Go soak your...

 

... head.  If you said, "It's an informal and dismissive way to tell someone to leave," you get 5 bonus points.  If you said, "This probably has something to do with a hot tub, huh?" you get 15 bonus points.

We are coming up on two years in this house.  Well, one year, 11 1/2 months to be more precise.  The manufacturer of our hot tub recommends changing the water every "6 to 12 months."  Time to get on it.  Again.

I started at 6:45 this morning, gathering stuff (hoses, pump, filters, rags); the emptying process got underway at 7:15, using a sump pump.  I was remembering that it took about an hour and a half last time, to empty the water with that pump.  Apparently, I was mis-remembering: it took almost 3 hours.

No big deal, it is my time and I spent it cleaning filters and wiping down as necessary while the pump was emptying.  Fortunately, I had good help in getting this part done...

  At the start and towards the end...

 The filling process went faster than the emptying; less than an hour to fill.  And then the "hold your breath" moment: turning on the jets and hoping you don't have an air lock - it all went well.  The guy who delivered the tub showed me where to put the special "filling filter" to eliminate the air lock issue.  And, I remembered.

So, now, it just has to heat up before I can use it.  And after all the bending and stretching to clean it, I could use a therapeutic soak right about now.  ;-)

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I think we're all aware of the "glitch" with Amazon Web Services overnight Sunday to Monday.  They said everything was "back to normal" by the time we heard of it here on West Coast time (Mountain Standard Time to be more accurate, since Arizona doesn't change).  That turned out to be incorrect (you expected me to say "Bullshit," didn't ya?).

Joan had an Amazon Fresh order in.  Amazon cancelled it.  She reordered it on Monday evening.  No acknowledgement of order from Amazon.  Nothing in process as of noon today.  They didn't cancel the order, but Joan rescheduled the delivery time.  We have gotten used to ordering Amazon Fresh and receiving the order the same day.  Yes, I know this wasn't a "hack," and there are a lot of businesses that use AWS to host their sites, and they have all been in limbo.

I was pissed when Congress couldn't get their act together to pass funding to keep the country running.  While that is a shit show, and something I will remember when it comes time to vote for any incumbent, I feel the Government and anything they get involved with is generally a mess... but don't screw around with my Amazon!

You've probably heard me say that we moved to Arizona to be close to Steph and Dan.  I've also jokingly said that we moved here because this state stays on Mountain Standard Time year 'round - none of that "springing forward and falling back."  But, the real reason is because of Amazon: we can get almost anything the next day; frequently, same-day delivery is available.  Unlike on our island in Texas, where Amazon's 2-day delivery would generally take 4 to 5 days.  At first, it was almost always 3 days, and then Amazon put a fulfillment center in McAllen, TX... and decided to use the Post Office for deliveries to the island, which took even longer.  

X Marks the Spot...

 

"You're looking for buried treasure, Jim?"  No, but October in the desert can be a bit of a treasure.

Maybe the title should have been "X Max the Spot"?  I took Joan's Xmax out this morning.  It was 60º and sunny when I got up at 6:30 this morning.  I put on a sweatshirt to take Murphy outside.  Pretty darn nice.

I decided it would be a good morning for a ride... and Joan's Xmax hasn't been ridden in over a month.  I held my breath when I hit the start button.  It popped right off and purred like a kitten.  A sporty 300cc kitten.

The Xmax is right in the middle, size-wise, between my CTX and the Burgman 200.  Well, closer to the Burgman than the CTX, but you get what I'm saying.  And, I've said it before, but the Xmax is a fun scoot: enough power to entertain you, and flickable for fun in the twisties.  I think "sporty" is a good description.

Not much traffic on the mountain today - I did go by 3 other bikes going up as I was going down.  The first was a powerful sport bike and the rider was hauling ass.  Tough to estimate his speed, but I would guess it at well over twice the speed limit.  He didn't wave back.  The second was a young guy on a non-Harley cruiser.  No helmet, that laid-back cruiser posture.  Too cool to wave back.  The third guy was on a smaller motorcycle and seemed to be enjoying the ride as much as I was.  We waved at the same time.

No, a wave is not mandatory.  I consider it a "Are you having as much fun as I am?" kinda gesture.  A good time for a ride.  It really "hit the spot."  :-)

 

 

Belated...

 

Joan's birthday was Thursday; the reason for our get-away to California.  I had a board meeting (via Zoom) on Thursday evening, so it wasn't much of a celebration that evening.  We made up for it last night...

With my phone (above) - with Dan's new iPhone (below)...

 

Instead of a cake, Steph and Dan went to a French bakery and got us fancy croissants (our new favorites, after my first chocolate croissant on this trip) and individual cake slices for them.  A nice evening.

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Ceramics...

"You going to start making mugs, Jim?" 

No, but thanks for asking.  We drove through rain on the way to California, and got rained on one day while we were there... the van was in need of a clean-up.  While I worked on the outside, Joan went after getting the interior spic & span.  Yes, that's an old person term.  "Spic & Span" is a cleaning product by Proctor & Gamble, but it is also an idiom meaning perfectly clean.

We were both very thorough in our cleaning today; and once done with all washing and drying, I decided to apply a ceramic coating to all the black panels on the van.  There are plenty.  This one is RoadTrek's "Blackout Edition."  Besides the cladding around the wheel wells and on the sides, the van has a blacked out grille (most have chrome grille trim).

Rather than applying Armor-All to all that black trim, I researched and ordered a ceramic coating product made for the job.  It is supposed to "withstand 200 washes."  We'll see how it does with the Arizona sun.

Knowing that my aging back would be feeling it, Joan brought me out a rolling stool.  The right tool for the job.  This product comes in sealed pouches, each one holding a treated cloth - you wipe it on.  Sounds easy enough.  It is - on the side panels.  The grill has a bunch of detail, and you have to get that cloth in between all of that...

 My aging hands are hurting as much as my aging back.  I told Joan she may not get any guitar entertainment for a couple days.  She told me there might not be any cooking for that same time period.  Touche'.

The company that makes this ceramic coating product gives detailed instructions on how to apply it.  They also recommend that you get a "before" photo of the wheel well cladding before you start.  No doubt, that is good for their reviews when people post "before and after" images.  I didn't do that, but here is a photo showing one section done (on the right) and the before (on the left)...

 I can see the difference.  Not including the washing and wiping, that ceramic coating application took about an hour.  It needs to dry/set for a couple hours.

There is enough of the ceramic coating stuff to do the Equinox... which has the "Midnight Edition," which also has a blacked out grille.  I guess we have a type.  ;-)  I'll think about that another day.

 

 

Scooter vs E-bike...

 

 

It's a discussion happening currently on my favorite scooter forum, mostly because the sales trend with new scooter sales has been in a steady decline for years.  Well, here in the US.  The US gets fewer scooter options from manufacturers than the rest of the world.  Is it because we believe "bigger is better" with our two-wheel conveyances?  Not really, because motorcycle sales trends have been down, as well.

Compare that to the sales of e-bikes: which are in a strong growth trend.  In 2016, only 2% of bicycle sales were for e-bikes.  That percentage had risen to over 18% in 2023.  And currently, e-bike sales are on the increase, while pedal-only bicycle sales are down.

It seems that Americans have discovered e-bikes.

For our personal perspective, we bought our e-bikes in 2014.  We bought our first scooters the year before that.  And we had been riding motorcycles for nearly 40 years before that.  We enjoy two-wheel conveyances.

This trip to California was eye-opening regarding two-wheel conveyances.  Oceanside is a beach town (where we were staying); we saw a lot of people on bicycles, most of those being e-bikes.  In 5 days there, we saw one scooter.  Motorcycles were more obvious to us, since California allows "filtering" - what some people call "lane splitting."  So, it isn't unusual when a motorcyclist pulls between you and the car in the next lane at a stoplight.  Yes, that's legal there.  And certainly gets riders through traffic more efficiently than having to wait behind a long line of stopped cars.

But why not more scooters?  Personally, I think most Americans don't understand how practical a scooter can be... they just look at them as "a less capable motorcycle."  When we got those first scoots in 2013, I thought to myself, "Why didn't someone tell me about these sooner?"  Fun to get around on; easy to pull away from traffic at a stoplight; decent storage since most scooters have under-seat carrying capacity.  And, no shifting - twist and go.  But, you still need a motorcycle license and insurance.

Enter the e-bikes.  In most localities, no license necessary, no insurance required, no safety requirements like helmet laws in many states.  Anyone with the money can buy an e-bike... and you can twist the throttle and be doing 25 mph on your first ride.  Or 30 mph on a Class 3 e-bike.  The downside (and it is a big one): e-bike accidents are on the increase.  Rapidly.  Single vehicle, and especially collisions with cars.  My take is that is a combination of irresponsible behavior on e-bikes and people in cars "not seeing" e-bike riders.  Head injuries for e-bike riders are soaring... a bicycle helmet designed to be used in a 7 mph bicycle crash doesn't provide enough protection in a 30 mph crash.

Of course, the ideal would be to not crash - not on a bicycle, an e-bike, a scooter, or a motorcycle.  Here's an interesting take: e-bike sales are increasing faster for the under-25 crowd and for the over-50 crowd.  And both of those groups seem to be preferring an e-bike that has throttle capability.  Twist & go.  Sound familiar?  That's the same phrase I used for a scooter advantage.  Why should people by a scooter, when an e-bike can be had less expensively, no license, easier parking, the opportunity to ride on bicycle paths/trails, and the fact that you can pick up an e-bike and carry it into your house or apartment?

Does that mean that an e-bike is equal to (or better than) a scooter in real world use?  Not in my opinion; different use cases.  But the fact is, young people are using e-bikes to... get around.  And what happens when you put a two-wheel conveyance in the hands of an adolescent?  Yeah, some of them are going to go into "hooligan mode."  Communities are demanding laws to deal with this behavior: banning e-bikes for those under a certain age; not allowing e-bikes in street traffic or on bicycle paths.

It isn't the conveyance - it is the people using it.  And parents thinking that an e-bike will get their teenager out of the house (and out of their hair).  It's that whole "no supervision" thing at play.  Yesterday, while driving in California, we saw a group of about 10 young males on e-bikes cross a highway (against a red light, while turn lanes had a green arrow) - they took off fast (e-bikes offer immediate torque), about half of them doing wheelies across the highway.  From the vantage point of the RoadTrek, I could see the disdain on other drivers' faces.

When we ride our e-bikes (not as frequently here in Arizona as when we lived in Texas, due to the traffic), we are always pedaling, and not riding by throttle only.  I once had another scooter rider ask me what the range was on my e-bike if only using the throttle (not pedaling) - I couldn't answer that, because... I am always pedaling, using pedal-assist.

So, back to the question: are e-bike sales hurting scooter sales?  Yeah, I think so.  But, they are NOT equally capable.  I can go to the grocery store with my scoot and put a couple bags of groceries under the seat; can't do that on an e-bike.  The surface streets around our home have 45 mph speed limits - no issue with the scoots, but you would be a road hazard on an e-bike.  And, that speed disparity can be dangerous for the slow-moving vehicle in urban traffic.

It would have been nice to have our e-bikes on this latest trip - they would have been perfect in that beach town.  The bicycle rack we have would interfere with getting in the back doors of the van (where our electric cable and hose for city water are located) open.  So, we need to figure out a good option.  At some point. 

 --------

Further confusing things: there are e-bikes with and without pedals.  I would consider an e-bike without pedals as more of an electric scooter.  Many of these look more like a motorcycle frame...

 Some of these are "set at the factory" to go no faster than 20 mph, making them questionably legal on a bike path.  It is simple (literally punch in a code) to disable that 20 mph maximum feature, allowing some of these to hit speeds well over 30 mph (up to 50 mph).  Fast enough to be dangerous in the hands of an adolescent who has no training and questionable judgement.  Can you imagine a kid riding one of these at 50 mph on a bike path where someone is walking with their small grandchild??  Or, through traffic where the rider has no idea about traffic laws?

There are a lot of options out there that call themselves an "e-bike."  That's intentional so they can ride the wave of popularity.  And, you have parents buying these for kids... parents who don't know the difference, but the kids do.  "But, Mom, I want that one that looks like a motorcycle!"  

I looked at one online model that will go "up to 65 mph, weight dependent," that gives you a "cheat code": IN THE CASE WHERE YOU ARE IN POLICE TROUBLE AND NEED TO RESET THE CLASS 2 SPEED SETTINGS, PRESS THE POWER BUTTON 3 TIMES QUICKLY. IT’S YOUR CHEAT CODE.  That previous is a direct quote.

Literally they are telling you how to do this "cheat" so when your kid is stopped by the police, they can quickly set the bike as a Class 2, 20 mph bike, when the police check it... "That wasn't me going that fast - this bike will only do 20 mph tops."

--------  

These "e-bikes" that can go over 30 mph are not inexpensive - you're looking at $2500 and up (some are double that); when running at the potential higher speed, range suffers.  You might be lucky to get 30 miles out of the battery at that speed. 

Range on an actual internal combustion engine scooter (like my Suzuki Burgman 200 or Joan's Xmax) will be well over 150 miles, and then it will take less than 5 minutes to top off the fuel tank.  So, riding around the neighborhood or on a bike path/trail (where a "motorized" conveyance isn't allowed), an e-bike is my choice.  Mixing it up with traffic or taking out on a twisty road: give me my scooter or motorcycle.  

My e-bike is a fat tire bike that does fine on what I would call "mild trails."

 

 

 

Brinkley...

 

Christie?  No. 

While driving in the van today, we came alongside a Brinkley 5th wheel.  I know these have been popular the last few years, but this is the first I've seen one in a toy hauler model...

 As per usual, my mind went off in another direction: I said to Joan, "That Brinkley toy hauler looks like it would be a good rig for a person interested in hunting."

She could tell I was going somewhere with this.  "And..."

"They could call it 'A Huntly'.  Get it?  A... Huntly Brinkley."

We both laughed for a bit, then she said, "You could never tell that joke to anyone under 70 or so."

"And that's why it's funny!"

If you said, "I don't get it," you must be a whippersnapper.  From 1956 to 1970, on NBC, Chet Huntley and David Brinkley co-anchored the NBC News; Huntley from New York, Brinkley from Washington, DC.

 Huntley - Brinkley.  Yuk, yuk.

 

That's the Point...

 

Dana Point, that is.  Yesterday, we went south in the rain to look about.  Today, we went north in the sunshine.  Given the options, I prefer the sunshine.

We started our morning with a walk to a nearby restaurant (about 4 blocks).  $50 for breakfast - welcome to California. 

Then back to the van and heading north.  It was an interesting drive, trying to stay along the coast when possible.  Not possible as you go by Camp Pendleton.  Making it to Dana Point...

 We checked out the marina here...

 It is huge.  We had considered taking the ferry to Catalina Island, but the best timing for us would have been yesterday, and the weather was ugly.  So, another time, maybe.

We are both fascinated with the houses built along the cliffs and up the hills...

 Heading back south, we enjoyed the ocean views...

 There is a View Area off I-5, close to Camp Pendleton.  We stopped there for a "VanLife" lunch, made by Joan while we took in the views.  When we were getting ready to leave, we saw this...

 Landing craft, heading to shore at full speed.  There are "military maneuvers" underway at Camp Pendleton, including this close fly over by a helicopter...

 Making our way back to Oceanside, we drove along the beach and pier area...

 Back to the RV park, Joan wanted to visit a coffee shop a block away, and tempted me with "And you can check out that guitar store we walked by on the way back from the restaurant."  She got a fancy coffee and a pastry, I picked out a chocolate croissant for later.  While she enjoyed her treat, I went to Dusty's Guitars...

 An interesting collection of used guitars and amps and a few new brands that I wasn't familiar with.  Nothing called my name, but it was an interesting visit.

Back to the van, Joan asked if I'd play some guitar while we were out on the patio.  "Sure."  I played for a while, then Murphy came to the door (it was open with the screen down)...

 He acted like he might want to come out, so I put his harness and leash on him.  He mostly sat on Joan's lap, sure that every person who walked by was out to kill him.  A very different social personality that Rufus, who just knew anyone in his sight was there to see him, people and dogs included.  To the best of my knowledge, no one has tried to kill Murphy.  Even when he gets the "evening crazies" at 3:00 am.  ;-)

 

Everybody talks about the weather, but...

 

... no one does anything about it.

We've all heard that old saying.  Today might be different.  No, we can't change the weather, but... when we booked our site in the RV park we're in, something we haven't seen before: a "weather guarantee."  Well, not really a guarantee, but kinda like trip insurance.  If it rains a certain amount or for a significant portion of a given day, you get a good portion of what you paid for the site back.

It was only $26, and the sites in this RV park "by the sea" are not inexpensive.  When we booked this, the long-range weather forecast looked very nice.  We decided to go for this "weather guarantee," anyway.  Like trip insurance.  As it closer to heading out, the weather on the southern California coast was looking more iffy.  And today, rain is predicted.  We may get some money back.

As of 7:30 this morning, the sun is out and it is breezy.  The rain is predicted to roll in by 11:00 or so.  That timing works for me: I will be able to leisurely unhook utilities while it is dry.  We'll probably drive south along the coast, towards San Diego.  No fixed plan.  We know we have a place here to come back to whenever suits us.

This trip wasn't about any activities or particular sight-seeing - just looking to get away for Joan's birthday (her request).  I'm always in for a get-away.

We don't have to pack everything up to day-trip from here - we can leave our patio mat and chairs on the site.  With the van being compact inside, everything is always put away after we get up in the morning, so it is just a matter of latching the cabinets (they have a push-to-lock button) and rotating the front seats.

--------

We could see on radar that the rain was coming.  Before the first raindrop fell on the van, the company who "guaranteed" the weather made a deposit to my PayPal account.  That was easy.

Before we started getting the van ready to roll, Murphy was getting a morning nap on the dash...

 I went out to put utilities away, and when I got into the van, the rain started; quite light to start.  We pulled out of the park and headed south - no destination, just wanting to look around a bit.  And having a water-tight conveyance to get us around is a good way to do it.  There was a lot of palm tree debris in the streets - we tried to get a photo of that, but the camera wouldn't focus with the raindrops on the windshield.

As we headed south, the rain let up a bit.  The next town along the beach is Carlsbad...

 Lots of southern California vibe shops along this main drag.  I think it would be interesting to walk some of that... when it isn't raining... and if you could find some parking that wasn't "tight."  I have said that this van fits into "a regular parking space"... the parking here is smaller than that.  Still, fun to take it in from our own personal tour bus.  ;-)  "And on your right, you will see a California dude walking with a marvel of plastic surgery."

As we rolled out of the main part of Carlsbad, the rain came back - a view of the beach, with some rain on the windshield...

 Over the years, we have driven all along the coast of California.  Highway 101 is a pleasant drive, but in many of the beach towns, this is what you see...

 Houses and landscaping block the view of the beach and ocean from the road.  As we got out of town, you could see the water again...

Vans are a popular conveyance along here - good for taking your surfboards and beach stuff.  And a open stretch of road (below)...

 Next up is Carlsbad Beach State Park - nice camping right along the beach; I've read you have to get a reservation a year in advance...

 Next up is the town of Encinitas...

 A bit more "blue collar" compared to Carlsbad, but still very So Cal.  This was about as far as we planned to go south; Joan said, "How about Shakey's Pizza for lunch?"

"Don't toy with me, woman.  But I didn't bring you to California to drive inland and have pizza."  It is a nostalgia thing for us: we used to go to Shakey's frequently when we were dating in high school.  She punched it into Apple Maps: 13 miles away.  And, we're off.

As usual, Joan and Siri don't always agree on routing - Joan prefers to take us on "back roads" rather than highways.  We got to see some interesting "country lanes" as we made our way east and a bit north...

 Some definite "estate homes" along this stretch.  And, the rain let up as we got further from the coast.  20 minutes later...

According to their slogan: they serve fun at Shakey's, also pizza.  And, Mojo Potatoes (below)...

 

The pizza was as good as we remembered.  It was a big place, with lots of tables; I think we were two of about 8 people in there.  Maybe because it is a weekday?  Did I mention: the pizza was mighty fine!?

I let Siri pick the route back to the RV park.  Along the way, the rain came back even heavier.  Rather than pull into the park, we drove north to check out the marina area.  The rain...

 No decent photos of the marina, thanks to the camera not being able to focus because of the rain on the windshield...

 Hey, I told you.  We still enjoy the marina atmosphere, even though we are officially out of "the boat biz."  We drove back to the RV park, pulled into our site, turned off the engine and kicked back for an afternoon nap.  No need to plug in or connect city water right away... we waited until the rain quit.

The leveling ramps we bought for the van work great - much faster to use than the traditional stacking blocks.  As soon as we leveled and hooked up, the rain started again.  Good timing, or good clean living.  Either way, I didn't get wet.  And, we're down for the evening.