Watching Some Playoffs

Nothing will get me out of bed faster than hearing my front driveway alarm going off at 4:00 am.  Coyotes rarely set it off, nor do bunnies, but two-legged critters definitely will.  I never did see anything as I crept around the corner with gun in hand.  That's the first time it's happened in ages ... and you never can be too careful!

My morning coffee turned out to be an inside affair with temperatures creeping into the low 30's.  Much later in the morning, I decided to finally tackle the challenge of the day.  Cooper has needed a bath for months.  It's definitely not his favorite activity and he shivered like a champ.  

The hair dryer isn't his thing either, but he stood still while I brushed and combed him, with a terribly pathetic expression on his face.  At last he was good enough, although still pretty wet around the ears.

He got a treat for being such a good boy.  I still have to keep that fire ant bite covered so he doesn't lick it 24-7 ... that's the blue bandage.  It seems no matter what I put on it, he insists on licking.

Although a day late, Walmart finally delivered my two filing cabinets.  This is a really cheap way to make furniture for sewing and cutting.  I'll get a hollow core door to sit on top, the perfect height for cutting or sewing, then hang my huge roll of batting between the two on a dowel.  $150 beats $2,000 any day.

While waiting for the football games to come on, I put a few blocks of this quilt together.  Gee ... only 40 more to go!!  It's just to keep me occupied until the quilting machine gets back home tomorrow.

Sooooo lets watch some FOOTBALL!!  Mahomes killed it in the first half.  It's just amazing to watch him.

Then everything completely fell apart in the second half.  I don't think the Bengals won the game, I think Kansas City LOST it.  Good for them however, since they haven't been to a Super Bowl since the 80's.

Next up ... San Francisco against Los Angeles.  I'm not a big fan of either, but I would rather SF win than LA.  I'm also finding out I'm not a fan of Dish Network.  For whatever reason, they have removed the Fox Network completely.  That meant there would be no football watching for me.

Well thanks to Elva, I got to see the entire game.  Of course I may not have a phone for the next two weeks .......

Seems you can download Yahoo Sports App and watch those games for free on your phone.  I've no doubt it used up most all of my unlimited data.  You see their idea of unlimited and MY idea of unlimited are not even close to the same.  Sadly, LA won.

Now on to the next major project here.  I was doing one load of laundry yesterday when all of a sudden there was lots of gurgling.  I ran to the machine in time to see water coming out of the drain pipe.  I quickly unplugged it and cleaned up the mess.  As you are all aware, it's so exciting to clean underneath a washer that's been there for five years.

I was finally able to get it to drain without dumping any more water on the floor.  SO ... there will be no more laundry around here until I find a plumber to check the lines.  This was not on my list of fun things!  Big sigh!!!!  

Otherwise, it's just a waiting game for the longarm to be delivered tomorrow.

In the meantime, I'll check out the game camera and see who came to visit me.

LaLaLaLa Life Goes On

Oh blah dee, oh blah da .....  I haven't been able to get that song out of my head.  The next few days are going to be chilly, down to 27 at night.  Brrrrrrrr    I'm definitely not geared up for this cold.  I hope the wildlife has their electric blankets turned on.  These guys that hunt at night must be chilly!!!!

Apparently it's mating season, because the ground smelling has been epic.  Of course that makes Cooper go crazy too.  I've been drug off into the bushes on several occasions.

I finally found another Jonathan heater ... not nearly big enough, but every little bit helps.  This plugs in to a USB port and actually gets pretty warm.  The trick will be making double sure he can't grab the metal cord, which he would shred in a matter of seconds.  Plus, he can admire himself in the mirror, although he may not recognize who that really is. 

I haven't tried it out yet ... it's in his traveling cage.  That should be worth a hoot or two the first time he sees another bird in HIS territory!!

My first order of the day was groceries.  I was out of everything ... especially the kind of stuff you need to pick out yourself.  Round and round the store I went, walking right by things I wanted.  It turns out this was a lot more tiring than I expected.  

I got home, threw everything in the fridge and plopped on the couch.  How could I be so tired when I didn't really DO anything?  It appears more rest is in order, but it feels like the more you sit around, the less you exercise, the more tired you get.  

The bad news of the day came with the phone call from the Quilt Store office that my machine won't be delivered until Tuesday.  No surprise there.  I can't wait to meet the guy who drew the short straw!!

Luckily I was invited over for barbecued pork loin dinner at the Chance house.  I love it when I get to see the kitties.  Both of them park in the sunshine every chance they get.  I resisted joining her on the floor.

After a wonderful dinner of roasted squash, salad and of course perfect pork, we sat down to watch another episode of 1883.  I knew someone important got killed off, I just didn't know who.  I won't ruin it for you in case you haven't seen it yet.  I'm thinking Sam Elliot might get an Oscar for his performance.  

As for the truck convoy, it appears Saskatchewan has agreed to drop at least vaccine mandates, so it looks to be working folks.  Stand up for your freedoms and you just might get them back.  The media is still not posting much of the truth about this convoy, so check out Freedom Convoy 2022 Support or Convoy to Ottawa 2022 Group on Facebook for real time information.

Also, donations have been made to GoFundMe in excess of $4,000,000 to help truckers pay for fuel and food.  Even the Hutterites have joined forces, providing food at several locations along the way.  WAY TO GO CANADA!!!  Now if we can get the same thing done in the U.S.  True, things may not change overnight, but at least people are standing up for freedom and not oppression.

I'm off my soapbox and on the couch!!  There's going to be some FOOTBALL on the old TV!!!

OUT ... But Not For Long

 Yesterday I patiently waited for the wind to die down before heading out.  I lasted until 9:00 because the wind wasn't going to calm down one tiny bit.  I think it ran about 20 mph, but those gusts up to 40 were the killer.  

Not wanting to walk the quarter mile from the parking area to the quilt building, I cheated.  I said I was going to the RV office, which I did.  Let me just say I never saw a smiling face ... only the grinch sitting at the counter.  She was pretty rude to the guy in front of me.  Someone should give her a happy pill.  I just wanted to double check the $5.00 dump fees.

From there I went around the back way (it pays to know your way around the fairgrounds) and parked in front of the building next to a bunch of horse trailers.  Apparently the rodeo is still going on.  I'll use that $5.00 savings to dump next week.

I was very surprised to find the entire building completely full.  It happens that the Phoenix show is competition at the same time.  Still, the number of quilts shown here was mind boggling.  Most of them were king sized to boot.

I don't think I have made one that big.  By the time I'm done with a lap quilt, I'm tired of the design and the fabric ... ready to start something else.  Just look at all the piecing work in this monster!!

Now this one was a little .... different.  Not my cup of tea, but a lot of work went into it.

At the Yuma show, Cindy and Ray told me a little secret.  If you see one you really like, take a picture of the card with the quilter's name and the NAME OF THE PATTERN.  Then you can go buy the pattern and make it yourself.   

This is a magnificent showing of paper piecing.  Just WOW!!!  Again, king sized, so you can imagine the amount of work that went into THIS!!  I think it just might scare Cooper to sleep on it.  Yes, Cooper has to give every quilt his seal of approval!!

This was my favorite of the show.  Paper pieced to be sure, but an amazing choice of colors.  There were way too many to take pictures of even a quarter of the quilts.

At the very back was a huge section from Cathey's Sew and Vac, the biggest sponsor of all things sewing and long arms.  I received a $5.00 gift coupon and spoke to the owner at length, of course mentioning my machine.  When I spotted my sales guy, I made a point to say I was still waiting for him to call me about my Monday delivery.  He pretty much ignored me, but what can I do.  They have my machine.  Maybe I need another piece of chocolate cake.

I wandered around the vendor tables, not finding much fabric and didn't want to fight that guy for any of the $2.00 quilting books for sale.  He was making sure he got everything he wanted before anyone else, literally holding his arms out so no one could look in the crates.  It takes all kinds.  Amazingly, I didn't buy one single thing.

In no time I was out the door and headed for my truck, which I'm happy to say had not been towed away.  That $5 coupon is of course burning a hole in my pocket, but with the winds still blowing, it will have to wait.

I was up most of the night listening to the crunch of tree branches blowing into the front awning right by my bedroom window.  My ESP tells me I'll be chopping and hacking very soon!!  In the meantime, I'll be on the couch listening to the howl of the wind through the trees into Tucson while I figure out what to buy with my $5.00.  As the old cowboys say, never look a gift horse in the mouth!!

Desert Critters

 Day nine and I'm back to normal for the most part.  No symptoms other than a tad bit stuffy.  YAY!!  Because Nancy is really tired of staying home!!

I have to admit though, the desert critters keep me occupied.  There's nothing quite like checking out the game camera for the nights wanderings.  You've just gotta love these guys!  There were two of them looking for something to eat in the water.

Amazingly, I saw four different coyotes on this night's captures.  One I'm sure I've seen before (probably Mom), along with three "kids".  

This one seemed particularly wary of something.  He may be hearing Cooper and I playing on the floor since this was not so early in the morning.

Just to be sure I didn't lose any weight with this last illness, I whipped up a chocolate cake.  No, I didn't lose a single ounce.  

This decorating style is called RUSTIC.  I just wasn't feeling it, but I DID taste it, on numerous occasions.  There is of course now a big chunk missing!!  The good news is the pans are only 6" across, so it's not as big as it looks.  Most of it will end up in the freezer for later when I think I'll croak without a bite of chocolate.

It seems the dates fooled me ... the first day of the quilt show is today. Yes, I'm going just to see what's up, but don't plan on staying long.  I just can't sit here one more day.  I'll let you know what I come up with.  

To make it even more fun, the wind has come up just to keep everyone on their toes.  22 mph for most of the day is expected.  I still haven't dumped the RV tanks.  I'm waiting for a little more stamina before tackling that job, although it's really not all that hard.  I'll have to take a long jaunt around the countryside to shakes things up first.  

In the meantime, I'm just biding my time til my machine is delivered Monday, although as of now, no one has called me back to confirm said appointment.  I'm trying to be patient since they have the quilt show going on, but as usual, I'm not so very good at that.  

By the way, has anyone been watching the Freedom Convoy going on in Canada and at the U.S. border?  The media isn't giving it much attention at all .... no surprise .... but Canada is putting on a great show for freedom and NO MANDATES!!  The U.S. should follow suit, although most States are coming to their senses with the current CDC statements, as are other nations in the world.  

YOU GO CANADA!!!!  So proud of your truckers!!

If You See Smoke .........

 The morning found me coughing early on.   I know there are some antihistamines out there that would work, but I can't take them.  Although it seems the worst of this flu is over, the coughing and hacking is going to persist for awhile.  So lets BARBECUE!!!

I had a second hamburger patty in the fridge, but I didn't want another disaster like before.  Grease everywhere, raw burger ... what a mess!  To make matters worse, I think this baby needs to be cleaned.  Even when on high, it looks like low, as in the 5 gallon jug of propane feels empty.  Is there a way to clean the burners?

I finally threw the burger on and closed the lid, forgetting to turn it to medium.  The next minute I glanced out the window and I thought the back forty was on fire.  If you see smoke, it's just me cooking my one little burger.  The fat content of these appears to be over the moon!!

Although a little squished, this one turned out MUCH more delicious!  If you're wondering what happened to all that soup which should have lasted for eight meals, I ate it twice a day, so it didn't last long at all.  For some reason I'm now craving meat.

Next up ... how about burning off that burger by pushing around a 25 pound vacuum cleaner.  There's nothing better to gauge your state of wellness than vacuuming.  I made it through one room before plopping on the couch.  So much for THAT!!

Cooper and I spent the next few hours watching Engineering Disasters.  They even showed that apartment building that recently collapsed in Florida.  Rest assured I will never live in an apartment building.

Feeling a tad bit better later in the day, I cut out 168 5" squares of white material to go along with these strips for the next quilt.  Not sure how far I'm going to get, but if I can get all the squares made, I'll take them home for finally sewing ..... BECAUSE ..... I'm going to be quilting!!

The best part of the day ..... I caught a glimpse of some movement out of the corner of my eye.  DEER!!!  They are back!!!!  Can you find her??  Just look at those ears!!!!

I very quietly snuck outside, but she heard me anyway.  It's a young doe.  As I hid behind the patio pillars, low and behold there were actually four beautiful babies!!  Sadly, the noisy guy next door scared them off and they bounded through the cactus towards the train tracks.  

I'll keep a better eye out from now on.  I got a few more coyote images, but I'll post them later.  

In the meantime, I'm looking to cook another pork loin.  Just ignore the smoke!!

The Killer Of Boredom!

 Cough Cough Cough!!!!  Yes, that's the morning routine now ...  getting up, grabbing a cup of joe and sitting down to cough up all that congestion.  But it's getting better ..... MUCH better!!  So much so that I spent yesterday doing several KILL THE BOREDOM defense tactics.  Of course it takes a bit to dig out those tactics when your brain is in power low gear.

Cooper is exceedingly good at begging you down to the floor for a little roll-the-ball.  Who could deny that face?  Unfortunately, he jumped down from the couch and landed on his little footie wrong, spraining his ankle.  OMG I almost had a heart attack!  Thank goodness this morning he is better, although that foot still seems to be a little tender.  This morning all those balls are going to magically disappear.

Before that happened however, we did get out for a short walk.  Sunshine makes for a boredom killer, even if it is still rather chilly.  What happened to the warm Arizona winters?  It's been in the 30's every night.  This is where the coyotes hang out and Cooper loves to smell the scents.  

How about some cooking.  That always seems to occupy me for an hour or so and usually ends up with some belly laughs to boot.  It's a win-win!

Caramelized onion burger ... looks kinda purdy, right?  We started off on the right foot, getting the onions cooked to perfection.  They say you lose your sense of smell and taste with this flu, but that hasn't happened to me.  Those onions were delicious!!

I threw the burger in the pan, adding an extra minute or two because it was so thick.  Crispy on the outside, juicy in the middle, I made this gorgeous dinner.  That is until I cut it in half.

Good grief ... it's raw as can be in the middle.  I cooked it for about 12 minutes!  What the heck?  There was no eating it that way.  I stuck the entire thing in the microwave, expecting a luscious chunk of meat to come out.  What it did was just loosen up all that juice and completely soggyize the bun.  Yes, that's a word.

I disassembled the entire thing, stuck the patty halves back in the frying pan and covered it with a lid.  I threw the bun away and got a new one in the oven to heat.  That's when I got the phone call.  I couldn't really hang up, even though I knew my spectacular burger was going down the tubes fast.

I ate the final disappointing results of hard bread and overcooked burger, along with what few onions were left because I had eaten all the ones that fell off.  What a disappointment!!

And so it goes ... at least I wasn't bored the entire time.  I know you ladies never have this happen and I don't know how you do it.

In the meantime, I got a call on my quilting machine.  It's going to be a long week.  They can't come until Monday because they are getting ready for the quilt show this weekend.  YAHOO!!!!  That will be a boredom killer for sure.  By then I will have been locked away for enough days I can attend the show.  Just to be sure, I used one of those home tests yesterday and it came out negative.  

I'll be on the couch, trying to come up with something to cook for dinner again.  It's probably not going to be a grilled onion burger.  Maybe something out of a can!!

Boredom Has Set In

Just when you think you are on the way to wellness and success over sickness ..... KABLAM!!  The coughing sets in, but not before my old friend BOREDOM!!  Why is it so very hard for me to sit on the couch?

The day started out nicely enough with a warm cup of coffee, NO coughing and feeling mighty fine!  Let's check the game camera.  Twenty three videos I waded through ... sixteen of which were of the two bunny rabbits.  I don't know how they survive with all the coyotes around here!  

The day before, late at night, I heard my driveway alarm go off.  Knowing there should be no one around, I tiptoed to the window to see not one but two coyotes (meaning there were three total) going up my steps to the garage.  Pretty brazen little guys!

I did my quick online order for food, put on a big coat and drove to pick it up.  I was a little more tired than I thought when I discovered I was almost out of fuel.  I filled up because you never know when you might need a quick getaway.

With all that food, might as well cook something.  I decided to use up a big package of tortillas I'd carried to Quartzsite and back.  With an obviously sick impaired brain, I made WAY too much.  Scrounging in the cupboard, I found enough sauce to make TWO big pans.

This was not at all what I had in mind.  I can feed an army!  Yes, corn is not your traditional enchilada fair, but it needed to be gone.  By the time I was done, I was exhausted and didn't take a single picture.

Feeling really good (at the time) didn't help with the boredom of sitting on the couch.  I drug out some old material and repinned it to the quilt frame for practice when my machine arrives.  About that time, the wracking cough began in earnest.  

I knew I had to eat, but I wasn't feeling it.  I threw a pork chop in the frying pan on low and sat down for 30 minutes.  Oh .... it's done .... although even a little tough for even Cooper to chew.  I ate between wrenching coughs.

I made it through the night thanks to baby Benadryl, but of course this morning I'm hacking up a lung.  I may have jumped the gun a tad simply because I just can't sit still!  

I do have to retrieve the game camera this morning, but I'll be spending the day on the couch ..... again!

JUST A LITTLE WARNING!

I should have made it perfectly clear yesterday that you should never take any medications without the approval of your doctor.  Everything I take, no matter where I purchase it, has been discussed with my doctor beforehand at some point.

In years past I have had many cases of flu that always end in severe sinus infections, I suppose due to my Mohammed Ali nose that's been broken a time or two.  The z-paks are the only thing that has fixed that problem, but only at the direction of a doctor.  I have no idea if they actually work on THIS flu.  

Note: For this flu I took the standard stuff ... plenty of vitamins D, B and C, querceten, zinc, aspirin and gatorade.  

Isn't it funny that you can purchase so many antibiotics in Mexico for pittance with no prescription, but you can't buy anything in the U.S. without a $200 visit to the doctor, followed by the $75 (or more) medication.  Do they not have doctors in Mexico?  Why were my last $175 prescription pills, only $12 across the border?  

The bottles look the same, but here they take the pills out of the bottle and put them in ANOTHER bottle with lots of labels.  Maybe that's the difference in price, I don't know, but it seems rather ridiculous we are being SO overcharged!!

Yes, my doctor (or rather P.A. or even N.A.) know all about my border crossings.  They have even tested me before and after on a few occasions, to find the meds work.  One even asked me to pick up her prescriptions while I was there, which I did not do.  

So please, do not take any medications without the okay from whoever you see for those things.

In the meantime, Cooper is SO happy we are back in THIS home.  He got to play the ball game for about two hours yesterday.  That ended up testing my stamina (I failed) and my patience.  

I did watch one of the most edge-of-your-seat football games I've ever seen ... Kansas City against whoever in heck they were playing because I was so fascinated with Mahomes, I can't remember anything else.  Buffalo ... they played the Bills.  

Good grief, in the last two minutes, I think there were three touchdowns.  Mahomes at one point threw underhanded actually UNDER another player and it was caught.  Every second, the Bills thought they had it won until in the last 9 seconds I think it was, Mahomes got them down field far enough to throw a touchdown for the win.  This game will go down in history!!

I'm pretty sure there was another game I watched earlier, but it was completely forgotten after THAT matchup!!   So was the laundry that I did mid day that was still in the machine.

To finish off the night, I had some wonderful chicken pot pie soup and biscuits, dropped off to the sickie by my closest neighbors Shirley and Tom.  I cannot tell you how lucky I am to have plopped into this neighborhood.  Although my stomach is not sure what all this stuff is that keeping coming down the pipe, I'm loving every bite!!

Yes, she just cuts her biscuits long ways instead of making rounds.  That means more yummy crusty stuff!!

The best news is I slept like a log last night and didn't wake up until 4:30.  What a blessing that was.  I'm again feeling better and breathing normally,  just a little tired.  For some weird reason, I have no problem just sitting on there couch all day long watching mind-numbing TV.  I hope that changes soon!

This morning I will venture out for a few minutes.  I placed an order with Safeway that I can pick up just by driving by.  I only ordered ten things, so it shouldn't overtax me or my foggy brain.  How do I know it's foggy?  Because I keep doing all those brain games so I know when I'm back to normal, or at last some semblance of normal.

I'll again be on the couch!!!  But not for long!!

SHE'S ALIVE!!!!!

I woke up this morning.  That was a pretty good start to the day, even if it was at another crazy 3:00 am.  Yesterday morning I might have only given myself a 50-50 chance.  I admit, I felt pretty bad.  I can only say thank goodness I made that quick decision to come home to a cozy warm house with no stairs.

I spent the entire day on the couch, getting up only to grab another Gatorade orange.  Somewhere I read that was good for you.  Wrapped up in not one, but TWO quilts, I watched the Bengals win the playoffs through blurry watery eyes.  

Although I have very little recollection, apparently I did go outside to catch the sunrise, so I wasn't completely brain dead.

By 4:00 I actually ate, although not what the doctor ordered, I'm sure.  Taquitos with avocado.  The soup Patty brought over was breakfast and lunch.

I don't know if I have the C word or not ... wouldn't want Facebook fact checkers to raid my blog ... but it was exactly like every flu I've ever had, down to the last cough.  I had a mild temperature, never getting over 100.3 and I kept an eye on my oxygen levels. 

  I took zinc every day, even though my body doesn't like it and aspirin because a friend said there had been a lot of blood clots from covid.  Might I just say how surprised I was that aspirin got rid of the aches fairly well.  That was a big win!

There was one fun little tidbit I didn't tell you about when I drove home.  I really needed to dump the rig, so I stopped by the fairgrounds for a $5 drop off.  As I drove to the back, I discovered the road was completely blocked by the rodeo crew.  OH NO!!!  I have to turn around!!

Boy am I glad I got that backup camera, because who should drive up just as I was starting to turn but the SHERIFF!!  I waved him by, but no ..... he sat there and watched the entire action.  I was praying I didn't hit anything, including him!!  To be honest, I felt too bad by that point to care.  I never did get to dump.

And so today begins.  Temperature normal.  A lot of coughing but the heavy chest stuff is gone.  Ribs are SO sore, like I did 385 sit-ups.  Headache is gone but I'm still stuffed up.  

I think I'm going to live!!!  I can feel those little immunity guys swirling in my body!!!  I even think I'll wash my hair today, because if I don't, I'm going to have dreadlocks for life.

Short and Sweet

I'm not dead yet, but I sure feel like it.  The headache is epic, the sore throat feels like the Grand Canyon and I've coughed so much I'm a blubbering mess of shaky body on the couch.  This blog is going to be short and sweet ... although not so sweet really.

Nurse Patty brought homemade chicken soup that helped tremendously until I fell asleep on the couch.  There was cough syrup, cough drops and even lemons for a honey and lemon toddy.  I can't thank her enough.

 I went to bed at 11:30 and got up at 3:00 am.  This is day three.  I'm hoping to make it through to day five!!  Although I have a slight fever this morning, my oxygen levels are still good, if you can believe these little gizzies.  

I'll be in a stupor on the couch watching whatever is on when I turn the TV on.  I don't even want to think about what to look at.  Here's to better days ..... SOON!!

I'll be on the couch.  UGH .........

The EARTHQUAKE Jiggled

If you're going to do it, GO BIG!!!  Little did I know just how fast the tides were going to turn.  I didn't sleep at all Wednesday night.  I admit, I'm a wimp ... kind of like those husbands who think they are dying from a cold.  That's me .... I think I'm dying, or at least I feel like it.

I fed Cooper that morning, who did his usual pick up every bite, then spit it out before actually partaking of that good chicken.  And then I felt it.  That horrible heavy feeling in your chest that tells me I'm in for the big one.  Not a heart attack ... just a very bad session of sick.

I made the decision in a flash, or at least as fast as my sluggish little brain could.  I need to get home before this sets into what I know it's going to be.  Forget the solar ... forget the heater ... just get home where it's warm and I can deal with what's to come.

Thank goodness for Bill and Patsy!!  I told them my plan, being very careful to stay yards away, and I began the put together.  Apparently Bill was watching me look rather bewildered as I tried to remember the sequence of hook up.  He came over to be sure I did it right and provided even more tips ... if I can remember them!!

I just knew if I stayed, things would go downhill fast.  It's cold, not so good for a cold, and instead of resting, I'm constantly moving Jonathan around to keep him warm and carrying Cooper in and out the door since he too is a wimp and cannot climb up the steps.

I said goodbye to sweet Gibbs and waved goodbye to everyone.  

It was a long five hour drive back home, but boy am I glad I made that decision.  This morning the horrible sore throat and coughing has begun in earnest.  The good news is I'm warm and toasty on my couch with a down blanket and a hot cup of coffee.  Even better, Nurse Patty (yes, she's an ER Nurse) lives close enough to make sure I don't die.  That's a big plus!!

I even got the rig unhooked, although it took me 30 minutes just to be sure I wasn't forgetting something and make it roll off the end down into the gully.

On the way, I called Discount Solar who was very understanding and set up an appointment for me on my return trip.  The heater is still up in the air.

I'm coughing in earnest now, and though I had a temperature when I got home yesterday, it's back to normal, at least for me.  No matter ... I'm warm and Cooper is thrilled he can actually chase the ball more than three feet.  

I'll be ....... on the couch!!

Moonwalk

 The moon has been acting very weird of late.  Maybe that's the reason Doug and I are having so many problems!!  This was a quick hand held image because I forgot my tripod.  I think it's been a full moon for the last five nights, making it really nice to take Cooper out at 4:00 in the morning.  I can actually SEE!

Although I would expect this to be a sunset picture, it's actually sunrise.  As I said, it's been weird around here.

Cooper and I are usually out pretty early for that morning moon walk.  If not, he barks and wakes up all the neighbors.  There are just SO many rocks to smell and mark!!

Yesterday morning I got the sun coming up ... not so dramatic this time .....

And the moon going down.  I'm crediting this phenomenon with the cold I just came down with.  I can't believe it ... I've been so healthy for so long.  I thought it was allergies, but last night sealed it for me.  Cough cough cough ... runny nose ... lots of aches and pains.  No I don't think it's the dreaded C word because I don't have a temperature nor a sore throat, but I'm not taking any chances.  I'll be locked up for the next two days.

By the time the sun was full on shining, the moon STILL had not gone down below the horizon.  

These walks are full of interesting sites other than the moon.  If you were in the market, this setup is NOT for sale.  It says so not once, but TWICE.  I've never seen a live body around, but the car disappears every morning so he (or she) must work somewhere.  

On the way back, the Watchpup kept a steely eye on the property.  No one, and I mean NO ONE comes around THIS area without a bark to let everyone know there is an interloper.  What a good boy Gibbs is.

Finally back inside with the generator going for some Jonathan warm, the silly goose decided a bath was in order since he was sitting in the sunshine.  Yes, his head is entirely inside the water bowl ... that red spot is his wing to keep his balance.  

By the time he dunked in six times, he was soaking wet.  Silly bird!!  At least the heating pad was going and the sun dried him off.  I'm rethinking the blue flame heater ... and maybe that's why it hasn't come in yet ... karma and all that.  I certainly don't want to kill my 46 year old kid NOW!!  

If I can get enough solar and battery power, I may be able to do without it.  At this point, it's doubtful that three batteries will run the heating pad all night long.  Anyone have any other suggestions?

In the late afternoon, Doug and Yuma dropped by for a visit.  So good to see them again!!  Doug's offer to hike to the Palms sounded great, but with my cough now, I'm afraid I'll be tethered to my rig.

Here's hoping it's just a cold ... I've got a couple of Z-packs if necessary ... and I'll be up and running again VERY soon.  Tomorrow is solar installation day, even if I have to sit out in the middle of the parking lot all day.