Category Archives: Opinions

Thrift Stores and The Newport Cafe

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Newport Cafe. Need I say more? That’s where we ate lunch yesterday after an arduous couple hours of wandering around town looking at stuff. Actually, the stuff we were looking at was in the thrift stores we found. We also went to a Restore Store where I bought a portable air tank that still had air in it. I was so happy because last week I almost bought one half as big at O’Reilly’s for twice the price. And it didn’t come with air already in it. I just need to spruce up the old tank with a wire brush and some paint. I just hope that when it’s totally filled with air that I can still pick it up. It had 50 pounds of air in it when I got it which didn’t seem too bad, but the gauge indicates it will hold 160 pounds and I’m not sure my tiny little biceps are up to it.  We’ll see. 

That brings us back to the Newport Cafe. After all that shopping we were hungry so started looking for places to eat. As soon as we turned the corner back on to Highway 101 the Newport Cafe was just right there beside us so it was kind of like an omen the at we should eat there. It’s a small place and we weren’t sure if we would be able to find a place to sit. But, stepping out of our routine of opting for a booth in the back, we took two seats at the counter. We were lucky to get them because there are only five of them. I sat next to a lady, whose name I did not get, who is a deep sea fisherperson. She was ingesting eggs, hash browns, and a ribeye steak before heading out to sea to catch black fish. Don’t know what those are, and didn’t ask because it really didn’t matter. She told me lots of stuff about how she catches fish that I knew I’d forget, and I did except for the black fish info. That, and her boat is 36 feet long. Oh, and she strings out about 10 miles of line from fifty buckets of line that has segments with hooks about 3 feet apart. Those are dropped with an anchor and a buoy so she can find them later in the day. I agreed with her that it’s a lot of work to haul in 10 miles of line full of fish. Must be brutal, but lucrative.

The Cafe employees were all young men wearing baseball hats, with flat brims, that covered the top part of their ears. They all looked like they had either just finished a rap video or had just cruised in on the skate boards. They were all incredibly nice, very pleasant, and served us one of the best hamburgers (me) and  melts (Diane) we’ve ever had the pleasure of wrapping our lips around. It’s a place we highly recommend in case you ever find yourself in Newport and are in need of a terrific meal.  

When we were done eating we came back to the park and wandered around in the beach in a daze. We’ll, I wandered around while Diane sat on a log and watched me pick up all the brown rocks on the beach that no one else wanted. I found it interesting that I’m the only one on the beach that picks up brown rocks. They’re so pretty. Way prettier than the black ones. 

Another coup for the day was that the satellite antenna found some satellites. I put the antenna on top of the trailer theprevious  evening to try it out but couldn’t get it to work so just shoved it off to the side so I could get on the ladder. Yesterday, on a whim, I tried it again and discovered that I had apparently pushed it out of the way in just the right way so that all the HD channels showed up. Now we’re roughing it with HDTV. 

We also rode our bikes all over the park. I think that was this morning, but it could have easily been yesterday afternoon. I’m pretty sure it was this morning, though. It was a nice long ride during which I discovered a dire need for air to fill my back tire. I either gained a lot of weight recently, or the tire has lost some air, because it was embarrassingly low during our journey. Diane’s was fine, so I’m going with the weight gain.  Now I must go on a diet.

Today we went to Lincoln City just for fun, and to visit the Goodwill store, which gave us a perfect reason to have lunch at the buffet in the Chinook Winds Casino. It was great, and not a bank breaker like those in Las Vegas. It only cost $21.00 dollars for the both of us. Cheaper than the fast food places we’ve recently visited. 

After lunch, we stopped by Goodwill on the way home. As we left Diane said she had set a time limit of 4:30 pm and we left at exactly that time. 

Now we’re back in the trailer for our last night away from home for a while. It’s the place to be because it started raining cats and dogs on our way back. It’s good to be in a trailer when it’s raining.

Now I must go to bed. 

Whale, Crab, & Depoe Bay

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Today was a real lazy one. Although we got up at a reasonable time, we didn’t leave the trailer until afternoon when we decided to visit Depoe Bay. While pondering that short trip we just sat and read our books. We read a lot, just sitting here in the quiet. 
It must have rained last night because there were puddles on our picnic table.  By the time we got in the truck the sun was trying to shine, and by the time we got to Depoe Bay it was in full bloom. Sunshine everywhere. Our objective was lunch at Gracie’s Sea Hag restaurant.  We always eat there when in the vicinity because it’s good.  I have the Crab Louie, and Diane has fish and chips. It’s the best around. 

Before going in to eat, however, we sat on a bench overlooking the inlet to the bay from the ocean and we were treated to a terrific show by a pod of whales. They were spouting all over the place and some were rolling to show us their fins and others gave us good looks at their tales. It was pretty awesome.  It’s the first time I’ve ever seen whales off the Oregon coast. I forgot to mention that on the way through Depoe Bay on Monday we had to stop at the light and saw whales spouting so we knew they were in the area. What a treat. 

We returned to the park around 4:30 pm and sat on the beach for an hour, huddled in our winter coats watching the little children play in the freezing water unfazed. I actually remember those days when I thought the Pacific Ocean was warm. Brrrrrr. 

When the wind picked up, making the kiters happy, we returned to the trailer to warm up. Before going in I reconnected the satellite dish just for fun (it didn’t work yesterday) and it worked. Diane’s ecstatic!  It works. Our southern exposure is severely limited so I’m surprised it worked. Now we can watch HGTV all night. Great, right?

I’m quitting now, before I get into trouble. 

Don’t forget to revisit this weeks entry next week because I’ll be adding photos. In case you’re interested. 

Beverly Beach & Wal*Mart

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So, here we are at Beverly Beach on the glorious Oregon Coast. We arrived yesterday afternoon when it was bright, sunny, and warm. The space (C7) had all the necessary features (water, sewer, electricity, cable TV) but it was only 32 feet long. The trailer and truck need more like 45 feet of space.  But, we parked, got the trailer stabilized and spent a pretty good night in the quiet. Right behind our spot is an ongoing bank stabilization project to keep the park from falling into the creek behind us. Big trees coming down and big rocks being added. Fun to watch but noisy when they got to work around 9 this morning. 

People gathered in the closed spot next to us to watch the chaos. So, I went to visit the Rangers to see if there was something a little further inland that was available. I though it was worth a shot because we watched a lot of big rigs filing out of the park.  Luck was with us and Taylor, my Ranger, closed us out if C7 and logged us into G36. Doing this meant we’d have to rough it without sewer and TV. There was an outside chance the satellite receiver might work but it didn’t. 

BUT, G36 is a 65 foot long pull through spot so it was OK. We just decided we’d skip showers and only go to the bathroom every second time we felt the need. Now, considering our advanced age, that last bit was a stretch so we decided instead that we’d only flush every second time. After careful consideration we decided the heck with it, we’re on vacation, so we’re just going to use the bathroom whenever we want to. As many times as we want to.  When the tank gets full we’ll deal with it.

Sadly, when removing stuff from the truck I discovered that my treasured iPad has a cracked screen. It still works good, but it’s very unsightly and I just know that it won’t be long before I suffer a sever, life altering injury while swiping through one of my books. So, I’ll be looking at new ones sometime soon. 

Speaking of books … I downloaded a new one from iBooks yesterday and it doesn’t work like all the others. I checked. Instead of advancing a page forward when tapping the ride side of the screen, it goes back one page. Just the opposite of all the other books I have. Also, when viewing it in two column mode, you must read the right column first, then the left one or it doesn’t make any sense. So, I put it in scroll mode, which I don’t like but will use because I like the book. Very odd behavior. 

This morning, before changing spots, we went to Wal*Mart in Newport to get Diane some socks because her feet were cold and she didn’t bring any and I wouldn’t let her use mine. I knew right where Wal*Mart was because I had to go there yesterday to get an RV water regulator to replace the one I left laying on the garage floor at home. After returning “home” we went to the beach and took a nice long walk.  According to Diane’s Fitbit we went 3.5 miles. Pretty good. I came back with a nice load of rocks to mess with. The first one I found was an agate. The rest weren’t. 

I have photos for all the things I mentioned, but can’t add them from my iPad. If I remember, I’ll add them when we get home next month. Until then. Stay safe and don’t believe everything you hear on the news. And, I lied about my socks. Diane can wear them any time she wants. 

Doctor Visits, Golf, Gmail & Outlook, RV Dumping

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Last Monday I had a doctor’s appointment but gave it up so Diane could go in my place. Since I don’t go to the doc very often I was pretty sure they wouldn’t notice that Diane wasn’t me. But, they fooled me, and knew it was Diane right away. I think it’s because her hair is longer than mine. Even though they knew it wasn’t me they chose to see Diane anyway because, well, she needed to be seen. My appointment was just for a 2-month followup. Nothing’s happened in the last two months, however, so I was OK not seeing the doc. But, as luck would have it, they had an opening with my doctor right after my original appointment, so all that subtrafuge, though fun, was a total waste of time.

Diane had to see the doc because she developed a mysterious rash on her neck that was driving her nutsoid. She said it didn’t hurt, it just itched. We were concerned that it might be a new episode of shingles, and the doctor was wondering that herself. Diane now has some cream to help with the itch and it appears to be working.

Me? I’m fine. My BP was 117/68 (or something like that), HR 72, and weight 197. The weight, of course, is incorrect. It always is at the doc’s office. I wonder why that is. In addition to  asking all the normal questions about any changes I may have noticed, doc checked my ear to see how the Mohs surgery went. The ear is still a bit tender, but it healed so nicely that you can barely see that anything was done. My surgeon did a fabulous job. I also had photos taken of my retinas to see how my diabetes is going. I got the good news today that it’s all normal.

Yesterday I was forced to go golfing with Junior and Doug and I had one of my better rounds (52). Not bad for a 37 handicap. Yes, that’s how bad I really am. The reason is because I’m no too concerned with trees and just pretend they aren’t there if they happen to be between me and where I want to go. Most of the time it doesn’t work, but the times it does is lots of fun.

After golf I paid a visit to Eva, one of my high school class mates, who was having trouble with adding a Gmail account to her Outlook application. I couldn’t figure it out, but had a great visit. After returning home I went to work on the internet in an attempt to figure out how to fix it. It was a waste of time because I was really wanting to be outside working but Diane wouldn’t let me because it was so hot. Running 90+ I think and I’m forbidden to be outside when it’s that hot. I don’t mind, but hot days are the ones I’d rather be inside anyway so I don’t whine about it. Well, I don’t whine about it every time. Just once in a while, to keep in practice.

No, regarding Gmail and Outlook … I figured it out this afternoon and it’s kind of interesting. I’d explain it to you but I don’t want to. If you’re really interested, let me know and I’ll tell you.

Before doing the Gmail research, I hooked up the travel trailer in preparation for a run to the dump station next to Burgerville. Regarding that … I don’t believe any of the rumors going around about Burgerville using water from the dump station to wash their pans. I think it goes directly into the city sewer system. Honest. The trailer had to be dumped because when we left Big Eddy on July 24th their dump station was no available. So, we just went on home thinking we would do it when we got to St. Helens. But, we didn’t. Instead, we just went home to visit with Jewel and the dogs. Once the trailer was parked, there seemed to be too many other things going on that made hooking up the trailer difficult. Today, however, we decided that it had to be done since we will need to have all tanks empty for our trip to Beverly Beach next week. The dump went well, in case you’re wondering. Didn’t spill a drop. I was a bit concerned that the black tank may have solidified after sitting for a month, and that I may have to get a bunch of Fleet enemas to get things going, but it wasn’t necessary. It was a complete, uneventful evacuation of all tanks. Made me proud.

Upon returning home I put on my outdoor work clothes because I wanted to flatten a portion of the front yard that’s been a lump for years. Despite warnings about temps too high for me to be working outside (98) I went anyway and accomplished the task. then I took a shower so Diane would let me sit in the living room this evening.

For those of you keeping track of Jewel, I must admit that Diane and I are having difficulty helping her gain weight. She only weighs like 12 pounds and nothing seems to stick to her. Actually, she weighs more than that but it’s a secret. She did make a comment the other day that I thought was quite funny. She said she’s just a stick figure with wrinkles. But, she’s healthy and appears to be happy, so we should probably just quit making her eat ice cream all the time and leave her alone.

Hope all of you are happy and well.

My Burn Pile, “Jason Bourne”, Dirt, Hamburgers, and Dog Greetings

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Today I donned my Dickies and worked in the dirt for a while after feasting on toast and Cheerios, with brown sugar. I ate first because I know Diane would have told me to do so had she been home, but she was in Portland with her Mom, Jean, who had a doctor’s appointment. She would have been proud that I thought about eating all by myself. Most of the time I just wait until I’m told to go wash because lunch or dinner are ready. It’s something I’m used to what with having two ladies living in the house. One of them is always cooking something, which works great for me. Also, when one cooks, generally, the other one does the dishes. I know that, having shared that, I will certainly be put on the rotation for dishes. Truth is, I do the dishes quite often. I also cook once in a while. I’m “that” guy.

The sum result of my morning was to remove all the piles of yard debris from the edge of the yard, where Jewel stacks it, and transport it to the burn pile. Unfortunately, the burning season won’t start again until October so it’s going to be pretty large by then. It’s pretty large now.

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Actually, I emptied a yard of bulk potting soil from the pickup, too. One shovel full at a time.

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This afternoon, we watched “Jason Bourne” at the Scappoose Cinema 7 because it was Cheap Senior Day. Actually, it was cheap for everyone because all tickets were $5. We got there a little later than desired because I had to clean myself up after working in the yard, pulling stumps, and such. That resulted in the need for the three of us to sit closer to the screen than our little eyes liked. If you’ve seen the movie you know there’s a lot of action going on and the fast camera motion when you’re up close makes my eyeballs wobble around too much.

Although the movie only cost $5 for everyone who attended, most of them were old folks. One of them appeared to have brought they grandchildren to watch this R rated movie which we thought was a bit odd. Wonder if Mom & Dad knew. Maybe they will find out when the kids get home and start ratting out Grandma.

Another reason for getting to the theater early on old people day is to ensure you get a seat in the middle of the row you select because that’s generally where the old folks with small bladders sit. If you’re on the end it’s quite probably that you will be treated to an overweight person sliding their butts across your face as they step on your toes in their hurry to get to the bathroom. That only happened once. On the way back-end that lady just took her time.

On the way out of the theater we encountered a frenzied group of theater employees frantically working to stem the leak in the women’s bathroom. It must have been a couple of inches deep on the floor. It’s my theory that the lady who rushed that direction in the middle of the movie tried to flush her depends down the toilet without success. Just guessing, of course. There was no proof that I could see, but I didn’t look long.

For dinner Diane took us to Burgerville in St. Helens for some nutritious hamburger meat from Venezuela. That’s a lie, of course, because everyone knows that Burgerville only uses cows who used to live in Oregon and Washington, and maybe Northern California. We ate there so the dogs wouldn’t know about it. If we had taken the meal home they would have been harassing us for little bites of meat and french fries. They always do that.

It didn’t matter because when we got home all they wanted to hear about was the movie and when it would be on HBO so they could watch it. There was no talk about hamburgers at all. All they did was greet us in the same exuberant manner they use every time we’re gone from the house more than 5 minutes. Ziva has the need to put her hands on me which sometimes results in damage to my exterior. Here’s the results of one of her hello’s:

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She did that with just one foot. It was a double tap that she just couldn’t control. If my skin wasn’t so crepe papery I may not have bled at all. I would have just had a bunch of hematomas.

Since I had to put the old truck in the back yard to facilitate removal of the dirt we purchased, I decided it’s just as well that I leave it there. That way I can just use it to jump-start the lawn mower when I need to use it. Logic says that getting a new battery for the mower would be the more expedient solution, but logic doesn’t necessarily factor in to many of the decisions I make day in and day out.

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Now I must blot the ketchup off my Dickies so I can wear them tomorrow for my visit with the doc. It’s just a little spot.

Golfing, and other Stuff

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It was a good day on the golf course. None of us died. I beat the Peal brothers handily which reaffirms my previous statements about golfing more makes you better. This just happened to be my day. Doug came in with a cold and then we have Junior who has two fake knees and a bad back that requires a couple of back braces to make playing tolerable. We had a good time.

Getting to the golf course, however, was a bit dicey because the brakes on my old truck decided it was time to retire. Thankfully, there was no one at the intersection of Barr Ave and Sykes Road when I made this discovery or there would have been a wreck. But, I made it to the course on time by driving very carefully the rest of the way. I can stop it if the truck is rolling slowly. Made it home OK, too. Since it has a load of dirt in the back, I need to find some brake fluid so I won’t run through the lower fence in the back yard when I go there.

… pause …

Couldn’t find any brake fluid in the garage, but I have lots of power steering fluid so used some of that. Seems to work just fine. Does anyone know if that’s a bad idea?

Only a day left before I go under the knife for Mohs surgery on Wednesday morning. Dr. Alan is going to peel all the skin off my right ear, remove all the basal cell carcinoma things then put it all back together. I told the young lady who called for the pre-op stuff that I was OK with and Ear-ectomy if necessary but she said that wouldn’t be necessary and that when Dr. Alan is done it will still look like an ear. She didn’t say what kind of ear, and I didn’t ask, so I planning to be surprised when it’s all done. I’ll take a picture to share.

Right now I’m going to just rest a bit and wait for Diane to feed me.

Ciao.

News Flash !

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A “new” study has determined that violent video games are linked to child aggression. This was reported in the November issue of the journal Pediatrics.

Really? It took a study six month study, I think it was six months, to come to this conclusion. I suspect pretty much every parent who allowed their children to play violent games could have told you within a couple of weeks, if not sooner.

Regarding the report … it’s from November, eight months ago, and is just now being reported by our ever vigilant media. Obviously this either isn’t important news, or everyone already knows. Just a guess.

Hmm.

 

Hillary

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OK, it’s official. Hillary has entered the ranks of famous people who only need one name for folks to know who they are. Like Madonna. Had to point that out even though I’m pretty sure everyone knows.

Then, this morning, I read a news blip about how Hillary, at a NAACP conference, vowed to reform the American justice system to “root out implicit bias and stop the killings of African-Americans.”

First, African-Americans, when the dust settles are just Americans like the rest of us. It is my belief that those who insist on being called African-Americans are part of the “bias” problem in American and help perpetuate racial tensions. I, and many others, not all of us Hispanic, or Black, have pointed this out in the past, but we are overshadowed by the media who dwell in the world where the sensational minority demand more attention than the more stable majority. It’s a sad situation.

I have to add that my first thought about Hillary’s vow to reform the justice system was that she wanted to ensure that no one in the future would be able to cleanly walk away from legal charges like she did. It was a travesty of justice and she knows it so I guess she’s going to fix it.

Nifty.

Good News For Golfers

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I have it on good authority that all golfers in the world, or at least in the USA, are going to realize a benefit based on the fiasco of the FBI releasing Hillary of blame for lying to Congress, and her blatant refusal to use an appropriate, secure, government controlled, email server. The FBI decision, I believe, was that she did all those things without meaning to so cannot be blamed. No intent to cause harm, so she walks. Then the AG steps up and abides by the FBI ruling sidestepping her requirement to uphold the law herself. Kinda makes those of us who know that, because we reside lower on the tree of forgiveness, we would be held fully accountable and probably sent to jail. Obviously two sets of rules are in play here.

Now back to golf …

There will no longer be a penalty stoke for hitting a ball into the water or out of bounds. The USGA , the R&A, the PGA, after a private meeting with Bill Clinton and Loretta Lynch, on a plane somewhere, have recommended that your opponent must prove that you intended to hit the ball into these hazards in order for there to be a penalty.

Carelessness or ignorance is not intent.

No intent-no penalty stroke.

My good friend, Jimmie O’, who keeps a watchful eye on all things golf, relayed this bit of info to me. Sounds like a boon, to me. I’m sure Hillary is thinking the same. No, probably not. I think she’s more attuned to getting her way and would find being at fault, for any infraction, a travesty of justice.

News in the News

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Amid all the shootings, and stories about people blowing each other up, is a scattering of nonsensical news items that make me pause and go, “Hmmm.”

First, I must tell you that I typically don’t watch the news and I rarely read the newspapers that are delivered to our door, so my news view is decidedly limited. Still, I have opinions about what I see when reading “Bing” news on my computer.

Using that handy doorway to the world I’m able to choose from many sources for any of the news items they deem noteworthy. I have my favorites, of course, but tend to look at the most recent entries available. I suspect the trivial items are included to dilute ones perception of news in general to keep their interest. You know, like scattering candy in a pile of crap to make it look more festive.

Take today, for instance. I’ve investigated the world and discovered that a “Popular Tucson TV Reporter Couple” have been charged with child abuse after their baby tested positive for cocaine. This was accomplished through the use of the former Miss Arizona contestant’s shapely left breast, while feeding her infant, after she ingested cocaine the previous evening. How fun. Now she’s newsworthy, but no longer reporting the news. Dumb.

Then there’s news about a Milwaukee woman who has been added to the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list. She’s the suspect in the murder of her pregnant neighbor and her unborn infant because of loud music. One source indicated that Shanika, the suspect, is Milwaukee’s first fugitive on the ‘Ten Most Wanted List’, like it’s some kind of honor, like when the Bucks win a ball game. Kinda makes you want to move to Milwaukee, doesn’t it?

How about Mark Z, Mr. Facebook? He’s making all his new Kauai neighbors angry because he’s building a six-foot high wall around his 700 acre estate. That’s certainly noteworthy, don’t you think? His spokespeople said the wall is meant to be a sound barrier but I think it’s there to keep the wild pigs out. Or maybe keep them in. One resident of the island reported that she’s 5’8″ tall and when walking along the property all she can see is the rock wall instead of the Hawaiian scenery to which she’s accustom. They want Mark to tear down the wall because it’s an eye sore. I mean, really? It was built to code, using local rocks and, most likely, local artisans. I think it’s a nice looking wall. I also think a more simple solution to tearing it down would be for Mark to build platforms outside the wall, every 100 feet or so, where those who are less than 6′ tall can ascend above the wall and take in all of Mark’s natural beauty. Each ramp would have to have wheelchair access, of course.

 For the sports minded folks, there’s news about LeBron James who declined his player option and is now a free agent. The reason, I surmise, is due to his inherently greedy nature that propels him to seek more and more money for his “talents”. Yes, he’s pretty good but, like all pro sports icons, waaaaaay overpaid for what they do. Declining the option, it is reported, James salary will increase from $24 million to $27.5 million a year, a modest 14.58% increase. Not bad for someone who already has far more money than he needs.

I know, I sound a bit bitter talking about stuff like that, and probably smacks a lot like socialism. That’s not really it for me. It’s just that I find it amazing that professional athletes, and most CEO’s make such obscene amounts of money each year when we severely under educated kids, many of whom don’t know what having a full belly is like. It’s just sad.

There are many more topics, of course, most of them about people getting shot and places being blown to smithereens. You know, fun things to read about. The topper for all of today’s news, for me, was finding out that there might be a Tetris Trilogy in our future.

Stunning news.