Saturday, March 07, 2015

A FEW MORE THINGS LOADED INTO OUR MOTORHOME

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OUR DESERT FLOOR IS LOOKING MORE & MORE LIKE A GOLF COURSE THESE DAYS

No matter Friday night’s Moon was no longer full, Pheebs & I went out & howled at it anyway.  Even with a slight breeze blowing I feel it was this year’s warmest night so far.  And how nice to be outside without any bugs or Mosquitoes.  I’m just needing to hear some Crickets now.   

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NICE TO SEE OUR MESQUITE TREE LEAVES BEGINNING TO UNFURL

It is disappointing that I can no longer see the Moon clearly.  Surface detail once easy for me to observe is now blurred with flaring around the moon & a double image at the bottom left side.  It is like looking at a bright light for me.  I’m assuming it is the Astigmatism in my left eye causing most of the problem.  I don’t think I am at an advanced cataract stage yet or I’m sure the last 2 eye tests I’ve had both Ophthalmologists would have said something.  Frustrating nonetheless for one who so much enjoys the night sky.  No problem for me seeing stars though so guess I had better be grateful for that.

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MY CAMERA SEES THE MOON BETTER THAN I DO

Nice walk in the desert this morning for a change.  In many places the ground looked like a soft golf course laid out amongst tall Yucca plants, Beaver Tail Cactus, Mesquite & Palo Verde trees.  The many small green plants & grass give the desert floor a manicured look.

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IF I HAD A BICYCLE HERE IN CONGRESS THIS IS WHERE I WOULD RIDE IT

Much of our morning was spent gathering things up & loading some stuff into the Motorhome.  Not being a last minute person I try to have things organized well in advance.  Just seems to be an easier & less stressful way of doing some things.  Not all of course, but some.

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A RELAXING BACK YARD AFTERNOON

Those neighbor’s flowers we dug up & planted are African Daisies & I think California Poppies.  It’s so nice to look out & actually see a nice little splash of color here & there now.  Would be so nice if they take & spread next year.  But, after checking the flower clumps this morning I already see we have a problem.  Two clumps of flowers closer to our fence line were already chewed off.  Dam rabbits!!!!

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IT’S NICE HEARING BIRDS CHIRPING OUTSIDE OUR DOOR NOW THAT WE HAVE MOVED THE BIRDFEEDER CLOSER TO THE HOUSE

Browsing through my Kindle for something to read I came across a book written after the American Civil War by a soldier who survived the war.  It’s a true story based on a soldiers letters written home to his Mother during those years he spent in the Union Army.  Upon returning home after the war he based his book on those letters.  The Story Of A Common Soldier of Army Life In The Civil War by Leander Stillwell.

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FOUND A GOOD SPOT FOR ONE OF OUR SAGUARO SKELETONS >>>

Spent some time this afternoon with Mapquest & my Rand-McNally road atlas figuring out a route home in another 3 weeks.  Looks like it may be a combination of Interstates & other roads with two thirds being familiar routes & about one third through new territory.  Rather than slip up through Utah on our way home we plan to include Utah on our way back in the Fall.  My rule of thumb in travel planning is to always look for routes avoiding major cities & aside from south Chicago I think I may have found a gentler path home once again. 

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HOPING THE RABBITS LEAVE THESE ALONE

GROANER’S CORNER:(( I remember standing at quarters one morning while stationed aboard ship. Lieutenant Montgomery was doing the muster.
"JACKSON?"
"Here!"
"KIBBEY?"
"Yo."
"STEPHENS?"
"Present, sir."
"SEEBACK?"
Nothing.
"SEEBACK?!"
Still nothing.
"SEEBACK!!!!"
As the division Chief I whispered into the Lieutenant's ear, "Sir, turn the paper over."

14 comments:

  1. I will probably be traveling 10 days to 2 wks behind you. I'm worried that April weather is too iffy to get creative with the route planning. I will probably just make it up as I go along.

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  2. I fell for the Groaner's Corner. Funny.

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  3. So many interesting ways to return to Ontario, though only once did we travel through Chicago, always seem to find somewhere else to go along the way.

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  4. The wild grass does look very manicured - maybe the rabbits are working on it :-) When you got to Congress I thought "When they leave this year Bill will finally be retired." Yep, he will have one week under his belt when you head north, just ten more work days!! Wonder how the neighbor deters the rabbits from all his flowers.......

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  5. Pheebs doesn't look stressed over anything... 'course she trusts her Dad to take the right route ;-)

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  6. Al, we have a huge RAT chewing on my sunflowers out front! I saw something move out of the corner of my eye as I was coming out of the front gate. Sure enough, a few minutes later, I SAW IT! ACK! I put out a rat trap immediately.
    Cheryl Ann

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  7. Sure hope those flowers take! Love your moon photos Al!!!

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  8. Wish we could load at leisure as well as unload when we get home. We are allowed 3 days maximum to park in front of our home so we just go back and forth and get worn out. Next year that might not even be possible as the people who own the site next to us are planning on moving there full time which means we can't block their driveway anymore. That means loading and unloading the RV via the car, a few blocks away.

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  9. I love the moon pic and the last one of the flowers.
    Chicago is the most important city to avoid. It is the biggest messed-up city in the entire U,S,

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  10. Love the picture of the moon and the flowers. Never forget the first time we saw a California Poppy field - really a sight!

    arlonHboozer.com

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  11. How fast your time in Congress has slipped by.

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  12. Al, we always look for ways to avoid the big cities..and the older we get the more we do that..I hear ya on the vision thing...My left eye creates a blurry ring around any light..but I have a scar on my cornea to blame for that, and there is nothing they can do about it...sucks pond water, doesn't it? We are turning the Hiker North tomorrow for a 3 week trek to Illinois, arrival date being March 30th...I hate going North.

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  13. I love the moon picture and the picture of Pheebs with her head on the concrete.

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