Half a Century...

 

Is that how long since you updated your jokes, Jim?

Funny... not.

Today is son-in-law Dan's birthday.  His 50th birthday to be more specific.  Yes, there was a party at work, with people all wearing black.  Then, this evening, Steph made supper for us, and we celebrated with the 4 of us.

Lots of presents and cards...

 Perhaps a few reminders of the rather harsh card Dan gave Joan years ago.  Nobody remembers what it said, just that it was one of those "you're so old..." kinda things.  So, yeah, a faint memory that gets brought up at every birthday celebration.  ;-)

Dan is a good guy.  I have probably (?) made jokes about him being like "the son I never wanted," but he is very much a cherished part of our family.  And not just because he keeps Stephanie from being "a crazy cat lady."  Yeah, more jokes.  'Cause that's also a part of the family.

Joan put up a bunch of "50" related signs around their house, including one on the front door so they'd see it when they got home from work.  There was a placard of things that happened or were popular "50 years ago"... Stephanie and I may have broken out in song with each of the "most popular songs" mentioned.

It was a nice evening.

 

Another Day, Another Regional Park...

 

I got the RoadTrek out yesterday to get the oil changed.  I was missing driving that thing.  So, today, Joan and I took it out for lunch.  While we were having lunch, she said, "There is a Regional Park we haven't been to, and it's less than a half hour from here - want to check it out when we're done with lunch?"

"Absolutely!"

The park is Usery Mountain Regional Park (near Mesa).  When Joan said "Usery," I heard "usury"... which means the illegal practice of lending money at unreasonable interest rates.  No, not the same.

This is a nice mountain park: plenty of hiking trails, a Nature Center, group campgrounds (primitive), a developed campground with electric and water at each site and a dump station.  This would be a fun overnight sometime when the weather is a bit cooler.

A few photos...

 The cacti and low brush is all looking nicely green after our recent rains.  Here's a shot of Joan hamming it up with a cactus on our way into the Nature Center...

 Fun day-tripping in the van today!

 

Let's cut to the video...

 

If you said, "Every sports broadcast," you get one bonus point.

Here's a short video of the HoverAir X1 following behind the CTX yesterday...

 To be fair, it would be nice if it would follow at a higher speed, but this technology is pretty impressive (to me).  I am thinking the X1 Pro will be great for "B-roll" on any of our travel videos - setting the scene, transitions between scenes, and some variety compared to "point of view" photos and videos.

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I got together with Podge and Ron today, to make some music.  This is the first time those two have played together, so it was a treat to watch them interact; they are both good guys.  I think this is the most songs I've gone through in a rehearsal - everything on a set list plus some additional tunes.  A good time.

 

Got Out This Time!

 

Almost as cool to start the day, compared to yesterday.  I just wanted to go for a ride.  I put some camera and drone gear in the trunk and headed out.  Leaving at 8:40 in the morning was good timing: the traffic heading to work and school on Dobbins was very light.  And up on the mountain, also very little traffic...

 

I rode part way up the mountain before mounting a camera and turning it on; the Insta360 X4 this time... but the HoverAir X1 stayed in the trunk.  Until I got to the upper parking on the mountain.

 

I did a couple short Zoom Out flights, then a Follow around the parking area.

 Time to make a decision: should I try a Follow behind me on the road?  Yeah, let's go for it!  I hooked up the beacon on my handlebars, fired up the X1 Pro, then down the road.  Slowly.  I had to come almost to a stop once to see if it was still back there.  It was.  Then off, being careful to keep the speed down for this first test on a twisty road...

 Then, a stop and having the X1 Pro land on my hand...

 

Yes, it seems to be working as it should.  I may work up the nerve to try it a bit faster next time.  ;-)

I'll be working on the video.  Busy day tomorrow, so it may be Thursday or Friday before I get to it.

A couple stills from the X1 Pro...

It's a Beautiful Morning...

 

If you said, "A song by the Young Rascals, 1968, on the album Time Peace: The Rascal's Greatest Hits, and the song reached #3 on the Billboard Hot 100," you get 25 bonus points.  Partial credit will be given for partial correct answers.

Yes, it is a beautiful morning here in the desert: 70º at 7:30 am.  Murphy was enjoying time outside...

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Wasn't meant to be...

Since it was a refreshingly cool morning, I thought it would be good to get out for a ride.  And, maybe take the HoverAir X1 Pro along... in case there wasn't much traffic on the mountain, I could see how it would do following the bike on a twisty road.

I put a 360 camera on one of the bike mounts, connected the beacon from the HoverAir to the bike, geared up, and hit the starter... it clicked.  I have had the Battery Tender on the Suzuki, but I was planning to take the CTX today.  I got out the jumper battery and the bike fired right up.

Joan was going to close the garage door for me, but when I got on the bike, she said, "Wait a minute!  There's something under your bike!"

She pulled out this...

 

I have been all over this bike at different times, but I don't recall seeing a bolt this size.  A definite WTF moment!  Joan brought out a mirror and I started looking all over the bike... nothing looks out of place.  It is somewhere in size between the large bolts for the swing-arm, and the bolts I used to install the center stand.

No way was I taking this bike out and running it on twisty roads until I could determine where this bolt goes.  I rolled the bike out into the driveway, where I could get plenty of light on it.  Crawled all over the bike, and... nothing looks out of place.  I looked around the Suzuki, which is parked next to the CTX.  Nothing.  I put the garage door down and looked at all the bolts on the tracks and the opener.  Nothing.

With the plan of getting out for a ride put off, I put on full armor gear and took the bike for a "test ride" around the neighborhood.  Nothing unusual.  Yeah, the creeps me out and certainly doesn't instill confidence it taking the bike out.

So... no ride today.

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I would like to say I found where the bolt was missing, but Joan is more nimble and flexible than I am - she is my hero.  It is from the centerstand I installed 3 years ago.  I ran to Ace Hardware and picked up another nut (nyloc this time and Lock-tite added).  I picked up some irrigation line stoppers for Joan while I was there.

Back home, I got the necessary wrenches and the Lock-tite out, and slithered as far under the bike as I could.  Joan took some photos...

 Time and grunting - it is in a place where I can't see it, so working by feel.  It is up close to the exhaust pipe, so an open wrench is the only way to turn the nut, and enough room for a 1/4 turn at a time.  I could say I was patient, but that would be a big fat lie - my neck and back were hurting from the position, but I didn't want to have to mess with this again.  It just takes time.

A very sincere thanks to my Honey for finding the spot where that bolt belongs!

  

Winding Down...

 

Sunshine this morning.  Joan and I took Murphy outside; he got to wander around while the humans started putting the patio area back together.  There is a chance that last night's rains were the winding down of the Monsoon Season.  I took this photo around sunset, with a rain shaft on the far side of South Mountain, heading this way...

 Monsoon Season traditionally wraps up September 30th.  That said, Mother Nature will do what she wants.  Example: there was a lot of flooding in Arizona on Friday, the 26th, with the heavy rains.

With this forecast...

 ... we set up patio umbrellas again, and put the cover back on top of the pop-up kiosk over the hot tub.  Added bonus: it was 70º outside when we got up this morning.  Refreshing.  Maybe we'll take the covers off the patio couch and chairs?  Nice to sit out there with a guitar in the morning.

 

Second Verse, Same As The First...

 

If you said, "A line from the Herman's Hermits song 'I'm Henry the VIII, I Am,' 1965," you get 15 bonus points.  Peter Noone calls out this line between the first and second choruses to indicate the lyrics are being repeated.  The phrase can also be used more broadly to mean that something is continuously repeating itself, often with annoyance, like a broken record.

And that brings us to this post.  I got a phone call at 7:25 this morning - it was Steph.  When I answered, she said, "Could you give us some help?  Go to our laundry room and bring a bunch of towels to our front door."  For some perspective, the rain had just starting pounding a few minutes before that.  No sprinkle to start - just an immediate hard-pounding rain.  Yes, Steph and Dan were out walking Dicha.

When Joan and I got to their front door, they were outside, drenched.  There is a covered entrance to the house, so they were out of the rain, but already soaked to the skin.  Literally.  When Steph took off her shoes and socks out there, she wrung out her socks.  Understandably, they didn't want to come into the house until they had a chance to dry off themselves and the dog.

By request, there are no photos.  But I can accent this post with: wet dog smell.

In case you didn't pick up on my drift, more rain predicted for today and tomorrow, occasionally heavy.  This burst was heavy. 

Fortunately for Murphy, we got him outside earlier.  That may have to hold him for the day.