of all the stupid "reality" crap on tv these days, but obviously they appeal to the masses as there are more every day. Much rather spend a day hiking in the desert!!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Al since it is Veterans/Remembrance Day I want to Thank you for your service in the Royal Canadian Navy, since you and I are close in age It must have been during the Viet Nam Era.Thanks again Al, and as they say in the US Navy, " A Hearty Well Donne to you. Sam & Donna..

    ReplyDelete
  11. Some awesome pictures again Al !!
    Love it !!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. You've got that right on the History Channel, in fact the Whole of the TV universe, mostly a wasteland. But the 7 hours of what the History Channel should be doing all the time sounds like some great stuff for sure.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Your black and white photos add so much beauty to your blog. Great job!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Thank you for the reply that you use Jpeg and not raw, for the life of me I cannot shoot at night. I think you said your iso was 800.

    ReplyDelete
  15. In the far distant past Douglas Bader was the chief pilot for the company I worked for. One time on a long flight from Inuvik back to Calgary he like I was a passenger on our company plane. Being about 6'6" I was always on the lookout for a seat with a little extra leg room. On this flight I found one, but the crew put the bum's rush on me and said it was for Mr. Bader, he came along just at that time and said heck that kid needs the leg room more than I do, I can just take my legs off. Later on that flight he told me he always sat at the back of the plane. "Further from the point of impact" was his theory.

    ReplyDelete
  16. What a great day you had, and thanks for taking us along on that beautiful hike! Good info on antennas and reminding us to check the History Channel more often.

    ReplyDelete