You Bought A What???????

I have many plausible reasons (or excuses) for what I did next.  It was hot and my brain was fried ... I didn't take my pills and my memory of waiting 5-6 months disappeared ... I have a new phone and it makes me feel rich ... and the biggest, DAN MADE ME!!!  That's my story and I'm sticking to it!!!  After the first trip to La Mesa RV, I felt the twinge ... the need for more room for my puppies.  I know, thats not a good reason.  The need for more safety, just park it and go to the back, instead of having to get out of my truck in strange places and truck stops.   The need for more water, more holding tank storage, just more storage.  So by now, you know what I did, we made a SECOND trip to the RV store ... AND ... I bought a 2012 Tiffin Phaeton, 36 foot long.  At least I bought the "smallest" one!!  LOL

I flew to Yuma yesterday and spent all last night transferring stuff from my old fifth wheel to the new RV.  It has four slideouts ... the kitchen

The dining table area, which includes a pull-out table with four chairs (only two here), a computer desk with pull-out printer drawer ...

One 7 foot couch that makes into a queen bed (table side) and a loveseat which also makes into a smaller bed (kitchen side).  Four TV's, yes that's FOUR!!!  One in front, one you can see above, one in the bedroom and one outside under the awning for outside parties.

Full size Kitchenaid fridge with ice maker ... we're uptown!!!!

Bathroom ... actually has an additional sink in the bedroom ... and a large shower.

The back has two slideouts ... one with the TV and drawers and one with MY queen size bed.

And finally .... a washer and dryer for when you have full hookups.  Amazing, huh?????

So here I sit in the RV at La Mesa for a couple days, pushing every button and having small things fixed before I take off.  Thankfully, Patty and Dan are arriving tomorrow morning so Dan can give me some driving lessons and accompany me back to their house.  Take some chill pills Dan ... I've never driven one of these before!!!!!!!!!!

Gypsy Rally 2012

Slight delay in the Gypsy Rally blog .... as you will see, I've been VERY busy!!!
The Rally is put on by Nick and Terry Russell .... Once you meet them, they are like family!!  Terry is quite the opposite of Nick, quiet and shy.  Nick on the other hand would be a great stand up comic.

Every day they have seminars regarding everything RV, from boondocking to traveling solo to solar systems.  Remodeling your RV (yup, make it home) and everything in between, including driving tips for women and how to handle fires, heaven forbid you should have one.  Dan moderated the seminar "Boondocking" ... or how to stay in your RV for days without electrical power.

The entertainment was awesome ... this guy can yodel like nobody's business!!  Amazing country and western singer, a former Sons of the Pioneers ... I apologize that I do not have his name.  I'm not at home where all my paperwork is ... how embarrassing!!

Next up, the pizza party ... I'm guessing 400 very hungry impatient people served hot pizza in a matter of 5.5 minutes.  Terry has this down pat for sure!!!  And it's all you can eat, or until they run out, which they didn't.

Pizza is a staple in my weight-loss diet, but not for my friend Patty.  How she sat there while we ate in front of her, I'll never know.  

So while here, we made the short trip out to La Mesa RV just to take a look.  It was my idea to wait 5-6 months and maybe look at purchasing a new RV ................  Next you see why I've been so busy!!!

Going With the Flow .....

Finally!!!  I'm off on another adventure to Yuma Arizona.  Nick and Terry Russell publish the Gypsy Journal Newspaper and have two rallys a year for RV lovers.  The West Coast version is at the fairgrounds in Yuma.  Having been last year with my good friends Patty and Dan Chance, I didn't want to miss it.

I try to plan my trips ahead so I know how far to drive and where to spend the night and get fuel.  I was all set for a long drive Friday to Beaumont-Banning area in southern California, spending the night at the Elks Lodge when Dan called and asked if I had checked the weather predictions for WIND!!  Uh ... no ... wind??  ... I was so concerned about SNOW over Tehachapi that I had not considered wind.  Apparently it was 40 mph in the Yuma area ... my RV can handle about 25.  TOTAL change of plans!!

The NEW plans are to drive the short leg to Tehachapi and spend the night, driving the long leg to Yuma when the winds had subsided.  This is my second home over the pass where I have spent many nights.  Good thing I planned for all weather, cuz it was 36 degrees when I took this picture as I was heading out at 6:15 a.m. in order to get through Banning before the winds picked up again.

It was a long drive the second day, broken up by several doggie stops, but I love seeing new country.  Just as I pulled off the freeway to the fairgrounds, Dan's timing was perfect ... he called to see where I was.  Entering the back of the fairgrounds, the "parking crew" staged in a large lot to spend the night before locating OUR final parking sites.  The crew then met to discuss the rules about who is allowed to park where for the Rally.  Yes, another Cooper sunrise.  He has me up and out with him before the sun comes up every morning!!!

Sunday morning, we moved to our usual spot ... out by the horse barns.  It's perfect!!!  A few trees for shade, power, water if needed, LOTS of sand and no neighbors.  

And of course I'm right at home around the horse smells!!!  LOL

Yesterday as Dan was parking people, Patty and I took off for a full day of shopping!!!!  The main attraction is the huge Flea Market they have here where I got Jessie a new harness, and me LOTS of stuff including LED lights for my RV, a Route 66 shoulder bag, two (yes TWO) watch bracelets for $7.95 each (Patty swears they last for years) and miscellaneous "stuff".  A not so quick trip to Walmart for food finished off the day.  After a great chicken spaghetti dinner that Patty cooked, I was off to snooze land.

Yuma Bound

Finally feeling better, I wanted to make one last trip to Yosemite before heading to the Gypsy Journal Rally in Yuma to meet up with best friends Patty and Dan.

Although we think the weather has been beautiful, it has been less than perfect for the snowfall needed to provide irrigation water to the valley.  Little to no rain the entire season thus far has resulted in little to no waterfalls in Yosemite, and very little water in the Merced River.  A usually spectacular one is Horsetail Falls the last two weeks in February.  The sunset shining on the water cascading over the edge off the side of El Capitan makes the falls resemble the firefalls of old that were a spectacle in Yosemite Valley for years when I was younger.  After spending three hours in very cold weather looking for the perfect spot to catch this image, I didn't find it!!  Not every road trip ends up with beautiful pictures to post ... darn it!!!!  So after dark, I headed to the meadow near the Ahwahnee  Hotel to get at least ONE image of Half Dome with what little snow was left.

Very long exposures on a tripod resulted in one of my favorite images.  I know we have all seen this a hundred times, but I never tire of this view.  Finally a storm came in today and dumped a couple feet of snow ...

So it's off to finish packing, fuel up at $4.49 a gallon (eeeek ... not kidding) so I'm ready to leave Friday morning.  Next post from Yuma!!!

Taking Flight

When I was a kid living on the ranch, the cattle business wasn't at its peak.  In order to make extra money, my dad worked at the Merced Game Refuge outside of town.  I've never been there.  After viewing some images a friend took at that sight, I decided it was time to take flight and see what it was all about.  At the entrance, I found a large map with many brochures describing the birds living in this habitat.   Although there are some hiking trails, the main access is an Auto Tour ... a dirt road that you follow for 5 miles through the marsh area.  At various intervals there are signs describing the environment and what it takes to keep it ship shape so the wildlife will spend the winter.

Blackbirds were in abundance ... red wings and yellow heads (very rare here).  Unfortunately I don't have a lens big enough to get close ... all the upper crust nests are too far out in the pond.  This red wing was close to the road, tweeting like crazy, trying to attract the females.

I know, I should be able to tell you what this is ... but I felt like taking a brochure would be one small expense they didn't need to incur.  Cute little guys, they are cruising the shallows looking for lunch.

Lets go this way ... no lets go this way!!!  These guys were cruising back and forth in the same spot ... they just couldn't decide which was the best way to go!!  Most of the areas are flooded like this, with huge cattail rafts in the middle for nesting.

Other wildlife is prolific here too ... I caught a muskrat swimming around, but wasn't fast enough to get a clear picture.  Also hanging out, or hiding out, were the cutest jackrabbits.  Hunkered down so I couldn't see them, this one remained motionless until I walked away.  As you can see, they totally blend in to the background.

Of course this is what I was waiting for  ...  sunset.  There were thousands of birds in this section.  It was amazing how noisy they were.  Not only were they talking amongst each other, they were talking to the birds flying around that had not yet landed.  Telling them there were no vacancies I suspect.  I have to say that this is exactly how it looked.  There is no photoshop color enhancement here.

It is funny how, as the sun started to set, the birds took off in waves of squawking, headed to the fields behind me where the great blue herons were making an even louder ruckus.  Even though I couldn't see them, the sound of their conversations was unmistakable.  Sooo amazing to stand there among all these birds listening to them squawk and carry on.

This won't be my only trip to this site.  I plan on returning to capture the great blue herons, and I highly recommend you venture out here around 5:00 pm to catch the spectacle!!

Graffiti

Not something I have ever condoned, graffiti to me is destruction of someone else's property.  If you get permission, graffiti can turn into amazing art pieces.  The camera club I belong to provides a one word subject each month as a competition category.  Each image submitted is scored by a guest judge from 1-10.  Last month it was "Forgotten" and my D Block Cell image received a big 10!!!!  Sooo excited about that.  This month however, the word is "Graffiti" and is not in my portfolio, so I ventured out to see what I could find.

Nothing!!!  I guess I wouldn't be a good tagger, since I obviously don't know where good spots are ... after two hours of driving around a 40 mile radius, I couldn't find ANY tagging.  What I did find, had been painted over.  Finally, having decided to return home along the railroad tracks, I found one lone rail car.

The interesting thing to me is that these taggers are putting their mark ... their name usually ... on all these train cars for all to see.  But for the life of me, I don't seem to be able to read or make sense of anything they write.  This one was half covered over ... but TOO What????

Guess I need an interpreter.   Below is "B" XX??  The bottom looks like Osier Ridso.  Really??  I think if I was going to spray paint my name, or nickname on a train car for other taggers to see, I would definitely make it readable!!!

This final image is the one I will submit ... unless I find something better.  The last letter of a long name is the only letter that is recognizable.  I call it "Big E".

Next weekend I'm shooting a "legal" graffiti artist at his church where his art is amazing and colorful ... however still unreadable.  I hope he translates for me!!!

Boredom and Edible Dogs

It is amazing how the human body can repair itself ... especially when you have four holes in your belly.  Unfortunately, the process takes some time.  There is now a permanent indentation in my couch and I am bored to tears from sitting and waiting for the process to happen.   I have watched all the really bad TV I care to and have seen the good movies 5-6 times each.

Although my puppies try to keep me busy, I find myself itching to get back to photography.  So much so, that yesterday, I actually grabbed my camera and walked around my house to see what there was to capture and frame.  Of course, the answer was NOTHING!!!  A macro lens would have helped but that's not one I own ... yet anyway.

Here is one of the Polynesian dancer gourd rattles covered in feathers I found literally at the end of the road on the north end of Kauai in Hawaii.   There is an unusual store there that you must check out if you vacation in the area.  They travel by sailing ship throughout the world obtaining handmade crafts from indigenous people to sell in their store.  Amazing stuff, amazing stories and amazing guys in great shape that wear native Polynesian/Hawaiian clothing.  Ladies, you HAVE to check it out!!!

Another local craft of Hawaii I found in a dress store (crazy huh?) in the upcountry town of Makiwao on the island of Maui.  They are handmade from native materials by a local woman who only sells a few in this store every year.  I bought every one they had.  Some blue, some white, large and small ... beautiful work.  I tried this once and believe me, it is very hard to do.

One of the things I find while sitting around the house is that I'm at the fridge every other half hour looking for something to keep me occupied, if only while it passes my lips and hits my stomach.  At Christmas I received a box of Hickory Farms Petit Fours (scrumptious little cakes).  Granted, I did take a little photoshop liberty with this one ... these were coffee flavored!!

Finally feeling up to a little more activity, my friend Diane came over so we could make cupcakes.  Seriously I can't believe I let her talk me into this, let alone that I took a picture to put on this blog ... but here it is.  Looks EXACTLY like Ollie, her son-in-laws dog.  Funny what you can do with a cupcake, frosting, marshmallows and chocolate chips!!!!

By now I am sure YOU and well as I am thrilled that I'm almost back to normal and am going out this afternoon for a "graffiti" shoot.  Surely it's got to be better than doggie cupcakes!!!!

I Have A Pain In My Side!!!

The ins and outs of todays health care can be scary ... here's my story (and why I haven't been on the blog recently).

Week 1
Doctor, I have a pain in my side.
Lets take an chest x-ray.
??  Ok ... results ... negative

Week 2
Doctor, I have a pain in my side.
Lets do a sonogram of your stomach.
??  Ok ... results ... negative

Week 3
Doctor, I have a pain in my side.
Lets send you to a GI Doc and do an MRI of your lower back
??  Ok ... results ... negative

Are you getting the picture yet?????

Week 4
Doctor, I have a pain in my side.
Lets do an endoscopy and check your stomach.
???  No ... lets NOT do that.  Lets quit messing around.  I want a FULL scan of some kind NOW!!!!!

Week 5
Doctor, I have a pain in my side.
Lets do a CT scan ... in another week when they can fit you in.
Ok, but it really hurts.  I'm not sure I can wait a week.

Week 6
Doctor, I have a pain in my side.
OH MY!!!  You have a cyst ... it's probably cancer!!!!  Sending you immediately to an oncologist, a 2-1/2 hour drive away.  (Thankfully a highly recommended Doctor)

Surgery scheduled two days later, now home short a few parts that aren't necessary anyway and it wasn't cancer, just a cyst.

Week 7
Uh Oh ... Doctor, I still have a pain in my side.

You see all this time, I thought it was something else, but couldn't seem to convince the Doctor to do the right test to confirm my suspicions.  So as soon as I'm able, I am going to return to my original Doctor and DEMAND she do the test I wanted in the beginning.  Unfortunately, I'm sure the results of that test will result in another surgery!!!!  UGH ... not looking forward to that.  Especially because I have to depend on my few friends to take care of all the animals I have.  :(

Week 8
Doctor, I STILL have a pain in my side!!!!!

Merry Christmas to All !!!!

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even Cooper .. but he kept his ball close just in case Santa might throw it for him,

The children were nestled all snug in their beds, with visions of sugar plums (or balls) dancing in their heads and pretending to be asleep.

 When on the back patio, there arose such a clatter - I sprang from the couch to see what was the matter.  Away to the door I flew like a flash, tripped over my shoes and fell with a crash!  There on the once white concrete I spied, two huge horses with no sleigh in sight.  This smarty pants (Remy) had opened the gate and was happily munching on my grass.

I whistled and shouted and called them by name  .. On Remy .. On Showby (well actually there were a few expletives mixed in) ... GET OFF MY GRASS!!!!!  They ran from the patio to the concrete wall ... dash away, dash away, dash away all ... and they did as I chased them around the yard a couple of times and aerated the lawn.

I never did see Santa, but he brought my babies new toys to play with.  Everyone who knows Jessie, KNOWS she is growling in this image.

Santa also brought Caitlan back.  She has been at the Vet for three days ... surgery for several tumors and an emergency spay.  Unfortunately, the outcome doesn't look too good right now.  She is such a happy camper and doesn't understand why she has to lay down and be quiet.  She has a nice soft comfy bed which I nailed down this time.  She just wants to make her OWN bed!!!  Along with a heating pad just in case!!  

The horses too have had their share of Christmas problems.  Remy wasn't trimmed correctly and has very sore feet.  Clean and treat twice a day along with meds.  Showby has an upper respiratory problem ... also on meds.  So just call me Vet Nancy ... this is going to be my life for the next two weeks!!!!!

Hoping everyone had a great Christmas with their families!!!  Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!!!!!!!

The Happiest Place on Earth!!

DISNEYLAND!!  One of my favorite places to go.  Doesn't seem to matter how many times I've been there, I still love it.  Christmas is one of the best times to go if you don't mind the crowds.  The decorations are wonderful and the snow a sight to see.  We arrived Thursday night after a stop at Tommy Burgers.  THE most famous burger joint in L.A. ... they serve their special chili on their burgers and dogs.  Although loved by many, I can pass it up with no problem.  I love chili, but not this one!!!  Sorry Tommy!!

We stayed at the Red Lion Inn, advertised as being one block from Disneyland.  For $50 a night, I can't complain .. the room was really nice, microwave, coffee maker, safe ... but it was a 2.5 block walk to the ENTRANCE of Disneyland.  Here's Peter and his daughter Lauren that I go with every year.

We added to the group this time with Peter's friend Alex and his daughter Allie.

This is the first time in many years that we have seen Jack Skellington.  At 6'something, he was really a character, asking the kids all kinds of funny questions.

Due to the crowds, we rode some rides more often than usual.  The Jungle Cruise is always funny because of the bad jokes the "Boat Captains" tell.  Today was no exception.  Another great hilarious ride is the Canoe trip.  If you haven't done this one, it's a must!!

Lauen loves to ride the Teacups and make them spin!!!  which makes me nauseous!!  Allie got the honors this time.

At Christmas, the farm behind Thunder Mountain Railroad has reindeer ... and Santa if you are willing to wait in line with screaming crying kids.  In the back corner is this cutie ... which of course caught my eye!!

The Princesses are always one of our stops ... usually an hour or more wait (again with the screaming cranky kids), tempered by the fact that they are all dressed up in THEIR princess costumes and are cute as can be.  Here's Belle ... I'm sure I have 5 pictures of Belle!!!

The World of Color program in the California Adventure side is an amazing display of water and lights, including short movie clips shown against a background of fine water spray.  Amazing what you can do with water.

After the show, most people leave this side and head for the fireworks of Disneyland ... but after several hours of pleading and "betting you can't do it", I talked everyone into riding the Hollywood TOWER of TERROR!!!!!  Ooohhhhhhh ....  this one is good, although very short!!  In the end, we had walked 10 hours on Friday and 13 hours on Saturday!  Crazy huh??  But it's all worth the pain to be at Mickey's House!!!

With my newly acquired Annual Pass, I'll be returning soon .....

It's a slow Christmas!!

Not a lot going on, which is why I haven't written much.  I joined the local ELKS organization and help out with BINGO every Tuesday night.  Oh my!!  These ladies are serious and grumpy!!  There has been lots of complaining since I arrived .... and here's why.  The first two times I helped sell the cards, I noticed several women taking 5 packages (12 games in each) and telling the cashier they only had 3.  That's increasing their odds by 24 cards.  The next Tuesday, I suggested we check everyone's "stack" to be sure we charged for what they were taking.  Sure enough, probably 10 people took more than they told us.  Grumble grumble!!!  Last night, we again checked EVERYONE'S purchases and were accused of only checking "some".  This time we caught at least 20 bingo sheets being taken "by mistake".  Now I would agree with that if there was just 3 or 4  ... but 20???   The ones that were complaining the loudest were the ones we caught.  On the other hand, we received one screaming (literally) complaint about not charging enough, and my co-worker got chewed out for it.  I'm ready to quit after 4 weeks.  After being told how to do my job by 6 of the bingo players and being yelled at for doing my job ... I'm thinking my attempt to help out isn't working, as it hasn't for anyone else because they desperately need help.  By the way, one lady won $1400 last night!!!  The payouts each night are a minimum of $4000, which is a lot of money ... but don't try to increase your odds and cheat everyone else out of their chance.

My photography project is due tonight.  Wish me luck.

Tomorrow is the best day of the month!!!  I'm going to Disneyland for four days!!!  I'll be thinking about my friends Patty and Dan on their Disney Cruise with their family!!!  I'm going with two friends and their daughters, both about 9 years old.  We go every year at Christmas and I'm so excited to be going again.  The construction work in California Adventurer should be completed so we can see the water show and experience two new rides!!!  AND I'm getting a yearly pass so I can go as many times as I want.  Pictures will be coming soon .........  Hope you are enjoying the Holiday Season!!

Buzzards Roost

Most, if not all ranches, have names.  Our cattle ranch was "K Quarter Circle" Ranch, which happens to have been our brand.  Some homes have names ... my place is Buzzard's Roost.  Most people think it is because I have a carved wooden statue of a turkey buzzard sitting up high in one corner.  Actually,  it's because of the real thing!!!

Definitely not the most glamourous of birds ... in fact they are pretty disgusting.  Every year just before Christmas, hundreds of turkey vultures (or turkey buzzards) visit my house ... well thankfully, my neighbor's house.  Apparently they have migrated here .... seriously,  to Merced?  And MY neighbor's back yard?  ...

Here's MY back yard .... notice the very tall trees at the back of the property which are on the "neighbors" side of the fence.  This is the chosen spot for these guys to roost until their next migration in the spring.

This VERY cold morning when I went out to feed, there were several perched on my fence with wings spread, warming up in the morning sun.  This is a first ... they have NEVER ventured into my yard.  I foresee lots of running and screaming in my future ... trying to assure the big mess is in THEIR back yard, not mine!!  They have a wing span of around four feet ... if cold enough, their wings are fully extended.

These two were joined by two more walking along the top of the fence.  All total, there were 6 of these huge birds perched around my corral.  Thank goodness they are not hawks or I would be very concerned about my two small dogs.  These only eat dead things.

They are hard to photograph because they are so skittish ... even more so now since I ran at them waving my arms and screaming like a banshee to scare them back to the neighbors trees!!!   Really, I know I named this place buzzards roost, but I prefer they "roost" next door!!!!!