Friday: Gloom
Saturday: Gloom
Sunday: Gloom
Monday: Gloom
Foreseeable Future: Gloom
It has been so cloudy, cool and gloomy here that you have to have the lights on in the house during the day to see well enough to read. Makes for good napping and good late sleeping, but not much for productivity and does nothing for motorcycling. The weatherman needs replacing.
Monday, June 18, 2012
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
A Time to Fix, a Time to Grow
Fixing covers many aspects of life, but today I will address fixing motorhomes, as it is a frequent topic of discussion around our house. Yes, the Winnie needs fixing again. The part that's under warranty is the hydraulic cylinders for the automatic levelers. Every time we turn right or go over a large bump (and sometimes just crappy road surface), the levelers come down because of low fluid in the cylinder and The Intensely Annoying Levelers Down Alarm comes on. I would not care if they were draggin' on the ground if not for that TIALDA! And it goes off at the least provocation and the least slippage. Drives me nuts. Nutser? So, that is a good fix.
The other thing that needs fixed is the Radio Antenna. Oddly enough, it was placed at the right rear of the coach and was sealed in place so well that the ball and joint socket that let it fall down when you hit a low branch was sealed in goop also. Halfway up the antenna, goop. That ball joint is going nowhere, especially when you run the antenna into a tree branch.
So, Ray made an appointment to get it all fixed. In we go and Ken, the service manager, looks up and sees us and says, "Hi guys! Oh, no, you're back again." He thought it was the dratted slides again. Nope, I say, grinning like a fool, we knocked off the antenna on a low branch. And he starts laughing, saying, "Good one!" ha ha ha. Then he looks at me and sees my expression and says "Oh, golly! You're serious!" The look on his face was priceless. And then he says, "You whacked off the (grossly expensive satellite) TV antenna on a tree??!!" And it's our turn to laugh, because he was absolutely, totally horrified and it was only the radio antenna after all.
But it cost us about $12.50 to get it up there for fixing and to get a laugh. Plus the cost of repairing the antenna, and a quick dinner at Wendy's.
By special request here is a bit about the tomatoes on the deck. (Hi Weena Barrie!) We happened to have two large ceramic pots with drainage, lounging about on the deck from the time when I delusionally decided I was capable of growing miniature clematis on the deck. Turned out no, I was not. Another year, I attempted to grow lettuce in those pots, not with much success. Miniature lettuce is what I got.
This year, I didn't want big tomatoes, as I already had my garden planted full and still have some tomato sauce and juice left from the Bonanza Year of 15 foot tall Black Russian tomatoes. (yes I have pictures to prove it) So, I decided it would be cherry tomatoes this year. I bought nice healthy plants of two different varieties of tomatoes. Since the aforementioned pots were (still) available and the garden space was not, in the pots they went. They still look nice and healthy and on sunny days I make sure they are getting sun by moving them around the deck. (they are on dollies) I water them faithfully and fertilize with natural fertilizer. We used nice potting soil and some amendments. So far so good. Sadly, it is still cold, rainy and cloudy most days and although they have flowered, the flowers refuse to open. No tomatoes in sight yet, which is a typical tomato growing experience around here. But I keep hoping for another bonanza year.
One of the Kitchen Men has a little greenhouse where he has grown tomatoes (and other things) very successfully. His parsley is in bloom, mine is not yet. He swears they have an entire yard full of parsley plants that just volunteered. Since I have only seen the yard mowed, I take his word for it.
No one I know who has tried those upside down things has had good luck. I will not even try one, as tomatoes are hard enough to grow up here in the cold, wet ground, without hanging the poor things up by their scrawny roots to blow in the cold wind!
The main thing with tomatoes is good exposure to sunlight, as much as possible, and a warm location, like up against the house. They can get warm and light from the sun and also reflected by the house wall. Stake them up or put them in a tomato cage. Pinching suckers off keeps the airflow going thru the plant, which is a good thing. Also makes the tomatoes easier to see. Water them during the day or in the morning and not in the evening. Fertilize regularly. Hang about and dream of fresh tomatoes sliced on BLT's with plenty of mayo!
The other thing that needs fixed is the Radio Antenna. Oddly enough, it was placed at the right rear of the coach and was sealed in place so well that the ball and joint socket that let it fall down when you hit a low branch was sealed in goop also. Halfway up the antenna, goop. That ball joint is going nowhere, especially when you run the antenna into a tree branch.
So, Ray made an appointment to get it all fixed. In we go and Ken, the service manager, looks up and sees us and says, "Hi guys! Oh, no, you're back again." He thought it was the dratted slides again. Nope, I say, grinning like a fool, we knocked off the antenna on a low branch. And he starts laughing, saying, "Good one!" ha ha ha. Then he looks at me and sees my expression and says "Oh, golly! You're serious!" The look on his face was priceless. And then he says, "You whacked off the (grossly expensive satellite) TV antenna on a tree??!!" And it's our turn to laugh, because he was absolutely, totally horrified and it was only the radio antenna after all.
But it cost us about $12.50 to get it up there for fixing and to get a laugh. Plus the cost of repairing the antenna, and a quick dinner at Wendy's.
By special request here is a bit about the tomatoes on the deck. (Hi Weena Barrie!) We happened to have two large ceramic pots with drainage, lounging about on the deck from the time when I delusionally decided I was capable of growing miniature clematis on the deck. Turned out no, I was not. Another year, I attempted to grow lettuce in those pots, not with much success. Miniature lettuce is what I got.
This year, I didn't want big tomatoes, as I already had my garden planted full and still have some tomato sauce and juice left from the Bonanza Year of 15 foot tall Black Russian tomatoes. (yes I have pictures to prove it) So, I decided it would be cherry tomatoes this year. I bought nice healthy plants of two different varieties of tomatoes. Since the aforementioned pots were (still) available and the garden space was not, in the pots they went. They still look nice and healthy and on sunny days I make sure they are getting sun by moving them around the deck. (they are on dollies) I water them faithfully and fertilize with natural fertilizer. We used nice potting soil and some amendments. So far so good. Sadly, it is still cold, rainy and cloudy most days and although they have flowered, the flowers refuse to open. No tomatoes in sight yet, which is a typical tomato growing experience around here. But I keep hoping for another bonanza year.
One of the Kitchen Men has a little greenhouse where he has grown tomatoes (and other things) very successfully. His parsley is in bloom, mine is not yet. He swears they have an entire yard full of parsley plants that just volunteered. Since I have only seen the yard mowed, I take his word for it.
No one I know who has tried those upside down things has had good luck. I will not even try one, as tomatoes are hard enough to grow up here in the cold, wet ground, without hanging the poor things up by their scrawny roots to blow in the cold wind!
The main thing with tomatoes is good exposure to sunlight, as much as possible, and a warm location, like up against the house. They can get warm and light from the sun and also reflected by the house wall. Stake them up or put them in a tomato cage. Pinching suckers off keeps the airflow going thru the plant, which is a good thing. Also makes the tomatoes easier to see. Water them during the day or in the morning and not in the evening. Fertilize regularly. Hang about and dream of fresh tomatoes sliced on BLT's with plenty of mayo!
Tuesday, June 12, 2012
Curving in the Sunshine
Yesterday was warm and sunny, about 76 when we left for supper on our motorcycles. So beautiful and not too hot when moving. My helmet felt like a clamp, though. Rather wear one than not, even if it wasn't state law to wear a helmet.
We motored south to the regular Monday place, the famous Taco Bell, where we indulged in non-mexican tasty food. For a change they got the order right. It's been a rough couple of weeks there, as they once more got rid of all the old staff and got in new ones. But after 3 weeks, they got it down at last.
Then we motored south some more, stopped in at the Grocery Outlet, where they did not have what I am looking for, and at the Dollar Store, where they had Ray's favorite cookies and cheap sunglasses for me. Then we just rode around and found some curvy roads and practiced some. We didn't go far, but we really enjoyed the ride.
Clouds moved in and it dropped about 10 degrees in an hour, the rain started about 11, and today it is still rainy and chilly. It's probably the only place in the entire country that's not dying of heat. I LOVE the weather here. (sometimes)
I bought a cookbook that has recipes for freeze-dried and dehydrated items stuffed into quart jars and vacuumed packed. Each recipe makes enough for several people for dinner. It's a neat idea and a way to have "instant" food on hand when time or ideas are in short supply. Yesterday I found a web site with more ideas for jarred dinners so I am pleased at that. It's always good to have such things on hand. I'm trying a new crockpot recipe today, a simple chili recipe. We'll see how that turns out.
There's a library staff meeting tonight and I'd love to take a little nap, but probably won't have a chance for that. I hate meetings, they are usually such a waste of time. That nasty check engine light came on again this morning, and I just got the thing back from The Mechanic, aka Kitchen Man #1. I guess it will have to go back.
We've decided to try to borrow a trailer from a nephew and trailer Ray's bike to the sidecar rally. I'll ride mine and he'll drive the mh. It will save us $1100 if we can borrow that trailer instead of having to rent one. I was choking on that 11 grand, let me tell you!
Tomorrow, a luxe appointment, I get a pedicure! Ah, heavenly hour!
We motored south to the regular Monday place, the famous Taco Bell, where we indulged in non-mexican tasty food. For a change they got the order right. It's been a rough couple of weeks there, as they once more got rid of all the old staff and got in new ones. But after 3 weeks, they got it down at last.
Then we motored south some more, stopped in at the Grocery Outlet, where they did not have what I am looking for, and at the Dollar Store, where they had Ray's favorite cookies and cheap sunglasses for me. Then we just rode around and found some curvy roads and practiced some. We didn't go far, but we really enjoyed the ride.
Clouds moved in and it dropped about 10 degrees in an hour, the rain started about 11, and today it is still rainy and chilly. It's probably the only place in the entire country that's not dying of heat. I LOVE the weather here. (sometimes)
I bought a cookbook that has recipes for freeze-dried and dehydrated items stuffed into quart jars and vacuumed packed. Each recipe makes enough for several people for dinner. It's a neat idea and a way to have "instant" food on hand when time or ideas are in short supply. Yesterday I found a web site with more ideas for jarred dinners so I am pleased at that. It's always good to have such things on hand. I'm trying a new crockpot recipe today, a simple chili recipe. We'll see how that turns out.
There's a library staff meeting tonight and I'd love to take a little nap, but probably won't have a chance for that. I hate meetings, they are usually such a waste of time. That nasty check engine light came on again this morning, and I just got the thing back from The Mechanic, aka Kitchen Man #1. I guess it will have to go back.
We've decided to try to borrow a trailer from a nephew and trailer Ray's bike to the sidecar rally. I'll ride mine and he'll drive the mh. It will save us $1100 if we can borrow that trailer instead of having to rent one. I was choking on that 11 grand, let me tell you!
Tomorrow, a luxe appointment, I get a pedicure! Ah, heavenly hour!
Monday, June 11, 2012
The Kitchen Men Visit
Yesterday being the 10th of June and surrounded by Dear Daughter-In-Law's birthday, Dear Husband's birthday and Father's Day, we hosted a family gathering at the Old Moss Covered Homestead.
The kitchen was immediately taken over by The Young Kitchen Men and I love anytime that happens! The Kitchen Men produced oh, so good, melt in your mouth, beefy flavor explosion steaks on the grill, (and I hope the KM with gout does not pay the price for that) quad-color potatoes roasted with button mushrooms, sliced red onions and topped with a thick layer of chopped Bacon! Yes, that is Kitchen Man Pork King's own recipe. Yum, yum, yum. We also had corn on the cob, roasted in their shucks on the grill (heaven must have grilled corn), nectarine, blueberry and strawberry salad and a greens salad, which recipe is courtesy of one of The Kitchen Men's friends. It had tomatoes, artichoke hearts, sliced red onions, olives, baby corns, romaine, avocado and dressing. It was very pretty and very tasty too. DDIL says it's one of her favorite things. For dessert, we had a selection of small gourmet sweet things that KM Pork King brought and Ray and I supplied mini cupcakes with the help of Albert & Son. It was all so tasty!
After we stuffed ourselves silly, (I think I ate more steak than I ever have in my entire life, it was so good) they opened presents and cards, then we played Dominion a game that Jason and Lauren own. It's a complicated game with a quadrillion variations and he has it stored in a special box that looks like an antiquated book with scads of different types of cards. It can be played by 2-many depending on what variation you are playing and how many expansions you have. It was also fun and confusing and we all had a good time. Jason beat us all, and easily. By the time we were done with that, it was after 11 and so everyone having to go to work this am, which the exception of you-know-who, they departed for home and we retreated to bed. O that bed felt good. I am so sorry Ray had to get up out of it this morning so early.
The cherry tomatoes seems to be thriving in their pots on the deck, so far so good. We do not hold out much hope for actual tomatoes, as they are incredibly hard to grow here. Oh, the plants grow fine, but the tomatoes don't. It's too chilly at night and the fruit won't set and it rains and is sunless so much of the time. And then it gets hot and dry and the tomatoes come, but too late to ripen. Some year, I'll have to get a greenhouse.
But the lettuces are growing like gangbusters, the peas are pea-ing and the onions are getting bigger. The parsley is nearly in bloom, the chives are blooming and beloved by bumblebees. One of the three calla lillies we planted this spring is coming up, I think the dratted squirrels ate the other two as there is no sign of them at all. Cauliflowers are lagging, but then it's hardly warm enough for cauliflowers. Soon. I hope.
The one fuchia that survived the winter has greenery, but does not seem to be growing. There are certainly no flowers on that plant. I think I will not try to winter over the fuchia any more.
A nice thing happened. We were at Albertson's on Saturday, buying the things we need for the week, like bread and milk and bananas. I also chose several cards for yesterday's Occasion. We both saw the checker put those cards in a little bag and I thought I saw her put them in a bigger bag with other things we bought. We both unpacked the bags and so Sunday morning I said to Ray, "what did you do with the cards?" Ray: "What cards?" Me: "The ones we bought yesterday." Ray: "Nothing, I thought you put them somewhere." Me: OOps. So we went back to Albertson's after church, waited our turn in line with the lotto buyers and enquired about lost and found. Low and behold, there was our little bag full of cards! They didn't even ask to see the reciept, just handed them over. So nice! I thought for sure, they'd have gone back on the shelf as abandoned. But they didn't! Thank you, Albertsons!
Someone needs to get over here and weed the gardens! Quick!
The kitchen was immediately taken over by The Young Kitchen Men and I love anytime that happens! The Kitchen Men produced oh, so good, melt in your mouth, beefy flavor explosion steaks on the grill, (and I hope the KM with gout does not pay the price for that) quad-color potatoes roasted with button mushrooms, sliced red onions and topped with a thick layer of chopped Bacon! Yes, that is Kitchen Man Pork King's own recipe. Yum, yum, yum. We also had corn on the cob, roasted in their shucks on the grill (heaven must have grilled corn), nectarine, blueberry and strawberry salad and a greens salad, which recipe is courtesy of one of The Kitchen Men's friends. It had tomatoes, artichoke hearts, sliced red onions, olives, baby corns, romaine, avocado and dressing. It was very pretty and very tasty too. DDIL says it's one of her favorite things. For dessert, we had a selection of small gourmet sweet things that KM Pork King brought and Ray and I supplied mini cupcakes with the help of Albert & Son. It was all so tasty!
After we stuffed ourselves silly, (I think I ate more steak than I ever have in my entire life, it was so good) they opened presents and cards, then we played Dominion a game that Jason and Lauren own. It's a complicated game with a quadrillion variations and he has it stored in a special box that looks like an antiquated book with scads of different types of cards. It can be played by 2-many depending on what variation you are playing and how many expansions you have. It was also fun and confusing and we all had a good time. Jason beat us all, and easily. By the time we were done with that, it was after 11 and so everyone having to go to work this am, which the exception of you-know-who, they departed for home and we retreated to bed. O that bed felt good. I am so sorry Ray had to get up out of it this morning so early.
The cherry tomatoes seems to be thriving in their pots on the deck, so far so good. We do not hold out much hope for actual tomatoes, as they are incredibly hard to grow here. Oh, the plants grow fine, but the tomatoes don't. It's too chilly at night and the fruit won't set and it rains and is sunless so much of the time. And then it gets hot and dry and the tomatoes come, but too late to ripen.
But the lettuces are growing like gangbusters, the peas are pea-ing and the onions are getting bigger. The parsley is nearly in bloom, the chives are blooming and beloved by bumblebees. One of the three calla lillies we planted this spring is coming up, I think the dratted squirrels ate the other two as there is no sign of them at all. Cauliflowers are lagging, but then it's hardly warm enough for cauliflowers. Soon. I hope.
The one fuchia that survived the winter has greenery, but does not seem to be growing. There are certainly no flowers on that plant. I think I will not try to winter over the fuchia any more.
A nice thing happened. We were at Albertson's on Saturday, buying the things we need for the week, like bread and milk and bananas. I also chose several cards for yesterday's Occasion. We both saw the checker put those cards in a little bag and I thought I saw her put them in a bigger bag with other things we bought. We both unpacked the bags and so Sunday morning I said to Ray, "what did you do with the cards?" Ray: "What cards?" Me: "The ones we bought yesterday." Ray: "Nothing, I thought you put them somewhere." Me: OOps. So we went back to Albertson's after church, waited our turn in line with the lotto buyers and enquired about lost and found. Low and behold, there was our little bag full of cards! They didn't even ask to see the reciept, just handed them over. So nice! I thought for sure, they'd have gone back on the shelf as abandoned. But they didn't! Thank you, Albertsons!
Someone needs to get over here and weed the gardens! Quick!
Saturday, June 9, 2012
White Water and Samboree-ing
On Wednesday, we packed up, slid in and motored up to the lodge to do our laundry. From there it was off toward Moses Lake and our first Samboree.
We passed cascades, rivers, brooks, branches, creeks, rills, runnels, rivulets and rapids. I tried taking some pics thru Winnie's windows. The windscreen ones look ok:
But the ones thru the side window and screen are not so good:
I was afraid of that..the screen shows too clearly. So I opened the widow, opened the screen and held tight to the camera and got some good pictures as we sped along at 50 mph:
As you can see, the Wenatchee River is full this time of year with loads of snowmelt. Makes for a noisy but spectacular river.
Here we are stopped in a wide spot for lunch, which was crab, shrimp and pasta salad, and tasty if I do say so myself. I made it a day before, so we'd have a ready-made lunch handy. The river is just on the other side of the guardrail, hustling downhill like its on a deadline.
Shortly after our lunch break, we came into Leavenworth. It is such a neat place, but no good places for pictures along the road and we were running late so we didn't stop this trip. Besides, the motorhome parking place has been re-purposed as a city park. Pretty, but not so handy for motorhome parkers!
The clouds began to clear and by the time we got to Moses Lake it was mostly sunny and considerably warmer than Leavenworth had been. We traveled on a road we had not been on before so we enjoyed the scenery very much. I thought I had taken more pictures, but Ray says they are not on the camera, so I guess I don't have any pics of the second half of the trip.
The Samboree was held at the Grant County Fairgrounds. We were late to arrive and got parked in the back 40. It was nice there, grassy and well treed. There were water and electrical hookups, for which we were especially grateful on the day it hit 92 degrees. There was also a nice breeze most of the time so we really needed the a/c only for one day. Norman was glad we had a/c too, I do believe.
There were vendors at the Samboree, and we ended up buying a few things for the Winnie. We bought an Oxygenics shower head, which cuts your water consumption and increases the flow. It was a good purchase even tho we had to go back to the booth and get a new shower head holder to go with. It just didn't fit right in the old holder. I can now rinse my hair in half the time, which is good when you don't have a sewer connection and only 6 gallons of hot water. We did so well on water, I was proud of us! We were parked there from Wednesday supper til Sunday late morning, took showers every day, ate good meals, and when we left, the holding tanks were still not full. It's a far cry from our first no-sewer experience long ago, when we had to dump the tanks two and three times a day. Bigger tanks help! But so does experience and careful meal planning.
Representatives from most of Washington's 78 Good Sam Chapters were there and we met a lot of people and dogs. Seems like at least 85 percent of rigs came complete with a dog or two. We ended up camping next to the people we'd been camping next to at Leavenworth and the folks from the Good Guy Sams from up Marysville way made us welcome. We felt like we knew someone as soon as we saw who we were parked next to! There were scads of first timers this year, about 65 of us, I think. I'm sure some chapters got members out of that.
There were activities ranging from semi-pro entertainment to dog parades, people parades, remote control vehicle races, seminars and bingo. And even more. There was surely something for everyone every day. We ended the week with a pot luck with the Marysville group on Saturday night. Sunday morning there was a church service (good gospel group) and everyone took off after that.
We had a good time and decided we'd go again. We aren't sure about joining a chapter, as that means once a month someone else chooses where you camp and you camp with the same folks all the time and they expect you to do the planned activities and such. We are just not sure about that, and we'll be on the road full time in about 2 years and unable to participate in Chapter events. So we are still mulling on that. Ray is thinking about joining the WA State Military Sams, who meet only 3 times a year at the State Events.
It was straight home on good old I-90 over Snoqualmie Pass, and we stopped in tiny Vantage for some lunch. It was pretty uneventful, but the scenery is always good. Being Sunday, there was no road work to hold us up. The infamous "They" are rebuilding part of the road where it goes by Stump Lake (aka Lake Kachess) and getting rid of the snow sheds. The theory is that with the cliffs blasted back and the road widened that avalanches won't be a problem any more. Uh-huh. I'll bet.
Ray and I arrived back home tired, grateful for a nearly unlimited supply of hot water and sewers and a bed that's easy to make (and for me--dishwasher!). Normie was grateful for the opportunity to have an unlimited dervish around the back yard, up and down the steps and in and out of the house. He'd apparently been saving up some energy.
The bad news this trip added up to the loss of the radio antenna and the discovery of a leaking hydraulic cylinder in the automatic leveling system. It goes to the shop on Wednesday, I think.
Tomorrow we are celebrating Lauren's birthday, Ray's birthday and Father's Day. Jason is bringing a game we have not played before called "Domination". He thinks he'll beat us.
We passed cascades, rivers, brooks, branches, creeks, rills, runnels, rivulets and rapids. I tried taking some pics thru Winnie's windows. The windscreen ones look ok:
But the ones thru the side window and screen are not so good:
I was afraid of that..the screen shows too clearly. So I opened the widow, opened the screen and held tight to the camera and got some good pictures as we sped along at 50 mph:
As you can see, the Wenatchee River is full this time of year with loads of snowmelt. Makes for a noisy but spectacular river.
Here we are stopped in a wide spot for lunch, which was crab, shrimp and pasta salad, and tasty if I do say so myself. I made it a day before, so we'd have a ready-made lunch handy. The river is just on the other side of the guardrail, hustling downhill like its on a deadline.
Shortly after our lunch break, we came into Leavenworth. It is such a neat place, but no good places for pictures along the road and we were running late so we didn't stop this trip. Besides, the motorhome parking place has been re-purposed as a city park. Pretty, but not so handy for motorhome parkers!
The clouds began to clear and by the time we got to Moses Lake it was mostly sunny and considerably warmer than Leavenworth had been. We traveled on a road we had not been on before so we enjoyed the scenery very much. I thought I had taken more pictures, but Ray says they are not on the camera, so I guess I don't have any pics of the second half of the trip.
The Samboree was held at the Grant County Fairgrounds. We were late to arrive and got parked in the back 40. It was nice there, grassy and well treed. There were water and electrical hookups, for which we were especially grateful on the day it hit 92 degrees. There was also a nice breeze most of the time so we really needed the a/c only for one day. Norman was glad we had a/c too, I do believe.
There were vendors at the Samboree, and we ended up buying a few things for the Winnie. We bought an Oxygenics shower head, which cuts your water consumption and increases the flow. It was a good purchase even tho we had to go back to the booth and get a new shower head holder to go with. It just didn't fit right in the old holder. I can now rinse my hair in half the time, which is good when you don't have a sewer connection and only 6 gallons of hot water. We did so well on water, I was proud of us! We were parked there from Wednesday supper til Sunday late morning, took showers every day, ate good meals, and when we left, the holding tanks were still not full. It's a far cry from our first no-sewer experience long ago, when we had to dump the tanks two and three times a day. Bigger tanks help! But so does experience and careful meal planning.
Representatives from most of Washington's 78 Good Sam Chapters were there and we met a lot of people and dogs. Seems like at least 85 percent of rigs came complete with a dog or two. We ended up camping next to the people we'd been camping next to at Leavenworth and the folks from the Good Guy Sams from up Marysville way made us welcome. We felt like we knew someone as soon as we saw who we were parked next to! There were scads of first timers this year, about 65 of us, I think. I'm sure some chapters got members out of that.
There were activities ranging from semi-pro entertainment to dog parades, people parades, remote control vehicle races, seminars and bingo. And even more. There was surely something for everyone every day. We ended the week with a pot luck with the Marysville group on Saturday night. Sunday morning there was a church service (good gospel group) and everyone took off after that.
We had a good time and decided we'd go again. We aren't sure about joining a chapter, as that means once a month someone else chooses where you camp and you camp with the same folks all the time and they expect you to do the planned activities and such. We are just not sure about that, and we'll be on the road full time in about 2 years and unable to participate in Chapter events. So we are still mulling on that. Ray is thinking about joining the WA State Military Sams, who meet only 3 times a year at the State Events.
It was straight home on good old I-90 over Snoqualmie Pass, and we stopped in tiny Vantage for some lunch. It was pretty uneventful, but the scenery is always good. Being Sunday, there was no road work to hold us up. The infamous "They" are rebuilding part of the road where it goes by Stump Lake (aka Lake Kachess) and getting rid of the snow sheds. The theory is that with the cliffs blasted back and the road widened that avalanches won't be a problem any more. Uh-huh. I'll bet.
Ray and I arrived back home tired, grateful for a nearly unlimited supply of hot water and sewers and a bed that's easy to make (and for me--dishwasher!). Normie was grateful for the opportunity to have an unlimited dervish around the back yard, up and down the steps and in and out of the house. He'd apparently been saving up some energy.
The bad news this trip added up to the loss of the radio antenna and the discovery of a leaking hydraulic cylinder in the automatic leveling system. It goes to the shop on Wednesday, I think.
Tomorrow we are celebrating Lauren's birthday, Ray's birthday and Father's Day. Jason is bringing a game we have not played before called "Domination". He thinks he'll beat us.
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