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The Great Buffalo - Part Three

2009-04-26T19:25:00.001-07:00

As you know, I have not had Wi-Fi for almost two weeks now so here is three more days. I also have not had time to go through it for typos, etc.

Day Eight - 0600 – Clear / 43 – Wednesday, April 15, 2009 – Golden, CO
Left the campground at 0645 to get down to the Denver Mint by 0730 for standby tickets for the tour) I didn’t plan ahead) – it was not a problem there gave us tickets for the 0800 tour and there were only 41 people total on the tour – we were not very impressed – tour was very short and the most fascinating thing we saw was the architecture and the Tiffany style chandeliers in the old building – went to the gift shop and bought a lapel pin - got $5 worth of Puerto Rico quarters from a machine

0900 – On way to Red Rock Park stopped at McDonald’s for a biscuit – Jerry was having withdrawals

0945 – Red Rock Park – I read online that the amphitheater in the park, which was built by the CCC, has great natural acoustics – there are concerts all the time - even the Beatles once played there – they were replacing the benches with a Brazilian wood – Jerry found a sample – he also found a sample of the red rock – bad boy – everyone looks at me rather strangely because I have found that if I wear a scarf over my nose and mouth I don’t get any burning in my lungs – too bad

1100 – Weather forecast for tomorrow has a cold front coming in from the west so we decided to pack up and head out today

1230 – On the road again – Clear / 62

Beautiful drive through the mountains – there was a herd of buffalo just outside of town – being raided for meat I guess – and herd of elk – dinner also
Crossed the Continental Divide while going through the Dwight D. Eisenhower tunnel – the road was EXTEEEEEEMELY rough at one point on the downhill side– I could just image what was going on inside the camper

1530 – CO-I25:125 - beautiful Rest Area along the Colorado River
Sure enough, the camper was a disaster – looks like the only thing that is broken is the little 3-armed plastic thing that the microwave turntable sits on – all the kitchen drawers are open and silverware, etc is on the floor – cabinets all topsy-turvy – the wood topper I have for the stove was on the floor!

Chicken salad sandwiched, pasta, Cheetos

1615 – On the road again – Partly Cloudy / 67

Have seen Bighorn Sheep several times since we left Denver – just grazing alongside the road – CDOT even has electronic signs along the way cautioning drivers to look out for wildlife on the road

The last elevation sign I saw was 5432 feet, but there are more huge mountains in the distance – 69 miles to Grand Junction – must be on the other side –maybe we’ll just snake through them
The farther west we go the more overcast it gets

1800 – CO-I70:31 - Made it to Grand Junction, Co Wal-Mart
Big sign saying no overnight parking but there was another camper there already – Jerry went in to buy a half gallon of milk and asked the manager is the ordinance was strictly enforced – she said there were at least a half dozen campers there every night – we put the slides out and Jerry went across the frontage road to get a pepperoni pizza – a few minutes later he comes back with a freshly made pizza that is uncooked – the place was called Papa Murphy’s and apparently that is the only thing they do – the guy made it up, wrapped it in plastic and handed it to him – Jerry said “aren’t you going to cook it?”

I came on what appeared to be a paper plate, but the directions said to bake on the plate – so we did (good thing it was only a medium, a large would not have fit – it was very delicious, but we could only eat half of it – folded the empty part of the plate over the pizza, wrapped the whole thing in their plastic wrap and put it in the fridge – will heat it up for lunch one day soon

2030 - Since there was nothing to do we went to bed

Day Nine – 0600 – Thursday, April 16, 2009 – Golden, CO – Dark / 36

0600 – Jerry wakes up as realizes it is cold in the camper – the propane tank ran out – he changed over to the second tank and we got warm again

0630 – had a good night’s rest – made coffee by stuffing a pod in the neck of a funnel and pouring boiling water in the funnel – this method took a while but produced good results – I put the first 8 oz in my jug (I need it strong) and the next 16 in Jerry’s (he likes it on the weak side) – I warmed 8 oz of milk to add to mine and we were in business

0750 – Left Wal-Mart in search of somewhere to buy propane, somewhere to buy fuel and somewhere to buy breakfast – in that order

Found an RV dealer who could not sell propane but told us where to get some: Ferrell Gas – we arrived on their lot 5 minutes before they opened – got the tank refilled at a cheaper price than we pay at home

Stopped at ‘Western’ gas station – 24.1 gal @ $2.069 = $50.00 – 286 mi (11.9 mpg)

Captain Ahab was a quart low on oil so Jerry added some

Remembered an AutoZone on the way back to the interstate (the darned Wal-Mart was about 6-7 miles off the interstate – we thought we would never find it) – bought a spare quart of oil just in case

There was a Sonic right next door to the AutoZone so we bought a couple of breakfast burritos – Jerry wasn’t too thrilled with the idea – we had never had them before – he got sausage, egg and cheese – I got ham, egg and cheese – we both agreed they were pretty good

0930 – On the road again – Partly Cloudy / 51

Headed west on I-70 – stopped at a rest area with a great view

1015 – UTAH

1030 – Left I-70 on Utah Scenic 128 – typical county road - ‘Open Range’ signs – lots of cattle

1200 – Big Bend Recreation Area (Bureau of Land Management campground) Clear/Breezy / 62

One site left in the whole campground and it was about the only site we would fit on – it was so big, if the Katchams had been with us we could have put both units and both vehicles on the site – it’s another one of those arced pull-throughs

Very pretty – about 50 yards to the Colorado River with red cliffs on the other side of the river and more red cliffs behind us just across 128

No electric, no sewer, no water, no showers – only ‘vault’ toilets (vault is their euphemism for outhouse) and very nice picnic tables and fire ring/grills – and you can’t beat $6.00/night

1400 – Jerry’s homemade pimiento cheese, and peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, FRS

1500 – On the road again – Arches National Park is only 9 miles down the road

Arches is exceptionally stunning – red towers and arches at every turn and completely ringed by snow-capped peaks in the distance on all sides

We took Jack with us because we did not think we would be gone very long, but we ended up getting out of the truck several times to take the short walks to the overlooks – he whined and barked every time we left him and a couple of people made a comment

We both made the fairly level ¼ mile hike around ‘Balanced Rock’ / Easy

Jerry made the ½ mile round trip hike to ‘Turret Arch’ / Easy

We took pictures of ‘Delicate Arch’ from the parking lot (the trail is 3 mi round trip / Strenuous)

Saw a beautiful Western Bluebird on the side of the road –Jerry stopped so we could get a good look

At the end of the road is the Devil’s Garden Trail to ‘Double O Arch’ (4.2 mi / Strenuous)

2000 – back at Big Bend

Warmed-up leftover spaghetti and toasted stale hamburger buns over the open flame of the stove and spread them with garlic butter

2130 – Bed

Day Ten - 0700– Friday, April 17, 2009 – Moab, UT – Sprinkling / 46

Getting better at making drip coffee

0800 – Toasted English Muffins over the stove and spread them with peanut butter and honey

0900 – On the road again

1000 – Canyonlands National Park, Island in the Sky Visitor Center (40 mi from Big Bend)

WINDY/ 47 – the Feds have hand sanitizer in their vaults – bought a lapel pin

I guess they call this section Island in the Sky because the road is on a mesa surrounded by canyons – there are many overlooks and it is very pretty, buy very chilly and windy up here

For some reason I decided to try the trail to the ‘Upheaval Dome’ overlook – what a mistake – when we finally got there it was freezing and extremely windy and because of the overcast conditions it was not a particularly good view – it was an interesting formation, but because of the weather we could not really enjoy it – the sign at the trailhead said it was a ¼ mi one way steep uphill climb but I thought I’d be OK if I just went slow – NOT – the hike back down was very enjoyable however – I always wanted to hike through rocky terrain like that – I only had to stop twice on the way down

I should have saved myself for the ‘Mesa Arch’ hike – but after ‘Upheaval Dome’ we did no more hiking in Canyonlands – just did all the overlooks

Headed down to Moab and took a short side trip on the way down UT 279 – the Canyonlands map indicated there were Petroglyphs just a short distance down the road – turns out there were quite a few in two different places – and just as interesting as the glyphs, were the rock climbers – there were a couple dozen people parked along a one mile section of the road climbing the cliffs – they had lawn chairs and lunches – some were just two people (you need one to hold the rope) and some groups had 6-8 people taking turns – very cool

1630 – Moab, UT – found a grocery named ‘City Market’ went in to buy bread and discovered that it was a King Sooper and was also loaded with Kroger products!

Stopped at ‘Maverick’ gas station – 16.6 gal @ $2.069 = $38.00 – 290 mi (17.5 mpg)

1745 – back at Big Bend – Jack was so happy to see us – he is apparently quite traumatized when we leave him home alone because I put a ‘Greenie’ in his Kong and left it in his crate and it was still there when we got back – because it was so cool, we draped a throw over his crate and when we returned it was on the floor – he must really like to see out – that is why we have to crate him when we are not there – if we don’t he drives himself crazy going from one window to another looking for something or someone to bark at

Jerry started the generator because the battery in the camper had died in the night and he had to hook it up to the truck – quiet hours as 2200 – 0600, but I asked him to turn it off at 2100 because if I was one of our neighbors I’d be upset at having to listen to that thing for so long

1900 – Chicken JD (thinly sliced chicken breast sautéed with fresh mushrooms served over buttered pasta seasoned with garlic and rosemary), and Jalapeño Cheese Focaccia that I picked up at the City Market – my first bite of the bread set my mouth on fire – I proceeded to pick out all of the remaining bits of jalapeño I could find - Jerry thought I was being a weenie until he got a bite with similar results – he said the top of his head was sweating

2130 – Cherry pie with Double Vanilla ice cream for Jerry, and angel food cake for Shari

2200 – Bed

The Great Buffalo - Part Two

2009-04-14T21:53:00.000-07:00

Day Four - 0630 – Mostly sunny / Breezy / 38 – Saturday, April 11, 2009 – Clayton, MN
Checked the weather in CO thought about changing route and going to Grand Canyon next but decided to stick with the plan

0800 – Breakfast casserole – Jack did not eat his breakfast

0900 – on the road again - Mostly sunny / Breezy / 43

Head out of town of US 64- John L Morrow Memorial Highway - bound for Great Sand Dunes National Park

String of railroad cars just sitting on track – Jerry it at measured 3 miles long

0945 – Overcast

Still seeing remnants of blizzard in sheltered ditches

Road back to two lanes - road in pretty good shape

54 miles from Raton, NM – low scattered hills in flat terrain

Just passed a Rest Area just like you would find on the interstate – main building with restrooms, sheltered picnic tables

1000 – light sprinkles

A roadside pull-off with four sheltered picnic tables – NM really wants to make sure no one misses lunch

Low hills to the west covered with small evergreens – evergreens along fence rows

Driving Sleet / 35 - coming at us from the west – estimate wind at 20-25 mph

1015 – Light Snow – visibility one quarter mile - one to two inches on the ground here – roads only wet

Two small antelope grazing in a pasture

Zero – need to wake up

1025 – no snow on ground here – still coming down though – heavier now

Dusting on ground now – snow fences

Just passes entrance to T.O. ranch – newly planted 20’ hardwoods line entrance road – must be 50 – 6- on each side – can’t see beyond that – would like to see the house

Back to four-lane divided highway

Crossing Chicorica Creek - I like the name

1050 – Raton, NM -87 Express – light snow 35 - 21.3 gal @ $2.299 = $49.00 – 227 mi

1105 – on the road again – Light Snow / 36

The snow is heavy and wet – very pretty on the trees

The road is terrible – concrete – expansion joints are murderous

NM-I25:455 – the Santa Fe Trail - roadbed cut through sandstone hills – cliffs looming – only one lane clear of snow

1115 - Traffic at a dead stop as far as we can see – we are sitting one quarter mile from the CO
line three-quarters of the way up a mountain – one male, one female state trooper directing traffic – wearing ski masks and helmets with full face visors

1130 - starting to creep

1140 – past accident – moving again

Off the mountain - Snow stopped / 35 – roads clear but wet

1200 – CO-I25:18 - El Moro Rest Area
Pasta salad, cookies

1250 – on the road again – Heavy Clouds / Windy / 44 – roads dry – visibility 5 miles
Terrain to the east flat/bumpy – evergreen covered hills to the west and north

Lots of single and double-wides scattered around – llamas

More sagebrush and very short plants that look like miniature palmettos

Sprinkles

1320 –CO-I25:49 - turn onto US160 west thru Walsenburg – very cute flower banners on light standards – Indian blankets, etc hung out for sale -

1330 – Lathrop State Park

Sprinkles / Breezy /50 – very large dark clouds coming our way - 135 miles today (1390 total)

Had our pick of campsites – four loops with a total of 103 campsites – we picked 102 – they are all semi-circular pull-throughs – concrete picnic tables – iron fire pits with cooking grates – electric – no water – no sewer – PAY showers in the bathhouses

After we set up, we just chilled for a couple of hours – now it’s Sleeting

1800 – spaghetti, garlic bread

2130 – bed

Day Five - 0715 – Snowing / 35 – Easter Sunday, April 12, 2009 – Walsenburg, CO
Woke to about 2 inches of snow and still coming down – the guys went out to play in it and Jack came back with snow balls stuck to his legs – had to use the hair dryer on him – got him dry and put his jammies on (a long sleeve onesie) and his Tennessee t-shirt on top of that
Made our coffee and latte and watched it snow

1000 – Scrambled eggs, sausage links, biscuits

Jerry washed the dishes and then went outside and had an ‘accident’ with the grey-water

I went through 3 days of pictures, deleted the duds and resized/Photoshopped the rest – now have the first three days of the trip as the screen saver on the laptop

Watched the Masters – Sean must be working, he doesn’t answer his phone - called Mike & Laura & Trevor – called Mom & Dad but they had to go hide Easter eggs

I made deviled eggs while the guys went outside again – Jack was wet, but no snowballs

4” of snow now - Watched the Masters – Mom and Dad called – watched the Masters

Has never really stopped snowing but it changes from light to heavy and small to large flakes

They have the most beautiful black and white birds here – the ranger said they are Magpies

One unit left this morning, but 4 or 5 have come in – one is a 10-12 foot “Joey” pulled by a Jeep Liberty with two guys in it – may be hunters or fishermen

1730 – Meatloaf, rice with peas and mushrooms, deviled eggs

1900 – quit snowing

TV – the news people keep mentioning the ‘Palmer Divide’ – need to find out what that is

2230 – bed

Day Six - 0700 – Clear / 31 – Monday, April 13 2009 – Walsenburg, CO

What a beautiful sight – the Sangre de Christos sparkling in the sun:

I bought a package of Senseo Dark Roast pods to simplify the latte process – I run 8oz of water through a pod and add 8 oz of hot skim milk – excellent (I bought an espresso machine off a clearance rack in Wal-Mart 15 years ago and that is what I keep in the camper – it doesn’t really make good espresso or foam, but I have learned to adapt)

0730 – Jerry has climbed up on the roof to sweep the snow off the slides – we do not have awnings over them and don’t want that snow in the unit when we bring them in – there is weather-stripping and rubber gaskets to help keep debris out, but better safe than sorry

0830 – Cereal and toast

1030 – On the road again - Clear / 51

Rolling plains to the east – occasional mountains to the west

1215 - CO-I40:116 – Rest Area - Clear / 62

1230 – on the road again

1245 – CO-I25:75 – two dozen cattle in pasture – 10-15 calves so young they just lying on the ground

1310 – CO-I25:140 – Conway’s Red Top – Partly Cloudy / 65

Split giant (6 in dia) cheeseburger, order of fries, 2 diet Pepsi – not bad, but burger not as good as Hardee’s and onion rings not a good as Ankar’s

1340 – on the road again

CO-I25:160 = 4 deer on side of road – 100 yards later, two more deer

Seeing the BIG peaks off to the west now

1530 – Dakota Ridge RV Park, Golden, CO – Mostly Sunny / 65

Campgrounds aren’t cheap around here – this one is very nice, but $40/night - site J13

1800 – showers

1900 – Orange Chicken Stir-Fry

2200 – bed

Day Seven - 0730 – Clear / 45 – Tuesday, April 14 2009 – Golden, CO

0830 – On the road again, but this time we left Jack at the campground – poor baby

We drove west out of Golden headed for the Rocky Mountain National Park – what a beautiful day

The higher we climbed, the cloudier it got, until late in the afternoon and then the sun peeked through a little while we were still in the park

We crossed the Continental Divide at Berthoud Pass, EL 11,307 ft

1100 - stopped in Grand Lake, CO – EL 8,369 ft – at the Blue Moon Café for blueberry pancakes

We were the only people at the Kawuneeche Visitor Center - El 8,720 ft - but the ranger offered to play the movie for us – very nice – the ranger and the movie

The whole road through the park is not open until May 22 and we thought we would only get as far as the visitor center, but they had the road open for 10 miles – to the Colorado River Trail Head

We hadn’t gone 100 yards into the park before we saw a fox walking down the road right at us

The fox, a Bald Eagle and a far off sighting of a coyote were the only wildlife we saw – too bad

The temperature varied between 47 and 51 the whole time we were in the park, so we turned the heat up and rolled the windows down – awesome views – we saw less than 10 other cars the whole time we were in the park

On the way back down we saw quite a few skiers on the slopes outside of Winter Park.

Back in Golden we got fuel and went to a grocery store called King’s Sooper which carried Kroger products and took our Kroger savings card!

1700 – Dakota Ridge RV – Clear / 71

1830 – Hamburgers, sautéed asparagus

1930 – Laundry - got a bunch of "D" state quarters from the change machine

2130 – Bed

The Great Buffalo - Part One

2009-04-10T19:11:00.000-07:00

All times are local

Day One - 1240 - Sunny / 51 – Wednesday, April 8, 2009

We’ve put a 4 inch thick cushion on the console between our seats and put Jack’s bed on top of it – he rides up there like he’s on a throne – all he has to do to see out is lift his head

First problem: RF modulator Jerry installed in truck for mp3 player not working (has worked fine for two years now) – no Louis L’Amour to get us in the mood!

Redbuds in bloom all along interstate - hate to leave home this time of year when it's just starting to look so good

1415 - RA –TN- I40:269 – lunch – pasta salad, cookie

RA – TN-I40:130 – snack – Cocoa Krispie Treat, Zero

1735 - Flying J - TN-I40:84 – Fairview - 19.3 gal @ $2.139 = $41.20 – 224 mi (25 miles already on tank)

TN-I40:42 – Yum Yum, TN! What a cool address

2000 - Memphis – Neely’s Interstate BBQ
Jerry: large chopped pork, large fries
Shari: small chopped pork, small slaw – shared Zero
Spicy, but not too spicy - I like Buddy’s better, Jerry likes Neely’s

2100 – ARKANSAS

2130 – AR-I55:4 - Arrive Flying J – West Memphis, AR

Clear / 59 - 399 miles today

2200 - bed – Jerry gave Jack his usual goodnight belly rub and the little guy fell asleep in mid rub!

0330 – something woke both of us up – Jerry got up to use the bathroom – both of us thought it was morning because we were parked under a light standard – I thought to myself “I’m not ready to get up yet.” Jerry checked the clock – hurray it’s only 3:30 in the morning – we get to sleep some more

Day Two – 0730 - Overcast / 58 – Thursday, April 9, 2009

No coffee in the truck stop – had to buy it at the restaurant - $3.79 for two – no cream!

No donuts in the coffee shop

0800 AR-I55:4 - Flying J - 18.1 gal @ $2.219 = $40.00 – 199 mi

Drove to Petro –apparently there are no donuts in all of W Memphis

Got breakfast bars out of picnic box

0830 AR-I55:4 – depart West Memphis, AR

Flat – fields – no more Redbuds

Standing water in fields, roadside ditches, irrigation ditches.

Decided to try playing audio books through computer – could not transfer back

Found ‘Dead Watch’ by John Sanford on the computer – neither of us had heard it before

9:30 Partly Cloudy – 62

Can see a ridge in the distance

0945 – AR-I40:205 – extremely rough concrete road

0955 – AR-I40:194 – new smooth asphalt road

0956 – AR-I40:193 - Oh-Oh! the door on the battery compartment vibrated open – pulled onto
exit ramp

0958 – on the road again – Little Rock, 41 miles

Flat - fields

1000 – Cloudy - 67

1010 – AR-I40:182 - Carlisle Municipal Airport – 3 small planes

1020 – AR-I40:173 – Jerry needs M&M – Jack needs treats too

Swampy – short trees

1030 – AR-I40:155 – Cloudy / 66

Downtown Little Rock in distance to the south west

Low rolling hills

Humongous First Pentecostal Church – very beautiful architecture

1050 – AR-I40:141 – a few large raindrops

1100 – AR-I40:130 - Jerry spots deer on side of road – just after small lake with trees all over it

Light sprinkles

More of the lake with the trees – Jerry thinks they look like Cyprus trees

Rain a bit heavier

1120 – AR-I40:108 – Rain lighter

1130 – AR-I40:90 – BIG HILL

Rain heavier

1145 – AR-I40:84 – Flying J Russellville - 17 gal @ $2.179 = $37.00 – 196 mi

1200 – AR-I40-72 – Rest Area – Light rain / 66
Jerry – 2 foldover chicken salad sandwiches, chips, 2 cookies
Shari – 1 foldover chicken salad sandwich, chips, 1 cookie
Jack – chicken, cookie

1320 – on the road again – Raining softly

Gently rolling terrain

1350 - low ridges

1300 – hills

1410 – AR-I40:24 – dead deer – rain stopped

All rivers in Arkansas swollen

1430 - OKLAHOMA

1450 - OK – I40:313 Rest Area – partly cloudy - windy

Very cute 'tepee' picnic shelters
tapioca, energy drink

1530 – On the road again – partly sunny – 68

Arkansas River – slightly swollen

Really bad road – concrete, heavily patched – left lane much better

Flat – low ridges in the distance

Dust

OK-I40:282 - Begin construction - EB completely torn up – just a web of rebar for a while and then piles of gravel (which used to be roadbed)

OK-I40:276 - End construction

OK-I40:264 – brand new road – very nice

1620 – sky getting very dark again – a little lightening in the distance

Here comes the rain – moderate but large drops

1645 – rain suddenly stops – clear blue sky – 65

Low rolling hills

WINDY

1715 – OK-I40:210 – Zero, cheese sticks, peanuts

1530 – OK-I40:202 – crossing Turkey Creek

Rolling plain - scattered trees and brush

Fields – dust

Huge smoke cloud coming from the SW (found out later 100 homes burned – kids playing with fire)

1800 – OK-I40:172 – Jerry had to pull off interstate to pour 5 gals of fuel in - the smoke is really thick

1815 – OK-I40:166 – finally even with smoke – Fire Marshall and 2 small fire trucks passing us with light and sirens (probably called in as support from small town nearby) - Holy cow – the second truck is trailing his fire hose behind him - Jerry has to dodge the nozzle

1830 – entering outskirts of OK City – sand/dust pelting us

1845 – OK-I40:140 – arrive Flying J - 27.7 gal @ $1.979 = $55.00 – 274 mi

WINDY / 74 - 471 miles today

2000 – Italian beef on baguettes with Clausen spears, Tagalongs

2200 – bed – Jerry is pretty beat up from fighting the wind most of the day – Jack is a good little camper – he is eating well

2300 – heard banging on side of camper – Jerry went out to investigate – sewer compartment door open and the wind was blowing it against the side of the camper

Day Three – 0555 – Overcast, WINDY / 45 – Friday, April 10, 2009

Wind still blowing like crazy – at least 40 mph sustained with gusts to 60

Pretty lucky I guess – thunder storms and tornados reported in AR & OK yesterday

Split a large coffee ($1.76), got donuts and a postcard to send to Trevor.

Jerry had to pump up his new 5th Airborne tongue this morning – too much rough road yesterday I guess – manager assured him they had 100 lbs of pressure and they did

0815 – on the road again

0830 – OK-I40-130 – didn’t make it too far – Jerry spotted something flopping under the trailer – turned out a bolt had snapped off and a piece of the underpinning was ripping off

Partly sunny

0845 - OK-I40-123 - the 2009 edition of the Good Sam “Interstate Exit Directory” said there is a Wal-Mart at the OK-I40-123 so we did 40 mph for 7 miles. Jerry went in Wal-Mart to buy a c-clamp to hold the camper together until he can make a permanent repair.

0930 – on the road again

Casinos are ubiquitous along the interstate in OK

White caps on the farm ponds!

0945 – still windy, but only contrails in the sky

Low rolling terrain, scattered fields and pastures

OK-I40-102 – begin construction - one lane closed each way

Creeks incised 10-15 feet, but water level very low – not much buffer – in fact, the only trees you see are along the creek banks

OK-I40-95 – end construction

Wind turbines dot the skyline on all sides of Weatherford, OK – they’re getting a workout today – easily 200 of them

Very strange terrain on the south side of the interstate – low irregular mounds of red dirt with scrub vegetation growing on all but the wind-blown crowns – went on for 2-3 miles

Just passed a sign advertising and RV park with ‘Cable TV’ and a ‘Storm Shelter’

Unusual water towers around here – look more like grain elevators – only taller & skinnier

Lots of farms with small Black Angus herds

More wind turbines 3 or 4 miles north of interstate – can see at least 100 perhaps more – they disappear into the distance

OK-I40-141 - National Route 66 Museum – we waved as we drove by

Evidence of several small grass fires all along the interstate – read recently that because of the continued drought conditions in OK the water table is 25 feet low

Not sure about the trees since they are just starting to leaf, but looks predominately like cottonwood, some other small trees with very gnarly branches and dark bark, and some even smaller trees with mostly small branches and light bark – many of them with a decided northerly aspect - didn’t think to bring a tree book

Jack has moved to the back seat for a while – he is lying on top of the bed pillow – needed a softer spot I guess – the pillow is on top of a fleece blanket that is on top of a large camera bag and the goodie bag so he can see out from that vantage point also

1115 - OK-I40-20 - Flying J – Sayre, OK - Clear 54 - 15.8 gal @ $2.019 = $32.00 – 120 mi

Time for a Zero and some peanuts

1145 – on the road again

Jack back on the pillow in the back seat

Holsteins!

Old Route 66 runs along north side of interstate for miles – appears to be in very good shape, but haven’t seen a single vehicle on it

Three C-130s passing overhead at a fairly low elevation

1230 - TEXAS - The 'Panhandle’

Called Clayton KOA – said they had plenty of room for us tonight

More black angus, some planted fields, some as yet untilled, occasional dead oil wells, lots of brush

Creeks are all dry - shallow, broad ones and narrow, incised ones

Now the creeks are all broad and deeply incised

Now more level terrain with both newly planted fields and freshly disked ones

Circular irrigation machines everywhere – they are reminiscent of dragonfly wings – we have seen some with as many as 21 sections

Have seen only small herds of cattle – less than 50 – with most around 20

Finally a very large pond – but not full

Last year’s wheat and cotton field stubble

Several billboards advertising a free 72 oz. steak – if you can eat it in an hour – ‘The Big Texan’

The state tree here must be the telephone pole! – and we suspect they are an exotic

Another turbine farm that vanished into the distance

Texas roads are excellent – but I don’t see why they beat TN this year in the trucker’s poll

1345 – TX-I40:76 – Flying J – Amarillo, TX – clear, calm 55 - 13.9 gal @ $2.159 = $30.00 – 121 mi

My first whiff of TX – smells like a mixture of diesel and manure

Second flat-bed we’ve seen full of what we assume are stock pen panels/gates

There is a 2005 Challenger here that appears to have the same floor plan that we do

1400 – on the road again

Tried unsuccessfully to have lunch at the Stockyard Café – stopped serving at 2 pm – our little sheet metal problem cost us an authentic TX lunch – still smells like manure

After some maneuvering from ‘Ethel’ we are on our way to Clayton, NM

Now on US 87 – four lane divided, limited access highway – ‘Texas Plains Trail’

A little more interesting scenery occasionally – everything is more close-up: sagebrush, our first working oil wells, another turbine farm – no wind here!

1534 – Dumas, TX – Burger King – Jerry was screaming for a hamburger fix – smells like manure here too – place has an air sanitizer inside

Jerry: ‘Tendercrisp’ chicken sandwich and onion rings!!!!! (what happened to the burger?)
Shari: Whopper Jr, sm fry
Jack: nada! (we left him loose in truck since we would be quick – he kept a lookout for us)

1615 – on the road again: north on US 87 – clear 59 – an AB day

Maple Nut Goodies

Pheasant flying across road

Lots of planted fields – circular irrigation going strong - a pasture with at least 100 head of

Angus

Just passed a pasture full of small deer – no wonder they’re small considering what they have to eat

Oil field – one well being drilled

Dalhart, TX - ‘Reinke’ irrigators (remember to check this out later)

Marty Robbins on the CD!

Grain elevator after grain elevator (rr track running beside highway)

Crossing Rita Blanca Creek

1730 – NEW MEXICO

1745 – Clayton KOA – Clayton, NM

Fair / 59 - 385 miles today

Pull-thru level site – did not even unhitch – jacks, water, sewer, power, cable

1900 – Sloppy Joes, chips and Clausen spears

Everyone is pretty tired – going to post this, send an email, shower and hit the sack

2230 - bed

Book Two, Chapter Two, Part Two

2009-02-06T14:00:00.000-08:00

Went to Chattanooga yesterday (Jan 11) to see our new great-grandbaby. Jerry's granddaughter Jenalee gave birth to KyLee Marie on January 9. They were still in the hospital when we got there because KyLee was jaudiced and they had her in the incubator. The incubator was in Jenalee's room so that she could feed and change her so we got to touch her. Newborn skin is sooooooo soft. Dig those crazy shades!

Book Two, Chapter Six

2009-02-05T19:48:00.000-08:00

What fun! We have seen so little snow in the last few years that 3 inches is enough to make us giddy. Jack had so much fun. He just loves to run flat-out across the yard. Snow on the ground is the only thing that will entice us to let him off the leash because he never leaves the yard except when the neighbor boys are outside playing and they always catch him for us. Having a bag of treats in your pocket also helps.

We just came from the Lady Vols b'ball game: TN 73-GA 43. The girls looked a little off their game at the beginning, but they soon got into a rhythm. Oh yeah, and it was Coach Pat Summit's 1,000th win! Congratulations coach! Mayor Haslam announced that she is going to get the first star on Knoxville's new 'Riverwalk'.

Book Two, Chapter Five

2009-01-27T08:35:00.000-08:00

One of the bright spots of an East Tennessee winter is that the Bluebirds hang around. They don't eat the standard bird seed mix, but they visit the feeders occasionally anyway. Sometimes we will sight 6 or 8 of them perched on the gutters perusing for worms.

Got another free dinner last night at the Chop House - a great salad, hot bread, half rack of ribs, baked sweet potato and pretty good coffee. There was so much food that we have enough leftovers to be lunch today.

Had to listen to a sales pitch about thermal insulation which was actually very intersting. The product (Temper Shield) consists of two 97% aluminum sheets sandwiched around a kevlar mesh then coated on both sides by mylar. It was very tough and in a test he conducted with heat lamps, it conducted absolutely no heat. The stuff is quite $$$$, but only if you have it installed. If you can do it yourself - depending on a few other factors - you could recoup your $$$ in 12 to 18 months. Jerry did a little research last night when we got home and there are apparently several other brands available.

Book Two, Chapter Two, Part Three

2009-01-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

Miracle on The Hudson indeed! I don't know why I didn't post on this subject earlier (the incident happened on Jan 15), but Ellen had eight passengers on her show today and it reminded me. I can't imagine how many things had to go right so that all of the people on US Airways Flight 1549 could be alive and well today. Congratulations to Chesley Sullenberger III on his remarkable ditching. Rather than rehash things here, I will just add a link to the Wikipedia page.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/US_Airways_Flight_1549

Book Two, Chapter Four

2009-01-20T13:02:00.001-08:00

It's official. Barak Obama is now the 44th President of the United States of America. Is this a great country or what? The President and the First Lady just got out of the limo and are walking down Pennsylvania Ave. I hope Stephen Fairey doesn't mind that I 'lifted' his iconic portrait for my lttle blog. I have purchased a pin with this image on it.

I haven't been this excited about politics since the inauguration of John F. Kennedy on January 20, 1961. I was only 10 years old, but my 5th grade teacher had us studying about the candidates all year and then we had a mock election on election day. My parents let me stay up until midnight on election night to watch the returns come in and then we had to go to bed still not knowing the result.

A couple of things that really struck me during Barak Obama's inaugural address:

"The challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America, they will be met." and "Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and begin again the work of remaking America."

On a lighter note, the weathermen finally got it right. After predicting snow three or four times this year and getting wrong we had about two inches yesterday. It snowed almost all day and was so beautiful. At times it was very light and we thought it was going to quite but then it would start up again. Jack had a great time. Jerry even let him out in the yard without a leash so he could run and romp and rut. Woo hoo!

"Few things are harder to put up with than a good example." ~Mark Twain (1835-1910)

Book Two, Chapter Three

2009-01-16T06:58:00.000-08:00

Brrrrrr! 6 degrees fahrenheit this morning at 7:30 am. It was so cold the front door was frozen shut and Jerry had to take Jack out through the basement. When he got out there he started shaking so badly he couldn't poop, just peed and headed for the garage. It's now 10:00 am and still only 9 degress. But the sun is out, the sky is the most beautiful blue, and it is so clear we can see the ridges of the Great Smoky Mountains above the treetops down by the road.

Happy Birthday Paula! Today is her birthday and we are all going out for dinner tonight to celebrate her birthday and Jerry's birthday which is Sunday.

Have to finish putting Christmas away. It always takes me three or four weeks. Winter is just too depressing. One year it was February 1.

I added several new bracelets and a couple of earrings to my Etsy shop yesterday. There have been lots of views on all of the items but no sales since the first two.

Book Two, Chapter Two

2009-01-10T09:12:00.000-08:00

I got an email yesterday from Susana. She mentioned that her brother Alfredo had set up a website for their mother Chelo to showcase her paintings. I really like her landscapes. I also love one she painted for Susana. It was a captivating study of a solitary woman on a street that appeared to be in Morocco.

I'm not quite sure how long she has been painting, but many of her canvases are copies of famous paintings and some were painted from a photograph. She did this to learn technique. I think she has found a style that is all her own. She offered me the choice of several paintings when we visited last April, but in all the rush of leaving I forgot to get it. Our visit was just too short.

Chelo's website is: http://www.chelopilar.es/. I will put a permenant link on the right side of the blog.

Alfredo is a very talented commercial artist. Susana's son Alvaro (13) also paints as does her daughter Violeta (9.) Apparently creative talent runs in the family.

Book Two, Chapter 1

2009-01-01T09:16:00.000-08:00

Happy 2009

I was going to say that I'm glad to kiss 2008 goodbye, but then I got to thinking about the good things that happened last year and it's a pretty nice list:

~ Sean has been drug free for 10 and a half months

~ Sean has a place to live

~ Sean has been working pretty steadily

~Mom & Dad and Jerry & I and Lindy & Cindy and Terry & Debie and Mike & Laura and Cyndi & Ray and Sean & Jack and Jenalee and Jera all stayed pretty healthy

~ We had lots and tons of fun with Jack

~ We had a wonderful time on our 25th Anniversary trip, seeing new places and visiting old friends we hadn't seen since shortly after we were married

~ I finally got my jewelry business up and running on Etsy

~ We got to do a lot of camping this year

~ The Lady Vols won their 8th National Championship

~ The US had a history making Presidential election

~ The UT fired football coach Philip Fulmer

Now for the down side:

~ I lost my job to 'downsizing'

~ The economy is the worst we've had in my lifetime

~ We did not get to Tampa for the Women's Final Four

~ The UT fired football coach Philip Fulmer

~I still haven't found a job

All in all a pretty good year.

Let's see if we can improve on it this year.

Book One, Chapter Nine

2008-12-28T14:11:00.000-08:00

Well, we've been having typical East Tennessee weather lately: on December 22 we had a low of 12 degrees with a high of 27, and yesterday the high was 69.

Dad took this picture of my great-nieces. They are a couple of cutie pies! Taylor in pale pink and Chloe in white and hot pink. Or as my Dad says "the blue-eyed one and the brown-eyed one."

Taylor Jay will be 4 1n January, and Chloe Elizabeth will be 10 in May. They are both real sweethearts and they like to spend a lot of time at their great-grandparents house. They all live in Florida.

Book One, Chapter Eight

2008-12-26T20:09:00.000-08:00

It seems there is not much time for blogging during the holidays. Or perhaps I just didn't have anything to say.

I did think of something one day last week. My copy of Time arrived in the mail - the Person of the Year issue. They also list other people of note for the past year and I was pretty upset that they devoted almost an entire page to a picture of Heath Ledger and Tim Russert's photo wasn't much more than a thumbnail - makes me wonder about their priorities! I would have given Tim a whole page. I wish I could be more eloquent here, but Tim made such a huge contribution to the betterment of mankind because he made politics much easier to understand for a whole lot of us. He was a great man and he will be missed greatly.

Christmas was delightful this year. I didn't have to cook huge meals for lots of people while they all sat around and had a good time. I got to have fun too. Breakfast was biscuits and sausage gravy (Sean helped.) Dinner was 7-layer salad (Sean helped), loaded baked potatoes, t-bones (Jerry grilled the steaks) Thelma's dinner rolls and sugar cookies (Sean helped.) I only make her rolls at Thanksgiving and Christmas and I don't know why because they are very easy.

I will be making Louise's dinner rolls for New Year's Day. Sean prefers them and they are even easier! Slice a loaf of frozen bread dough, lay them on their their cut sides in a greased glass cake pan, let rise, and bake. I have to admit that I like them better too - big, soft, fluffy - what's not to like.

Book One, Chapter Seven

2008-12-17T09:04:00.000-08:00

Looks like I haven't been here in a few days.

We have some exciting news. I took a picture of Jack standing in the snow last January and the Daily Puppy wants to feature that picture on Chirstmas Day. Check it out through the link on this page.

We've been very busy around our house as I'm sure you've been around yours. We did a thorough cleaning job, and we finally got all of the decorating done. Jack isn't sure how to take all of the new stuff. He was only 10 weeks old last Christmas and I have no idea how much a dog remembers from that young of an age. Anyway he's not very happy. He can't play with the tinsel, or the ornaments or the packages, or the nativity tableau. Rats!

Next it's on to baking. There will be the requisite Party Mix of course; two kinds of fudge: very dark with black walnuts and white with pecans; sugared walnuts; spiced pecans; sugar cookies; Sophie's forgotten cookies; peanut brittle; and I may try peppermint bark.

But first, I must get the Christmas cards in the mail.

"Worry looks around, Sorry looks back, Faith looks up." ~Unknown

Book One, Chapter Six

2008-12-12T19:54:00.000-08:00

What a day! Today was 'haircut day'. First I gave Jerry his usual burr. (3/8" blade.)

Then it was Jacks turn. I would rather take a beating than groom Jack, but 1) I can't afford a professional groomer, and 2) they wouldn't cut him the way we like him anyway.

So I oiled the blades again (5/8" for his body, 3/8" for his legs and bootie) and got a bag of his favorite treats (Zuke's - Z-Filets Glazed Chicken) while Jerry tried to comb out some of the mats. Jerry does this every night, but he never gets all of them. Jack's hair is so fine that if he lays down and rolls over he gets four or five mats.

It takes about two hours, with stops for treats, cooling the blades, and more combing. When we are done we are all three worn out (Jerry helps me hold him.)

Tomorrow I will finish: clean his ears (pulling excess hair out) and trim his nails. At least I have found an easy way to trim his nails. I use my Dremmel. I asked for it for Christmas a few years ago and it is a handy little gadget.

We did not get to Trevor's pageant last night. The weather was very bad and we decided not to risk it. It's 30 miles one-way.

"A woman who reaches half way gets no more than she reaches for." ~Unknown

Book One, Chapter Five

2008-12-11T12:58:00.000-08:00

It has been raining here all day. It did the same thing 3 or 4 days ago. We got 2.5" that day and today we are already up to 3". I think Mother Nature is trying to make up for this year's shortfall all in one week. Wish it were snow!!!

Sean (my son) came over to put up the Christmas tree up today. It is a 7.5 ft pre-lit artificial Frazier Fir. It's a beauty, but it's a lot of work to drag up from the basement and then spread all of the tips. My COPD prevents me from doing much and Jerry, (my husband) buggered-up his hip the other day. I get to do the fun part, hanging the ornaments and setting up the creche. Where's the eggnog?

We are going to Trevor's (our grandson) Christmas pageant this evening so I have to cut this short and get ready.

Book One, Chapter Four

2008-12-09T13:39:00.000-08:00

Sorry I missed yesterday. Too much going on and unfortunately none of it was very productive.

My husband if off playing golf today. When we were younger I was resentful of the time he spent with his buddies on the golf course. Now, I am greateful for a little alone time! Isn't life funny.

I got some Christmas pictures in the email yesterday. The first one is of my sister Lindy's new puppy. Zoe is now a year and a half old and a real cutie pie. I haven't seen Zoe since she was about six months old but Lindy says she has her tongue hanging out like that all the time. Very funny. She is part Maltese and part Shih Tzu. She wasn't very strong when she was born and they were not sure she would make it. Love will overcome anything.

The second picture is of two of the daughters of some very close friends and their puppy. TJ is about 13 years old now and has some serious medical problems - although you wouldn't know it from her bright, alert, happy eyes in this photo (it's that love again.) When TJ was young she excelled at doing tricks and won several competitions. You are in my prayers TJ.

Just heard the garage door open. Time to leave the reverie behind and make dinner.

Book One, Chapter Three

2008-12-07T07:17:00.000-08:00

Well it's Sunday and I spend time with my family on Sunday so I am going to cheat a little today. I watched You've Got Mail last night for the 20th (?) time and cried again as usual. I like all of the songs in that movie but I especially love The Puppy Song, both the music and the lyrics. It makes me happy. Since I can't sing to you on a blog, I will just post the lyrics for your enjoyment.

The Puppy Song
lyrics by Harry Nilsson

Dreams are nothing more than wishes
And a wish's just a dream you wish to come true

If only I could have a puppy
I'd call myself so very lucky
Just to have some company
To share a cup of tea with me
I'd take my puppy everywhere
La la la la I wouldn't care
Then we'll stay away from crowds
With signs that say no dogs allowed
Oh we... I know he'd never bite me
We... I know he'd never bite me

If only I could have a friend
Who sticks with me until the end
And walk along beside the sea
To share a bit of moon with me
I'd take my friend most everywhere
La la la la I wouldn't care
And we'll stay away from crowds
With signs that say no friends allowed
Oh we...we'd be so happy to be...
We...we'd be so happy to be together

But dreams are nothing more than wishes
And a wish's just a dream you wish to come true
Dreams are nothing more than wishes
(Your wish will come true)
And a wish's just a dream (Your wish will come true)
You wish to come true (Your wish will come true)

This one's for you Jack.

Love, Momma

Book One, Chapter Two

2008-12-06T07:37:00.000-08:00

Well it was a pretty short night. Only about 3 hours sleep.

I thought having my own 'handmade' business would be fun. Right now it is a LOT of work.....admin kind of stuff. Not the actual fun part: designing, creating, being arts- crafty!

I did take time out this morning to make my husband a pecan pie. They are sooooo easy to do and they make him sooooo happy. Men are just sooooo easy. lol

I was so busy yesterday that I forgot to make my latte, but I have one now and it is just so creamy and warm and tasty. It's my favorite treat of the day. The best pruchase I've made recently is my Breville Cafe Roma Espresso machine (Amazon, reconditioned, $95.) After a little practice I now prefer my latte to Starbucks. At almost $5 each, I already have my $95 back. I like Dunkin Donuts coffee best. I buy whole beans and grind up three or four days worth at a time. I also love lots of foam....and I can make all I want now.

Jack , our Maltipoo, is all snuggled up in the chair with me. It's his favorite place - unless I find a mat and start working on it. I have to make time today or tomorrow to groom him. When his hair gets long enough to mat, it's too long.

Break time is over. More later.

Shari

Take only pictures...leave only footprints.

Book One - Chapter One

2008-12-05T22:16:00.000-08:00

This is my first blog.

This is my first post.

Wish me luck.

Be happy.

Next game: v MTSU, Dec 11, 7pm

GO LADY VOLS!