Day 635, Hang time



Hibiscus plantged in pots by the pool

 Today is going to be a little less busy and we started the morning off by going to brunch with good friends Dr. Nick and Ann.  The five of us all met at a great breakfast spot called Joey's on 122nd and May.  The food was out of this world and it set the ton for a day of over eating.

After breakfast, Robin, Brad and I went to TLC nusery to pick out some plants that Robin wanted and a few trees.  Several of their pine trees in the back yard need to be replaced and Robin wanted to show Brad what she had in mind.  Several hours later Brad had purchased a small forest and we loaded our plants and several bags of soil and headed home.  Luckily the trees will be delieverd and planted another day.

Robin and I spent the afternoon planting plants and amending the soil with the bags of rich black topsoil.  I pruned a huge pile of branches off several trees around the patio it really looked good.  It was nice to get the back yard and patio cleaned up, washed down and ready for summer.

At 5:30 pm we had to rundown to the art festival and pick up a painting that Robin had done with an artist as part of a local fundraiser and pick up a metal art piece that Brad had purchased.  We quickly loaded up the art pieces and then headed to dinner at a local burger joint called Tucker's, it was excellent.

We enjoyed the evening, soaked in the hot tub and made a 10 pm run for icecream.  It was a good day.

Day 634, Oklahoma Thunder NBA Playoff game

Robin and I spent the morning constructing a list of "honey do's" that I could help finish while I was here and we planned on picking up the few items that we needed to complete the list.  There are also a lot of great antique stores around Oklahoma City and I was hoping that I might be able to find something for the trailer.

Robin and I had a great day bumming around the city and we had a great time exploring new stores.  At 5:30 pm Robin's husband Brad returned from a two day Leadership program and he had just enough time to change clothes and take us all to the first game of the Oklahoma  Thunder NBA playoff against the Mavericks.  Brad's company has a suite and I felt spoiled rotten.  The energy of the game was electric and were all having a great time enjoying the game and stuffing ourselves on a wide array of decadent food.  The game was close and the Thunder kept turning the ball over.  We trailed most of the game and would catchup for brief moments.  At less than 9 seconds left in the game we pulled ahead and scored with 1 second left to win game one.  The crowd went wild and my heart was able to start beating again.

It was a great game and so much fun to be with friends.

Day 633, OKC here I come



Flying to Oklahoma



The alarm went off at 4:50 am and I was up and in the shower in a flash. My brother got up and by 5:30 am I was through security and was soon heading to OKC. My flight went from Redmond to Salt Lake City and my connection time was perfect and by the time I walked from the E concourse to B concourse I only had 5 minutes before they started boarding. The flying time to Oklahoma City was 1 hour and 50 minutes. We actually arrived 20 minutes ahead of schedule. My friend Robin met me at the airport and we headed back to Robin's home. We met up with another friend Ann and then headed downtown. There is a great art show in the park downtown. It was great to check everything out and I even managed to have homemade icecream dipped in chocolate. After, checking the art we headed for dinner at Iguana a great restaurant in old building in downtown OKC. It was nice to be back in Oklahoma.

Day 632, The Business Expo

Expo day and the Traveleze's first showing.

I was out the door at 7:30 and headed to the office. Today is going to busy but this is really a fun event. I had a lust if things to bring from home and luckily rembered everything. At 8:10 am I left the office and headed to the Expo Center where the event is being held and vendors were already showing up. Everyone needs to be set by 11 am and our luncheon starts at 11:45 am. This is our 14 th year hosting this event and we have it down to a science. The Traveleze looked great and Flyte Camp set up booth next to it showing all of there awesome work they have done over the years. The day flew by without a hitch and the breakout sessions were well attended. At 6 pm the event was over the breaking down of the event was in full swing. In always surprised how fast people can take down the display booth. We were completely out of the building by 6:30 pm. I had the Traveleze hooked up and ready to haul home. My brother from Portland was over meeting with a client and he was able to catch the last hour of the expo. He was going to be staying overnight to meet with another potential client and I was glad here was here so he can help me park the Traveleze, that and he's fun to hang out with. With the Traveleze safely parked back inside. My brother and I went out to dinner. It had been a fun day and dinner was excellent. After dinner I needed to get home and pack for my trip to Oklahoma in the morning. Anither good thing about having my brother stay the night is he could drive me to the airport at 5:15 am!

Day 631, Mid week



First pulling of the Traveleze



Today we start setting up for our Central Oregon Business Expo. We have over 45 business going to showcase their products and services. I'm really excited that this year Flyte Camp was coming and we were going to have the Traveleze there to show the quality of work they do. We spent most of the day getting the venue ready for tomorrow and around 4 pm I went to get the Traveleze. This was the Travrleze and my first towing together since I brought it home Sugust 2nd 2010. The Expo is only a few miles from my house but still this will be the first time I've taken it out on the road. I was really hoping I could get it there before the rains came. I had Charlie from my office come help me and we quickly had it hooked up to the truck and we were ready to go the short distance to the expo. About halfway there, naturally we got caught in a tiny downpour but it really didn't make the roads too wet and the trailer was fine. Luckily the rain lasted for only about 100 yards and we got to the Expo with no problems. We unhitched the Teaveleze outside the Expo, opened up the big rolling door and pulled it into the building by hand. I was able to barrow a tow dolly from my brother which really helped and is something I am going to need to invest in. With the trailer in place, we quickly set it up and made it look like we were ready to camp. The Traveleze looked awesome. It will be a fun day tomorrow and I'm excited to have Flyte Camp coming to talk about what they did to the Travrleze.

Day 630, Mow the lawn

Freshly mowed lawn

It's amazing how in Central Oregon you go from having a winter brown lawn, to full on green in a matter of a week.  Tonight I needed to mow the lawn for the second time of the season and it is clear this is going to be a weekly event from now  until fall.

I actually enjoy mowing the lawn.  I put in earphones under my ear protection and listen to music on my iPhone while riding around.  I really enjoy listening to Pandora, where I can pick the genre of the music I want to listen too and within an hour I'm done.

Let summer begin the lawn is officially green

The one bad part about mowing is the allergies it triggers, so immediately take shower following and then I go out and survey the fresh mowed lawn.  There is something very soothing and refreshing about a fresh cut lawn.

I haven't seen the red tail hawk for over a week, so I had let the chickens out into the yard while I mowed.  They were in heaven, digging and scratching in the yard.  They have been consistently laying two eggs a day, so I felt they deserved the free time.  I'm always amazed how at sunset they head back to the coop and call it a night.

Life is good in the country.

Day 629, Monday

approaching storm

After work I got in my car to drive home, hoping to beat what looked like a major storm moving in.  If I was in the mid-west I would be heading for a storm shelter but in Oregon the worst we get is heavy thunder and lightening, occasional big hail and strong winds.  However looking at the storm I was thinking this could be stronger than your average storm.

I got home to my driveway and I could the tell the storm was going to pass by and it made for an impressive back drop for some pictures in the yard.

Day 628, Yard work, Church and sandblasting

It was another spectacular morning and for the first time in the year I had slept with all the windows open in the house.  I spent the entire day yesterday playing, so I really needed to get some chores done.  I spent the morning cleaning and then headed off to church.  At church my friends 84 year old mother was singing a solo, she was awesome!  I sure I hope I have the courage to do something like that when I'm in my 80's.  After church Dough and ate at Mazatlan for lunch and then it was back home for more chores.

After nearly 2 hours of sandblasting!

I really needed to clean up the front entry of the house and racked up a wheelbarrow full of leaves and debris.  After a quick hosing off of the patio the front looked pretty good.  Thanks to the dang birds I needed to wash the windows and many spots on the front of the house.  It was starting to look like spring and the promise of summer was here.

At 3 pm I figured I had time to run back to Prineville and and sandblast a wheel for the spare tire for the 53.  I picked up the rim at the swap meet and need to paint it the color the car.  I'm not sure what the color of the car is going to be just yet, most likely Carolina Cream, but for now I'll probably just have it put in primer.  It was now close to 7 pm and Colleen invited me to stay for dinner,  barbequed ribs, yum. It was the perfect way to end the weekend.

Day 627, Spring Fling Car Show

Spring Fling Car Show April 21, 2012

The only thing I had the agenda for today was attend the 4th Annual Spring Fling Car Show.  The weather was expected to be in the 80's for the first time this year and the show was expecting to sell out event.  I got up and left the house at 7:30 am with the 53 Packard.  This is my first show with the car and I really haven't done much to it, other than polish up the chrome a little bit.  I was lucky and was parked at the top of the park on the lawn, a prime spot in my eyes.  I had really wanted to bring the Traveleze trailer and park it behind the 53, but the event organizers were concerned there wouldn't be enough room, so I left the trailer behind.  As soon as I get the hitch added to the Packard I will definitely be showing the two together.

A great old Studebaker

I entered the Packard in the "50's Stock" class and everyone gets to vote on all the different categories. They were hoping for 150 cars and as it turned out, over 210 cars signed in.  There were some pretty amazing cars and many of them with great stories.  My personal favorite was a 1946 Studebaker, that was driven to Alaska in 1949 buy the owner's father and they still have the car.  There was an excellent picture of him and the car on the Alcan Highway.  His father before his passing, wrote a book about his adventure with the car and I was able to obtain a copy.  The car is amazing and the sentimental value is priceless.

The weather was absolutely fantastic if not a bit too warm.  My friend Christian showed up, having been bitten by the old car bug badly at the Portland Swap meet.  We had a good time looking at all the cars and he sent a link of all the pictures he took to his father and brother in Denmark.  A little bit later my good friend Doug showed and we hung out around the 53 Packard.  The bright orange car was definitely an eye catcher and it was the only Packard in the show.

Best Stock 1950's

Christan and Doug both had to leave before the awards ceremony at 2:30 pm.  They had a lot of trophies to hand out covering numerous categories.  When they got to Best 50's Stock class I wasn't expecting anything, but to my surprise the bright orange Packard took 1st Place.  I was very pleased with the showing and I sent a picture of the trophy to the former owner in Seattle.  He was very pleased!

After the show I drove the Packard to Prineville to deliver some parts for the 1942 Packard that Rick is working on.  It's always fun to see Rick and see what car's he has in the yard.

Slides from 1967 of Norway

From Prineville it was back home to get ready for the monthly social at the Sons of Norway Lodge.  The monthly social is always a fun event with food and some kind of a cultural presentation.  Tonight we where having a showing of slides taken from Norway in 1967.  The color and scenery was spectacular and many of the attendees (all originally from Norway) were able to comment on each picture as to how they look today.

It was a great day.

Day 626, Friday night Art Walk.

Sample of some of the art at the Kids Art Walk

I love Friday's, who doesn't.  Tonight is the Art Walk where local students around Redmond display there art.  There is an amazing abundance of talent in the youth around here and this yearly event is a great way to show of their artistic creativity.  The event is held downtown and local merchants display the art and everyone strolls from business to business.  while looking at the art, I ended up buying a vintage Mexican pottery dish, and a CD with 40's music on it.  It was a great event with perfect weather and the weekend was straight ahead.

Day 625, Leadership Redmond

Today is Leadership Redmond and we have a full day scheduled where we meet with non-profits, service clubs and then spend half the day touring the hospital.  This is a fantastic program that I am pleased to facilitate each year.  We are down to the second to last class for this year and we will be wrapping the class up next month.

Touring the E.R.

Today's tour of the hospital is always a highlight of the program and we all wear lab coats and go behind the scenes of the hospital, going into the ER, surgery, lab, the family birthing center.  The entire experience gives you a much greater appreciation of the hospital and the amazing work they do each day.  The days agenda was packed with great speakers and by 5 pm I was ready to head home and put my feet up.

At 6:20 pm I picked a friend up at the airport and we stopped off at Mazatlan for dinner.   I had been storing his pickup while he was out of town so after dinner I took him back to the house, so he could get his truck and head home.

It was a long fun day!  I'm looking forward to a sunny Friday and weekend.  If it's sunny in the morning I'm driving the Packard!

Day 624, Mid week

The weather has been wet and spring like all week, but the forecast for the end of the week and the weekend is for sun temperatures near 80.

The first mowing of the season.

After work, the weather was actually decent and I figured I had enough daylight to get the lawn mowed for the first time this season.  I had ran the mower once in March to help suck up some pine needles and again, it fired right up.  I love my John Deere.  The lawn wasn't fully green, but the grass was growing in areas and had a very uneven look.  With a fresh mowing the lawn always looks so much better.  I really enjoy spring when everything turns green and the trees all leaf out.

With warmer weather coming I hope to get out in the yard this weekend and the flower beds all cleaned up.  Before too long I'll be planting the my garden starts in the potting shed.

Day 623, Tuesday

It was actually looking like it was going to be a nice do so I thought I would fire up the Mercedes and take it to work.  The big V12 fired up right away and everything was good.  I could tell the tires had been sitting for a while and it took a while to lose the "bump bump" flat spots.  There was a slight pull to the right and I figured I  had a low tire, which I would have checked at some point in the day.

Again, there was nothing to exciting on the agenda, except for a Business After Hours at 4:30 pm.  We had a great turnout for the event and I was there until 5:40pm.  I hadn't taken a lunch today and never had the tire checked on the car.  I figured I could catch Les Schwab Tire Center before they closed at 6 pm.  By looking at the tire you really couldn't tell it was low, but when they checked it, it was not reading at all.  I was glad I went to have it checked.

Day 622, Another Monday

After four days of cars, parts and good friends, it is a little difficult to get ready for work and another week.

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I spent the morning going through 175 emails and returning phone calls.  The good thing is it kept me busy and made the day go fast.  There was nothing too exciting on the agenda and I just focused on getting caught up.

The highlight of the day was my workout at 4:15 pm. We shifted my workout day to Monday to accommodate my trainers schedule.  I told her I could hardly walk at the swap meet after working on hamstrings and we focused on doing a lot stretching and yoga.  I have been one big knot for a week and the stretching really seemed to help.

Back at home I was anxious to put my two new purchases in the trailer, the toaster and the towel bar.  I bought screws at Lowe's to hang the bar and after a little polishing on the toaster it was ready too.  I hung the towel bar easily and it look great.  It might not be exactly 100% period correct, but I think it is close and if I ever find something I like better I can always change it out.

Day 621, Sunday and another swap meet is over

Jon's truck trailer loaded and heading for home.

Today the Swap Meet opens an hour later so I got to sleep in an extra 45 minutes which was very nice.  We got to our booth and about 7:15 am and were ready for the last day.

Jon and I talked about this being 20 years that we have been coming to the swap meet together.  He and Richard have been coming for over 30.  I enjoy this event so much and it truly is one of the highlights of the year for me.  I so enjoy the getting to be with my friends and have the chance to talk about cars for 4 days.  It really is a high point in my year.

Driving home and a look at Mt. Washington.

I had time to walk around a little bit more and look one last time for something I couldn't live without.  I did discover a very simple towel bar that I thought would work in the Traveleze above the sink, so I bought it for $3.  It was my big purchase for the day.

At 1 pm the swap meet was officially over and 30 minutes later Jon and I had his truck and trailer loaded and we were on the road.  The drive home was beautiful and the weather conditions were whole lot better than we came over on Thursday.

3 and half hours later Jon and were home.  I helped Jon unload his truck and 66 Buick before he took me home.

I was exhausted and ready to be home, but honestly I would turn around and do it all over again if I could.

Day 620, Saturday at the Swap meet

Christian in front of 66 Volvo and me in front of 65 Mustang.

This morning we set the alarm for 4:45 am, so Christian would have a little more time.  Yesterday was just a little too rushed for his liking.  We all meet up for breakfast at 5:30 am and caught the hotel shuttle over to the swap meet a little after 6 am.  The meet opened up at 7 am and the fun started all over.

Christian and quickly set out see what new cars came in today.  Two of the cars that caught Christian and my attention were a 1966 Volvo and a 1965 Mustang.  Christian being born in 66 and from Scandinavia and I being born in 1965 in the US, we couldn't help but feel like these two cars were kind of like us.  It was interesting seeing them side by side and we snapped a picture.

At 10 am a small group of us went over the swap meet at Portland International Raceway about half a mile away.  There was so much to see the raceway it took us about 4 hours to walk the entire track.  It was just so much fun I was enjoying every minute.  There were so many cars I wished I had a bigger garage, so I could several home.

About half way around the track I found the coolest late 40's art deco toaster for the trailer.  I tried to talk the guy down $10 off his asking price but could only get him down $5, so I bought it for $35.  It had the neatest shape and design and it even still had the original braided electrical cord.  I was happy with my purchase and then I realized I had to carry it all the way back to our booth and then back to the hotel.  Oh well, it will make for a good memory.

A great little trailer.

Back at the Swap Meet, Christian and I went to meet the Packard guy from Seattle were I get all my Packard parts.  He had brought me a wheel for the 53 Packard to replace the missing spare tire.  He also had several other small pieces that I needed and with a swipe of my credit card I was set to go with my treasures.

There was also one very neat late 50's trailer at the show which I had to go see.  It was a nice little trailer, with modern appliances and it was drawing a lot of attention.  The price was $22,500 which was substantially less than what I have in the Traveleze, but my trailer was a lot more authentic to 1950, which is what I was going for.  Still, this was a spectacular little trailer and the people were enjoying it.

The Swap Meet closed at 5 pm and we all headed back to the Hotel.  Christian had to head home, so he packed up and got ready to hit the road.  It was said to have him leave, we were all having so much fun with him at his first swap meet. 

We all had pizza in one of the rooms and watched the NASCAR race; you really can't get much more American than that. 

Good Times.

Day 619, First full day at the Swap

Christian checking out a 49 Kaiser Vagabond the first hatchback.

The alarm was set for 5 am and we were set to meet up at 5:30 am for breakfast.  I am not a morning person and can't eat that early, but I was up and ready to go.  It was a bit of a struggle to get going, but after an ham and cheese omelet and large OJ at Elmer's the morning didn't seem to bad.

The Swap Meet opened for vendors at 6 am and we were there shortly there after.  Christian and helped get Jon's booth set up and then we took off looking at all the cars and stuff.  There is so much to see we spent several hours just.  I think Christian was in awe of all the cars and neat things to look at.  We both felt like kids in a candy store and even in our 40's, the amazement of it all had us wide eyed. There were so many cars to look at.  This was a giant learning curve for Christian being from Denmark and see cars that he had never seen or heard of.

We check in with Jon and Richard and the rest of the gang throughout the day.  At 5 pm the Swap Meet closed and we secured our booth for the night and we all headed back to the hotel.  We had reservations for 17 of us at Elmer's for diner at 7 pm.  This is a crazy group and we had the best time, talking, laughing and sharing stories about all the things we saw at the swap. 

It was an awesome day and we were all beat and ready for bed.  We all needed a good night sleep so we could get up early and start all over again tomorrow.

Day 618, Portland Swap Meet

Today we head to the Portland Swap Meet. My buddy Christian and I headed over to Jon's at 7am. Jon had the 66 Buick Skylark GS strapped to the trailer and we were ready to roll.

The mountain pass was snowy and the road was packed snow and well cindered. We got stuck behind snow plows but it was actually a good place to be. The travel time to Portland is normaly 3 hours but we were running a little late and it took us an extra half hour to make the trip. We quickly stopped off at the hotel and dropped off Christian's truck and headed to the Expo to set up out vendor space.

This is my 20th year coming to the Jon has been coming for over 30. This was Christian's first swap meet, so we were calling him a Swap Meet Virgin.

After setting everything up Christian and I were off to look at thousands of cars and parts. This is my happiest time of the year, I'm like a kid in a candy store and Christian was taken in every bit of it.

After the meet closed for the day the gang all met up at the hotel and headed to dinner. There were 17 of us for dinner. It was a perfect way to end the day, good food, friends and lots of talk about car parts.

Day 617, Wednesday

Today I had my workout at 4:15 pm and we focused on legs my hamstrings were so tight they were killing me. I knew that tomorrow I would barely be able to walk. I managed to finish the workout and hobble to the truck.

After the workout I headed to the grocery store to stock up on supplies for my trip to the Portland Swap Meet. This event is one of the highlights to my year. I'm not sure what it is but spending 4 days looking at car parts is just is just plan fun.

Following the grocery store supply run I went over to my friend Jon's house house to drop off the food and to help load his 66 Buick Gand Sport that he will be taking to the meet. Naturally it started to pour rain and we decided to wait and strap the car down tomorrow.

I went home to pack and would be back Jon's at 7 am with my friend Christian to hit the Swap Meet.

Day 616, Tuesday the 10th of April

Spring 2012

It was a nice spring day, a little hazy, but the temperature was in the 60's, so I can't complain.  It is nice to have the lawn starting to turn green and the daffodils up.  Central Oregon is always behind the rest of the state when it comes to Spring time, but everything is starting to bloom.

I didn't have anything new for the Packard or for the Traveleze.  I did call Rick in Prineville, to see if the new parts for the 42 Packard made a difference in the overdrive transmission.  He said the parts where in, but he had not had a chance to test drive the car to see if everything was working properly. I'm not really in a rush, but it would be nice to bring the defective parts back to the Packard parts guy at the Portland this weekend.

With everything starting to act like spring, it was a great day.

Day 615, New sleeping bags

I have had my eye on a sleeping bag at Fred Meyer's that is all cotton with red and black plaid flannel inside for a long time and today I noticed they were 25% off.  They have a vintage look and I wanted one for the trailer.  I think it will be the perfect thing to have for when I make the dinette area into a bed.  I ran over to Fred's on my lunch and I decided to buy two (I have no idea where I am going to keep them in the trailer).  They come in a great carrying bag, but the bags do not look like something from the 50's so they will have to go.

After my quick trip into Fred's I ran home for lunch and it was pretty warm, so I thought I would drive the Packard back to the office.    They have all wanted to see the car but it hasn't been warm enough to really get it out and drive.  I think the car met with approval by all and the hood ornament scored high points.

Day 614, Happy Easter

56 BMW Isetta, under restoration.

There is something about a good night sleep and waking up feeling refreshed that just sets the tone for the entire day.  It was so nice to spend time with old friends yesterday and now today is Easter.

There are only two days a year when you have to worry about getting to church on time, Christmas and Easter.  I texted my friend Doug and said I would pick him up earlier than normal today so we could get a seat.  I still only got there 5 minutes early, but there was plenty of parking and we had no problem getting our usual spot.  Many people don't go to church because they think they are going to get a lot of religious preaching, when what I get out of it is how to deal with life and how to be a better human being.  The words of forgiveness, grace and mercy are seldom used or perceived these days.  Anyway, it was a great service, and after Church, Doug and stopped our favorite after church lunch spot, Fiesta Mazatlan Mexican restaurant. 

A small patch welded in the floor of the Isetta

I dropped Doug off at home and headed home to putter around the  house for a bit, before heading off to Prineville to see Rick and to drop off some parts for the 42 Packard.  Rick was working on one of his latest project a 56 BMW Isetta.  He was doing some rust repair patching holes in the floor.  I would love to learn how to completely restore a car and I took not mental notes on how he did his spot welding.  I have done some welding but not wire fed spot welding. It looks fun, and I'm sure I could get the hang of it.  It was amazing to see how thin and light weight the Isetta was and Rick could easily move the car body around with not wheels.

After a couple hours hanging out with Rick I headed home.  It had been a fun day and a relaxing weekend.

Day 613, A sunny day

Pear tree staked up

Wow, I woke up to sunshine and moderately warm temperatures.  I had lot to get done today, so I was up by 8 am vacuumed, dusted, watered the plants, wound the clocks, fed the chickens (collected one egg) and cleaned up the kitchen.  Tonight we are celebrating the birthday of a good friend and a bunch of us are going to dinner and then coming back here to hang out and enjoy the rest of the evening.  By 10 am I had the place looking presentable enough for company.

The big project I needed to get done out in the yard was staking up a pear tree.  During all the wind we have been having one of the trees started to lean  over.  It is a well established tree but the roots do not seem to go very deep and the tree wants to fall over.  I had staked it last year when the same thing happened, but now it needs a second stake to hole it up.
 

The church kiosk my brother and I built.

At 11 am I went down town in the 53 Packard to check on the big Easter Egg Hunt that the City was hosting.  We had loaned them use of our Church kiosk as a back drop, some AstroTurf and our sound system.  I figured if I got there at the end I could help pick up and return our sound system, so they wouldn't have to worry about it.  They had an excellent turnout and a lot of families.   Lots of little kids wanted to see the Packard.  The bright orange seem to fit in perfectly with all the bright Easter colors.

I drove the car over to my brother's house to drop off Easter cards to my nephews.  My brothers neighbor is a big car nut and is in the process of restoring a 1950 Oldsmobile with lots of custom features.  He immediately say the car and came out to have a look.  We had a very fun conversation about cars and I got to see his Oldsmobile.  He loved the Packard and said if I ever wanted to sell it, he would be interested and he tossed out a number signifcantly higher than what I paid for the car.  I said no, but it did make stop and think to be sure.

Cracked window

I had a little time in the afternoon to clean up the garage a bit.  I know everyone wants to see the trailer and garage needed a little tidying up.  I then noticed that one of the widow panes was cracked.  I had latched the window on the inside and it was obviously too tight and put pressure on the glass and cracked it.  I sent a note to Justin and he was not happy.  I think it was just some of the new parts we had made need a little adjusting and everything will be fine.  I guess these windows are a major pain to replace, but oh well.  I was a little bummed about the window, but there was nothing that can be done and I quickly got over it.

Birthday dinner was scheduled for 6 pm at Mazatlan Mexican restaurant, which is always good.  We had great food and we left feeling stuffed.  Next stop was my place for more snacking, birthday brownies and lots of laughs.  It has been a long time since we had all hung out together and many of us our friendship goes back to college days.  It was a fun time!

Day 612, It FRIDAY

I think everyone was looking forward to the weekend.  It hadn't been a difficult week, but for some reason it seemed like a long one.  We were feeling the drain of eating way too much sugar from all the Easter candy, but that part was fun.  The Easter toys were a success and I think it made the week more fun.

Tonight at home I had no plans other than putting my feet up.  I put fresh clean sheets on the bed and I was already looking forward to just laying in bed tomorrow morning.

Day 611, Thursday Uneventful

The  best part about Thursday is the anticipation for Friday and the coming weekend. I only had one meeting on the schedule and that was at noon in Bend.  To make the office a little more fun today I had bought windup Easter bunnies that poop jelly beans for everyone and flying bunny airplanes that launch with a rubber band, it should make for an interesting day.

The Chickens laid one brown egg and I let them out to run around the yard for about an hour before it got dark.  I haven't seen the hawk for a few days, so maybe he's moved on for the season.

Day 610, Snow

A cold April morning

I woke up at 6 am, and looked out the window to discover snow!  It was a typical spring snow, but I am rapidly getting tired of winter.  I am so ready for summer or at least spring like weather.

I had three back to back meetings, starting at 7:15 am at the Hospital, an 8:30 am meeting at the Fire Department and then a 10 am meeting at Crooked River Ranch.  The meetings made the morning fly by and before I knew the day was over and I was heading to my workout.  I was not feeling like I had a bunch of energy to workout, but I managed to get through the hour.

54 Anderson

On my way home I stopped off at Flyte Camp to see what they were working on.  They are making great progress on the 54 Anderson and it will be awesome when they are finished with it.

Day 609, Tuesday

Aluminum tumblers

It was an uneventful day.  I got home after work and had a package at my front door.  This should be the last thing I ordered on eBay for the trailer, a set of vintage multicolored aluminum drinking tumblers.  I remember drinking from tumblers like this when I was kid and I thought they would be perfect for the trailer.  They were described on eBay, as mid-century Bascal aluminum tumblers, but I think they are probably newer.  Still they look great and they will be fun to have in the Traveleze.

I would really like to find a vintage canvas tent to pitch next to the trailer when I take it out to camp.  I have seen a few on eBay but they want around $300 and it seems like I should be able to find one for less money.

The chickens laid 2 eggs today.

Day 608, Monday

Half clean whitewall

It was nice to wake up to sunshine and no wind.  The work day was pretty typical and with the warmer temperatures we decided to take down the the Christmas lights from the trees around the office.  We had left them up to help promote the ice skating rink next to us, but now that the ice rink has closed for the season it was time for them to come down. It took two of us an hour to get the lights down and put away, far less than the amount of time it took to put them up.

Office covered with candy

After work I went home and with the sunshine I really wanted to pull the Packard out.  The big whitewalls had gotten dirty driving to Prineville and this was a perfect time to scrub them up.  I also needed gas and I figured I should fill up before it spikes even higher. It was a good excuse anyway to get the car out.  I also wanted to buy Easter decorations and candy for the office.  Every year I cover the office and all the desks with candy.  Its a nice way to celebrate with office and have a little fun at work.

Day 607, Drive home

I had a great time in Portland, albeit short, but now it was time to head home.  I left Portland at 10 am, to head to Salem.  I had offered to pick up a friends daughter in Salem, who had been visiting her Aunt and Uncle over spring break.  I was going to be going through Salem on my way home and this would save them the trip and a ton of gas.  I arrived exactly at 11 am, the time arrange and after a quick fill up on gas at Costco and we were off.

The weather was raining hard and the drive was fairly uneventful.  When we got to the pass it was snowing and the line of traffic heading in the other directions was staggering.  It was several miles of bumper to bumper traffic, but there was nothing in our lane head back to Central Oregon.  I was so thankful not to have to be dealing with that mess.

I dropped off my friends daughter and headed to Costco for a little shopping.  I was so impressed with the green lawns in Portland I picked up 2 bags of lawn fertilizer in an effort to maybe speed up my lawn turning green.

Back home I got unpacked and I went out to wash my truck.  Even though it was snowing lightly, I wanted my trucked cleaned.  My truck was covered in red cinder dirt from the trip and I wanted the abrasive grime off before it damaged the finish.  I nearly froze to death, well at least my hands did, but I got the truck cleaned up and put away. 

I was glad to be home.

Day 606, snow a wedding and birthday party

Snow on March 31, 2012

Today I get to drive to Portland for a wedding of a good friend and for my nieces 9th birthday party.  The first thing I needed to do was get the oil changed in my truck before I drive the 400 mile round trip.  I got up and headed into Bend and for the oil change.  I expected the oil change to take only a few minutes, but they discovered that my battery had a bad cell.  $152 later I was out of there with a new battery and my oil changed.

As I headed home it started to really snow.  It had been spitting flakes all day, but I was getting a littler nervous about driving over the mountain if it was going to be this bad here.  Had several more errands to run in town and I was ready to hit the road by 11 am.

Trees flowering in front of the church

Luckily the snow let up and by the time I hit the mountain passes it was mostly rain.  I made it to Portland at 2:30 pm and had plenty of time to check out the neighborhood around the church in the Sellwood district of Portland.  Everything was in bloom.  The lawns were green, the flowers were all blooming and the flowering trees were spectacular. The wedding was very nice and it was fun to see my friend so happy. 

Following the wedding it was off to Red Robbin for my nieces 9th birthday.  There is nothing like going to a kids restaurant with 5 kids under the age of 5.  I think my ears rang for several hours.  The volume in the restaurant was amazing and I asked the waitress  how she handled the noise, she replied "what?!"  She said it's nothing compared to when a Justin Bieber concert is in town, then it's really loud.  Yikes, remind me never to have that experience.  The main point was my niece had a great time.