We're in Kobe, Japan

This adventure is well underway....  internet not reliable so what posts I'll be able to send will be brief.  

Been to Tokyo and then saw Mt Fuji...  now in Kobe...

Here we are at the entrance to Chinatown...  but yes, we are still in Japan.

Lots of computer/internet problems, but so far I haven't lost any photos or have the laptop crash.  Don't know when next I'll have internet access (and I can't access my e-mail)  but just wanted to check in with family and friends.

That's All For Today!

Wrapping up... and Starting to Pack....

I read a lot of blogs...  love'em!   There are so many different life styles out there and everyone of them just fascinates me.  I don't know how to link stuff, but Kevin and  Ruth write about their trips to exotic places....  Africa, Korea...  heck... everywhere.  Recently they posted a blog about how they packed.  I read it...  read it again....  thought about the 6 week trip we'll soon be taking...  mentally checked my wardrobe...  no way in blue blazes could I ever do this trip (or any?) with 3 pairs of underwear and a couple pairs of shorts.  Okay, they had a lot more than that, but really...  not a whole lot and most of what they have is packable, non-wrinkling, dries fast etc.  Made me realize what a clotheshorse I am.

I rationalize...  hey... we're going on a cruise...  actually 5 weeks of living on a couple of ships with all the "la ti dah" formal dinners etc.  I won't lie...  I like those formal nights.  Bill can get by with the same suit...  sure, it's Western cut but damn! he looks really good wearing that with pearl button shirts a fancy bolo tie (belonged to his Grandpa) and all.  He used to take along his cowboy boots but I'll admit that the last couple of times his black New Balance sneakers have done him good.  I don't own a dress...  but I sure can accessorize a pair of black slacks with a few different jackets, a couple of scarfs...  and yes...  those infamous pearls.  (long story...  I gave my lovely pearls to my daughter when we started RVing...  where am I gonna wear 'em?  Well, we took all the kids that could go on a cruise one year...  she wore the pearls... I kept looking at them and finally just took them back... couldn't stand it anymore...  wanted to wear the again.  Pearls need worn as they will get brittle and deteriorate ...  so I still wear them to church and sometimes other places these days.  - Donna will get them back one of these days...  but not yet.)

So...  today I started sorting clothes....  I know I have to keep the checked luggage under a certain weight...  40 lbs?  50 lbs?  must check.  Sounds like a lot but by the time everything is packed it's not an easy task.

I checkout out the itinerary today...  hadn't done this before,,  I'm pretty much content to live each day as it comes...  but would kinda like to find a geocache in each of the 6 counties we'll be visiting.  I may have to break down and buy internet service on board the ship.  It's usually very bad service, unreliable and aggravating... as well as expensive.  We'll see....  but the reality of the trip is starting to penetrate my pea brain and I have only a couple of days to get my plans together.

This isn't the only thing going on...  Bill got a notice last week that he needed to have an updated physical to renew his CDL...  Even though his driver license doesn't expire, apparently he needs an annual physical to keep it current.  Well...  he flunked the eye test.  Bill's had several eye tests since 2011 (last time his prescription was changed), but because his cataracts aren't "quite" ready for surgery, the doctors (yes, more than one) says, "Let's not change your prescription yet because you'll soon have the surgery".  His cataracts have been very slow in maturing....  as a result, his vision really hasn't been taken care of properly.  So...  last week a quickie visit to the Wal-Mart vision center...  a prescription for new glasses..  and an overnight vision center that keeps correction lenses on hand.  YES!  New Glasses!

It's amazing what a person can get done when they have to....  today... back to the place that does the CDL physicals...  and of course he passed just fine.  AND they faxed the results to the DMV so he'd meet the deadline of Oct 23rd.

And while I'm talking about last minute stuff....

What should we get in the mail but our Absentee Ballots for the "off-year" election...

First time we'll vote in Texas....  but it's something everyone should do and we'll do our part.

Let's see...  what else?

Oh, I'm sure there's something I want to run on about...  but for now...

We'll see you down the road!

That's All For Today!

Got My Fix... With All the Fixin's.....

Now you see it....

 A double-double In-N-Out burger with fries....  

It looks "doner" than it really was...  it was delicious!

Actually... two of them...  one for each of us.

Now you don't....

Only thing that's left are the wrappers and some ketchup....

Finally got my In-N-Out fix...

Bill and I eat beef 3, maybe 4 times a year...  and my annual In-N-Out is one of those occasions.  

(I also indulge in corned beef and cabbage on St. Patrick's Day...  and if we're near San Antonio, NM, a stop at Manny's Buckhorn for their green chile cheeseburger is mandatory)

That's All For Today!

Another Quiet Week....

We don't leave for Japan for 11 more days - I have my list of "to do"s but most don't need done for a week or so....  Bill got the rig all put back together...  he ordered the new Bilstein shocks and  has already installed them.  We bought the rig new from Lazy Daze in 2001...  supposedly the shocks were under warranty for life.. as long as the original owner still owns it.  A call to Lazy Daze..  actually 2 calls...  Bill quotes from the original invoice (which we carry with us)...  they pass the buck..  say to call Bilstein.  A call to Bilstein...  they say nope..  it's the maker of the motorhome's responsibility.  Whatever...  some battles just aren't worth the hassle.  We have a limited amount of time to get this stuff done and some things you just do.

We keep busy...  Bill moved THE chicken house to a different place on the property last week...

He had to take the attached "chicken run" off and flip up the side panels....  then attach the hitch...  and away it went....

He modified the original design making the attaching procedure much easier.  

After he got it set up again he lured the chickens (and guineas) into the pen with some cracked corn so they'd know where it's now located.  Didn't take long... all three hens laid their eggs in the nesting boxes right away.  

One of my favorite foods is bacon wrapped shrimp.

The H.E.B. (grocery) here sells the best bacon....  

they have at least 2 different types...  bacon encrusted with black pepper...  and my favorite, bacon coated with a Hatch (green chile) seasoning.  It's the Hatch bacon I used this time...  delicious!

Since I got my Kindle I seldom buy "real" books these days.  But I recently read a review (The Walrus Says) of this book and just had to have a hard copy...

It's kind of slow reading for me...  a whole lot to digest... but it sure gives perspective to some of the immigration/racial problems prevalent today.

Now...  for any geocachers out there...

Today is Earthcache Day!  You can get a souvenir (kind of a stamp on your geocache page) if you post an Earthcache today...

It's been about a month since this day was announced so I had plenty of time to plan ahead.

As it happens, there is an earthcache at "Big Rocks" park, about 5 miles down the road in Glen Rose.  Earthcaches don't have anything physically hidden... they require you do some research about the area usually having to do with the geology or physical makeup of an area.  These are huge limestone rocks...  in an area that was once inhabited by dinosaurs.  There are fossils embedded in the rocks here which makes for both an interesting geology and history lesson.  

Of course I wanted that souvenir and that was on my "must do" list for today.

I never did get any interior photos of our daughter's 5th wheel...  it is now parked over at Sweetwater where Victor is working and probably won't be back here until Christmas.  In answer to some comments...  I believe it is 42' long.  Also, he'll probably get a truck with dual rear wheels soon, but for now, while he doesn't plan on travelling in the mountains or other treacherous roads, he had airbags installed to help stabilize it.  

We did get 1.75" of rain a couple of nights ago...  a very welcome rain...  this area just needs a lot more.

As you can see, it's been another quiet week.

That's All For Today!

Kinda Quiet...

Life has been pretty quiet for me and Bill.  We both got our flu shots last week, and yesterday we both got pneumonia shots.  The flu shots were painless...  but those pneumonia shots hurt like the devil.  Not too painful actually getting it, but the next 24 hours have been sore and achy.  We're told we need pneumonia shots only once every 10 years, so I guess we can put up with the discomfort.

I got the stitches out of my knee yesterday...  seems there were 6 stitches, not 5 as I'd thought.  One was pretty deeply embedded.  Now I have a bunch of steri-strips holding the gap together.  Actually a lot of it has healed, but it still has a way to go.  The nurse kept telling me I was going to have a scar...  like I care?  Compared to my son and all his stitches and scars my skin is pristine ;-)  One of us has lived a rougher life, huh?

I did find a new use for "Press N Seal"....  this morning I wrapped some a few times around my knee and was able to take a shower....  the nurse suggested Saran Wrap but guess I don't have any.  Whatever...  Press N Seal works just fine.

 The big news is this...

Look at what our daughter and son-in-law just got!

Victor is in the oil and gas field and often works away from home.  Celeste recently quit her job so that she could travel some with him.  They bought this 5th wheel/toy hauler to make those times away from home more comfortable.  I'll probably post more on this later, but this rig is quite luxurious...  a fireplace, 3 TVs, and I'm not sure what all.  As I write, they are somewhere near Abilene, TX getting acquainted with the RV way of life.

Now... for the highlight of the day...

 Bill & I saw this truck when we were in Granbury today...  

It reads...

Wife Wanted...  Old Hippie Seeks virgin, redhead doctor over 17 ... OBO (or best offer?)

?'s... call J.C. 817-573-4140      No computer No Cell  No Call ID etc.  Take a Chance!

The War on Poverty is (the) only good war

I peeked over to see the driver when we were stopped at the red light...   I believe the driver had fairly long hair... maybe an earring, couldn't tell for sure...  and looked the part.  I giggled all the way home....  I have read that outdoor advertising is the way to get results....  hmmmmm.....  

Now...  y'all let me know if any of you out there answer this guy.

I guess when life is quiet you make the best with what you got.

That's All For Today!

A Round Toit...

About a hundred years ago, when I first met Bill, he had a round disc-like thing hanging on a wall in his office.  It was a "toit".  What the heck?  

He explained....  one of his daughters had made it and given it to him.  I don't know whether it was Michelle or Celeste, but it kinda sounds like a "Michelle" thing.

I never took a photo of it...  don't know if I even had a camera way back then...  but of course I had to ask...  So, Bill, what's a "toit"?  Of course by now, y'all have caught on (I was kinda slow back then)....  and sometimes when I get all wrapped up in something and I forget that I have the same 24 hours as everyone else on this earth, I don't do what I started out the day to do.

Today...  I didn't get "a round toit" to cleaning the windows.  But as I write, we are FINALLY getting some rain... great big drops and close together.  So...  I'm kinda glad I didn't clean the windows.

I didn't get "a round toit" ...  my 10,000 steps.  Darn!  My pedometer records less than 2,000 steps.  I was SURE I walked more than that!  I even found 3 geocaches today.  

Even more important was the darned shaking steering wheel....  After towing the car the 2,000 or miles so back from Maine, I noticed that the steering wheel did a spastic dance when I'd get up to 60 MPH.  Here, the speed limit is usually 70 and often 75 mph.  Yesterday I took the Scion to Discount Tire to get it balanced...  HAH!  Balanced, my foot!  I barely had enough rubber on the tires to keep it on the pavement.  Seems the steel belts were showing through the front tires and the back tires weren't much better.  These tires are about 2 years old and I'm one of those folks that expect a lot more life out of everything.  But...  at 8am I was back up for my appt to get 4 new tires.  Can you believe that by 8:30 am, I had all 4 new tires...  balanced and whatever they do...  and was on the road headed home.  Those folks sure do have their "round toit"s together!

I stopped at the UPS place on my way home.  The Gingher scissors I bought probably 30 years ago need sharpening...  and probably a new screw to hold them together.  Another little "round toit" that I've been neglecting for a LONG time.  Hey, I still have the original box they came in...  Okay, so they're dressmaking scissors and I quit making (or wearing) dresses many years ago.  Those wonderful scissors can cut up clams, they can mince herbs, they can cut off loose threads...  Hey... those have been my mainstay scissors for SO long.  About time I got "around toit" to renovate them and make them like new again.  So... off they went to North Carolina for an overhaul.

I've been knitting a sweater for my great-granddaughter, but for some reason just can't stay with it.  So....  today...  I needed a "round toit"...  but it just didn't happen.

Bill & I have been retired nearly 20 years now (retiring at 55 DOES have advantages)....  so after all these years we both recognize what's important to get done...  and what can wait until we get a "round toit".

And one other thing... I betcha that Bill still has that "round toit" in a bin that's stored in Ohio.  Maybe one of these days we'll get a "round toit" and clean that storage shed out.

That's All For Today!