Been Back From My LA Trip A Week

Or so. Been so busy ‘catching up” around the house that I haven’t taken the time to update. I know you missed me!

My Step-Mom’s funeral went well; I thought. I wasn’t the only white guy there but I did feel like the gray-headed step-child I was. Oh, everyone was friendly; but a little stand-off-ish. Sorta. Which I understood since most of them had never seen me nor had they heard about me. They even asked me to talk! (Forgot half of what I was gonna say though.)

Took off from Chino and drove the coast to San Diego. Something I hadn’t done in over 20 years. Was nice. Stopped and visited with my brother-in-law in Santee, Ca. It was hot and we sat outside at COSTCO and watched the girls. God.

So, Day 1 was Home to Redding (where the horizon was on fire!). Day 2 Redding to Bakersfield. Day 3 (Saturday) was Bakersfield to Chino and the Funeral. (Got the LAST empty motel room in the area. $100!) Day 4 was Chino to LA to San Diego to Santee to March AFB up by Riverside. (Nice room and the quietest night of them all.) Day 5 was March AFB to Beaver, Utah. Day 6 was Beaver to SLC to Boise to Ontario, (Or?) Day 7 was Ontario to Home. 3100+ Miles! Phew!

All by myself too. Which sucked. Big Time. Trips are Way Much Better with SWMBO along. Especially while staying in strange motel rooms!

Not a whole heck of a lot going on around here since I got back. Tending the garden and picking things that are ripe. Peas are just about finished up. Green beans are done for the year and in the freezer. Maters are just really starting to come in and already we’re having problems getting rid of them. (Next year NO cherry tomato’s unless SWMBO really wants them. But will do slicing maters.)

Hot these past couple of days. Like in excess of 95 degrees. Nice!

Warranty finally expired on my laptop so I loaded it with Linux Mint 19 Xfce and set it up for SWMBO to use. Transferred all her shit from her laptop to the “new” one and it’s in her room ready to be used. I like it; but the truth is that if SHE doesn’t like it, well, the old laptop is still available. And will be for at least the next week “just in case!”

Got my DNA results from Ancestry. I’m about as plain vanilla White Boy as you can get. Which has got to be disappointing for SWMBO. She was hoping something would show up that’d make it easier to track my family. Doesn’t look like it did.

WhooEeeeee Hot today. Nice. Nice nice. Picked a hatful of blackberry’s and was sweating like a, well, pig? (Do pigs sweat?) So I’m taking a break before heading out for some more.

What An Interesting Week!

I just can’t win when it comes to Renters. The other night I went to bed and after awhile I heard them start to argue. Then I hear someone slam someone else around while yelling “Fuck You” and knew it was time to get my robe on and go downstairs. Did. She answered the door with fingerprints of blood all over her face. He had a slightly bleeding head wound. (Wasn’t too serious or it would have been bleeding a LOT more. Head wounds do.) He was on the phone witth 911 and acting a lot more dazed than his apparant wound account for. But that’s just my opinion.) Anyway …

So, Sheriffs came (Does their mama’s know they’re out playing policeman?) and wound up arresting him. Read online later he’s charged with Assault/Other and Kidnapping/Abduction. He made bail and the Judge is letting him take his already planned trip to Florida. (It’s like the Judge wants him to run or something…)

I filled out an eviction form for him and need to get off my duff and change the locks to the MIL apartment. SHE wants to stay and says she can pay the rent. We’ll give it a try cause finding new Renters will be a real pain. Hope this works out.

HE is out basically cause I don’t like bullies. Not a fan of drama either.

And, yesterday, SWMBO and I took a day trip to Leavenworth, Wa just to get out of the house and see some more-open sky. Once we got off I-405 it was a pretty ride. Snoqualmie Pass was pretty and there was lots of free range snow. Leavenworth itself was kind of cool and we spent our share of Tourist Dollars before leaving around 1600. I “let” SWMBO play her music for the whole trip. (Which alone should prove I love her!) She got me a really nice walking stick. Which may have helped if she had gotten it before I took a full frontal face plant in the dirt. Klutzy Shit! But that wasn’t her fault!

When we got home we unloaded the truck and left the dog and did our weekly shopping at Safeway. Saved a lot of time and money over Walmart cause Safeway doesn’t have a blu-ray bin.

So, today, Easter Sunday, we’re mostly just relaxing. SWMBO is off quilting and listening to Conference. I’m getting my usual Sunday chores done and taking the Dog for mini-walks.

Made sloppy joes and fries for dinner. Lazy, I know. Also made a couple of small meatloaf’s for dinner tomorrow with the “leftover” burger. Think me and the Dog will head outside for a few.

Think I’ll publish now. Want to do a bit of X-Plane before bedtime.

I Know I Haven’t Posted

Been busy visiting my Aunt & Uncle. And they’ve been keeping us fairly busy.

SWMBO flew into Dallas/Fort Worth last Saturday morning and rented a car that got her nearby. I picked her up in Longview. Spent the weekend together. I took her to KDFW Monday (God! Never Again!) and she got home safe and sound. Glad for that!

So I came back and have just been visiting. Gonna take off tomorrow morning and head north. NOT going through Dallas again. Ever. (At least until they get their highways fixed!)

Heading to Oklahoma City then will pick up Hwy 35 from there to go further North. Thinking of going all the way up to Hwy 80 and heading over to Salt Lake City. Getting home will probably take me a week. With side trips.

And that’s it. Caravan is all unhooked but for electric and ready to go. Uncle Herman took me to a fish place for dinner and I had some of the best catfish I’ve had in quite a long time. Gonna get settled in for the night and leave early tomorrow.

Wish me luck!

Ok. We Be Home Safe And Sound

Well, Safe anyway. Woke up a bit late this morning and started getting ready to come on home. Man, we can make a mess! But, got every-thing done, packed away, and even got the sewage drained. Took off from Hoquiam about 0930.

Got home before Noon. Unpacked. Dishes started. Laundry started. So SWMBO wisked me off to Costco. Spent way too much on things we need. Usual stop at Safeway and, we’re back.

Will probably go to bed after the Belfair Monday 2-meter Net. Tired. I only drove 200+ miles today

Net went okay.

Oh, coming home, when we turned up Sandhill, A big bald eagle took off from the side of the road and flew across the road in front of us. I might have captured it on my dashcam. Cool!

Cold. Rainy. Went To The Beach

After our morning absolutions (and me making a run to Walmart on the other side of Aberdeen to get some tools to fix a leak) we headed out.

Took 101 North to some podunk road that headed towards Pacific Beach. Rained all the way.  Drove out onto the actual beach and parked for a bit. Got out and walked the Dog around. He tried to eat every shell he sniffed out. Dipshit. But, holy shit, it was cold and windy and somewhat rainy and after about 10 minutes I’d had enough. Back in the truck for me!

Followed the road back to Aberdeen (another stop at Walmart) and back to the campground. Tried fixing that damned leak (back of the toilet. Fresh water leak) but tightening everything up and putting one of those hose clamps on (which you CANNOT tighten up enough!) hasn’t worked. So, we’ll just have to continue being frugal with water and making sure we check how full the catch bowl is.

Raining like crazy off and on. Sucks. Nice to be out with SWMBO though. So nice that I made Thrive-Spaghetti for dinner. (It was okay. Wouldn’t want a steady diet of it and next time I’ll be adding more spices and stuff to it.)

Anywho, that’s really about all there is. We’ll be heading home tomorrow.

Cold. Rainy. Went To The Beach

After our morning absolutions (and me making a run to Walmart on the other side of Aberdeen to get some tools to fix a leak) we headed out.

Took 101 North to some podunk road that headed towards Pacific Beach. Rained all the way.  Drove out onto the actual beach and parked for a bit. Got out and walked the Dog around. He tried to eat every shell he sniffed out. Dipshit. But, holy shit, it was cold and windy and somewhat rainy and after about 10 minutes I’d had enough. Back in the truck for me!

Followed the road back to Aberdeen (another stop at Walmart) and back to the campground. Tried fixing that damned leak (back of the toilet. Fresh water leak) but tightening everything up and putting one of those hose clamps on (which you CANNOT tighten up enough!) hasn’t worked. So, we’ll just have to continue being frugal with water and making sure we check how full the catch bowl is.

Raining like crazy off and on. Sucks. Nice to be out with SWMBO though. So nice that I made Thrive-Spaghetti for dinner. (It was okay. Wouldn’t want a steady diet of it and next time I’ll be adding more spices and stuff to it.)

Anywho, that’s really about all there is. We’ll be heading home tomorrow.

We Be Back! 6438 Miles Later …

Sorry I haven’t posted for awhile. My tablet was knocked out of my hand at the Reunion, hit the ground, and the screen went wonky. Everything’s squished into a 1/2 inch strip at the top of the display. I was a bit upset since I use that tablet for everything while on trips. Luckily, I have a replacement at home. But it was AT HOME.

My Father-In-Law gave me a Chromebook, which I tried to set up. Installed the Wordpress app, but, all my passwords were here at home. So … I’m going to set it up for the next long trip. At least give it a serious try. (Haven’t been too impressed with it so far.)

Anywho, I am NOT going to make a long, drawn-out, post tonight cause I am one tired Old Guy. And I need to batten down the hatches for the storm moving in tomorrow (or tonight). (High winds & lots of rain predicted.)

Weekend Trip To Oregon

Got up early Saturday (0500) for a trip to Mt. St. Helen’s. Ended the day in Central Oregon. Go figure!

Stopped by the Country Kitchen in Vader, Wa for breakfast.

On to Mt. St. Helen’s. Spent a couple of hours there. Drove back to I-5, turned North, and took the first exit for Yakima.

Got caught in a traffic slowdown (an hour long slowdown!) in Packwood, Wa. Thousands of people were there for their annual Flea Market! And all of them wanted to cross the road. In front of us.

Got to Yakima and turned South. Decided to head for the John Day Fossil Beds in Oregon. Just cause we could.

Stayed the night at the Tallwinds Motel in Moro City, Oregon cause I was pretty tired. Nice motel except for the shower. I hate those damned water-saving shower heads. I think I’m still standing in the thing waiting to get completely wet!

Got up fairly early (but late for me) Sunday morning and took off for the John Day Fossil Beds and stopped at the Thomas Condon Paleontology Center. Always a nice visit!

Spent an hour or two there then headed off to the Painted Hills. Crowded! My goodness, it was crowded. Hardly managed to find a place to park to walk around. Had to stand in line 15 minutes to use the restroom.

Stayed there until I got tired of fighting the crowds. Went back to the main highway, turned right, and was trying to figure out where we wanted to go next. Decided to just head home.

Got home about 2200 and I just crashed. I was beat. But I had so much fun going places with SWMBO and spending time with her I really didn’t want it to end. We need to win the lotto!

Pictures will be posted on Flickr soon; if anyone is interested.

Today SWMBO needed to get something at Jo Anne’s Fabric’s, so I took her. I sat in the truck watching a movie; and when I pair the tablet with the truck, the sound is badass! (She came out before the end of the move though.)

Then she took me to the Mall for dinner and a walkabout. Now we be home. Doing what Old People do. Recuperating.

Day Trip To Astoria And Back!

Cool! Started out about 0730, got to Astoria about 1100, spent some time there before heading back, and was home by 1600. Cool! Rained pretty much the whole way. Actually, sprinkled, rained, downpoured, and variations thereof the entire trip. But it was nice being out with my Schweetie so I didn’t mind the wet. And there was a couple of times the sun came out and it was almost nice.

Except when we climbed the 163 stairs of the Astoria Tower. I’m getting too old for this shit! Made it though and it was really windy and cold and we didn’t stay up there long; but it was fun seeing that with SWMBO. Resumed raining pretty hard when we got back to ground level. Hurried to the Gift Shop, where she bought a t-shirt, then we headed out.

All in all a really nice day trip. Some really great scenery. And getting to talk with SWMBO.

Yesterday I went to a meeting of the Kitsap Amateur Radio Club over in Port Orchard. Nice meeting and saw a nice presentation on the HamWan stuff. Not sure if I’ll be going back though. No one (other than the guy I went there to see) introduced themsheves or had us introduce ourselves and I have mixed feelings about that. But, then, I run a completely different type of meeting and shouldn’t expect every other club to be that way.

Anywho, looks like the Mesh stuff will be really short range and probably used mostly on Field Day if we get enough people participating. The 5.8 GHz HamWan stuff is extremely line-of-sight and probably won’t work for Mason County. (Lots of trees and mountains in the way.) However, the 900 MHz HamWan should work just fine even if it is a bit slower. And it can be “tunneled” into the other HamWan system.

So that might be the way Mason County will roll if anyone other than I gets interested in it. The equipment could cost about $200 per unit (which really ain’t bad) but setup seems pretty easy. I’m going to check it out more.

Other than that not much has been gong on around here. SSDD. Since we got home a bit earlier than I thought we would I’m just starting my usual Sunday chores. Probably won’t make dinner tonight as we’re still full from our last stop at MacDonald’s in Raymond, Wa on the way home.

MCARC Sunday Evening 2-meter Chat Net went really well. About 10 check-ins. Nice. Somehow I get to run next Wednesday’s Net. Cool!

I’m going to bed. I’m tired.

Special Report: Our Weekend Trip

Which I wasn’t even sure was going to get going at all. I got the most God-Awful, pounding just because I was breathing headache Saturday afternoon that lasted until 0400 Sunday morning. I could only sleep if I refused to breathe. At about 0400, between one heartbeat and another, it went away. Felt so good I was instantly  completely wide awake.

So I just stayed up finishing up preparations for the trip. Got SWMBO up @ 0600 and we were out of the house by 0700. Nice to be on the road with the love of my life!
We did Shelton to Olympia to Portland to Eugene in just under 6 hours. Rained quite a bit of the way but was really a nice ride. SWMBO liked the Country Mix I made. Checked in to the Timberline Motel right downtown Eugene.

Met with a “relative” that I know from Facebook but hadn’t actually met. He is the brother of the guy that married one of my Aunts on my Mom’s side of the family and the closest we can come to “relationship” is Cuz-Uncle. (Although I’m sure there is an actual relationship term that I’m just not remembering.) But, since he would have been my Cousin’s Uncle, Cuz-Uncle seems appropriate.
Anyway, we spent a couple of hours in a restaurant just talking and letting SWMBO fill in her Genealogy stuff and (I thought) having a fine time. They are nice people. I could hang around with both of them.

Afterwards, SWMBO and I walked all over downtown Eugene. Then, later, walked all over downtown Eugene looking for a place toeat. I’d bet we walked a couple of miles both times! By the time we finally settled down for the night I was really exhausted.
Monday we took our time getting up (it was a “vacation’'” after all). Stopped at that restaurant for breakfast and hit the road.
What a beautiful ride! Both from Eugene to the Coast and North along highway 101. It was cold, and wet, and foggy, but the scenery, that that we could see, was beautiful, dramatic, inspiring, and well worth braving the weather to see. Stopped at a lot of roadside stops and generally just had a great time.

We paid $27 to take an elevator down to the Sea Lion Cave to watch Sea Lions lounge around the world’s largest Sea Cave. (And $50 in the gift shop!) Was totally worth it though.
Because of traffic, and construction, we didn’t hit the Tillamook area until about 1400. That would have been fine except we saw a GIANT building with “Air Museum” painted on the side of it. HAD to stop. Glad we did! Really not too many exhibits but not bad. Used to be the Tillamook Naval Air Station back in the 40’s and was built to hold K-class blimps. Well worth the admittance fee.

Anyway, by the time we made it into Tillamook proper we were hungry and starting to get tired. Grabbed a quick “dinner” at MacDonald’s and decided to forgo a drive to Astoria and just headed towards Portland. Nice ride! Pretty! Too bad we got caught up in “rush hour” traffic and it took us an hour just to get through Portland.
But, once we got past all that it was smooth sailing, at 70-75 mph, all the way to Olympia. Took the back way through Shelton (where I wasn’t able to raise anyone on the MCARC repeater) and we were home by 2100.

Nice trip with the best company in the world! I love seeing stuff we haven’t seen with the love of my life. I didn’t take very many pictures because I’m down to using my phone again; but I got a few. (But, for some unknown reason, I didn’t get any of my Cuz-Uncle and his other half. ???)
Anywho, that’s it. For now.