Albuquerque to Amarillo

We had a shorter day today, even with a side trip up to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Gorgeous blue skies with a few fluffy clouds until we got to Texas, then there were severe storm warnings, which means - "watch out, you might get blown away." So we stopped a few miles short of our goal.

This is the Cap'n enjoying some New Mexico sunshine this morning. He's sitting on a custom-made meditation carpet that he picked up in Sedona.


What, you thought we left the Cap'n home? No way, especially when we might be dealing with aliens, illegal or otherwise. You gotta be prepared in Arizona.

Remember I said California was being trashed? Well Arizona must be having problems too. Every single roadside rest was closed and it looked like they had been that way for some time. I always thought Arizona was one of the wealthier states, full of people who retired from chilly states in the north and migrated there, bringing their cold cash to a warmer climate.

So New Mexico was a surprise. The rest stops along the highway were not only open, but clean. The buildings were beyond functional, they were handsome. When I last went through New Mexico years ago I remember lots of Indian shacks and old cars in their yards. Indians everywhere seem to be doing fine these days and New Mexico looks a lot different.

Albuquerque is a an OK place, the biggest city since we left California. We parked ourselves there after 9 p.m. last night. This morning we went up to Santa Fe. It has some Sedona-like qualities because there are lots of artists and art shops there.


This is some of the art. That coat-looking thing is made of strings of rocks, I think. Totally impractical. We got to talk to a lady in a very upscale jewelry shop about Katherine's scrimshaw. They traded business cards. Keep your fingers crossed something comes of that. I liked Santa Fe.

When we went back down south toward Hwy 40 we stopped at a souvenir shop that was suitably tacky, so we could buy for all our friends. This couple was in the parking lot preparing to depart.


This really heartens me, I could apply for this lady's job. I can make my hair that scary.

We haven't seen any Texas-sized rain, hail or wind yet. Hopefully it will be clear tomorrow. Weather here is much more impressive than at home.

Kingman to Albuquerque

Sedona is a pretty neat place, even though I didn't really get a jolt out of a vortex. By dumb luck, we got there on a back road instead of the freeway, and it was really a scenic route. The only unfortunate thing is that with the holiday weekend, there were lots and lots of other tourists on the little windy road, too. Everyone was very mellow and driving sanely, though.

In Sedona we asked the typical touristy question - where could we find the vortexes? There was a map online, but we didn't have a way to print it out.

The shopkeeper, a neohippie, said that there were 3 spots that had been designated as power areas by Edgar Cayce, but there had been others identified since then. So there's some dispute about it. The tour companies will charge you to drive you around in a pink jeep and experience all of the spots that are easily accessible. The shopkeeper suggested that the vortexes are a personal thing, though, that individuals might experience them in different areas.

We found ours in the public parking lot where we had left the RAV4. It was an empty stomach vortex and it was satisfied by the lunch we had packed.

We went to many of the souvenir and art shops. This item, a fancy purse, was in the best art store in town.



I know that because that's what the sign outside said. It's a black and white feathery delight that was made in the Michael Jackson tradition by Orson Welles' daughter. I didn't buy it. Was afraid I'd keep catching the feathers in the car door.

The online info about Sedona said that you could get a high from the vortexes that would last a week or two. It's easy to get a good feeling there, it's very lovely and well-maintained, like Carmel. The houses blend into the landscape, low and earth-toned. If a Hobbit lived in the high desert, that's the sort of house he'd have. There was an extensive drip system for a couple of miles along the road into town, with lovely wildflowers growing. The only thing I found annoying were the 8 or more roundabounds (If you've seen the Tom Tom video with Darth Vader, you'll know what I mean.)

Later in the day we stopped in Winslow, Arizona, so we could stand on the corner. Do you have that song, Uncle B?



Tonight we're in Albuquerque.

Weirding Out in Sedona

http://www.lovesedona.com/01.htm

Read about the vortices of Sedona - that's where we're heading now. I'm sure it will blow my feeble mind. Maybe I should tie a rope to one leg and the other end to the Toyota to keep from floating off into the ether. Katherine is pondering how to photograph an energy field. Well, if I'm up there at the end of the rope, like a balloon, that would make a convincing photo.

Kingman

You could look all this up on Wikipedia, but why would you? So I'll do it for you and give you a couple of interesting facts about Kingman.

On July 5, 1973, Kingman was the site of a catastrophic BLEVE (Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion) which killed 11 firefighters. The explosion occurred following a fire that broke out as propane was being transferred from a railroad car to a storage tank. This explosion has become a classic incident studied in fire department training programs worldwide.

The actor Andy Devine was raised in Kingman, where his family had moved to from Flagstaff when he was one year old. His father opened the Beale Hotel here. One of the major streets of Kingman is named "Andy Devine Avenue" and the town holds the annual "Andy Devine Days."

Timothy McVeigh was also a resident of Kingman.

Obviously, McVeigh was imbued with a love of explosions.

Our hotel is on Andy Devine Avenue. I never liked watching him, his voice was annoying.

Some Thoughts About Government

My dismay at seeing California's trashed freeways caused the rocks in my head to roll around some last night. I've decided the thing that really gripes me is that we can't trust the state to even take care of basic things. For example, there might be a beautiful area that people would like to have preserved. Volunteers work to get this accomplished, the state takes control. At the first opportunity the state declares there isn't enough money to maintain the property, let alone to support public access to it.

I'm accustomed to volunteerism. At home, if you need something done people just pitch in and do it. Why can't the state organize a volunteer day, in one city at a time, where people come out with their hoes and chop weeds on the freeway. The expensive Caltrans employees can do traffic control and provide trucks to haul off the debris. I can't do much hoe work, but I could contribute to the cause. The way it is now, we can do nothing.

We have the opportunity to elect representatives who are supposed to take care of things for us. By the time their names are on the ballots, you look at the list and think: "Where did all these losers come from?"

I'm not into Tea Party stuff. I understand the concept very well, there's just a big disconnect between their ideals and the REAL losers they've pulled out of the loony bin to represent them.

When I travel, I see other states succeeding where California does not. Texas has some wonderful old highways that exceed California's best new ones. Kentucky has impressed every 4Her I've ever taken there with its beauty. There are no billboards, the requisite gas and food stations are at designated areas, not sprawled along the freeway, half of them closed and deteriorating like along our Hwy 99. I suppose I'll get to see more examples of success in other states on this trip. We will see lots of states before we're back.

I'm with Katherine, she's going to a Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia. A blade show is a place for people who make custom knives and guns. Katherine does scrimshaw on ivory handles. You can access her blog, it's listed in the column to the right. She'll be posting stuff too, and being young she's probably more optimistic than I am, so you'll read a different point of view.

Bob is home taking care of things. Don't bother trying to break into the house while I'm gone, there will be more people in it while I'm gone than there usually are, I'm sure there will be either an ongoing party or a LAN party. (Hi Jon, John, Devin, Alex, Gwynessa...have fun, clean up when you're finished. Remind Bob to take the garbage out on Thursday night. )

How do you choose hotels when you travel? I'm finding that the first thing I'm looking for now is a fast Internet connection. The second thing, of course, is motorcycles in the parking lot.

Leaving in Droves

The people from Oklahoma are leaving California, mostly with their trucks loaded to the top, but also in U-Haul trailers. How do I know this? Because I saw it for myself today.

Katherine and I are traveling to Georgia. We made it as far as Kingman, Arizona today. We passed several trucks with Oklahoma license plates heading out of state. I think this one has a California plate - OK, so the immigrant was in California long enough to get new plates. The important thing is people are leaving.

That's great because judging by the freeway today California is very overcrowded and shabby. Hwy 99 was solid cars and trucks all the way. The state is barely maintaining them, so they're rough and nasty. The roadsides are littered with garbage, and not much of the landscaping is being maintained. Does it strike anyone else as ironic that in a state with a surplus of landscape maintenance people, the state can't find an economical way to keep the weeds under control along the major roadways?

East of Bakersfield there is an area where no landscaping was ever put in. Somehow the natural growth of weeds there is better than the dead landscape plants and gnarly oleanders in the Central Valley.

Tomorrow it's Sedona for lunch.

Is This Still California?

From sacbee.com:

The forecast for the week in Sacramento:

Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 68. South wind between 10 and 15 mph, with gusts as high as 23 mph.

Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 51. Southwest wind between 4 and 7 mph becoming calm.

Tuesday: A 50 percent chance of rain after 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 66. Calm wind becoming south southwest between 7 and 10 mph.

Tuesday night: Rain. Low around 54. West southwest wind 5 to 10 mph becoming south southeast. Chance of precipitation is 80%.

Wednesday: Showers likely, mainly before 11am. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 63. South wind between 5 and 8 mph. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

Wednesday night: A 40 percent chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 50.

Thursday: Showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 62. Chance of precipitation is 60%.

Thursday night: A chance of showers. Cloudy, with a low around 49.

Friday: A slight chance of showers. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 70.

Some farmers have cut their hay in hopes that the sun will sun again someday. Hay should all be baled and stacked by this time in May. We should be complaining about the heat. It's still snowing in the Sierras. Mumble, grumble, gripe, complain.

Raccoons and Piss-ants

Rural life is so wonderful. Rural life sucks. The wonderful part is 90% right now.

Because of the unseasonably damp and cool weather, everything is still lush and green and Spring-y in our valley. I heard that for the past 2 years the temperature on the 20th of May has been 102. Yesterday it wasn't over 65. Our high for the month so far was maybe 82.

I can't do anything about the weather, so I'm trying to just enjoy the good parts of it. I just came in from working in the flower garden wearing my coat. Brrrr.

The wild animals and birds seem to be enjoying the weather. I'm not sure what the bugeaters are feeding their young, though. The bugs are definitely behind schedule. In fact the only bugs I've seen are the piss-ants on my kitchen counter.

You know the ones I mean? They're so small that a person my age can't see them very well. I'll sit at the counter and swear it's moving. And then I take off my glasses and put my nose down close to the movement and there they are, millions of them. Swarming over some crumb Bob left on the counter.

The other pests that just won't go away are the raccoons. Last night I caught #8, but not before it killed 3 of my white OE chicks. I'm going to spare the gory details, but I'm happy to report that I caught the murdering devil less than an hour after the crime. This one didn't get relocated, it was caught with blood on its nasty nose. It took me a while this a.m. to find a guy with a gun, but I was determined.

I can't do anything about the weather, but I can kick butt with ants and chicken killers.

Conclusion

I hope the high suspense didn't keep you up all night. Here is the REST of the story.

(NOTE: Read yesterday's blog first, that's the first part of the story.)

Just for Fun

Are you up for something corny? In 1982 I made this little book for my fellow riding friends. Now it looks pretty silly, but just for fun I'm going to try to post it in a readable form. This will be the first half. Stay tuned for part 2 tomorrow. Or not.

Click on each page and you'll see a larger version that you can actually read.

No Immunity

I am totally immune to common diseases, I don’t get colds much, I don’t think I’ve ever had the flu. But there are some things I’m not immune to. TV is one.

I was up at 6:30 this a.m. to get my RAV4 to the dealer for its 55,000 mile service check. I sat in their waiting room for a couple of hours and that would have been fine except it was impossible to get away from the huge TV on the wall that was blaring away with some inane national “news” show.

In half an hour I’d lost my enthusiasm for the day. I’d already sat through 4 sad sack stories, each sillier and more depressing than the last. And dozens of political advertisements.

After I picked up my car and got to work, it took me half the day to stop frowning. It didn’t seem to bother anyone else in the waiting room. They must have TV at home. They’re immune to the B.S.

Bob's New Toy

Bob has a new phone. He's practicing how to use it.



I meant, "We're having Mexican FOOD Day," of course. It's a belated Cinco de Mayo.

Now I'm practicing how to deal with movies on a blog. How do you rotate these things so they're upright? Anybody know?

To Bob's friends: he has a phone again. Yay! But it has a video camera. Watch out!

I was honored to be the first person to have my phone number entered. My name on Bob's phone is Mommy Dearest. My ringtone is going to be an ABBA song. Right now it's probably something unflattering. Pardon me while I go find a coat hanger and beat the boy.

Chicks in May

The chicks are a month old already. When they first arrived, I had them in a makeshift brooder in the dining room.


I like to be able to keep an eye on them until I’m sure they’re all eating and drinking. I was sent 27 chicks. Four of them died within a day after they arrived, so I kept all of them inside a bit longer than I had planned. At about a week, I put 10 white Old English bantams and 10 bantam Dominiques out in the game room in this box.


It was originally made for Emu hatchlings. I bought 3 of them back when we were raising lots of show birds and it seemed like a good idea. It’s ratproof and easy to keep warm with a heat lamp. That’s IF you can find a lightbulb these days that isn’t an “energy saver.”

I kept 3 babies inside. One was not doing well and the other two were to keep the puny one company. I went to PetSmart and got waxworms and mealworms to feed the puny one. Of course the other two got some treats, too.


I use the small paintbrush to give water to chicks and other baby birds a few drops at a time.

Today I put the 20 chicks into an outside pen with no heat lamp. Count the cockerels. It’s going to be interesting here in 4 months or so.


The little whites are fun, I’d forgotten what pushy little things they are. These don’t look anything like the ones Bob used to raise, though. His birds always had bigger heads and eyes, and shorter backs. That’s OK, these aren’t for show, they’re for fun.

The BD’s are interesting, too. They’re smaller than the ones I’ve raised before, and darker. I can just begin to see what their little rosecombs might look like. I’m afraid there are some that definitely won’t be show quality.

Unfortunately, the best color and comb belong to the puny baby.


He’s no longer puny, but there is definitely something wrong with him. I don’t think he’s blind, it’s more like he has brain damage. The babies were vaccinated for Marek’s and actually this baby exhibits some of the symptoms of Marek’s. He can eat and drink on his own, and I could easily keep him in a small pen where he knows where the food and water are. We had a blind pigeon for 7 years, so I know this is possible. But now I can’t put the two buddies out with the other chicks. And since one is also a cockere, it will undoubtedly pick on the damaged one in time. I guess we'll just wait and see what happens, no use worrying about it yet.

Meanwhile, Bob has trained the two buddies to do tricks for mealworms. It’s hard to keep them in the pen, they try to fly out and sit on your hand.

Whatever happens, it’s sure fun to have some chicks again.

How to Trap Raccoons

I have a talent for trapping raccoons. If I could just get the guys around here to haul them off promptly, I could probably catch a dozen a month. Right now, #7 is out there waiting for its free trip to somewhere else.

This is how I catch raccoons with a humane trap. First, cover the dirt with a piece of cardboard or plywood.


There is a small tripping mechanism that the animal steps on that snaps the door shut behind it. Sometimes a raccoon will walk around the trap and dig up dirt trying to get to the bait before it figures out where the entrance is. This can build up under the tripper and it won’t work. I close one end of the trap - it can be set with both ends open, but then you have to put the bait in the middle of the trap and a big raccoon can get to it without tripping the door. This picture shows the trap in place with both doors closed.


I use eggs for bait and sometimes a cracker with some peanut butter on it as well. I put 3 or 4 eggs at the closed end of the trap, then scatter them along the bottom, with one completely outside it. This guides the raccoon into the open end.


I never use bait that might attract stray cats. The other animals that are attracted to eggs are skunks and possums. We could smell a skunk around here last week so didn’t set the trap for a while. Maybe once every other year we’ll catch an opossum.

I wish there was something I could just put around the yard that would repel raccoons. I hate trapping them. I think raccoons that live in inhabited areas should be routinely caught and neutered. Forget feral cats, the coyotes eat them and keep their population down. It’s raccoons that are way out of control.

Not the Way I Planned

Remember Roger the pigeon’s new girlfriend Val (Feb. 16 blog)? This is Val.


HIS name is now Prince Valiant. And he’s a dad. His wife is the only female Taganrog I have. She had laid lots of eggs with her previous Taganrog mate, but none ever hatched. Here she is. I love that little dot on her head, she's so cute.


This is their baby. Baby pigeons are not very cute, I have to admit, but I’m happy to finally have one.


Roger and the jilted Taganrog male are living in condominiums and loving their single life. Roger flirts with the white Old English hen who lives next to him.

Some Successes and a Failure

While my blog was vacationing in Texas, my garden has been growing and blooming. If you’re not from California, you may not know it is often pretty dry here this time of the year. But not this year. We’ve had a warm day or two, but it’s rained often enough and stayed cool enough that spring is actually a season and not just a week in April.

I took these photos on Sunday.

“Aunt Patty” miniature rose, with primroses that are still blooming.


A clematis that was only a foot tall last year has taken advantage of the good growing weather to climb halfway up the chain arch.


I don’t know what variety it is, undoubtedly a very common one, but I like it. The weather has kept the bugs at bay, they haven’t come out to eat the blooms yet.


The lilies are just beginning to bloom, there will be a lot of them this year. All the past-season, dried up orphan bulbs I pulled out of the bargain bin and planted late managed to survive. As long as we don’t get an afternoon hail storm, the lilies should be superb.


The pinks are very pink. And red.


But one of the tree roses died. I don’t know why, I’ve never had a rose die before, have you?

Please Identify

I have some friends who are real birders, they truly know their birds. OK guys, identify this bird for me, please. Yes, I have a bird book. In fact I have 3 or 4, which is part of the problem. The birds look different in every book. The only thing I can reliably identify is something like a Canada Goose.

What? Not enough info? OK, so here's the rest of the bird.



This one came along later. The Tubbers tried to get acquainted. Is it perhaps the female counterpart to the bird above? I like having them here, they aren't just brown.

BBE 24 - Back to Dallas, Then Home

The weather was beautiful on our trip, with totally blue skies. On the last day it started to get cloudy, but even that was beautiful.

We had a lot of miles to drive on the last day, it was a blur in my mind. Lots of open road with a small town here and there, still no armadillo. I did see some javalinas.

We got to Fort Worth fairly late and drove in circles trying to find the perfect restaurant for the Last Supper. Like Dallas, Fort Worth is lit up at night, most of the tall buildings are decorated like Christmas trees. I think Sacramento should do this, using all yellow lights. That city sits, Oz-like, in the middle of the Central Valley of California. At night it would resemble a glowing pot of gold.

On the way to the airport the next morning, Merlene asked which gate my flight was leaving from. “The American Airlines gate,” I answered, thinking of the airport in Sacramento where six airlines share one gate and you just follow the appropriate signs.

“There are 3 gates for AA here,” she answered. “This is their worldwide hub.” Oh joy. I looked it up on my iPhone, and there was the answer.

I had my phone for the entire trip, but I have to report that the ATT coverage in West Texas was poor. I don’t use it much anyway. The screen is small and my fingers seem way too big for the keyboard.

I got dropped off right at the door, and got a world-class hug from my dear friend and tour guide.

Most of the time I don’t even think about being handicapped. The airport always reminds me. I fumbled putting my stuff in the x-ray box, the line - full of crabby people - backed up behind me.

Uh-oh, I had forgotten to wear socks. But no one noticed I don’t have a big toe.

On the concourse I spent the last of my travel money on some nice souvenirs, a package of peanuts, and a bottle of water. I had to waddle a loooong ways to the departure gate carrying all the stuff. When I got there, I realized I didn’t have the bottle of water. Peanuts without water.

I boarded the plane and sat in the wrong seat. Promptly got chewed by the snippy lady who had that ticket. Moved to my real seat across the aisle. A very kind (and cute) fellow behind me moved my stuff to the overhead bin.

When the plane started to back, we all realized there were several empty seats. Hallelujah! Like atoms in a depressurized bottle, the passengers spread out and made themselves comfortable.

I overheard a passenger say that the earlier flight to Sacramento was delayed and wouldn’t leave until after ours. Why didn’t they put some of those passengers in these empty seats? Airline logic defies me.

The pilot spoke: “Good morning, my name is Mary ___ and I’ll be your pilot today...”

...my mind finished the sentence for her...and God is my copilot.

BBE 23 - Judge Roy Frijole

This is out of sequence, but none of my regular readers will know that, just the two who live in Texas, if they're still reading.

One place we stopped to visit was the Judge Roy Bean Visitor Center in Langtry. You may have seen the 1972 movie about Judge Roy Bean that starred Paul Newman. The Center is a nice stopping place along the highway, it has a beautiful desert garden and nicely restored buildings.

The original saloon/courtroom is the building in the foreground, the Opera House is to the left.


This is the Opera House.


Inside the saloon. To my brother Jerry - doesn’t this remind you of the cow camp at China Flat?


Our stepfather was a genuine cowboy and we spent our summers in the mountains moving from one rustic little rodent-infested cabin to another, following the cows across open range. I guess it was fun, looking back, but when you’re a teenager there are things you’d rather be doing.

What struck me about Judge Roy Bean’s place is how small it is. Imagine all those sweaty outlaws and whores (the casting list for the movie calls all the characters except Paul Newman’s and Ava Gardner’s either outlaws or whores) all packed into that little room on a Texas summer afternoon? No wonder the judge made hasty decisions.

The Center is a nice place to stop. For one thing it has a rest room, and our driver needed that. Judge Bean’s place is not too far past the scary bridge.

BBE 22 - Cap'n on the Console

Cap’n was pretty quiet on this trip, thank you for asking about him, Jon. He sat on the console most of the time, surrounded by colorful paper flowers that a wonderful waiter made for us at one of the restaurants where we ate. (Note to aspiring waiters: this is a good way to get big tips.)


Once in a while the Cap'n got out of the car and posed for photos to send back to his friends on The Enterprise.


And he really liked those big, fat Boer goats that were running around everywhere in the Hill Country, so he bought one himself and had her beamed home. (It’s not like you can take a goat on American Airlines, you know.)


What should Cap'n name his goat?