Yeah... Let's start out this next year with a lot of Cowboy Philosphizin' Wind! :)
Considering all the dark prognostications for the not far off future... Maybe We Should All Work at Starting Off the New Year With a Successful Attitude?
hmmmm... except... some might say; "The Biggest Obstacle to Most Peoples Dreams Remains... Money"
Or... should I say; "The Lack of Money"
The Fear of NOT HAVING what they feel is enough money keeps folks slaving away, enriching mostly only the "Man" at the expense of your soul.
The man learned early how to enslave those with less ability to accept the risk of chasing their dreams; and in the end, that's what's goin' on. The "Man" I rip on, is simply using those fearful souls to finance his own dreams... and I curse his black heart!... but... when it's all said and done... You, I, We... let him do it.
Yep... sorry... but, in the end, your failure to pursue a dream most often comes from surrendering to the fear, planted in our minds by The Man... rather than the direct failure or impossibility of The Dream.
THAT failure is a CHOICE. When you surrender to Fear, it is a CHOICE... and that takes us right back, full circle to that beginning part of ATTITUDE.
Yup... it gets confusing... it gets all tangled up till your head hurts... but... it all boils down to your Attitude when you step off in pursuit of anything.
I've said it here, enough that it's starting to make even me gag! ;) but, here I go, saying it again...
We left without enough money... and I mean... not enough. I'm Not telling you; "We only had such dollars to eat oatmeal rather than steak "Not Enough"... I'm saying we only had enough to eat ANYTHING through maybe the 20th of the month... "Not Enough."
That's how much the Freedom of my Soul, the Freedom of my Vision and the Freedom of my Heart meant to me. I had to get Free... or suffocate.
Now... here I am coming up on two years later... and I'm still eating. Considering that a couple pairs of jeans are almost too tight to wear... I've not lost any considerable amount of weight.
Ok... Though we had no dollars... I had irons in the fire that I hoped would pay off. Some of 'em have a mite, some seem to be beginning to...
To keep me from getting too cocky... we've had unexpected Failures to endure, that ate up what successes I'd made in that dinero arena.
We had radiator failures, fuel pumps, multiple tires... emergency room visits without insurance coverage... yadda yadda yadda... all, to my mind, tentacles of the beast trying to drag us back under his control...
How-some-ever... we're still rolling. Amid the rolling eyes of those who think we're nuts 'cause the money
aint stacked up and waiting...
Why? Because of Attitude.
I won't lay back and say... I'm done. I won't allow the miserable dollars of a corrupted system to seize the Hard Won Freedom I've captured.
I keep on keepin' on.
I'm not always happy. I'm not always "Up"... I get down. Oh Lordy I get dark and black... but mostly I keep that to myself. The thing is... That's only natural. It's only human. You lay about a bit. Catch your breath... and then, stand up, stick one foot out in front of you... and move on down the trail.
Mine is NOT the story of retirement. I am NOT retired. we have no retirement savings. No 401. No lottery winnings. No inheritance income... We have ONLY that "income", that subsistence, that we produce from our labors each day... Truly!
But THAT... is the key for me. That "Labor" has become my Freedom.
I managed to find a "niche" where I can produce my subsistence doing "Work" that is a pleasure... Not enduring a "Job" that is a cancer on the soul.
I Seized the Possession of my Labor away from "The Man"... It is now Owned by Me.
...and something I need to say again... The Freedom I write about is not from Full Time RV Travel... That is NOT the source of what fulfills me... It is only what my FREEEEEEEDOM (imagine a Braveheart Cry!) allows. I say that again, and again, and again...
I think if you changed every place I tap out RV or Boondocking... or ... Yondering... and put in YOUR Dream... maybe you'll get the idea.
The Vision that fills my eyes is about waking up in the morning, looking out the window at the sunrise... and knowing that Whatever I do today... This Day... is MY choice. Not anyone elses.
No "Bossman" is gonna give this child an order. I'm not under anyone's command... Only My own.
My schedule is my own. My time is My own. My Life, is my own.
It's what I should have done, long ago. It's what took me Too Long to see, myself. It's what I hope to light up for another lost soul or two.
That's what I've always been pushing here. Not RVing... What I've tried to get put out there is, the philosophy of doing what you have to do... to secure Ownership of YOUR life.
You know... if the only part of what you do that causes you grief, is that those around you rail and wail
that what you're doing is crazy... while what you are Actually Doing, is filling your Heart and Soul with
joy... Does it make sense to eliminate what you are doing?
Only so the railing and wailing will quiet? ...leaving you with
what?... Nothing? surrounded by grinning slaves cheerful with the knowledge that they succeeded in crushing your hopes? ... (the reality being that their reason for stopping you was to eliminate the illumination of their own failure to even try!)
Or... should you pick yourself up a big long pole... place it squarely on the chest of the wailers... and shove 'em far enough off... so you can't hear 'em any more?
I say Create. Create the life you want... Keep your pole handy... or a club... and keep the wailers quiet. Find that THING that lights your Eyes and your Heart... while at the same time Creating the where-with-all to keep you fed... and LIVE!
Stay alert and open to unexpected opportunities... For me it's been my writing. My writing came along as a TOTAL SURPRISE... It came AFTER the decision to escape to the road! It wormed it's way through a crack in my thinking... and has become that LIGHT for me.
There is waiting out there, for YOU... a Light. A Creative Light that will bring along for You, glorious sunrises under the Sky of FREEDOM.
Create something that First, lights up your eyes... and Secondly... something you can sell, something that people want and you do a better job at. A thing, a sound, a service, an art, a tool, a thought, an inspiration... ???
Finally a final word :) ... neither I nor any other self styled philosphizing cowboy or wanderer can tell you what or where your Light, Your Dream is hiding, only that it exists... you have to swallow your fear. You have to accept the risks, deal with the setbacks... and dig it up Your Self.
Building the Foundations Under My Own Castle in the Sky
Brian
A broken down Ol' Cowboy goin' RV Boondocking ...
...and Yondering, to the beat of a different Biker Cowboy Drummer
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 30, 2011
Ahhhhh..... Home....
Just Rolled up to the rig... 75 degrees and windless... Even if it is Phoenix! ;)
We'll spend another couple of days gettin' our "stuff" in one bucket and then roll out under the Desert Sky somewhere.
Somewhere... Where the streetlights don't wipe out the stars!
... And get my story telling parts warmed back up and back to work... And get book #3 finished up. :)
Now I'm off to get the truck unpacked and a Sam Adams knocked back! ;)
Shirt sleeves weather on the Arizona Desert
Brian
We'll spend another couple of days gettin' our "stuff" in one bucket and then roll out under the Desert Sky somewhere.
Somewhere... Where the streetlights don't wipe out the stars!
... And get my story telling parts warmed back up and back to work... And get book #3 finished up. :)
Now I'm off to get the truck unpacked and a Sam Adams knocked back! ;)
Shirt sleeves weather on the Arizona Desert
Brian
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Movin' On and Regulating Voltage of RV Electronics...
It's back to Movin' On sometime tomorrow... We'll make our escape from the Colorado Snow and roll on back to the HOPEFULLY warm Arizona desert. I'll take a day or two gettin' things buttoned up and ready to roll once we get back to the rig... and then it's back out on the quiet desert... somewhere...
... Quiet... ain't That one of those relative terms?... Like, when you're around month old "relatives" for any length of time... quiet comes in reeeeal short stretches. :) That's the benefit of being me I guess... I can fire up the cummins and escape!
Which makes me wonder... Folks that have the money to buy $200,000 motorhomes, most generally could be considered to have some sort of education, couldn't they?
Well, if that's true... where did Cummings come from? I swear... you look at ads in Craigs list or just 'bout anywhere else... and 3/4 of the suckers claim the rig... Truck or Motorhome is equipped with a Cummings! diesel engine.
Now... I'm knowin' that if they looked at their owners manual they seen where it's spelled out clear an' plain. Likewise, when they were gazin' through the brochures at the dealership... they all seen it correct an' proper... so... how come they keep on tryin' to change the name? it's a lil' bitty burr... just keeps pokin' an' jabbin' me... :)
How come a mountain cowboy can read the words on the bill of sale...and those fellers with the college certificates... Can't? ... just wonderin'...
and CHAPS! ... Yes CHAPS! arrrrgggggghhhhhhhhh!!!!! Iffn I hear One... More,,, @%#@!!!... Person... call 'em CHaps... like in CHap Stick... I think I'm gonna bust some sort of an aneurysm. The only Chaps goin on like that, is when the wind chaps your face... otherwise... if it's leather on your legs... it's Chaps... (spoke correctly!)
The word comes from a spanish word for leather leggin's... and is pronounced with the "Sh" of shush... like... shaps... not no CHoo Choo'n Chaps!!! arrrrrrrrrrrggggggghhhhhhhh! Say it wrong and you make cowboys giggle and quiver!
ahhhh.... all vented... feel better now! ;)
I've got one Old project to finish up... or should I say; Re-finish when I get back.
I made a stop in a small electronics shop I've used for a few small projects in the past. I picked up a few real high dollar safety gizmos for the RV electronics I was workin' on just before I made the run to Denver for the Holiday.
Real high dollar too! A buck 98 for each of 'em... so I picked up four lil' voltage regulators (so I'd have an extra or two) to add into the wiring that I did on the Electronic Picture frame and the Ipod dock. These cheap little bits will keep the voltage from exceeding the 12V output of the transformers that they came with.
Truth be known... a piece like these is probably inside each of those old transformers.
Anyhoo... as soon as I get back I'll get some pigtails soldered on, and get the things wired in so I can take the warning label off the website page I'd already built about it! ;) I'm sure glad I got the heads up about the voltage of the solar system being a risk with some electronics...
... I found the same "warning" about just a volt or two being enough to cook some of the lower grade "Electronic" parts in some consumer gizmos... in a couple of other places... so... thinking it would be better to be safe than sorry I spent the $1.98 for the lil' things that will put an end to that Almost a problem.
... and of course I'll detail all the sparks and smoke... right here!
Yeah I know... He said what? Better safe than sorry? ... Who's he trying to buffalo now?
I expect there's some that'll claim that ain't exactly credible, what with it coming from a guy who spent considerable time on bareback broncs... or ... uh... maybe not Enough Time on 'em! :) ... and then seein' what the wind feels like on the back of a naked motorcycle at 125 mph. :) but I vow! in THIS case, it's the scouts honor truth... (and they never did prove that stuff back when I was a boy scout!)
Ten days or so is three or six past my limit back here in cold country I'm thinkin'... I may have rode a bike through the winters here... for the last few years we were here... but ... 20 degrees has got colder since we left... must be that global warming thing... makes it colder... It's got my parts feelin' like I just bucked off a tall bronc, all over again!
But hey... What's Al and all the global warming crowd grousin' about anyway? Seems to me that problem is kinda self curing ain't it?
Once it gets warm enough ever'body will be able to shut off their furnaces anyway... and with all the new beaches from the melting ice raising ocean levels... there'll be plenty more places for those turtles to breed... so ever'body will be walkin' on the beaches watchin' the turtles instead of drivin' round on the interstate. So, not only will we burn less heating oil... but less gasoline too! ;)
Sittin' in the Cold...
Gettin' it All Figured Out
Brian
... Quiet... ain't That one of those relative terms?... Like, when you're around month old "relatives" for any length of time... quiet comes in reeeeal short stretches. :) That's the benefit of being me I guess... I can fire up the cummins and escape!
Which makes me wonder... Folks that have the money to buy $200,000 motorhomes, most generally could be considered to have some sort of education, couldn't they?
Well, if that's true... where did Cummings come from? I swear... you look at ads in Craigs list or just 'bout anywhere else... and 3/4 of the suckers claim the rig... Truck or Motorhome is equipped with a Cummings! diesel engine.
Now... I'm knowin' that if they looked at their owners manual they seen where it's spelled out clear an' plain. Likewise, when they were gazin' through the brochures at the dealership... they all seen it correct an' proper... so... how come they keep on tryin' to change the name? it's a lil' bitty burr... just keeps pokin' an' jabbin' me... :)
How come a mountain cowboy can read the words on the bill of sale...and those fellers with the college certificates... Can't? ... just wonderin'...
and CHAPS! ... Yes CHAPS! arrrrgggggghhhhhhhhh!!!!! Iffn I hear One... More,,, @%#@!!!... Person... call 'em CHaps... like in CHap Stick... I think I'm gonna bust some sort of an aneurysm. The only Chaps goin on like that, is when the wind chaps your face... otherwise... if it's leather on your legs... it's Chaps... (spoke correctly!)
The word comes from a spanish word for leather leggin's... and is pronounced with the "Sh" of shush... like... shaps... not no CHoo Choo'n Chaps!!! arrrrrrrrrrrggggggghhhhhhhh! Say it wrong and you make cowboys giggle and quiver!
ahhhh.... all vented... feel better now! ;)
I've got one Old project to finish up... or should I say; Re-finish when I get back.
I made a stop in a small electronics shop I've used for a few small projects in the past. I picked up a few real high dollar safety gizmos for the RV electronics I was workin' on just before I made the run to Denver for the Holiday.
Real high dollar too! A buck 98 for each of 'em... so I picked up four lil' voltage regulators (so I'd have an extra or two) to add into the wiring that I did on the Electronic Picture frame and the Ipod dock. These cheap little bits will keep the voltage from exceeding the 12V output of the transformers that they came with.
Truth be known... a piece like these is probably inside each of those old transformers.
Anyhoo... as soon as I get back I'll get some pigtails soldered on, and get the things wired in so I can take the warning label off the website page I'd already built about it! ;) I'm sure glad I got the heads up about the voltage of the solar system being a risk with some electronics...
... I found the same "warning" about just a volt or two being enough to cook some of the lower grade "Electronic" parts in some consumer gizmos... in a couple of other places... so... thinking it would be better to be safe than sorry I spent the $1.98 for the lil' things that will put an end to that Almost a problem.
... and of course I'll detail all the sparks and smoke... right here!
Yeah I know... He said what? Better safe than sorry? ... Who's he trying to buffalo now?
I expect there's some that'll claim that ain't exactly credible, what with it coming from a guy who spent considerable time on bareback broncs... or ... uh... maybe not Enough Time on 'em! :) ... and then seein' what the wind feels like on the back of a naked motorcycle at 125 mph. :) but I vow! in THIS case, it's the scouts honor truth... (and they never did prove that stuff back when I was a boy scout!)
Ten days or so is three or six past my limit back here in cold country I'm thinkin'... I may have rode a bike through the winters here... for the last few years we were here... but ... 20 degrees has got colder since we left... must be that global warming thing... makes it colder... It's got my parts feelin' like I just bucked off a tall bronc, all over again!
But hey... What's Al and all the global warming crowd grousin' about anyway? Seems to me that problem is kinda self curing ain't it?
Once it gets warm enough ever'body will be able to shut off their furnaces anyway... and with all the new beaches from the melting ice raising ocean levels... there'll be plenty more places for those turtles to breed... so ever'body will be walkin' on the beaches watchin' the turtles instead of drivin' round on the interstate. So, not only will we burn less heating oil... but less gasoline too! ;)
Sittin' in the Cold...
Gettin' it All Figured Out
Brian
Monday, December 26, 2011
SO... They Made an Honest Kindle Author of Me...
Yup... they gifted me with a Kindle Touch... and left me having to learn yet Another, piece of ee-lektrawnical ee-kwipment!
... so now... the twister who once 'pon a time wouldn't let a computer on the ranch, (Devil's Spawn ya know!) now finds his packs encumbered with two laptops, with optical mouse of course... a smawt fohn, an Ipod, two digital cameras, one digital helmet cam, a selection of thumb drives, SD cards... external hard drive...
... and NOW... a Kindle. With, of course... ANOTHER... electronics cord!!!
Ya know... if the greenies REALLY wanted to have an impact on global warming... they'd convene an international symposium dedicated to the standardization of gadget cords!
Yep... consolidate that ever growin' box of tangled cords that a fella has to tote 'round... 'cause the guys designing things felt the need for THEIR gadget to have a cord that could only work on IT!... down to maybe two or three that would keep everything runnin'.
Just think of the reduction of chemical pollution from the production of insulation... the mining not needed to produce the copper for the wires... the packaging for the gadget wires... It would be the technological break through of the Century! Rivaling even recycling water bottles! :)
It is just keepin' me honest though. I mean, if a guy's gonna sell his books to folks, hawkin' the shining merits of Nooks and Kindles... he oughta be reading on one his own self... don't ya think? ;)
Now all I gotta do is get my account sorted out so I can actually buy some books ;) and... figure out how to do the library borrowin' thing... all this learnin' is makin' my brain pan sore.
Maybe if I get back a mite, to reading more of what other folks write... I can learn a thing or three 'bout settin' words to paper... it could happen.
I've already spotted a couple of ways this lil' gadget might help me do my word herding! (that's editing for you educated types) so... I guess I should get back to herding! ;)
Just a few more days and I'll be runnin' my behind out of this frozen north to get it warmed back up out on the Arizona desert.
Wondering How I Pushed a Bike...
Through the Wind of a Colorado Winter
Brian
 |
| *Kindle Touch* |
... and NOW... a Kindle. With, of course... ANOTHER... electronics cord!!!
Ya know... if the greenies REALLY wanted to have an impact on global warming... they'd convene an international symposium dedicated to the standardization of gadget cords!
Yep... consolidate that ever growin' box of tangled cords that a fella has to tote 'round... 'cause the guys designing things felt the need for THEIR gadget to have a cord that could only work on IT!... down to maybe two or three that would keep everything runnin'.
Just think of the reduction of chemical pollution from the production of insulation... the mining not needed to produce the copper for the wires... the packaging for the gadget wires... It would be the technological break through of the Century! Rivaling even recycling water bottles! :)
It is just keepin' me honest though. I mean, if a guy's gonna sell his books to folks, hawkin' the shining merits of Nooks and Kindles... he oughta be reading on one his own self... don't ya think? ;)
Now all I gotta do is get my account sorted out so I can actually buy some books ;) and... figure out how to do the library borrowin' thing... all this learnin' is makin' my brain pan sore.
Maybe if I get back a mite, to reading more of what other folks write... I can learn a thing or three 'bout settin' words to paper... it could happen.
I've already spotted a couple of ways this lil' gadget might help me do my word herding! (that's editing for you educated types) so... I guess I should get back to herding! ;)
Just a few more days and I'll be runnin' my behind out of this frozen north to get it warmed back up out on the Arizona desert.
Wondering How I Pushed a Bike...
Through the Wind of a Colorado Winter
Brian
Thursday, December 22, 2011
If Trucks Could Talk... The Dodge Would Be Cussin'!
**There's an update at the bottom of this post!!! :)**
OOFTA! Boy are you lucky The Raider ain't here! She'd be Maaaaad... sittin' on me in this crap!... Bad 'nuff you drug me up here an' leave me shiverin' out here in this junk! You slow learning, bow legged, throttle twistin' moron! What were you thinkin!'?
How come we don't just make this holiday in July... When the weather is more accommodating?
This is definitely NOT motorcycle weather... Unless of course you're one of those two wheeled wild wheelers up Wisconsin way that race their scooters on frozen lakes with big ol' spikes in their tires!!!
That is one silliness you never have to fear seein' me participating in. I stick to safe and sensible enterprises... Like strappin' your hand into a rawhide riggin' belted to a thousand pounds of Buckin' Horse! ;)
Or two wheels on Asphalt goin' 90 miles an hour down a dead end street... ;)
Today, how-some-ever... Is one of those; "Where's that fourth blanket I'm cold!" Sorts of days.
Chillin' in Denver... For sure and for certain
Brian
***UPDATE*** WHOO HOOOO!!!! :))
I couldn't wait to shout and holler!!! :) A Matter of Honor broke into the TOP 100 WESTERN BOOKS in Genre Fiction at AMAZON this morning! SUH-WHEET! ROFL! :) Hahahahahahahahaha! If it can hang in up there for a lil' bit... Whoo HOOO!!!! :) can ya tell it's made for a Suh-WHEET holiday gift for this Ol' Twister? THANK YOU EVERYONE Who has contributed to the Gift... THANK YOU!!! oh... Sorry for Shouting! I can't help it!!!!!
OOFTA! Boy are you lucky The Raider ain't here! She'd be Maaaaad... sittin' on me in this crap!... Bad 'nuff you drug me up here an' leave me shiverin' out here in this junk! You slow learning, bow legged, throttle twistin' moron! What were you thinkin!'?
How come we don't just make this holiday in July... When the weather is more accommodating?
This is definitely NOT motorcycle weather... Unless of course you're one of those two wheeled wild wheelers up Wisconsin way that race their scooters on frozen lakes with big ol' spikes in their tires!!!
That is one silliness you never have to fear seein' me participating in. I stick to safe and sensible enterprises... Like strappin' your hand into a rawhide riggin' belted to a thousand pounds of Buckin' Horse! ;)
Or two wheels on Asphalt goin' 90 miles an hour down a dead end street... ;)
Today, how-some-ever... Is one of those; "Where's that fourth blanket I'm cold!" Sorts of days.
Chillin' in Denver... For sure and for certain
Brian
***UPDATE*** WHOO HOOOO!!!! :))
I couldn't wait to shout and holler!!! :) A Matter of Honor broke into the TOP 100 WESTERN BOOKS in Genre Fiction at AMAZON this morning! SUH-WHEET! ROFL! :) Hahahahahahahahaha! If it can hang in up there for a lil' bit... Whoo HOOO!!!! :) can ya tell it's made for a Suh-WHEET holiday gift for this Ol' Twister? THANK YOU EVERYONE Who has contributed to the Gift... THANK YOU!!! oh... Sorry for Shouting! I can't help it!!!!!
Wednesday, December 21, 2011
Back in Colorado
Not really sure about the last one. We sat for two hours waiting to roll yesterday morning. Here's what the road looked like, for miles and miles, minutes after they opened I-25 yesterday.
Uh... It might have been tough enough to require folks to Slow Down... But... Close it? Geeze... Driving Ability is on the decline... I'm tee total positive... For sure and for certain! ;)
With maybe 8" of white on the way tonight... I'm already ready to get back to the desert... Even if that has been defying Al's global warming :)
Today is Pappy's day at Bass Pro ;) with the grand kids... Start that new one out right...
Bass Pro... Is a real threat to an old twister's effort to be a frugal red neck! ;)
It is to my mind a genuine adult toy box!
It's tough to resist the temptations... But I'll try.
Drooling in a Toy Box for Red Necks
Brian
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
The Sale of Chewing Gum Should Be Prohibited During Periods of Bad Weather...
These road trippin' wannabes have enough to keep their tiny lil' brain pans busy...
So... the roads are still closed going North... though the Highway cameras I've found show... Pavement! Truth be known... it's not 'cause the roads are that bad... but ... the people on 'em are the sort that could screw up a concrete slab with the proverbial Rubber Hammer.
I still find it curious, that a puss gut, fuzzy eyed, bald headed, broken spined twister, with a bad attitude... can run an empty dually down the road... without slipping a tire... while Other... uh ... Motor VeeHickle Operators? Can't move a front wheel drive car with studded tires across a parking lot... without getting sideways...
I do believe that there should be more "Classes" of drivers licenses... assigned by proper testing to reveal the severity of their many disabilities... due apparently to the total absence of any perception or understanding of the laws of physics.
Class I - Limited to speeds below 20 mph only on Sunny Sunday afternoons on alternating weekends. Vehicle to be Operated ONLY during day light hours. Interstate Highways Specifically prohibited. Any operation of the vehicle must be terminated if a cloud enters a zone within a 12 mile radius of any motor vehicle operated by the licensed driver.
Operation of a vehicle for a period of seven years without a reportable incident would allow an upgrade to;
Class II - Driving permitted if precipitation does not exceed 1/8" and temperatures do not retreat below 50 degrees. Interstate Highways ALSO Specifically prohibited.
Pass the four year probationary period of this license and you would graduate to;
Class III - Permission to be a PASSENGER in a vehicle during inclement weather more severe than permitted under class II regulations.
Class IV - Granted only to those drivers who have provided proof, co-signed by three physicians, of the absence of disability due to Cranial Rectal Inversion; which allows for full and complete peripheral visibility and the inhalation of fresh air when required to maintain consciousness. The holder of this class license are specifically authorized to operate motor vehicles under all road conditions.
Yeah... Today is gonna be 300 miles of slip and slide fun Dodging the Living Proof of the Theory of Reverse Evolution! ;)
Ducking and Running on Western Trails
Brian
So... the roads are still closed going North... though the Highway cameras I've found show... Pavement! Truth be known... it's not 'cause the roads are that bad... but ... the people on 'em are the sort that could screw up a concrete slab with the proverbial Rubber Hammer.
I still find it curious, that a puss gut, fuzzy eyed, bald headed, broken spined twister, with a bad attitude... can run an empty dually down the road... without slipping a tire... while Other... uh ... Motor VeeHickle Operators? Can't move a front wheel drive car with studded tires across a parking lot... without getting sideways...
I do believe that there should be more "Classes" of drivers licenses... assigned by proper testing to reveal the severity of their many disabilities... due apparently to the total absence of any perception or understanding of the laws of physics.
Class I - Limited to speeds below 20 mph only on Sunny Sunday afternoons on alternating weekends. Vehicle to be Operated ONLY during day light hours. Interstate Highways Specifically prohibited. Any operation of the vehicle must be terminated if a cloud enters a zone within a 12 mile radius of any motor vehicle operated by the licensed driver.
Operation of a vehicle for a period of seven years without a reportable incident would allow an upgrade to;
Class II - Driving permitted if precipitation does not exceed 1/8" and temperatures do not retreat below 50 degrees. Interstate Highways ALSO Specifically prohibited.
Pass the four year probationary period of this license and you would graduate to;
Class III - Permission to be a PASSENGER in a vehicle during inclement weather more severe than permitted under class II regulations.
Class IV - Granted only to those drivers who have provided proof, co-signed by three physicians, of the absence of disability due to Cranial Rectal Inversion; which allows for full and complete peripheral visibility and the inhalation of fresh air when required to maintain consciousness. The holder of this class license are specifically authorized to operate motor vehicles under all road conditions.
Yeah... Today is gonna be 300 miles of slip and slide fun Dodging the Living Proof of the Theory of Reverse Evolution! ;)
Ducking and Running on Western Trails
Brian
Monday, December 19, 2011
I Should Have Been One of Those Rain Men
I Would have been buried in riches!
The surest way for Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado to have winter weather is for me to fire up that Cummins and head for Denver. 'bout the only way to keep it from happening is to only go there in July. It's almost as regular as the rain we made all down the coast last fall...
Sunny 'fore we got there... and sunny when we left... and a big rumblin' black cloud dumpin' on my scooter where ever we WERE! :)
They were predicting maybe a 30% chance for the past week... Until I decide to move up my departure 12 or 18 hours...
Then the weatherman can't resist poppin' up with Blizzard Warnings for SE Colorado... You gotta love the west... Where men are men, the sheep are hiding and women just shake their heads...
There's a few chores to get done 'fore I pull out for the next week or ten days... Leaving the rig here in Glendale... but, sometime this afternoon me, the dogs and one weary Ol' Dodge will be moving. Rolling north for Christmas in Colorado.
As far as my experiment over the past few weeks goes? To see how fast I could whittle a book out using a full outline?
Well... it proved that... I can't... follow a writers road map, to whittle words fast! :) And, I can't hold to an outline neither. Trying to force it into that mold had me with something that felt awkward and choppy. And a few false starts.
Once I fell back into my... uhhhh... Unique way... of just writing down what the voices on the movie reel in my head are tellin' me, it worked out pretty good. :) I'm catching back up to where I woulda been if I hadn't tried to rearrange my mental furniture one more time.
I guess when it comes to writing, I'm a drifter there too. Probably has something to do with some sort of personality defect that just jumps up and argues with any sort of authority...
Even this full timing... Accepted wisdom says; "Nope! No diesel today. Gotta stay put!" and I reply; "Adios Sparky!"
A bronc squeals at me; "GET OFF!" and I holler back... "Ha! Make me!" ...
The sign says SLOW - DANGEROUS CURVES ... and I Twist the Throttle and lean into the twisty! Yeah... tell me I can't, or insist that; I HAVE TO... and as regular as the sun comes streamin' through that same window ever' mornin', my natural reaction is to grin and challenge the order...
The weather says; "I'll huff an' I'll puff and I'll stop your Ol' truck!" ... and there I am laughin' at it with a cup of hot coffee in one hand, twiddlin' the stereo dial with the other, and steerin' with my knees. :)
... seems like Running Against the Wind is my natural way of goin'.
Guess I'll just point my nose into the wind, rope the words as they come, and start tappin' the buttons.
So, for the most part, it's back to the Old and proven ways for me... organized cornfuzzlement ... and count myself lucky, I guess, that I have a "Way" that works for me at all.
Gotta go and get this rig put to bed for a couple of weeks. Get my gear stowed in the truck... a couple odds and ends... and of course the; "Ah HA!" several miles down the road, once it's too far to turn back... when I remember that ONE thing I forgot that I told myself, fourteen dozen times; "I'll set this right here, so I Don't Forget this!"
Pointing at the Northern Horizon
Brian
The surest way for Northern New Mexico and Southern Colorado to have winter weather is for me to fire up that Cummins and head for Denver. 'bout the only way to keep it from happening is to only go there in July. It's almost as regular as the rain we made all down the coast last fall...
Sunny 'fore we got there... and sunny when we left... and a big rumblin' black cloud dumpin' on my scooter where ever we WERE! :)
They were predicting maybe a 30% chance for the past week... Until I decide to move up my departure 12 or 18 hours...
Then the weatherman can't resist poppin' up with Blizzard Warnings for SE Colorado... You gotta love the west... Where men are men, the sheep are hiding and women just shake their heads...
There's a few chores to get done 'fore I pull out for the next week or ten days... Leaving the rig here in Glendale... but, sometime this afternoon me, the dogs and one weary Ol' Dodge will be moving. Rolling north for Christmas in Colorado.
As far as my experiment over the past few weeks goes? To see how fast I could whittle a book out using a full outline?
Well... it proved that... I can't... follow a writers road map, to whittle words fast! :) And, I can't hold to an outline neither. Trying to force it into that mold had me with something that felt awkward and choppy. And a few false starts.
Once I fell back into my... uhhhh... Unique way... of just writing down what the voices on the movie reel in my head are tellin' me, it worked out pretty good. :) I'm catching back up to where I woulda been if I hadn't tried to rearrange my mental furniture one more time.
I guess when it comes to writing, I'm a drifter there too. Probably has something to do with some sort of personality defect that just jumps up and argues with any sort of authority...
Even this full timing... Accepted wisdom says; "Nope! No diesel today. Gotta stay put!" and I reply; "Adios Sparky!"
A bronc squeals at me; "GET OFF!" and I holler back... "Ha! Make me!" ...
The sign says SLOW - DANGEROUS CURVES ... and I Twist the Throttle and lean into the twisty! Yeah... tell me I can't, or insist that; I HAVE TO... and as regular as the sun comes streamin' through that same window ever' mornin', my natural reaction is to grin and challenge the order...
The weather says; "I'll huff an' I'll puff and I'll stop your Ol' truck!" ... and there I am laughin' at it with a cup of hot coffee in one hand, twiddlin' the stereo dial with the other, and steerin' with my knees. :)
... seems like Running Against the Wind is my natural way of goin'.
Guess I'll just point my nose into the wind, rope the words as they come, and start tappin' the buttons.
So, for the most part, it's back to the Old and proven ways for me... organized cornfuzzlement ... and count myself lucky, I guess, that I have a "Way" that works for me at all.
Gotta go and get this rig put to bed for a couple of weeks. Get my gear stowed in the truck... a couple odds and ends... and of course the; "Ah HA!" several miles down the road, once it's too far to turn back... when I remember that ONE thing I forgot that I told myself, fourteen dozen times; "I'll set this right here, so I Don't Forget this!"
Pointing at the Northern Horizon
Brian
Friday, December 16, 2011
Running 110Volt Electronic Gadgets on 12volt RV Power!
Ha! Did you realize that some of your favorite lil' RV electronic gadgets were actually 12volt to begin with?
Now... most of 'em have a 110 Volt box you gotta plug in and run the inverter, right?
Well take a close look at the transformer you're pluggin' in... that pup is likely converting your inverted 110 volt back to 12 Volt! ... and who knows... that's cornfuzzling enough I might could have the converting/inverting back'ards... but you get the idea.
I've been wanting to wire my favorite couple of electronic gadgets in hard for some lil' while... just... electrical stuff always intimidates me. I figure some of that stuff is pretty sensitive to gettin' wired backwards so I've put it off.
Well, this afternoon I finally up and decided to hang my fears in the closet and go at this lil' project. We've got an electronic picture frame and an Ipod dock stereo. Look at the transformer for what you want...
This is the transformer for the Electronic Picture frame... the output is 12V... Sweet!
If you look at the wiring diagram on it you can see that the outside of the male plug that actually plugs into our Kodak Picture Frame is the negative side...
... so all I had to do was check that polarity with my handy dandy digital multi-meter and Wa La! Hard wired picture frame...
Which is sweet 'cause now All we gotta do is add any new pictures we want to see often to the SD card that sticks right into the top and Pop! We've got a rolling slide show of our Pictures. That's just about the best Photo Album I can think of... Unless of course it's one of my Hand Tooled Leather Albums ;)
Looks pretty good too... Don't ya think?
That Ipod stereo sitting behind the lamp was the exact same deal... Now, they're powered straight from the 12V batteries and no inverter to use up more power... Sweet! 1500+ songs and all on solar power with no inverter loss... Yes Sir!
One other thing... That good lookin' stone lamp? Came into the world burning 110 Volts... Know what it takes to convert those to 12 volt? a light Bulb! Ha!
Just go on down to Home Depot or just about any hardware store. They carry bulbs that look just like a 110 Bulb... but they're 12 volt. then all you have to do is wire into your 12 volt system where ever you've got access. Take your favorite lamp into the rig and not need to have an inverter running to use it!
Now... if I could just get that Cummins to run on 12 volt power... I could save a lot of Diesel! :)
Gettin' Wired in the Desert
Brian
*** Uh Oh... a WARNING***
***This hyar is a "P.S." edit...*** a fella warned me he'd had an experience where his Ipod didn't like it when his solar system hit peak charge mid-day... As in Pffffttttt!!!! Now, I thought 'bout that and didn't think the 14.4 or so I get would be an issue for a 12 volt doo dad... I get that all the time in an auto systems and it's got computers and gps's and radios and such... SO ... I'm looking around to see what might be around in the way of cheap, simple voltage regulators that I could plumb in there to limit the volts to closer to 12 volts... Geeze... cows were a lot easier... rope 'em to stop... and kick 'em in the butt to go!
Now... most of 'em have a 110 Volt box you gotta plug in and run the inverter, right?
 |
| *Transformers for picture frame and Ipod Stereo* |
I've been wanting to wire my favorite couple of electronic gadgets in hard for some lil' while... just... electrical stuff always intimidates me. I figure some of that stuff is pretty sensitive to gettin' wired backwards so I've put it off.
Well, this afternoon I finally up and decided to hang my fears in the closet and go at this lil' project. We've got an electronic picture frame and an Ipod dock stereo. Look at the transformer for what you want...
If you look at the wiring diagram on it you can see that the outside of the male plug that actually plugs into our Kodak Picture Frame is the negative side...
... so all I had to do was check that polarity with my handy dandy digital multi-meter and Wa La! Hard wired picture frame...
Which is sweet 'cause now All we gotta do is add any new pictures we want to see often to the SD card that sticks right into the top and Pop! We've got a rolling slide show of our Pictures. That's just about the best Photo Album I can think of... Unless of course it's one of my Hand Tooled Leather Albums ;)
Looks pretty good too... Don't ya think?
 |
| *Lamp, gigaware Ipod Stereo and Kodak Picture frame converted to 12v* |
That Ipod stereo sitting behind the lamp was the exact same deal... Now, they're powered straight from the 12V batteries and no inverter to use up more power... Sweet! 1500+ songs and all on solar power with no inverter loss... Yes Sir!
One other thing... That good lookin' stone lamp? Came into the world burning 110 Volts... Know what it takes to convert those to 12 volt? a light Bulb! Ha!
Just go on down to Home Depot or just about any hardware store. They carry bulbs that look just like a 110 Bulb... but they're 12 volt. then all you have to do is wire into your 12 volt system where ever you've got access. Take your favorite lamp into the rig and not need to have an inverter running to use it!
Now... if I could just get that Cummins to run on 12 volt power... I could save a lot of Diesel! :)
Gettin' Wired in the Desert
Brian
*** Uh Oh... a WARNING***
***This hyar is a "P.S." edit...*** a fella warned me he'd had an experience where his Ipod didn't like it when his solar system hit peak charge mid-day... As in Pffffttttt!!!! Now, I thought 'bout that and didn't think the 14.4 or so I get would be an issue for a 12 volt doo dad... I get that all the time in an auto systems and it's got computers and gps's and radios and such... SO ... I'm looking around to see what might be around in the way of cheap, simple voltage regulators that I could plumb in there to limit the volts to closer to 12 volts... Geeze... cows were a lot easier... rope 'em to stop... and kick 'em in the butt to go!
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Wander Forever? An RVer Home Base? Go Part Time? or Run Like Hell?
Too much time breeds conrnfuzzlement.
There's a problem that wanders into the camp of a drifter, when he stays put... in one place... too long... He starts thinkin' too much.
I know what makes my sunrises shine and what makes 'em cloudy. I love... I LOVE... I LOVE ... bein' on the road. I don't particularly like Getting anywhere. As long as I'm moving, on the road, somewhere... I'm easy. Not giggling, goofy happy... Just, Easy.
Lock me down, stagnant in one place... too long... and the sky darkens and gets stormy.
When I get up in a camp on the back side of beyond... or ... stand up from my bed tucked in a corner out on the fringe of a Wally World parking lot, on the way to Beyond... I have that feeling that, HERE, is where and how I belong. "Just a Man, Free on the Earth."
When I'm moving my eyes are roaming and looking, there's no room in my head for second guessing why... I feel good and that's enough.
Now, set the parking brake. Stick the chocks under the wheels and let dust start collecting on the pin box for any length of time... and my dented, damaged, brain pan starts second guessing, and comparing, and scheming. Pretty quick an awful good Plan, and a better WAY is getting twisted into something I can't even recognize and my liver's quiverin' like a $3 hula girl.
One of the sources... No... THE biggest source of the waves being made in the life I live these days, and a lot of folks aspire to, is Economics. It's the big nasty foul smellin' beast that keeps most folks from stepping off and chasing that shining brass ring they've kept secret for too long.
A fella with six zeroes behind the seven in his bank account only has to choose which direction he's gonna turn his radiator when he leaves in the morning.
Those like me... with TWO zeroes, on a good day, behind the 2 in the bank account have to decide how they're gonna put enough diesel in the tank to get out of the parking lot! ;)
I'm not complaining. I'm Free and that's the best thing. Bein' a lil' less worrisome at times wouldn't be a bad thing... but... I get up in the morning and -I- decide what I'm gonna do... each and every day... NOT... some bossman. To tell the truth, we're in a pretty flat situation... no better off, no worse off than a year and more ago... I guess stayin' level is the new "Doin' Good!" ;)
But... Economics is still the big gorilla in the corner. Flat out Ignoring it is gonna let him sneak up and whack you in uncomfortable ways. With a thin wallet... and expenses (Fuel and groceries) rising a lot faster than the statistics mongers on the boob tube claim... (uh... food is up a lot more than the 2 1/2% or so the liars claim inflation is!) a guy has to spend a lil' bit of time thinkin' 'bout how he's gonna ride out the next year...
One of the ways to deal with it, I guess is to set up a situation where you're not moving as much and not knockin' back fifty gallons of diesel a week... there's different ways of doin' that.
I've read and watched other folks. Lots of 'em counsel "You need to have a Home Base"... Thinking on that wise counsel of others, and trying to convince myself that it's the right thing to do... is causing me a bad case of the DT's and the jiggly quivers. Economics is an important thing, and you've got to take care of business... but it's not ALL about the dollars.
It took me a bunch of years, and a lot of torment and misery to fight free from the economic jail that's imposed on a "Property Owner". That's a torment I don't NEVER want to repeat. It's one of the toughest pshyco hurdles for a genetic gypsy to climb over. A man is conditioned from nearly the moment he leaves the safe confines of the womb to get a job, build a house, raise a family, pay your taxes... buy another car...
So... thinking how nice it would be to have a "place" to sit for a while... I could have some of That again... or one of Those or... or ... or.... aeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiii! It is a fearful thing for a fella like me.
It's like a dope addict whose been clean for a year, walking down the street and bumping into his old dealer, who offers him a special deal... just a little taste... a treat!
The addict stands there quiverin'... lusting for that FEELING... just a tast...
But... deep down inside he knows the ugly truth... it's a prison that chains my soul... Yet, it remains a temptation that he can't erase... a temptation he has to deliberately resist, apparently forever.
Now, don't get me wrong... for some people... it's the RIGHT thing. It fits. It makes sense... for others it's the opposite... it's the end of the dream that drags you back into the way it was. The way you detested the whole time you lived in it. It's the tentacles of the beast wrappin' around your ankle and tripping you... You can feel it as your fingers dig into the ground fighting against it, and you're drug back into the hole you fought so hard to escape... nooooooooooooo......
There's other things that rattle around looking for answers... Right now... this seems to be the Bronc I'm trying to ride. Holding to what I know is right for me... against the wind of what so many others claim to know is better.
All they can truly know... if they are honest with them selves... is what is better for THEM.
Which leaves me... Cogitating, second guessing, digging in my Heels... and resisting to the last breath.
Down on the Desert
Brian
There's a problem that wanders into the camp of a drifter, when he stays put... in one place... too long... He starts thinkin' too much.
I know what makes my sunrises shine and what makes 'em cloudy. I love... I LOVE... I LOVE ... bein' on the road. I don't particularly like Getting anywhere. As long as I'm moving, on the road, somewhere... I'm easy. Not giggling, goofy happy... Just, Easy.
Lock me down, stagnant in one place... too long... and the sky darkens and gets stormy.
When I get up in a camp on the back side of beyond... or ... stand up from my bed tucked in a corner out on the fringe of a Wally World parking lot, on the way to Beyond... I have that feeling that, HERE, is where and how I belong. "Just a Man, Free on the Earth."
When I'm moving my eyes are roaming and looking, there's no room in my head for second guessing why... I feel good and that's enough.
Now, set the parking brake. Stick the chocks under the wheels and let dust start collecting on the pin box for any length of time... and my dented, damaged, brain pan starts second guessing, and comparing, and scheming. Pretty quick an awful good Plan, and a better WAY is getting twisted into something I can't even recognize and my liver's quiverin' like a $3 hula girl.
One of the sources... No... THE biggest source of the waves being made in the life I live these days, and a lot of folks aspire to, is Economics. It's the big nasty foul smellin' beast that keeps most folks from stepping off and chasing that shining brass ring they've kept secret for too long.
A fella with six zeroes behind the seven in his bank account only has to choose which direction he's gonna turn his radiator when he leaves in the morning.
Those like me... with TWO zeroes, on a good day, behind the 2 in the bank account have to decide how they're gonna put enough diesel in the tank to get out of the parking lot! ;)
I'm not complaining. I'm Free and that's the best thing. Bein' a lil' less worrisome at times wouldn't be a bad thing... but... I get up in the morning and -I- decide what I'm gonna do... each and every day... NOT... some bossman. To tell the truth, we're in a pretty flat situation... no better off, no worse off than a year and more ago... I guess stayin' level is the new "Doin' Good!" ;)
But... Economics is still the big gorilla in the corner. Flat out Ignoring it is gonna let him sneak up and whack you in uncomfortable ways. With a thin wallet... and expenses (Fuel and groceries) rising a lot faster than the statistics mongers on the boob tube claim... (uh... food is up a lot more than the 2 1/2% or so the liars claim inflation is!) a guy has to spend a lil' bit of time thinkin' 'bout how he's gonna ride out the next year...
One of the ways to deal with it, I guess is to set up a situation where you're not moving as much and not knockin' back fifty gallons of diesel a week... there's different ways of doin' that.
I've read and watched other folks. Lots of 'em counsel "You need to have a Home Base"... Thinking on that wise counsel of others, and trying to convince myself that it's the right thing to do... is causing me a bad case of the DT's and the jiggly quivers. Economics is an important thing, and you've got to take care of business... but it's not ALL about the dollars.
It took me a bunch of years, and a lot of torment and misery to fight free from the economic jail that's imposed on a "Property Owner". That's a torment I don't NEVER want to repeat. It's one of the toughest pshyco hurdles for a genetic gypsy to climb over. A man is conditioned from nearly the moment he leaves the safe confines of the womb to get a job, build a house, raise a family, pay your taxes... buy another car...
So... thinking how nice it would be to have a "place" to sit for a while... I could have some of That again... or one of Those or... or ... or.... aeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiii! It is a fearful thing for a fella like me.
It's like a dope addict whose been clean for a year, walking down the street and bumping into his old dealer, who offers him a special deal... just a little taste... a treat!
The addict stands there quiverin'... lusting for that FEELING... just a tast...
But... deep down inside he knows the ugly truth... it's a prison that chains my soul... Yet, it remains a temptation that he can't erase... a temptation he has to deliberately resist, apparently forever.
Now, don't get me wrong... for some people... it's the RIGHT thing. It fits. It makes sense... for others it's the opposite... it's the end of the dream that drags you back into the way it was. The way you detested the whole time you lived in it. It's the tentacles of the beast wrappin' around your ankle and tripping you... You can feel it as your fingers dig into the ground fighting against it, and you're drug back into the hole you fought so hard to escape... nooooooooooooo......
There's other things that rattle around looking for answers... Right now... this seems to be the Bronc I'm trying to ride. Holding to what I know is right for me... against the wind of what so many others claim to know is better.
All they can truly know... if they are honest with them selves... is what is better for THEM.
Which leaves me... Cogitating, second guessing, digging in my Heels... and resisting to the last breath.
Down on the Desert
Brian
Monday, December 12, 2011
Trains, Motorcycles and Makin' Tracks...
Up on the north side of Phoenix there's a big club of steam train guys. Those boys have laid 16 miles of itty bitty track through the desert... and run some lil' steam trains on 'em you can ride for free. The kids like it so I went with my sister, her son and wife, along with his kids; who were going for the "christmas lights" show along the tracks...
OK... the lights weren't ... ahem... what you might classify as... uh... spectacular ;).... and the trains are... um... well, let's just say I'll keep my Raider! ;) but it was a fun deal...
As we walked out to the lil' steamer I spotted this sign... hmmm... I
didn't even have anything worth stealing... a midget train... and not ONE of them gals to be seen... a guy just can't win :(
Well we went on out and climbed on... uh... climbed down? ... uh... stepped down? sat down... ???
OK... we boarded the train...
This actually, ain't our train... but you get the picture...
Hurtling through the desert into the sunset at the blinding, terrorizing speed of... um... 5mph or so ;) is Oh My God!!! thrilling!!! :) Ok... I'm bein' mean... but the kids like it!
I guess if you're into trains and steamers...(I guess they have a big building with HO and N gauge setups too) this might be a place for you... Now... If I'd been paying attention I could tell you where it was... closer than Pinnacle peak near I-17!! :) but, senile like I am... you're askin' for a lot.
After all that excitement I looked at what the weather man was claiming and decided I better get a good ride in to calm down... 'cause it's gonna get messy for a few days... So, I got up yesterday in the Valley of the Sun and took off for yon Arizona Mountain roads, rolling toward the Mogollon Rim...
Took me a bit to find my way through Phoenix to catch Hwy 87 and cut north...
Twas a nice ride, even if it got a mite chilly up along the Mogollon rim. The thermometers were sayin' 45 degrees or there-a-bouts... which is fine if your on foot...
... at 70 mph in the wind, it feels a bit cooler... not as chilly as the 10 or 11 degrees I rode in Colorado... but for a lazy old twister... chilly enough...
I cut west on Hwy 260 just above Pine and Strawberry to run over to Camp Verde... The original idea was to cross I-17 to hit Cottonwood and then turn south over Mingus Mountain and swing around through Prescott and Wickenburg to roll home...
Buuuuut... though the road behind me hadn't any problem... there were a few spots, in the shade where it was threatening to be icy... I just figured that 7700+ Mingus Mountain might could be something I just didn't have the ambition to play with yesterday so I said bluck bluck BaGuuuuCK! and turned my chicken tail for the Valley down I-17 ;)
The good part is though... I videoed most of the ride... uh huh... Sideways!!! arrrrrggggghhhhhh. Nit wit that I am these days... I forgot to spin the lens to the proper position on my handlebar mounted camera... so everything is filmed sideways...
I guess if you wanted to lay in bed, with your head on the pillow... it would work out just fine!
Well... back to my literary efforts... good thing I have something to keep me busy when it rains.
Still gettin' older in the desert
Brian
OK... the lights weren't ... ahem... what you might classify as... uh... spectacular ;).... and the trains are... um... well, let's just say I'll keep my Raider! ;) but it was a fun deal...
 |
| *Where? Where?! I don't see any such women anywhere!!!* |
Well we went on out and climbed on... uh... climbed down? ... uh... stepped down? sat down... ???
OK... we boarded the train...
This actually, ain't our train... but you get the picture...
 |
| *Silverton-Durango Eat your Heart out! ;) * |
Hurtling through the desert into the sunset at the blinding, terrorizing speed of... um... 5mph or so ;) is Oh My God!!! thrilling!!! :) Ok... I'm bein' mean... but the kids like it!
I guess if you're into trains and steamers...(I guess they have a big building with HO and N gauge setups too) this might be a place for you... Now... If I'd been paying attention I could tell you where it was... closer than Pinnacle peak near I-17!! :) but, senile like I am... you're askin' for a lot.
After all that excitement I looked at what the weather man was claiming and decided I better get a good ride in to calm down... 'cause it's gonna get messy for a few days... So, I got up yesterday in the Valley of the Sun and took off for yon Arizona Mountain roads, rolling toward the Mogollon Rim...
 |
| *Me and the Raider bound for Payson* |
Twas a nice ride, even if it got a mite chilly up along the Mogollon rim. The thermometers were sayin' 45 degrees or there-a-bouts... which is fine if your on foot...
... at 70 mph in the wind, it feels a bit cooler... not as chilly as the 10 or 11 degrees I rode in Colorado... but for a lazy old twister... chilly enough...
I cut west on Hwy 260 just above Pine and Strawberry to run over to Camp Verde... The original idea was to cross I-17 to hit Cottonwood and then turn south over Mingus Mountain and swing around through Prescott and Wickenburg to roll home...
Buuuuut... though the road behind me hadn't any problem... there were a few spots, in the shade where it was threatening to be icy... I just figured that 7700+ Mingus Mountain might could be something I just didn't have the ambition to play with yesterday so I said bluck bluck BaGuuuuCK! and turned my chicken tail for the Valley down I-17 ;)
The good part is though... I videoed most of the ride... uh huh... Sideways!!! arrrrrggggghhhhhh. Nit wit that I am these days... I forgot to spin the lens to the proper position on my handlebar mounted camera... so everything is filmed sideways...
I guess if you wanted to lay in bed, with your head on the pillow... it would work out just fine!
Well... back to my literary efforts... good thing I have something to keep me busy when it rains.
Still gettin' older in the desert
Brian
Friday, December 9, 2011
The Dust is Settling and I'm Back to Cowboy Philosophizin'...
It's too cold 'round the Warm? Arizona Desert to try and put any finish on the cabinet... So it's done as much as it's gonna get for a bit. ;)
Modified the design a bit to make up for excessive headspace... and to allow the parts I had... to fit together. The door I had to cut came from cutting off the top two "Panels" of a six panel door left over from a remodel... a little sanding to take off the 'outside' finish leaves kind of a nice accent... eventually I intend to tool a couple of leather panels for those two interior squares...
As it is it's quite some better than the four drawer plastic tower it replaced.
Never meant for Temporary to last a year and a half or so.
... and no... the rig ain't parked on a hill... I think my eyes are crooked. For some reason last night after I got the mess cleaned up, I couldn't get what I wanted in the pic... AND ... have the pic straight too... ;)
So... 'nuff of that... on to drinkin' thinkin'...
Do you do ever do that? At the end of a tiring day... sit in your easy chair... turn on the juke box soft, pop the top of a cool beer... or ... uh ... Wine for you high grades what hold your lil' finger up when you hang on to your tea cup! ... and just think and wonder?
... Is it just me or has there been an unusually high rash of broken rigs lately? Now my busted stuff is normal karma! ;) but then...
...My brother in law and sister shredded a tire that tore up the side of their Alumascape, Thom and Dar broke a slide bar, friends from PIR have had grief with a coolant leak and more, Sean and Louise have had a spate of busted parts on Odyssey... another blogger I read got his truck side swiped by a drunk who managed to miss the trailer... Tin Teepee has had their problems with "Parts"... and Ol' George had his solar panels blow off the roof of Ms. Tioga, goin' down the road! Miraculously, they landed softly and solar side up, undamaged! There's yet others... the list has been long lately...
Just seems like more busted parts than usual... I think the RV Gremlins are puttin' in a lil' overtime. Ya'll take it slow and be careful out there... Ya hear?
Ya know... it's nice to be sittin' south in the winter, out of the snow, even if it is a mite chilly ;) but I'm finding out a lil' something. I've talked 'bout it some, in different ways.
Having not moved much since early November... and trying to "work" ... there's been a growing, familiar sensation... That restless urge... Hitch Itch...
When I mention it to some, they ask; "You've been on the road a while... You've run a million miles before that... What is it you still want to see?"
The thing is... There's no partic'lar place I want to go. I just want to... I NEED to... Move.
Just Movement... THAT ... I think, is the major component of a gypsy's personality. Not the urge to get somewhere... or even See something...
It's just to be, needing to be... Moving.
I think about that what I've done... and it was ALL about, movement. Cowboyin' I was rocking on the storm deck of a horse. Motorcycles, leaning through the twisties, or just splittin' the wind on the high plains. Even the army was cross country by foot or by armored vehicle... Movement...
When I think of the times I wasn't all giggling happy and excited... but just... content, breathing easy, and feeling I was where I belonged... I was Moving.
A few years ago... when I couldn't sleep... I'd climb on the bike and ride through the night. I remember doin' the same thing many years ago in a pickup. When my mind would get to racing and I ached for calm I would just drive/ride... watching the mountains slide by in the dark. The cool and quiet of the night...
When that internal spring is winding tight... my head is swirling... my guts are tightening up with that frenzied, addled, jittery, sometimes almost panicked feeling... all I have to do is climb on a horse, a motorcycle, the seat of a pickup... or... just walk far and fast... and the tension relaxes.
Mere Movement.. the feeling of the wind in their face has an amazingly soothing affect on a Gypsy.
Another ten, eleven days and I'll be rolling for Colorado and Christmas...
(I'll call it Holiday... after they change Ramadan... and all the others... to HOLIDAY... who am I kidding... No I won't!)
Itchy and Knowing Why
Brian
Modified the design a bit to make up for excessive headspace... and to allow the parts I had... to fit together. The door I had to cut came from cutting off the top two "Panels" of a six panel door left over from a remodel... a little sanding to take off the 'outside' finish leaves kind of a nice accent... eventually I intend to tool a couple of leather panels for those two interior squares...
As it is it's quite some better than the four drawer plastic tower it replaced.
Never meant for Temporary to last a year and a half or so.
... and no... the rig ain't parked on a hill... I think my eyes are crooked. For some reason last night after I got the mess cleaned up, I couldn't get what I wanted in the pic... AND ... have the pic straight too... ;)
So... 'nuff of that... on to drinkin' thinkin'...
Do you do ever do that? At the end of a tiring day... sit in your easy chair... turn on the juke box soft, pop the top of a cool beer... or ... uh ... Wine for you high grades what hold your lil' finger up when you hang on to your tea cup! ... and just think and wonder?
... Is it just me or has there been an unusually high rash of broken rigs lately? Now my busted stuff is normal karma! ;) but then...
...My brother in law and sister shredded a tire that tore up the side of their Alumascape, Thom and Dar broke a slide bar, friends from PIR have had grief with a coolant leak and more, Sean and Louise have had a spate of busted parts on Odyssey... another blogger I read got his truck side swiped by a drunk who managed to miss the trailer... Tin Teepee has had their problems with "Parts"... and Ol' George had his solar panels blow off the roof of Ms. Tioga, goin' down the road! Miraculously, they landed softly and solar side up, undamaged! There's yet others... the list has been long lately...
Just seems like more busted parts than usual... I think the RV Gremlins are puttin' in a lil' overtime. Ya'll take it slow and be careful out there... Ya hear?
Ya know... it's nice to be sittin' south in the winter, out of the snow, even if it is a mite chilly ;) but I'm finding out a lil' something. I've talked 'bout it some, in different ways.
Having not moved much since early November... and trying to "work" ... there's been a growing, familiar sensation... That restless urge... Hitch Itch...
When I mention it to some, they ask; "You've been on the road a while... You've run a million miles before that... What is it you still want to see?"
The thing is... There's no partic'lar place I want to go. I just want to... I NEED to... Move.
Just Movement... THAT ... I think, is the major component of a gypsy's personality. Not the urge to get somewhere... or even See something...
It's just to be, needing to be... Moving.
I think about that what I've done... and it was ALL about, movement. Cowboyin' I was rocking on the storm deck of a horse. Motorcycles, leaning through the twisties, or just splittin' the wind on the high plains. Even the army was cross country by foot or by armored vehicle... Movement...
When I think of the times I wasn't all giggling happy and excited... but just... content, breathing easy, and feeling I was where I belonged... I was Moving.
A few years ago... when I couldn't sleep... I'd climb on the bike and ride through the night. I remember doin' the same thing many years ago in a pickup. When my mind would get to racing and I ached for calm I would just drive/ride... watching the mountains slide by in the dark. The cool and quiet of the night...
When that internal spring is winding tight... my head is swirling... my guts are tightening up with that frenzied, addled, jittery, sometimes almost panicked feeling... all I have to do is climb on a horse, a motorcycle, the seat of a pickup... or... just walk far and fast... and the tension relaxes.
Mere Movement.. the feeling of the wind in their face has an amazingly soothing affect on a Gypsy.
Another ten, eleven days and I'll be rolling for Colorado and Christmas...
(I'll call it Holiday... after they change Ramadan... and all the others... to HOLIDAY... who am I kidding... No I won't!)
Itchy and Knowing Why
Brian
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Truck Maintenance and Raising Dust in the Desert
It's being a pretty productive week... Though I gotta say... there's something in that phrase... productive week... that just makes my belly nauseous and my skin crawl... ;)
... somehow... it smacks of all the cliche's and mind numbing propaganda that they use to condition and train a kid to Believe so he grows up to be a Productive Citizen... (spelled; useful, obedient, treadmill runner) ah... but that's food for a sermonizing tirade... and none of that today!
Nope... this week is just mostly the stuff a guy has to do to take care of the hardware and such that helps keep the Treadmill guards from draggin' him back to the plantation!
The first of the week was spent gettin' plenty of maintenance taken care of on the truck. Oil, Front end... yadda yadda...
Then, not only did the start, that I like, of Heart of a Man, Finally Click! ... but the clicking kept CLICKING! for hours and woke up the neighbors! and I actually now have the beginning of the sequel to A Pair of Second Chances on "Electronical Paper" as well... ;) Having solid starts working to two books, that excite me, at the same time... is um... exciting to me!
Then, yesterday I spent much of the day finally getting around to replacing the "Temporary" plastic cabinet that's set twixt the table/desk and the couch since we pulled out a year and more ago. It's been kind of a hassle... The lamp and such that sit on top of it have to be "put away" every time we move... only there is no 'away'... so that stuff was in the way if we needed to get in the rig on the road...
Small things like that can get under your skin. When you're as... um... sensitive as I am... it's better to have fewer things crawling 'round under your skin... so, I've been wanting to get that RV Cabinet cleaned up and made permanent for some little while.
I kept watching for something I could get store bought quick and easy. After a year I finally decided quick and easy wasn't gonna happen...
... so I opted for quick and dirty instead! :) Using the drawers from the plastic cabinet, a sheet of new plywood, a couple pieces of old signboard my brother in law had in his shop...
...as well as his shop!... along with some bits and pieces of hardware... I went to making dust in the wood shop.
I got all the pieces cut out and ready...
It's not fine cabinetry... but... it'll work for the girls I dance with...
It helps to have a place for a few weeks in the winter where you can "borrow" a shop to do some projects like this now an' again... ;)
Shhhhh.... I'm gonna let ya'll in a lil secret...don't tell no one... it's the lil' part of becomin' a full timer that nobody talks 'bout 'cept in furtive whispers, when nobody's around... having a place or two with big garages or shops is a real plus... so that you can do your needful projects... 'thout havin' to maintain a shop yourself! but... shhhhh....it's a full timer secret... just make sure you buy the beer once in a while ;)
... and I don't have to mow the grass or maintain the sprinkler system! ;)
It's been a bit since I've done much in the way of 'cabinetry' so my... cabinet making muscles are out of shape...
The result being... Measure twice and cut once... should be read... Measure SIX times... and then stop and look one more time, before you make that cut... you bald headed, puss gutted, fumble thumbed, button punching biker cowboy!
Good thing my days as a custom leather maker taught me that it isn't that "Pros" don't make mistakes... it's just that they've learned how to hide 'em... or make it look like that was part of the Design! ;)
Still have the door to cut, I'll do that today... I think...
Have another of those Design parts to um... incorporate into the finished project. :) Like... OOPS... Somebody cut the overhang of the top on the front at only a half inch...
...and somebody forgot to remember that the salvaged door that's gonna be used... is... uhhhhh... an inch and a half! Doh!!!
Yeah, well... it's a long way from my heart...
Since that "Hole" I was filling was some deeper than the plastic cabinet we've been using... I thought it might be nice to utilize that space for things that could be a little more out of the way.
I extended that cabinet just about double deep... which is why I was whittling those holes in the first picture of prepping the RV Cabinet parts...
The those side openings will be reachable from the table side... Useful for a Charging Station maybe... to get the mess of camera battery chargers, phone chargers, ipod charger, yadda yadda yadda... out of the way... and almost... out of sight.
So... I gotta go put my "Pro" hat on now... and cover up that glaring road hazard on the top of my head... while I scheme a way to hide the fact that my brain was off wandering down the road somewhere...
... instead of workin' with me in the shop!
Making Dust and Claiming It's Just as I Intended!
Brian
... somehow... it smacks of all the cliche's and mind numbing propaganda that they use to condition and train a kid to Believe so he grows up to be a Productive Citizen... (spelled; useful, obedient, treadmill runner) ah... but that's food for a sermonizing tirade... and none of that today!
Nope... this week is just mostly the stuff a guy has to do to take care of the hardware and such that helps keep the Treadmill guards from draggin' him back to the plantation!
The first of the week was spent gettin' plenty of maintenance taken care of on the truck. Oil, Front end... yadda yadda...
Then, not only did the start, that I like, of Heart of a Man, Finally Click! ... but the clicking kept CLICKING! for hours and woke up the neighbors! and I actually now have the beginning of the sequel to A Pair of Second Chances on "Electronical Paper" as well... ;) Having solid starts working to two books, that excite me, at the same time... is um... exciting to me!
Then, yesterday I spent much of the day finally getting around to replacing the "Temporary" plastic cabinet that's set twixt the table/desk and the couch since we pulled out a year and more ago. It's been kind of a hassle... The lamp and such that sit on top of it have to be "put away" every time we move... only there is no 'away'... so that stuff was in the way if we needed to get in the rig on the road...
Small things like that can get under your skin. When you're as... um... sensitive as I am... it's better to have fewer things crawling 'round under your skin... so, I've been wanting to get that RV Cabinet cleaned up and made permanent for some little while.
I kept watching for something I could get store bought quick and easy. After a year I finally decided quick and easy wasn't gonna happen...
... so I opted for quick and dirty instead! :) Using the drawers from the plastic cabinet, a sheet of new plywood, a couple pieces of old signboard my brother in law had in his shop...
...as well as his shop!... along with some bits and pieces of hardware... I went to making dust in the wood shop.
 |
| *prepping the cabinet parts* |
It's not fine cabinetry... but... it'll work for the girls I dance with...
It helps to have a place for a few weeks in the winter where you can "borrow" a shop to do some projects like this now an' again... ;)
Shhhhh.... I'm gonna let ya'll in a lil secret...don't tell no one... it's the lil' part of becomin' a full timer that nobody talks 'bout 'cept in furtive whispers, when nobody's around... having a place or two with big garages or shops is a real plus... so that you can do your needful projects... 'thout havin' to maintain a shop yourself! but... shhhhh....it's a full timer secret... just make sure you buy the beer once in a while ;)
... and I don't have to mow the grass or maintain the sprinkler system! ;)
It's been a bit since I've done much in the way of 'cabinetry' so my... cabinet making muscles are out of shape...
 |
| *Pinning the RV Cabinet together* |
Good thing my days as a custom leather maker taught me that it isn't that "Pros" don't make mistakes... it's just that they've learned how to hide 'em... or make it look like that was part of the Design! ;)
Still have the door to cut, I'll do that today... I think...
Have another of those Design parts to um... incorporate into the finished project. :) Like... OOPS... Somebody cut the overhang of the top on the front at only a half inch...
 |
| *RV Cabinet, waiting on a door...* |
...and somebody forgot to remember that the salvaged door that's gonna be used... is... uhhhhh... an inch and a half! Doh!!!
Yeah, well... it's a long way from my heart...
Since that "Hole" I was filling was some deeper than the plastic cabinet we've been using... I thought it might be nice to utilize that space for things that could be a little more out of the way.
I extended that cabinet just about double deep... which is why I was whittling those holes in the first picture of prepping the RV Cabinet parts...
 |
| *Table side of the RV Cabinet* |
So... I gotta go put my "Pro" hat on now... and cover up that glaring road hazard on the top of my head... while I scheme a way to hide the fact that my brain was off wandering down the road somewhere...
... instead of workin' with me in the shop!
Making Dust and Claiming It's Just as I Intended!
Brian
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Let There be Light... In More Ways Than One
First off, the Headlights that don't light... Light just fine... arrrrrggggghhhhhh.
How do you fix, what won't work... when it refuses to NOT work, when you go out to figure out what ain't working? I gotta see what's bad, to know what to fix... right? When I walked out first thing the next morning... not a bobble or a burp. Light up just fine... OK, one less thing to do. (I'm betting on a failing headlight switch Like Mike said... but... I'll just wait I guess till Ms. Cummins makes up her automotive mind)
Started the day off yesterday putting the truck on a rack to check out the 4wd front end. Had a bit of luck... sort of. The tires have been wearing poorly for a bit. I've been putting off that bit of maintenance, fixing other things from hitches to switches, fearing to be honest... another big repair bill...
Kinda like pull a project out of the jar and do it... and try not to see how full that dang jar is getting with other projects... all of which can sink the boat if they don't get took care of...
Sounds a lot like international politics don't it? ;)
... but there's only so many beans to do the work with... Yeah, you know the drill ;) many of you ride the same trail I do... Hand to mouth... and too many times when your hand gets to your mouth you find out some slippery bugger beat you there and your hand is empty!
So your teeth come together with a click ... on nuthin' but air!
Anyhoo... this time... though they warned me I'm starting to get a mite of "play" in things, the wear was still within the parameters to align it... so... I'll be suckin' it up and treating it tenderly, to try and squeeze a few more miles out of the parts that be.
Got Home to the Eagle from that rig maintenance chore and set to writing again for a bit... and BING! a little warning bell started making noises in my head. I was re-reading what I've toiled to figure out over the past couple of weeks...The thought that kept ringin'... I don't like it.
I tried to polish and tinker here and there for a bit... but alas, 'twas runnin' against the wind... that lil' bell just kept ding ding dingin'...
Frustrated, I picked up my jugs and filters and such and crawled under the truck, after zippin' a message off to Heidi, and went to work changing the motor oil.
When I got done with that, I had a return message from herself... which turned out to be one of those; Why didn't I think of that? epiphanies!
The message I'd sent told her of my frustration... and her reply; "Maybe you should put it aside and start on the sequel to "Pair"."
Ha! I thought; Oh right. That's just great... I already usually go six directions at once, so why not just send me off on number seven! Thanks. That's a big help!
Well... I sat havin' a cooling out soda while listening to my Ipod juke box and feelin' sorry for myself... Without planning on it, I commenced to absent minded daydreamin' about... just that... A Pair of Second Chances - The Sequel.
Next thing I know, I'm scribblin' notes as fast as I can doodle and the ideas are swirling like a storm...
and then... and then... and then... ;) As I'm committing those inspirations to paper 'fore they're lost in the swirling kaleidoscope that's generally spinning between my ears...
... THE solution to my frustration with; "Heart of a Man" starts hollerin'... ME TOO! ME TOO!...
Off I went, again, scribbling outline notes as fast as my fingers could scribble... on a second page! So now, I'm poppin' back and forth twixt two stories... tryin' to get it all down 'fore the kaleidascope swapped me out for something completely different! (to steal a line from Monty Python)
I likely looked like some psycho Mad Scientist confined in a padded room of the state hospital... mumbling to himself and writing madly... wild eyed and gigglin'...
I wonder... do they give you rubber pencils?
Yeah it's still a total restart, but, what came to me in a spasm of inspirational convulsatory cowboy brain storm... is the story I've been pondering at... and finally, like in the past... it just Popped on it's own... only this time... THEY popped... two in one day...
So though it sets me back... it puts me ahead! ;)
When your head is hurtin' from bangin' against the wall... back off a bit... and sometimes, the door you couldn't see 'cause your eyes were squeezed shut... will open up to you.
It's gonna be a busy winter!
Brian
How do you fix, what won't work... when it refuses to NOT work, when you go out to figure out what ain't working? I gotta see what's bad, to know what to fix... right? When I walked out first thing the next morning... not a bobble or a burp. Light up just fine... OK, one less thing to do. (I'm betting on a failing headlight switch Like Mike said... but... I'll just wait I guess till Ms. Cummins makes up her automotive mind)
Started the day off yesterday putting the truck on a rack to check out the 4wd front end. Had a bit of luck... sort of. The tires have been wearing poorly for a bit. I've been putting off that bit of maintenance, fixing other things from hitches to switches, fearing to be honest... another big repair bill...
Kinda like pull a project out of the jar and do it... and try not to see how full that dang jar is getting with other projects... all of which can sink the boat if they don't get took care of...
Sounds a lot like international politics don't it? ;)
... but there's only so many beans to do the work with... Yeah, you know the drill ;) many of you ride the same trail I do... Hand to mouth... and too many times when your hand gets to your mouth you find out some slippery bugger beat you there and your hand is empty!
So your teeth come together with a click ... on nuthin' but air!
Anyhoo... this time... though they warned me I'm starting to get a mite of "play" in things, the wear was still within the parameters to align it... so... I'll be suckin' it up and treating it tenderly, to try and squeeze a few more miles out of the parts that be.
Got Home to the Eagle from that rig maintenance chore and set to writing again for a bit... and BING! a little warning bell started making noises in my head. I was re-reading what I've toiled to figure out over the past couple of weeks...The thought that kept ringin'... I don't like it.
I tried to polish and tinker here and there for a bit... but alas, 'twas runnin' against the wind... that lil' bell just kept ding ding dingin'...
Frustrated, I picked up my jugs and filters and such and crawled under the truck, after zippin' a message off to Heidi, and went to work changing the motor oil.
When I got done with that, I had a return message from herself... which turned out to be one of those; Why didn't I think of that? epiphanies!
The message I'd sent told her of my frustration... and her reply; "Maybe you should put it aside and start on the sequel to "Pair"."
Ha! I thought; Oh right. That's just great... I already usually go six directions at once, so why not just send me off on number seven! Thanks. That's a big help!
Well... I sat havin' a cooling out soda while listening to my Ipod juke box and feelin' sorry for myself... Without planning on it, I commenced to absent minded daydreamin' about... just that... A Pair of Second Chances - The Sequel.
Next thing I know, I'm scribblin' notes as fast as I can doodle and the ideas are swirling like a storm...
and then... and then... and then... ;) As I'm committing those inspirations to paper 'fore they're lost in the swirling kaleidoscope that's generally spinning between my ears...
... THE solution to my frustration with; "Heart of a Man" starts hollerin'... ME TOO! ME TOO!...
Off I went, again, scribbling outline notes as fast as my fingers could scribble... on a second page! So now, I'm poppin' back and forth twixt two stories... tryin' to get it all down 'fore the kaleidascope swapped me out for something completely different! (to steal a line from Monty Python)
I likely looked like some psycho Mad Scientist confined in a padded room of the state hospital... mumbling to himself and writing madly... wild eyed and gigglin'...
I wonder... do they give you rubber pencils?
Yeah it's still a total restart, but, what came to me in a spasm of inspirational convulsatory cowboy brain storm... is the story I've been pondering at... and finally, like in the past... it just Popped on it's own... only this time... THEY popped... two in one day...
So though it sets me back... it puts me ahead! ;)
When your head is hurtin' from bangin' against the wall... back off a bit... and sometimes, the door you couldn't see 'cause your eyes were squeezed shut... will open up to you.
It's gonna be a busy winter!
Brian
Sunday, December 4, 2011
He Did it Again...
The last evening on the Plomosa Road Desert for a while...
Loaded up, hitched up and moved on down the road yesterday morning... Making a stop at Bouse to use the county parks dump station.
You might want to keep an eye on things there, if you plan on depending on it through the winter. It seems the "RV Stop" in Quartzite raised their dump/water rates so a LOT of people have been going to the station in Bouse... and overloading their system... (20+ miles? Not sure how that adds up to saving money?) but... They're entertaining the thought of shutting the dump down. The leech field is being over run... Just a Heads up if you're used to using it... It may not be there next time...
Anyhoo... dumped out and watered up... fired up and then... had to make the decision... left or right?
Though I'd planned on another week or so at least out on that desert (Turning left)... I up and decided that some truck maintenance I've been stalling on doing... Really... needed to get done before the bobtail run to Denver coming up in a couple of weeks... so I carried my butt... or... the Dodge carried my butt back to glendale (Turning right) where I can poach some more free parking behind my sisters place while I perform some maintenance and other chores...
Don't know that I mentioned it... a few weeks ago while here I finally broke down and tore the drivers door apart to replace the window switch... a $75+- switch... which turned out, didn't fix the problem... changed it... but didn't FIX it...
I felt a sudden vibration down in my belly... thought my phone was ringing/vibrating on my belt... Nope... just a grumpy twister getting wound up... grrrrrrrrrrr......
Tore the door open some more... to get to and remove the motor... working in there is like trying to thread a needle with your toes... while writing a letter on the laptop with your nose...
Most of the past year I've had to smack the door, more and more, to make the window behave... much like step children, ...being one I know! :) ... It got worse as time went by... it finally stopped even working the passenger door window... so... it's the switch, right? Only if you also add a $60 dollar or so window motor... NOW... it all works...
So... I get in the truck last evening, after I got set up... to go get some supplies and such that I'd consumed over the past 14 days... fired up the cummins... twisted the switch... and... and... DARKNESS.
I got no headlights... ooooommmmmphhhhhhh.... just go back to the rig and listen to the rain on the roof... drink a beer... and turn on some Joan Baez for a bit when the music of the rain quits... I'll fix the lights... tomorrow...
Tomorrow... is now today... the sky has cleared... and I have to go chase down missing electrons...
... So... The truck is in good shape to make the run to single digit Colorado... uh... What is wrong with THAT picture? ;)
Sometimes... Good Sense... Just Makes No Sense At All!
Brian
You might want to keep an eye on things there, if you plan on depending on it through the winter. It seems the "RV Stop" in Quartzite raised their dump/water rates so a LOT of people have been going to the station in Bouse... and overloading their system... (20+ miles? Not sure how that adds up to saving money?) but... They're entertaining the thought of shutting the dump down. The leech field is being over run... Just a Heads up if you're used to using it... It may not be there next time...
Anyhoo... dumped out and watered up... fired up and then... had to make the decision... left or right?
Though I'd planned on another week or so at least out on that desert (Turning left)... I up and decided that some truck maintenance I've been stalling on doing... Really... needed to get done before the bobtail run to Denver coming up in a couple of weeks... so I carried my butt... or... the Dodge carried my butt back to glendale (Turning right) where I can poach some more free parking behind my sisters place while I perform some maintenance and other chores...
Don't know that I mentioned it... a few weeks ago while here I finally broke down and tore the drivers door apart to replace the window switch... a $75+- switch... which turned out, didn't fix the problem... changed it... but didn't FIX it...
I felt a sudden vibration down in my belly... thought my phone was ringing/vibrating on my belt... Nope... just a grumpy twister getting wound up... grrrrrrrrrrr......
Tore the door open some more... to get to and remove the motor... working in there is like trying to thread a needle with your toes... while writing a letter on the laptop with your nose...
Most of the past year I've had to smack the door, more and more, to make the window behave... much like step children, ...being one I know! :) ... It got worse as time went by... it finally stopped even working the passenger door window... so... it's the switch, right? Only if you also add a $60 dollar or so window motor... NOW... it all works...
So... I get in the truck last evening, after I got set up... to go get some supplies and such that I'd consumed over the past 14 days... fired up the cummins... twisted the switch... and... and... DARKNESS.
I got no headlights... ooooommmmmphhhhhhh.... just go back to the rig and listen to the rain on the roof... drink a beer... and turn on some Joan Baez for a bit when the music of the rain quits... I'll fix the lights... tomorrow...
Tomorrow... is now today... the sky has cleared... and I have to go chase down missing electrons...
... So... The truck is in good shape to make the run to single digit Colorado... uh... What is wrong with THAT picture? ;)
Sometimes... Good Sense... Just Makes No Sense At All!
Brian
Friday, December 2, 2011
Is Brian all Doom and Gloom? or Is He Just Trying to Keep It Real?
Has he given up? Or is there a reason to his "madness"? Is he a Debbie Downer... or just trying to lock the barn door BEFORE the horse gets loose? and maybe trying to tickle some others to do the same?
I surely understand how things can look to folks, like it's all doom and gloom. They get whipped by the winds around 'em, and it seems like they get carried on by the force of that storm, with no way out.
I for one don't hold with that idea.
The way things are turning for me now, (with my books and such) I have to have some optimism left. It's just... well... if you go into something with your eyes open, you're set up a lot better to adjust to the situation around you...
I'm NOT saying that you'll weather this storm without gettin' wet. I'm not claiming there is some silver bullet that keeps all the gremlins and politicians, and 1%'er vermin away...
What I AM saying is, you've got options. You ALWAYS have options... and the sun after the storm is pretty nice.
When you're up north, in the land of Wolves and 900 lb Grizzlies. You don't stop living. You don't stop hiking. You DO take certain precautions to give yourself an "edge"... To make that bit of world that you can exert control over, a mite safer and more pleasant for you. Pepper spray, Bells... and.. ahem... tools of a more... uh ... athletic nature...
That's what I'm sayin'... see what's coming and put the 7P's in operation. (Proper prior planning prevents p_ _ S poor performance)
Is it doom and gloom to think of the possibility of a wreck, or theft or fire... and buy insurance for your car?
Or is it better to just smile without insurance... and Expect it to all turn out fine?
Is it doom and gloom to mount fire extinguishers in strategic spots around your rig? Or is it better to believe a fire will never happen, and Save that expense?
Is it doom and gloom to place wheel chocks to keep the winds from rolling your rig away to places you'd
rather it didn't travel? Or is it better to Hope that won't happen to you... and not expend the effort?
Is it doom and gloom to try and save up a lil' bit of gold in case of a rainy day?
You must be doom and gloom if you buy health insurance or set up medical savings aren't you? Why are you so negative?
Is it doom and gloom for me to write about the sense it makes to do such things? or is it living in Denial to pretend such things "Will never happen to me?"
I say nope. Just simple, pragmatic, common sense... Hope for the best, but plan for the worst.
So... Seeing where things are likely goin' in the not so far off future, is it "Doom and Gloom" for me to talk about it? To point at the lessons of History... that too many want you to ignore... and holler; Yo! People! DUCK!?
Or... can I claim to be simply warning you that I believe there's a coming storm, and it might make sense to take a few precautions in that world right close about you... to be prepared for the approaching weather?
Some tell me why bother? What can you do? Others tell me that I only see the dark side of things, "Why are you so negative?" Maybe what they perceive is my perception of the world around me. That it seems so few others smell the bad breath of that 800 lb Gorilla sitting in the corner... and nobody is doing much to get the sucker moved out of my living room!
I've got things I want to do. I can't get 'em done if I've not dealt with the gorilla first... so...
Somebody has to say something... so that I can get back to the Important stuff... Motorcycles and Playing!
I get frustrated and have those thoughts of defeat myself on occasion. What can I do? Sometimes it all seems too big. Too much to accept let alone deal with.
"How am I gonna resist the winds of such storms. How is a lil' guy like me gonna stand up to that?
When such thinking is dragging me back... it helps me to listen to a song from many years ago... I was listening to it just a lil' bit ago... I think it fits well... even if the horses in this video don't :) ... though... in a way, I can see parallels to consider ;)
I say. Live your life. Make the choices that preserve your Liberty and Family. Live with Pride and Courage.
Live with Compassion and Honor.
And while you are out Living, Laughing and Loving...
... keep your B_ _L S_ _T detector handy and the volume turned up high ;)
Just Keepin' it Real
Brian
I surely understand how things can look to folks, like it's all doom and gloom. They get whipped by the winds around 'em, and it seems like they get carried on by the force of that storm, with no way out.
I for one don't hold with that idea.
The way things are turning for me now, (with my books and such) I have to have some optimism left. It's just... well... if you go into something with your eyes open, you're set up a lot better to adjust to the situation around you...
I'm NOT saying that you'll weather this storm without gettin' wet. I'm not claiming there is some silver bullet that keeps all the gremlins and politicians, and 1%'er vermin away...
What I AM saying is, you've got options. You ALWAYS have options... and the sun after the storm is pretty nice.
When you're up north, in the land of Wolves and 900 lb Grizzlies. You don't stop living. You don't stop hiking. You DO take certain precautions to give yourself an "edge"... To make that bit of world that you can exert control over, a mite safer and more pleasant for you. Pepper spray, Bells... and.. ahem... tools of a more... uh ... athletic nature...
That's what I'm sayin'... see what's coming and put the 7P's in operation. (Proper prior planning prevents p_ _ S poor performance)
Is it doom and gloom to think of the possibility of a wreck, or theft or fire... and buy insurance for your car?
Or is it better to just smile without insurance... and Expect it to all turn out fine?
Is it doom and gloom to mount fire extinguishers in strategic spots around your rig? Or is it better to believe a fire will never happen, and Save that expense?
Is it doom and gloom to place wheel chocks to keep the winds from rolling your rig away to places you'd
rather it didn't travel? Or is it better to Hope that won't happen to you... and not expend the effort?
Is it doom and gloom to try and save up a lil' bit of gold in case of a rainy day?
You must be doom and gloom if you buy health insurance or set up medical savings aren't you? Why are you so negative?
Is it doom and gloom for me to write about the sense it makes to do such things? or is it living in Denial to pretend such things "Will never happen to me?"
I say nope. Just simple, pragmatic, common sense... Hope for the best, but plan for the worst.
So... Seeing where things are likely goin' in the not so far off future, is it "Doom and Gloom" for me to talk about it? To point at the lessons of History... that too many want you to ignore... and holler; Yo! People! DUCK!?
Or... can I claim to be simply warning you that I believe there's a coming storm, and it might make sense to take a few precautions in that world right close about you... to be prepared for the approaching weather?
Some tell me why bother? What can you do? Others tell me that I only see the dark side of things, "Why are you so negative?" Maybe what they perceive is my perception of the world around me. That it seems so few others smell the bad breath of that 800 lb Gorilla sitting in the corner... and nobody is doing much to get the sucker moved out of my living room!
I've got things I want to do. I can't get 'em done if I've not dealt with the gorilla first... so...
Somebody has to say something... so that I can get back to the Important stuff... Motorcycles and Playing!
I get frustrated and have those thoughts of defeat myself on occasion. What can I do? Sometimes it all seems too big. Too much to accept let alone deal with.
"How am I gonna resist the winds of such storms. How is a lil' guy like me gonna stand up to that?
When such thinking is dragging me back... it helps me to listen to a song from many years ago... I was listening to it just a lil' bit ago... I think it fits well... even if the horses in this video don't :) ... though... in a way, I can see parallels to consider ;)
I say. Live your life. Make the choices that preserve your Liberty and Family. Live with Pride and Courage.
Live with Compassion and Honor.
And while you are out Living, Laughing and Loving...
... keep your B_ _L S_ _T detector handy and the volume turned up high ;)
Just Keepin' it Real
Brian
My Yarn Spinning, Website Building Version of Workamping Continues Bearing Fruit...
Time flies when nothin' much is happening... Been here 13 days I guess. BLM says I gotta move my self tomorrow. Yeah I know, it's gettin' crowded 'round here... There's a rig a hundred and fifty yards east and another a hundred yards west... the next nearest rig is six hundred yards at least west. Nothing within a 1/4 mile north, or further east or west...
Yup... crowded...
... I guess the BLM has to keep us moving so new folks have room to set up! ;)
This morning, I'm sitting at my table with John Barry (Dances With Wolves) playin' over my Ipod player... and a lil' of the Old Garth Brooks too... You know, I sure miss the days before he 'lost it'. His music was so much deeper and said something... than nearly any of the rest... at least I've got his good stuff to listen too... It helps.
Anyhoo, those two are getting my Yarn Spinning creative juices warmed up. Hoping to get some more of the Heart of a Man story braided today... (the coming sequel to A Matter of Honor)
Though I had some false starts getting the lead in sorted out, having to circle back and restart a time or two, I think I've gotten that worked out and the past few days have seen steady progress. At this point if the "size" of the second story is any indication I'm 'bout 10% complete on the third. ;)
This one has a lot more goin' on 'tween a lot more folks ears... at least to my perception... so writing it, for a pea brain is a lot more difficult. I gotta take a lot more care to make sure I hear the Voices in My Head correctly! ;) and gettin' their words copied down straight... arguing with 'em 'bout what they said hasn't proven to be productive!... and it kinda scares the "neighbors".
I'm pretty pleased with the reception "A Pair..." has garnered so far. Many folks have told me they started reading and then just had to read on through. "Couldn't put it down." I realize that some of those were likely just blowing sunshine up my skirt to be nice, but figuring some were talkin' true, it's about the best compliment I can think of for one of my tales. Enough have told me what I felt myself, that "A Pair" is a stronger and better story than "Honor" is... that I feel pretty good about it, 'cause I Really Like that first story! :)
As far as how it's performing, though the numbers aren't huge by any stretch and "Honor" started out real slow, "A Pair" sold more in its first month than "Honor" did in its first (5)five. Combine that with the very nice kick its given to the sales of "Honor" and they're making a nice and growing contribution to my pantry. Awesome! Thank You Very Much! I won't starve this month... well... as long as I manage to go a month without busting anything new! ;)
It's nice to have that lil' bit of diversifying comin' on to spread some of my eggs to other baskets. That way the website income, though continuing and sustaining, becomes a smaller piece of the whole. It being such a heavy % of our income for a while, It's made me sorta nervous.
It's an awful lot like workin' for the man and being dependent on that paycheck. Gives the "man" more power than he deserves. Being able to spread things around a bit gives the little guy (you and me) a lot more freedom of choice.
If you can build something where your RV Boondocking Income is coming from multiple sources; If One outfit gets a lil' too rude and pushy, and you've got more nickles and dimes comin' in from other places... you can walk up to the Pushy Outfit and push back.
Yup. Grab the bugger by the ears... Plant a big Ol' sloppy kiss and whisper; Adios Sparky!
The little guy being able to push back is a good thing. If the man on the treadmill has the viable option to just step off any time he feels the need, it can't help but make the "Man" a lil' more respectful of the people who are doing his work for him. He'll need to treat 'em better to keep his enterprise rolling.
Bottom line, my personal version of Workamping, camp and sit at the computer in camp working ;) , is developing pretty nicely. A few more months and we might could even see a lil' change in our accounts at the end of the month... as in HAVING a little change in the bank at the end of the month! :)
Been having to run the genset for a bit in the evenings the past few days. Spending as much computer time as I have been, I've been pulling a bit over 40% out... Momma nature's been keepin' things cloudy enough to keep my RV Solar Power System from doin' the 100% recharging job I'm accustomed to. I do believe though, if I did have those other three panels I'd originally planned on... the generator would be sittin' cold and dusty.
But like a lot of other people... we shuffle the dinero around to grease the squeakiest wheel... so those additional panels never have got added...
... and shhhhh... we're skatin' on thin ice too! Slidin' through warm winds with rusty blades over shark infested shoals, with the fat lady from the opera comin' along and bellerin' behind us! ... the batteries are... uh ... old and wrinkled... past their prime... and ... shhhhhhh .... I'm hopin' to sqeeeeeeeze out another month or three. ;) but don't tell no one....
I know... I'm all over the board ;) kinda me these days... like bein' on the storm deck of a bronc... you never know what'll be flyin' at you next! or how hard you'll hit ;) You just put one foot in front of the other and move on down the road.
The thing is... My point is... though things in the world seem like you have no control. You can't change the world... You CAN have an affect on that lil' piece of it where You camp. You can, if you stay focused on the dream, Whatever That Dream May Be... carve out a better place for yourself.
Plenty to do... So I'll get at it...
Brian
Return to the main site of goin' RV Boondocking or Visit my Sister website Motorcycle Touring on Freedom Road
Yup... crowded...
... I guess the BLM has to keep us moving so new folks have room to set up! ;)
This morning, I'm sitting at my table with John Barry (Dances With Wolves) playin' over my Ipod player... and a lil' of the Old Garth Brooks too... You know, I sure miss the days before he 'lost it'. His music was so much deeper and said something... than nearly any of the rest... at least I've got his good stuff to listen too... It helps.
Anyhoo, those two are getting my Yarn Spinning creative juices warmed up. Hoping to get some more of the Heart of a Man story braided today... (the coming sequel to A Matter of Honor)
Though I had some false starts getting the lead in sorted out, having to circle back and restart a time or two, I think I've gotten that worked out and the past few days have seen steady progress. At this point if the "size" of the second story is any indication I'm 'bout 10% complete on the third. ;)
This one has a lot more goin' on 'tween a lot more folks ears... at least to my perception... so writing it, for a pea brain is a lot more difficult. I gotta take a lot more care to make sure I hear the Voices in My Head correctly! ;) and gettin' their words copied down straight... arguing with 'em 'bout what they said hasn't proven to be productive!... and it kinda scares the "neighbors".
I'm pretty pleased with the reception "A Pair..." has garnered so far. Many folks have told me they started reading and then just had to read on through. "Couldn't put it down." I realize that some of those were likely just blowing sunshine up my skirt to be nice, but figuring some were talkin' true, it's about the best compliment I can think of for one of my tales. Enough have told me what I felt myself, that "A Pair" is a stronger and better story than "Honor" is... that I feel pretty good about it, 'cause I Really Like that first story! :)
As far as how it's performing, though the numbers aren't huge by any stretch and "Honor" started out real slow, "A Pair" sold more in its first month than "Honor" did in its first (5)five. Combine that with the very nice kick its given to the sales of "Honor" and they're making a nice and growing contribution to my pantry. Awesome! Thank You Very Much! I won't starve this month... well... as long as I manage to go a month without busting anything new! ;)
It's nice to have that lil' bit of diversifying comin' on to spread some of my eggs to other baskets. That way the website income, though continuing and sustaining, becomes a smaller piece of the whole. It being such a heavy % of our income for a while, It's made me sorta nervous.
It's an awful lot like workin' for the man and being dependent on that paycheck. Gives the "man" more power than he deserves. Being able to spread things around a bit gives the little guy (you and me) a lot more freedom of choice.
If you can build something where your RV Boondocking Income is coming from multiple sources; If One outfit gets a lil' too rude and pushy, and you've got more nickles and dimes comin' in from other places... you can walk up to the Pushy Outfit and push back.
Yup. Grab the bugger by the ears... Plant a big Ol' sloppy kiss and whisper; Adios Sparky!
The little guy being able to push back is a good thing. If the man on the treadmill has the viable option to just step off any time he feels the need, it can't help but make the "Man" a lil' more respectful of the people who are doing his work for him. He'll need to treat 'em better to keep his enterprise rolling.
Bottom line, my personal version of Workamping, camp and sit at the computer in camp working ;) , is developing pretty nicely. A few more months and we might could even see a lil' change in our accounts at the end of the month... as in HAVING a little change in the bank at the end of the month! :)
Been having to run the genset for a bit in the evenings the past few days. Spending as much computer time as I have been, I've been pulling a bit over 40% out... Momma nature's been keepin' things cloudy enough to keep my RV Solar Power System from doin' the 100% recharging job I'm accustomed to. I do believe though, if I did have those other three panels I'd originally planned on... the generator would be sittin' cold and dusty.
But like a lot of other people... we shuffle the dinero around to grease the squeakiest wheel... so those additional panels never have got added...
... and shhhhh... we're skatin' on thin ice too! Slidin' through warm winds with rusty blades over shark infested shoals, with the fat lady from the opera comin' along and bellerin' behind us! ... the batteries are... uh ... old and wrinkled... past their prime... and ... shhhhhhh .... I'm hopin' to sqeeeeeeeze out another month or three. ;) but don't tell no one....
I know... I'm all over the board ;) kinda me these days... like bein' on the storm deck of a bronc... you never know what'll be flyin' at you next! or how hard you'll hit ;) You just put one foot in front of the other and move on down the road.
The thing is... My point is... though things in the world seem like you have no control. You can't change the world... You CAN have an affect on that lil' piece of it where You camp. You can, if you stay focused on the dream, Whatever That Dream May Be... carve out a better place for yourself.
Plenty to do... So I'll get at it...
Brian
Return to the main site of goin' RV Boondocking or Visit my Sister website Motorcycle Touring on Freedom Road
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