Wednesday, June 29, 2016

My baby boy otherwise known as a crazy little 6.6 pound dog who refuses to believe he is small except when he needs comforting and leaps into my arms.

Anyhow in the motorhome he rarely gets to hang his head out the window because I won't leave the passenger window down for him and I won't let him touch me while I am driving. Not even my thigh or calf. Certainly not my lap. He has to sit in his seat or sit on the floor between the seats but he can't touch me if I am driving.

He knows where park is on the transmission. Let me shift to park and he leaps into my lap as if we have been separated for weeks. Good grief.

Too many gate guards and toll booth operators have given him treats. If I pull up to a booth, he jubilantly lands in my lap and hangs out the window before I can scold him. It's the only exception to the "don't even think about touching me while I drive" that I have reluctantly allowed him. One time years ago, my RV was being repaired and they loaned me a car to go get lunch.

I had to take my dog with me and you can't go inside restaurants with a dog. So I went through a drive-up window for food. He thought that was coolest thing. People handing out hamburgers. Yes I got him one. The plain cheap 99 cent one with just a burger and nothing else. Poor baby had to eat something.


Recently we were riding in my friend's car. I held my silly dog out the window. He loves this. I also use his leash as a secondary safety feature. He hangs out as far as he can to feel the wind in his fur.

He is a scrawny little dog with a lot of wild fur. Nature was kind to him in a twisted way.

Life is goof.



Believing

You can't adjust conditions to meet yourself so you have to adjust yourself to meet the conditions.

 Is there a 12 step program for a serious pillow-holic?

Some days I can't get comfy, so I convert my bed to sofa or couch or desk or recliner or chair or doggy playpen. 

A few  minutes ago, I was sitting there typing. 

I have the world's softest bed. Sometimes it swallows me whole and I struggle to get out of the cocoon. 

I may arrive at the pearly gates banged up, beat up, wore out with my body a shambles, but I can say I used up all my talents as best I could. 

Life is for the living. 

I am blessed to wake up alive. 

Currently I find myself in a remote location as the ONLY camper. 

Extreme solitude. 

Life is goof. 

Thank you for stopping by!


Saturday, June 25, 2016

On the road again in search of a different camp ground to park a spell.

Harley says:
"I want a camp with trees, and a big yard and a beach and a fenced dog run and an ocean and a river and please no alligators and a bigger motorhome and more treats, especially cheese, cheese, cheese, oh and a meat ball, maybe some sausage and some of those organic doggy cookies and a few toys, not many just a teddy bear, a beach ball, a rubber ball, a pacifier, a squeaky toy, a bo-bo, and a frisbee and a golf ball, not many toys, just a few to mess about oh and a crab to play with and an audience, I love to perform cause I am a clown who belongs in the circus and and and..."


100 and Up

Detours.

My plans are real foggy. Sometimes I think angels clear the way for me to make last minute deals. I had to leave Buck Hall campground in search of a new place.

Huntington Beach at Murrells Inlet in South Carolina was booked solid. But I daydreamed and occasionally poked at their site.

Meanwhile I called another camp 200 miles way that doesn't take reservations but will at least tell you the odds of getting a spot. The odds looked good, then I inquired about the rates. Much to my shock they had gone up 50% in under a year.

Does that strike anyone as a high increase?

But it's a public park. There seems to be a trend with politicians now to price public parks out of the mainstream. Many politicians rely on the hefty revenues from campgrounds and park admissions. When they want more money they just attack the campgrounds. In this case they raised the rates 50% then shrugged their shoulders.

Take it or leave it.

Most (maybe all?) politicians are heavily paid well beyond what the minions and pissants make. Frankly the politicians don't care one bit. They are so out of touch with reality they have no idea what life is really like for the rest of society.

If politicians were a volunteer job where you only made the bare minimum wage as a token of our appreciation, the world would be a far better place. Life would be more affordable and accommodating. Maybe the lawmakers wouldn't have time to dream up some of the ridiculous laws and fees they put on the books.

Huntington Beach State Park is no bargain, but the bicycle riding around the area is awesome with many dedicated paved bicycle paths that are seldom used. As a bonus, many are in shady forests and rides by beatific marshlands. Birds, alligators, deer, turtles, ducks, are there for the eye candy as is foliage in a rainbow of colors.

Somebody cancelled at Huntington Beach and my friend who was due to depart for the great white north, decided to splurge on the 3 day availability and camp with me a bit longer.

So here we are.

The heat wave has made it very difficult for me to get to the beach. It's a long walk. The sand is way too fluffy for me to plow my bicycle across. So last night at sunset, we walked to the beach.

The dog was ecstatic. Even though we forgot his beach ball, he quickly found a crab to play chase. We laughed at him chasing the crab, running from the crab, sneaking back up on the crab and occasionally barking at it. Finally the crab fast and furious dug a hole and vanished. Harley tried to dig him up but to no avail.

Free entertainment.

The sound of crashing waves, the warm water upon bare feet, the endless ocean view, the sand crabs and a silly doggy playing chase.

Life is goof.

Outside thermometer stuck on my kitchen window.


Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 




Friday, June 24, 2016

A Basket of Shrimp

Today...

 I went bike riding with a friend at 7:30 am. It took nearly 45 minutes to arrive at the seafood shop.

We intended to buy fresh shrimp. 

Since I had to go inside I removed the dog from his front bicycle basket then tied him up up to their porch railing. 

Looking bewildered, Harley dog climbed up into their rocking chair outside so he could have a better glimpse through the window what we were up to inside. 

When I handed over a hand woven basket lined with a flimsy garbage bag and asked for some ice for the shrimp purchase, the fishmonger looked askance at my basket and said "THIS is your cooler?"

Nantucket Cisco Rear Bicycle Pannier Basket w/Hooks by Nantucket Bike Basket Co.
Nantucket Pannier

 
I said well the dog and I came by bicycle and that's the rear basket for carrying it home.
 
"You brought a dog?"
 
"Yes. He rode in the front basket. He's the little mutt outside sitting in your rocking chair."

And...

I wonder why I get such strange stares from people. 

Life is goof. 




 

 

Wednesday, June 22, 2016

Looking Like A Man Now

Polyester itch.

It's plagued me all my life. I thought polyester clothes went out with leisure suits in the 70's. But this past year I've been in a few stores searching for clothing and so much of it was 100% polyester or polyester blends.

I can't wear them without spending my days and nights scratching away my skin. One place I workamped as a volunteer was pretty upset that I wouldn't wear their 100% polyester uniforms. But I felt like I was trapped in a hot itchy oven the few minutes I tried them on. I guess my polyester itch had not suddenly gone away.

Finding pure cotton can be hard indeed. Sometimes I can get away with 95% cotton and 5% spandex but on a humid day even that might give me a rash.

Good grief.

Rayon seems to work for me, no idea why but rayon is manufactured from naturally occurring polymers, it is considered a semi-synthetic fiber. Of course one in awhile some rayon labeled fabric turns up from overseas and one can tell right away that it's not real rayon.

Last year I was walking out of a store empty handed when the man shopping with me said "Did you see the V-neck T-shirts in the men's department? They are the tunic length you desire, 100% cotton and V-neck too.

Well, I now wear 2 men's T-shirts from that shopping expedition, one in chili red and the other in teal. It's scary when men's clothes fit better than women's.

Recently I was rounding up RV parts and had to traipse through the women's department sale items on my way to hardware. Funny how that happens.

I was disgusted with the women's sale items. A beautiful T-shirt dress that was heavily reduced was 60% polyester. No can do. Not for me. I searched all the sale items and walked away empty handed. Well, that was  easy on the budget!

On my way out of the women's section, I slammed on brakes at the men's section. This 100% rayon shirt was on sale drastically reduced. I tried it on and it fit beautifully. I like the longer "tunic" length. The sleeves were loose and fell almost to my elbow. The collar could be opened up to a decent V without my body parts hanging out the wrong way. (Use your imagination!) The rayon was a nice tight but breathable weave and the colors of the shirt were a happy Caribbean summer theme.

Oh sure the buttons are on the wrong side but what the heck. It accidentally fell into my cart and followed me home.


So if you don't recognize me lately, it's because I've been shopping in the men's wear for my clothing.

Even funnier... three women commented favorably on my new "on sale" shirt recently. Were they just being polite or did they genuinely like my man-blouse?

What does it say about my middle-aged body if men's clothes are starting to fit me and actually look nice?

Help me here.

If I run into a man dressed like me... what should I say to him?

Compliment his taste?

Snicker?

Ask him where he shops?

Life is goof.

Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 


Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Shuffle Down the Road

Soon I have to load up the circus and move along. My time here is up. I am unclear about my future reservations, but I have a plan. More or less.

More less than otherwise.

There is a campground I want to visit that refuses all reservations. They will allow me to call ahead and ask if there is currently any space, but they won't save any or accept any reservations. It's how they keep their office simplified.

Well whatever works for them. I can understand simplicity.

Doing more with less.

Go small, go now.

Go big, go later.

You walk in the door, you plunk down your money, that's good enough for them.

So it might be a day or two before I post. Traveling can sometimes seriously wear me down. Just shopping the other day wore me out but we had crazy weather. Sun shining, full steamy humidity. Step inside a store, step back out to full blown storm.

What's funny is that scenario was repeated several times.

At one point I was parked and making a snack because a huge storm made it impossible to drive. I had a tall bridge to cross. I didn't fancy being on the bridge in my motorhome in high winds. So I stayed put until the weather improved.

Better safe than sorry.


I am parked backwards on this camp site, but I wanted to enjoy the shade. My electric just barely reached with a few inches to spare. That's my shadow taking the picture.

Harley will be sad to go. He always is. But here he had the luxury of dragging his leash around playing with a big beach ball. Whenever he would get near the road I would yell "STOP!" and he would. He learned that years ago from me trying to take pictures while walking him.

All my pictures were coming out blurry so I started yelling "STOP!" and eventually he got the hang of it.

He is real smart.

So smart, he has a selective learning disorder.

Does't come when his name is called, but if an "audience" shows up, he goes into his full clown mode.

An audience can be one or two or more. He loves an audience to show off.

No idea where he got that notion.

Harley reads old yeller

Harley loves to read a good book, but he hasn't learned how to hold the book and turn the pages. He needs help with that. Here he is reading "Old Yeller".

Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 

Monday, June 20, 2016

Summer Solstice and Full Moon

Wow!

For the first time since June 20, 1948, the summer solstice and Strawberry Moon will occur on the same day. The next time to be a part of such a special occasion will be on June 21, 2062.

Mega Moon –
Tonight’s full moon will follow a low trajectory across the sky. According to the folks at NASA, low hanging moons are commonly affected by the “moon illusion,” a special phenomenon that causes the moon to look as if it’s coming to consume the earth. It’s not a guarantee, but there’s a strong possibility that you could witness one of these Mega Moons tonight.

Traditional folklore tells us that full moons are the best time for crabbing, shrimping, and clamming.

Be kind and dream big.

Recently my friend brought me 4 pounds of jumbo shrimp to steam up with some Old Bay Seasoning and lime juice. See the before and after pics below.

This was a nice diversion from beans (but I love my beans too!) It took us two days to eat that big mess of shrimp. It was melt in your mouth delicious. I made some homemade cocktail sauce to enhance the flavor.

georgetown south carolina shrimp

georgetown south carolina shrimp

I was able to out-peel my friend. When it comes to shrimp I know the secrets for speedy peeling by hand.

Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 



Saturday, June 18, 2016

Swift Storm Brings Blustery Winds


Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore. 

Was I lost in the Wizard of Oz?

I took a nap in the heat of the day because I have been getting up at 4am to get chores done in the cool of the day plus exercise on my bicycle. That afternoon I had just woke up from my nap, a bit confused. I went outside to look at the rapidly darkening sky. It was hot and super humid. Sweat was running down my forehead getting into my eyes.

Suddenly 60 mph winds came whipping through the campground. I had laundry on the clothes line which promptly took flight. My bicycle which was locked up managed to take a tumble. The container of clothes pins sailed away with the top breaking off leaving a trail of clothes pins scattered haphazardly across the campground.

Harley dog was on an outside tether. I brought him out with me when I woke up. He ran around looking confused. He didn't know whether to seek shelter with a human or to run back inside but the door was closed. He chose to hide under the motorhome looking frightened. The winds picked up even stronger. I found myself clinging to the picnic table which is a heavy immovable permanent structure. (Now I know why!)

Would I blow away?

Leaves, tree branches, twigs, small bits of garbage all flew by including a bright orange T-shirt. Was there going to be a tornado?

My outside shower stall which was tied down and staked collapsed. Two of the four tethers held fast so it couldn't leave town without putting up a fight. Which it did.

The old 9 foot market umbrella which was bolted to the picnic table took flight. It began cartwheeling away but I chased it as my friend ran over and together we fought it against the winds for about three minutes of comedy as we tried to crank it closed then we laid it on top of the collapsed shower stall while we continued to chase our belongings around. My long hair was not tied up so it swirled around me whipping my face and occasionally blocking my view.

Our camping neighbors had pulled in about an hour before and set up their outdoor accouterments. They were hastily fighting with their awning and chairs, trying to reign in their own chaos. There wasn't time to help each other, every camper was scurrying around trying to gain control of their own spreading mess that 5 minutes earlier had resembled an orderly campground.

While clinging to the picnic table in another gust that was well over 60 miles per hour, I contemplated running inside the RV or running towards the campground bathrooms. The baths are concrete. The motorhome was much closer.

Finally I made it to the door of the motorhome. As I opened it the wind ripped it out of my hand slamming it hard against the side of the RV. Harley dog bolted inside dragging his tether. I untied him then managed to go back outside fighting to close the door. Next I tried to gain control of the awning which had partially come loose and was flapping around. It was tied to filled collapsible water jugs, but one of the jugs had popped the lid and the weighty water was quickly draining out.

Somehow I managed to unhook the water from the RV, then hastily fill the water bag holding the awning down by way of straps. This brought the awning under control but a knob had vibrated loose making the frame fight with the winds. My friend scampered up on a sturdy table to tighten the overhead knob then jumped back down out of harm's way. Amazingly the open awning fortified by the weighted water bags held fine in spite of the crazy winds.

A few minutes later the gusts died down from gale force to gentle breezes. An eerie silence hit the campground as fans and air conditioners were silenced by another power outage. We've only had two this week.

We finished cleaning up the mess then plopped down for a rest under the awning. It sprinkled rain off and on blowing cool water on us. Finally we were chased indoors where it was steamy hot, so back outside we went. Even though I have a generator, we decided to wait until dark thirty to use it if need be.

I did however locate my 200 watt inverter, extension cord and found the TV cord underneath the table where it competes with numerous other cords for attention and sustenance. Switching the TV over to the little inverter meant we could watch it off the 12 volt battery. The weatherman was busy explaining what just hit us and what was on the way.

Amazingly the temperatures and humidity dropped steadily. An hour later, it was downright delightful weather.

Two hours later the power cranked back to life. By then I had most everything unplugged or turned off or both. I didn't want any sort of surge to hit my ancient fragile equipment. I love my 22 year old coffee maker though it's starting to groan and leak still it makes coffee once a day.

Most of all I love life!

We were spared.

All I am missing now is my prescription sunglasses. I had them outside before chaos set in. Well, come daylight, I shall search for them.

Life is nuts.


Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 


Friday, June 17, 2016

A Dog and His Toys

You can click to enlarge pics.
Keeping this puppy busy is not an easy chore!
He loves his toys.
The bigger the better.










Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 


Thursday, June 16, 2016

Shrimping

Shrimp boat
Georgetown, South Carolina



Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 

Tuesday, June 14, 2016

Cape Romain


Intracoastal waterway meanders through Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge in  South Carolina

From Sewee Indians to pirates, from a Confederate tower to two nineteenth-century lighthouses, Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge houses a rich history across the refuge’s maze of tidal creeks, marshes, and barrier islands off the coast of South Carolina.

I seem to collect a ton of pictures of trees. 
Mother nature provides fascinating art. 

 St. James Episcopal Church
Built 126 years ago in 1890
Significant Architectural Features:
Gothic arched windows; stained and painted glass windows with gothic arched transoms; traceried transom in gothic arched surround. Square belfry with hipped roof and cross finial. Sawn bargeboards and trim. Decorative trim at gable end and on porch. Bay projection at south elevation. Exterior brick chimney on east façade.



I am fascinated by this surreal view. Just beyond the grassy water is the Atlantic Ocean. 
That green clump is an island, possibly Raccoon Key

 I would love to explore Cape Romain, but sadly dogs are not allowed. 
There is a ferry that will let me take my bicycle and then go ride around some of the islands, but doggy would have to stay behind in the parking lot in the RV with  the generator running. Lately the heat and humidity have had record highs. 
I shall be more than content to ride my bicycle around the camp area with doggy. 

 When the fishing pier is empty, I ride my bike out to gaze at the marsh lands.

6.5 years old
6.5 pounds... of pure trouble!

Plenty of fresh water is critical for pets and humans year round and even more so in the summer. Harley dog has an inside water bowl, an outside water bowl and thanks to "product testing and review"  he earned a free silicone collapsible travel water bowl he has become quite fond of. In the past he had no trouble drinking from my personal water container, including leaving behind doggy sauce and beard fur. The new little collapsible travel bowl means a lot less doggy drool in my personal water bottle. Thank goodness for small favors!

But...

Harley dog plays so hard that he forgets to drink enough water! Recently we were out on my bicycle and stopped for a spirited game of ball. At one point I had to take the ball away from him and plop down his water, refusing to let him have his toy back until he drank his bowl dry. 

Then yesterday we were playing doggy soccer when suddenly he sat down, then fell over. Good grief. Poor little fellow had to be picked up and hand carried back to his water bowl. He wanted to race around for more play time, but the big mean old human made him go inside with the air conditioning. 

A few minutes later, he was contentedly napping. 

I never thought it would be so hard to keep one human and one doggy alive. 

Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 




Sunday, June 12, 2016

McClellanville, South Carolina


Below are some scenes from the tiny town of  McClellanville, South Carolina.

Incidentally the movie "Sophie and the Rising Sun" based on the book by the same name, was filmed there recently. You can read more about that at the Southeast Film Guide.

 The ubiquitous shrimp boat, same style in use for more than a century.
 A handsome church with moss on the northern roof.
 Many homes are built up high on stilts in case of flooding.
 Magnificent ancient live oaks with drippy Spanish moss dwarf many houses and are prevalent throughout the small town.
 Another home on stilts with a dozen doors opening to the veranda.
They just don't build them like this anymore.

Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 

Friday, June 10, 2016

Arts and Crafts

Today's trick question:
What do these objects have a common?

A light green foam floating swim noodle
A four legged walking cane 
Two flexible chopping chef mats
Scotch tape
Used Computer paper from the dump
A can of spray paint

What they have in common is... repairing a  22 year old motorhome.

Some of the old plastic frame work on the motorhome is suffering mightily from sunshine. In this case what you are looking at in the first picture is my refrigerator vents (top left) that are made of plastic. Replacing them is pricey but we figured a few coats of spray paint would protect them from the sun for a few more years. The vents were removed and painted then stuck back up. 

But then we noticed the plastic frame around the vents was suffering and of course the old color rather than the new color. 


Its too hot to turn off the fridge which has food in it. It also drains water because it's not a self defrost. Water would wreck the paint on the trim. I bought the swim noodle for another project that actually didn't involve swimming either, but it does work as temporary plumbing since it has a hollow tube inside the noodle. Jam that over the fridge drain, then prop it up on a 4 legged cane then wrap a Nite Ize gear tie around it to hold it in place, then tape around the frame with someone's discard computer paper, cover the fridge innards with the 2 chef's flexible chopping mats and now we're ready to spray paint the trim after sanding it. 



The chopping chef mats aren't used for chopping food even though that is what they are made for. I paid $1 for a package of 2. When I drive through the Blue Beacon truck wash for my semi-annual bath, I stick the chopping mat behind the fridge vents so their water spray doesn't wreck the fridge workings. After baby gets her bath, I remove them again, so the fridge can vent properly. 

So in this case, we just used the mats for overspray and to protect the fridge workings from errant paint. 

Everything does double and triple duty around here. Matter of fact beneath the fridge vent is the 2 outdoor electric sockets. We spray painted the covers too (a week or so ago) because we discovered if the plastic covers fail then the entire electrical outlets with new covers have to be replaced. So we are hoping that a few coats of paint, will add some longevity to them and protect them for a few more years against the sunshine. 


Matter of fact, that brown rug was a "found" item. We were camping on a lot in a state park and someone had flung this in the jungle. We retrieved it, washed it and well now we have a free rug. 

That 4 legged cane is about the 5th one I have owned. Good grief. I get to walking fine without it and someone needs to "borrow" it and that's the last I see of it. Then I need it again and end up having to buy another one. I went through 3 walkers that way too. But I graduated from walkers to canes and then from canes to two legs. 

Last year I had to buy another cane to use but now I am back to two legs again and no cane. But I am trying not to loan it out. I've discovered it is plenty useful around the motorhome. In this case, I used it to divert the water from the refrigerator while it was being painted. 

Actually my dear beloved angel of a friend did most of this project. We are always cobbling up something somehow to get the end result we want. 



Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 


Thursday, June 09, 2016

Non Colin

We survived tropical storm Colin. In spite of my numerous preparations, it turned out to be a non-event for this area.

Phew!

Thank goodness for small favors.

Now it's time to pack up the circus and shuffle along.


That's me in site number one. Luckily it came with a huge expanse of green grassy mowed weeds that also harbored little sharp sticky things that kept sticking into my bare feet like splinters. I had to wear shoes outside, what a shame.

It's always nice when a campground leaves some wide open spaces for breathing room rather than pack us all in like a tree-less Walmart parking lot.

Earthing or grounding is a way to walk around barefoot and discharge built up energy from electronics and electrical items.

The number one cure for sadness and depressions is *drum roll* go outside and get some fresh air and sunshine. The further from civilization... the better. If you can walk barefoot, it's a huge bonus. Did you know feet are designed to walk barefoot? It's tortuous shoes that fight with this scenario that often wreck feet. Funny how that works out.

The problem is, comfy shoes that resemble walking barefoot are often wide, flat, plain and mundane. In this modern vain society, many choose fashion over health. When you see me, I am easy to recognize, I wear comfy slip on Crocs because for me, they are lightweight, easy to slip on and off and I can walk very comfortably on all sorts of terrain as well as pedal my bicycle. I used to love Birkenstocks, but they are pricey and don't hold up well to getting wet but they were oh so comfy.

Time to pack up.

See you around the campground or down the byways and highways.



Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 

Monday, June 06, 2016

Another Tropical Storm Colin Coming My Way

First the workampers stopped by with tropical storm info, then the ranger stopped by with tropical storm Colin information. That was super service!

We survived Bonnie now we are bracing for Colin.

Sadly all my outdoor chairs, table, umbrella, crockpot, hot plate, music, dog toys, and miscellany stuff had to be picked up and packed away.

It's been drizzling rain all day. This morning we rode with a friend to the post office and bought stamps while they were mailing things off. It was a small town post office with a chatty postal worker. Harley was thrilled to go for a ride in a car. No air conditioning in the car, so we left at 9am and it was already in the high 80's.

Some folks here are camping in popups, I feel sorry for them being cramped inside with the bad weather. A couple of children were out riding their bicycles in the lighter rains.

My friend and I have been working on an easier way to mount my bicycle out back.

I found some useful gutter type stuff at the dump. Pics coming soon.

In getting ready for the storm, I topped up my water tank plus made and stored purified water for cooking and drinking. My propane tank is nearly full. My gas tank was full minus the last 120 miles I drove, so that leaves about 40 gallons for possible generator use. Well wait, it shuts off at a quarter tank, so that means maybe only 25-30 gallons available for generator. The generator uses between a third and a half gallon per hour.

My bargain sale and sometimes dented  food items are in the pantry. So I am pretty much ready for whatever happens next with this storm.






Sunday, June 05, 2016

Lost In America with the Birds

My blogs are written about places I have been, not always where I am at. This can lead to a great deal of confusion for me... and possibly for you too if you know me and you are trying to rendezvous with my crazy dog (or me, or us).

A few times I've had friends turn up at a place I was at 3-4-5-6-7-8 weeks ago, because I just now got around to writing about it.

Anyhow, if you want to know where I am or where I am going (if I even know!) then shoot me an email. There is an email link on the front page of the blog or an email link here.

I am trying to get back to writing and posting every day here, but honest to goodness, some days the internet refuses to allow me such luxury.


Yeah, I have to do the picture thing for  my email because otherwise I end up with a ton of spam from robots that read through my blog looking for my email address. Good grief. Life is so complicated.

My internet is super flaky because I am on a very cheap plan that if I ever cancel, I can not get back again.

More complications.

It works randomly, if it works at all. Occasionally I stay in a campground or RV park that has Wifi, but this is rare. Probably because of my economical budget, the camps I choose typically offer an abundance of nature and a scarcity of modern conveniences.

The past 3 winters I've spent time at a park in Florida that promises free Wifi, but it rarely ever works. I wonder why they bother providing it, why not just get rid of it and lower the rates for camping. What's the use of advertising you offer free Wifi if it never works?

Seems like in these complicated days and times businesses often offer erroneous information and blame it on the computer or the internet. I get very frustrated that many campgrounds and RV Parks refuse to update their rates to reflect the current rates. I was thinking that there used to be laws against false advertising or bait and switch techniques that seem so prevalent in today's life.

But...

I woke up alive!

I feel like the luckiest person around!

I plaster a smile on my face and try to remember to be super grateful for this miracle that started off my day. Grateful for angels, both living and spiritual. Grateful for my readers! Grateful for food in the pantry. Grateful for a little old home to call my own. So what's not to like about waking up alive? It's grand! Another day, another gift of life.

I know I belong in nature. A Cherokee soul forever. No matter where I camp, it seems two critters turn up right away. One is a red cardinal bird and the other is a green tree frog. This has been happening for years. Off and on I take pictures of them, maybe I should make it a goal to try to capture their pic in each place to see if it's the same bird and frog or different ones. I know the frogs come and go, because I have compared pictures. The cardinals are a little harder to photograph because I have a simple camera that works randomly. I end up with lots of pictures of trees and a blurry red spot or no blurry red spot because the bird left the scene faster than I could snap the picture.

Suffice it to say, I don't think it's the same cardinal bird that travels with me. But the little cardinal is always there.

Recently yet another nest was built on my motorhome. Why do birds think I am a great place to set up a nest? I don't think it was the cardinal. Whoever it was laid little tiny blue speckled eggs.

It's mind boggling.

I was heart broken to discover a nest with eggs built on my cargo carrier underneath an upside down bucket that was inside a coiled up water hose that was coiled up in an open milk crate type container strapped to the rear cargo carrier.

This was discovered the day I had to move the wheel estate to another campsite. I had been on the prior site for only 2 weeks. Amazing a bird could build a nest, lay eggs and set up home sweet home in under 2 weeks.

While I was looking for pics to show you, I had to remove not one but two daddy long legged spiders that were INSIDE my little old caravan. How does this happen? Why do so many creatures desire to live with me? Why do I have screens on all the windows if critters are just going to find a way to sneak inside anyhow?

Life is goof.

This is my rear cargo carrier. On the right is a milk crate type box I have strapped down. It's handy for keeping my water hoses inside it. I use my water hoses for connecting to city water when I am camping in places that offer up the luxury of city water. Well, it's not always city water, but that's what RV folks call that wet stuff that comes out of faucets at the camp site. Could be from a well and technically not city water. Could be country water or county water.

 On the back of my rig in the cargo carrier is this open air milk crate type box where I coil two water hoses. This bucket was sitting in the middle of the hose, but somehow became knocked crooked. Meanwhile a crafty wittle birdy built herself a magnificent nest underneath, then laid her eggs. I had no idea she was doing this!
 It looks like tree debris, but underneath is a nest and eggs. I can't seem to find that picture with the eggs that I was sure I took. I have a blurry mess where I ran outside with the camera and it fogged up, I guess from inside air conditioning to outside humidity. I thought I took some later after the camera  unfogged, but maybe not. Maybe my memory is because I meant to but did not. Good grief. Are you confused? I am bewildered.

But I had company and they got to see the precious little eggs. For 24 hours before we had to move, we debated and contemplated WHAT to do with the nest. Both of us are deep nature lovers so this problem dominated our conversations. Do we drive to the next site and hope mother bird follows us? Do we remove the nest and set it somewhere nearby hoping the bird will accept her nest and eggs in the new location even though human hands may have touched the outer edges of the nest? Will she even find the new location at all?

It was mind numbing and also very sad, because we realized that no matter what we did, we would never know the final outcome. We even discussed leaving behind the milk crate, the hose, the bucket, the nest and a big sign, asking humans to leave this pile of stuff alone until the birds hatched. But that idea was scrapped because I live on an efficient budget. I just couldn't afford to replace the items at this time, and I do at least need the water hoses and a place to haul the around when not in use. Besides, someone else might think this a pile of garbage and toss it out or the food chain may get the eggs anyhow.

We even joked that it was a shame the eggs were too small to fry. That sounds awful, but hey, most of you reading this probably eat chicken eggs.

In the end, we relocated the nest in a nearby tree, in hopes that mother bird might find it and adopt it again. If not then some lucky critter might make their own breakfast from the bounty.

I will finish this post with a goofy picture of Harley dog. It has nothing to do with anything else except Harley has amazing abilities to be comedy in motion. He certainly goes out of his way to earn his nickname MONKEY.

Always monkeying around...

Look closely at the picture. That is his sand covered leash tangled up in his fur. I don't know how he does this! He is forever mischievous. Turn away for a minute or two and turn back around and suddenly he has his leash covered in sand, wrapped around his body.

And he doesn't care.

But suffice it to say he is obeying the rules. "All dogs must be leashed."

He wears me out. I tried to give him away a few times, but within an hour folks bring him back. They can't take the nonstop chaos of life with Harley. Indeed I look at old photographs, of the vests and leashes he has accidentally destroyed or worn out from his ridiculous antics. That leash a few minutes before this picture was taken, was a brightly colored striped leash. Sure can't tell that now.


Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it. 

Saturday, June 04, 2016

Horseshoe Crabs

I am no longer at the beach, but it was sheer heaven and haven of healing. I felt at home in spite of being exhausted so much battling my body to hang on. No matter what, I managed to get to the beach every day on foot or bicycle. Once there, it felt terrific as if my pain and aches just went away. Amazing.

During the new moon, I stumbled across horseshoe crabs mating and spawning all over a remote end of the beach. The female is in front, the male in back. Sometimes there is an orgy where several males join in on the action. Meanwhile the female lays about 10,000 eggs in the sand. Horseshoe crabs also like to reproduce during the full moon.

They can actually survive out of water for quite a while if their gills are kept moist. Many bury themselves halfway into the sand to help stay moist. Horseshoe crabs have been around forever it seems, and long before horses and horse shoes. Technically they are not even part of the crab family.

They are an amazing creature. Sometimes they shed their shell and grow a new one. They love tidal pools so Hunting Island in South Carolina is an ideal spot for them to mate. The juveniles spend much of their life in the shallow waters before they are old enough to reproduce.

Sometimes they leave long swooping swirly tracks where they were chasing around mating and dancing as the tides receded.

Their tail can look ominous, especially when they are swishing around, but they are harmless. Horseshoe crabs are used in the medical industry in a complicated way. Maybe I will tackle that subject another day.

I have some fascinating videos to upload about the horseshoe crabs, but sadly that will have to wait until I have better wifi. If that day ever comes... but it might!

And of course, I've included a picture of Harley dog who simply loves the beach. Matter of fact he went into 2 days of serious depression after we left.










Thank you for stopping by. 
We woke up alive and life is goof!

Harley dog recommends it.