Bad Boys, Bad Boys, Whatcha Gonna Do...

 

When they come for you? 

If you said, "Florida-based reggae group Inner Circle, 1987," you get 25 bonus points.  If you said, "The song got a second wind in 1989 when Cops creator John Langley discovered it during a search for his series' theme song," you get 10 additional bonus points.  If you only knew it was the theme song from that show, you get zero bonus points... everybody knows that.

"So, who's the bad boy this time, you or Murphy?" you ask.  Thanks for asking.  I am pretty sure I didn't do anything wrong, but this morning, after Murph had the humans in the motorhome awake earlier than necessary.  Some days, he doesn't get the morning crazies until after he has had breakfast, which is the first thing I take care of when I get up.  Other days (most), the boy is energetic and vocal.

When Joan got up this morning, the first thing she said was: "I didn't get any sleep last night."

"I beg to differ with that statement.  One of us was snorning, and I was awake, so I'm pretty sure it wasn't me."

"You were louder than usual last night and this morning," she said

"I was trying to keep Murphy off the kitchen counter - you need to teach your cat better," I said.  Under further consideration, I probably should have gone with "Good morning, dear," first, I suppose.

She said, "I can take when one or the other of you is a bad boy, but not both at the same time."  Pretty sure Murph and I both had innocent looks on our faces.

She knew what I was before we got married all those years ago.  Murphy, however, pulled that "I'm so sweet" routine when we first met him.  He is moving from that kitten stage to the adolescent stage and sometimes can't control all that energy.  I, on the other hand, do not have that kind of energy to purposely be a bad boy.  Yeah, pretty sure it wasn't me.

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As the afternoon rolled on, the sky started looking a bit gray - time to get the scoots strapped down so the trailer is ready to roll in the morning.  While I took Murph for another walk (I think his 4th walk of the day), Joan put away the patio chairs and small table.  Murphy and I came inside when the sprinkling started.  Yes, the boy is smart enough to come in out of the rain.

Does the sound of the rain bother him?  No, but thanks for asking.  Some thunder and the sound of raindrops on the roof and skylite - he seems pretty chill...

Joan loaded some movies on the large iPad... looks like it'll be "movie night" this evening.  Tomorrow, we start making our way towards home (will probably be a 3 day trip; hoping to avoid some of the holiday weekend traffic).

Timing...

 

Once again, it is all about the timing.  We were due to take the rental car back at 3:30 today (Enterprise here closes at 4:00).  We had some "car stuff" to do, primarily: get groceries.  Also had lunch.  Stop for a Sonic Blast for dessert.  And top the car off with gas.  And the hourly forecast showed "no rain" until around 5:00 pm.

Of course, they lied.  We picked up a pizza from the Italian place we enjoyed earlier this week - not for lunch today, but to have it as a snack for when we hit the road on Sunday morning (assuming it lasts that long).  That was around 2:00... we could see rain coming over the mountains.  Back to the motorhome, a quick change of clothes, and we had the car back to Enterprise around 2:15.

Enterprise is just a few blocks from the RV park.  We rode back together on Joan's Xmax.  Joan asked if I'd unlock the back of the coach so she could get a couple patio chairs out... "Sure, but I think it is going to rain."

"If it does, Murphy and I will stay dry under the awning."

Awning out, chairs out, and they just settled in...

The sprinkling started as I was taking that photo.  The awning would have kept them dry, but a gust front blew in a couple minutes later.  Awning back in, Joan and Murphy came inside.  10 minutes later, the wind went calm and the sprinkling stopped.  The sun is shining, between some clouds.  Do not trust Mother Nature.  The hourly forecast now says "rain until 5:00"... do not trust them, either.

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Is that your wife's closet?

I was visiting with the next door neighbors who are from south Texas (near Brownsville); they are in a small travel trailer and this is their first season of RVing.  They both commented how nice our motorhome looks: "Is that brand new?"

"No, we've had it about 9 years, but we do our best to take good care of it."

"It looks brand new!"  Then the woman pointed at our cargo trailer and asked, "Is that your wife's closet?"

I laughed and said, "No, there is a Yamaha and a Suzuki in there."  (If someone doesn't know what scooters are, I just call them by the brand or call 'em motorcycles.)  It seems they have a neighbor who has a motorhome "similar to the Aspect" and they pull a cargo trailer behind it because the neighbor doesn't have enough room for the clothes she needs to brings along... the cargo trailer is her "closet."

"We have plenty of storage in the motorhome - most of the time we pack more than we need because we have the room.  We both have clothes and shoes we haven't worn this trip.  There is a his and hers closet and other drawers and cabinets.  We do have a rack with riding gear in the cargo trailer, but that's stuff just for riding."

She said, "Nine years - you must be about ready for something different... are you interested in a trade?"  I politely declined her offer.  We may be interested in something different, but I don't think it would be a small travel trailer.

Too smart for his own good...

 

"You got smart, Jim?"  Funny.  As my dear ol' Mother used to say... well, my dear ol' Mother used to say a lot of things, many of them having to do with "smart ass."  And, no, I'm speaking of Murphy and his smarts.

Murphy wanted to go outside this morning.  It rained last night (no big surprise), so everything is wet, and the sandy soil where there isn't gravel has a muddy look to it.  Instead of going out, Joan opened the door for Murphy so he can look outside... yes, there are windows in the coach where he can look outside, but he prefers to sit by the screen door.  Occasionally, he will "ask" to go outside.  This morning, I said, "It's too chilly out there, buddy, we'll go out when it warms up a bit."

Apparently, that wasn't the answer he wanted.

Every RV we've had has had a similar screen door: there is a sliding "hatch" that covers the latch - you slide that hatch open to get access to the latch.  Apparently, Murphy had seen us slide that latch and figured out how it works... yes, he slid the hatch open and was starting to make a move to go out through that hatch.  With no harness or leash.  Or, his Pops to keep an eye on him.

Yes, we got him before he got out, but he now knows "the system."  We will have to add another layer of "security" to the system, probably in the form of a Velcro® strap.  (Sigh)  None of our other cats did this, although Rufus jumped through that hatch from the outside once when he wanted in (and was small enough to fit through the hatch - it was right after we first got him).

If I can teach Murphy to drive the motorhome, I can sit back and surf the net while we're going down the road.  ;-)

For the record, yes, we put his harness on him and I took him out for a walk (avoiding the sandy/mud stuff) and now he is ready for a morning nap.

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Shopping Taos...

 

Joan wanted to look around the shops in what I would call the downtown (or art district) of Taos.  Lots of small shops and art galleries... most of them not open.  We started our walk around the area around 12:30, so some of them were closed for the lunch hour...

Maybe this is a quiet time of the year?  There were not a lot of people out walking around.  The few shops we did go into had no other customers.  We weren't looking to buy any art; that seemed to be the prevalent enterprise; Joan wanted a shirt or some other memento of this visit.  No joy.  One place had a shirt she liked that the shop owner said she designed - they had them in several colors... and in sizes small and extra large.

This area is built on a hillside, so there were frequent stairs...

Several little plazas that felt more like an alleyway to me...

The only thing we bought was paid parking.  We tried to visit the Taos Pueblo, but it, too, was closed - we were turned away at the entrance.  This is one of the oldest continuously inhabited communities in North America, believed to have been originated over 1,000 years ago...

The above is a stock photo, as we did not get close enough to see it.  About 150 people live there full time, with other members of the Pueblo living nearby, but in homes with modern facilities (no electricity or running water for those who live in the Pueblo).  It would be interesting to see, but I don't know when it will be open again.  $25 entrance fee and a $6 per person camera fee (with the admonishment to not take photos of any of the residents without their permission).

On the bright side: lunch at 5 Star Burgers in town; tasty.  Any time we have gone by this place, there are a bunch of cars in the parking lot.  A good sign, as we drove by another burger place that had only one car in the parking lot (too expensive, not good, or both).  We were surprised when we went into 5 Star and there were plenty of tables open... Joan surmised that everyone in there must have driven separately... I figured each person must be driving two cars.  ;-)  It was good food.  And, they had a sign in their parking lot that you could see from the road.  (not a fast food burger)

To the ski area...

 

"Are you two thinking about skiing again?" you ask.  Not even if you paid us; that is way back in the rearview mirror.  But, ski areas are often in canyon areas that have fun twisty roads for those of us of the scooter persuasion.  And that's how it looked for the Taos Ski Valley on the map.

I got scoots out of the cargo trailer while Joan was finishing up in the motorhome.  It gave me a chance to test out the Panasonic Lumix Zs100 camera that I did a factory reset on last night...

The image looks reasonably sharp.  I will try to use it for a few shots today.

We geared up and hit the road.  The Taos Ski Vally ski area is only about 22 miles away, so not a big mileage day planned.  The road took us to about the 10,000' elevation at the base of the ski area...

The road was, indeed, twisty on the way up there.  I didn't have a video camera on the bike today, so just the Lumix and my iPhone for photos.  And, the road was bumpy for about the last 12 miles.  There were signs that said "Loose Gravel" and "No Center Line" every mile or so... we expected road construction, but that never materialized.  Looks like they did a chip seal on the road, and the center lines had been painted... but, they did a crap job leveling the chip seal.  I would call it: a butt pounder.

Still, it was a beautiful day (into the upper 60s by the time we got to elevation) and we were happy to be out riding.  We poked around the ski village at the base of the lifts, but everything except condo rentals seemed to be closed.  I was feeling the call... the call of pizza.  We had a plan for our return to Taos.

We did stop to take a few photos on the way down the mountain...

My favorite shot of the day (done with my iPhone)...

Back to Taos, we had an outstanding late lunch at Mondo Italiano... after we found the restaurant.  There must be some kind of sign ordinance here, as no one (OK, very few) has business signs at the street.  This Italian restaurant is in a building with a Mexican and a BBQ restaurant.  And no signage at any door.  I guess it isn't just Enterprise Car Rental that is a CIA front.  ;-)

Quite possibly the best pizza I've had in years.  Or, it may be that I was really hungry after that jaunt at elevation?  We also ordered fettuccine alfredo and did some splitting... and have left overs for another tasty meal.

A stop at Walmart for a couple grocery items, then back to the motorhome, where I reset the clocks on the scoots (one more time zone change when we get back to Arizona) and Murphy got a walk... before the thunder rumbled and the rain came down.

Good timing on our part.  The sky looked threatening when we left the restaurant, so we made it a quick stop at Wally World.  Today was supposed to be the least chance of rain all week.  I don't trust them.

The Enchanted Circle...

 

Sounds like a Disney movie, doesn't it?  No, the Enchanted Circle is a drive that takes you around Wheeler Peak, the highest point in New Mexico.  It takes you through some mountain communities, like Questa, Eagle Nest, Red River, and Angel Fire.  The highest elevation on the road is 9820 feet at Bobcat Pass.

It was a pretty drive, and quite pleasant in the Elantra rental car.  It doesn't sit high like in the SUVs we are used to, but it seemed to be a solid car with good road manners.

I shot video along the way, with the DJI Action 4 camera on a small tripod on the dash.  I may do something with that at some point, but the audio is not good (didn't use the DJI Mic2); I also shot some stills and video with the Panasonic Lumix ZS100 that I haven't used in a long while... and it was all soft on the focus.  (I did a factory reset on that when we got home and will try it again sometime in the future.)  So, I have some stills from the Action 4 and one from the Inst360 X4, from the perspective of the windshield...

Some scenery above, and from the perspective of the 360 camera below.

Driving through the community of Eagle Nest - you can see the ski area at the far right in the photo below...

Road construction after leaving Angle Fire...

There was a time that we would have been interested in those ski areas... a long, long time ago.  Still, it was interesting to drive through and see what they look like in the off season.  There were quite a few RV parks near each of the communities, most pretty occupied.  Joan asked me if I thought they might stay there during the ski season... "Sure wouldn't be anything I'd want to do - I would consider that barely survivable conditions."  We stayed at an RV park outside of Park City, Utah, once during the winter - it wasn't my idea of fun... we were on our way to Las Vegas, Laughlin, and Palm Springs.  Ah, memories.

We got back mid-afternoon, stopped at the motorhome, and re-grouped.  Joan wanted to go check out the Indian casino on the outskirts of Taos, Taos Mountain Casino.  "Yes, ma'am."  It isn't all that far away... and it quite small.  They advertise "the casino with smiling staff."  Yep, they seemed pretty smiley.  We sat down to play for a bit... before long, Joan came to find me (it wasn't hard, did I mention that this place is small?) - that usually isn't a good sign.  In this case, she was up $65 in a couple minutes and decided to call it good.  I took a couple moments to get myself back to even (yes, really), and we headed out.  Perhaps our shortest visit to a casino.

We celebrated afterwards with ice cream - no downside to that!  :-)

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Nothing fancy, just some car-ride video...

Let me catch my breath...

 

Yes, the Blonde still takes my breath away.  More noticeable at the 7,000' elevation.

It pounded rain last night.  Lots of thunder.  The weather weasels were calling for that most of today.  But, when we got up this morning (the rain had mostly let up), the hourly forecast was calling for no rain (well, not as big of a percentage) until around 2:00.

After showering and taking Murphy for a walk, Joan and I went out to the cargo trailer and got the scoots unstrapped... we plan to get a ride in before it rains again.  First stop: trying to find the Enterprise Car Rental place... they are in a commercial building with half a dozen tennants; their sign is behind a tree (you can't see it from the street, you have to be almost at their door before you see the sign).  I think it may be a front for the CIA, as they seemed genuinely surprised when we walked in the door.

With all the rain forecast, we are going to get another rental car, so we can get out and about anytime we want.  We made arrangements to pick it up at 3:30 (hoping the rain will cut us some slack).

From there, it was about 10 miles out of town to go see the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge...

 Off the scoots to walk around a bit...

The bridge is an engineering feat, the gorge is deep and dramatic...

The sky looked threatening as we headed back towards town, but it didn't rain on us; we decided to throw fate to the wind and stopped for lunch at a Mexican restaurant.  Good food, big portions, big price.  Taos doesn't look particularly upscale, but the prices don't agree with that.

We stopped for gas on the way home, then put the scoots back in the cargo trailer.  The hourly forecast moved the rain back to around 5:00... we'll head to Enterprise on one scoot and pick up the car.  In the words of the philosopher Dirty Harry: "So, punk - do you feel lucky?"  ;-)

(Some of the photos are from my phone, some from Joan's - can you tell which is which?)

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We picked up a car this afternoon... and the weather was glorious: sunshine and friendly looking clouds.  The weasels even took the rain out of the forecast for tonight.  The young lady at the car rental place was nice enough to give us an upgrade; she asked, "Would you like like a Toyota Corolla or a Kia Soul?"

"I've never driven a Soul, let's go for that."  She did the paperwork and we went out to check out the car... except, it wasn't there.  Back inside.  For the inconvenience (it really wasn't), she upgraded our upgrade: we left with a Hyundai Sonata...

It's a good looking car, with a very nice interior.  A bit low slung for an old guy to get in and out, but I'll adapt.  It should be comfortable to explore the area when the rain returns.

Back home, Murphy got to go for a couple nice walks...

I think he liked the grassy site we had in Harrison, AR, better, but he has been doing his "jungle cat" routine, looking through the sage bushes around our site here.  He just likes to get out.

We came back in just after the sun went down - I got this shot with my phone of the evening sky...

She'll be comin' 'round the mountain...

 

If you said, "A traditional folk song derived from the Christian spiritual 'When the Chariot Comes' in the 1890s," you get 20 bonus points.  If you said, "Wow, Jim, you were just a kid back then," you get an additional 20 bonus points for your snarky sense of humor.

Today took us from Santa Rosa, New Mexico, north and west over the mountains to Taos, New Mexico.  We thought that would be a good place for some scooter riding.  You may not believe this, but we got rained on as we passed through 9,000' elevation on the way up.  Got to Taos, and it was sprinkling while I got set up in our RV site, and is now raining, with thunder.  The 7 day forecast is calling for more of the same here during our week long stay.

Today's trek: we were in no hurry to pull out of the Love's RV Stop where we spent the night; we were the first ones in there yesterday and the last ones out this morning.  We decided to take what we hoped would be the scenic route up and over the mountains to the east of Taos.

We were on I-40 for about 20 miles, then got onto a 2-lane that was much more pleasant...

Murph spent most of the ride in his carrier (with the door open)...

There is a "high road" and a "low road" into Taos; we chose to take the high road today and will head south from there when we leave on the low road.  Onto I-25 for just a few miles, then through Las Vegas.  No, not that Las Vegas - this is Las Vegas, New Mexico, a smallish town.  From there it is a road that winds it's way north and west.  Some of what we saw today...

As mentioned, it started raining on us before we got to the highest pass.  We just chugged along and on the way down the other side, pulled off in a turn out to have lunch and get Murphy a treat.  The rain let up as we got closer to Taos; enough to let us get checked in and mostly set up before it started raining again.

A look at our site for the next week...

This is an older RV park, but seems kept up.  The scenery is "high desert," here at 7,000' elevation.  We feel the elevation.  Joan said, "Nothing strenuous for a day or two."

I countered with, "Nothing strenuous for the next year or two."  This has been an interesting trip, as we're winding down to the last 10 days or so.  We really enjoyed being on 2-lane today, but that doesn't always work for us, in terms of finding an RV park and fuel that is easily accessible.

We shot some video "from the RV" today - not sure what I'll do with it; more of an experiment.  I'll look through it later... maybe after a nap... did I mention the elevation?  ;-)

The DJI Action 4 on a solid mount used on the dash...

A few still images from the 360 camera...

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The rain after we got set up...