Monthly Archives: October 2012

Golfing, the Ducks, and Rain …

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Summer is over in St. Helens, Oregon. I know that’s true because the weatherman said so and I believe pretty much everything he tells me. Actually, he told Diane, on the evening news, and she told me and I believe everything she tells me. Not believing her isn’t an option.

When the rain started our satellite dish took a brief hit, scrambling the pixels for a bit, but straightened up quickly so I could watch the end of the game where the Oregon Ducks dismantled the Arizona Sun Devils. The game started badly for the Ducks with a fumble which was recovered by the Sun Devils who scored on their first play from scrimmage.

On the ensuing kickoff, the Ducks scored then converted for an 8-7 lead. All of this took about 90 seconds off the play clock. For the remainder of the first half the Ducks punished the Sun Devils for that first fumble by scoring 43 unanswered points.

During the second half the Ducks backed off, playing pretty much everyone on the bench. Nick Aliotti wasn’t happy, I’m sure, because the Ducks remained at 43 but the Sun Devils 2nd string scored 14 more points. Final was 43-21. Ducks are awesome. Now the only unbeaten teams in the Pac-12 conference are the Ducks and the Beavers – both Oregon teams. How about that?

Now, about the rain … during the first 15 minutes the sky dropped about 3 inches of rain in the area. Not all in one place, but over a large area, and if it was squeezed together into a smaller area I’m sure it would be at least 3 inches. I’m really not sure how they measure rainfall. I think it has something to do with an empty tuna can.

Most of the day it was nice and clear. I even went golfing with the Peal Brothers this morning. I did my normal terrible, but it was fun because I hit some incredible drives. They were straight and everything. Just like they’re supposed to be. That’s about as good as it got because I apparently can’t hit anything that isn’t setting up on one of those little tee’s. I’m told it’s illegal to use those in the fairway.

After golfing badly, I came home to work on the Blue Bago, but Diane called and invited me to a Burgerville lunch with her Mother. I never turn down a Burgerville lunch. Today I had a Pepper Bacon Cheese Burger with lemon ade. That’s a change because I normally have a chocolate milkshake which isn’t good for my fake diabetes problem.

Now, don’t think that last statement means that I take diabetes lightly. It’s just that I’ve been told I’m borderline and until a specific determination has been made it’s not a real problem I can deal with. I have a hard time dealing with intangibles.

This afternoon, after lunch, I put on some old work clothes and went out to wash the top of the Blue Bago to see what it looks like. When I started it was pretty much black all over. After I scrubbed it with Dawn and water. Turns out one of the previous owners had painted the roof with pink snow roof. Without the dirt it looks mighty festive. Also, it looks great and is nicely sealed. I don’t think it’s leaked for a long time and don’t expect it to leak now. I guess we’re going to find out.

I washed the roof today because I knew it was going to rain tonight and I have work to do underneath the bago … like reconnect all of the gas lines and find out why the system doesn’t work. Being underneath, I won’t get rained on. See, I’m thinking ahead. I won’t get rained on, but my back will probably get wet from all the water running down the road. That’s OK as long as I figure it out.

Now I must rest.

My Blue Bago

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It’s not really just mine … it’s ours … mine and Diane’s. It’s a 1973 Winnebago D22 and this is what it looks like right now.

The blue Subaru behind it is the tow car but we can’t tow it yet because we don’t have a tow bar yet. So, it’s a chase car. I may have mentioned that before.

We bought this thing yesterday. It’s been sitting for a year behind a business in Hillsboro. I had high hopes of getting it home yesterday, but gas tank lashup I had didn’t work very well. Today Doug went with me to see what we could do with it. Everything worked just fine until the electric fuel pump froze up. We took it back to Baxter’s who refunded the purchase price because the one we bought yesterday was the only one he had. So, we went down the street a little further to Auto Zone and got another one, just like it.

To power it up Doug suggested we buy a cheap $1.99 extension cord instead of paying $6.00 for a comperable amount of wire. He cut both ends off, stripped the shielding and used both wires for the conduit. We found a hot wire peeking out of the dash that was only hot when the key was on so we were good to go after hooking up the pump to the carbuerator.

The engine started right away and ran exceedingly smooth. There are no discernable exhaust leaks. I drove it home without bolting down the engine cover in the cab so it was drafty, noisy and hot. For the fuel supply I placed a 5 gallon gas can just inside the door and just dropped the end of the fuel line in it after connecting it to the fuel pump.

Tomorrow, after golf, I’ll get a couple more pictures and post them so you can see what a traveling death trap I was driving this afternoon. I did have a fire extinguisher, but didn’t have to use it. The gas can went dry in Warren, about 4 miles from home. I really thought I could make it, but we had to pull over and make a gas run to St. Helens. Thankfully Doug was following me the entire way, keeping an eye on things for me. Without his help today that thing would still be sitting in Hillsboro. I asked him to marry me, because he’s such a good friend, but he reminded me that I’m already married. In response, I told him I was thinking of becoming a bisexual Mormon so I could have both a husband and a wife. He didn’t think it was a good idea, or that his wife would approve, so we avoided that issue the remainder of the day. It was a little awkward for a while after that.

Add to all the other things going on, I now have gout in the palm of my foot. Not really the palm, more towards the first knuckles of all my middle toes. This is going to help me with golf tomorrow because you’re supposed to put your weight on your heals when you swing the club. That will not be a problem.

 

Presidential Debates

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I didn’t get to watch the debates this evening because I was participating in our local Community Meals where Diane volunteers a lot of time. Not watching them wasn’t a big deal to me because the media provides enough analysis to ensure I understand their point of view and who they think won. What I think is totally meaningless to anyone but me.

The fact that the media showcases only two political parties is, in my opinion, stark raving mad proof that they are doing their best to force Americans to believe we only have Republicans and Democrats running for office. In fact, there are nearly 40 political parties in the USA, and 175 qualified individuals have filed to run for president in 2012. Like everything else in politics, qualifying is all about money … not much at the entry level, but it’s still about money.

  • The individual has received contributions aggregating in excess of $5,000 or made expenditures aggregating in excess of $5,000; or
  • The individual has given consent to another person to receive contributions or make expenditures on behalf of him or herself and that person has received contributions aggregating in excess of $5,000 or made expenditures aggregating in excess of $5,000 (11 CFR 100.3(a)).

So, those who qualify with the minimum contributions/expenditures are ushered into oblivion by those who either already have millions/billions of dollars, or are buddied up with those who do. Money wins. Just like the best movies are apparently, according to the media, the ones that gross the most money on opening day. It doesn’t really matter if it’s a good movie or not … if people buy into the hype and they’ll go to see if it’s all true. Many times, after they’ve already spent their fifty bucks, they discover it was waste of time. Unfortunately, they’ve already added to the monetary success of that film.

So it is with political candidates. Ever heard of these folks:

  • JONATHON THE IMPALER SHARKEY,
  • GEORGE WASHINGTON WILLIAMS,
  • PRESIDENT EMPEROR CAESAR,
  • RUTHERFORD BERT HAYES,
  • HRM. CAESAR ST AUGUSTINE DE BUONAPARTE

It would be interesting if you have because none of them are well known because they have a limited support base. Plus, they have some odd names that just don’t sound real, do they? But, they are all real candidates for president.

I’m not saying I support any of these folks. I’m just saying there are more than two parties to consider in this election. But, in the end, we’ll wind up with either a Republican or a Democrat running the country.

Then there’s the electoral college. What’s that all about other than a way for each state to sidestep the popular vote, if they choose, and there’s nothing we can do about it. How about that? Why bother? Let’s just let the electoral college call the shots from the start and save all that money that’s spent on paper to print ballots that, for most of the western states, are meaningless.

We’re told to vote if we want change. OK, I vote, but the changes I see aren’t in line with the ones I’d like to see. I won’t go there, but I’m betting that the majority of folks feel the same way.

In my opinion, banks and big business control our destiny and voting for one candidate or the other won’t change it. That’s because, in my opinion, banks and big business pick the candidates.

So, if you were me, who would you vote for? Romney, who epitomizes big business, or Obama, who effectively didn’t exist until 6 years ago? Or, perhaps, “None of The Above”. I don’t think that’s a choice, but it should be.

There, I’ve said it. Doing so takes me way out of my comfort zone because I normally spout fiction, or just make stuff up. So, enjoy this moment, if you must. Tell me how wrong I am, if you wish. I won’t listen because I’m with the majority … I criticize without sharing my opinion of an alternate solution which, therefore, means I’m part of the problem. Since I don’t have a zillion bucks to get in the running, I’ll just fantasize about what I’d do if I were president. It would probably be just like it is here at home – I do whatever Diane says which means, although she didn’t run, she’s in charge.

Just like big business and bankers.

 

The Blue Winnebago

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OK. Now I’ve done it. Just when things were going fine Les sends a picture of this blue Winnebago he found in Hillsboro that was for sale. Interesting, for sure, and I just had to see it. Bad mistake. Now I have to go pay the guy for it and get it home. Dumb.

So, we’re now the proud owners of a 1973 Winnebago. Yea!

I wonder what the neighbors are going to think when we get it home.

I’ll let you know.

Apples

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Hi – today I purchased a new Apple Airport Extreme to replace the Apple Time Capsule that failed while we were gadding about. I suspect I should have turned it off before we left, but it’s been running steady for the last two years and I didn’t want to have to reconfigure it. Setting up the Extreme solidified that sentiment because it’s taken me the better part of 6 hours to make it work. But I did it.

I think the extra time spent was due to the fact that I’m convinced, like most males, that using instructions is a sign of weakness. A big checkmark against my manly status. It doesn’t matter that what I’m trying to accomplish is complicated beyond belief, but it’s not supposed to be. I typically just keep pushing buttons and changing settings until all the green lights come on and it magically works. Consequently, it’s difficult for me to repeat the process without pushing all those buttons over again, should it become necessary.

But, it works. Everything in the house is wirelessly connected to the internet, and I’ve installed my new printer (another purchase today) so that it’s accessible for printing from pretty much any kind of hand held device. I’ll test that tomorrow, but I’m confident it will work. It told me it would, and I believe it.

All that’s missing now is the new 3 TB backup drive I bought (today). The old Time Capsule was a 1 TB. It’s full, but I won’t be able to access any of it until I tear it apart and pull the drive. From all the information I’ve seen on the internet there’s about a 100% chance that the power supply is fried, but the drive is good. I’ll find out and let you know how it goes.

Now, my eyes are burning from all this work and I must quit. If any of you have any sage advice as to how I can read instructions, for anything, without damage to my manly status, I’m all ears (or eyes, in this case).

Also, greetings to the one person in the United Kingdom who checked me out today.

Cheers

Doing Nothing in St. Helens

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The title says it all with the exception of having to get up around 0630 to let the dogs out. Yes, I’m the one who let the dogs out. I do it every day. Now you know.

After letting them out, I let them in and fed them a nutritional breakfast of some kind of chopped up meat slathered in some questionable gravy, and they love it. I fed the cat, too.

About the cat … when we got home yesterday she was just leaving the yard to go visit the neighbors … wait! You already know all of this stuff … you want to know what happened after Diane brewed the coffee, don’t you?

Well, I poured a cup, settled down on my side of the couch and drank it, very slowly. Then I had another one and another banana. During this time Diane sat on the other couch, not wanting to sit near me since she’s been sitting near me constantly for the past 18 days, or so, and we watched a couple of the 822 TV shows that were recorded while we were gone. A significant thing happened when we were doing that. After watching a pretty boring Bones episode when we decided we didn’t care about watching it any more. So, Diane deleted all the episodes on the DVR and cancelled all future recordings. That left us only 815 shows left, a much more manageable number.

Shortly after 1000, Jennie, Lydia, and Gilligan arrived to pick up Diane for another Gilligan shopping trip. Once they left, I was on my own so I found a comfortable position, changed channels to watch the Oregon St. vs. BYU game, and just sat there until Diane and the kids returned. Then I was given a fashion show by Gilligan and Lydia of all the princess dresses Gilligan got. She loves princess dresses. We love her in them.

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After the fashion show I set the Oregon/BYU game to record, Diane’s recommendation, so we could go to Wal*Mart to see about getting a router for the computer and to for sure get Panzee some more canned dog food. All we got was dog food because they didn’t have the router I wanted.

This means, of course, we’ll have to go to Portland tomorrow after church to rectify that situation. And to go look at at 1973 Winnebago D22 that might have our name on it. Hopefully not, but you never know. I’ll let you know how that goes.

After the failed shopping trip I once again parked myself on the couch and cruised between the football channels until Diane got fed up with all the yelling at which time she seized control of the remotes and switched to HGTV. That’s when we decided to eat supper. Diane ate a baked potato and steamed vegetables. I ate a can of Cambel’s Manhatten clam chowder, a bunch of crackers and a pound of cheese.

Now it’s 2100, I’m full, and Hawaii Five-0 is on. Aloha.

Escape From Nampa

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Yesterday morning at 0845 we attained escape velocity and left orbit around Nampa. Our trajectory was plotted with infinite care and we were properly flung west on I-84 toward Portland. Initially, our navigation system stopped functioning using specific destination detail, but it would accept input for the general area of our desired landing zone which was OK in the beginning.

Diane assumed the pilot seat for the first 256.38 miles. We had stopped for nourishment in Pendleton, which is as close to geographically half way as it gets, and the weather began to change. The facility of choice was Subway which was conveniently located next to a much needed Starbucks because Jim and Donna forced us to drink non-caffeinated coffee for two days. Had we only known …

After procuring our standard fare from Subway (messy chicken sandwich for Diane and a sausage/egg, non-drip sandwich for me) and Starbucks (caramel machiatto for Diane and white chocolate mocha for me) we escaped Pendleton and entered the traffic pattern headed west.

When we reached a stable velocity I retrieved our “eating on the fly bibs” from the front luggage compartment then did my best to unwrap Diane’s messy chicken sandwich in such a manner that as little as possible would contaminate her lap as she piloted us west. No matter how hard I try, however, some always escapes. This generally due to the gravitational pull of large objects we encounter in our flight path which make it necessary to jig and jog around them.

Everything went well until the weather changed. We knew it was going to happen because of reports sent back by the faster scout-type craft. When the first drops of moisture hit us, followed quickly by a gust of wind from the south, Diane felt it was time to change pilots. We stopped at a rest area and searched for someone to take her place but there were no takers so she finally agreed to let me try. At this point in time she had piloted us safely, through mild summer weather, for the above mentioned 256.38 miles. Now it was up to me to navigate the infamous I-84 corridor through the treacherous straits of the Columbia River Gorge.

The wind shrieked past our vehicle, the rain beat upon it, more adventurous pilots flew past us without a care that this was the first rain in months, but I remained steadfast in my mission and piloted us safely for the next 150 miles. By this time our fuel gauge was listing firmly to the left near the “E” so it was time to obtain some more. At this point we were out of the Gorge so the cross winds were gone and the rain had lessened to a reasonable drizzle so Diane was comfortable with resuming the task of pilot and I took over as navigator, our normal fair weather positions.

The traffic patterns in the greater Portland Area were horrible causing numerous areas of concern for us. Most of it was at a standstill as people jockeyed for position to enter the freeways north to Washington which were also not moving. Using our superior navigational equipment, and the fact that all the traffic was going in different directions than we needed to go, we found ways around it. Even so, it took the better part of an hour to complete our transit across the Portland Traffic Jam to a more comfortable position on Higher 30 West across from St. Johns.

Upon arriving home, Breezie was exiting our yard but returned immediately when she realized someone was opening a door. She meowed her welcome over and over and over and over and wouldn’t leave us alone until we had scritched every inch of her tiny body.

We were left on our own until Jennie finished work at 8:30pm then brought the entire Walters clan up to greet us. It was a joyous time to see all the kidlets again. Now all we need to do to complete this is to see the Cate kidlets. That’s going to happen this morning because Aunt Jennie is taking Gilligan shopping for her birthday and Diane and I are going with her. My main reason for going is to get the proper electronical parts necessary to resurrect our computer network which suffered a catastrophic failure during our absence.

Diane’s brewing coffee now so I feel the need to end this and partake.

Naps in Nampa

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Today was a blur of naps. Jim slept fitfully, repeatedly, in his TV chair and Diane just up and went to bed for most of the afternoon.

Me? I napped a bit in a chair, a little bit more on the couch, after Diane went to bed, and made a sincere attempt nap standing up, a skill I once had. None of them were fitful, as were Jim’s.

Donna didn’t nap at all. She went out in the morning to get her hair done because the injury to her left arm, caused when Jim placed sodas in the wrong place on the garage floor, makes it difficult for her to wash and comb her hair. The rumor is that Jim broke her arm. In truth, it was a broom. That’s all I can say because of the pending law suit.

For lunch we ate some beans that are only sold in Colorado and smuggled into Idaho for discerning residents. They are the kind that don’t have to be soaked for a couple of days before cooking – they can be cooked right away. I believe the kitchen blind was lowered the entire time they were cooking to avoid any problems with neighbors who are totally against bean smuggling.

The beans were very, very good, and they came with corn bread muffins. Jim was unhappy with them because he had difficulty getting all the muffin off the paper. Later in the day, when Maryssa showed up, she was able to peal them just fine. Steffani arrived shortly after Maryssa, interrupting all the napping going on. Steffani didn’t get a muffin because Maryssa ate all of those remaining, smothered in honey.  I did not notice any problem pealing mine. Also, at my urging, Jim chopped up some onion for the beans and it was the crowning touch.

It was after the beans that Diane went to the bedroom for her nap. In her defense, she got up with a headache, and a nap was just what she needed. I had a bit of a headache, too, and we agreed that it’s probably because the weather is changing. Tomorrow will probably be out last day of sunshine until next April because the rain is coming. That’s good because that will translate into snow for the mountains which are painfully bare at this time.

Maryssa left for softball practice, in Boise, at 5:30pm with a end time at 7:00pm. That was critical to know because in lieu of supper we all decided go to a ‘U Swirl’ yogurt joint when Maryssa was done. She predicted 7:30pm but didn’t call until almost 8:00pm. We were starving.

U Swirl is a custom frozen yogurt place like non other. It has 18 different flavors, 40-50 kinds of topping, and a little bin of waffle cone remnants that might have been reclaimed from the floor from dropped cones. I know for sure that they shatter when dropped more than 3 feet. All of this for 39 cents a pound. For the seven of us it cost $30 to fill our little buckets. I had 3 different flavors, Maryssa had 8. I made the mistake of putting hot fudge on mine knowing it was going to hurt my head. I didn’t care. It just tastes so good. An added benefit, in addition to the headache, is a stomach ache. Nice. Add that to my hip ache, the ringing in my ears, dry eyes, puffy left foot, and other stuff, I’m just a mess. I’ll probably come up with diarrhea tonight.

Hopefully I’ll wake up.

 

Nampa, Idaho

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We arrived in Nampa around 4:30, I think. It may have been 3:30. It’s a topic for discussion because one of us has remained on Pacific time since leaving home on September 23rd. Transiting through Arizona compounded the problem because they don’t change their clocks which I think is a stellar idea. Then we went straight north to Utah and the time changed on our phones, but not on one of our wrist watches, or in the car. It really doesn’t matter since we’ll soon be back on Pacific time, but it causes confusion for one of us having to deal with the difference, explaining time and again that it’s not really noon, for instance, but one o’clock.

Our brief visit to Hill AFB was really nice. We didn’t go by the exchange to make those unnecessary purchases I mentioned, but we did go by the gas station to fill up, and Burger King for a warm sandwich. I also got orange juice and Diane got a huge cup of really hot, really bad coffee. She asked that they put four sugars in it, but I bet they forgot. Fortunately, we have those kind of supplies for emergencies, which this was, and I poured a bunch in and it didn’t do much good. Before doing that, however, she told me to put some in my travel mug but I used hers instead because mine was moldy and didn’t smell nice. Diane had to roll down her window. In my half, I poured five (5) of those little creamers and it did no good. It was a total waste of creamers, but I drank it anyway, just because. If only we could have found a Starbucks in a timely manner. By the time they appeared on our radar it was too late because we were almost to our destination.

Our average speed for the trip, including the 2 hours I drove (yea!), was 72.8 mph with two stops – one to pee and one to reload our bladders. So we made good time.

Nothing significant happened other than the fact that we were happy to arrive safely in Idaho where drivers are more sane. I don’t think anyone from Utah followed us across the state line so think we’re going to remain safe for a while longer.

When we arrived, Jim met us at the front door in his pajamas which indicated, to me, that it was time for bed. I don’t know why he bothered with them because he generally sleeps in his TV chair wearing what ever he has on at the moment. But he did. They are festive blue ones. He wore them the entire evening, even at dinner.

Before dinner, Steffani and Maryssa arrived to visit. Maryssa was a little punch drunk from lack of sleep (homework, she said) and went to work on current homework, laying on the floor, on her stomach, eating cookies and drinking a big glass of milk. It was interesting and caused me to wonder if I could do that without spilling it all over myself. I don’t think I my neck would bend back far enough to get anything in my mouth. But that’s to be expected, I suppose, since I’m way beyond 16, unlike her.

Bob arrived from his dentist shortly thereafter, then we all sat down for a pot roast dinner. It was awesome. The only problem was when Jim put a glass of water in front of my plate right where I was about to point, and I didn’t see it. I’m sure he’s the one who did it because I have no memory of picking it up before. I could’ve, I suppose, but I will always wonder. The result was that I hit it dead center and dumped all but about 1.5 swallows all over the table. Thankfully Donna had a table cloth on the table which soaked up most of it but an auxiliary towel was required to mop up the remainder. Quick action on everyones part kept it out of Steffani’s lap. Diane, of course, was mortified, as well she should have been, but everyone else seemed to take it well.

Spilling the water kinda ended the meal, so we ate cake, then everyone participated in completing Maryssa’s homework. It was a good exercise for all of us. It was all about medical terms. None of my answers were used.

After visiting for a short time Jim fell asleep in his chair and all the sudden it was time for bed. So that’s where I am at the moment. Diane sequestered herself in another bedroom and locked the door so I perceived that I was to use the other one. Which I’m doing.

Tomorrow, Jim wants to get up at some outlandish hour and do “stuff” so that’s what we’ll do. Now I must sleep.

Hill Air Force Base

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Today Diane drove a marathon from Kanab to Hill AFB near Ogden. It was about a 380 mile stint part of which was documented in my previous entry titled ‘Escape From Kanab‘. That was done on my iPad, on the fly, and the connection was tenuous so it failed to upload. I just discovered that and added it. So, this is my third entry for the day and I’m going to make it a short one.

After getting our coffee in Cedar City things mellowed out nicely. Diane was happy, I was happy, and it just got better when the speed limit went to 80 mph. Diane let out a little shriek of happiness that startled me, just before she pumped the cruise control up to match the sign.

At this point it’s important that you know Utah drivers are about the worst we’ve ever encountered. Anywhere. Considering all the traveling we’ve done over the years, I think we’re qualified to pass judgement. Okay, maybe not pass judgement. How about  criticize and share opinions? That’s better. It’s probably not a good idea to pass judgement on anyone in Utah since there is a concentration of Mormons in the area and we’re not entirely sure what kind of punishment they would impose for that kind of infraction. So, it’s just opinions, based on personal observation during the many times we’ve been in Utah. In general, most of them are pretty good, but those who are bad, in my opinion, are terrible and dangerous. It’s evident the bad drivers have attitudes. Bad ones. Consequently, they take a lot of chances. At 80 mph what they do, in my opinion, is pretty much insane. In my opinion.

In spite of it all, we managed to make it safely to Hill AFB, our goal for the day. I called first thing this morning to make a reservation at their on base lodging. The room(s) we were given are absolutely incredible. It’s a two room suite which allowed Diane to watch Dancing With The Stars in the bedroom while I watched recaps of all the Pac-12 games on ESPN in the living room. It’s also got free wi-fi which we are taking full advantage of by connecting five devices. We couldn’t use them right away, however, because they all needed charging. While that was going on we walked over to Burger King (yes, it’s on base), then on to the base Exchange for a look see at what they might have that other Exchanges don’t. It’s evident, after close scrutiny, that all base Exchanges, for all bases, Navy and Air Force, use the shame shopping list to stock their shelves. And, the prices are pretty much the same at all of them.

The walk we took to visit Burger King and the Exchange covered about 2 miles by my estimation. It was a long ways. But, the air was clear and comfortable, and we needed the walk. Walking was also a deterrent for buying things we didn’t need which is always a danger when we drive. We’ll just drop by there tomorrow morning on our way to Nampa and pick up some things we need.