A VERY EXPENSIVE DAY ... BUT YOU KNEW THAT

 It's going to be a GREAT day!!!  That's what I kept telling myself when I woke up at 2:00, 2:45, 3:30 and finally gave up at 4:30.  I mean really, there's no use just laying there when there's work to do, yes?  I really was happy to see the sun come up.  That means it IS going to be a great day!!

It started okay I guess.  I finished unhooking the rig from everything and unlocked the gate.  But first, let's at least have SOME sort of breakfast.  I really wasn't in any mood to cook, so an English muffin it was, along with the last of the bacon.

In no time, I was off to Mercedes two towns over to get the oil changed.  Here's the thing ...  I only have 7,000 miles on it, but the chassis was built at the end of 2023.  The camper part was done in early 2024, which is when I bought it.  Even though I don't have many miles on it, they consider it two years old.  I don't believe it needed an oil change, but at the risk of losing my warranty, I acquiesced.

I admit, I was pretty nervous.  I just don't drive this thing enough.  Oh it drives like a dream, but it's long and wide and has a gazillion electronics to mess with.  It took an entire hour to get there through terrible traffic, but at least I was on time.  I just wasn't looking forward to the female service advisor they gave me.  Pretty awful of me, being a female and all, but there are very few in the world who know anything about machinery and especially diesel rigs.  

I was surprised she was busy when I arrived, and I got Sean.  He's buddies with Jake ... from State Farm.  Not really, but that's whose name he took to make it easier to fit in.  This guy Sean ... he was great too.  I knew I was expecting at least $1,000 for this service.  I asked him to tell me exactly what they were going to do.  It actually came to $1,100.  I deleted two items off his list and it came down to $900.  I mean think about it ... they have to pay these guys probably $30-50 bucks an hour, not counting all their other employees ... taxes ... the cost of running a business. Anyway .........

So while I waited, I drank 3 Starbucks coffees, ate 2 cracker biscuit things and 3 cookies.  They put it up on the rack and did a video, showing me exactly what they were checking (brakes, brake lines, frame, etc) and if it looked okay.  Well that's a first.

These are awful by the way.  You can skip them and go for the Nilla Wafers.  The brakes were good and everything checked out.  They changed the oil, the fuel filter, aired up the tires and filled the water reservoir with "special" stuff.  The last thing was to reprogram the computer due to a recall.  I was actually out the door in half the time they told me it would take.  

I know it's pricey, but they are really very nice, will answer any question and keep you informed by text about everything they are doing.  Really REALLY good service.  I'm good for 20,000 miles, so maybe next time I'll find a cheaper place.

Then I was off to the dive shop.  Wasn't I shocked when I walked in and heard Scuba Steve's voice.  He's the ORIGINAL Scuba Steve of Padi Diving.  I was one of his very first students when he became an instructor.  He's now a legend around the world among divers.  Gosh it was good to see him again.

He unloaded all the camera gear I had and may be able to give it to someone who deep dives.  When I asked about small dive cameras, he came up wth this.  He said he's been using this housing with his phone since 2020.  It's a true waterproof housing, and most any phone will fit in it.  By the time he demonstrated it, I was sold.  I will tell you however, this is not cheap.  It was $400, but less than a regular dive camera and is good to 100 feet, not that I plan on going there again.

It even has colored lens covers.  When you get 20 feet or below, you need a red filter.  Otherwise you lose all color underwater.  That's why dive instructors (including myself) wear yellow.  It attracts the sharks.  Just kidding .... sort of .... it's one color that shows up on deep dives so people know where you are if they have trouble with their gear.

The good news, Steve will take all of my old dive equipment.  He will do service on all of it and either give it away or sell it really cheap to young divers without much money.  YAY!!

SO ... with my 4 year old phone not having a great battery any more, I stopped in to look at a new one.  That's a LONG story for tomorrow.

I got home, just as dirty as when I left.  

I spent the rest of the evening digging through my closet for all the diving gear I have.  I won't be using it any more, so it might as well go to some new diver.  There are two BCD's (buoyancy compensating devices) that you either put air in or let air out so you stay level in the water.  Two regulators with dive computers in cases, one drysuit with jammies (soft fuzzy ones to keep you warm), two wet suits and three OH MY GOSH heavy tanks.  How did I ever carry those around?   Good grief ... and I have to load those in my truck!!  There are two more bags of "stuff" not in the picture.  Room in my closet now ... WOOHOO!!

Exhausted, I hung out on the couch for the rest of the night.  I think lugging all that heavy gear around did me in.  The sunset started out nice .......

And turned into this crazy weird  picture ten minutes later.  This is looking behind my neighbor's house.  What a nice way to end the day.

It is of course Bingo night, so I'm putting on my armor.  I should have done that before I went to check on a new phone!!!!!

SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO LAUGH

 You know those old pictures you find in drawers under a pile of junk you really should throw away?  Well I found one.  It gave me a good laugh for the day.  Yup that's me ..... on the right.  Not the green one, but none other than Captain Hook.  In a concerted effort to be exactly correct, that's a hay hook in my right hand.  I used it to knock on all the doors of the Administration Building AND the Courthouse.  

I probably should have been jailed for jay walking across the Main Street of town with the crocodile following behind on the ground.  He was tied to my waist with very thin wire.  The Judges were very polite, laughed and let me out with no bail.  That's Peter Pan in the OTHER green outfit.  What fun we used to have!!  

Note:  The crocodile still lives in the garage.

And so the day began with feeding the starter.  They were starving, so new digs (glass jars) were required.  It should now last until the end of next week when I will wake it up once again and make more sourdough.

There were not many items on the chalkboard since I decided to drop the dive cameras off at the dive shop not far from the Mercedes dealership.  I'm not looking forward to this one, since they charge an arm and two legs for an oil change.  No, you can't do it yourself ... something about having a closed system?  Whatever that means.  At any rate, there is apparently a recall regarding the computer system, so they will fix that too.

I uncovered her, took her shoe covers off and organized the interior.  Yes, she definitely needs a bath!!!  The dust around here is awful.  Kitters stayed on the far side of the yard.  She wasn't getting back in there no matter what!

It was a warm day, so I sat outside and read for awhile, while she slept on the couch.  Ten minutes later she was sitting on my lap so I came back inside.  

Did I mention I found my very old iPad while cleaning out the sideboard drawers?  Too bad I didn't realize that cord that said iPad on it, was for this one when I threw it in the trash.  This device is so old there isn't even a camera on it.  Not that I need it for anything, because I don't, but I ordered a charging cable just to see if it is workable.  Someone's kid might be able to use it ... and it's the right price.  Free.

I spent most of the afternoon watching the San Francisco 49'ers beat the Las Vegas Raiders.  That was some good football.  Brock and his boys played well.  This kid looks like he's about 14 years old.

That was it ... a very short day because football took up most of it.  

This picture made me laugh too. My little turkey dressed up for Thanksgiving.  

I'm OFF to get my oil changed!!  Hopefully I won't be broke when I return!!!

THERE'S AN ORDER OF THINGS

The day started off rather bad for me.  I don't know what happened.  There is an order of things ... and I got everything backwards for the first couple of hours.  Missing Cooper just got out of hand.

SO ... I didn't go anywhere or do anything that was on my list for the day.  I put it off until Monday.  Instead, I decided to spend the night in the van with Kitters just to see how it would go.  I had no expectation of it going well.  First off, I plugged the van in, but forgot the order of things when it comes to turning everything on.  I could not get the inverter or the charger to work.  

Think Nancy.  There was no epiphany, but I did finally get everything to start up correctly.  YAY I won't freeze to death.

Back inside, Kitters was having another kitty fit at the front door.  This time it was a black one.  I guess there won't be any OTHER kitties living in this house.  Her huffing is funny ... something I have never seen a kitty do before.

Today was the day to visit the Field of Honor in our town.  Anyone and everyone who has a family member either in the service now, or that has served, gets a flag with their name on it.  Every year they are put away, to be brought back out and honored for the week.  I figured I really didn't need to cry any more, so I stayed home.  It is an amazing sight to see however.

That's when it happened.  One of my security cameras gave me a notice it was off-line.  Gosh ... I didn't need that today.  I called their service department of course, only to get a guy that didn't speak English well.  He kept saying guard the video, or regard the video ... what the heck is that?  He could not explain and I couldn't figure it out.  His advice to me was to hang up.  No, not kidding.  So I did!!

I called back and got a lovely lady, also with an accent, but at least one I could understand.  It took her three minutes to say it was defective.  We will send you a new one!  YAY!!  No telling when that will happen, so I took my extra one and put it where the non-working one lived.  Yes, more ladder service.

Things were not getting much better, so I went crazy cleaning out drawers.  I started at my desk and dumped one big garbage bag in the bin.  Next up the kitchen.  Two more bags went to the trash outside. 

Well lookie here!  I FOUND MY UNDERWATER HOUSING!!  Too bad I could not find the camera that goes in it.  I found one online, but it was $249 and USED.  No thank you.  I actually found four small cameras hidden away when I cleaned out one shelf in my bedroom closet.  Surely ONE of them will have an underwater housing I can pick up cheaper.

Feeling good about less mess in the house, I headed to the fridge for some of that soup.  I really can't believe it fills me up so much that I don't eat all afternoon.  I'm going to be making this a LOT.

More junk got tossed until I looked out the front door.  There stood my box that should not have been delivered until tomorrow.  Yessiree ... it's a Dyson battery operated vacuum.  I had one in the Class A for ten years that I absolutely loved.  Sadly, it died a horrible death and could not be repaired.  I just love this one.  It's so light, turns on a dime, goes under the couch ... it makes vacuuming easy.  For every day, it will work perfectly.  I'll save the big one for the carpeted bedrooms.

It did take some time to get it nailed to the wall in the laundry room, but I persisted.  Finally I checked the box of success after eight screws.

How did Kitters and I do?  Well ..... not nearly as good as I thought.  I carried her out to the van, opened the door and put her inside.  She instantly tried to escape.  I finally got the door shut, just in time for her to go crazy.  She ran from one end to the other, squeezed under the front seat before finally extricating herself, then jumped up on the counter. From there she climbed up the shades before crashing down on the bed.  There was no stopping her ... and no matter how many times I picked her up and petted her nicely, she was having none of it.  

The yowling finally won out.  After 20 minutes of nonstop literally crawling the walls, I opened the door and we exited.  Maybe some afternoon I'll leave the door open and see if she will go in for food, though she is no longer food motivated.  Maybe I'll try putting her in a carrier first and just sitting there for some time before letting her out.  I don't hold out much hope for her traveling with me.

This is going to be a busy week.  Tomorrow morning I have an appointment to get the van oil changed and a software recall taken care of.  From there to the dive shop to drop off some gear they may be able to give away, followed by Bingo, Veterans Lunch Day, a Trustee Meeting and flying off to Denver.  It's going to be a busy one!!

BEST LAID PLANS

 Who would turn THIS down for breakfast?  Not me.  I heated up the last slice and savored every single bite.  I'm a pizzaholic as well as a sugarholic!

The plan was to load up and head over to the coast to get rid of all that camera gear.  Best laid plans never work out for me.  I spent two hours on the phone, with people complaining about everything.  The lack of people at the Veterans Dinner, the attitude of the top dogs, the dinner menu (which I had nothing to do with), all the way to we served the wrong appetizers.  Really??

By the time I looked at my watch, all I could think of was why my band wasn't sticking like it should.  But I digress.

It was too late to go anywhere, and I spent too much time trying to figure out which gear went with which camera.  I really should be driving the van, but then remembered I've been getting the SERVICE A message every time I step inside.  Okay ... okay .... I made an appointment for Monday.  Might as well stop in at the Dive shop while there ... maybe they can use this camera equipment, and it's a shorter drive.  

I went outside to fix Cooper's flowers, finding no reason for them to be dislocated, other than Kitters was chasing someone over the fence.

For whatever reason, I thought to check my solar panels.  Hmmmm these don't look too good.  I called my guy ... he's the best ... and found out my phone display of the panel output is about three hours behind.  He can also check them with his computer, so he did that and called me back.  They all look good ... all producing and no problems.  I can't believe I've had these things for 4.5 years and that's the first call I've had to make.  

Back inside, the howling began once again.  I think this is the little white kitty from my videos.  How DARE she show up to sun herself on MY doorstep said Miss Kitters.  She stomped around enough to make the little kitty leave.

Two minutes later, Kitters was laying on the back of the couch.  I've always noticed her mouth is a little crooked ... and I suspected she lost a tooth or two at some point.

I caught it just right.  Sure enough, she is missing one of her canine teeth.  Either she got kicked by someone in her past life, or she was in one heck of a fight.  I always wondered why she couldn't eat wet food well at all.  

In what seemed like seconds, it was time to make that soup.  I browned the hamburger really well before adding in the onions and carrots.  Let that cook until the carrots are almost tender.  Add in three crushed cloves of garlic.  That was followed with fire roasted tomatoes, mushrooms and more spices than I've ever used.  Even so, it needed more in the end.

I followed that up with a can of chicken broth (should have been beef broth) and huge handfuls of spinach and baby kale.  It was supposed to be ALL kale, but I am not a fan.  Thirty minutes later it was ready to eat.

This is a small bowl, and of course I added parm for a little more flavor.  I actually sat down at the counter to eat.  Wasn't I surprised to find it was not only pretty tasty, but it filled me up to the brim.  Who knew?  The spices were Kinders the Blend, Pappy's Garlic Herb, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning and a little celery salt.  It said to add whatever spices you like.

Of course I ruined it all by baking more cookies, of which I ate two.  Maybe I'll break even for the day.  At any rate, I will definitely be eating more of that soup.  Here it is now dinnertime and I'm not the least bit hungry.

Daylight whatever time then ruined everything.  It got dark at 5:00, which ended my day.  I did spend an hour trying to figure out how to change the band on my watch.  Mine is very old, very dirty and shredding at the edges.  

Why did it take so long?  Because I wasn't sure I wanted to use THIS band,  I had put it away.  Unfortunately, AWAY can be one of any 100 places around the house.  It took me that long to find the darn thing.  I knew I stuck it in a drawer, I just couldn't find the right one. 

At last it's changed, and I hate it.  It's not like my last one.  I jumped on Amazon and ordered another.  They are only $9, so I'll keep this one for emergencies.  The watch will probably die before the new band does.  Anyhoo .....

I'm determined to get out today, if only for a drive across the valley.  Fuel is so high right now, it's hard to want to go anywhere, besides still missing my best friend Cooper terribly.  It was just not a great day.  Here's hoping today will be MUCH better.

VETERANS NIGHT

Sunny California is quite sunny this morning, hopefully heating up the 41 degrees soon.  It's a good thing since my heat just came on for the first time this year.  That's a record, I'm sure!!  There will be no morning grass walking for Kitters or me ... it's soaking wet with dew!! 

The first look out the BACK, told the story of the yowls I heard last night.  Apparently Kitters was guarding her territory.  Those yellow/orange flowers were IN the container when I went to bed.  She doesn't seem any worse for wear, but she's fuzzed up like a feather pillow just out of the dryer.

In less than two seconds, I was dressed. when I heard the driveway alarm go off.  I completely forgot the Weed Man would be here to spray the back forty.  I dashed out to unlock the gate to allow much closer access.  Otherwise, they don't do a very good job.  I was surprised when I heard the alarm again, meaning he drove off without giving me a bill.  Two hours later, I heard the alarm again and the bill appeared on the driveway.  

I spent the next hour gathering up all the quilts I had to take to the lodge.  Four with names, and two for the raffle.  

Lunch was leftovers ... pork loin, avocado and spinach on a tortilla with a mound of hot sauce.  Quite tasty!!

Then I went about hacking and chopping for the new soup recipe.  I saw this gadget online, bought it of course, but have only used it maybe twice.  I have to admit, it's one of the best things I've picked up.  I chopped an entire onion in less than 60 seconds.  

I followed that up with dicing 30 mini carrots.  It works like a charm and is easy to clean.  I'm sure there are extra blades around here somewhere, but I've no idea where.  I haven't decided whether to crock pot it or just use a pan on the stove.  The recipe doesn't look like it will take much time at all.  I'll report on it tomorrow.

Sadly, it was time to head on off to the lodge for Veterans Night.  Not because I didn't want to honor the veterans, but just because it carries bad vibes now.  In fact, my friend who set up this raffle with a gazillion prices, actually called and begged people to please attend.  Thankfully they did.

We had ten members of the Honor Guard show up for a few accolades, along with their wives.  Someone who shall remain nameless, bought dinner for all of them.  We did that on the perfect night, because had we not, there would only have been 65 people present.  We usually have at least 110.  It's sad to see everything go downhill, but we all know why.  

At any rate, we did a blast doing the raffle.  SO many  prizes!!!  Add to that two quilts I donated (which are out of sight) ..... and we made $1,120 for the coffers. THAT is how you run a raffle.  I had to laugh at the lady who won the 250 year celebration quilt.  She came running up squealing and gave me a big hug!!  It will definitely have a good home.

As for the quilts with names on them, not one of the four folks showed up, so none of them were given out.  Weird that one.  We will try again on Veterans Day next week where we feed any and all Veterans who walk in the door ... after the parade of course.  We shall see if anyone shows up for that one.  Honestly, I don't know if our lack of attendance is because of the price of Halloween and Thanksgiving, or if (as some have said) they don't like the drama.  I agree .... the drama is ridiculous!!

Here's my steak ... cooked to rare perfection.  No, I didn't even take one bite.  The raffle gal and I donated appetizers of shrimp, meatballs, cheese, crackers and other tasty bites which filled me up before dinner was even cooked.  I think I'll make beef stroganoff with this one since I just happen to have mushrooms and cream in the fridge.

I got home late, got to bed even later and didn't sleep worth a darn.  That put the nix on my planned trip to the coast for the next two days.  I will see how I feel tomorrow morning ... maybe a trip over just for the day.  I really would like to get rid of all that camera gear that's covering my kitchen table.

Still missing my sweet Cooper.  I think he kept me in a happier place.

BIRDS, BIRDERS AND BAKING

 It's starting to look a lot like fog!  That's okay though because it's a lovely 45 degrees this morning with a high of 70.  This is my kind of sunny California weather!!  I'm thinking I might not be enjoying it for long however.  I'm on the hunt for a new state.

This was a nice surprise.  Green grass.  No that isn't it, you have to look very close.  To be honest I don't even know what these little birds are, but they are cute as can be, fast as lightning and the bane of Kitters.  They take up roost in the rose bushes for the entire winter.  I guess there are lots of worms just waiting to be breakfast.  

Yes I really was supposed to be at the lodge at 9:00 am.  I was a no-show.  Instead, I baked another batch of those yummy chocolate chip cookies.  Gee ... only 16 dozen to go.  I probably won't buy a box again because they take up my entire freezer!!  Sure is nice not to have to MAKE them however.  Just plop on a pan and bake.

Hard to see this girl, but while I was distracted, I caught her perusing the aisles for lizards.  She found one that escaped last week, so I guess she was double checking to make sure it was gone.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING ... GET DOWN FROM THERE!!  Who me????  She's so black, she's almost hard to see.  

At 11:30 I took off for some creative accounting.  So creative that I had to call the Official CPA for some advice.  What a great gal she is with a fabulous sense of humor.  The first words out of her mouth were OH SHIT.  I laughed because that's exactly what I said when I found the problems.  In two seconds she had it fixed.  I have to admit doing everything online now where things can be quickly corrected makes my life MUCH easier.  

My backup girl showed up right on time and we paid a gazillion bills.  I would like to dispense with my watchful eye when it comes to that, but having so many accounts can be daunting ... and mistakes have been made.  It's better I spy with my eagle eye the entire time.  Errors aren't allowed.

With that done, mostly because when it comes time to file everything I sneak out the back door, I was off to Walmart to actually buy some groceries myself.  The last couple of times, the veggies have been less than perfect.  In fact, that last package of Brussels sprouts I got from Costco?  100% rotten in the middle of every single one.  

I was lucky enough to sit with one of our Bingo gals who just lost 30 pounds.  She gave me this soup recipe that she swears by.  That's where most of this will end up.  Hopefully it works for me too.  Oh ... and just ignore that green box sitting there, perfectly camouflaged.

Okay, I'm a pushover for pizza.  It's one of my all time favorite food groups.  I've been ever so good for at least four months now.  When I paid for the groceries at Walmart, I was left staring at a Dominos sign.  They were having a $5.99 special.  All my self control went out the window.  Not that I had any to start with.

Let me just say that this is the best pizza I've had in a long time.  The entire crust, top, sides and bottom is crispy and tender.  I could have used eight more slices of pepperoni, but this was DELICIOUS!!  It being two meals makes it even better.  I'm hooked.  Maybe this will be my once a week splurge!!!

And then THIS happened.  I keep watching all these sourdough clips online, seeing them make bagels, English muffins and sourdough bread.  Most all of them use this machine.  Instead of all that kneading with arthritic fingers, this baby does it for you.

Yup I ordered it and Amazon was kind enough to send it to me.  It's not your grandmothers mixer, that's for sure.  I had to read the directions six times, mostly because it was printed in 1/32" writing.  They need to make that bigger for us old folks.  This should keep me busy for awhile.

It's not going to be used today however, since it's Veterans Night at the lodge.  Another friend and I invited the entire Honor Guard (and their wives) to our tasty steak dinner, on us.  They deserve that and so much more.  If you have never seen a funeral with these guys giving their gun salute and placing that flag on the casket, you should go at least once.

We will also be giving away at least two of those quilts I made, along with one extra for the raffle.  All the rest will be given out on actual Veterans Day where we feed every veteran and their family who walks through the door at no charge.  I'm looking forward to that one too.

Next up ... a new kitchen vacuum to suck up all that flour that's going to end up on the floor from my bread baking!!!