Showing posts sorted by date for query Fort Rucker. Sort by relevance Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by date for query Fort Rucker. Sort by relevance Show all posts

Thursday, October 31, 2024

I SO MUCH MISS THOSE GREAT DAYS

ON THE WAY TO PICK UP MY GOOD BUDDY RICHARD THIS MORNING
Another in a series of mighty fine late October days.  The weather 22 years ago today certainly wasn't like this.  It was the final day for us in the old farmhouse at the old Weenie Roast Ranch near Fullarton Ontario. We had lived there for over 7 years.  It was a cold and dark rain-soaked night when we left our old haunt and moved the last load of stuff to where we now live in the Bayfield Pines Community near Bayfield Ontario.  It was Halloween night 2002 and the weather had played a 'trick' on us but it sure was a 'treat' that cold, and dark night to move into our warm cozy little place right here under the tall swaying Pine trees:))  

 FIERY SUMAC LEAVES
Coffee and muffins time for Richard and me so I picked him up this morning and off we went to cruise a few roads we hadn't been on for a while.  Always nice to change up the scenery from time to time and especially so now that we still have some gorgeous Autumn colors left in the countryside. 

 WE WERE SURPRISED BY A GOLFCART LOAD OF SCARY PARK CHARACTERS THIS AFTERNOON
 THE COMMUNITY SPIRIT IN OUR PARK IS VERY MUCH ALIVE AND WELL:))
I BORROWED THIS PHOTO FROM ANOTHER PARK RESIDENT
Kelly and I headed down to the south end of our Park this afternoon for a walk in the hardwood forest located there.  This is an area we often walked with our dogs in the earlier years of living here.  Sometimes we would make our way down a steep hundred-foot forested embankment to the Bayfield River far below.  But, that was years ago when we were younger and could do things like that on the spur of the moment without even having to worry about anything like getting back up the embankment again.  Actually, we had a purpose for being in that forest today.  We were looking for something we didn't find.  A bench.  Oh well, it was just great to be outside doing something we so much enjoyed doing in our RVing years.  We loved looking for things like old western Ghost Towns, (Charleston) lost gravesites, (Johnny Ringo and some Confederate soldiers) historical markers, old mines, Crested Saguaro Cactus, hidden trails, natural water tanks in the Kofa Mountains, the hard-to-find Mary Kidder ranch and old Fort Rucker in the Chiricahua Mountains, and Cochise's council rocks in Arizona's Dragoon Mountains.  We found the dump site for the old army Camp Furlong in Columbus New Mexico, Marshall South's homestead atop Ghost Mountain in California's Blair valley, and his gravesite in Julian California.  The endless list goes on and on and it was always one of our favorite things to do.  Get ourselves up in the morning and head out the door early to go places and find and do things we had never seen or done before.  I so much miss those great days............   

 WE DROVE SUBIE UP INTO THE HARDWOOD FOREST

 YOU CAN SEE IT WASA VERY WINDY AFTERNOON
 AN OLD FARM GATE IN THE WOODS
HEADING BACK TO THE CAR
 MAKING OUR WAY BACK OUT OF THE FOREST
Al's Music Box:)) Ghost Riders In The Sky by Geoff Castelucci is a cowboy-styled country/western song written in 1948 by American songwriter Stan Jones.  The song tells a folk tale of a cowboy who has a vision of red-eyed, steel-hooved cattle thundering across the sky, being chased by the spirits of damned cowboys. One warns him that if he does not change his ways, he will be doomed to join them, forever "trying to catch the Devil's herd across these endless skies".  Stan Jones stated that he had been told the story when he was 12 years old by an old Native American who resided northeast of the Douglas Arizona border town, a few miles behind D Hill, north of Agua Prieta. Sonora. The Native Americans, possibly Apache, who lived within Cochise County, believed that when souls vacate their physical bodies, they reside as spirits in the sky, resembling ghost riders. He related this story to Wayne Hester, a boyhood friend (later owner of the Douglas Cable Company). As both boys were looking at the clouds, Stan shared what the old Native American had told him, looking in amazement as the cloudy shapes were identified as the "ghost riders" that years later, would be transposed into lyrics.............Here is an instrumental version of the same song played on a steel guitar.  Ghost Riders.  And of course, the version I grew up with....Frankie Laines version of Ghost Riders In The Sky.  And, because it's Halloween, here is Bobby (Boris) Pickett and the Crypt Kicker Five with The Monster Mash.

GROANER'S CORNER:(( A car was involved in an accident on the street. As expected a large crowd gathered. A newspaper reporter, anxious to get his story could not get near the car.  Being a clever sort, he started shouting loudly, "Let me through! Let me through! I am the son of the victim."  The crowd made way for him.  Lying in front of the car was a donkey.

---------------------------------------------
[1] Regular naps prevent old age, especially if you take them while driving.

[2] Having one child makes you a parent; having two makes you a referee.

[3] Marriage is a relationship in which one person is always right and the other is the husband!

[4] I believe we should all pay our taxes with a smile. I tried – but they wanted cash.

[5] A child's greatest period of growth is the month after you've purchased new school uniforms.

[6] Don't feel bad. A lot of people have no talent.

[7] Don't marry the person you want to live with, marry the one you cannot live without, but whatever you do, you'll regret it later.

[8] You can't buy love, but you pay heavily for it.

[9] Bad officials are elected by good citizens who do not vote.

[10] Laziness is nothing more than the habit of resting before you get tired.

[11] Marriage is give and take. You'd better give it to her or she'll take it.

[12] My wife and I always compromise. I admit I'm wrong and she agrees with me.

[13] Those who can't laugh at themselves leave the job to others.

[14] Ladies first. Pretty ladies sooner.

[15] A successful marriage requires falling in love many times, always with the same person.

[16] You're getting old when you enjoy remembering things more than doing them.

[17] It doesn't matter how often a married man changes his job, he still ends up with the same boss.

[18] Real friends are the ones who survive transitions between address books.

[19] Saving is the best thing. Especially when your parents have done it for you.

[20] Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools talk because they have to say something

[21] They call our language the mother tongue because the father seldom gets to speak!

[22] Man: Is there any way for long life?
Dr: Get married.
Man: Will it help?
Dr: No, but then the thought of long life will never come.

[23] Why do couples hold hands during their wedding? It's a formality just like two boxers touching gloves before the fight begins!

[24] Wife: Darling today is our anniversary, what should we do?
Husband: Let us stand in silence for 2 minutes.

[25] There is only one perfect child in the world and every mother has it.

[26] There is only one perfect wife in the world and every neighbor has it!


==============================

                           Al's Art Gallery
















Sunday, March 03, 2024

I AM SURE GLAD THEY GOT UP AND WENT WHEN THEY DID

 NICE TO SEE OUR RESIDENT CHIPMUNKS OUT AND ABOUT AGAIN 
First thing I saw upon awakening this morning was orangy curtains again so I knew we had a sunrise going on out there.  It didn't last and the morning turned cloudy.  Not letting that put a grump in our day, Pheebs and I were soon out the door and headed for the Jeep.  I figured if I could get my right leg in we would be ready to go.  I first assisted Pheebs up into the passenger seat and then taking it slow at the driver's door and with a little help from my right arm guiding my leg I was soon seated squarely behind the steering wheel.  Everything felt perfectly normal and within a minute we were heading out the driveway for a cruise around our Park's road.  It was our first time back in the Jeep and on the road again in nearly 3 weeks.  Took a few pics along the way and even stopped to talk to a couple people out for a walk.  We didn't stop for a walk because the roads at the uninhabited south end of our Park were still muddy.  Soon, we were home again and chalked up our short little jaunt as a complete success.  Back in our driveway I took it slow and eased myself out of the Jeep with everything being A-OK.  After letting Pheebs out I cleaned the Subarus outside front windows, side mirrors, and back window.  Subie is in desperate need of a good wash.

 HERE'S PHEEBS AND I ROLLING OUT OF OUR CARPORT THIS MORNING
 THE BACK OF OUR NEIGHBORHOOD'S HOUSE ACROSS THE ROAD TAKEN FROM AN ACCESS ROAD AT THE SOUTH END OF THE PARK'S POND
 A PAIR OF CANADA GEESE HEADING FOR OUR PARK'S POND
Saw my first Red Wing Blackbird of the year and it was on our bird feeding station earlier today.  Another sure sign of an early Spring and can you believe that in just a couple weeks we will be turning our clocks ahead already:)))))))  I don't know where the past 5 months went but I am sure glad that they got up and went when they did!!

 OUR WINTER'S SINGLE RESIDENT GRACKLE GRABS A SNACK THIS MORNING
I'm not sure where the rest of Sunday slipped away to but Kelly put a movie on that I really enjoyed called, Love and Mercy  It is the story about the 'Beach Boys' co-founder and leader Brian Wilson and his struggles with mental Illness during the 1960s and 1980s.....I enjoyed this movie simply because it dealt with the realities and realism of an individual's life.  And, in this case, it was of special interest to me because it involved a well-known musician's life whose music I grew up in the 60's and beyond listening to.    

A Blast From Our Past With a Difference::  There is a couple right now traveling around an area of our beloved southeastern Arizona that, with the help of our blog from years ago have been visiting some of our favorite places.  How thrilling it was for us this morning to see that Marlene and Benno from Marlene and Benno's Odysseys On Land And Water  actually headed into the Chiricahua Mountains retracing our tracks to find an elusive place we have been to on three separate occasions.  You can find my blogs on this place by typing into our search bar in the right-hand column, 'Mary Kidder Rak' or 'Old Fort Rucker' but it is Marlene and Benno's post I will leave you with here.....In Search Of Camp Rucker.  Marlene does a great job with the writing of this post and their photos brought back so many memories of an area that we loved so well.  And, on one of our 3 trips there, we took Aunt Jean who was visiting from Florida along as well.  There is a lot of history with Camp Rucker and the Mary Kidder Rak house right beside the camp.  Mary Kidder Rak wrote a great book about her and her husband's life at the ranch there.  Her excellent book is entitled, A Cowman's Wife.  So, if you are ever in the area, read the book first and then go see where it all happened.  It's all still there:))  

 THAT'S A CAMERA STRAP HANGING AROUND MY NECK
Al's Music Box:((A Beautiful Morning is a song written by Felix Cavaliere and Eddie Brigati and recorded by the Rascals. Coming out in early 1968, it was the group's first track released after shortening their name from the Young Rascals. The single was one of the earliest released in stereo, as 7-inch singles generally were in mono. Together with the Doors "Hello, I Love You," it's credited with changing the industry standard of singles.  The song continued the theme of carefree optimism that had distinguished the previous year's "Groovin". It was written one morning in Honolulu, Hawaii when the band was invited to perform there by promoter Tom Moffatt. 

 THIS LITTLE DICKENS IS SCOOPING THE BIRDSEED RIGHT OUT OF THE FEEDER!!
GROANER'S CORNER:(( Nine-year-old Joey was asked by his mother what he had learned at Sunday school.  "Well, Mom, our teacher told us how God sent Moses behind enemy lines on a rescue mission to lead the Israelites out of Egypt.  "When he got to the Red Sea, he had his engineers build a pontoon bridge and all the people walked across safely.  "Then he used his walkie-talkie to radio headquarters for reinforcements. They sent bombers to blow up the bridge and all the Israelites were saved."  "Now, Joey, is that really what your teacher taught you?" his mother asked.  "Well, no. But if I told it the way the teacher did, you'd never believe it!"

----------------------------------

What do you call it when your mother's sisters all gather at a funeral to avenge your death?  Vigil Aunties

----------------------------------

A friend of mine told her husband they had a Catholic bird in their yard.  "A what? How do you know it's a Catholic bird?"  "Because it's a Cardinal."

---------------------------------

=========================
Be with someone who brings out the best in you… Not the stress in you.


Tuesday, August 08, 2023

TODAY WE MET AN RV COUPLE WE HAVE KNOWN ONLINE FOR A LONG TIME

 THIS PHOTO WAS TAKEN WITH KAREN'S SAMSUNG SMARTPHONE SITTING ON A PICNIC TABLE WITH A SELF TIMER
With temps in the mid 50's and a strong gusting wind from the north, I had to slip on a light nylon jacket over my short sleeve shirt on our morning walk.  Due to my hip bothering me and Pheeb's disinterest in a walk we only covered half of our half mile.  We soon jeeped our way back home and not long after that it was all three of us in the Subaru heading for.......no, not London, but a destination south of Grand Bend Ontario. 

Checking today's weather last night I was especially pleased to see it was going to be a nice day.  Not as much for me but for an RV Blogging couple now in our area at the Pinery Provincial Park south of Grand Bend.  We first met this couple online probably fifteen years ago or more.  I'm talking of course about Karen and Steve from What A View.  Older fellow RV Bloggers will know who they are when I mention their blog's previous name, 'Karen In The Woods' or 'RVing: The USA is OUR Big Back Yard'.  Karen and Steve are on a tour of Ontario with one of their destinations being Niagara Falls.  Traveling across The Straits Of Mackinac from their home in Wisconsin they followed Michigan's Eastern shoreline south to Port Huron and into Canada.  They then traveled north to our area to say hello.  Through a series of emails, we arranged to meet them at their campsite in the Pinery at 11 this morning.  We got hung up in Grand Bend so we were about ten minutes late getting there.  It was sure a trip down memory lane as Kelly and I drove into the Pinery for the first time in about 20 years.  It's a long winding scenic drive back to the campground section and everything looked the same as I last remembered from the first time I saw it way back in the early 1960s......How great it was to finally meet Karen and Steve, their dog Binney, and their new to them 2016 Winnebago View Mercedes Benz diesel Motorhome. Karen and Steve had traveled to some of the same spots that Kelly and I had traveled to years ago in the American Southwest after reading my posts about those places.  Jerome, Elfrida, Bisbee, Rucker Canyon, Old Fort Rucker, and Mary Kidder Rack's house all in Arizona.  Columbus New Mexico and Palomas Mexico (The Pink Store) as well.

 IT'S A REALLY NICE RV KAREN AND STEVE HAVE

 OOOPS, I CAUGHT KAREN IN DEEP THOUGHT HERE
 STEVE IS A VERY SOFT SPOKEN EASY GOING FELLOW
We talked about remembering RV people we knew, some of them still RVing and some of them not.  Some of then still on the Planet and some of them not.  We had a tour of their Motorhome which we both loved.  So great to see all the new technologies and innovations from the older RVs we used to have.  Steve, by the way, is one of those fellows with a great engineering mind who can do almost anything.  Karen has meticulously documented many of the renovations and repairs Steve has done with their previous Safari Motorhome.  On their site, you will find on their blog's sidebar many of those modifications.  Remember, their blog site is What A View . 

 HERE'S KELLY CHECKING OUT A BAG OF TRENARY TOAST.....WAIT, WHAT THE HECK IS TRENARY TOAST??  READ ON:))
 AND HERE SHE IS REALLY CHECKING IT OUT

STEVE'S PERSONALITY IS JUST AS RELAXED AS ALL HIS PICTURES SHOW
We found Karen and Steve good old down-home type folks really easy to talk to and enjoyed our visit.  Years ago a blog reader of mine tipped me off to something they thought I would really enjoy and was only sold at Trader Joe's.  The next time we were in Prescott Arizona we dropped around Trader Joe's store and I bought a jar of 'Cookie Butter'.  This is like peanut butter on an Oreo high.  Of course I loved it right away and wrote about it in my blog.  Karen, reading my blog, headed off to a Trader Joe's in Wisconsin, bought herself a jar of Cookie Butter......and has been buying it ever since.  So, guess what Karen gave us today.....yep, two jars of Cookie Butter.  Well, we were no sooner home and I had the lid of that jar and my face right into that Cookie Butter for sure.  And, if Kelly hadn't been closely watching me all the way home today, I would have had the lid of that jar of Cookie Butter even before we got out of the Pinery.  Oh my, when I did get that lid off I instantly remembered how great it tasted and knew right away what has been missing in my life all these years since I last tasted my last jar of Cookie Butter.  Karen also gave us two bags of Trenary Toast (Cinnamon and Cinnamon Raisin)  We had never heard of it before.  Well, I liked that right off the bat as well and as soon as I could get my after supper coffee going I was dunking a thick tasty slice of Cinnamon Raisin Trenary Toast in my coffee.  Why?? Because Steve said that is how he likes it:))))

 A SPLIT SECOND AFTER I TOOK THIS PHOTO I SNATCHED THAT SLICE OF TRENARY TOAST OUT OF KAREN'S HAND AND WOLFED IT DOWN
Our visit lasted nearly four and a half hours and it was soon time to say goodbye.  In the RV world, goodbyes are often last goodbyes because of the nature and distances RVers live from each other.  I am always twinged with sadness at those final hugs and handshakes because I know we may not meet again.  And that's how I felt today.......Thanks Karen and Steve for coming to see us and like I said at our parting, if ever we get beyond all this medical stuff of ours and snag ourselves another RV, maybe the next time we see you will be in your driveway in Wisconsin:))))  But oh hey...not in the wintertime!!!!       

 THIS PHOTO AND THE FOLLOWING PHOTOS WERE ALL TAKEN BY KAREN

 BELIEVE IT OR NOT, I THOUGHT I HAD A BIG SMILE ON MY FACE UNTIL I SAW THIS PHOTO
 KAREN TAKES A LAST PHOTO AS WE LEAVE
Al's Music Box:))
 Yesterday When I Was Young by Glen Campbell from the album 'Houston' (I'm Coming to See You)  1974

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Paddy is smashing back a few at the local bar until everything is forgotten. The bartender who is also a family friend continually tells him he's had enough and to go home.  Finally, after several last calls, Paddy declares "I'm going home", promptly falls off his high bar stool, and drags himself to the door.  He hails a cab while face down on the curb, manages to open the door, and drags himself from his sprawled position into the backseat. The cabby drives him home with Paddy singing nonsensical music to himself the whole way. Paddy rolls out of the cab manages to drunkenly flop his way across the lawn, gets the front door half open, and passes out.  The next day because the bartender is also a good friend he checks on Paddy, and seeing him lying on his back in the doorway says, "Paddy, you were drunk last night weren't you?". Paddy replies, "Yes, but I didn't think I was that drunk, how did you know?"  To which the bartender replies, "You left your wheelchair at the bar".

----------------------------------

- Did you hear about the psychic amnesiac? He knew in advance what he was going to forget.

- Did you hear about the new restaurant that just opened up on the moon? Great food, but no atmosphere.

----------------------------------