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.
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.
We finally escaped the sedating effect of Kanab at either 8 or 9 this morning. We’re not sure which is true because Waze took us back to Arizona, instead of North, when I programed her for Hill AFB in Ogden, Utah. So we circled around a bit, switching back and forth between Pacific and Mountain time. Very confusing and made me blink a lot.
Ultimately, however, things leveled out, I became more aware of my surroundings. I suspect the reason for that is because the landscape began to attain a tinge of green. The change was so subtle that it was almost like an illusion. By the time we made it to Hurricane, Utah there were actually trees and the telephone signal gained a bunch of bars, becoming a very solid 4G presence. All of our eletronical devices became happy clams. Once again we could communicate.
Sadly, about 20 miles before that happened, I called brother Jim seeking permission to transit the Utah/Idaho border at some point tomorrow. He wanted a specific time but I couldn’t comply, not knowing what tomorrow might bring. Then, as luck would have it, the signal was either lost or Jim hung up. Either way the all was terminated. He was at Burger King participating in his Tuesday Coffee Clash so I suspect he hung up. So, we are in jeopardy of violating some sort of idahoian law tomorrow the punishment for which we do not know. It could be bad.
When we escaped from Kanab we began a quest to find a Starbucks so we could obtain invigorating refreshment. It quickly became apparent that Utah doesn’t allow these popular stores inside their city limits, only on freeways, and in the wrong direction. Consequently, the only caffeine we’ve had today was from the pump pot at the hotel. Diane said it wasn’t bad, but 50% of us didn’t agree. Perhaps when reach the boundaries of a larger metropolis there will be solace in the form of a Venti White Chocolate Mocha No Whip (VWCMNW).
Shortly before we got to Hurricane, an old guy on a Harley made a dedicated attempt to demonstrate how the gene pool is maintained in a manner that only allows relatively intelligent folks to breed. We were on a two lane road and he chose to pass when some very large vehicles were coming our direction at a combined closing speed of 120 mph. Had Diane moved a couple of inches to the left there would have been some serious skid marks on the pavement as he didn’t leave his lane and barely missed the front bumper when he chose to position himself in our lane. Exciting.
Glory Hallelujah!! Cedar City, Utah has a Starbucks. We’re stopping and I’m done here.
This is just a quick update to share a few pictures that I was unable to upload while on the freeway because Diane was driving too fast.
First, for Ruth, proof that her family had something to do with the formation of the Grand Canyon. Apparently the Mather’s’ve been around for a while.
And here’s what things look like at the rim near Mather Point … quite dramatic
This one is just to prove we were there so no one can accuse me of fabricating like they sometimes do. This could, of course, be a really old picture but you will never ever know.
I really didn’t realize that Diane was so much shorter than me. Interesting.
The next few pictures are ones I snapped out of the passenger window as we sailed up the highway. I was fascinated by the colors and geology of the hills we passed. I really have a hard time calling these hills because they’re so sharp. Hills have round tops, not sharp ones.
This last picture kinda says it all and is an Arizona statement of the obvious.
In case you can’t read the sign, it states “Watch for Rocks”.
We left Mesa, Arizona yesterday around 2-ish and arrived in Flagstaff shortly thereafter. It is, after all, only about 180 miles away. For Diane, that’s a walk in the park and only took 3 hours. So, we arrived around 5-ish.
Using Siri, I contacted the Drury Hotel on the way and secured a room. We don’t often stay in hotels so this was different for us. But, a room is a room is a room and that’s what we got. A room. A pretty nice one. What made it even better was the free evening food and free breakfast. Ok, I know it’s not really free, but it’s not a line item on the bill, so technically it was all free. Not that I really think you care, but I ate wienies last night, biscuits and gravy this morning.
Now I’m bummed. Right here I attempted to add a photo of my wienies, but the internet we have at our current address is incredibly slow. So, you’ll just have to visualize them. And, I won’t attempt to add any others.
Today was a long one because from Flagstaff we went to the Southern Rim of the Grand Canyon. We spent two hours there, mingling with 30-40,000 of our friends from all over the world. Really … three out of four people were speaking a foreign language. Perhaps if I’d worn my hearing aid …
The canyon was beautiful and breathtaking as we knew it would be. But, the sun was a little off and things were a bit hazy so it detracted a little bit. That’s why we only spent 2 hours there, then we headed to the East Entrance on Highway 64 to Highway 89 and headed north to Page, Arizona. We had initially thought we would stay the night in Page but we arrived too early. So we decided to just get a Starbucks and continue one. But, we couldn’t find it so we got gas for the car instead and continued on.
The new goal became Kanab, Utah. Until I checked the map, I’d never heard of Kanab. It sounds like something you’d eat at a BBQ with toothpicks. The scenery on the way, however, just blew us away and chased all thoughts of toothpick food from our minds.
After exiting the Eastern Entrance, we crossed the Little Colorado and the mountains turned red with incredible stripes of lighter colored rock. The closer we got to Utah the darker the color and when we crossed the border all the mountains turned gray. I took a gazillion pictures which I’ll have to share later. I wish I could now because I’ll probably forget.
Kanab … what can I say? It’s smack dab in the middle of an incredible array of natural wonders like Zion, Bryce, The Grand Canyon, the red mountains, and I’m pretty positive there are some nasty snakes out there beyond the freeways. Kanab has also been the location for numerous movies over the years, including the recent John Carter. I know that’s true because I read it in a newspaper while I was waiting for dinner at Pizza Hut.
It’s dark now, Dancing With The Stars is over, and Hawaii Five-0 is starting so I need to quit.
Tomorrow we’re hoping to reach the vicinity of Salt Lake City, then it’s on to Nampa, Idaho. On the way I’ll call Jim to see if it’s OK to stop by for a while.
Yesterday was very relaxing for us because we didn’t go anywhere except lunch. That, and St. Vincent DePaul’s. It’s been a while since Diane’s been in a Goodwill store so this satisfied that need. She found some lovely end tables that we both thought were quite adorable and she really, really wanted to get them. But, risking divorce, I put my foot down and said “No!”. From habit, I put my hands up in a defensive manner and squinted really hard, but nothing happened. After a bit I felt safe enough to open my eyes and discovered that she wasn’t even there any longer. She was off looking at something else. Apparently, putting my foot down will not result in severe punishment as I had initially thought it would. So, I won’t have to repack the Buick to make room for end tables we don’t need.
Before visiting the thrift store we had an excellent lunch at the local Village Inn. As soon as we entered Gene started giving the manager and waitress a hard time which really concerned me because we hadn’t even sat down and he was positioning us to have someone spit on our plates before looking at a menu. As luck would have it, however, he and Shirley know those folks and they were engaging in normal, harmless, friendly dialogue. It was all good.
After that we went to Wal*Mart for some needed “things”. The girls shopped while Gene and I just hung our near the registers. We weren’t sure why everyone was staring and smiling until Diane showed us this picture.
We wound up in front of a TV to watch the Oregon vs. Washington football game before 1930. The game started out slow but ended normally with Oregon winning 52-21. Fun to watch and gratifying that the Washington Huskies did not give up. They played hard to the final whistle.
This morning we all got up early because we went to church. It was an excellent service which we enjoyed very much. We learned the senior method of conducting communion, too. Four guys go up front and each get a platter of the absolutely smallest saltines I’ve even seen, and then bracket the crowd, passing the trays back an forth. Everyone serves themselves. They were so tiny that I took six of them. Once everyone has their tiny crackers, the pastor blesses it and everyone partakes. They do the same thing with the wine, then they send around a little basket to collect the cups. By the time all that was through, I was ready for a donut, which I got at the coffee hour following the service. I don’t mean that in a disrespectful manner because, as I said previously, we enjoyed the service very much. Everyone was very friendly.
After church, we headed over to the mall where one of the 38 Wal*Marts in the area resides, and had lunch at the all you can eat Chinese Food Place. Tempting fate, I had six different kinds of dead shrimp, and a large glass of water. And noodles. I love those noodles.
From there we went back to the house and packed our duds so we could hit the road. Our goal is Flagstaff which, at this exact point in time, is only about 45 miles away. We left Mesa at 1400, almost exactly, so we’ve made good time. The only stop we made, before leaving town, was for gas. It’s only $3.70 a gallon there. In California we filled up on base for $4.20 a gallon, and it got far worse before we crossed the border into Arizona. Interesting that only California was affected with an attack of really spendy gas just in time for Columbus Day Weekend.
Getting our of town was pretty painless this being Sunday and all. The only close encounter we had was with a younger oriental male, in a newer Infinity, who leisurely passed us on the left, then pulled in front of us with about 8 feet to spare. Then he slowed down, and leisurely pulled into the right lane for the next exit. I waved at him, to let him know he accomplished his purpose of getting our attention. He made sure to slow down enough so we could see that he was apparently handicapped, having only one finger on his left hand, which he held against the window. I was immediately sorry that I had assumed he was just another ordinary jerk who was trying to spread discord and drive a wedge between Orientals and Americans. Had he been the latter he would have succeeded to a point, had I let him. But I didn’t. We just continued on our way knowing that he’s not through in this life and, if he might, perhaps, consider himself a Chinese/American that he’s not really an American.
Sorry … I was going on nicely before that and all the sudden this stump popped up and I felt the need to climb on it. Must be time to terminate this one.
Today I learned how to dismantle a 5-CD player. It wasn’t a big deal because it wasn’t mine, so taking it apart wasn’t a delicate issue. Actually, Gene is the one who took it apart … I just watched, mostly, giving handy directions when I thought it was necessary. He handled the directions well which I found interesting, because he’s an old WWII Marine (Semper Fi). And, I know I can outrun him for the 15-20 feet necessary to get out of his range.
This project was started, just before supper, because the disc holder wouldn’t open. It was jammed shut. About 20 years ago he had it repaired, but it didn’t do any good. Maybe it as only 5 years ago. Or less. I don’t know. I suppose I could ask because he’s only about 15 feet away, in another room, but I don’t want to.
Once it was dismantled, totally, we figured out what made it tick and started putting it back together, attempting to get the tray to slide back and forth in the process. We were successful with that, then went to work reconnecting all the little wires we’d pulled off the many circuit boards. The first three attempts failed, then Gene was ordered out of the house to BBQ the hamburgers, and I was left to my own devices.
Working really hard, and fast, I managed to get it all put together, and working, before he got the burgers back in the house. It was really good timing and everyone in the house, all four of us, were totally amazed that it worked. And we only had one screw left over. How perfect is that?
So, now Gene and I are experts at fixing these things, but it’s a useless skill because they don’t make this model any more. Perhaps if it fails again Gene will work on it. By himself. He’s pretty handy so I’m confident he won’t have any trouble at all.
If you need help with something like this, and you live in Arizona, call Gene.
One Hundred and Twenty Eight people filled the Pacific Room at Anchors Catering for lunch today. It was a noisy crowd, a happy crowd. All the things they did over the past three days surpassed their wildest expectations. I say all these things, not to take credit for what Diane and I accomplished this week, but simply to echo the sentiments of everyone with whom we spoke. OK, it’s to garner a little credit, too, but mainly to revel in the fact that our mission was accomplished. We did it! It’s over, and we’re relieved. Everyone was able to get on the base, the buses got on the base, everyone loved thr USS Midway, the harbor cruise was a huge hit, and the lunch was totally awesome.
The day began normally with me limping down to the hospitality rooms to see who was there and to visit a little bit. And eat snacks. Diane spent just a little less than $300 on all those snacks, and made a number of runs to the package store and commissary to get them. What a gal. We were reimbursed for that, of course, but I had to have a bit of it myself. Good stuff, and nearly all of it was eaten. Very little waste. Just great.
Getting everyone to the banquet was far less of an issue than I had envisioned because everyone buddied up just like they were supposed to. That was a plus. We all got seats then started filing out to fill our plates at the all you can eat Prime Rib buffet … cost for normal people is $11.95. For us it was $17.50 because we had a private room. Still, to get the kind of food we had at a private dinner would have been $35 a plate, easy. It was a really good choice. In case any of you are ever in San Diego, anyone can eat at Anchors Catering. They’re open for lunch Monday thru Friday.
As everyone filed into the dining room they placed raffle items on the tables creating an incredible array of things from which raffle winners could chose. Everything was really nice.
Diane won three times. We got a set of shot glasses and a commemorative coin from the USS Midway, a really nice Carhart hoody, and a t-shirt with “Don’t Give Up The Ship” on the front in really huge letters. If I tucked it into my jeans you would only see “Don’t Give”. That’s the only thing I picked out … I limped all the way up to the table to do it.
Halfway through the raffle one of our shipmates auctioned off a terrific charcoal pencil drawing that was done by another shipmate. The auctioneer was just great. He started it off at $50 and finally sold it for $400. All profits will be donated with the exception of some seed money for the next reunion in 2014. It will be either in Charleston or Norfolk, east coast.
Here’s a picture of the artist, left, and the winning bidder, right.
Once the bidding was done, and the raffle was over, all of the crewmen signed the back of the drawing indicating their years of service on that ship. The winning bidder is a retired Navy Captain who plans to give it to the wife of one of the friends he made while serving aboard the Buckley in the early 60’s. This friend went on from the Buckley and eventually went on to receive his own command at sea. During his tour as the CO, he fell down a ladder and broke his neck, rendering him immobile. Everyone knew the CO, from his fledgling years as a junior officer so this tribute to him is a pretty awesome thing.
After everyone was done eating, for the 3rd, or 4th time for some, we had a meeting to determine where we’d be going in 2014. It will be either Norfolk or Charleston, depending on who decides to step up and coordinate the event. Once that was decided, everyone present humbled Diane and me by giving us a standing ovation for our efforts. That was very nice and made it all worthwhile.
Now it’s behind us and we can help mentor whoever decides to take on the east coast event. Diane was successful in keeping my arms out of the air, but she didn’t have to work too hard at it. We’re done, for at least a while.
Cheers.
Today we all took a 2 hour cruise around San Diego Harbor. Our buses were 30 minutes early for a 1300 pickup which was perfect. Knowing how these guys get around, slowly, we told them the bus was leaving at 1300, a mythical time I never thought we’d meet. So, last night we spread the word for everyone to meet out front at 1230 so they would be ready to board when the buses arrived at 1300. Getting there 30 minutes early was a real plus. We love Jose and Arturo.
Diane took me down to the waterfront earlier this morning so I could pick up the 116 tickets we had purchased. I met Amanda at the ticket kiosk near the Star of India sailing ship which is parked on the quay near Broadway.
Diane let me out about 1/2 a mile from the kiosk so I had to limp my way there to get the tickets. “Why did you limp?” you may ask. “Because I’ve developed a terminal case of gout,” I’d reply. “My left big toe is about twice as big as the right one and I’ve had to walk flat footed on my left foot all day long. On a moving vessel.” But, it’s all good. I survived the day, and it was a good one.
Once the buses arrived at the pier everyone debarked and headed for the vessel boarding location for Hornblower Cruises. The Adventure hadn’t yet arrived so we all had to wait about 15 minutes for it to get there and unload their morning passengers.
While that was going on Ken and I handed out the tickets, one at a time. As I neared the end of the line I started to panic a bit because it didn’t appear I had enough tickets. There were a large bunch of people gathering behind our group who were also going on the cruise so they added to my confusion so one of the Georges gathered up a couple of strays stranded within the crowd of strangers and herded to them to me and I gave him the last ticket. I was absolutely perfect and kind of set the tone for the rest of the afternoon.
The Adventure backed out of it’s slip, turned around, and headed across the bay toward NAS North Island where two aircraft carriers are currently “parked”. One of them was the USS Nimitz, the other the USS Ronald Reagan.
The captain of our vessel kept up a running narrative of everything we were looking at, and directed our attention to specific areas of interest, giving us a lot of great detail about what we saw. Of primary interest was the trip past the piers of the 32nd Street Naval Station where many warships are currently parked. He named them all as we headed south into the bay.
This picture is of the Coronado Bay Bridge which links Coronado Island, on the left, to San Diego …
After touring the south portion of the bay we turned north and turned the corner to view the submarine base at Point Loma. The view was totally awesome because once we turned the sun was behind us, shining on everything we looked at. Perfect for photos.
Nice. You can see the USS Midway to the right of the photo. The Adventure’s dock is on the left side of the Midway’s pier and that’s where we’re headed.
In case I didn’t mention it previously, the USS Midway is permanently docked in downtown San Diego. When the ship was active, we on the USS Dennis J. Buckley served time as their plane guard. That’s always a small, maneuverable ship that follows the carrier to pick up any of the pilots who failed to land their planes safely on the flight deck. Not all of them made it. Enough said.
Thought it was only a two hour cruise, it seemed much longer, and everyone was enthralled with the trip and what they saw. It was just great. Diane and I were very happy because it was such a success. The major success was in getting everyone to the buses and back to the lodge without losing one person.
After returning, Diane took a list to the package store to get the requested beer. Seems they were running low in the hospitality rooms.
Today began early when our huge buses arrived at 0755. Arturo, one of the drivers, called to tell me that he and Jose were at the gate. This prompted a fury of activity to round up all the old guys and get them pointed to the front door of the lodge. Since the buses were too big to enter the lodge driveway, they parked out front on the street after turning around so they were aimed at the gate. This put them in excellent position for us to point the slower movers and give them a little shove toward one of the buses.
By the time they regained their balance they were at the bus and the driver was helping them aboard. Shortly thereafter, their wives arrived, arms flailing, as they chased after their beloved spouses. Photos were discouraged during this revolution because it my have caused issues if any of them had seen them, creating a situation where they may ask questions about what had happened.
It only took about half an hour to get them all loaded. Each bus had 56 seats and we had one empty on one bus, and 4 on the other. Diane and I, getting on last, wound up in the last row, which was just fine because we got to sit by Chris, and her Mom and Step Dad, Vern. Vern was on DD-808 from 1948 to 1954. Pretty amazing fellow. Chris is a remarkable lady, too.
The first stop for this trip was at the Point Loma National Cemetery where we all disembarked and walked through this smaller rendition of Arlington National Cemetery in Washington DC.
The purpose for this stop was to read the names of our Buckley shipmates who have crossed the bar (passed on) since our last reunion. Because this group of old sailors is of an advanced age the list was rather long. It was a very solemn time during which we showed our respect for these fallen shipmates. A short distance away, during our evolution, two ceremonies were conducted for one marine and one sailor. The atmosphere was perfect for our purpose.
Then we re-boarded our respective buses and continued on to the Cabrillo National Monument near the old Point Loma lighthouse. Cabrillo overlooks NAS Coronado, the city of San Diego, and the entire San Diego Harbor. It’s a stunning view. The first thing we all noticed was the submarine coming into port. Then we looked toward the city and noticed a guided missile destroyer leaving. We have no idea what the name of the submarine was, but the destroyer leaving port was the USS Preble (DDG-88). I found it very interesting that it was DDG-88, and we were all ex-crewmen of DD-808.
Everything went just great, people were enjoying themselves, and we got most of them rounded up for the next leg of the trip, to the USS Midway. We only left 2 people at Point Loma. It was actually better than I’d originally thought, because I believed we left 5 of them. Luck was with them, however, because a couple of our shipmates drove to the site and ferried the missing couple to the Midway.
Once there, we tromped all over that aircraft carrier. Everyone was having a great time. The guys in the fantail restaurant were a little dismayed when about 100 folks descended on them for sandwiches at the same time, but they weathered it well. Diane and I roamed the ship for a while before grabbing a sandwich so there wasn’t a crowd. But, I think they found out we were the culprits who arranged all of this and didn’t fill our order. It ended well, however, because we each got a sandwich, but only had to pay for one of them. Good customer service.
After lunch we continued wandering around the ship but Diane got worn out and decided to take a nap when we got to the berthing spaces.
I let her sleep for a couple of hours while I continued the tour the woke her up so we could return to the lodge, which we did, about 1630, tired and weary.
Only two more events to go and we can call it done. Tomorrow is the 2-hour harbor cruise at which we’re expecting 116 participants. Arturo and Jose will be back with they monster buses to get us there and back so we know we’re going to be in good hands. It’s good we’re going to be sitting down most of the day because the shrimp I ate yesterday have attacked my left big toe gout. Nice.
Observations and opinions of a crime-fiction crazy bibliophile and addicted cruciverbalist.
Funny Blogs With A Hint Of Personal Development
A Terrestrial Romance
Aspire To Inspire
Fiction, Poetry, Nonfiction, Photography and Photo Art
True Power Plant Stories
Kindness Changes Everything
If you wear your heart on your sleeve, join the club.
the Story within the Story
** OFFICIAL Site of Artist Ray Ferrer **
Just another WordPress.com site
iBellhop.com
Co-founder of Envylope, Writer, Globe-Trotter, Fashion & Vegetarian Food Aficionado
For lovers of reading, crime writing, crime fiction
A potpourri of whatever strikes my fancy to post about.
Indulge- Travel, Adventure, & New Experiences
Poems and stories of love & heartbreak.
“That I could clamber to the frozen moon. And draw the ladder after me.”
Just another WordPress.com weblog
Temporary Sanity ... 