My offer was declined.

They declined the offer and didn’t counter offer. They just wanted me to give them a better offer. I decided that I had already given my best offer, especially considering the amount of work and the money it would cost to make the place livable. Monday, Carolyn and I are going to go look at some more places.

Yesterday I got  myself out of here and went and got drinking water, went to the post office and then went to Salvation Army for a little retail therapy. I spent all of $3.60 and got a new tote bag, a metal candle holder for the table, a small jar to put some of my smaller rocks in and a clay garlic keeper. I did feel better. Then I went to The General Store and picked up a few groceries. I bought one smoked pork loin chop to try, and my neighbor had told me about the deep fried chicken livers, so I tried those too. Had the livers for lunch, and they were very good. Had the pork chop for dinner, it too was very good. I grilled that with a sweet potato and some asparagus.

Read a book in the afternoon. The sun peeked out off and on, but it was mostly a non solar day. Today is supposed to be very similar. I want to experiment with my solar hookups, but need real sun for that. I want to try charging my solar generator through the inverter on the big panel. Thinking I might be able to take down the two smaller ones and use the stand for the bigger panel. It should be able to handle it. I’m going to try not to use the generator today, a lot will depend on the sun, if there is any. Doesn’t look promising, but tomorrow is supposed to be a great sunny day.

Kali Cat decided to play with her mouse for about two minutes last night. That must mean she is feeling a bit better. We are almost out of meds. I think today is the last of it. I’m hoping she stays well enough until we get settled somewhere. Someplace she can stretch her legs and get some exercise.

This morning I am off to a yard sale. One of the ladies at the trade blanket is having it. She also says there is a place for sale right near her, so I want to take  a look. Besides, I have been spending way too much time here at camp this week and I am getting bored. 

After two months here, I have finally figured out and written down what channels are the major networks. Hopefully, that will reduce the clicking. Seems like every time I land on a station, I have five minutes of commercials to sit thru until I find out what is on. I hate that.

Still waiting

Yup, still waiting to hear. Starting to make me cranky. That, along with the weather, Kali Cat being sick, and the upcoming anniversary of Jake's death, I find I am fighting off a depression that is trying to creep in. We have had several days with no sun already, and not supposed to see any until Sunday. I'm hoping it makes an appearance long before then. I need my sunshine.

It will be fine. For the most part, I am not stuck inside, the sun will be back and things will go on. They always do. I will force myself to get dressed and get out of camp. Today I have to go get drinking water and go to the post office. I will find one other thing to do to make it a fun trip. Not sure what yet, but there are still so many places I haven't been. Maybe the naked guy bookstore...

I did get a shower last night, clean hair helps a lot. :) Went the whole day yesterday without firing up the generator, in spite of the fact there was no solar. But did have to fire it up this morning as everything needed charging. Mainly, even when there is sunshine, I still have to use the generator for the heaters. The nights are getting warmer and I will be needing the heaters less, so I will be using the generator less. This is a good thing. Would like to be able to go several days without using it. If there is sunshine, I should be able to without a problem.

Maybe today I will hear something. Otherwise, Monday I start looking again. It doesn't take a week to say yes or no.

Waiting game

Waiting. The agent finally got to talk to the owner late yesterday, and they didn't say no to my offer. I should know more today.

I have had people say buying here is great, and others that warn me against it. I would say the population here is largely transplants. Not sure I have met a native yet. They must like it here for a reason. Yes, there is a lot of property for sale here, some estates, some just wanting to get out. I hear the summers are absolutely miserable, and if Kali Cat is still with me by then, I will be finding that out for myself. The people that I have talked to that bought here, love it. Some are year round and some go north for the summer.

Everyone has their reasons for wanting to be here or wanting to leave. I want to draw my own conclusions. I won't know unless I try it. I am not a fan of extreme heat or extreme cold. I just left an area where I am stuck inside six months of the year because of the cold and snow. Time to try something at the other end of the spectrum.

I don't want to waste what little money I have on rent. My funds are limited, and I will get what I can afford. Hoping to find some way of generating some income without having to go to work for someone else. If I do have to get a job, it will be just a job, I'm done with career type jobs. Let someone else deal with all the issues. Do my work, collect a pay check and go home.

Yesterday was chore day. Did laundry, got gas for the generator, etc. Read in the afternoon and went to the campfire two rigs down last night.

So far, I haven't fired up the generator this morning. I will probably have to as I don't thing we will have any sun today. I will need power tonight.

Kali Cat and I are not going to the vet for a re check today. She is much improved and the experience is just way too traumatic for her and me. I will take her again when she starts having problems again. Until then, we are good. He will just tell me to continue the meds until they are gone anyway. Been there, done that already.

I don't have anything on the agenda for today. Waiting to hear from the agent, chasing down an obnoxious smell inside here. Getting a shower (which is a whole production in itself), and just hanging out. Weather is cool, and is supposed to rain. Might be a reading/napping kind of day.

A new home?

I’m going to say good morning instead of afternoon, because technically, here, it is still morning. I got up and out early this morning since it is chore day. Went to the farmers market, did laundry, got gas for the generator, post office…etc. I even remembered to bring my ipad so I could use the free wifi to download some books and get most of my 17 updates done.

Have been back an hour or so now, I think it is going to be a nice day. The sun is out, but it is still kind of hazy and humid, but also cool. Lot of humidity in the air this morning. Real fog. Water dripping everywhere.

I got some purple cauliflower, avocados, cukes, scallions, yams and brussels at the market, plus some lettuce and asparagus! I have salmon in the freezer, maybe I will have salmon and asparagus for dinner tonight. Cooking the catfish on the grill on a piece of foil worked pretty good and didn’t stink up Ody, so I will try the same thing with the salmon, and steam the asparagus in foil on the grill…or, I could try some grilled asparagus.

After looking at several places yesterday, I settled on one and made a low ball offer. The first place I looked at, we couldn’t get in to as the owner was sick and couldn’t let us in. The second one was over by Q Mountain, edging BLM land, in an HOA, was a really nice lot, completely fenced in, but the mobile home on it was made in 1969, and whoever lived there had cats. The place really stunk. Nasty. We also stopped at a park model in the same neighborhood, but it was too frilly and foo foo for me. It was furnished, and I didn’t like any of the furniture. Not a stick of it. So we decided to go the the one I inquired about originally. It is a cabin style on a half acre, basically new construction. The wiring is done, and it is partially plumbed, has a hookup outside, and has real potential. It is a nice big lot, has a shed, and is on the side of town away from the highway. 

The place is a blank slate. Can be finished any way I want to finish it, and I can live in Ody until it is habitable. Assuming I get it. I’m still waiting to hear, anxiously, I might add.

Kali Cat seems to be feeling better. Sleeping a lot, most likely the meds. But snuggles with me at night or if I lay down for a nap, and just purrs. I love to hear her purr. Tuna does the trick with antibiotics. Haven’t had any issue getting her to take them since I dissolve them in tuna juice. Tomorrow we go back to have her checked. I got the liner for the carrier washed today so it is nice and clean for tomorrow. I may line it with puppy pads tho. It is  much easier to throw one of those out than it is to clean the fuzzy pad. It was really nasty. Ugh! I wish I didn't have to take her back tomorrow. It is hard on both of us. I might not. Just keep giving her the meds until they are gone, then take her back when it recurs. 

Here are some of the pics from the place I made the offer on. It looks like a garage from the outside, but I have plans for that already. :)

I managed to make it to the post office and pick up some packages. Among those was one from family. In the box was this quilt that Linda made especially for me. It is absolutely beautiful and she had me in mind while she was making it. I can't wait to find a place to display it.

Here are a few rocks I picked up yesterday while I was looking at places. The geodes came from the place I made the offer on.

Emotionally exhausting and dreary day

Yesterday was a dark and dreary day, rained most of the day starting about 11 AM. Not a lot of rain, just enough to make it unfriendly outside. Kali Cat and I did go to the vet. It was a first come, first serve basis, we got there 18 minutes after they opened and we had to wait an hour and a half. She was the only cat there, mostly smaller yippy dogs waiting to see the vet. The vet himself…well, I am reserving judgement. Not very personable, his office was kind of a mess…but he saw her and gave her an anti inflammatory and some antibiotics. We go back Thursday so he can see her again. The whole experience was pretty unpleasant for both of us.

She seemed to be feeling better later in the day and I have cleaned out the box several times, decent amounts of urine in there, but this morning, she is acting like it hurts again. Although I just checked and it is a good sized puddle in there. She inhaled all of her food. I didn’t stop to buy cat food when we were in town, and I just wasn’t up to going back in town once we got back. I gave her some of my $1 plus solid white tuna mixed with some wetted dry food. She got the same thing for breakfast this morning. I might start mixing her food on a more regular basis, the try food is specifically for urinary issues. She doesn’t eat much of that. I need to cut back on the canned and get her eating more of the dry, so mixing it might be the best option. For now, she is getting it three times a day until her meds are gone, then it is back to twice a day. She has become pretty high maintenance in her old age, I used to just put down dry food, make sure she had water, and clean the box a couple times a week. Now I am doing it all at least twice a day.

The morning was emotionally exhausting. I didn’t know if she was coming home with me. She also had an accident in the carrier and had to sit in it until we got back, at least two hours. It smelled pretty bad, and she had it all over her. Poor baby. Hopefully Thursday’s trip will be better. Anyway, I took a nap after we got back. I had been up since 2:30 for the second or third day in a row and with the morning as it was, that was all I had the motivation for. Of course, I had one of my Jake dreams. More of a nightmare really. I hadn’t had one for quite a while. Took a long time to shake that after I got up. It was pretty much a waste of a day.

There wasn’t any sun yesterday to charge up the battery or solar generator so I had to run the generator last night. I figured since I had to run the generator that I would cook the spaghetti squash that I got in my basket a week or so ago. I didn’t have it for dinner, but it is all cooked and cleaned for today. I had ham and eggs for dinner last night. Comfort food.

Today I am going to look at at least two places. Both stick built, both out of my price range. But, I keep reminding myself that I sold a $180,000 house for $100,000 and I might be able to do the same thing from the buyers side. Won’t know unless I try. I don’t know if either of these places are worth anything, but will find out later. I’m also thinking if I do get one of these places, or even another, that I will sell both Ody and the tracker and get a cargo van or smaller RV and a car with AC. With a smaller rig, I wouldn’t have to tow, could take the scooter, and I think I could sell Ody for more than I paid for her. That would give me enough money to buy another and give me some time to find a way to make a living. My other option is to just buy a lot with hookups and then find either a 5th wheel or park model to put on the property and move into that. Older 5th wheels are fairly inexpensive, just saw one on FB this morning for 8K. I think I would still downsize Ody since my traveling would be limited to the summer months.

I am seriously considering staying here until Kali Cat decides it’s time to go. She hates traveling and I just don’t want to do that to her. I am not a traveler by nature, have enjoyed the traveling I have done, but want a place of my own with amenities…namely running water and a septic system. Electricity is nice, but not as important as the other two. :) As long as I have a generator and batteries, I would be good. So electrical service would be a bonus. It will be interesting to see how I manage with the summer heat here. I should be able to manage a few weeks without having to go out during the day. Just make sure I have plenty of ice and an air conditioner. People do live here in the summer and that is how they handle it. Stay in during the day.

Hoping today will be a much better day. At least it isn’t supposed to rain, is supposed to be partly sunny, and I will be doing something fun. I should also be able to do most of the things I didn’t get done on yesterday’s list too. Back here mid day to med KC. And I slept later this morning. Almost made it to 4:30. That in itself is an improvement.

The Desert Bar

Yesterday was an exhausting but fun day. I went with a bunch of other ladies to The Desert Bar (thedesertbar.com) on the other side of Parker. It is about 5 miles out in the desert on a very rocky road. Used to be an old mine of some sort. I haven’t read the info yet. But it was hopping! Good food, good company, and a very nice day. The sun was out and there wasn’t an excess of wind.

https://plus.google.com/photos/118406578374225960662/albums/6108436545610010465  The rest of the photos.

I had planned on going to the trade blanket, but by the time we got back, it was after four and I was exhausted. I didn’t even have to drive. But it wore me out. I fell asleep in front of the TV again last night, and you know I have to be tired to do that because I am sitting at my table and it isn’t comfortable! Of course, when you get up at 2:30 AM, it makes for a long day. Today is going to be another one of those.

I have a whole list of things to do today. One big thing is I have to buy cat food since I gave her the last of the last can this morning. I also want to try the carving class again, need to look at the schedule and see if there is going to be one today. I want to look at a couple of properties too. Both have structures on them, a little more than I want to pay, but I’m somewhat flexible if I think it is a deal.  I also want to sign up for the silver smithing class. Maybe I can figure out what I am doing wrong with my soldering, and learn something new at the same time.

If I do settle here for the majority of the year, I will either need to get a job or figure out a way to make some money. I don’t have anything left I can sell, I’m assetless. But I am working on that.

My day may have just changed. Kali Cat is sick again. Looks like we will have to try and get to the vet. Sigh...I was beginning to hope. She just peed on the floor and it is pink.

Too windy again!

I didn’t go to the blogger fest yesterday. We picked up more wind, so I just kind of hung around here all day. The sun was out and it was warmer in the afternoon, but I don’t like wind, and didn’t feel like trying to socialize in it. Besides, I think I am peopled out for a little while.

I got energetic in spurts and starts, but mostly not. I did pull the mattress and got the xmas quilt put away along with a couple pair of sheets I decided to hang on to. Remade the bed. Vacuumed, put a few things away. Then read a book. I tried to sit outside, but the wind was chilly. There was enough sunshine to run the fan inside. Plus I got to open the windows. It had been several days and needed some airing out.

Later in the day I decided it was too cold to shower outside, besides, all the walls and the shower tent were still down due to the wind, so I just washed my hair and trimmed my bangs. Feels good to have clean hair. Then I pulled the trash together, my water bottles, and went and got rid of the trash and refilled all my wash water containers including the solar shower. Maybe today if the weather cooperates I can get a shower. My hair is already washed, so I won’t need as much water.

I’m getting the feeling that the local real estate agents don’t think I am worth their time and effort. I have now been in contact with two of them, and you would think they would try to sell me something. I haven’t heard a word from either of them. I know what I am looking for doesn’t give them much in the way of a commission, but something is usually better than nothing. I’m really not a nomad, and want a place of my own, even if it is only for eight months of the year. I want to be able to spread out and setup a work shop or work room of some sort too. Plus, I want electricity and running water. Even if they didn't have anything at the moment, you would think they would keep in touch.

Tomorrow I will go look at a couple of places that are in the paper. After the big events are done. I’m thinking I will also go see if that quilt is still there. Today is supposed to be the Desert Bar jaunt, and maybe the trade blanket. Haven’t heard anything about the Desert Bar trip since last week, so I don’t know if it is still on. I need to buy cat food too. She has one can left that I will be opening tonight. I don’t like getting down that low on her food, she has become so fussy with it.

I will be happy when it gets light earlier. The sun doesn't come up here until after 7:30, and being a morning person, that isn't early enough for me. To me, if it is still dark, it is still night time. It is 7:20, and the sun is just starting to come up. And it doesn't warm up until the sun comes out.

UFO?

Not much to write about this morning. Spent most of the day right here in camp. Didn’t even take the trash to the dumpsters, although I really need to do that. I also need to get some water. Chores for this morning.

It was quite cool here all day yesterday. Sweatshirt and covered toes cool. Not a lot of sunshine for the solar either. Hoping it will warm up and be sunny today, I would really like to get a shower. TV went off early last night because there wasn’t enough sunshine to keep it going very long. Only got a couple hours out of it and most of that was news. I crashed early.

I finally dug into my jewelry stuff. Was looking for some lapis chips that I am pretty sure I had, but couldn’t find them. I did find enough lapis beads to make one flower necklace and earring set tho. Then I spent another chunk of time looking for my tools. Found them and put the most used ones in their own tool bag for easier access the next time. I also got all my new stuff put away, a couple of storage boxes labelled, and some general organization. I didn’t realize that I had gotten so much new stuff in trade. Fun.

Here is the set I made. I used the largest flower which is almost three inches across. It is lapis and silver. Matching earrings. The picture isn’t very good. It is really prettier than it looks. Also pretty basic compared to what I have seen out here. I haven’t priced it yet, it isn’t going to be cheap.

I restrung a really pretty necklace I got at the trade blanket last week as well. It is all glass beads with metal accents, but the wire was pretty loose. I added a couple of spacer beads and put new ends on it. It is much tighter now. I also gave it a clasp.

It was hard working in such a small space, and having everything packed away like that, it was also difficult to find what I needed. Definitely challenging and made things much more difficult than they should be.

Late in the day, I got the scooter out and went for a ride. Pretty much finally wore out the charge. I went across the road to Tyson Wash, rode around there for a while, then came back here and did some roads that I hadn’t done before. Tried to get the thing to die, rode it around in front of the rig a few times, but it acted like it was charging itself up, which is possible as it is supposed to charge up when you pedal, but I don’t have those installed. I have it hooked up so that when I fire up the generator, it will start to charge. Pondering solar charging and what I would have to do to do that.

Kali Cat got herself smacked and yelled at last night. Since I don’t have much in the way of counter space, I had my tortillas in a plate on the table. Had already spread the refried beans and put the cheese on them and was cooking the chicken and veggies. Well I turned around, and there she was licking the beans. At the table. A major no no. Since that used to be the bed, I think she thinks it is free territory. She walks across the table from my lap to the other bench which is hers.

Thinking some more on buying an RV lot. Seriously. Sent off an email to a guy that has several listings. We’ll see what he has. There is even one that comes with a 5th wheel, which is considerably larger than Ody and would be a nice place to live. That one is a little out of my price range, but at this point, not out of the question. I could always make a low ball offer.

I have been up since 2 this morning. I think it is going to be a nap day.

Saw a shooting star while I was out there, and I also saw some lights on the horizon that were kind of funny. Watched them for a while, they moved around a bit, and then finally disappeared. I did not have my glasses on, so who knows, maybe I finally saw a UFO.

Another cold night in the 30’s, and since I have been up so long, I got cold, and I think Kali Cat was cold too. She seemed unsettled and wandered around (as much as she can in such a small space) and has finally settled down now that I gave in and fired up the generator 15 minutes early. It was 48 degrees inside, all the way up to 56 now. Plus everything needed to be charged. She seems a little more settled. She could also be dealing with the effects of the beans, not sure how much she got or how they would affect her.

There is a blogger fest this afternoon that I am considering going to. Also considering not going. Will decide later. A shower first would be really nice and energizing. But I need sunshine and above 60 degrees for that. It might actually rain on Monday. I'm looking forward to the desert blooms, it is almost that time. 

More birds at the feeder, finches. Nothing unique and unusual. 

The Pow Wow and more wind

Was another breezy day yesterday, and just like the day before, it didn’t start until about mid day. Thankfully, it wasn’t as bad as the day before either, but again, not something to be out in.

I went to the QIA Pow Wow, walked around a couple of hours, did about two miles and took lots of pictures. Some people didn’t mind, others said no pictures. Here are the ones I uploaded yesterday afternoon.  https://plus.google.com/photos/118406578374225960662/albums/6107253452770801217

I’m thinking about going back and getting the quilt that is in one of the photos. It is at the little antique/junk shop that is next to the QIA building and it is only $50 - full size. Probably won’t be today, sometime next week after the Pow Wow is over. If it is still there. Would make a really nice addition to my collection if I ever have a place to display them. The only thing I bought yesterday was a book and some raffle tickets.

I did a little work in the screen house yesterday, but since it was windy again, didn’t get the parasail panels up. I did get the tarp down tho. That is a definite improvement. It isn’t supposed to be windy today, just a breeze, so I should be able to get things put back together.

I don’t have anything on the agenda for today. I do need to get rid of some garbage and a shower would be nice. Other than that, I’m open. I might actually have to start dealing with some of the beads I bought - like the lapis flowers. I also need to pull together some stuff for the trade blanket in case I have time to go on Sunday. Supposed to go to the Desert Bar with some other people and I don’t know if I will be back in time to do the trade blanket. 

Here is a picture of me that Charlene took on the field trip on Tuesday. I was trying to dig up a rock. :)

Here is the one from Jan 1st when we did Q Mountain too… This was after the climb and I am using this as my profile picture now.

Kali Cat seems to be fine. Just the usual complaints…"Mom doesn’t feed me. Ever!" But she seems to still be gaining some weight and is eliminated like she should be. I guess the supplements are helping. 

Was too cold and windy to cook out last night so I had the last of my pork chops with the green beans from my basket, a boiled onion and a sweet potato. The last local tangello for dessert. Was a cold night and only 48 degrees inside this morning, 38 outside. I have both heaters going trying to get warm. My fingers are still cold.

I could go to the post office today, but if there is anything there, it can wait until Monday. The Pow Wow should be over by then and less traffic. I think the big tent will be done too. I have sat in traffic  waiting about enough for one season. I do plan on going out tomorrow, but the post office won’t be open. A lot of the temporary people will have left by then. 

There are a couple of lots I want to look at the next time I am in town too. I took the paper with me yesterday, but there was way too much traffic to bother.

This week’s photo submission was this, I actually did two…the theme was frames within a frame. 

I’m actually not thrilled with either photo, but they fit the theme.

Well, guess that is about it for today. It will be a walk around here this morning. I did almost two miles again yesterday just wandering around the pow wow. I do have to say, I am getting tired of seeing rocks. It is all basically the same stuff I have been looking at for almost two months now, just in larger quantities. Time for something new. I’m on rock overload.

Wind!

Not the best of days yesterday, not the worst either. But it did start out being very productive. I had my laundry in washing, the car gassed up and my drinking water bottles filled by 8:30, and by a little after 9 had the laundry dried and folded and back in the car, packages picked up at the post office, and that pretty much wrapped up my chores. I decided it was a good time to go to the big tent. I wandered around there for a couple of hours. I had activated MapMyWalk when I got out of the car, and I did almost two miles and still didn’t see everything. But I was getting tired, so I headed back to camp.

Good thing I did, we picked up a nasty wind, and it basically took down everything in the screen house, and almost that as well. It just kept blowing, the air was full of dust, but it didn’t qualify as a dust storm. I spent the afternoon running out and checking out noises, checking on the screen house, lashing things down and relocating them. I really hate wind, especially with something as non permanent as the screen house. Ody did well, she was nose into the wind, but the screen house wasn’t as lucky. It did survive, only one small hole. I ended up using the hitch rack (it is pretty heavy) for the scooter to secure the corner that was taking the biggest hit. The line had loosened, so I used the rack and some bungees to tighten it up. I am thinking today of putting some ratchet straps on the corners of the screen house. That way if they loosen, I can just ratchet them tighter. The stakes seem to be holding just fine. I think I am also going to take down the blue plastic tarp and put up the sail cloth panels I have. Easier to roll up if there is more wind, and will also look better. 

So it was a long afternoon with the wind. Not a good time to be outside, so I was pretty much stuck inside. I spent some time on the computer processing photos. Here is the link for the uploaded ones…

https://plus.google.com/photos/118406578374225960662/albums/6106910008163512177

While I was out and about yesterday I went to one of my favorite vendors and bought some battery operated LED lights. That way I won’t be draining the house battery at night for a little bit of light. One of them was lantern style, and they only had the one red one left and I grabbed it. 

I also bought a map of Quartzsite and a small guide book at the big tent. I did get a zip up hoodie for five bucks that will go with my camo shorts. Black would have been better, but the price was right. This one is more baby poop brown.

The wind finally died down after dark last night. I don’t know if it is going to gust and blow today, so until I know, I’m not making any plans. It isn’t something you want to be out in. I don’t like wind, never have. And with the blowing fine dust, the air quality is pretty bad.

If I do go out, I want to go to the pow wow. That is about all I have on the agenda until Saturday when there is a blogger get together. Planning on going to that weather permitting. 

Desert Rose and Randy's Hamburgers

Was quite a full day yesterday. Met up with about 15 vehicles for the field trip. We were looking for Calcedony - Desert Rose. I ended up with a gallon zip lock bag full. Some really interesting pieces. I haven’t photographed or sorted them yet tho. Will get that done at some point. I may do another field trip for another stone before my time is up here. It was easy, it was fun. Here is a reference and some pics…personally, I think it is ugly, but I guess it is pretty rare.  https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.202622842548.131440.192109507548&type=1 

Firefly was pushed to her limits at times keeping up with the leader. But she managed, the soft top flapping and the rear window blowing in the wind, and probably did better on the dirt road than some of the other vehicles.

After I left there, I went to Stone Cabin. I actually drove past it thinking it was some sort of historical site or something and after about 10 miles, I saw the sign in my rear view mirror, so I turned around and headed back. I had to go thru the check point again, and they had dogs working this time. I don’t know why, but I am always nervous going thru those even tho I don’t have anything they would be interested in. Anyway, Stone Cabin turned out to be the very same place I had planned on stopping for a burger. I kept meaning to every time I went by, but didn’t. 

Got myself a burger and fries and an iced tea. Chatted with the other people there, and joked around with Randy, the owner. There was a couple there on trikes with trailers from northern Canada, and they had their puppies with them. The trikes had trunks in the front where the dogs ride. They seemed to love it. I did get pictures, but haven’t downloaded any of them yet. Randy was entertaining and the burger and fries were very good. My treat for the week.

Back to camp and a 2 hour nap. Since I hadn’t slept well, I was tired. After my nap I got a shower. I did have to heat some water, but it felt really good to get my hair washed and having a shower in general. Got re-dressed in clean clothes and headed to the Yacht Club for the RVillage meet and greet. I was disappointed, it felt all wrong, and I didn’t hang around. Now I am thinking I went to the wrong place. I didn’t see any patio. :( Sigh…I think I would have enjoyed it. I made the effort. That was half the battle. 

I ended up crashing fairly early last night because TV was horrible and I didn’t feel like doing much else. It was dark and I didn’t want to use up my battery running lights or whatever.

Huh, tried to fire up the generator this morning, it took several tries. It would grab, then bog down and shut off. After a couple of tries, I checked the hot water heater switch…it had gotten turned on somehow. Turned that off and it fired up and is running right now. That was a quick diagnosis and fix. If only they were all that easy.

Today is chore day. Laundry, post office, drinking water. I don’t have to do gas for the generator this week as I had the two small containers left that I bought last week. I transferred those yesterday afternoon. I’m thinking today might be a good day to climb Q Mountain again and get my photos. Now that I have the back pack, should be much easier hauling my cameras and tripod, etc. Mid day would be best, the sun would be overhead instead of in my way. Besides, I need the exercise. We left so early yesterday I didn’t get a walk. I did do some wandering around and a little bit of climbing, but nothing that could be construed as exercise.

I also need to spend some time with my photos and pay a couple of bills, and maybe order the hard top for the tracker, but I think I will do that this afternoon. I want to get my laundry and stuff done early before the town gets wound up for the day. Getting back to Q Mtn is going to be a pain in the ass, but if I want the photos…gotta do it. The big tent is winding down and I haven’t been there yet, so I should do that as well. If I can find a place to park. That is going to be the biggest issue. 

Well, time for me to get moving if I want to beat the rush. 

Fish out of water

Twice since I have been here I have felt like a fish out of water. Most of the time that isn’t an issue. I have been making an effort, getting out, meeting people and doing things way out of my comfort zone. Today for instance…I went on the rock club calcedony field trip. We met at 8:30 this morning and caravanned to the site. I didn’t feel out of place, people were friendly and helpful.  It didn't matter that I was alone. And since I was almost there, I decided to continue on to Stone Cabin by myself. There, I got a burger and fries, chatted with the people at other tables, and felt fine about it. Tonight, however, was a different story. I got myself showered (no easy task out here in the middle of the desert) and dressed and went to the RVillage meet and greet at the Yacht Club. There was some traffic, so there was some level of difficulty, and finding a place to park was another issue. I finally found a spot and went in. Well, immediately, I felt out of place. It was dark, packed with people. All were sitting with other people and the only person that made any attempt to talk to me thought I worked there. So I am very disappointed. I didn’t stay. 

The majority of my time here has been like this morning. Didn’t matter that I was alone. Everyone was friendly and helpful. But tonight wasn’t one of those times. I made the effort. That says a lot. It is one of those things that just hurts. I will think twice before going to another “gathering”. The other time I didn’t feel good about it was when I went out to the RTR, another gathering. Just didn’t feel right, and I didn’t stay.

I took lots of pictures today and will get some posted tomorrow. For now, I am going to relax and tell myself to get over it. So far my Q experience has been 98% positive.

UPDATE: Patio? I didn't see any patio...guess I went to the wrong place. :(

No carving class

Not much to write about today. I did get a walk, did that first thing. Then puttered around, read, until it was time to go to soapstone carving class. I left a little early, and it is a good thing I did! Traffic was literally backed up out of town past the La Posa’s, and it took quite a while to make it thru the lights. I was going to stop at K&B and see about getting some wire to make leads for the inverter, but decided to just continue on to the hardware store. It was much easier to get in and out as it was away from the traffic lights. I found what I needed there, but it cost me $41. Ouch. Then I went and gassed up the car, dealing with the traffic on the corner, for today’s field trip and off to class. Well, there wasn’t a class. The instructors were both sick, so I basically fought all that mid day traffic for nothing. I could have used the gas I have in the cans here and I could have lived without the wire another day or two. Oh well. On the positive side, the car is gassed up and I got what I needed to get the inverter hooked up.

I got the new leads made and the larger inverter hooked up. It is a 700W inverter, but still isn’t big enough for anything that produces heat. I tried my little hot pot on it, hoping that it would work. Would love to be able to use my crock pot, and I figured if I could heat water, I could use the crock pot. Oh well. It is done and I can run fans, radios, etc. whenever I want now until the sun goes down. Happy to have it working.

Last night I peeled and cooked a little bag of gulf coast shrimp I bought in Rockport TX. I grilled them. They were very good, but I lost one or two thru the grill. I need a small pan with holes in it. Or a grill basket. I think I have one of those. I also had a tomato, some onion, an orange pepper and some refried beans all wrapped up in a packet and tossed on the grill. Was a good dinner. I had one of the local grapefruit for desert. I also finally fired up the pile of stuff in the fire pit, the pile was getting quite large, so I had a nice little campfire and got rid of some cardboard and stuff in the process.

That about wraps up my day. I snoozed off and on in the afternoon in my chair in the screen house. Had trouble sleeping last night. Was up at 2:30 until 4 and then went back to bed to try to get a little more sleep. 

Today is the rockhounding trip, my first. We caravan to the claim. After that, I am not sure what goes on. I’m thinking it will be fun. We are looking for chalcedony today, one called The Desert Rose, I’m thinking it is pink. This afternoon, if I am up to it and feel like fighting traffic, there is that RVillage meet and greet at the Yacht Club. Tomorrow is chores. I will get an early start to try and avoid the traffic and hopefully won’t have to wait for a washing machine. People around here don’t seem to be early starters thankfully.

Well, I have to run. Need to get washed up and dressed, pack a lunch and make it to the rendezvous point by 8:30, and it is almost 7:30 now. My wash water is hot and ready.

Hopefully I will have some interesting stuff to write about tomorrow and some photos.

Blogger - Fest, January 24, Quartzsite

Paracord tangle and the trade blanket

This morning started out with me stepping in cat poo, not realizing it, and tracking it everywhere. Sigh.... Not the best start to a Monday. It is bad enough that she tracks litter everywhere…I have to vacuum pretty much every day, and I am sweeping several times a day. I think next time I will get a fish. Although a fish would have issues with all the temperature changes. Maybe a plant...

I do want to walk this morning. It has been several days. I got distracted yesterday and didn’t get it done. I don’t have plans until 1, so I should be able to squeeze that in. I have a whole list of things to do, maybe I can pick off one or two of those before the soapstone carving class this afternoon. I also have to remember to gas up the car for tomorrow’s rock club field trip.

I ordered a helmet for scooter riding. Took the scooter out and brought the garbage to the dumpsters and took the long way back. It is a fun ride and I think I am going to keep it. Now I need to either make a cover for it or buy one. I’m using a packing blanket at the moment. I may throw a couple of stitches in it so I don’t have to use clips to keep it on. I will leave it in Yuma so I don’t have to haul it half way across the US this summer.

I need to spend some time with my solar setup. I want to try using my crock pot at some point. I miss being able to use that. But will need to be here to keep an eye on the voltage. I also need to get the larger inverter hooked up before I can do that, plus figure out the programming. I need to test it’s limits, see what I can do and what I can’t do with it. It is nice having electricity when the generator isn’t running, even if it is only when the sun is out.

Was a good trade blanket yesterday, brought back smaller stuff than I took (my goal), and got some fresh off the tree grapefruit and tangelos’. I have already had two of the oranges. I’m not a huge grapefruit fan, but will try these. Lost several hours untangling hundreds of feet of purple paracord, that was very frustrating, but now have manageable skeins instead of spools that I can’t seem to find a spot for. I will sell and trade some of it, I don’t need all of it.

A few pounds lighter...

Yesterday’s tailgater was a success! The bike is gone, the seats are gone, and so is a bunch of other stuff. I made about a hundred bucks. I can’t complain. I left here at 7 AM (still dark out) with a car that was literally loaded to the gills, I even had to remove the back window, and came back with just three partially full bins. What a relief to finally have the bike gone. I took a hit on it, but I was almost ready to pay to have it gone. Now all I need to do is sell the scooter and I can order the hard top for the tracker. I ended up giving the seats away, but that beats putting them in the dumpster. 

Next month I will go back to the tailgater, it will be my second and last one of the season, and will setup some of my own creations. I did trade some stuff, bought some copper, and traded some more stuff. That is half the fun. Met some really nice people and people are starting to recognize me. I really do like it here. I have to get serious about a lot if I want to come back. It isn’t bad camping out in the desert, but I would like to have my own place. Hmmm….if I bought a lot with a shed on it, I wouldn’t have to sell the scooter, I could just park it in the shed while I am gone, and charge it back up when I come back. Something to think about. It was cold tho! I will wear shoes and socks next time and make sure my toes are covered.

I was back before noon yesterday and read for a while while I was waiting for the Bountiful Baskets pick up time. I bought a basic basket which is half fruit and half veggies. This is my first one. I got oranges, pears, lemons, tomatoes, a spaghetti squash, onions, green beans and peppers. Definitely worth the money. But it is a lot for one person. I don’t do pears, so will be taking them to the trade blanket later today. I also need to do some house cleaning this morning and find some other stuff to trade. Maybe some of the leftovers from yesterday.

My solar panel seems to be doing the trick. The battery is staying charged up and has enough charge to run some lights and start the generator in the morning. Soon, when it warms up a little, I won’t have to use the generator. That will be nice, and also a savings. There is one more set of screws where I can hook up an inverter directly to the charge controller. I want to get that done today. I looked for some leads yesterday that I could cut, but didn’t find anything. I guess I will have to cut the ones I have. I will just make sure to leave the cut ends long enough that I can reattach them if I need to. I also need to set some maximums in the controller. Will figure that out today.

The only thing on my agenda for today is the trade blanket at three. Tomorrow I am going to take the soapstone carving course. Tuesday is a rock hound field trip. A bunch of people are going to the Desert Bar today and I was invited, but I had already made plans to go to the trade blanket. There are a couple of others that can’t make it today either, so there will be another trip next Sunday. I am planning on going to that one. There is an RVillage get together on Tuesday afternoon, and if I have enough energy after the field trip, I will go to that too. I think I am doing pretty good about getting out and about with other people considering I am all by myself. This isn’t something I did in IP, even with people that I knew. No one here cares. I like that.

The Big Tent opened yesterday. The traffic in town is horrendous. I am planning on going, but will wait a couple of days. Maybe Wednesday since I will already be in town doing laundry and chores. Should be a little quieter by then. Hopefully. It runs two weeks. The Pow Wow also starts on Wednesday. That is a Gem and Mineral Club event. No issues finding parking for that. And I still want to do Q Mtn photo trip too. While the place is still packed with RV’s, and then maybe again after everyone leaves.

Got a nice little shower last night. Water could have been warmer, but I managed. Then cooked chicken, brussels, green pepper and a couple of portabella mushrooms on the grill. Was a good dinner. Now that I have figured out that I can use the gel fuel, I will be using the grill more often. I can just sit in my chair and read and tend the grill while it is cooking. Much better than using the frying pan and dealing with the cleanup.

I AM going to walk this morning. I haven’t managed for a couple of days, so it will have to be a good one.

I will leave the scooter up for sale. Now that I have considered storing it, I’m not so anxious to sell it. I could also store it in Yuma for the summer and not have to haul it everywhere. It is a fun toy and I like it. I just need a helmet and some more experience riding it. I will have to look in town and see if I can find a suitable helmet. The bike helmet went with the bike as it didn’t fit in the scooter trunk.

Well, time to get washed, dressed and walking. 

Bit of a rush this morning

I have to be out of here early this morning to set up my yard sale stuff at the tailgater going on at the pancake breakfast at the rock club. I don't have much time, but wanted to write something quickly, and will fill it out more later.

Yesterday I put the scooter back out by the road. A lady showed some interest in it, I have my hopes up for that. I also drove it up to the dumpsters and got rid of the garbage. It is fun to ride, but I don’t think keeping it would be worth the extra work involved. The thing is heavy and hard to load onto the carrier, or, at least it is for me. Besides, I am afraid it is going to fall off. I did haul it all the way here from Yuma without any issues, but it was a nervous drive.

Anyway, got an early start on installing the solar panel and charge controller. Had it done by noon time and it even works! Yay. Did it all by myself. It was fun to plug a fan into the inverter and be able to run it without having to worry about draining the battery. Of course, that only works if there is sunshine. For now, the panel is just leaning against Ody. I do need to create a stand for it. No rush, gathering ideas. Has to be lightweight and easy to disassemble.

Rough night sleeping. Had a little trouble going to sleep, then woke up at 2…not Kali Cat’s fault, was too warm. Went back to bed at 4 and couldn’t get warm or back to sleep. At 5 the CO detector battery decided to die, so I gave up. I even started the generator a half hour early this morning because I was cold.

Well, gotta run. Will add some pics later and how the tailgater went. Gotta find some time to walk today since I haven't for a couple of days now.

Lapdary and solar

Yesterday was my general orientation and lapidary orientation at the gem and mineral club. I am a real member now. :) So far, two classes under my belt, 8 or 10 to go. I want to try as much as possible and see if there is something that I like. I don’t think lapidary is for me, but I want to give it another go. My little cabochon isn’t bad for a first try. I might cut and do something with the red jasper that I left to be cut the other day. I should be picking that up today. I might try soapstone carving on Monday. Each class costs money, price of the class and materials. But I am having fun and keeping very busy.

I also spent about two hours waiting to hijack the FedEx truck at Quiet Times. If my packages made it inside the building, I would have had to pay a fee. After several phone calls and three FedEx trucks, I managed to get my solar panel and kit. I will be installing that today. I will need to drill a hole to the battery compartment from inside the rig to run the cables so I can have the controller in where I can keep an eye on it and use it to power stuff. The trickle charger seemed to do the trick keeping the battery charged up so I can start the generator in the morning, so the solar panel should be good. I am hoping to actually have power to use when the sun is out. I bought the Renogy 100 Watt, 30 Amp starter kit. I even upgraded to the LCD charge controller. Should be all I need in this little rig. Ever. I will still continue to use my freestanding Yeti for TV at night. It does a great job when I remember to plug in the solar panels. I forgot yesterday to switch the charger from AC to solar, so I didn’t have much juice for TV last night, which is actually OK because I slept thru most of it anyway. :) The only problem with the solar panel is finding a place for it to ride when we travel. It is quite large and heavy, and I won’t need it when I’m hooked up, so it is going to be in the way. Everything has it’s advantages and disadvantages. Just need the pros to outweigh the cons.

I want to do Q Mountain again. This time with a bunch of camera equipment. Now that I have a back pack, I should be able to get up there with all my stuff. I want to do a 360 degree photo, some panoramas, and bring my big camera up too. Hundreds and hundreds of RV’s have come in and more coming in every hour as this next week the Big Tent and the Pow Wow starts. This is what people wait for every year. 

If I can get the scooter sold, I am going to order the hard top for the tracker. I saw one yesterday that was the same color as mine, and had the exact top that I want. It looked nice, better than the soft top. I would have liked to have gotten a picture of it, but the lady was backing out and I didn’t want to make a scene of any kind.

So, I guess I am off to get dressed, walk and then start my solar installation. Would like to get it done early enough to benefit from today’s sunshine. It looks easy enough, but you know how these things go. :) After I get that done, I can go pick up my jasper and my fused glass from earlier in the week. I don’t have much else planned for today. I will have to look and see what is going on, if there is anything I am interested in.

Now that I am a member of the gem and mineral club, every third Saturday they have a pancake breakfast, and a tail gate yard sale. I am going to load up some stuff and try to unload some stuff tomorrow. That will be my project for late afternoon, loading it all up. I will need to setup early, around 7:30, so I will need to be able to just get in the car and go tomorrow morning. Watch that be the one day I over sleep.

We have had a couple of cold nights, but nothing I can’t handle. It has been in the upper 30’s and 40’s, and Ody tends to be about ten degrees warmer when I don’t have the heaters running. I can deal with that. It is the 20’s and 30’s that are hard to deal with. Days have been in the 60’s and mostly sunny. I am back to wearing my shorts and sandals, but several layers of tops so I can peel them off as they day goes on. I do wear my hikers when I hike tho. Mainly for safety reasons.

The steps to creating a cabochon (upside down..)

Palm Canyon Trail

Definitely a full day yesterday. I got myself dressed and out fairly early. Went and put my laundry in, gassed up the car and filled the gas cans while waiting for my clothes to wash, and then after I moved them to the dryer, went to the post office and made my way on foot across 5 lanes to check out a rock shop. I bought an amethyst geode. They sell by the pound, mine was 5 lbs. Not sure what I am going to do with it yet, but will figure it out. I may have it cut. Or part of it cut.

Once my laundry was done, I came back, transferred the six gallon can of gas to Ody, didn’t need to add the two two gallon cans. Will save them for later.  Then I decided to go for a hike in Palm Canyon. It was still early and I hadn’t walked yet. Palm Canyon is about 15 miles from here, back towards Yuma, and then 7 miles in on a rough dirt road. The hike was supposed to be easy to moderate, but I would have to disagree with that, it is more moderate to difficult I used my backpack for the first time. Other than the strap just under my neck, it was fine. I even wore my hat and used my walking stick. I did have the camera around my neck tho. I was looking for this week’s photo for the challenge. The challenge this week is Leading Lines. Lines that draw your eye. I submitted this photo…

This was on the road to Palm Canyon. Queen Canyon is out there too, and I may go back and do some hiking there. The landscape is pretty impressive. Unfortunately, most of my photos were over exposed. That is a first. Just too much sunlight. I should have checked the exposure and changed the mode, but didn’t think of it. I do have some photos posted tho, you can find them here…

https://plus.google.com/photos/118406578374225960662/albums/6104335301082133585  

The best photos of the palms actually were on my phone. 

There are very few hiking trails here, and the info is very hard to find.

I got back to camp about 2:30, puttered around, dealt with the photos and talked with Howard on the phone for a little while. The solar shower bag I filled on the way back from town earlier was quite warm, so I decided it was a good time for another shower. I didn’t need to wash my hair so I only used the bag, didn’t have to add the bucket of water and didn’t have to add any hot water to warm it up. This shower was outside.

I experimented with cooking dinner last night. I used my little grill and instead of using charcoal I used gel fuel cans. It worked! I had a sweet potato, brussels and steak for dinner. I set the grill up beside my chair and just sat there and tended it until it was done. I will have to do that again. No waiting for the coals to be ready, no massive heat, the flames were right where they were supposed to be. Next time I might raise the fuel cans an inch to get them closer to the grill.  Supposedly it is safe, I researched it before I did it.

Today is my Gem and Mineral Club orientation and my lapidary orientation. That will shoot the morning. Not sure if I will be doing anything after that or not, but will keep the afternoon open for the moment.

I was really tired last night after being up since 2:30 and going all day, went to bed around 9, but woke up at 3:30 this morning. Managed about six hours which is average for me. And am still tired this morning. I would like to go back to sleep, but that isn’t going to happen.

My solar panel is supposed to arrive today. I got a phone call yesterday stating that it requires a signature, so I don’t know if FedEx will leave it at the post office or not. I may go camp out in the PO parking lot around 3 and just wait for the FedEx truck. I really would hate it if it was sent back. 

Glass Class

Yesterday was a pretty full day. My morning walk, looked for some more jasper, but didn’t find anything (not quite sure of the spot I found that one in). Ran into Lee, my neighbor and we chatted for a few. I finally found out what kind of art he does, watercolors. I might be able to learn something from him.

I went to my glass fusing class at 1, but hit the post office first. It only takes one stupid person to hold up the whole line. There were two people on duty, but the majority of the time I was standing in line, one person held up one of the windows, no regard for all the people standing there waiting their turn. The line of people waiting was literally out the door. At least I wasn’t late for my class. I got my map books that I had ordered. I’m a little disappointed as I was hoping this area would be more detailed than it is. Oh well.

I was also disappointed with the glass fusing class. The instructor (if you can call her that) is bored with the class, even said so. All we did was cut up six little squares, decorate them and put them in the kiln. That took two hours. No “teaching” was involved. She told us what to do and we did it. I was the only one there that had never done this before and I had students showing me what to do and not the instructor. It also cost me six dollars in materials for something that is useless, plus $5 for the class. I will go back to one more class because I want to make a pendant or something, but I was not impressed. I would be hard pressed to recommend this class to someone that hasn’t done this before. I do have some glass left over that needs to be used up. Linda took a glass class in Maine on Monday, and in her first class she made a pendant and a plate. I would have liked that class.

I left my piece of jasper to be cut, I can pick that up along with my fused glass. He did a test cut to see what the inside looked like.

I also found two pieces of precut jasper that match mine and are a little bit bigger. It is all local stone. I ordered a rock and mineral book for future reference on Amazon when I got back. The sawyer tried to discourage having my little piece of rock cut saying that I wouldn’t get much out of it. But I picked that rock and I don’t want larger pieces to begin with. Plus, I’m sure they are used to cutting pieces that weigh several pounds. I just want my little piece in pieces.

I have two new neighbors, one on either side. The one to my left are friends with Bob and Connie, and the one to my right is another smaller rig. Older couple. Actually, I only saw the woman, maybe it is just her…I will have to find out. The last week or so, the town has been filling up with rigs. Traffic is starting to be a problem.

I had hoped to get an outdoor shower last night and I had taken a piece of steak out of the freezer because I was going to grill it. But we picked up gusty winds in the afternoon nixing both. I really needed a shower, so I ended up taking it indoors, which filled my tank (according to the sensors which always says half full or full). And I cooked something completely different for dinner in hopes that I might be able to grill today.

My solar panel and controller have shipped. Supposed to be delivered to the post office. Yay. That was pretty fast and it IS going to the post office. I won’t have to drive to Yuma to pick them up. Although, I am about due for a day trip to Yuma. Visit with Barbara and Howard and hit Walmart.

I also chased down and ordered a safety flag for the car. That would have been helpful at Crystal Hill. I could have popped that up and would have been able to find the car easier. It would also be handy in parking lots. The fiberglass pole is 5 feet, with a bright orange pennant flag on it. I think I can change the flag. Will have to wait and see.

No bites on the scooter or the tracker seats. I think I might just donate the bike to the Salvation Army. I’m tired of dealing with it. It wasn’t a huge amount of money to begin with. I will put the bike helmet with the scooter.

The generator started right up this morning. The trickle charger is helping. I am being very sparing with the usage of lights and such after dark as I don’t want to have to go out and jump it in the dark at 6 AM, and I don’t want to have to wait for heat until it gets light out. I may still have to replace the battery, but the solar panel will allow me to use power during the day without taxing the battery. Now I need to look for a good inverter. That, I might buy locally. We’ll see.

I’m gearing up mentally for another hike. I still want to do the Palm Canyon hike. Supposedly there is an actual trail there. I have been having a very hard time finding hiking, walking trail information here. There just isn’t any. I would like to do Q Mtn one more time and do a 360 degree photo from the top. I made it all the way up once, I can do it again.

This weeks photo challenge is leading lines. I don’t believe I have anything already that I can use, so I am going to have to look around. There must be something around here, a wash, a line of cactus…something. I will have to keep my camera with me.

So my fear of Kali Cat getting me in the eye became a reality this morning. She started in at 2AM. This crap has to stop. Anyway, I turned my head and she got me. I don’t think it is bad, didn’t hurt a lot, but is still watering and that was a couple hours ago. I will flush it with saline in a few minutes. At least it was the left eye, the one that isn’t my good one. I don’t know how to get her to stop bothering me while I am still sleeping. This is all new with her advancing age. Other than always being hungry and not wanting to eat her dry food, she seems to be happy and fine. She did also bug the hell out of  me while I was eating dinner last night, and she had just had her own dinner. I guess my pork chop smelled good to her. She didn’t get any because I used a spice mix that had salt in it. I guess I am going to have to start sleeping in safety glasses...

Tonight I am going to try cooking my steak over a can of sterno on my little grill (assuming we aren't having gusty winds). I looked it up, it is supposed to be safe, so I want to try it. I won’t have to wait for the charcoal. And I have plenty of gel fuel. At least the steak should be fully thawed this time.

Today is laundry day. I also need to buy gas for the generator. I am passing on the farmers market this time because I ordered a Bountiful Basket that I will be picking up at 3:30 on Saturday. I still have stuff left from last week too. I probably won’t be doing the basket on a regular basis, but wanted to see what that was all about. Supposed to be half fruit and half vegetables, plus, I could have ordered some other stuff too, but that is all in large quantities and not something I could use all by myself. I pick that up at 3:30 on Saturday.

Not sure what I am going to do this afternoon. Maybe haul out the lapis flowers I bought and do something with them. Or find someplace to walk or hike. Will figure it out later.