Wednesday, December 25, 2013

Dec. 25, 2013 -- Greetings from downtown Quartzsite, AZ.

We are here and settled in—at least for a few weeks.  It was a long trip across Texas, smile.  The rest of the trip was faster.  We did run into a LOT of wind after we left Deming, NM on Daturday.  If I had looked at the weather report while at Dream Catcher RV Park, we might have delayed our trip by a day—but in spite of bad weather warnings, we were able to drive west to Gila Bend, AZ in one day.  We don’t normally make 335 mile days—but wanted to get to warmer weather.

We ended up having to dry-camp at Gila Bend—missing the last RV spot by minutes.  I just figured it was practice for Quartzsite! 

Here are some of the photos I could not post along the way.  We ran into Internet connection troubles across Texas and even into New Mexico.  In Junction and Balmorhea, we barely had phone coverage, much less Broadband or iphone internet service.  Deming, NM, we had the same issues.  So, we kind of gave up until we got to Quartzsite.  Now we have to run the generator to charge the computers, so times are short.

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Our site at the Llano River RV Park in Junction, TX.  What a rough life, eh?

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Larry resting at Quartzsite, AZ.  Fred & Arlene’s new trailer in the background.

Merry Christmas!  We had a very quiet Christmas with our friends (& family), Fred and Arlene Cray.  We have been friends and family for almost forty years!  Wow, that makes us old people.  We met when our 45-year old sons were about 8 years old!

I hope you have had a day surrounded by loved ones—either related by blood or by choice!  I heard recently:  What is under the tree is not as important as who is around the tree.  And with that, we were blessed this holiday!  We had wonderful friends at our sides.  It just doesn’t get any better.

May 2014 be the year your dreams come true—and fill your heart with joy.  Big hugs from the Jennings.

Thursday, December 19, 2013

Dec. 19, 2013 -- Out in the wilderness…West Texas

Help, we have fallen into “old times.”  Last night we stopped at North Llano River RV Park and found we didn’t have internet service!  I couldn’t log on with my phone nor the broadband card and the WIFI signal was too weak to use!  I felt crippled!  Nice park—but step back in time if you visit. 

Tonight we are in Balmorhea, TX, at a Passport America Discount park—and I am using the old dial-up phone speed on the broadband caard for this posting.  So, until we stop in El Paso, TX, tomorrow or Deming, NM, I can’t post any pictures!  We are fine—weather is beautiful but expected to get rainy and windy tomorrow.  We are 212 miles from the Texas border—and it will have taken us four days of travel since we left Livingston.  Told you we don’t travel far and fast, smile.  Until tomorrow, keep us in your thoughts!

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Dec. 17, 2013 – Back on the road again…

Well, our time in Livingston, TX, didn’t last very long.  It was so nice to get out of the camper for a while.  Besides seeing wonderful friends again, these are the things that make my heart go “pitter-pat” at the house:

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Of course, my pottery shop.  Isn’t it cute?

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I made time to throw some bowls, doing a bisque fire and two glaze firings to practice some of the new techniques I learned in Salem last summer.

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The Livingston Art League’s annual Art Show was the day after we got back.  I entered three bowls and two won, a second and third place.  I was very happy!  The one on the left is called Texas Red and was thrown last winter.  The other two were thrown and fired in Salem, OR.  The ribbon winner was Day Break and the other is Midnight.  It was fun!!

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This is the other thing at the house that speeds up my heart—the washer and dryer.  I hate doing laundry in Laundromats!  I mean I HATE it.  I love being able to do a load of laundry every day—while I am doing other things—I miss these two already—and we are only 225 miles from home.  Boo Hoo!

We spent some time cleaning out the back of the back yard.  There was a huge Kumquat tree as well as a mangy fig tree along the back property line—which is also over a waterline.  The trees and bushes needed to come out—so Larry and I chopped and hacked and totted 10 or 12 loads down to the dumping area with the golf cart!  We had it down to a fine art.  Eventually we hired D & D Tree Service to remove the kumquat tree—I didn’t want to try “playing” with a chain saw at this stage in my life!

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Now the yard looks larger and much cleaner!  Another chore checked off the list!

If we were having some much fun, why leave? Well, we wish we could have stayed another month or two, but Larry developed another suspicious spot.  We had it looked at and the specialist prescribed an antibiotic/anti-fungus medicine that we have applied faithfully for three weeks.  While the spot looks better, it isn’t gone.  If it needs a biopsy, we want it done by our doctor in California.  The weather has been pretty rough across the US and we don’t want to risk staying another month and running into more severe winter weather.  There is a slight lull, and we hope we can make it to Casa Grande area before the next freezing weather.  If not, we will just hunker down and wait out the bad weather.  If we wait until mid-January, we won’t have that option if we are trying to make a scheduled appointment.

Tonight we are at Riverbend RV park In Luling, TX.  We have stayed here before as it is a Passport America Park as well as an Escapees’ 50% discount park.  It is close to I-10 and easy in and out.

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This is the laundry room and showers:

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There is an on-site pool and fishing pond.  It is located along the attractive San Marcos River.

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Tomorrow night we will be in Junction, TX again.  Hey, we were just there in November—and this is December!  Yikes!  Our travel stops along I-10 through Texas are pre-determined by the number of RV parks in the few towns between Houston and El Paso.    So instead of 250-300 miles a day, we will be doing about 200 for the next day or so.   We could comfortably drive 250 miles—but the lodgings are to slim to do it.  We aren’t in any hurry—so we will just mosey toward Quartzsite, AZ, for a few weeks until Larry has his doctor appointments.

See you tomorrow night.

Sunday, November 10, 2013

Nov. 10, 2013 -- Home at last! (On Friday)

Just a short note for tonight—we got home Friday about noon—and I will slow down enough to write in a day or two!  Between cleaning the house so we can move in, moving all the food and clothes into the house, cleaning all the camper stuff to have it ready in an emergency, and tidying up the yard, I manage to stay busy!

So, hang tight, I will be back to write about the last days of the trip—and then winning Two ribbons at the Livingston Art League’s annual art show on Saturday.

Thursday, November 7, 2013

Nov. 7, 2013 – Almost home!

We are about 130 miles from home!  Had we been 20 years younger, we could have continued on up to Livingston, but we aren’t—and we didn’t. Age has bestowed wisdom on us—why drive until 4 p.m. through rush-hour traffic and arrive exhausted??

Yesterday we stopped early to visit Harrell and Tommie Sue’s new house in Bulverde, TX.  It is located just off Hwy 46 around San Antonio, TX.  Wow, what a nice place!  They were so lucky to find this gem in the Hill Country:

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Isn’t it nice?  Their new house came with built-in pets—lots of deer!  This morning, this guy was enjoying his breakfast just past their deck.

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Down hunters, down!  No guns allowed! These are pets!!  (Not pests!)

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Don’t they look happy in their new house!  We had a wonderful visit with Tommie Sue and Harrell and some of their friends who live in the areas.  We all went to dinner at a place called Antlers.  The food was some of the best food we have eaten in a restaurant all year!  Larry was in heaven with his Chicken-Fried Steak dinner!!  He has really missed that since we left last December.

This morning we were finally able to get the truck and car car inspection stickers done in Spring Branch—so 2 of our 3 vehicles are done!  Yippee.  We tried in Junction, Segovia, and Bulverde yesterday with no luck.  Each inspection station was either out of stickers—on the 6th of the month, ill employee, or wouldn’t do it on wet streets.  It is a battle every year to find someone to do the inspection.  Why? 

We are in Brookshire, TX, at Houston West RV Park for the night.  We just have to get past the morning rush hour traffic coming into Katy and then pick up the toll-road around Houston for the last leg of the 2,000 mile trip!  I estimated 10 days for the trip, but because we stopped to visit with friends, it will have taken 11 days—not bad for two old folks traveling East!

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Nov. 5, 2013 Stopping In Junction, TX, tonight.

Just a short note.  We ran into rain and fog just before Ozona, TX.  The weather report for the San Antonio area looked too iffy for us, so we pulled in to Junction, TX, to the North Llano River RV Park.  It is a very nice park and we have started staying here coming and going through Texas. 

Tomorrow night we will be stopping in Bulverde, TX, to visit Harrell and Tommie Sue Hicks in their new home.  We expect to do about 200 miles toward Houston the next day—stopping in Katy, TX.

Then if all goes well, on to Livingston!!  But, like all our plans, it is subject to change—due to any number of reasons, smile!  Check back to see how far we get Thursday.

Monday, November 4, 2013

Nov. 4, 2013 – Fort Stockton, TX.

I wrote this morning from El Paso, TX.  Today we drove about 260 miles to Fort Stockton and checked into the Comanche Land RV Park.  Not much to look at, but full hook-ups for just $16.

Here are some of the photos from the last few days:

The desert is a dangerous place—for Saguaros at Holt’s Shell station.  These snakes are about 6 ft. tall!

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Here we are parked in Cochise Terrace in Benson, AZ. And this is Don and Sharon’s beautiful spot.

P1000939 Their RV just barely clears the top—glad I don’t have to back it in.  But Sharon is an instructor for the RV Driving School—so she has the skills to manage the task!

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It rained during the night and I got up early to take some photos of the clouds. 

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Texas Canyon with its beautiful rounded rock formations shaped by wind and water is one of my favorite spots along the I-10 corridor..

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So many are perched precariously on top of each other, I don’t think I would like to be up there in a storm with strong winds!  Watch out below!!

One of the reasons I didn’t get to post on Sunday afternoon is that we had a small maintenance item—well, actually a big one! When I pulled of I-10 for the Anthony Flying J, I noticed the car seemed to jerk when I stopped at the light—and again after fueling.  Once we got to the American RV Park, Larry took a look and noticed the ball on the stinger was lose.  As he had just tightened it the day before because it felt lose when we hooked up, we decided a visit to share some money with Camping World was in order!  I mean, who wants to lose a car in downtown El Paso???

We picked up a new stinger and ball, but forgot that we had reversed it so it raised the ball, not dropped it two inches.  Larry’s big tools to reverse the new one are in the storage locker in Antioch.  Back in the car, back down the hill—return the first one and the only thing they had was a straight stinger with 3 different ball sizes.  Bought that and new pins for the hitch and back to the campground to install.  It is working great—and feels more stable than the old arrangement. 

Once the work was done, I had to go do a load of laundry which took a while—so it was dark and almost bedtime before I could post.  And I was just too tired at that point—off to bed!

RVing really is the art of adapting to new situations without a lot of cussing!  Minor cussing allowed, but major cussing is reserved for medical issues—as they are the situations that really count in one’s life!

Junction, TX, is our destination for tomorrow. 

Nov. 4, 2013 – Almost home in Texas, well--over half way there!

We are in Texas, but just at the border in Anthony, TX.  We have about 800 miles to go in this 2,000 mile trip. 

We spent the previous night in Benson, AZ, where Sharon and Don Del Rosario call “home.”  At least that is where they own a lot and storage shed, smile.  We passed through Tucson early Sunday morning and then ran into a lot of wind.  So, we decided to stop in Benson and wait til the following morning to pass through the AZ and NM dust-blowing areas.  I have photos of the Del Rosario’s homestead, but I am short of time this morning.  Will try to post this afternoon from Fort Stockton.

We had a lovely visit with Don and Sharon and all went out to dinner at Pablo's in Benson.  It was nice being able to spend some time hearing what wonderful adventures they had this summer.

It rained in Benson and Lordsburg Sunday night, so we didn’t have any trouble with dust or the wind. However, instead of spending the night in Deming, NM, as planned, we decided we had to push on to make today a shorter trip of 250 miles.  We stopped and ate our lunch while visiting with Jim and Penny Scott and continued on to Anthony, TX, to stay at the American RV Park just up behind Camping World.

More on that later today.  We are headed for Fort Stockton for tonight—a long haul for us on this trip—256 miles!  Chat with you later today! 

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Sat., Nov. 2, 2013 A long day’s drive to Benson, AZ.

Today was another short driving day.  Yesterday we drove 60 miles from Gila Bend, AZ, to Casa Grande, AZ.  I wanted to get closer to Tucson in order to go through the area between Casa Grande and Tucson early in the morning to avoid possible dust storms.  We ran into a dust storm on the way out last December and it was very scary.  If we needed a reminder of dust-storm dangers, which we didn’t really need, sixteen cars and trucks piled up Tuesday in that area resulting in 3 fatalities.

And the best reason for the Casa Grande stop was to visit with long-time friends, Jerry and Mary Frye.  They have a beautiful fifth wheel set up at Fiesta Grande RV Park for the winter season.  We missed seeing them this summer in Poulsbo, WA, or on their way south, so it seemed as the perfect time to visit.  We planned on going to the Elks’ Club, but I happened to notice Fiesta Grande was a Passport America park…perfect for us!

The Fiesta Grande is a wonderful destination park for spending the winter season!!  However, the traffic in the east end of Casa Grande, as well as the number of people in In & Out Burger and Wal-Mart is enough to send me running to QUIET Quartzsite—during the busy season in January!  Wow, Wal-Mart felt like I was in an area for a popular concert or ball game—people every where!  And it was Friday and before the busy Snow Bird season has started.  Where did they all come from? 

We had a lovely visit with Mary and Jerry catching up on all the news and Mary fixed a delicious dinner for us.  She is a outstanding cook!  And the desert---ahhhhh.  Let’s just say Carol fell off her “sweet-free life” again.  It was a good fall----and I enjoyed every yummy bite!

Today we are with long-time friends, Don and Sharon Del Rosario.  We weren't sure we would stop as we wanted to get past the dust-blowing areas around Wilcox, AZ, and Lordsburg, NM.  However, the wind picked up in Tucson and was blowing pretty good 25 miles west of Benson, so we stopped for the night and will get an early start—again—to get to Deming, NM, tomorrow. We did manage to drive about 90 miles today. 

Don and Sharon has have a beautiful RV lot in Cochise Terrace in Benson, AZ.  They were able to borrow an absent neighbor’s lot for us for tonight.  We are enjoying catching up on all their news.  They live a much, much more active life that we do, smile.  Fun to live vicariously through their adventures.  Several years ago, Sharon showed me how to blog and started me on my path to long-winded posts.  Blame Sharon if you are tired of reading what we do, smile.

Photos tomorrow of this area.  We are moving—just really, really slow.  It is okay, that is what retirement life is all about. 

Friday, November 1, 2013

October 31, 2013 Happy Halloween from Gila Bend, AZ

We made it out of California this morning!  The last 20 miles involved driving on new-graveled highway—what a mess! I was afraid we might have coated the front of the car, but it was fine when I stopped to check.

We are at Holt’s Shell Station and RV park for tonight at the crossroads of I-8 and Butterfield Trail in Gila Bend, AZ.

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The desert air is crisp and feels so inviting.  I have missed it.  We have the air conditioner running instead of the heater.  I expect the heater will be on tomorrow morning as mornings are a bit too chilly for Larry.

This place is interesting.  In addition to a Shell fuel station for autos and big trucks and a RV park, it offers free water and dump station to desert campers as well as a touch of Mexico for shoppers.

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And for those who want to shop in Mexico without crossing the border, here you go:

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Didn’t see your heart’s desire?  Walk around the corner.

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I wanted to adopt this flower, but it was $129.   A bit beyond my budget!

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It’s five foot tall and would have added some life to our yard in Texas!  Well it was fun looking, but I don’t have ANY room in the truck, camper or car for “treasures.”  We are loaded to the brim!

Tomorrow night we are going to live in a bit of luxury at the Fiesta Grande RV Resort in Casa Grande.  Our friends Mary and Jerry are there for the winter season.  I noticed it was a Passport America park and called for one night’s reservation.  It is a super nice park!  It is fun to splurge once in a while!  More tomorrow night.  

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

October 30, 2013 -- --In Needles, CA, for tonight.

We had an interesting thing happen last night in Bakersfield, CA.  We went to bed around 9 p.m. and when we woke up at 11 for the first of the “nightly old-age calls,” we discovered our electricity was off.  Weird?  The first thought I had, cynic that I am, was that possibly someone was up to “no good” and waiting to see if we would come out and check why the power was off.  Just in case, we didn’t respond.  It really isn’t the best part of town and we didn’t need to be outside in the dark.

So, we just went back to bed and decided to check it in the morning—as the refrigerator had cycled over to gas and was working fine.  Someone could have caused the power outage by pulling the plug or flipping  the breaker switch, or it could be trouble with plug or our cord.  At 5 a.m., I decided I needed to see if it was our plug or something in the camper—which would mean a trip to Camping World and Larry could sleep in until 8 a.m.  (Figured it was safe by then.  If someone had hoped to lure us out,  who would stay around all night??) 

I went out and looked at the breaker and it was off?  I flipped it and we had power—giving Larry nice warm heat when it was time to get up.  Went back in and back to bed for another hour.

We were up and on the road by 8, a great time to climb up Tehachapi Pass. We drove to Barstow for fuel and then on to Needles, CA, Elks’ Club. We expect a much quieter night here.  Tomorrow we head for Gila Bend, AZ.  Tonight was decision night of going I-40 or I-10.  There is some ice warning up on I-40 for the next day or so—so I-10 and possible dust storms wins.  We will move from Gila Bend to Casa Grande, AZ for a night to get an early run through the Tucson area to try to beat the winds.  If windy, we will delay another day.  Those dust storms are really terrifying!

So, until tomorrow night—good night.

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

October 29, 2013 Parked in Bakersfield, CA

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The Lodge RV parking area is much to brag about, but it gives us a place to spend the night with electric hook-ups—and we stop here on a regular basis.  We find it convenient to stop and spend the night and carry on the next day—with the ability to run the A/C or heater.  What’s not to like?

We had a smooth ride down I-5, but I didn’t take any photos as the air was quite dusty-looking all day.  Earlier today, It rained here in Bakersfield and we expect there may be a smattering of snow when we go up Tehachapi Pass tomorrow morning.

We are heading to Needles, CA, for tomorrow night.  Slow but at least forward moving……Good night.

Monday, October 28, 2013

October 28, 2013 -- Going to try it again….

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We have been here at Sugar Barge Resort for a month.  We enjoy our time here in this beautiful park.  We enjoy the wonderful staff—they are friendly, outgoing and helpful.  The laundry room is clean and neat—it’s easy to do our laundry here.  It has everything going for it—I enjoy walking in the evenings because I feel safe.  I have even did a bit of weeding just to keep my hands busy—but it is time to try and head for Texas.

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We really enjoy being on “rally row.”  This road was filled this weekend with Elks’ Club members from Chico.  They were just one of many clubs holding rallies in Sugar Barge.  I enjoy visiting with the visitors—they have interesting stories.  But, it is still time to head south and east!  We have had wonderful weather most of the time.  A bit of wind now and then—but it is still time to head out.

Larry’s blood pressure is back into the safe range.  The doctor added two more doses of his current medicine and over time, it seemed to help.  He added a daily walk into his routine again.  We stopped eating out so I could control his sodium intake—which helped too. So, unless something else happens in the next 24 hours, we are heading out.

The car is packed again—for the fourth time.  The camper is washed—and tomorrow morning, we cut out electrical, water and sewer ties to Sugar Barge Resort and head to Bakersfield.  We are only about 5 weeks behind schedule!

Keep tuned to see how our trip goes—as we will post every other night as we creep along toward Livingston, TX. 

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Sept. 26, 2013, On the move again…but not far!

We left Salem, OR, with plans of heading for Texas the day after we saw our doctors.
We had a quiet two-night run from Salem to Antioch, CA.  We stopped early the first day in The Valley of the Rogue State Park, where the scenery is beautiful and the weather was very mild.  Unfortunately, by the time we arrived at the Redding, CA, Elks’ Club the next day, the temperature was 103.  We were lucky—as it had been 106 the day before.  That’s a bit too warm for me!
Apparently rice does well in warm weather—as we passed miles of rice paddies north of Sacramento, CA.
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A few fields were still green, but most of the rice paddies had already been harvested.
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We pulled into the Antioch Fairground RV Park and made ourselves at home, such as it is:
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The Antioch area is suffering some severe crime events—including a murder on the fair grounds just three nights before we arrived.  Twice we heard gun fire during the night. What is more perplexing is the lack of sirens afterwards—it appears no one bothers to call the Police Department—located just four blocks from the fairground.   It wasn’t the best of times!  The worst assault was on our ears:  a five-hour Rap Concert held just behind the RV park.  It was LOUD and it was disgusting!  I have never heard so many swear words so loud and so often.  No wonder the kids are killing each other—they are being egged on toward violence in their music.  It actually was a blessing when the stock-car races started as the roaring cars—just off to the left in the photo, were quieter than the disgusting rap music we had endured from noon to 5 pm.  We just smiled at each with the race noises!
We thought we would be leaving for Texas on the 20th—the day after we were finished with doctor appointments.  Wrong!  Larry’s blood pressure had been climbing over the past month—until we realized it was just too high to start east.  We decided to hang on until Sunday, the 22nd—and then Wednesday—in the hope it would level out. We emailed his kidney doctor to see what we could do to bring it down into a safer level.  When she emailed back on Wednesday that we needed to adjust his current dosage for a week—and then add two more pills if that didn’t work—we called our favorite resort, Sugar Barge RV Park, and made a month’s reservation.  We are looking at least two week’s delay if her readjustment of his Terazosin works or 3 or 4 if she has to add or change one of his BP meds.
Sugar Barge is beautiful and so much quieter—no gunshots waking us up at 2 a.m.  I can walk in the evening—without having to keep an eye on the road outside the fairground watching for cars slowing down to do us harm.  So, I reluctantly cancelled our plans to be back in Livingston for the annual Fun Fest celebration.  I had signed up to help with event cashiers and market day to sell  my pottery.  Some very nice friends have picked up my slack and will make sure the cashiers are there to sell dinner and lunch tickets!  Thank you Joan Anderson, Sherry King, Joyce Houck and Beth and Wayne Roberts.  You are the best!!  Now if I could get someone to display and sell my pottery bowls, ha ha!
Tomorrow I will unload the car and run to the storage shed to put some stuff back in and to pick up the patio chairs.  We were ready to go—everything was packed!  And now we are on hold—until Larry’s blood pressure is back in the safe range.  Darn, and double darn.  There goes those plans—again and again!  And that is what RVing—and getting older—is all about.  Our plans are written in the sands of the Sahara—and can change with a soft breeze!  I had to remind myself—when we kept trying to make it work to get to Texas in time—when you are stuck in a hole and trying to get out—stop digging!  It could be so much worse—this is just another hick-up in our lives, not a major event.  We always have next year to make Fun Fest!
Meanwhile, I can help my sister by stringing more beads for her necklaces.  A good therapy for impatient hands!  This is just part of her bead stash!
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So, until my next post, think of my eyes getting blurry and my clumsy fingers threading beads onto wire—in a labor of love!  If I didn’t love her, I wouldn’t be doing this, smile!
Happy travels—for some of you!  

Saturday, September 7, 2013

Sept. 7, 2013 Saying Good-bye to Salem, OR.

After a great summer in Salem, OR, it is now time to pack up and head south for the winter.
I spent a lot of time at the Willamette Art Center.  I want to thank Karin (class instructor), Ken, Lee, Kate, Jim, Pat, Sue, Nikki (who fired the gas kiln), Jan, Jeanette, and all the other potters who generously shared their tips—and lots of laughs--with me.  It was pure heaven being able to “talk clay” with so many talented and creative potters!  I learned so much—a bit here and there from everyone at the W.A.C.  The Salem community is very lucky to have such a wonderful resource in their midst!! 
I have carefully packed away 8 bowls that are coming home with me—here are two:
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The blue bowls are a new concept and the Ohata Red/White bowl is a glaze I used in Hawaii in the 1980s.  Many of the glazes did not work out—so they aren’t coming with us, ha ha.
We did a raku firing on the last class day:
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That metal pipe at the bottom shoots a gas fired flame into the kiln—after the fiberglass shield is dropped down over the base.
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Yikes! The fiberglass is lifted when the correct temperature is reached.  Those pots are about 1700 degrees!  I stood back to take photos—too hot for me!!
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Kate applied her horse’s hair to her “HOT” vase to create a horse-hair glaze effect.  Yes, it smells—but the effect is beautiful.
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The hot glazed pots are placed in a container filled with shredded newspaper or leaves, etc. to create a fire—which blackens the unglazed areas. This is my bowl.  Raku fired bowls are always a surprise!
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As we planned on being here for 3 months, I wanted to get involved and do some volunteer work, so I joined Salem Elks’ Club # 336.  (Larry is a 20-yr. member of Los Banos, CA Elks.)  To keep in shape, I started weeding the flower beds around the building, as well as helped at a few functions. As I told Brenda Holm, the Exalted Ruler, “My hands are available to be of use, but  brain not included.”  I wanted to help, but not take charge of anything, smile.
  Imagine my surprise at being given this honor on August 22, 2013:
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Wow, I was blown away with the announcement!  I felt like I had been paid already with the satisfaction of lending a helping hand—so this was just frosting on the cake.
Some other things we did were:
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We made a few visits to Willamette Valley Fruit Company for a treat as well as numerous market stands to buy fresh tomatoes—for yummy bacon and tomato sandwiches.  
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We splurged and had prime-rib dinner at the lodge!  Yes, it was yummy too!
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Larry wants a trailer instead of the camper, so a neighbor walked me through hooking up a pull-trailer to show I could do it.  He even offered to let me hook up his trailer for him--for practice; what a great friend, ha ha.  Thanks, Mike!  Still not sure I can do it, but did see it wasn’t as difficult as I expected.  Stay tuned to see what happens this winter!
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And we rode around the country side. And day after day slid by while we were enjoying ourselves!  About a week ago, we realized it summer was almost over—and time to do some “packing up” work!  And just about then—I came down with the flu or a nasty cold!  Sore throat, chills and fever, sinus pain, chest congestion, and plugged ears—GREAT!  I lost the last two weeks—and Larry held out for 10 days before he got sick!  The couple that lives together—in a shoebox—cough together!
This has been one of the best summers in many years!  We were surrounded with friendly neighbors and new friends here at the lodge, we contributed to good works, and my creative needs were fed by the welcoming, creative potters of WAC.  It just doesn’t get any better than this summer in Salem!
We expect to be healthy enough to drive out of the wonderful Salem Elks’ Club on Monday, September 9th.  We are headed to Antioch for doctor appointments and then hope to head for Texas for a few months.  The Livingston house feels lonely and probably needs a ton of work—costing two tons of gold—just normal stuff!  Stay tuned as we explore old roads—again!