TRAVEL WITH THE BAYFIELD BUNCH:))

Friday, January 04, 2013

WE LOOKED, BUT WE DIDN’T FIND…..YET

SOMEWHERE OUT HERE WE HOPE TO FIND INDIAN PETROGLYPHS

We took Kelly’s new ‘Netbook’ jeeping with us this morning. On the screen we had an old black & white photo dating back to 1901. Kelly spotted it in a library book & it’s the only clue we have so far in finding the elusive Indian Petroglyphs in the desert behind our place. Photo shows 3 people & a large round rock with Petroglyphs on it. We set out this morning to find the mountain configuration in the background of the photograph.

LOOKING FOR MATCHING HORIZON LINES…KELLY IS IN THE PHOTO AT RIGHT

Made sense for us to head directly to where we knew for a fact an Indian Village once existed. House Rock is where we saw the tell tale signs of ancient Indian life. Grain grinding holes in the rocks called Morteros. There are a few Petroglyphs there but we feel there are more somewhere according to what locals have told us.

Parts of the background scenery in the photo looked familiar but we could line ourselves up with an exact match. Not yet. We did spend some time walking & climbing a section of rocks south of House Rock in hopes of spotting some Petroglyphs but no luck despite the type of rocks Petroglyphs are usually found on. No matter, we had ourselves a nice walk on a beautiful desert morning anyway. And Pheebs just has an absolute blast running around all over the place.

From House Rock we spotted another set of craggy rocks about a mile to the northeast that looked promising. From that vantage point I figure the mountain background just may line up with the photo background & our next Jeep trip out into the desert we’ll make our way towards that rock formation & see if we can find anything. If you type either the word Mortero or Petroglyph into our search bar near the top of our right hand column you can find some of my posts regarding where we have found these things in our southwest travels over the past 6 years.

OUR NEXT PETROGLYPH SEARCH MAY VERY WELL CENTER ON THAT ROCK FORMATION CENTER OF PHOTO

We wanted to be back home by mid morning just in case the roofer or screen door guy showed up. Also expecting Fed-Ex to drop off a new battery for my Toshiba Satellite laptop. Kelly had also ordered an area mat for our living room & sure enough, we no sooner arrived home than a driver was at our gate with the mat.

PHEEBS HELPS KELLY PUT THE NEW MAT DOWN

PHEEBS DOESN’T QUITE HAVE THE HANG OF LAYING ON THE NEW MAT YET

Need one more dump truck load of crushed red stone to complete our gravel project around the house & I’m hoping we can get that delivered next week. I don’t like leaving projects half done.

KELLY & PHEEBS TAKE DELIVERY OF THE NEW LIVING ROOM MAT

On a 4 day junket to Las Vegas in the mid 90’s, Kelly & I, in a rental car took a drive over to a section of Death Valley California. Merikay & Craig from MERIKAY'S DREAM HAS TEN WHEELS has just visited the same area & I like the photos they took.

JUST ANOTHER NICE MORNING IN THE SONORAN DESERT

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A young Catholic priest decided to enter a monastery. He joined one particularly strict sect. The head monk told him, at his indoctrination, that they were sworn to TOTAL silence. They could not speak one word at all. However, every ten years, they would be permitted to speak two words.After 10 years of total silence, the head monk indicated it was now time for him to speak his two words. The monk said, “Bed hard!” And then he resumed his silent study and work.Another 10 years passed and the head monk again indicated it was time for him to speak his two words. The monk said, “Food bad!” And then he resumed his silent study and work.Another 10 years passed and the head monk again indicated it was time for him to speak his two words. The monk said, “I quit!”The head monk shook his head and said, “I knew this was coming. You’ve done nothing but complain for the past 30 years!”
-------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS -https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

Thursday, January 03, 2013

AND THAT WAS IT FOR TODAY

Pheebs did fine on our walk this morning & I only saw her favor her left front leg once when she jumped down off a chair later in the afternoon.

Kelly brought a few more fence posts & rails back from Wickenburg Wednesday so this morning I busied myself completing another section of decorative fence. And, that was it for our day.

GROANER’S CORNER:(( Now, here’s a fact: "A Woman will always forgive and forget but she will never let you forget that she had forgiven and forgotten”.

-------------------------------------------------------------
- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.
- OUR PHOTO ALBUMS -https://picasaweb.google.com/117858411710794543295/
stargeezerguy@gmail.com

Wednesday, January 02, 2013

PHEEBS SPRAINS AN ANKLE

ANOTHER ARIZONA SUNRISE ON GHOST TOWN ROAD

We think Pheebs twisted an ankle on Tuesday’s walk around the old Congress town site. Noticed she was limping badly on her left side front paw after we arrived home. Her paw itself looked & felt fine & we couldn’t see any leg swelling. No cuts or stickers. She wasn’t in any kind of stress other than she couldn’t walk on that leg without a limp. We purposely did not do a walk this morning & it paid off. By this afternoon she was doing better & we figure it is/was probably just a sprain.

OUR 24/7 HAPPY LITTLE DESERT DOG:))

We are fortunate to live in a quiet neighborhood here in Congress Arizona. No revelers on New Years Eve. No noisy fireworks, no gun fire, loud music or loud people. Not so for RETIRED ROD, Loyce & poor little Biscuit over there in that Mesa place southeast of Phoenix Arizona:((

---

PHEEBS HAS A NEW (BUT VERY SHY) BEST PAL DOWN THE ROAD

---

Looks like THE GOOD LUCK DUCK Gals are having a good time in the Tucson area. I always like to see folks out & about in the desert appreciating the beauty that is there. I’ve never understood people pooh-poohing the desert calling it desolate & barren. Those people obviously have never taken the time to get their feet on the ground & open their eyes & mind to their surroundings. I’m talking about the Sonoran desert of course which can be found stretching up from the Mexican border through Tucson & Phoenix right up through our area in Congress. If you think desert & green at the same time, your thinking of the Sonoran desert:))

A FEW OF OUR FRONT YARD BIRDS

To date I have written over 1,700 posts & out of all those, this one written in August of 2011 has turned out to be the most popular…'OH OH' THERE'S SOME NUDE GUYS IN THIS POST’. Number 2 is my 'BEST BUDDY' post in June of 2012 sadly followed by number 3 which was, 'TODAY WE LOST ANOTHER BELOVED MEMBER OF THE BAYFIELD BUNCH' in April of 2011.

KELLY PICKED THIS MUG UP AT THE THRIFT STORE TODAY…CUP BOTTOM SAID ‘MADE IN PORT TOWNSEND WASHINGTON’ BY THE ‘WILD WOMEN’ GROUP:))

Music has always been an instant time machine to the past for me & is just one of the many reasons I enjoy music so much. I was reminded of that this morning when I stepped out of the shower to the sounds of Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’. Took me right back to Toronto’s CNE Stadium in the mid 90’s when Kelly & I attended a live Pink Floyd concert. Great night. Groovy:))

Jim, in our Shout Box asked about where we had our new RV toilet installed in December 2011 & were we happy with it. This toilet installation turned into a bit of a fiasco for us but where we had it done & what I thought about it is better explained by my 2 posts at the time…..'OH NO', AL MAKES A BIG TOILET DECISION MISTAKE & WE HAVE BEEN DE-THRONED.

FOR OBVIOUS REASONS, I AM THINKING TWICE ABOUT PAINTING THE BACK WALL OF THE SHED

I waited for the morning sun to warm up our aluminum garden shed before applying my paint brush & roller to it. Nice to be outside feeling the warmth of the sun again.

NICE DAY TO BE OUTSIDE:))

GROANER’S CORNER:(( A man died and went to The Judgment, they told him , “Before you meet with God, I should tell you — we’ve looked over your life, and to be honest you really didn’t do anything particularly good or bad. We’re not really sure what to do with you. Can you tell us anything you did that can help us make a decision?”

The newly arrived soul thought for a moment and replied, “Yeah, once I was driving along and came upon a person who was being harassed by a group of thugs. So I pulled over, got out a bat, and went up to the leader of the thugs. He was a big, muscular guy with a ring pierced through his lip. Well, I tore the ring out of his lip, and told him he and his gang had better stop bothering this guy or they would have to deal with me!”

“Wow that’s impressive, “When did this happen?”

“About three minutes ago,” came the reply.

Tuesday, January 01, 2013

WE STUMBLED UPON ANOTHER OLD CEMETERY

NICE MORNING FOR ANOTHER JEEP TUMBLE

Looking forward to warmer sunnier days with today being the start. We have been in a cold spell for awhile with some cloudy gray days. Going to have to scramble me up some outside projects in coming days for sure.

A FEW BUMPS ALONG THE WAY

A five minute drive from our house on Ghost Town Road takes us to a historic area. It is the site of the old CONGRESS GOLD MINE.

NOT MUCH LEFT OF THE OLD MINE SITE EXCEPT FOR THIS ONE BUILDING

The original town site was built here next to the mine & this morning we stumbled upon the old town’s cemetery. We had been to the other Congress cemetery a month ago but never knew about the original cemetery hidden about a quarter mile away amid the Cactus, Mesquite & Palo Verde trees. We were just following an old road winding through the scrub when we spotted the cemetery gates.

We often stop & walk through old cemeteries & this one was definitely old . Noticed right away something unusual in this cemetery though & that was the size of many old graves. Very small. Most markers are long gone so we suspect a lot of children were buried here for whatever reason.

A TOY GUN LIES AT THE FOOT OF THIS OLD GRAVE

Because of the pottery shards, broken glass, rusted tins & bits of weathered lumber we also figure we found the original Congress town site on the north side of the cemetery. No buildings left but the evidence is all over the ground. Kelly later found some OLD CONGRESS info on the internet & the site we were at this morning was actually the Mill end of Congress.

Just as other original ghost towns we have come across, this site just put’s one’s imagination into overdrive trying to imagine what this all really looked like a hundred or more years ago. Buildings, bustling streets, kids playing & miners in saloons. Another old rough & tumble western mining town where justice was often meted out through the barrel of a gun. This is a land where fact meets fiction & legends never die. And, how fortunate we are to have found a house for sale last March right in the historic middle of it all.

OLD CONGRESS ONCE STOOD HERE

By the looks of the terrain & close proximity to the base of a small rocky mountain ridge we also knew this was prime Rattlesnake territory. We have also heard some people come here to hunt them. But, as I mentioned in a previous blog last week, because of cold winter temperatures & especially in the mornings, the snakes are in hibernation. We would never let Pheebs run free through the rocks in Rattlesnake season that’s for sure. And, chances are pretty good Kelly & I wouldn’t be out scrambling around in the rocks either.

KELLY’S A HEAVY DUTY SCROUNGER & I’M A LIGHT DUTY SCROUNGER

We have also found that here in the southwest, in our area anyway, things are done a little differently than back home in Ontario. Much more laid back & that includes the contractors. Nothing seems too official. Nothing seems to formal. Contractors seem a little more professional back home somehow. A little more regimented or something. We have found here that things are done, or not done on a handshake. Once something is agreed upon the fellow doing the work may show up the next day, maybe a week or two later, or maybe not at all. All of a sudden someone just kind of shows up in the driveway one day. ‘Laid back’ seems to go with the territory & it’s something we have had to adjust to while here. We have our fingers crossed that our screen door fellow will show up shortly with our newly built screen door. Fingers also crossed that our ‘roofer’ guy will show up this week or next to do a section of our roof. I like the laid back attitude of the south-west, but sometimes I do get a little impatient with the slower pace. An old habit from northern living I guess.

PHEEBS SCROUNGES THE OLD TOWN SITE AS WELL

I must have transported a little kinetic energy when I wrote the above paragraph earlier this morning. Returning from our Jeep ride later we saw our corn broom holding what appeared to be a note against our front door. It was from our screen door guy. Note said, “Happy New Year” – “your screen door is in the works as we speak”. “No one home…9:05 a.m”. Now, how nice is that for some good old southwest hospitality eh:))

NOPE, NOT GONNA SELL THE JEEP, NOT EVER NOT NEVER:))

Finished my bathroom paint project this afternoon. Figured that’s enough painting for awhile until I remembered I still have a garden shed outside to finish. With nicer weather here now, maybe I’ll get that done this week.

STARTED MONDAY & FINISHED TUESDAY

THIS MORNING’S SETTING MOON

GROANER’S CORNER:(( Boudreaux and Thibodeaux worked together and both were laid off so they went to the unemployment office. When asked his occupation, Boudreaux answered, "Panty Stitcher. I sew da elastic onto ladies' cotton panties.

The clerk looked up Panty Stitcher. Finding it classified as "unskilled" labour", she gave him $300 a week unemployment pay.

Thibodeaux was asked his occupation. "Diesel Fitter," he replied. Since diesel fitter was a skilled job, the clerk gave Thibodeaux $600 a week.

When Boudreaux found out he was furious. He stormed back into the office to find out why his friend and coworker was collecting double his pay.

The clerk explained, "Panty stitchers are unskilled and diesel fitters are skilled labour."

"What skill?" yelled Boudreaux. "I sew the elastic on da panties, Thibodeaux puts dem over his head and says: Yeah, diesel fitter."

Monday, December 31, 2012

ALL THE BEST TO EVERYONE IN 2013

Our daytime high never made it out of the mid 40’s & subsequently, I never made it too far out of the warm house. Our usual morning walk in the quiet desert, a little raking in the Cactus garden, & that was enough of being outside for me.

Didn’t have any photos for tonight’s post so it was little Rascal Buns to the rescue.

Hadn’t planned on starting my bathroom paint project for awhile but with nothing else to do today, I moved up my indoor schedule. Sitting in my recliner watching television is not my idea of a mentally productive day. Besides, if I have to listen to those two annoyingly repetitive words, ‘fiscal cliff’ any longer I am going to go absolutely & completely bonkers!!

It was one year ago today we bought our cowboy hats. And where did we get em? TOMBSTONE ARIZONA OF COURSE. Kelly’s first one & my third. Lots of colorful characters on Tombstone’s main street that day & my camera was able to catch a few of them:))

WYATT & THE BOYS HEADING FOR THE OK CORRAL

And a close call for little Louie as Jean & Skip stressfully waited for a Vet in Brawley California to perform a type of surgery on Louie that we had never heard of before. A TALE OF A TAIL.

After reading my Sunday night post, GYPSY had a few more thoughts on aging:))

And on this last day of 2012 I say thanks to all you folks who have inspired me to keep this blog going for another year. I thank everyone for their patience & understanding. And I also thank readers for giving me the encouragement, purpose, & confidence to pursue my hobbies of writing, photography & travel. Kelly, Pheebs & I wish everyone out there all the best in the coming 2013 Year. Bar none:))

Oh, & what will the Bayfield Bunch be doing for New Years Eve?? Same thing we do every year……sawing logs:)) And no, it’s got nothing to do with a lumber business. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

GROANER’S CORNER:(( And, it’s not so much the Fiscal Cliff that concerns me the most about the coming year as it is…the Physical Cliff…….AL.