Dads in Briefs

I laughed so hard when I saw this on the Today Show this morning!  Reason?  My husband is a "Dad in Briefs!"  But, no I will not share a photo!

So, that’s what Senior Citizens do!

And I are one! 

When I have time I like to do these Wonderword word search puzzles.  (They say its good for the brain, my brain likes them and can use all the help it can get!)

Usually I don’t pay much attention to the subject-the joy is in finding the words- and this day was no exception. Then, as I located words in the puzzle I glanced up to look at the subject. Ah, Senior Citizens; I should be able to identify with this one.

Umm. . .

• Knitting – hey, I don’t/can’t knit!
• Bridge – I don’t/can’t play bridge!
• Bingo – no, I will not play Bingo!
• Ancient – I don’t think of myself as ancient!
• Stroll – can’t remember when I’ve taken a stroll!
• Activities – not much for “activities” although I am pretty active.
• Chess – another game I can’t play.
• Dietary – now just what does that mean and why is it especially associated with Seniors? 
• Singing – well, I do like to sing to myself or along with the radio in the truck (and have sung in several choirs in the past) but don’t sing because I’m a Senior.
• Relax – if I only had more relaxing time.
• Wise – ah, how I wish I had lots of wisdom.

I think I may have failed the Senior Citizens qualifying test!

Wait a minute. . .I do try to be nice, I do have great Memories (and am always making more), I am retired, I do travel-a lot, I love movies, and I do have age, years and time behind me.

I like my style of Senior living even if I have failed in the Wonderword world!  Gotta go. . .I am due at the racetrack for my Safety Marshaling duties.

Thanksgiving. . .thoughts from Mary

Thoughts of Thanksgiving from my ten year old granddaughter Mary. She sums it up quite nicely!

Halloween at my house. . .

We won’t be getting any Tricker or Treaters since we live at a race track and gates are locked in the evening but we still buy candy out of habit and then eat it all ourselves!

For the same reason we really have no reason to decorate but since we like to decorate for holidays we do it for the benefit of anyone who happens to drive by our fifth wheel.  The maintenance guys and Bo arrive early in the morning so they are treated to Gary’s goblin and Jack O’ Lanterns.

Goblins love full moons!

 

Scary face on this guy.

BOO! 

 

 

 

 

 

This Jack O’ Lantern should scare unwanted creatures away!

Lights on the deck.

Love my “Happy Everything” serving tray – a gift from Russ and Denise although I’m quite sure that daughter-in-law Denise picked it out – she selects the best gifts!

A full moon for Halloween week – how appropriate.

My pumpkins bars are hot out of the oven so I will leave you to eat one or two or. . .

Happy Halloween everyone. . .

Carnegie Libraries: McMinnville, Oregon

  My other blog, carnegielibrariesjourney.blogspot.com documents my journey of visiting and photographing as many Carnegie Libraries as possible.  I decided that I should share this aspect of my full time RVing lifestyle with you. photo courtesy of Yamhill County Historical Society.

Designed by German-American architect Ernst Kroner and built at 225 NW Adams Street in 1912 with a $10,000 grant by Andrew Carnegie.  I visited July 27, 2010.  The library underwent major remodeling in the 1980’s. 

From the front there is very little evidence that this Carnegie Library dates back 100 years.

When I walked around to the back there it was--the 1912 library! Quite a contrast from the rather plain front entrance to the rear where the library still has original brick and windows.

Original windows and brickwork.

I’m wondering if the present-day rear door may have originally been the front door.

Original stained glass windows over both the front and rear doors. I got a much more clear photo from inside the library than the one I took outside.  Wish I’d done that on the front door!

It’s possible that the front door of the new addition was designed around this old window.

After I took pictures outside I went in to see what remained of the old library and didn’t find much. The librarian told me that this original upstairs fireplace upstairs had been hidden and discovered when they removed drywall during a recent renovation.

If you ever travel to McMinnville, Oregon to visit the old Carnegie, you may also wish to take in another “little” attraction:  Howard Hughes’ HUGE Spruce Goose at the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum. The museum was built to house the Spruce Goose but includes everything from a Wright Brothers replica to a spacecraft.

 

Back on the road. . .oops, the sea!

Even though we didn’t need one, our “excuse” for taking an Alaskan cruise was to celebrate our 50th anniversary.

Our first trip to Alaska was several years ago when we drove the Alaska Highway with our fifth wheel home in tow.  Since Juneau is accessible only by water and ferries charge by the foot (our combined length was 53’) it would have been VERY expensive to take in Alaska’s state capitol city.  So, another trip to Alaska by water has been on our bucket list.

Grandson Jorden was six years old. He has done 49 states with us.

It was the Inside Passage, glaciers and Juneau and not the cruise that was our reason for cruising. Having said that, a cruise is a very nice way to travel!

We chose a Princess Cruise Line itinerary that included departing from and returning to San Francisco which is about an 1-1/2 drive from Monterey.  No airport hassle, no parking, shuttles, no lines, no taking off shoes, no crowded seats, no paying for baggage!  We simply drove to San Francisco, parked the truck in the Anchorage parking garage and caught a taxi to Pier 37 where the Sea Princess was waiting for us (and 848 other people!)

Our friends Debbie and Danny happened to be in San Francisco with their grandchildren and took this photo of our ship.  Can you see us on our balcony?

Maybe my favorite thing on the ship was our balcony, even when it was cold which was much of the trip!

Tea every morning on my balcony while I studied the Alaska guide and wrote in my journal. (I’d already eaten my croissants.)  We ate breakfast in the Horizon Court the first couple of days but found we were eating too much – I always end up eating more than intended at buffets!

We tracked our daily progress on the closed circuit TV in our stateroom.

Another of my favorite things was sailing UNDER the Golden Gate Bridge.  We’ve driven ACRoSS it many many times but looking up from underneath was pretty neat.  I got up at 5:00am on the return into San Francisco Bay so I could see it again (foggy so not as great a view as this.)

The daily Princess Patter was our guide to the events of the day.  This little card was used instead of cash for everything.  Easy to lose track of spending!  I like diet cokes so purchased the Coca Cola sticker which allowed unlimited sodas anywhere on the ship.

A Tlinglet totem pole carving in progress at the Saxman Village near Ketchikan.

Float planes are a common sight in Alaska.

We took a walking tour of Juneau.  In our travels we’ve tried to visit as many state capitol buildings as possible.  Alaska’s in Juneau looks like an ordinary office building – no domes here!

I wonder how many governor’s mansions have a totem pole at the entrance?

Since Juneau is built on hills, many of the sidewalks are stairs.  When I was taking this picture I became aware of a little lady, obviously a local, standing beside me.  She finally asked me just what was I taking a picture of?  (I imagine she was looking at the dumpster, the electric power box, maybe the power pole?)  I explained that I found the “sidewalks of Juneau” unique and she smiled indulgently and walked on.  Maybe she has lived her entire life in Juneau and does not find this unusual at all!

The glaciers was another of the main reasons for taking the cruise.

Us at Mendenhall Glacier near Juneau.

Sawyer Glacier in the Tracy Arm Fjord.  Absolutely beautiful and serene.  The captain shut ship’s engines off, giving us total silence in which to enjoy the scenery.

Pictures and movies cannot do justice to the pristine beauty of the glacier.  I took this close-up to try and capture the beauty of the glacial ice.  This is why we took the cruise!

As full-time RVers our style of traveling is wondering off the beaten path.  We stayed in Skagway for a week or so when we traveled there in our RV so this time we wandered off the main street (and the crowds from the four cruise ships in Skagway harbor.) Found a food truck where we had Alaska halibut and chips for lunch.

Wildlife viewing was the another reason we wanted to cruise Alaska.  Not so much success there.  We saw a few whale spouts (but no breaching), one lone Bald Eagle (from a great distance), a few dolphins, a white mountain goat and of course, Sea Gulls!  Serves us right for going on a cruise to see wildlife. . .here in Monterey we routinely see whales breaching, eagles, dolphins, sea lions and California sea otters!

These two sea lions playing with a salmon in Skagway harbor kept us entertained.  I don’t think they were hungry!

View from my balcony.

We avoided the tourist areas of Victoria, BC and jumped on a Metro bus to see the “real” city.  We hopped on the #4 bus for the ride out to the University of Victoria but the friendly bus driver told us to take the #11 bus back, saying that it goes through a more scenic area, which it did.  

I collect university sweatshirts (my “rule” for collecting is that I have to actually visit the campus in order to add to the my collection) and bought one at the University bookstore. Note:  I have 46 sweatshirts in my collection!

And it was back under the Golden Gate Bridge, an hour and a half drive and we were back home!

Gary is now planning our next cruise. . .Panama Canal.

We both really enjoyed our second cruising experience but fulltime RVing “on the road” is still our preferred mode of travel. . .and life.

WAAYYY cool day. . .

We were lucky enough to see space shuttle Endeavor pass over Monterey Bay yesterday on its piggy-backed trip from Cape Canaveral to its new home at the California Science Center in Los Angeles.

I cropped this photo to get a closer view.

 

Gary and I went up to the top of the hill by the water tower at Laguna Seca to watch it pass by along the Pacific Ocean coastline. It’s an “Almost Heaven” view don’t you think?

Since we have the LA channels on our full time RVing DirecTV package, after watching Endeavor till it was a tiny speck in the sky, we caught the activity as it flew into LAX.  It made many flyovers all along the route.  Needless to say we were glued to the TV and didn’t get much else done!

Photos taken of my TV screen.  Gosh, it was 97 degrees in Los Angeles, that’s a heat wave!!

As it taxied onto the tarmack upon landing at LAX someone appeared in the hatch waving the American flag.

 

I was in high school when Alan Shepard became the first American in space and, in February of 1962 remember being in the library at Minot State U. (Minot State Teachers College back then) when it was announced over the intercom that John Glenn had just became the first American to orbit the earth.  And yesterday to actually see the last space shuttle make its final journey I felt I had experienced an historical event from start to finish.

Yes, it was a WAY cool day!

Where have I been?

Well, I sure haven’t been writing in my blog have I?  I last posted on May 31st!?

How did the summer, and my time, fly by so quickly?  Let’s see:

• I have been sewing.  You know I am a full-time RVer and my home is a 36’ fifth wheel.  Most of the time this is my office but when I get my sewing machine out (it is stored in one of our outside hatches) my “office” becomes an office/sewing room.

My first project was a set of racing flags for my friend Dale.  The set I sewed for him ten years ago had worn out.  The solid flags (yellow, red and black and a white not shown) are pretty straight forward, the slippery surface (yellow and red stripes) and passing (blue with yellow diagonal stripe) are more challenging and the checkered flag is a real challenge.

Granddaughter Mary’s 10th birthday was May 30th.  She really wanted a fleece blanket which was hot pink on one side and zebra on the other.  I think I found the perfect fabrics!

Ten year old Mary with her throw and other “10” related presents from Grammie & Papa. The wooden box she is holding was a present from MY grandma to me when I was 10.

My biggest project involved re-doing the three cornices in our bedroom and one in the bathroom.  It was complicated by the fact that the day/night blinds are attached to the the cornice and so the entire setup had to be taken down in order to re-cover the cornice.

Cornice before picture.  I couldn’t believe how many staples they used when they installed it at the KZ RV factory!!

Two small cornices like this and another about twice the size.  The cords in the large day/night shade had broken so we had to re-string it before we could re-install the whole window covering.  Re-stringing wasn’t hard but it was a bit complicated – reading, and following the written instructions was definitely the order of the day. Definitely a DYI project which saved some money.

Bathroom cornice re-covered. 

Last on my list was sewing two soft and cushy throw pillows.

BUT, wait!  I have some scraps of ripstop fabric left from the racing flags!  I’ll make some racing scarves for Dulee!  I made him three flag scarves and continued on to make his Corgi/Terrier friend Oden a set. .  .

and a checkered flag scarf for another dog friend!  Here, Dulee models a checkered flag scarf.

• Of course, the racetrack here at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca has been busy so I’ve been  race marshaling.  Here I am at the Andretti Hairpin, turn 2, site of lots of racing activity.

• Stanley and Will spent a week with us with Mary joining us for the weekend. It was a busy, and fun-filled, week – going to the movies, the beach, playground, the beach again, tide pools, making & flying paper airplanes, watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy on DVD and school supply shopping.

• Walked up MANY steps up to tour Point Sur Lighthouse here on our Big Sur coastline.  This photo is a postcard I bought in the gift shop.

• Jorden “boomeranged” back home in July.

• We didn’t get out on the road in our 5th wheel this summer but did get in some traveling miles.  I’ll tell you later about our 10 day Alaskan Princess cruise.   Friends Danny & Debbi happened to be in San Francisco on our sailing day and took this photo of our cruise ship. Can you see us on our balcony?

So, you see, while I was ignoring my blog and you; I wasn’t just lying around eating bonbons!

I’m back.