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.

I like to shop. . .so does Dulee!

“A dog is the only thing on earth that loves you more than you love yourself.” ~~Josh Billings

Dogs, even cute little fluffy white Bichon Frises, are not welcome in most stores but Pet Smart is the place for dogs, so that’s where Dulee had his first shopping experience.  He walked into the store on his leash but all of the animal smells made him crazy so a ride in the shopping cart turned out to be the best way to go. (Dulee: Oh man, do I like all of those smells!)

Back home he is too exhausted to even look at his purchases so he takes a nap on the back of the sofa.  (Dulee: Napping is one of my favorite activities-right up there with sitting on any available lap!)

Awake, he checks out his new Kong. . .maybe he won’t lose this one! (Dulee: they think I lose my Kongs but I really hide them-not easy since our home is a 5th wheel RV)

Wide awake now. . .his favorite treats!   (Dulee:  Every time I go out for a walk I get a treat – sometimes I tell them I have to go out even if I don’t so I can get a treat.)

We even shopped in the clothing section at Pet Smart and found a bright red slicker raincoat.  (Dulee:  I don’t want to look like a sissy but my hair-yes, I have hair not fur-gets really bedraggled when I get wet.  I think I look pretty cool in this red slicker although I’m not sure about that hood.)

Here he is, with all of his purchases (Dulee:  I noticed that they also bought a big bag of dog food which is why we went to Pet Smart in the first place.)

RV’ers refer to Camping World as the RVer’s department store. Last week we had an appointment to have the motor on our automatic awning replaced.

Of course, while the rig was being worked on, I had to go into the store to browse.  I noticed the sign on the door “We welcome your pet.”  Ah, Dulee can also shop! (Dulee: good, because the fifth wheel door was open and it worried me when the worker kept coming in and out.)

Our home in the shop at Camping World.

His lambskin sleeping pad was a bit large for the basket. (Dulee: I have no problem squeezing into small spaces.)

Dulee:  Hey, they have a whole section for us dogs!  (But we didn’t buy a thing because of our recent trip to Pet Smart.)Licking his chops… (Dulee:  I see something edible across the aisle!)The long day of shopping ends with a nap with his favorite rawhide bone. (Dulee:  I am so worried about where to keep my bone – I must constantly move it to keep it safe.)

“If you don't own a dog, at least one, there is not necessarily anything wrong with you, but there may be something wrong with your life.” ~~Roger Caras

We rescued Dulee through Bichon Furkids Rescue. In addition to shopping trips he also likes his trips to the groomer!  Here he is fresh from the groomer.  (Dulee:  I was wandering the streets in Orange County when the kind folks at Bichon Furkids Rescue saved me. Then I had to persuade Gary & Betty to choose ME ’cause I heard they were also considering a cute little girl Bichon named Alexa.  I knew I had a forever home when we drove off in the truck-yeah!)

"Dogs laugh, but they laugh with their tails. What puts man in a higher state of evolution is that he has got his laugh on the right end." ~- Max Eastman

Laugh today!

Birthdays are ok. . .but I love birthday cards!

I recently had a birthday. . .presents, lots of phone calls, e-mails, Facebook wishes and dinner with special family and friends.  I don’t like a bunch of fuss so it was exactly the kind of special day I enjoy. (what I’m not enjoying is that increasing chronological number which seems to crank by faster and faster!!)

Even though I love electronic greetings, there really isn’t anything that can take the place of a birthday card which is delivered either by hand or old-fashioned “snail” mail.

Kelle knows how much I love the ocean (I grew up in North Dakota and didn’t even see the ocean until I was a teenager) and Adirondack chairs.  This three-dimensional card is cute enough to hang on the wall. . .which I did! 

Gary always does REALLY well in his card choices.  This is nice on the outside but the verse inside is THE thing:

My friend Linda (who also happens to be family-aren’t we lucky?) sent this. Like Kelle she has a knack for finding the perfect card.

Handmade paper from sister Micki.

Lee, another friend who happens to be family, and I both love, yes really love, cheesecake.  She is a New Year’s Day birthday girl and several times I did make cheesecake but many other years have bought the “blue box” cheesecake from Trader Joe’s.  YUMMY!

From the Fresno Five (son and daughter-in-law Russ and Denise and grandkids Stanley, Mary and Will.)  This card is ME!!!  I’m quite sure that Denise picked out this perfect greeting!

Don’t you just love kid’s writing? 

Too funny:  son Russ addressed the envelope but forgot to sign the card!

My friend Jackie and I both love angels and fairies.  This is a Leaning Tree design by Malcolm Sanders. Love the verse inside:

You see those lights dancing

above the earth,

twinkling in the sky?

Those are not fireflies and stars. . .

those are the faeries calling your

imagination out to play.”

Seraphina

A couple of years ago when I started opening  my cards, one after the other had a shoe theme~~I love shoes and everyone knows it!

Old cards from Gary:

From the 60’s.  Smoking was still widely acceptable.

 

We know that Gary gave me this card because he signed it but neither of us can even fathom this strange style and verse!  Chalk it up to “we were young.”

I’m ok with birthdays if they mean I will continue to receive special cards!

“How old would you be if you didn’t know how old you are?”

~~Satchel Paige

Birds and a cat. . .

This morning, as I caught up on blogs I follow, one of those uncanny coincidences seemed to emerge; a focus on photographs of birds and cats. 

This photo, taken near Port Aransas, Texas was an accident—just snapping away!

I took this at Paradise Pond in Port Aransas.  Maybe a Blue Heron?

Inky adopted us several years ago.  When he first showed up he was mostly a flash of black that we saw going and coming from under our deck.  I started leaving him a couple pieces of dry dog food and soon he was a fixture on the deck.  He now has his own bowl, his own cat food, cat treats, and, courtesy of our friends Gina & Harold, he has a bed for his naps! 

He periodically leaves “treats” at our door, usually parts of gophers, mice, birds, maybe even a lizard. Last week, to our surprise he left us---yes, beep-beep---a Roadrunner!  He is a good hunter, but Roadrunners are really fast!  How did he do that?  Plus, we very rarely even see Roadrunners in our area.  (I took a picture of his present  but will spare you that image.)

What’s next Inky. . .a wild turkey or maybe a Canada goose?

There are so many Roadrunners (official name is Greater Roadrunner) zipping around that it’s not too hard to get a picture of one in Big Bend National Park in Texas.  This guy took off shortly after I took his portrait!

Beep-Beep!

P.S. No, they don’t really go “beep-beep.”