Start the day with a smile...

 

I am almost always up before Joan.  Especially in the motorhome; I have my "morning routine" to get done, then I will sit down and be out of her way.

This morning when she got up, Joan said to me, "I woke up this morning with a headache."

I couldn't control myself - I said, "Oh yeah?  I woke up this morning with a pain in the ass."

And that's when the fight started.

Kidding, of course; we both had a good laugh.  I'm hoping it lessened her headache.  It's nice to start the day with a good belly laugh.

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Zap!

A couple days ago, Pat Anderson (a C-Dory friend) posted that he was using a TENS device on his knee replacement to help with the pain.  I've wondered about those, so thought I'd give one a try.  The price was surprisingly reasonable on the unit he uses; Amazon is "a day away" here in the big city (well, on the far west edge of the big city).  It arrived today, just before we went out for a late lunch with Steph and Dan.  (They have today off work.)

After lunch (The Spaghetti Factory) in downtown Phoenix, we went back to their place while Steph and Joan planned the rest of the weekend get-togethers.  Side roads to get back to Buckeye (the Interstate was "red" on the Maps program), took Ruf for a short walk, fed him supper, then I got to try out the TENS unit.

A light buzz with the electrode pads stuck to my lower back.  Not unpleasant.  Instructions indicated a lite setting for about 30 minutes to start.  My back wasn't hurting much before starting this, but feels fine (no pain) when done.  Probably too early to get a real feel for it, but first reaction is positive.

For full disclosure, my lower back hurts when I've been on my feet all day or doing a bunch of lifting, so this isn't a real pain situation.  But, I'm willing to try this instead of ibuprofen.

Siri...

 

She doesn't always get it right.  I occasionally use "talk to text" when riding or driving.  No, it isn't distracting and is completely hands free and you don't have to take your eyes off the road.

When heading east on I-10, I let Joan know that the westbound traffic was stop-and-go from Watson (Exit 117) to Estrella Parkway (Exit 126).  Yeah, 9 miles.  Some things about life in the big city are tedious.

When Siri read the text back to me before sending it, she said, "Traffic is backed up from Watson to Australia."  I truly laughed out loud.  No doubt it felt that way for those stuck in that traffic.  For those not familiar, Estrella is pronounced "es-tray'-ya"... so I kinda understand how Siri got it wrong.  I cancelled that and resent it, saying "es-trell'-ah"... makes me sound like a newby northerner in the southwest, but Siri understood what I was saying.

I think I will have a tor-till-ah for lunch.  ;-)

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Other musings...

This has to do with dumping RV holding tanks, so the non-RVers may want to skip this.  No bonus points for reading it, though.

Like most RVs, our Aspect has a gray holding tank and a black holding tank.  The gray is for water from the kitchen sink and the shower.  The black is... the poop tank.  Those who RV know that when both tanks are full, you dump the black tank first, close that valve, then dump the gray tank; it flushes soapy water through the sewer hose.  When we bought the Aspect, one of the "added features" was a macerator pump for dumping your holding tank.  Some RVs have (or have added) a macerator pump to the outlet from the black tank to "chew up" any solids.  (That is as graphic as this will get.)  Wild Blue had a macerator pump off the black holding tank, which would allow us to grind up and pump it overboard, when 3 miles or more offshore (yes, that is legal); or use a pump out facility if the marina you are staying in has one.

When I read that the Aspect utilized a macerator pump, I figured that was, indeed, a nice feature.  After owning for a very short time, I discovered the macerator pump is to move the gray tank contents over the rear axle and to the sewer connection.  The only way to get the water out of the gray holding tank is via that macerator pump.  With almost every other RV, gravity is what moves the gray and black tank contents.

Why is this significant?  Thanks for asking.  Many RVers will leave the valve open from their gray tank, so it just goes out their sewer hose and into the sewer connection in the RV park.  You do NOT want to do this with the black holding tank, because (OK, this may be more graphic than I thought) the liquids will drain out, but the solids will plop onto the tank floor and eventually build up to a "poop mountain" in the tank.  So, proper black tank use dictates that you close the valve as soon as the tank is emptied, and add some water to the tank so you don't get the dreaded "poop mountain."  And as the black tank starts to fill, it is smart to close the gray tank valve so it can fill and be dumped right after the next black tank dump.  In every RV we've owned the gray tank fills faster than the black tank.

So, since we can't leave the gray valve open and just let gravity do the work, I have to run the macerator pump - it generally works out to two dumps of the gray tank for each black tank dump.

I dumped the gray tank yesterday, but we could tell this morning that the black tank was getting full (you can tell by the sound of the flushing toilet, even though there is a monitor panel that reads "1/3, 2/3, Full" for each tank.  That means we had a relatively empty gray tank and a black tank that was getting close for needed to be dumped.  Easy resolution: we both took long, luxurious showers this morning... I felt almost decadent letting the shower run the whole time I was in there.  Since we can't leave the gray tank valve open, we generally take shorter showers, turning the water off (just a click on the shower head) between wetting down, soaping, and rinsing.  Holding tank strategy.

After getting dressed and getting the tanks dumped, I took Rufus for a walk after he had lunch.  Still chilly here at 1:00 in the afternoon.  A bit of north wind (reasonably light at 7 mph) that has a bite to it.  Ruf got to meet a Schnauzer being walked by a couple... he was friendly, the Schnauzer didn't know what to think about this animal that outweighed her - she ran behind her human Momma.  Ruf shrugged his shoulders - he was friendly, felt like he did his part in improving animal relations.  ;-)  He's a good boy.  (In case I haven't mentioned that before.)  The Schnauzer people were impressed with Rufus's good behavior.  I guess some dog people think every cat is going to ready for battle when they encounter a dog... that hasn't been our experience.  Because, he's a good boy.

Mid-afternoon, it is only 55º.  It looks pretty out, because the sky is blue and the wind isn't howling.  But, don't be fooled... the desert is crafty like that: sucks you in, then whacks you.  It may be the pretty blue sky, but by the time the sun is ready to set, you will be freezing.  When you think you're dressed for the weather, the desert will blast the temp up to turn you into a sweatball.  When you think, "Oh, look at that pretty flower," it will be attached to a cactus, just looking to stab you with its spines.  Deserts are like that.  They are not a good boy.

(It is supposed to get into the 30s again tonight.  Brrrr!)

Sleepless in Buckeye...

 

Not even close to Seattle.  Not a low budget version of that movie.  After the hail last night, I laid awake most of the night... wondering if I had it in me to deal with insurance companies and repairs again.  A quick look around in the dark (right after the storm) assured me that there weren't major dents and broken windshields.

Just after sunrise, I did a walk around in the cold air (41º); looking close, I saw no dents or broken glass.  I opened the trailer and didn't seen any evidence of water intrusion.  Joan was still in bed, so I didn't get up on the roof or drop the tailgate to the trailer to get a better look in there.

Opening the blinds when she got up, Joan said the neighbor's (across the street) had blown over and collapsed.

I'll get up on the roof when it warms up a bit; open the tailgate and move the bikes so we can check all the corners in the trailer; start up the coach and check all the lights in back (the direction of the hail).  Then, we can all breathe easier.

And, I'm going to need a nap.

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Up on the roof...

If you said, "Written by Carole King and Gerry Goffin, the song was done by The Drifters, 1962," you get 25 bonus points.  If you said, "You looked over the top of the motorhome?  How's it look?" you get my thanks for your concern.  The fins on the air conditioner are bent down on the section of that unit that faces west...

Every place you see something that looks "shiny" between those openings is damage to the fins.  I didn't see any other evidence of damage on top of the coach.  I won't be turning that in for insurance, but I will get an "a/c comb" and straighten them out myself.

All in all, with the amount and duration of the hail, we got off pretty easy.  If it had been any larger... well, I don't even want to think about it.

I moved my bike out of the trailer so I could examine the floor in every area, each corner and the V-nose - no evidence of water intrusion; seems that the repair I did to the roof of that is holding.

So, we can move on... and hope Mother Nature is kinder to us.  As I was coming down from the roof, a couple walking by asked if I was looking for damage - they used to own an insurance company in Sundance, Wyoming, about 30 miles from where we used to live in Spearfish.  They told me, "In 20 years of spending winters here, this is the first time we've seen hail."  Lucky me.  We visited further, and had several "small world moments."  When she found out that we had owned James Photography, she said, "You did my senior portraits!"  I didn't ask her age, but I'm thinking she may be off on that by a year or 12.  ;-)  We did know some of the same people.  He asked if I knew about "the best place in town for Mexican food..." which led to a discussion of Taco John's... and the three of us agreed that it isn't what most people think of as Mexican food, but it sure is good!  They asked if we were members at Hart Ranch, and then the discussion of that terrible hail storm 2 years ago.  Yep, small world.

Oh, HAIL!!

 

The weather weasels were calling for cold, wind gusts to 45 mph, and generally crappy weather this evening and through the night.  About 7:45 pm, the first "WHAM!" of hail.  Yes, we know that sound all too well.  Poor Rufus freaked out.  Joan and I opened the covers on the skylite and the bathroom vent to see if the vent covers were getting busted and leaking... not yet.  It started coming down harder!  Fortunately, we were ahead of the game and had pulled in the bedroom slide (facing the direction the big wind was supposed to come).  I tried to scoop up Rufus, but he was running back and forth, terrified!  We turned on the porch light to see how big the hail was... hard to tell, with it coming out of the west nearly sideways.  Joan mouthed to me, "Nothing we can do about it."  It was loud - reminiscent of the hail in 2021 at Hart Ranch, but not as loud - we could still hear each other hollering.

Hail?  In Arizona?  Who knew?  I sure didn't.  When it let up,  I went outside with a flashlight.  The wind was still howling, a bit of rain that felt like needles, and cold.  Hail was piled up around the picnic table and on the windshield of the car.  I took a few photos, but the windshield didn't look broken and by the light of the flashlight, I didn't see any visible damage to the Equinox...

 Pea size and some larger.  Solid (not the mushy kind of hail).  It came howling out of the west southwest, so I went back to the cargo trailer and looked it over...

I didn't see anything new for hail damage (once again, by flashlight).  The e-bikes are under a cover on that side of the trailer, and I didn't see any obvious damage to the cover.  It's too cold and windy to stay out very long, so I'll be looking things over much closer in the daylight.

At 8:40 the wind is strong and gusty - strong enough to make the coach shudder as it blasts mostly from the side.

No visible damage to the skylites, so likely that the roof is OK.  But, as I said earlier, I'll be up and out at first light to look it over close.  In the meantime, my heart is beating a bit faster than normal (and I'm sure Rufus, too) as the rain continues to come down, along with the wind.  The streets in the RV park are concave (with the center being lower) and water is running fast down the middle.

We were ready for the wind and rain - sure didn't expect the hail.  In Arizona.  In February.  We've been coming here for over 2 decades... never seen anything like this before.

Sleep may be hard to come by tonight.  But, the power is on, the heat is running (it's in the mid-40s currently), and we are safe and dry.  This coach could use a break from Mother Nature, and the Equinox has heard the stories about the Honda getting beat to a pulp.

 

Happy V-D...

 

What?  No, not the clap - what is wrong with you people?  It's Valentine's Day.  Love is in the air.  Romance abounds.  And you have to make it all sleezy.

Which reminds me: did you hear about the guy who was killed when a radio antenna came loose from a passing minivan and pierced his heart?  The coroner didn't have a box to check for "radio antenna pierced heart" so he put it down as VD.  When the police detective came to investigate the coroner told him: "The guy died from a van aerial disease."  (rimshot)

I can't help it - I'm a romantic.  Happy Valentine's Day to all you lovers out there.

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My Honey took me shopping today.  Well, I drove, so I guess I took us, but she's the one who said, "Your pants are all too big - we need to get you some clothes that fit."  I've heard women say that when they lose weight, it comes out of their boobs first.  Old men lose their ass... and not in a "stock market" kinda way.

We went to my go-to clothes store: Bass Pro Shop.  This one used to be a Cabela's near the stadium (where the Superbowl was held); I thought the Cabela's stores would stay with that name after Bass Pro bought them - guess not.  Same inventory, so I was looking through familiar goods.  I was darn near worn out after trying on about 50 pair of pants.  Yes, I'm kidding... it was closer to 60.  This pair fit in the waste, but was baggy in the legs... this one had pockets that are too short (where do you put your phone and keys??)... this pair fit OK, but the color is ugly... what is this material - it looks like parachute pants.  Then we moved on to shirts; I said I was fine with shirts, then Joan found a flannel - I haven't had a flannel shirt in years.  I picked up a size large; Joan followed behind me with a medium.  I tried on the large, and it seemed fine to me.  Apparently, I was wrong.  Joan handed me the medium, which felt tight to me.  Again, I was wrong.  I tried on a couple hoodies - liked the fabric, didn't like the fit.

In the end, I got two pair of pants and the one flannel shirt.  I can't say for certain, but I think she likes me to wear my pants tighter so she can show me off in my role of "trophy husband."  Two inches smaller than what I've been wearing on one pair, three inches on the other.  Yeah, that's what this healthy eating does to a person.

She tried on a pair of shorts - took about 15 seconds in the dressing room to decide they were "good."  She did not feel the need to come out of the dressing room and model for me, like I did for her.

By this point, it was nearing 3:00 - time for "lupper."  We ate at a Mexican place, which put us heading west for the RV park during "rush hour."  I don't know why they call it that - with bumper to bumper traffic, no one is rushing.  I don't know how people who live here do this every day.  What should have taken us 20 minutes at most turned out to be closer to an hour.  I even detoured to head to a "less traveled" street... just like the thousand cars in front of me did.  The options for heading west funnel you into just a few options, and I-10 is generally the most crowded, slowest moving.  Pulling up Apple Maps showed us that all roads heading this way were moving slow.  Life in the big city.

Rufus was happy to see us when we got home.  Because... he's a good boy.

Shrinking...

 

"Are you talking about old guys' height or what happens when you get into cold water?" you ask.  Neither, but thanks for asking.  Music gear, specifically amps and PAs keep getting smaller.  A few years ago, an amp less than 50 pounds and anything smaller than a Great Dane would have been considered "a toy."  These days, I have a PA that isn't much bigger than breadbox and only weighs 15 pounds... and it sounds good.  I have a guitar amp that is less than 10 pounds and is the size of a shoe box... and it kicks, and can be plugged into a bigger sound system.  When we saw the BoDeans last Friday, the bass player had an amp that was barely knee high; back in my rock 'n roll band years, the amps were as tall as the musicians and weighed well over 100 pounds.  Smaller works these days.

Here's an example...

That is two Spark amps, stacked.  The two together are just a bit bigger than the drinking glass to the left that olds a 16oz drink.  The top one (white) is mine, the bottom (black) is Marks.  I stacked 'em up to make it look impressive.  LOL  They are about a 6" cube and they have thousands of guitar setting options, thanks to being able to be connected with an app to the internet.  Will you get volume to fill an auditorium with those little amps?  Of course not.  But, they will fill a small room with sound.  In fact, Joan uses that amp more than I do, as her blue tooth speaker, to listen to music.  Multi-use.  ;-)  And that cylinder shaped thing to the right is the Spire Studio that I have mentioned in the past, that handles my recording.  You don't need a giant console with a thousand knobs and sliders to handle 8 tracks for recording.

For the record, I remember when a computer at college took up the footprint of a full-size van and had less computing power than my iPhone.  What?  Yeah, that was A LOT of years ago.

Mark and I had a good time together this afternoon.  He sold an amp that I brought today... that's 3 down and 2 to go.  The items left are the Yamaha 12-channel mixer and the Epiphone SG electric guitar.  We also learned a BoDeans song: Closer To Free... yes, that is the big hit from the band we saw last Friday night.  He also gave me some instruction on how to get the most out of that Spark amp.

He called it...

 

We had a good time spending "Superbowl Sunday" with Steph and Dan.  We did take Rufus, and he did fine with their guide-dog-in-training Blaine.  Well, mostly they just sniffed at each other, then ignored.

Rufus was a little unsettled at first when we got there.  He knew there were other cats around, but he couldn't see them (Steph kept her cats in their bedroom suite).  I borrowed Dan's guitar to play Ruf a couple of his favorite songs (yes, he has his favorites)...

Ruf was just outside of what the camera was seeing (Steph didn't know that Rufus is the star in all these photos).  He sat beside me most of the game...

Dan called the game before most of it happened, especially the last few minutes.  We were all mildly pulling for the Chiefs, but that was only because it is required that you pick a team if you are watching the game.  The most interesting thing during the half-time show (to me) was the "floating platforms" and the discussion of Rhiana is pregnant.  The commercials were OK, with my favorites being The Farmers Dog, and Ben Aflack working at Dunkin' Donuts.

Steph made the chili-cheese dip, Joan baked sugar-free cupcakes and brownies (very tasty!) and chicken fries (skinny chicken strips in the shape of a French fry); Dan and I worked at the griddle, he made brats and dogs, I did the cheesesteaks.  We didn't go hungry.

Mostly, it was nice to spend time together.  Away from crowds.