Day 363, Sunday and chores

I can see the floor of my closet again.

After a fun day out on the lake it was now time to get busy and get a few chores done around house.  Starting with the inside of the house, I woke up at 7am, but fell back to sleep and woke up at 8:05am.  I felt like I hadn't slept at all, when in reality I had overslept.  I had to snap myself out of it, so I drank my protein shake and truned on the Dave Koz radio program and started with cleaning the kitchen.  I scrubbed the floors, wiped down the stainless appliances, cleaned the counters, scrubbed the sink, washed the inside of the kitchen window and emptied the trash.  Next I watered the plants, dusted the furniture cleaned out my closet/laundry room.  I don't know why, but I had three laundry soap jugs sitting on top of the washer.  I ironed 14 shirts, and 4 pairs of pants, and emptied all the trash cans in the house.  My final inside chore was to vacuumed the entire house.  When I was all done the house looked great and now I was ready for the outside.

First on the list was wash the truck from yesterdays kayaking outing to Sparks Lake.   The road back into Sparks is long and dusty and I managed to smash a few bugs on the drive as well, so the truck looked bad.

The 10' junper tree tied back up and pruned

Once the truck was washed I went to the Big R, which is a huge ranch supply store to buy 3 t-post.  I needed to tie the juniper tree back up that was flattened in the snow storm again, and the pear tree by the chicken coop also need a little support too.  I got back to the  house with the t-post and tied a rope to the tree and then my truck and pulled the sucker back into place.  I tied it to the t-post which I had pounded into place and then let the pressure off with the truck.  The tree went back over and took the post with it.  I put the truck in 'drive' and this time pulled it past straight up and with my loppers I pruned off all the big branches way back.  This time when I let the pressure off it stayed up right.  It doesn't look horrible, but it's not as nice as used to be.  I figured this would do, and if it doesn't live I'll cut it down.  It's just a juniper and I'm allergic to them anyway.

I spent all day in the yard working on small projects and I even started cleaning out the garage.  It was a great day and I enjoyed just puttering in the yard and getting a few things done around the house that have been driving me nuts.

Flowers in the backyard and Harris

At 5pm I went to my folks house and we went out for Mexican.  It was a perfect weekend. 

As the sun started to set I spent a few moments walking around the yard and checking things out.  Everything was looking pretty good and I was pleased with my progress for the day.  Next weekend I have another list of chores that I want to get done and hopefully I it will be equally as productive.

Day 362, Kayaking with friends at Sparks

What a great summer night for sleeping.  I had all the windows open last night and the temperature dipped down into the high 40's.  I had clean sheets on the bed and I had a great night sleep.  This morning around 9:40pm I was going to pick up my friend Doug, his kayak, (I had my kayak and Amy Jo's as an extra) then over to Tracy's to pick her up and her kayak.  Once all loaded I needed gas and then we were meeting Wanda, Conan and their daughter with their canoe.  It's almost exactly 45 miles to Sparks Lake, but it is well worth the drive. 

I had just been here with Amy Jo on Tuesday, but the lake is big enough and has enough interesting things to see that I was still excited to go again.  There are about 12 lakes on the Cascades Scenic Highway, but this is my favorite.

Part of the group on Sparks Lake

Once we got there, we quickly unloaded the boats from the vehicles, loaded up the snacks and water, sprayed everyone with sun screen and we were set.  With Amy Jo's kayak we had just the right amount of boats.  Wanda had not kayaked before, so she was eager to try one out and she took to it like a duck to water.  We spent about 3 hours paddling around the lake and the many fingers and water ways.  I could have paddled all day, but 3 hours is plenty and the sun was starting to cook us.

By the time we got home I think everyone was ready for a nap.  I dropped Doug off and then headed home, unloaded the boats and then crashed on the couch for about 30 minutes.

At 4pm I got cleaned up and went to the airport to redeem a Delta Airlines gift certificate and buy a ticket to see my friends Robin and Brad in September.  It takes about 10 minutes to get to the airport, but to my surprise the Delta counter closes out at 4pm and I had just missed them.  The agent said I should come back tomorrow at around 2pm, which I said I would.  My reservation was good until Sunday July 31, so I was not too worried.

Day 361, It's Friday and the weekend is almost here

The sun has been shining all week and today is supposed to be 90! I couldn't help but be in a great mood.  The work day was busy which made it go quick.  At noon my friend Amy Jo stopped in and asked if I was free for lunch, which I was.  She was on her way back to Portland, but wanted to grab a bite before driving over the mountain.  It was so great to see her this week and to hear about all the changes in her life.

The rest of the afternoon went extremely quick and before too long we were closing up the doors to the office and starting the weekend.

I ran home to mow my lawn, which I actually enjoy and I finished up just after 7pm.  Tracy and I had talked about going to see a movie and I wanted to see Cowboys and Aliens.  Tracy wasn't so sure about that, but when I said Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig were in it she said okay.  I got on my iPhone and checked out Fandango, but for some reason I miss read the time and thought it said 8pm, which was perfect.  It turns out I was looking at the wrong theater in the neighboring town of Sisters.  We met at the theater at 8pm and found my mistake.  So instead we decided to see Crazy, Stupid, Love.  We had about 45 minutes to kill and since I hadn't eaten dinner we went to my favorite fast food place, Sonic.

Crazy Stupid Love turned out to be very entertaining and of course a happy ending.  We were both pleasantly surprised and enjoyed it.  It was a great way to start the weekend off.

Day 360, Only six days left

I bought the Traveleze trailer on August 3, 2010 and I started blogging about it's restoration.  I spent about a month working on it and cleaning up before I realized that I needed help.  I could probably pull it apart in my shop, but I would have to my cars out and that's not going to happen.  I located several guys who could help me out but I settled on Flyte Camp Vintage Trailer Restoration.  They were one busy shop, but I liked the quality of work they do, so I decided it would be worth the wait.  Well my trailer is sitting in their parking lot and hopefully sometime in August the real restoration will begin.

My Thursday was a complex series of meeting and I left at 5pm to workout at 5:30pm.  I drove to Bend and my trainer was standing outside, she had been locked out of the gym.  Luckily we were able to get the combination to the lock box and get in.  My back has been giving me fits, so we spent the time doing core work and stretches to help my back feel better.  We kept everything low impact and by the end of my time I did feel a little better.

It was nice to get home and rest my back.

Day 359, Wednesday Concert in the park

The big excitement for today is the concert in the park tonight.  From 6pm to 7:30pm tonight is the Music on the Green concert and the performers are the "Noteables', which is a swing band.  At 10:30am we went down to the park the park and set up the tent and the weather was perfect and was supposed to stay this way all day. By 5pm the park was already hopping and by 6:30pm the park was packed with what estimated to be around 1,800 to 2,000 people.  The High Desert Model A's had 5 cars on display the kids area was packed with all kinds of things for kids to do including a 30' rock climbing wall.

The Noteables is an 18 member band, made up of mostly retired individuals.  The music was a flash back to the big band era and the audience was definitely from the era, but there were lots of young families there too.  There were 9 food vendors and numerous craft venders there as well.

The concert was very good and by 8:35pm we had the tent packed up and unloaded back at the office an was heading home. 

I had just enough time to let the chickens out to enjoy the fading moments of daylight and then they were back in the coop for the night.  The broody hen was still sitting on her eggs and they should hatch in about a week.

Day 358, Kayaking at Sparks

I got up as usual and headed work for an hour.  My good friend Amy Jo was coming to town and she wanted to know if I could play hooky and go kayaking.  I haven't seen Amy in nearly 8 months, so I was happy to have an excuse to take a day off and spend time with her.

Kayaking one of the fingers of Sparks Lake

One of my favorite lakes is Sparks Lake up near Mt Bachelor and that's where we decided to go.  This is the first time I have gotten my kayak all summer and it's nearly August.  I was surprised on the drive to the lake that there were patches of snow still on the side of the road.  This was a testament to the amount of snow that we had this winter and to just how cool our spring has been.  I still had my Forest Park pass that was good until the end of the month so I didn't have to buy one, but I did have to buy the new Oregon Tax for all boats over 10' for Invasive species.  This $7 tax per boat is to pay for someone to inspect your boat to make sure that snails are not stuck to the bottom.  Really? How stupid do they think people are.  This is a tax, for the sake of creating bigger government with no possible chance of actually taxing those who might have a snail stuck to their boat.  Kayaks are fast and smooth and you don't leave your kayak in the water when you are not using it.  Anyway, this ridiculous tax pays someones job to do nothing.  We got to the lake, no snail inspectors, and no parking fee forms were in the box (luckily I had my pass).

Amy Jo and I had a great day out on the lake and  it was nice to spend time with her again.  She has had lots of things going on in her life, including possibly moving to Phoenix for a job and getting married in October.

After the Lake we were invited to have dinner with a friend who we used to both work out with at a gym in Redmond. It has been nearly 5 months since I had seen them, so I was happy to have the opportunity to meet up.  Again, it was great to catch up with old friends and learn whats new with everyone.

It was a great day!

Day 357, Monday and magically appearing chickens

Another work week and the last week of July.  It's hard to believe July is almost over and August is just around the corner.

Mysterious appearing chicken

The work day seemed pretty normal and then I looked outside the window in our front lawn there was a ceramic chicken on the lawn.  I started to laugh and wondered who's it was.  After a few minutes it was still there, so I went outside to investigate.  There were all kinds of people walking around, but there was no around the chicken and then I realized there were two chickens.  I went back inside and my office was surprised there was another ceramic chicken in our yard.  We thought for sure someone was playing a trick, especially since I have chickens.  We had no idea who put them there and after an hour, with the chickens out in the yard, we decided to pick them up and bring them inside.  I even called the Police Department to see if any merchants had reported wondering chickens, which they hadn't.

Tomorrow I plan on taking the day off and going kayaking with a friend, so I switched my workout date to today.  My back was acting a little tight and while on our run it popped and felt much better.  I really need to visit a chiropractor and have them give me an adjustment.

Following my workout I stopped off at Flyte Camp Vintage Trailer Restorations to see how the progress was coming on the 64 Shasta.  The little Shasta was looking amazing.  I am so impressed with the work that they do, that I can't help get excited for the Traveleze.  I keep reminding myself that good things come to those who wait and I'm willing to wait for the amazing work that these guys do.

1953 Chevy 2 door Sport Coupe and Air Stream

I made it home around 6:30pm and I had not let the chickens out all day, so opened the door and they flew the coop.Mamma hen is still sitting on the hatching eggs but the cracked egg broken and the egg was gone. Chickens eat eggs!

As the sun was setting I was thinking about vintage trailers and snapped a few pictures of a toy car and air stream that I had.  With my cell phone camera I'm able to take some amazing pictures that look real.

Day 356, Sunday yard work.

Trimming the low hanging branches

I really had nothing on the agenda, other than doing some yard work.  For some reason I slept horrible and kept waking up, with weird dreams, so I got off to a slow start.

I washed my truck, pulled weeds, hosed the chicken poop off the deck, bought a mouse trap for the chicken coop, gas for the lawn mower and I got more flowers to replace the ones at the front steps which were ripped out by the chickens.  The chicken poop and their constant digging is becoming a problem which needs to be controlled.  I think I am going to have to build them a bigger pen and confine them to that space.

My last project for the day was pruning the big tree at the front of the house.  The branches were starting to hang too low and if I have to duck, then its time to prune.  It only took a few minutes to lop off the low hanging branches and instantly I created a huge pile that needed to be hauled to the back pasture.

For the most part it had been a lazy day.  The sun was starting to set and I was starving.  I thought it would be fun to take the Packard out and go get a burger at Sonic.  There is nothing better than a lazy summer evening drive in a convertible.

Sunset on July 24, 2011

It was the end of the weekend and tomorrow is another week, the last week of July and we will be into August, where does the time go?

Day 355, Saturday 10 days until it's been one year

It's hard to believe that there is only 10 days left until it's been one year since I started this blog.  One of ramblings full of typos, run-ons, and bad grammar and covering everything from the Traveleze, chickens, work, travel and just the routine life of a middle aged guy.  I'm sure the next 10 days will go fast and we'll be back to August 3, the day I bought the 1950 Traveleze.  There is little to report on the trailer.  It's still sitting in the parking lot of the restoration shop; it will probably be mid August before its turn comes up.  I've talked to the owner of the shop about maybe just buying something already done, but the fact is I want the Traveleze.  I've waited a year and even if this summer is over before I get trailer at least I'll have it and  I'll have something to look forward to next year.

As for my Saturday, I wanted to pick up a load of lava rock in my truck and take them out to my parents house to build a small low level rock wall underneath the siding that hides the underside of the deck.  It looks weird  having the space between the ground and siding so I figure this would look good and take care of the problem. Tracy offered to help me load the rock and help me out and I wasn't going to say no to help.  The rocks were easy to pick up and load into the truck and it took about 15 minutes to load the truck each time.  It took three truck loads of rock and 4 hours to finish the project.  It really wasn't to difficult of a project, but the sun was really hot.  I wasn't about to complain of the heat, even though I was dripping sweat and had to keep drying off my glasses.

Hatching eggs from Louisiana

When we were all done it looked great and there wasn't a huge gap between the ground and the siding any more.  For their thanks, my folks offered to take us out to dinner.  We had a few hours to rest up before dinner so I took Tracy back to my house so she could get her car.  I stopped at my mail box when we got to my house house, and my hatching eggs had arrived.  They were mailed from Louisiana and I was interested to open them up and see how they did.  They were packed great, but one of the eggs had cracked. I figure if I get 3 out of 4, I will be happy.   Tracy and took the eggs out to the broody hen, removed the three eggs she was sitting on and replaced them with the 4 eggs, cracked one too and she didn't flinch.

Dinner was 6pm and we went to Crave.  The food was excellent, the patio seating was awesome and we all had a great time.

It was a great summer day.

Day 354, Friday Night and Captian America

Friday is beautiful no matter what and today the weather was turning out awesome and it was going to be in the high 80's.  I am so ready for some summer sun and some heat.  It's hard to believe that most of the country is enduring extreme heat, we have only had a few days in the 80's and 90's.

 

After work I ran home and mowed the lawn.  I got home about 5:30pm and by the time I jumped on the lawn mower it was 6pm.  I had just enough time mow and get cleaned up before needing to pick up Tracy to go see the  movie Captain America.  The movie starts at 7:40pm and I picked Tracy up at 7:20pm.  We knew were going to be a little late, but they always play about 20 minutes of previews, so we were not too concerned.  Since it was nice out I decided to take the Rolls, the car needs to be driven or literally will start to have problems.

We got a great parking spot and by the time we got the theater it was 8:05pm and the movie had just started, our timing was perfect.  I love the WWII era, so the move was right up my alley.  The movie was kind of a blind between 1940's and Buck Rogers.  Even at $10 per person Tracy and I both thought the movie was entertaining and we had great time.

We ended our evening by stopping of at WalMart to do a little shopping.  Now that's a great way to end a day and start your weekend.

Day 353, Thursday working out and the Sons of Norway

The sun was shining bright and early but it was a little cool with the low around 42 and yes it's July 21!  I took the big Cadillac out of the garage and took some pictures of it in the driveway.  A gentleman in Omaha wanted actual pictures mailed to him saying he was interested in the car.  I  really doubt he is going to buy the car, but I took some pictures and sent them to a Walgreen's in Omaha for $2.20.

It was my workout day, so I got to the gym at 4:15pm and we went for a run along the river covering about 3 miles.  My trainer pushes me and we ran at a faster pace than I usual do, and up hill.  I kind of have to hate her, as she wasn't even breathing hard and could carry on a full conversation while running.  I'm much better than I used to be, but I have to speak in between gasp for air.

The sunset July 21, 2011

Following my workout at 5:15pm was the Sons of Norway Building Committee meeting and got there about 5 minutes late which was perfect and it's only about 2 blocks from the gym.  The meeting lasted about an hour and we had a good discussion about the kitchen expansion we want to do and possibly looking at another building.  The good thing about the Lodge is it is growing and eventually we will grow out of current building (I think we already have).

I got home around 8pm and there were a few stormy looking clouds in the sky and it was a bit cool.  At 9pm I remember to drag the trash can down the long driveway and the sunset was pretty amazing.  It was the perfect ending to a nice day.

Day 352, Wednesday and the sun is out.

You wouldn't think that on July 20th we would actually be hoping it will be sunny and warm.  It's finally sunny but it's not that warm and especially not for July.

The backyard looking nice and green.

Work was the usual with a business after  hours from 4:30pm to 5:30pm and following the event I was going to go to Bend as a guest of Tracy and SunWest Builder's for their 'Alive at Five' concert series.  I got home a little later than I had hoped, changed clothes and we headed to Bend.

The were several hundred people there and the weather was perfect.  The singer was folksy with rock and had been likened to Bonnie Raitt, which I just didn't hear.  It was fun to see the people enjoying the weather and the awesome location right on the Deschutes River at the Old Mill District.  Tracy and left about 8pm to run an errand that she wanted to do and I was back home by 9pm.

The chickens were still out in the yard but quickly headed for the coop when the sunlight started to diminish. It was a fun evening and I was able to open the windows in the house without freezing just before I went to bed.

Day 351, Traveleze is still sitting in the parking lot untouched.

Today I stopped off to see the Traveleze and to see if it was any closer to getting worked on.  When I pulled in there were other trailers inside being worked on, and the 64 Shasta that had been completely dismantled, was starting to take shape.  They had gotten most of the interior back in and the walls were remounted on the trailer frame.  I estimated it would be at least another 2 to 3 weeks.  I was told that mine will get in after that, so we are looking at mid August.  I couldn't help but feel disappointed and I really wondered if I should just forget restoring the trailer and selling it.  I could buy a trailer for a lot less than I will spend on restoring the little canned ham.  In today's economy it might be a wise move and I can save the money for other projects around the house.  I know the trailer is in good hands and I can't think of a better place to have it restored, but I'm starting to lose my interest if it brings me feelings of disappointment.  It make me sad to see it sitting outside in the rain, knowing that it leaks, when it could be at home undercover.  At the least, I need to get it back home and keep it protected.  I obviously need to make a decision.

By evening, the weather was starting to clear and there was a hope that the sunshine might actually return, however, the temperature was dropping and it is supposed to be in the low 40's tonight.  I closed all the windows in the house and actually thought about turning on the furnace, but I refused.

Day 350, Rainy Monday

The excitement of the Rally is over.  I work through the weekend and now it's Monday morning and it gray and raining.  The temperature last night was in 40's and it had the look and feel of Fall.  Even my cats had no interest in going outside but I kicked them out anyway and I drove to work.

I had a lot of work to do, filled with heaping portion of drama, which always makes for a fun day.  Luckily the day went pretty quick and I was on my way home at 5:20pm.  I got home and let the chickens out.  They had laid 3 eggs and brooding hen was still sitting in the nest trying to hatch infertile eggs.  I know I can snap her out of it if I isolate her from the others, but i just haven't gotten around to it.  I decided I could buy a few hatching eggs off eBay and I'll slip them under her and let her hatch them.  I order 4 eggs for $4 and they should be here within the week.  It will be fun to see if this works and if the hen feels she has done her motherly duties.

It was a wet day and started raining again in the evening and it was an all around depressing night.  With the Bachelorette  the lonely thing on TV, I turned the TV off and went to bed.

Day 349, The last day of the Rally

I was back up and the Rally by 9am and stayed until 12:00pm when the information area was closed.  The Rally was in its last few hours and would soon be over. 

I did have a chance to walk around and look at some of the vendors and the many display coaches and trailers.  I couldn't help but think about my 1950 Traveleze and wonder if I would get back before summer is over.  The more I want to have it done the further off it seems to get.  I'm trying not to be disappointed, but I can't  help it; I put down a large amount of money, well over a month ago to start the restoration process and it's gotten nowhere.  It was one year ago that I was in Louisville, Kentucky and got bitten by the vintage trailer bug and I'm fast approaching the one year mark since I purchased the 1950 Traveleze (August 2).  I just need to be patient the Traveleze's time will come.

It took me about 20 minutes to box up and load the car.   I left a few state maps and a few plastic bags (which were very popular) in case anyone came in looking for them.   I unloaded the brochures back at the office and headed for home around 1pm. 

I really needed to mow my lawn and figured now was my chance.  I changed quickly and jumped on the mower.  The sky had that look of possible rain, so I wanted to get this done.  I mowed the lawn and the rain held off.  I then pulled weeds for several hours, getting the yard back into shape and looking pretty good.  One of my WalMart purchases the night before was garden fertilizer, so walked around the garden and spread out two bags of the stuff hoping it will boost the stunted growth.

It has been a long week and weekend and I'm beat.  I had dinner with my folks and was back home around 9pm.  I locked the chickens up for the night and went inside.  I'm hoping I can take some time off this week and re-cooperate.

Day 348, Herman's Hermits

I was at the Rally by 8:45am to man the booth and restock the brochures and to  handout the bus passes for the 9am shuttle.  This was also the second day of the shuttle and we put 18 people on the first bus, 21 on the second and another 18 on the third bus.  This was the first time we working with our new bus transit system and it worked pretty good.

Today is also the day that we had a FAM tour scheduled with Group Meeting Planners from around the country.  They would be arriving at 11:30am to take a tour of the Expo property and to see the facility.  We thought it would be fun to show the facility with a large event like the Rally happening, to give them an idea of just how big an event be.  There were about 40 Tour Planners on the tour and they were impressed with what they saw.  We only had 40 minutes to show them the property before putting them back on the bus to take them to Eagle Crest for lunch and a tour of this great golf, resort property.

I was done by 1:30pm and had a few hours to myself before needing to be back at the Expo at 5:30pm.

At 5:30pm Tracy, my brother, my sister-in-law and her niece joined me at the Rally to be witnesses and time keepers for the Rally's attempt at breaking the Guinness Book of World Records for the most number of people "high fiving" at once.  The record was 1,790 and we were there to help them record this attempt.  At 6:30pm they brought the clickers from the gates and totaled them up and we had 1,798 people.  We were brought on the stage and introduced to the crowd and after a couple practice runs we broke the Guinness Book record.

Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits put on a
fantastic show!

Following the momentous event Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits was going to perform.  I was called back to his bus to meet him and give some background on the area.  It was a pleasure to meet him and the band.  I could help but think of what an amazing life this guy has lived.  Teenaged girls of the 60's fell at this guys feet and he had countless #1 hits and 20, top 20 hits.  He really is an amazing guy, and was very gracious. 

The concert was absolutely entertaining and you couldn't help but have a smile on your face.  Tracy didn't have a clue of who he was, but as soon as she heard him sing, she recognized his songs; There's A Kind Of Hush, I'm Into Something Good, Mrs. Brown You've Got A Lovely Daughter, I'm Henry The 8th I Am and others.  Tracy was smiling the entire time and even my brother was smiling, you just couldn't help it.  The concert lasted about 2 hours and Tracy and I were both very happy we saw the show, and from the front row no less.

Following the concert I was starving so we drove to Sonic and I got a burger and Tracy had diet Cherry Lime aid and then to top off the evening we shopping at WalMart!

Day 347, It's Friday

Today is the first day we are offering a shuttle bus downtown and I had to hand out passes at 9am, 10am, 11am and noon.  We had a little difficulty getting the bus started but once we did the schedule worked pretty good and the Rally people were very happy. 

The information table was extremely busy all day and we had great volunteers helping us out throughout the week and without them it would have been very difficult to have pulled it off.  The excitement at the Rally today was the fact that Vince Gill was flying in to sing tonight and everyone was extremely excited about having him here.

They always say time flies when you are having fun and before I know it was 5pm and I was done.  I didn't not have to be at the Rally for anything, so I was able to schedule going to the movies with my friends at 7pm.  I figured I had time to go home and mow the lawn, but as I got home the skies started to look like they might open up and pour rain.  I was exhausted so I thought I might just lay down for a moment before jumping on the mower.  The next thing I knew, I was awoken by the sound of thunder and rain pouring down outside.  My lawn was going to have to wait, but I immediately thought about the Vince Gill concert.

The rain only lasted about 40 minutes and the concert was only delayed an hour, but many of the Rally-goers got soaked and decided to skip the concert.

At 7pm I joined my friends, Wanda, Conan and Tracy at the theater to see 'Bad Bosses'.  The movie was very funny, but it did have some pretty strong sexual language and the older couple in front of us got up and left.

It was a fun way to start the weekend, even if I did have to work Saturday and Sunday.

Day 346, Thursday and more Rally

Its another full day of the Rally and we are handing out brochures and giving directions to the many great attractions of the area as fast as we can.  This is an amazing event and the attendance is at 3091 which is a pretty good number.

I spent most of the morning at the Expo Center and made several trips between there and the office to replenish brochures and to sign time sheets.  I got a call that my car was ready to be picked up after having new shocks put on the rear and the right rear window regulator and motor replaced.  I had my co-worker drop me off at my mechanic's when he was heading for his shift at the Rally and I drove straight to the Rally to help out during the afternoon.

I was able to sneak away at 4pm and keep my workout schedule with my Mom.  I've learned that working out is not a luxury, but really a necessity in order to keep my back in one piece and despite how busy my schedule might be, I have to workout.

At the gym, my trainer had me go for a short 2 mile run and then spend the rest of the time working on shoulders, arms an stretching.  My Mom worked on several balance exercises as well as doing lunges and other hip and leg routines.  By the end of the hour we were both beat.

On the drive home we did a little shopping at Costco and we both stocked up on some supplies.

When I got home I took time to wash the Mercedes and my Truck.  Today is the first day that I have all my cars at home in 9 month.  When I finished washing the truck I drove to my folks for a barbecue.

Day 345, The Rally and the concert.

Today started off looking a lot more promising than yesterday and the weather forecast was for no rain.  I felt a huge relief, as this will be our second concert tonight out of six and yesterday they were saying rain.

Work was busy manning the information table and running back to the office to set up the tent for the concert and then back out to the rally.  The Good Sam Rally is one amazing event and they are hoping for 3,500 participants, in every form of RV, from motor coaches, fifth-wheels, and trailers.  It's our job to man the information booth and answer any questions they might have.  I actually love this part of the job and really enjoy meeting the people and learning where they are from.  Before I knew it was 4pm and they were closing the information hall down and it was time for me to head back to the office and get ready for the concert.

The concert starts at 6pm and I headed down at 5:05pm, to help out where ever I was needed. The weather was sunny with a slight breeze and I was just glad it wasn't raining.  The parked was packed and I would estimate about 1,500 people were in attendance.  The concerts last an hour and half and by 7:30pm it was starting to getting cool.  The crowd cleared out pretty quickly and by the time the band broke down their equipment, it was 8:30pm and it took us about 15 minutes to take the tent down and load everything in my truck.  Once back at the office it took even less time to unload my truck and I was  on my way home by 9pm.  I had my nephew and his two buddies in my truck and I dropped them off on my way home.  They had a really good time at the concert and were now going to hangout all night, oh to be young and not have to work.

I was glad to be home and t here was just enough light to check on the chickens and clean up the mess they made at the front steps to the house  I gave them fresh water and feed and closed them in for the night.  The egg count for the day was 3, which was not very impressive.

It  had been one long day.

Day 344, One busy day.

With forecast for rain and a busy day ahead of me, I kind of had to drag my butt out of bed.  The RV Rally is in town, it's a Board meeting day, I have a Dr. appointment at 2:15 and a workout in the afternoon.

The one thing about a full day is there is no time to think and before you know it is over.  I manned the information table at the Rally in the morning where an estimated 1000 coaches were expected to arrive and then ran back to the office at noon for the Board meeting.  The Board meeting was packed and lasted an hour.  My Dr. appoint was pretty routine with my usual "Stay out of the sun" lecture, which is not going to happen.  My workout was fine and I stopped off at the Central Oregon Visitor Association to pick up their brochure for the rally.  I dropped off the brochures around 6pm, and finally went to get gas in my truck which had been on empty for two days.  It took 25.5 gallons...it's a 25 gallon tank!  From there it was over to Tracy's to pick up a gallon of milk that she had bought for house guests that didn't get consumed and then home.

Moon on July 12, 2011, 9pm.

The stormy forecast did lead to a few sprinkles and cooler temperatures but the evening turned out fine.  I spent the evening hours pruning a tree, pulling weeds and cleaning up the yard.  Around 9pm the moon came up and it was near full.  It was beautiful and a perfect way to end the day.

Day 343, Monday.

This is going to be a busy week.  It was one year ago, that I went to Louisville, Kentucky to attend the Good Sam Rally and encourage the attendees to come to Redmond.  Well, now here it is one year later and the Good Same Rally is scheduled for July 14-17 here in Redmond at the Deschutes County Fair and Expo.  The Louisville, KY rally is were I got the trailer bug and saw my first Spartanette.

I spent most of my day working on our business plan, another sizeable chunk working on Leadership Redmond paper work and sometime out at the Expo working on the Rally.  At 4pm I had a Leadership meeting that ran to 5:30pm and then I drove my pickup clear full of brochures out to the Expo to set up our information table.  By the time I got the truck unloaded and the booth set up it was 6:40pm an got home at 6:50pm.  I was really tired, it had been a long day and my brain was ready for a nap.

The dash of my truck

After 20 minutes of laying down I was ready to get a few things done.  I checked my emails and realized I had 23 emails since last Friday.  One of them was lead from AutoTrader and someone  had made an inquiry about my truck.  They asked for a picture of the dash, so I took one and sent it off.  I quickly got a response backing asking if the truck has bluetooth, which it does not, so I replied and assume it will be the last I hear from him.

It was nice evening and I had I had a 4 egg omolet for dinner and toast with freezer jam from my Sister-in-law Jen.  She makes killer jam and I could just take a spoon and eat it. 

Day 342, Sunday and a beautiful drive home.

Again, I slept like a rock, this was two days in a row, so I felt great.  We had breakfast on the patio and we watched the many birds fly around the yard and take their morning bath in the bird bath.

My brother and family were going to go to chuch and needed to leave by 10:30am, so I was out the door about 10:15am. 

It had been a long time since I was last in Portland and one of my favorite spots to shop is NW 23rd.  I drove over to this quaint district and parked the car.  My friend Robin had lived in this area about 15 years ago and we shop the many unique stores that line NW 23rd.  On of my favorite stores is Restoration Hardware and I walked the store looking at what was new for the summer season.  After an hour or two I was back in the car and drove around downtown and just checked out the activity of the city.

Heading up and over Mt. Hood

I decided to change my root home and drove up Hwy 84 to Hood River.  I stopped and got gas, and walked around a bit and enjoyed the small town.  From there it was over Hwy 35 through the famous Hood River orchards and wine country and right next to Mt Hood.  The drive was spectacular, and the car was performing flawlessly.  I was in awe of how pretty the mountain was and how fun it was to be in a convertible.

When I arrived home, I unloaded the car and then gave the car a bath, washing off the many bugs that I flattened along the drive.

It had been a fun weekend.

Day 341, Drive to Portland

I slept like a rock and got out of bed at 7:50am.  I had gone to bed at 10:45pm, so I was shocked that I slept that much, but man did it feel good.  Today I'm going to drive to Portland to see my friends Robin and Brad, and my brother and his family.  I also want to stop off in Salem to look at a 49 Pontiac that might work great for pulling my trailer.

1949 Pontiac, Streamliner

I left the house at 9am and figured I would arrive in Salem at 11:30am, which I did exactly.  The Pontiac was parked in the driveway it look great.  The couple who own the car are Norwegian and we hit off great.  They also have a house in Southern California very close to my folks.  It was hard to keep the subject on the car as we kept talking about being Norwegian and the similaries between our families.  I took the car for a spin and it drove pretty good with it's automatic transmision shifting a little rough.  1949 was the first year for automatic tramisions in Pontiacs.  After about an hour and half chatting I said I would make a few calls and get back to them about the car but would surely see them down in California.

It was a beautiful day and was driving the BMW with the top down all the way to Portland.  I called Robin and they were out running around so I said I would meet them for dinner at her sisters house and I would go spend some time with my brother and his family. 

My plan was to drive over and back in the day, but my brother offered a place to stay, which I knew I was welcome.  I was starting feel that my visit with Robin and her family would go later than I expected and that driving home would not be a good idea. 

My visit with Robin, Brad, her Mom, sister, brother-in-law and good friends Mike and Marlene was very fun.  We looked at all of our Ireland pictures and the even flew by, and before I knew it, it was 9:30pm.  Robin and Brad had to catch a 5am flight back to Oklahoma City the next morning, so they headed back to their hotel and I headed to my brother and sister-in-law Jem's house across town.

It took me exactly 30 minutes to get across town and they had cleared room for me to park my car inside the garage.  We watched the fourth movie of Harry Potter, which I hadn't seen and Jen had picked up a cake at the market.  The cake was killer!

Day 340 It's Friday

I went to work and we had our usual Friday morning Coffee Clatter event and afterwords I took the Mercedes over to get the Rolls. After 8 months I was getting my car back and dropping one off one for it's turn at getting serviced. I love cars and buy them dirt cheap which usually means they have been neglected some of necessary service to keep them in like new shape. For the most part I've bought pretty good cars, which haven't needed lots of attention and I've been able to enjoy them and then sell them slight profit when I'm ready to let them go.

Friday was crazy at work, as people were flocking to town for the big Sisters Quilt Show. There was also an art event across the street where the city's art commission was dedicating 5 new public art pieces.

The art event was at 5pm to 8pm so went over after work to watch the art dedications and the artist talk about their pieces. There was a very small turnout but the art is fantastic and really gives the community a sense of cultural happening and purpose.

I headed for home after the dedications and got changes to mow my lawn. The lawn takes and hour and then I washed the Rolls and scrubbed the white wall tires that had yellowed a bit over the last 8 months in the shop. One of the first things I did with the Rolls when I bought three years ago was put née tires on it. Finding white wall tires now a days is nexe to impossible. I grew up in a time when nearly all cars had white walls and now it's a rarity only for big old sedans; it kind of makes me feel old when I stop and think about it. Anyway, the best thing to clean whitewalls with is an SOS soap pad it makes them as white as new.

With Rolls clean and the sun setting I was hungry so what better thing would there be to do than to take the car out for a spin and go to Sonic.

Day 339 Thursday

They weather has been consistently beautiful but last night was actually a bit too cool to leave all the windows and doors open.

At work I got a car that the Rolls was put back together and after 8 months of being in the shop I could come get it. The disappointing part was that cruise control still doesn't work and now the 'Air Bag' light is on. They dint know how to fix it so now I will have to find someone else who might be able to fix the car. I told them I would be in tomorrow to get the car I would drop my Mercedes to have new rear shocks installed.

The rest of the day was work, gym shopping afterwords and then home. I had plenty of time for a little weed pulling.

Again not a very exciting of a day.

Day 338, Hump Day

It's already the middle of the week and there isn't much new to report. I spent the day wining on our business plan for the new fiscal year and didn't take time for a lunch.

After work I ran home and let the chickens out and enjoyed the spending some time in the yard with them. Chickens are very courious creatures and if you sit down in the middle of the lawn they want to know why you are there and cone around to check you out.

I really needed to wash the windows on the house I got out my bucket of hot Orvis water and washed all the windows on the house. Or is a commercial window washing soap and it is also used for washing horses and cows. I guess it really makes their coats shinny and as a window cleaner it leaves your windows streak free.


There really wasnt much going on today, which was nice.

Day 337, Tuesday and back to work

Starting the work week off on a Tuesday didn't seem too bad to me.  I was exhausted after painting for 3 days and sitting at my desk didn't seem like that bad of a thing to do.  I spent the day working on our Business Plan that will have to be submitted in July and collected data from a multitude of resources. Today is also a workout day so I did not take my lunch break, so I could leave early. 

My folks were in Eugene, today so my mom was available to workout so it was just me today.  My trainer had me go for a run and we ran down along the Deschutes river for 25 minutes or about 3 miles.  It was 92 degrees outside but the ran felt great.  The along the river seemed a lot cooler and I had no problem with the heat.  Back in the gym I tended to overheat, as AC never seems to keep the room cool and the air has no movement.

After my workout I stopped off at Flyte Camp Vintage Trailer Restoration and my little Traveleze is still sitting in the parking lot, untouched.  It has been a  month since it was picked up and I don't think they will get to it for at least another 2 to 3 weeks.  If they start work on it in August and it takes them a month I won't have the trailer until September.  September is actually a great time to go camping around here, but it will only leave me a month before I have to park the trailer for a long winter's nap.  The thought of winter is like like a stab in the heart, and I don't want to even think about it.  Perhaps after a nice long hot summer I might be ready for winter, but right now I don't want to think about it.

When I got home I returned to clean carpets at the carpet guy had cleaned the entire house in the morning.  With all the windows open and the outside air temperature in the 90's the carpet was dry and looked amazing.  I now had replace all the furniture and get the house back in order.

The chickens were out in the yard enjoying the last few hours of the day, they seemed to enjoy the heat.  I took my brooding hen out of the hen house and forced her to walk around, which she did.  I need to put her in separate pen with no nesting boxing and get her out of her funk.  I was happy with 4 eggs, which was most they have laid in month.

Day 336, Happy 4th of July

Putting the flags out at 6am

Today is an early morning, with the alarm set at 5:25am, I got up and headed downtown to help put up 1,100 full size flags along the streets.  The project takes about 30 people, 3 pickups, a semi-trailer and a 10' cargo trailer about an hour to put up.  Once they are all up it is pretty impressive and you can't help but have the small town all Americana feeling.

After the flags were up I had just enough time to run home and wash the Packard and get ready for the parade.  We host the 4th of July parade every year and we start registration at 8:30am.  Judging of entries is at 9am and the parade starts at 10am.  We had a just over 100 entries, which was a record and it took almost 2 hours for the parade to finish.  The police estimated that the attendance was around 8,000 people lined the streets to view the parade.  It was awesome.

I was back home by 1pm and started painting on the window trim.  I painted for several hours and until it was time to head back downtown and take the flags back up. We pick the flags up at 4pm, so people have time to go to family BBQ's and get ready for the big fireworks show at the Fairgrounds.

Again, I was back home about 5:45pm and once again started painting.  I figured if I stayed at it I could be finished by sunset.  I painted and finished all the windows at a little past 9pm. By the time I got done cleaning up the paint supplies and putting stuff back, it was about time for the fireworks show.  I pulled out a chair, turned on the radio and watched both the fireworks for Redmond and Bend.

It had been a long and busy weekend.  The fireworks were done, the 4th of July had come to a close and I was pooped.

Tomorrow I'm having the carpets cleaned, so I now had to move all the furniture out of the house and off the carpet.  It took me about an hour and a half to move everything into the kitchen, into the garage and onto the deck.  With everything out of the house I then vacuumed the entire house before I could crash in a heap.

It was a great weekend and I was exhausted.

Day 335, Sunday and painting

The chicken's supervised my work

Another beautiful day and I was up and painting by 9:30.  Today it was going to just be me and all I did was paint, and paint and paint.

By 4:30 I had to quit to get cleaned up to go to a BBQ at my friends Wanda and Conon's.  I had finished all the walls and had started on the windows, but it was going to take several more hours.

Wanda and Conon had lots had food and this was my first BBQ party of the season.  It was very nice to see everyone and we play a ball toss game out in the yard, where you toss two balls tied on a string and try to get them to wrap around a bar across the yard.

It was a long day and I was ready for bed.  I had every window in the house open and I closed the garage door and went to bed.  Around 1:45am I heard some noise and woke up but couldn't find anything.  A few moments later I heard it again, so I got to look around.  I then could hear my cat meowing, which he never does.  It turns out he got closed in the garage.  He was very happy to see me and slept next to my face, with one paw on me the rest of the night.

Day 334, Time to paint the house.

I woke up at 7:45am and decided that today would be a great day to paint the house.  I got up on shorts and a t-shirt and went to the paint store to buy 5 gallons of the same color of paint on the house, but this time I was going to use a satin instead of flat.

Tracy has said she would come and for a bit, and she had made plans to go a see a friend.  We started on the hot side of the house while it was still cool and we quickly worked our way into the shade of the front of the house.  We painted for several hours and Tracy decided she would call  her friend Sue and visit  her tomorrow and continue to stay and help me paint.  I was happy to have the company and Tracy was big help with painting.

The life of a cat during the summer.

By 2:15pm it was obvious that I would need more paint and I ordered another 5 gallons.  The paint store closes at 3pm, so we jumped in the car to go get the paint.  With the paint loaded in the trunk we ran to Sonic's where I got a burger, plain with no pickle and onion, and Tracy had a diet cherry lime-aid.

Back at the house we continued painting and got all the way around the back of the house and ended with with just two walls needing to be painted tomorrow.  Tracy went home around 7:30pm and I continued painting until 9pm.  By the time I got everything cleaned up it was 10:15pm.  I was pooped and ready for a long hot shower.

Tomorrow I will finish the painting the walls and then start painting the windows and trim.  Depending on how long it takes me I might even start painting the car-barn.

Day 333, FRIDAY!

Today is Friday and that means we have our Coffee Clatter event.  I decided to take the big Cadillac so we could all fit in one car.  It's a such a big car, but its still fun to drive and reminds me of my Grandparents every time I drive it.

The office was so busy today, as people were flocking to Central Oregon for the 4th of July weekend, so the day flew by.  Immediately following work I drove home and jumped on the John Deere and mowed the lawn.  I finished at 6:15pm and then showered off the dirt and Tracy came over to go see the movie Bad Teacher. 

The movie was playing at te Old Mill Cinema and was in one of the smaller theaters, which is not a good sign for a new movie.  I love Cameron Diaz, but this movie just dragged on and wasn't funny.  Tracy and both just wished it would end so we could go.  It was a disappointment, but we still the fact that was Friday Night!

Day 332, Sons of Norway Building Committee

The sun seems to finally be out summer is here, even though it was 37 last night.  I took the convertible to work and the drive in was beautiful, even the music on the radio seem perfect.

The work day was steady and busy and I worked through work so I could go workout at 4:15pm with my Mom and afterwords I have a Sons of Norway Building Committee meeting.  I have asked my friend Doug for design and building knowledge to come help us with our kitchen expansion.  The meeting was at 5:15pm and the Lodge is on the same street as my gym.  I had my Mom drop me off after our workout and I met Doug at the Lodge. 

The meeting was long and we talked about all kinds of possibilities for the kitchen remodel and Doug and I are going to meet with the City of Bend to see if we can add onto the kitchen without having to do many additional upgrades to meet the City's requirements.  After the meeting Doug brought me home and I gave him a dozen eggs as a small token of thanks.

The Chickens had spent the afternoon out in the yard and were now back in the pen for the night.  It was another beautiful sunset and tomorrow is FRIDAY!