GOVERNMENT GIVES ME A FEW EXTRA DOLLARS FOR TURNING 65 & THE INSURANCE COMPANY TAKES IT AWAY!!!!

Didn't have any photos for this post so I had to dig to- day's pictures out of my trash bin where I had thrown them one day last week when I realized they were all out of focus.  At one time I left my cameras on 'auto-focus' all the time but over the course of the summer I have mainly been using manual focus.  There is a small switch on the lens that lets me alternate between manual & auto-focus.  I thought I was on auto-focus when I took the pics but it was set for manual & I failed to notice that.  I was hurrying to get the shots before the lighting changed.  Careless on my part.  But, at least there are some nice color contrasts & you do get the idea a storm was passing over despite the focusing problem.  Maybe think of them as paintings & not sharp imaged photos.

My internal sleep mode button malfunctioned last night causing me to remain in a conscious state for 5 of the 7 hours I was in a horizontal position, the result of which will cause me a very irritable Friday.  I will have to remain on my leash confined to barracks for fear I may bite someone.  Lack of sleep does that to me so I have learned to not attempt any mechanical things or computer fixes on days like this.  In fact it is not even wise to attempt to tie my shoes!!

Our nice weather day yesterday turned to rain last night as I see a big storm front on the computer weather map marching eastward across the States.  The up side of that means it will be easier for me to stay inside out of the cold wet weather to-day.  Might be a good time to spend a few hours with my coloring book.

 RICK had a good tip in his blog this morning about using your keyboard's PrtScn button on the top row of keys to the right.  It will save a webshot of whatever you have on your screen & now it will save it right into Picasa.  I knew about the PrtScn function but hadn't realized it would work with Picasa so when I read Rick's blog I right away set about pecking on my PrtScn button like a manic woodpecker at a dead grub convention.  Of course, because of my lack of sleep last night it would not work for me.  Around about this time Kelly came into the living room to see what all the grumbling, complaining, & pecking was all about.  I blustered about the PrtScn thingy & she immediately headed for the desk top computer in the sun room & came back minutes later with the solution.  Picasa 3 has to be open & running on the task bar first before attempting to capture a screen shot.  I tried it & it worked perfect.  This method of solving things I call the old G & F solution.  I do the Grumbling & Kelly does the Fixing.  Works every time:))I'm sure getting dinged for medical coverage this trip.  Because of turning 65 & the fact I was briefly HOSPITALIZED in Colorado with a kidney stone on November 2nd of 07 the insurance company has of course tacked on an extra $500 to my policy which puts my 6 month medical coverage to over $1100.00.  Kelly's is slightly over $500.  I can certainly understand now how a lot of Canadian RV folks cannot afford to travel south anymore especially if they have have any medical issues.  Had we waited until after Nov 2nd to leave it would have been much cheaper because my 2 year 'medically free' time would have been up.  We had totally forgot about that 2 year period but our departure date is a must before November 2nd.  Should be cheaper next year & my next built in insurance increase will occur at age 70.  Kelly said if she didn't need me to dump the black water tank it would have been cheaper to just leave me & the dogs at home!!  Oh dear, I had better not lose my black tank dumping skills or it could be back to some mighty long hard cold Canadian winters again for AL:(( GROANER'S CORNER:((  A doctor examined a woman, took the husband aside, and said, 'I don't like the looks of your wife at all.' 
'Me neither doc,' said the husband. 'But she's a great cook and really good with the kids.'

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

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

BORREGO SPRINGS CALIFORNIA......A TIGHT FITTING SLOT CANYON HIKE IN DECEMBER 2007

OUR FRIEND & GUIDE, BUTCH ON THE LEFT.  CAMERA WAS ON SELF TIMER SITTING ATOP A ROCK.....December 23/07  (Click on any photo to enlarge it)

Our nasty splash of bad weather this past week has let up for to-day & we have sunshine at 60F with a breeze.  A normal Autumn day for this time of year but I'm still surprised that 90% our forest trees are still green with only a few dapples of color here & there.  Usually by now we are into full blown Autumn colors.ALMOST IMPASSABLE IN SOME SPOTS

In keeping with yesterday's slot canyon theme I've added another 'tighter fit' slot canyon hike to-day.  This is the Borrego Springs slot canyon in California & it is hard to find but luckily we had a fellow RV'er take us there.  We generally boondock at the Clark Dry Lake bed just north of Borrego Springs & 2 years ago we met a fellow by the name of Butch who spends his winter's there in the desert with his dog Kapeesh.  Butch is from Riverside California so knows the whole area well.  He had also taken us on a hike to Palm Canyon nearby a few days earlier.  To-days photos are from our Borrego Springs slot canyon hike with Butch as our guide.  You can read our BLOG for that day & see us 'squeezing' through the rocks on the hike photos in our WEB ALBUM . 

Kelly's in Cambridge to-day visiting her daughter & grand kids & I'm home doing my daily smattering of puttering.  Lots of pine needles to rake up & I added some water to the rig's fresh water tank.  I won't fill the gas tank until a few days before we leave because I don't want the motorhome just sitting for weeks with the weight of a full gas tank on the stationery tires.  I'm anxious to get more things loaded up but as you know the majority of loading is done in the last 5 minutes before you leave.  Well, it seems that way sometimes!!

AL HAD TO REALLY SUCK IT IN TO SQUEEZE THROUGH SOME OF THESE TIGHT SPOTS!!

APPROXIMATE LOCATION OF BORREGO SPRINGS SLOT CANYON

In yesterday's blog I mentioned it was me who took the doggy guys out every morning but I should have mentioned Kelly does that as well.  Sometimes it's too cold out & I pretend I'm still asleep so then she has to do it.

MOONRISE OVER THE SANTA ROSA MOUNTAINS FROM THE CLARK DRY LAKE BED NORTH OF BORREGO SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA

In our travels throughout the southwest we have come across so many places we love that just about everywhere we go becomes a favorite place for us.  Coming up soon, maybe to-morrow, I'll blog about one of them.................Borrego Springs, California:)) 

BORREGO SPRINGS.....CHRISTMAS CIRCLE

GROANER'S CORNER:((  'Mr. Clark, I have reviewed this case very carefully,' the divorce Court Judge said, 'And I've decided to give your wife $775 a week,' 
'That's very fair, your honor,' the husband said. 'And every now and then, I'll try to send her a few bucks myself.

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

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

A SMATTERING OF THOUGHTS & A PHOTOGRAPHIC LOOK BACK TO THE WILLIS SLOT CANYON IN UTAH

 MAX BLENDS RIGHT IN WITH THE ROCKS  (Click on photos to enlarge them)

All photos plus the album below are from our  November 17th 2007 hike in Willis Canyon near Cannonville, Utah.

THE GUYS ARE ALL LOADED UP & READY TO HEAD OUT FOR WILLIS CANYON:)) (Not much room for Mom to squeeze in....Checkers is in the back seat)

It's 5 in the morning & I'm in my big comfy recliner with my Toshiba laptop on one lap & the sleeping little Motormouse on the other.  Soothing ambient music on the stereo with only soft light from dials casting a pale glow into the darkened living room.  We have high winds this morning & I have heard cracking branches so I know there will be pine limbs to pick up later this morning.  A 'crack' means a branch has come down & a 'thud' means a whole tree has come down.  Cracks, but no thuds yet this morning however.   The electricity just blinked off & on again which means re-setting all the clocks & light timers later!!  PIne trees are not strong trees & it doesn't take much to break the branches off or snap the whole top third of the tree right off.  I have seen heavy snow laden winter storms here that have brought whole trees crashing to the ground.  Hazards of living in a pine forest I guess but it sure beats the heck out of having to live in a city!!

WOW, WHAT AN AWESOME PLACE

My chair is situated right next to our sliding patio door & I have a hooked stick that I use to open & close the door for the furry guys without having to get up.  Our back yard is fenced in so we don't have to worry about the furry kids wandering away.  I just open the door with the stick & out they go without any worries.  Of course that is all about to change soon when we're back on the road again.  No sitting in my warm comfy chair at 5 in the morning opening & closing the door with a stick for each of them.  No, not that easy.  Each time one of the guys has to go out I have to get up, throw something remotely warm over my shoulders, slip into some kind of footwear, grab the flashlight, & out the door & down the steps we go into the darkness with doggy bag in hand.  I don't normally put their leashes on because they stay close & respond to voice commands if necessary, but I never let them out of my sight for a minute.  Especially little Cora because there are roaming coyotes at night.  Sometimes I only have to shiver in the darkness for a minute or two & other times they may make me stand around forever while they take their time exploring here & there before doing their business.  Always so nice to get back into the cozy warm motorhome but it's usually only short lived because it's not long before the next critter is crying at the door.  I do this 3 times every morning while traveling.  Not a good idea to have them all go out at once in the darkness because it's too difficult to keep track of everybody & I don't have a motion detectable 3 beamed flashlight. 

View Full Album

The ranch in Arizona where we are headed has a high coyote proof fence around the perimeter on the acreage of the ranch house so that does make it less stressful letting the guys out at night plus there are 2 super great ranch dogs outside who make it their business to see that no coyotes or night walkers slip into the ranch compound.  Night walkers??  The ranch is close to the Mexican border & in a high traffic area for illegal immigrants (Mexicans) coming across the border at night.  While there last winter we could sometimes here them on the nearby road at night but it's not a worry.  The last thing these people want is to be detected so they go about their nocturnal business as quietly & unnoticed as they can.

YES, WE HAD SOME VERY WET FEET BY THE TIME WE GOT BACK TO THE CAR...12 WET LITTLE PAWS TOO

Karen over at the BIG BACK YARD has a good description & photos of some RV renovations they did & how they repaired & put down a new hallway & bathroom floor in their motorhome.  She makes it all sound so easy but I know for me to try that it would be ohhhhhhhhh so hard:((  For sure I'd end up getting the floor tile glue on upside down & the wood screws hammered in sideways!!  Noticed her blog for to-day is about sealing their motorhome's fiberglass roof so some of you might want to have a look at how they did it & what they used.  And it sounds like ROD is having a few 'beeping' & satellite tracking problems with his new motorhome.   Check out WANDERING WILLY'S early camping years in France & if you happen to be going by GYPSY'S place maybe you can drop in with a bowl of chicken soup because I think Gypsy is down with the flu:((  And if your thinking about installing a new wireless keyboard & mouse sometime in the future just drop in & see how VERAGIRL is making out with her new  board & mouse.

STOPPING FOR A REST ON OUR WAY BACK

GROANER'S CORNER:((  A little boy went up to his father and asked: 'Dad, where did all of my intelligence come from?' 
The father replied. 'Well, son, you must have got it from your mother, 'cause I still have mine.'

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

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

OCTOBER IS DEFINITELY A POPULAR BIRTHDAY MONTH & A DRIVE THROUGH THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS TO PORTAL ARIZONA IN MARCH 2009

WE MAY BE CAMPED HERE FOR A FEW DAYS IN THE SUNNY FLATS CAMPGROUND AT THE END OF THIS MONTH....NEAR PORTAL, AZ.

In SANDRA'S BLOG yesterday she mentioned the following...."Did you know that most people in the U.S. are born on October 5th? You would expect birthdays to be evenly distributed among the 365 days on a calendar. AnyBirthday.com has a database of the birthdays of more than 135 million Americas and claim that more people were born on October 5 than on any other day of the year. The reason seems to be that October 5th is approximately 9 months from New Year's Eve. Another little bit of trivia." 

NEAR PORTAL ARIZONA AT CAVE CREEK....MARCH 2009

Well, I was born in October as well so the only thing I can say about that is....."Happy New Year"  I also noticed to-day in Janna's TIN TEE PEE  blog that Mike's celebrating a birthday as well.  I offered Kelly $5 to write something nice about me like Janna did for Mike but Kelly told me to keep the $5 & go climb a tree..............:))

 NICE OLD CAR PARKED OUTSIDE THE PORTAL GENERAL STORE

Well, thanks to JERRY yesterday I did find out that in fact I do have a Google Adsense ad on our  website.  It has been hiding at the very bottom of our blog all this time & I had totally forgotten about it since thinking it had vanished a long time ago.   Must have got shuffled to the bottom of the deck at some point when I was making changes to the sidebar.  I have now moved it from it's low visibility point at the bottom to a high visibility spot just under the right side of our main header picture.  Oh geezzzzz, what am I gonna do with all this ad money rolling in now!!  Hope I can make enough to pay Jerry a finder's fee:))  Guess this also tells me I should do a little house cleaning on our website from time to time to make sure I know where things are!!

ATOP THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS ABOUT TO DESCEND INTO PORTAL

Noticed Jerry & Suzy from, OUR LIFE ON WHEELS are staying a few days at WEST RUSTY'S RV RANCH near Rodeo New Mexico right now.  We're hoping to be in that very area in about another 3 weeks.  We don't have Passport America but maybe Rusty will cut us deal anyway if & when we get there:))    Jerry mentioned they were doing a daytrip to Portal Arizona which reminded me of our trip over the Chiricahua mountain last March & down into the totally beautiful Portal area.  Our blog for that day is HERE & our photos for the day are in WEB ALBUM including lunch at the little Portal general store.............................:))

THE WINDING ROAD AHEAD

Some of you may remember I blogged awhile back about receiving a book called 'Backyard Guide To The Night Sky' from National Geographic.  I have it sitting right here on my desk but haven't read it yet.  I am now  thinking this will make a great read once we reach the ranch in Arizona.  I seem to do the majority of my reading while we are traveling.  Sitting quietly in the open desert air just seems to go hand in hand with reading for me so I'll let you know how I like the book hopefully next month while lazing away under the warm Arizona  sunshine:))

 FOLLOWING THAT WINDING DIRT ROAD THROUGH THE CHIRICAHUA MOUNTAINS

Wondered if any other 'Live Writer' users out there are having any problems with their 'link' section.  Our links are connecting OK but I'm getting error messages every time I insert a link.

THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, LAND

GROANER'S CORNER:((  I just got lost in a bunch of thought & it was unfamiliar territory.

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

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

I LIKE TO HEAR THE PITTER PATTER OF LITTLE PAWS IN THE MORNING

MOODY MOUNTAINS OF BORREGO SPRINGS, CALIFORNIA

I have heard it said that older folks require less sleep.  I wonder why that is & I certainly do not agree with that.  Seems like it should be the other way around.  Lack of sleep is directly related to crankiness & it's rare to hear of young people being cranky.  Definitely an older folks affliction.  It's been about 4 years now since I last had a full night's sleep so you can see it's been awhile that I have been 'cranked!!'  Sometimes I sleep in my bed & sometimes in my recliner but it's usually a combination of both.  Back & forth, back & forth!!  I usually go to bed somewhere around 11 & am generally back up around 4 with a couple of stops in between.  This makes for some very long tiresome days.  Low energy levels & lack of motivation are the nasty side affects but I would rather deal with these than the addictive side affects of sleeping pills.  Just the way it is I guess so I had just better get used it!!

Had a good day yesterday........only did 2 dumb things.  The key to the door of our carport storage area has always been missing so yesterday I decided to round up all our errant keys laying around & go try them all in the door.  Of course while doing this I accidentally locked the door & you know that none of the keys ever ended up working.  There were things inside that I needed so with no other choice I was forced to put a well aimed single kick to the side of the doorknob which of course popped the door right open.......with of course the normal amount of damage.  So, now that's gotta be fixed!!  Second Einstein thing I did was to fire up the rig's generator & then of course get busy with some other things, head off into the house & forget the generator running outside.  Don't even ask how long the generator ran!!!!  Alright, while I'm at it I might as well mention that I forgot my laundry in the dryer so it laid in there all night & now I have another week of walking around looking like a big wrinkled up mess.  There was something else too but fortunately I've already forgot what it was.  Geeeezzzz, hope I didn't leave something running somewhere again!!!!!

RELAXING IN THE DESERT

I have always been kind of a news hound.  Years ago I subscribed to the daily newspaper while living in Stratford, Ontario & liked to stay current with all the local happenings.  We don't have a daily paper in Bayfield so over the past 7 years I've gotten away from local news & more into the habit of worldly television news.  CNN has been my channel of choice & yes, I guess you could say I had become addicted to that as well.  It has always been a love/hate thing with CNN but I am now working on a parting of ways strategy with them.  In fact I am turning the volume down on all my news interests.  I have just simply become tired of all the negative reporting, the repetitive re-hashing, the schlocky announcers, the ever increasing loud & stupid commercials, & just news in general.  I'm beginning to believe in that old saying, 'no news is good news!!'  Instead of cracking on CNN now when I get up around 4 a.m.  I simply put on my favorite soothing ambient music channel, & either just relax in my recliner or pull out the laptop, click it on, & see what the rest of you fellow blogger schmoggers are up to:))   Just seems a nicer & more realistic way to start the day......10-4!!

I love hearing the pitter patter of little paws in the morning.  The rest of the Bayfield Bunch doesn't usually begin to stir until around 6 a.m. & little Cora (Motormouse) is generally the first one up.  She always sleeps on my bed so I can hear her jump down & listen for the patter of little paws coming down the hall as she heads out to where I am in the living room.   She jumps up on my lap & I have to move the laptop off to one side so she can get snuggled in to her little spot.  Next it is Checkers coming down the hall heading for her favorite spot right next to my chair where she knows I will give her a big snuggle a pet her with one hand while trying to type with the other.  Sometimes, like this morning, I pet her in between sentences as I am typing this.  Max stays on his couch across the room until he's ready to go out but stops by my chair first for his big first snuggle of the day too.  Somewhere amidst all this petting & snuggling stuff Kelly gets up, puts the coffee on, & heads for the computer in the sunroom.  It's usually around 7 when the Motormouse starts up with the first game of toys for the day & playtime with the gang just gets more crazy from there.  Barking dogs, flying rubber chickens, bouncing colored balls, & squeaking pink bananas fill the air as we're all racing around in the living room driving Mom bonkers.  And this is only the very first 'toys time' of the day.  It's the same scenario while we're traveling only we have a lot less space for our morning shenanigans & Mom gets a whole lot more madder at us guys.

D'YA NEED SOME HELP THERE DAD??

Just noticed we have some new blog followers so I'd like to welcome Jenni, Mary Ann, William & Karen.  And thanks to all you other followers for tagging along with us as well.  Much appreciated:))

STORMY SKYS WHILE BOONDOCKING NEAR BORREGO SPRINGS, CA.

Had an email from my long time best friend Jim in Stratford last week suggesting we meet for our semi-annual coffee blow-out of the year so we met at a Tim Hortons coffee shop in Mitchell Ontario at 10 this morning.  We left at 1:30 in the afternoon so that was an average blow-out for us.  I have blogged about Jim & our coffee routines years ago in a previous blog.  Jim actually gave up coffee quite a few years ago so I guess we could call it a coffee/orange juice blow out.  But more than one coffee or orange juice??  Nope, we both just have one & make it last for 3 or 4 hours.  That's OK for orange juice but cold coffee sure doesn't do a whole lot for me after a couple of hours!!  Our friendship goes back many years.  Another fellow dropped in but I will blog about the co-incidental significance the 3 of us had sitting there in a later October 19th blog.  Don't know if either one of them thought of it to-day but I sure did.  These two guys & a bunch of other good folks were instrumental in changing the course of my life 30 years ago this month..................!!

GROANER'S CORNER:((  Get a new car for your spouse. It'll be a great trade!!

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

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

WHAT'S MORE CONFUSING THAN A COMPUTER?? TWO COMPUTERS!!!!

TOOK THE RAINBOW PHOTOS TO-NIGHT AFTER A SHORT HEAVY RAINSTORM  (Click any photo to enlarge it)

We travel with one computer & that is our Toshiba laptop. That means for nearly half a year most of our correspondence is stored on the laptop's hard drive.  Same thing for files, websites, photos, etc.  Problem with that is the other half of the year we use our desktop so now that means we have 2 separate hard drives & locations for summer time & winter time.  I try to create files & keep things in order to transfer back & forth but it generally doesn't take long for my own internal brain hard drive to mess up.  The computer has the ability to precisely remember things forever & I do not & this is where I sometimes lose track of fellow bloggers & RV'ers.  The past week I have been transferring new summertime desk top people to our laptops wintertime people.....or something like that.  I came across folks in the last few days who I had intended to respond to in the laptop but had totally forgotten about.  When folks are interested enough in the Bayfield Bunch to email us I always try to send them a reply but I know I have missed some folks:((

POTTED GERANIUM FLOWER

I sometimes receive credit for computer smarts via emails or comments where credit isn't always quite due so I had better fess up to that here.  No, my name's not David Letterman.  We have two people here in our computing world.  Yes, I do the blog & photo things plus the creative stuff but it's Kelly who is truly the smart little person with the computer especially if & when we have problems.  She has the patience & smarts to track problems down & solve them. And she has a good memory of how they were solved so is quick to resolve it if it is something solvable.  I'm the one who likes to try out new programs & things but she is the one who bails us out if we run into any serious stuff.  She is very good at figuring out connection problems & doesn't hesitate to get on the phone to Verizon or whatever system we're dealing with at the time.  We kind of work back & forth & sometimes I have the answers to her computing problems & sometimes she has the answers to mine.  To-gether we seem to get through things OK & make a good computer team.  Much easier having two heads working on this stuff that's for sure.   GYPSY is having some computer challenges at the moment & I know  it's so much harder for a single person to figure things out.

 

It's that time of year so I began gathering up the outside summer garden ornaments to-day.  Harsh winter temperatures along with snow & ice are not kind to clay flowerpots & ceramics.  Liquids like paint, fertilizers, & car cleaners, have to come in the house as does the power washer, hose nozzles, water pumps, etc.  Forgot to bring in a lava lamp last year & the cruel winter temperatures shattered it!!  We are leaning to-wards leaving some heat on again this year as opposed to totally shutting the whole place down & letting it freeze like an Arctic tomb.  I know lots of people do shut the water & everything off but that just doesn't seem right to me somehow.  We do have a fellow who comes in a couple times a week & checks things anyway.

I've heard it said the best time to weigh yourself is after you have a shower. I agree with that because I am generally a pound or two lighter afterwards & that is always a feeling good thing.  What's a little disturbing about that is.....where in the heck do I pick up that extra pound or two of dirt everyday!!

Had a comment yesterday about advertising on the site & co-incidentally I had just been mulling that over the past few days.  We've had 3 emails lately from ad agencies wanting to place advertising on our site.  One of the ads alluded to something about a Casino so I hit the delete button on that one.  I do not want to junk our site up with glitzy dumb pop-up ads & all that stuff & I certainly would not put anything on our site that we didn't personally believe in.   We did have a small Google Ad-sense ad on for awhile about a year ago but it seemed to disappear one day.  Like anyone else we could sure use a few extra dollars coming in but at what price!!  I certainly do not want to sign up for something & then lose control of the site by having some company dump in a whole pile of cheap-o crappy ads all over the place.  Anyway, just something that's been rolling around in this sometimes big empty head of mine lately:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  And how come it takes so little time for a child who is afraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants to stay out all night?

OUR PHOTO ALBUMS  http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/

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