p… · web viewwell, we are back and it’s time to start up saturday am again. the trip was...

Well, we are back and it’s time to start up Saturday AM again. The trip was wonderful. It was an unusual trip in many respects. One big difference was the nearly constant Internet connection, which allowed some exchanges with Saturday AMers as we travelled. Some of the exchanges were quite entertaining, so I thought I’d share them with you. You all can chew on ‘em while I work on compiling the Trip Log for the five weeks we were on the road. It may take a while ;-)

This first batch of emails revolves around the weather and trying to get the trip started with the fewest possible complications. Yeah, right. As you will see, we were fortunate in a dumb-luck sort of way.

From: Terri Mensing1/18/2011 6:14 PM

The weather dude here says we are expecting a snow storm here on Thursday. Predicting 3" to 6" of snow that day starting around 10 a.m. and it will snow through the day. (3" to 6" is a "significant snowfall" for us down here.)

Then it's going to be very cold here over the weekend. Lows of about 0 degrees F.

Just thought you should know what they're saying on the tv so you can plan accordingly.

Leave now! :)

From: P&J BogerTo: Terri Mensing1/19/2011 7:32 AM

Argh ... where did that come from? It wasn’t there a couple days ago; now the whole NE is snow potential. I knew it was going to be cold, but it looked clear ... now it’s cold and snowy. Keep us informed about the details. We’ll get back to you.

Well ... we’ve just run through the projections for the next week or so ... it doesn’t look good at all. Actually, the pollen index looks good, but everything else ... not so much. We are now officially on hold until we get a better looking weather window. Damn! I’m ready to roll ... but ...

From: P&J BogerTo: Joe George1/18/2011 8:09 AM

Well, we’ve made the decision. We just can’t wait any longer, so we are heading out Thursday. We’ll spend Thursday night (and probably Friday) at Gunter & Terri’s in OH. Then we will be heading down your way. Our GPS says it’s a 7 hour drive, which means 8-9 for us. Thus, our target is to be in your drive sometime Saturday evening. We have a tight window between rain/ice/snow, so there may be some modifications necessary. We’ll try to keep you informed. In any event, we will call when we get close to give you fair warning to put up signs like “Northerners Keep Out” or “Old People In Dirty Vans Not Allowed ;-) From: P&J BogerTo: Joe George1/19/2011 9:30 AM

Okay, as you probably know from your local weather reports ... things are going downhill

fast. The snow they are now predicting for the very areas we’d be traveling in was not on the maps a couple days ago. Don’t know where it came from and it doesn’t make any difference; it’s here now. We knew it was going to be cold. We can deal with that, but cold and snowy – not a good combination. Sooooo, we are recalculating. There really doesn’t seem to be a good weather window to bust out of the NE for a week. We’ll keep checking and let you know. Stay tuned to this channel ;-)

From: Joe George1/19/2011 9:31 AM

OK P&J - thanks for the update. Sorry that the weather has all this bumfuzzled (term I picked up living here). I wrote the following earlier today but wanted to wait until later today before sending it: "Just keeping you informed here and not trying to elevate the stress level. Nashville is supposed to pick up 1.5 to 2 inches of snow Thursday night. This is according to the National Weather Service. If that happens there likely will be a snow day here for the kids on Friday. However Saturday's high is forecast to be 39. Therefore, the snow will likely be gone from the roads as you travel into Nashville Sat evening. Don't know what it will be like coming from Columbus through Cincinnati and Louisville though as they will likely get more than us here."

You're already on top of the situation up there so that's good. No worries as we will be around next week. We just may have to get off to work or, wait a minute - I work for the State. I can take a sick day!

If I hear more about our impending snow I'll let you know.

To be continued......................Joe

From: Bob Wilkinson1/20/2011 10:53 AM

Talked to Don and Marty in CMH-Westerville today. They say it's snowing for sure but not a lot of accumulation.

No clue as to road conditions. The jet stream is rapidly moving north and will likely get to the Canadian border tomorrow. That should decrease the likelihood of a cold air mass/snow event from CMH on down. Then, the issue is how much remains on the roads, I 'spose.

Sooo, watch the playoffs on Sunday and hit the road on Monday--or not. Could stick around for the Super Bowl whenever that is.

SC is 52F now and not a cloud in sight. C'mon down!


P&J - We received a nice present yesterday afternoon and evening – about 1.5 to 2 inches of snow! Schools closed, etc. More to the north which I am sure you are aware of. Sun is out now melting some of it but it's not supposed to get above 24 today.

Your local Nashville, Tennessee weather observer...

From: Bob Wilkinson1/21/2011 3:39 PM

I just returned from my weekend shopping trip for the usual football watching necessities--Cheetos, White Castle hamburgers (No cheese), cashews and beer.

Beer was easy as there is not the greatest selection within easy biking distance. Sierra Nevada pale ale was the likely target UNTIL I saw Big Flats Premium Brew Lager Beer. WOW a sixer of cans for a paltry $2.99. OK, hold on here--can't be any good for three bucks a six pack. Or, is it? Hmmmm, it's brewed in Rochester, NY! They claim to have been at it since 1901 and it's made from "Only the choicest hops." The can also proclaims "It's the water that makes it."

Hell, Great Lakes water in my beer? How good can it get? The Cuyahoga River doesn't even burn any more. It's gotta be good. Or, at least improved. Lower phenols? Less filling with benzene?

But wait....there's more: A little logo of a beer barrel with "Genuine Brew" across the staves cinches the deal. Ya can't go wrong with "Genuine Brew."I'm buyin' and tryin'. Tonight, we swill!


Five o'clock cocktail hour has been achieved and met with bitter disappointment.

This stuff is somewhere between Keystone and Coors light. And, not as good as either.

The other five may be here when you arrive unless I can give them away.

To: Terri MensingFrom: P&J Boger1/22/2011 10:08 AM

We’ve scrutinized four different weather sites and it looks like there isn’t a nickel’s worth of difference between M-T-W-R ... sooooo, we are HOPING to be heading out Monday at the butt-crack of dawn. We will try to get up early so we can load RVan, shower, have coffee and a bite to eat ... and get on the road ASAP – but in the light at least. Now, if the weather turns bad suddenly, we will shoot for T, then W, then R in that order. We just gotta do this thing. Oh, are those days/nights okay with you two – three? We hope so ;-) More as things unfold.

From: Terri Mensing1/23/2011 12:16 PM

On the news this morning they said tomorrow will be 32 F here (today is 18 F). They also said that the snow they thought might come through Monday and Tuesday looks like it will be no big deal at all. They did say there may be some "flurries by the lakes," but you know how unpredictable that can be.

Make a run for it. If it looks bad when you want to move on from here, you know you are welcome to stay for as long or as little as you so desire. So, you can time your escape from here for whenever it looks good. We are easy.

From: Mike Powell

Sent: Sunday, January 23, 2011 11:37 AM Hi Janie,Please tell Phlip that I got his message re the other Pa-Boger sayings, I liked them all, especially, “coooommmmon icecream” – which we have told to everyone we know. Oh Janie, you don’t know how much I would like to throw up my hands and head for NM, previous commitments or not. We now also have a thing on Feb. 6th that cannot be “ignored”. I know it sounds cheesy, excusey, bullshitty, but there are “things”, you know, “things”, where do they come from???? If at all, we might be able to sneak down south towards the end of Feb., but we are planning to be in Ecuador for 20 days starting March 4th (I need to do a little maintenance on the condo and look into some legal matters, more “things” that cannot be ignored). No more excuses, I appreciate your offer SOOOOO much, let’s see what transpires, when you guys actually get there, and what happens in the next couple of weeks. Our hearts and minds are with you guys, if nothing else ….. Always miss you!!!! Mikey

Dr. Micheal A. Powell215 Concord Rd.London, ON, Canada, N6G 3H9Ph: +1-519-4744692Mobile: +1-519-8516092Fax: [email protected]

Okay, please note the very formal and professional-looking signature block on Mikey’s email. I highlighted the “Micheal” in red to draw your attention. Now, you must know that he’s been using this signature block for … well … a few years now … with his name misspelled. That’s why we call him “Mikey” … there will be another one a bit later involving “September” when it is actually January. Mikey, we just love him ;-)

Read on … and see if you can catch the “Canadia” …

From: P&J Boger Sent: January 23, 2011 3:43 PMTo: Mike Powell

Not to worry, big guy. I don’t recall that we dropped everything and came to YOUR 60th birthday bash. We know about “things”. Hell, we make up internal, unimportant “things” that keep us from doing the stuff we want. At least yours are real “things”. If we didn’t let that little “thing” called weather upset us, we might already be in NM having fun in the sun rather than still sitting here, spending hours pouring over Internet weather maps, forecasts, videos, etc. And if we really did all the “things” that we should, we’d be saying, “How ‘bout we join you in Ecuador?”. But our internal “things” cry out, “NO, we can’t go anywhere so soon after we’ve just gotten back from somewhere”. DAMN those “things”, real and imagined.

mailto:[email protected]

We’ll be thinking about ya, and talking about ya, hell, we might even toast ya (yea, da bof ov ya) a time or two or ten, morning and night! Love, Janie and Bog P.S. Do you really spell your name Micheal as in your email signature Dr. Micheal A. Powell? We want to be sure to spell your name properly when we set up our contingent beneficiaries and new wills. P.P.S. Thanks for remembering and spreading those Pa-Boger sayings. There’s a reason his son sometimes referred to him as “Cocky Herman”.

From: Mike Powell1/23/2011 9:01 PM

Whaoaaa Janie, SHIT, my name is spelled wrongly in my signature, SHIT again, it is “Michael”, thanks for letting me know and I cannot imagine how many people/colleagues think that I am an idiot, which I am, for sure …..

Now all I have to do is figure out how to change my signature function, it’s been years.

AND, shit, it’s your 60th!!!!!!!!!!! For that I would travel to the end of the Earth, or at least Concord Rd.; poor attempt at humor.

WE LOVE YOU GUYS!!!!!

Dr. Micheal A. Powell

From: Mike Powell1/24/2011 8:22 AM

Hey, check out this new signature, it only took me an hour to figure out how to change it, and you get all the credit.

Signed

Clueless in CanadiaDr. Michael A. Powell

To: Mike PowellFrom: P&J Boger1/24/2011

Should I mention to “Micheal” that there’s no ‘i’ in Canada? I should mention that RVan is packed, we are dressed very warmly (but not enough for –8 degrees), and we are ready to pick our seats and move on down, move on down, move on down the ro-oad. ETD 8:00 AM. See ya soon, Love, Janie and Bog

To: Terri MensingFrom: P&J BogerJanuary 24, 2011

Okay, the big hand is nearing 12 and the little hand is on 7. We have RVan loaded now – and it even started – so we will shower and give it the old college try. I fully expect we will be there some time in the afternoon (if we can get through the I-90-271-71 route) or evening if we have to jog south to avoid the lake. Here’s hoping we can actually get this adventure started ... today ;-) From: Terri Mensing1/24/2011 7:23 AM

We have a bit of light snow this morning. They say maybe half an inch here today total. Drive carefully!

From: P&J Boger To: Mike PowellSent: January 24, 2011 8:45 AM

On Monday, January 24, 2011 8:22 AM as you sent this email, we were turning onto Crossett Rd from our driveway, headed for Marysville, OH, into blinding sun, at minus 8 degrees. The Great Southwest Adventure has begun. Glad I could be of service to you. For a long time I just thought it was a weird Mormon spelling of Michael! I’ll take the credit; hope I didn’t get any of the curses while you were figuring out how to change it. I can’t seem to get this email NOT to be in bold, but navigating is more important right now. And now Bog says “I hope I unplugged the coffeepot”. Oh, crap. But I KNOW I turned the iron off! Love and Hugs, Janie and Bog

From: P&J Boger To: Terri MensingDate: Monday, January 24, 2011 12:10 pm

We just got gas in Erie at $3.07 (10% ethanol). Roads are clear and not too much traffic, even here near Erie. Hey, that rhymes. Skies are not as clear as when we left at ~8:15 and were blinded by the sun. Street Atlas says we have 280 miles and 5 hrs to go. It’s too far from home to turn back now. See ya later.

From: Terri Mensing1/24/2011 11:03 AM

We have light snow here, but the main roads are just wet. Our street is snow covered, but no big deal.


Just in case you miss a turn and end up overseas.....

ANNOUNCEMENT

The English are feeling the pinch in relation to recent terrorist threats and have therefore raised their security level from "Miffed" to "Peeved."

Soon, though, security levels may be raised yet again to "Irritated" or even "A Bit Cross." The English have not been "A Bit Cross" since the blitz in 1940 when tea supplies nearly ran out. Terrorists have been re-categorized from "Tiresome" to "A Bloody Nuisance." The last time the British issued a "Bloody Nuisance" warning level was in 1588, when threatened by the Spanish Armada. The Scots have raised their threat level from "Pissed Off" to "Let's get the Bastards." They don't have any other levels. This is the reason they have been used on the front line of the British army for the last 300 years. The French government announced yesterday that it has raised its terror alert level from "Run" to "Hide." The only two higher levels in France are "Collaborate" and "Surrender." The rise was precipitated by a recent fire that destroyed France's white flag factory, effectively paralyzing the country's military capability. Italy has increased the alert level from "Shout Loudly and Excitedly" to "Elaborate Military Posturing." Two more levels remain: "Ineffective Combat Operations" and "Change Sides." The Germans have increased their alert state from "Disdainful Arrogance" to "Dress in Uniform and Sing Marching Songs." They also have two higher levels: "Invade a Neighbor" and "Lose." Belgians, on the other hand, are all on holiday as usual; the only threat they are worried about is NATO pulling out of Brussels . The Spanish are all excited to see their new submarines ready to deploy. These beautifully designed subs have glass bottoms so the new Spanish navy can get a really good look at the old Spanish navy. Australia, meanwhile, has raised its security level from "No worries" to "She'll be alright, Mate." Three more escalation levels remain: "Crikey!", "I think we'll need to cancel the barbie this weekend", and "The barbie is canceled."


Janie & Bog - Funny - I was just looking at the forecast when your email popped up. Local forecasters are saying 2 inches of snow beginning after dark tonight. Right now it's raining here. Rain is supposed to change over to snow this evening. Don't know if the snow will stick on the roads tomorrow morning as the high temp today will be 43 or 45. If we get any amount of snow on the roads the kids won't have school and Berniece won't either.

From: Robert WilkinsonDate: Tuesday, January 25, 2011 12:04 pm

Any foreign vessel hove into view?B.

From: Terri Mensing1/25/2011 10:19 AM

Ahoy, Cap'n Bob.

A foreign vessel arrived safely around 4 p.m yesterday. After their shore leave (which involved much imbibing), they were up early and out of here at dawn (8 a.m.). I fear they are headed into rough seas on their way south today (snow in Tennessee).

From: P&J BogerTo: Terri MensingTue, 1/25/11

Land, HO! Nope, I’m not callin’ anyone a ‘ho, just using the one nautical phrase I can think of at the moment. Actually we even have some SUN, HO! just south of Louisville. Lost our internet connection for awhile, and were unable to send APBs as appropriate. Street Atlas says we have 200 miles and 4 hours to get to Mt. Juliet west of Nashville, TN and the home of good ol’ boy Joe George. He reported (~9 AM) highs of 45, but 1-3” of snow overnight w/temps ~32. Doesn’t sound bad to him, but not all Tennesseans grew up in Corfu, NY. We shall see how it goes. Thanks to Terri & G4 for a wonderful evening, which involved an appropriate amount of imbibing, an overabundance of ingesting BIG MEAT and BIG SUGAR chocolate lava birthday cake. BIG YUM, BIG FUN sitting on “the porch”. Thanks to BnC for checking up on us! We have 1,910 miles; 40 hrs to Silver City – yeah, right!


Land Ho?I ain't no Land Ho----I'm a Water Ho!

OK there, go placidly...and, safely.

APBs and internet, are you using your MiFi card? I'm onit here, thanks to T and thee.

From: TERESA MENSING Subject: Re: Sightings? Or, progress report....

Who you callin' a HO?


Well, good thing you got them well fed and swilled---they need to get their livers and other giblets in shape for the abuse I'm going to heap on them!(When they're home alone they sometimes break training.)

We're sorry to miss the evening at your place---chocolate IS one of the four basic food groups. Another time.B.

From: Joe George1/25/2011 12:11 PM

OK, Nat Weather Service now says snow will begin between 9 and 11 pm and we are to get 3 or more inches. Snow is supposed to be out of here tomorrow. You may be stuck (so to speak) in Mount Juliet TN for a time tomorrow...

At least we have a warm place out of the snow.


Ummm, is that the Mt. Juliet, TN toward the Atlantic Ocean from Nashville or another one?Yeah, OK....meat AND chocolate will alter perception. :^)

Where to next?And, when?

Love,Yo Ho's


So you guys got off OK I hear. The roads aren't bad are they? Our street was the worst that you will see I hope. You guys make it to 840 OK?


Well I'm glad you made it. Is the bridge you see in all the advertisements for the Trace located in the part that was closed today or not? Berniece and I will definitely have to drive the Trace.

I notice that the snow stuck to everything and that made the landscape very pretty on my drive in! The road signs in TN are about worthless even when they aren't covered in snow!

I'm not alone in the office today. Actually, our Program Director Bonnie made it in, albeit a bit late, as did my supervisor David and a couple of my co-workers. I forgot to tell you guys. One of my co-workers in our group is from Westfield NY. She did her undergrad work at Brockport. Another person in the larger group we are part of is from Springville. Her and I talk about the Bills and Sabres (who won last night by the way) a lot!

Well too bad I now have southern hospitality. I still consider myself a western New Yorker...

Thanks for the bird identification lessons earlier today. I now know the difference between some of the guys that we see a lot.

Drive safe. Enjoy the scenery and yourselves. Great to see you and as always you have a place to park URVan any time you want. That includes your return trip to NY, if it works out. The weather by then will be more mid-South-like...

Joe

From: Mike Powell1/26/2011 4:01 PM

Well, keep headin’er South, and keep passing the open truck stops and keep sending these notes so that we can live vicariously through your adventures!!!!

LOVE you, be safe, be happy, keep smiling ….

Mikey

From: P&J BogerTo: Saturday AM ListSent: Wednesday, January 26, 2011

Well, we are sitting in the Meriwether Lewis Campground on the Natchez Trace and have Internet connection. Soooo, I thought I’d take this opportunity to tell you how the trip is going.

We awoke Monday morning to –8 degree temps and nearly frozen water in the porch bathroom. Great way to start a trip (details in the Trip Log to come). We took Interstates most of the way from Naweedna to Marysville OH where we spent the first night with Gunter & Terri. Ah, much drinking, dining and frivolity. Great fun. It got all the way up to 32 that night – a 40+ degree increase – but we still stayed inside.

Tuesday found us up early and on the road to Nashville – all Interstates again. It was raining by the time we arrived and that rain turned to 2-4 inches of snow overnight. The temps were just above freezing, so the snow was pretty and not much of a threat. We had a very nice visit with Joe & Berniece and turned in around ten. This time we opted to spend the night in RVan – hey, we’re going to be doing it for the next week, so why not get started now? Besides, it was pretty warm.

We were toasty warm under our comforter of two down sleeping bags zipped together. We ran the furnace and it was a nice 55 inside when we crawled out.

From: Andrea (Adams) Reynolds1/26/2011

BOG!!! Thanks for the update. I’ve been terrible at reading Sat AM lately (very spotty, and often long after they arrive in my inbox). Are you heading through TX? We can offer you a nice meal if you come through Houston. We’d love to see you and Janie! If you may be this way, please send an email or call me at 832.875.xxxx (mobile) or 713.983.xxxx (home). I have some very exciting news to share, but cannot officially disclose before Monday as there are time sensitivities I must obey….

Happy driving! If it helps, our high was close to 60 degrees today – hopefully you’ll get to some warmer weather soon in R-Van. Safe travels to you both! I will go back to read the last few Sat AMs to catch up about your trip. Hope to see you soon!

CHEERS!Andrea

From: AJ Romanelli1/26/2011

Wow, that’s a lot of interstates for you, no wonder you needed a adult beverage (or two).

Zip together sleeping bags are one of the best inventions ever!

Keep me posted on an ETA and I’ll start looking at getting out to NM.

Have fun,A.J.

From: Mike Powell1/26/2011

Oh yeah, and I’ve opened a special folder called “September trip with Wilkinsons”, (which we are not on!!!) just to keep all yours hourly/daily/weekly notes – so that I can reread them periodically.

M

From: P&J Boger To: Mike PowellSent: January 27, 2011

September ... have you looked at a calendar lately? This old age thing is catching up with us all ;-)


Hmmmm, yes, the folder is “September ….”, no wonder we are not ready to go???? OK, the age card, I’ll play it now, but I may need to play it again in the near future ….

Mikey

From: Jason Kahn1/26/2011

Hey Bogs and Janie- Nice to hear from you on the road. I hope the snow falling outside here now is well to the east of you and that you have a smooth sailing road trip. Things have been grand here. My family from LI was here visiting last weekend and we ate...lots. We went sledding which was great and the teenage guys rode the quad up and down the driveway 40 times which was not so fun. My brother Jerry and I made a triple batch of sauce that required 17.5 Lbs. of meat. Enough to give the state of Rhode Island a heart attack. Since then I have been cleaning up and getting in my daily ski. The snow in the woods is nice and deep so I have been able to ski everything around here. We have had a slew of school closings and we spent one day in school last week. The shoveling has been busy work and this past Monday when you were experiencing -8 degrees we were at -13. Not as cold as the -19 we had when you were visiting a few years ago, but still bite ass cold. Please tell your lovely bride happy birthday on Monday for me. Enjoy the trip and keep us posted. Jason

From: Amy Sheldon1/26/2011

Janie and Bog,Had hoped you'd avoid the snow, but it sounds like you found it anyway ... and plenty of cold. I was in DC Sunday through Tuesday. There are still plenty of tire tracks in the driveway and no fresh snow. I'll be stopping at the PO to get/do the mail tomorrow. Will let you know ONLY if there is anything worth bugging you about. I'll check the house tomorrow too, just to make sure all is as it should be.-Amy

From: Joe Spollen1/26/2011

Sounds like it's shaping up to be a nice road trip. I'm jealous.

From: Bethany Zinni1/26/2011

Enjoy and drive safe! Looking forward to the trip log and perhaps some in-person descriptions over a frosty one when you are back!

From: Bob Wilkinson1/26/2011

Good work!

I'm hoping the MiFi card shows up tomorrow and it works and I can trick Verizon into letting me use it on a month to month basis. What I want to do here is see, first if it works for us and where. If we can use it all the way back to Cordova then I'll be a happy fella.

Happiness includes getting rid of our multiple providers and cutting the monthly bill so as to allow more beer/wine/chocolate. An important consideration.

When do you think we should give Coach Coleman and his Lovely a distant early warning?Or, do they already have same?

Should be interesting.....

Chow for now,B.

From: Amy Spaziani1/26/2011

You are getting closer! Too bad I don't still live in Baton Rouge. That sounds like a great trip. I always wanted to go down the Natchez, but never made it. Stupid thesis :) How far south/west are you going? Any plans to make it to Texas?

Safe travels,Amy

From: Bob Mahoney1/26/2011

Love the On The Road updates!! Keep 'em coming!

From: Mary Jane Stell1/27/2011

You are glad you are not in the NE. We got over 12” snow last night. The plows have not been through yet.

Mary Jane

From: Joe George1/27/2011

Well, sounds like you guys are continuing to have fun! Hope you kept warm last night in uRVan. Your visit has been the highlight of the year so far.

Again, thanks for the sampling of brews that you provided us. I have yet to get into them but will, I promise. And I'll report on the likes/dislikes.

Sounds like you're going to be showered with affection from Houston if you take a southern route back.

Later.............Joe


Bog,If you come thru Houston on the return, when might that be? Do you have a specific timeframe for your trip - i.e. are you winging it, and off with where the urge takes you - or do you have a date you need to be back by?

Cheers,A

From: Jen (Morse) McMo1/27/2011

Ah, Meriwether Lewis...obviously a HUGE historical figure out here. It's funny - they just kinda gloss over Lewis & Clark in NY history - blah blah blah Sacajawea, Route to the Pacific, blah blah blah. But they're a big deal out here (obviously).

I cannot believe the weather you guys are getting back East. We've been experiencing Spring - the daffodils and tulips are coming up...my neighbors daffodils are blooming! I've been weeding and de-mossing everything. Trying to keep ahead of the dandelions...it's a losing battle. I'm glad you guys can update from the road - I was kind of hoping you would. I can't imagine having to wait over a month to hear of your adventures.

Are you guys going to revisit some of our 1993 trip thru that corner of the SW?! I think you all should make a Right Turn at Albuquerque and head up to Portland...but that's just me.

Safe travels!

Jen M.

From: Alice (Bannigan) Breslin1/27/2011

I hate snow. Is that important?

Glad you liked the Kindle....guess in 5 years I can get one.....

Love, Alice

From: Gretchen Gebhardt1/27/2011

Not planning on heading north to Oregon are you? :) I really missed seeing you guys over Christmas. I would have loved to come out and visit, but we spent the whole time up in Lake Placid at my little sister’s place. Maybe next time, over the summer.

Sounds like a super fun trip, I really enjoy the desert in the winter time! Big Bend was by far my favorite.

Love & missG

From: Mare McMahon1/29/2011

Sounds amazing! Wish we were there...... :-) and :~)

From: Char Wilkinson1/29/2011

The Trace does indeed sound like great fun. We'll definitely have to do it some time.

It's been cool here, compared to earlier in our visit, but the sun shines gloriously. We went to a restaurant called Billy's (after the Kid) last evening. The BBQ (ribs and brisket) were fabulous and the pizza looked great. We had a great time and left when the karaoke began.

Tonight we'll go to a coffee place where they will have a guitar player who is reported to be excellent. They have different music weekly. We went there a few weeks ago, and the music was really fun--kind of 40s cabaret. Two guys in their 80s played piano and clarinet. And one of them sang. And they were good!

We'll be moving to our new place and cleaning this place on Tuesday (the 31st). We'll have windows! Of course, the first rain in weeks is predicted for that day. Timing IS everything. Maybe the prediction will prove wrong for that day!

See you soon! Yay, us. Love you guys--Char


Pay NO attention to the woman behind the calendar.....We can move into the new place on Tuesday PM----the first of Feb.Today, we review calendar. Tomorrow we'll work on Mickey's hands.

Sorry 'bout yer potty probs. Our AK/TN/AZ friends with the travel trailer behind God's own truck froze themselves into a nightmare up in Colorado last week. I'm thinkin' we'll stick with Holiday Inn.

Last night's event Char mentioned was excellent. It was over, however, when the Karaoke guy came out wearing a sport coat of silver glitter. Not as good as an Elvis version, it was garish and ill-fitting. Sort of made you think somewhere in southern Alabama there is a '56 Edsel missing a seat cover.

From: Cam Kanhalangsy1/29/2011

Yo! Thru Lubbock? Buddy Holly Museum in Lubbock.

From: Kurt Yuengling1/29/2011

Safe Travels you two.. We are also on the road, though much less exciting - returning to the mitt from beantown. If you return via a northern route we hope you'll swing by.Happy BDay (probably belated) to Janie,Kurt

From: P&J Boger Subject: Sweetwater, Anyone?Date: Sunday, January 30, 2011

We are just about 20 miles east of Sweetwater, TX on I-20. Although it’s not too early to raise a glass in honor of Sweetwater Tavern, it’ll have to be a glass of sweet water ‘cuz we got Miles and Miles of Texas to travel.


Raise a glass later then---we will!

We're on our way to finalize our new digs, etc. Good timing for both of us--it looks like it will be Cordova weather for our move Tuesday afternoon. Snow, rain and cold.

Your move to SC will be a poor intro I fear. BUT, later in the week it will become "More seasonal." Whatever.....

I will work on a suitable location for watching "That Sporting event" on the 6th. Dunno yet.

Proceed placidly through the sleet and snow!"Sweetwater" awaits.

This is the 2nd On The Road submission. The first one stimulated so many replies; why not try another one? Read on and see what transpired …

From: P&J BogerTo: Saturday AM GroupSent: Sunday, January 30, 2011

Well, we’d planned to cut under Dallas/Fort Worth and head west into the Staked Plains and then on into the Valley of Fire in NM. We actually started out on that very route and were having just a grand time driving though all the very western little towns. We stopped for lunch and I took that opportunity to check the weather. Gawd, there is Arctic air moving this way. Although it was 65 ... yes, 65 ... this morning when we got up, they are predicting it will be ZERO in the very places we were heading by Tuesday. Recalculate ... we got on I-20 and headed across the Permian Basin and right now are bathed in wall-to-wall sunshine and 75 degrees. However, it will get down to 35 tonight, 25 tomorrow night, and maybe below 20 Tuesday night. Ah, but by Tuesday, we should be in Silver City with Bob’n’Char in the house they are sitting for some friends. Yay!

We are in a state park that features sand dunes – our first taste of the desert. It is an abrupt change and somewhat welcome I must say. Oh, we spend about a half hour

walking around the visitor center and got TWO life birds. More detail in the Trip Log to follow.

From: Terri Mensing1/30/2011

You totally suck. We are expecting a huge ice/snow/sleet storm here starting tomorrow... I'm very jealous of you!

I hope you guys are having a BLAST! Happy Birthday to Janie on Monday!!

From: Sue Boyle1/30/2011

Sounds fun - and warm!! We can't wait for our Feb trip to Florida.

What two life birds did you get???

--Sue

From: Bethany Zinni1/30/2011

I am loving these (essentially) real time updates! Keep 'em coming! And have fun!


Staked Plains, Valley of Fire, Permian Basin. That's the way to layout a trip. There's no "Take Route 80 to exit 12, take a right at the Wal-Mart". Destination Silver City doesn't detract from the ambiance either.

Still Jealous,Joe

From: Guy Reynolds1/30/2011

My lesson learned living in Nebraska. I have at home and travel with a NOAA weather radio.

Take Care.Guy


LOL....well, OK.The people are leaving the house in the afternoon on Tuesday. We will be moving our stuff along toward evening.

If you plan to arrive Tuesday, drive S-L-O-W-L-Y.You get cheese and crackers---lots of beer/wine/of course--for dinner. Moving will take precedence o'er cooking. OR, we go out to one of the dozen or so Mex places. All good so far.

Call for directions when you're near. It's a bit confusing as even the fire dept. has trouble. We'll explain.

WELCOME to New Mexico!(Do they say "Y'all" here? Dunno.)


Ah, the Permian Basin. Can't wait to hear more! Good luck - don't freeze!

From: Kurt Yuengling1/30/2011

WOW, what a cold front. Marty and I ran into something similar years ago in February. We were camping outside of Carlsbad NM, temp during the day was 75. Spend the night with the tent kissing my cheek (not Marty) and woke up to frozen water bottles. There was a roadrunner on the bathhouse that was so puffed up he looked like a volleyball. We decided to abandon plans to go north to Roswell and turned south and drove to Big Bend. Apparently the Jet Stream had dipped down to the border overnight!Safe travels,Kurt


Hey Bogs- Very cool on the two life list birds. For you guys that's saying something. Stay warm and keep us posted... Oh and please tell your lovely bride I say Happy Birthday! Jason

From: Dave Terry1/31/2011

Good luck! The east coast is supposed to get pounded again. I have nearly 3 ft on the ground still, they're predicting we'll get up to another 12 inches followed by 1/2 inch of ice. If not for my farmer neighbor who pushed back my 8 ft piles w/ his tractor yesterday, I'd have no place to put the snow! Enjoy the trip & the sun! Dave.


Hi,

I like this blow-by-blow travel log, it gives people like me with limited concentration a chance to grasp what is happening, rather than trying to read through pages of stuff weeks after the fact.

Sweetwater Texas, hmmmm, I’m pretty sure that it’s located on a river, and close to the border with another state??? At least, that is the way I remember it when we all sat down with a map, looking for a clever name for a bar, back in the early/mid 70’s?????

As for your weather diversions, you are lucky; we are about to get hit with another winter storm (30-35 cm of powder) tomorrow and the next day, but we cannot avoid it by turning. When I looked at the Jet Stream this morning I thought about you guys. It comes straight down from Canada, hits the Western part of South-central Texas and then makes this

serious left turn, skirting straight across the Gulf until it exits into the Atlantic – it’s only a good thing that you are heading SW!!!

The good thing is that you ain’t got no fuckin’ time constraints – the Wilkinson’s will still be there when you arrive – ENJOY amigos (you may need to brush up on you Española while you are there).

LoveMikey


Well, is the weather affecting you guys? A friend of mine texted me from OKC - 10 inches of snow and 40 mph winds at last report... Drive safely.


Happy After-Birth Day! There was enough cake and champagne to go around?So, BD smooch!

OK, for practical purposes, we are moved---read, the beer is in the fridge. Not that a fridge is really necessary. It's 37F and due to get mmmmuch colder.

About an inch of fluffy snow descended on us last night but is gone today. It only amounted to .12 inches of moisture. Not much.

Tomorrow is GHD! Be here for Ground Hog if you can. But mostly, be safe.....

This real time posting is going GREAT … let’s do it again … and again … and …

From: P&J BogerTo: Saturday AM GroupDate: Wed, 2 Feb 2011

Sometime mid-morning we found ourselves in Deming NM, turned onto North Gold Street and headed toward Silver City. Precious, eh? Last night it got down to 11 degrees and a couple inches of fresh snow. The lady in the RV office said the road to Silver City was CLOSED. We hung out for a couple hours and the Mr RV Place told us that I-10 was clear and we should be able to get to Silver City just fine. We were off. The roads were a little crazy for a while but by the time we got to Deming, the snow was gone and the sun was nearly out. B’n’C met us in the Wal-Mart parking lot, and after hugs and a little jumping up & down, we were off doing what all DOOCs do when they first get together – we went immediately to a grocery. Then we pulled RVan into the mother-in-law side of the house they are ‘sitting’ for the next two months and moved into our very own bedroom w/kitchen & bath. What a set up. Oops ... just got an email from BAWB (he’s upstairs and we’re down) ... The drinking lamp is lighted......C'mon up! More later ...


You are lucky you came through when you did. We just had 2 days of ice ice ice and more ice. Yuck. I had to take a hammer to the sidewalk to chip the 1"+ thick layer of ice off of it. The great part is that the wind and snow started after the ice and caused power outages and we lost some trees (and some fence due to losing some trees). We lost power in the middle of the night last night. It got mighty cold here. What was really rough, was no way to heat water for coffee this morning. We couldn't get to R-RVan in the barn to heat water because our place is a sheet of ice... very treacherous. You could skate on our driveway... and our pastures... and anywhere else actually.

Fortunately, the power came on this afternoon and we are now warm and coffeed. Enjoy your stay and hello to BAWB and Char.

T&G


Can't wait to hear all about it. Just don't drunk email your friends ;)


Precious. That's funny.Joe

From: Beth Demyanik2/2/2011

Awesome! Who knew you were going by good ol' Deming, NM. I did a short course at NM Tech in high school and befriended a girl from there. We lost touch years ago but if you run into a Gloria Jaime, well, don't do anything considering she probably doesn't remember my name ;)

Have fun out there! I love the from the road updates!!

:) Beth

From: Bill Bannigan2/2/2011

Did not realize you were away not much you can do about the 60 roses Sean sent you for your birthday How well do you think they will keep on the porch?


Hey Bogs- Congrats and I'm glad you made it safely. Yup the weather is nuts this year. All things considered I'm running out of places to put the snow. The driveway is getting narrow, the piles of snow I rake and shovel off the roofs is getting as high as the roof. The skiing is great, but all the snow removal for friends and family has me so tired I only ski a half hour or so.

Have fun and tell B & C hello for all of us. Oh I almost forgot to tell you. Wolaver's Brewing has a new coffee porter...yummy. take care- Jason


It's good that you finally got out of the RV fix-it place. That had to be boring! Enjoy your time, your new potty, your set up (SWEET!), the mountains, and the weather. More snow predicted here for Friday night into Saturday and Monday night into Tuesday. We'll see.

Just do what DOOC's do. Is Janie a full member by marriage or a co-DOOC?

Later...............Joe

From: P&J BogerTo: Jenny (Amy Sheldon’s Sister) Coleman2/2/2011

Dear Jenny, We arrived in Silver City noonish today and are finally settled into Bob and Charlene’s new digs at 3 Crescent Circle, sort of. We just wanted to give you a warning, so you can find some excuse to avoid us. Let us know if you have any time free so we can all get together. We’d love to take you out to dinner. It’s best to call Bob’s pocket 907-244-1917 or you can try ours 585-739-7914. I would call you but you actually have important things to do at certain times, and we are just hanging out. Plus I suffer from phonaphobia - I hate calling people, but I don’t mind having people call me. Hope to see you soon. Janie and Bog

From: Jenny (Amy Sheldon’s Sister) Coleman2/3/2011

Janie,

Because of this deep-freeze we are in, the university is closed today and may be closed tomorrow as well. Mark's team has home games Friday and Saturday, assuming the heat is turned back on again (we were shut down to save natural gas for other users supposedly). Anyway, I will give you guys a ring tomorrow, Friday, to either make dinner plans or try to talk you into a basketball game.

Enjoy your visit and settling in, Jenny

From: Mikey Powell2/3/2011

I’ve really enjoyed following your travels with the snippets that arrive periodically. I was able to look up places on MapQuest, imagine you guys “turtling” down the back roads, etc., etc. When I get the travel logs on Sam I sometimes get “lost” in the details. Anyway, I’m just saying again that I like this way of living vicariously through your adventures.

As I watched this last big storm unfold, and unfold and unfold, across most of the central USofA, I could not believe that it stretched directly across your path – and you had no way to avoid it. It was almost like the entire corridor from anyplace in upstate NY to anyplace in NM

had to travel right along the moving path of the storm – unbelievable. At any rate, you are there, safe and sound, frozen milk be damned. And, four computers in a small area has got to be good for a ½ degree or so of extra warmth. At least the sun is shining.

I’ve been busy preparing/researching for a trip to China in April – probably 2 weeks. I’ll be going to three of the southernmost provinces to visit 5 sites for tree/biomass/biofuel/etc. development. I’m not sure what the outcome will be, but this could end up developing into a long-term “job” – more on this when I know more.

Anyway, miss you all, thanks for the 4-computer hello and nobody wishes we were there more than ME.

Love to allMikey

From: Bill Bannigan2/3/2011

Okay did not want to spoil the surprise but it is 60 roses but lucky for your mailman they fit in a 3x4 envelope.

Well stay warm belated happy 60love Bill

On Fri, Feb 4, 2011 P&J Boger wrote:

We drove 3000 miles from Geneseo, NY, where it was minus 10 degrees, BnC drove 6000 miles from Alaska. We’re all trying to escape the cold, and what happens? Last night it was minus 10 degrees here. But it’s a DRY COLD, a SUNNY COLD and hardly any snow. This morning it was 4 degrees inside RVan and 18 degrees inside RVan frig – frozen milk, frozen creamer, probably frozen other stuff, too. But we had brought the beer inside. Today we’ve kept warm in the house, huddling around 4 computers – one for

each of us. Today, we may actually leave the house

Stay warm, love from Bob, Charlene, Bog, Janie

From: Stephanie (Fuentes) Kidwell2/3/2011

Hi guys,

I LOVE YOUR LIFE!!!! Sorry, just a moment of jealousy :) Have a great time in Silver City and don't forget to turn off the drinking lamp.

Well, guys, have a great trip, get home safely, and of course, post pics as soon as you can! I need a new wallpaper photo (although I still like the one I have from your last trip). I'm REALLY going to need your photos actually because I used to get my nature fill on my bike. I was always a klutz anyway.

Be well, love you lots,Steph


We now have sunshine and 7 degrees this morning. But ice everywhere. The driveway is like an ice rink. The guys are here working on our basement and they had to get themselves some special ice gripper thingies to strap on their shoes so they don't kill themselves. We have spread about 150 lbs of salt but it didn't make much of a dent. I took a hammer to the sidewalk to chip a path, but I couldn't get through the ice on the driveway. I had to tap the satellite dish and the "guns" on it to get the ice off. We're expecting more snow tonight but then a brief warm up.

I've been in a dry sunny cold before... in Antarctica. It still feels cold!

Hope you're having fun. It sounds like you are.T&G


Hey Bogs- Cold seems to be the word of the week. Last night at ski club I did 4 runs and called it a night. Frozen toes, hands and nose are no fun in high winds and 0 degrees. Today I am playing hooky and driving to Lake Placid for an XC ski race tomorrow. It's warmer up there, go figure! Have fun and tell everyone hello for me. Jason

From: Bob Mahoney2/5/2011

Bob&Carol&Ted&Alice from the desert southwest!

Our 2nd posting from Silver City … things are getting better and better … Bob&Carol&Ted&Alice indeed ;-)

From: P&J BogerTo: Saturday AM GroupSubject: What Have You Done Lately ...Sent: Tuesday, February 08, 2011

Well, here we are in the lovely house doing computer things ... as we do each AM. However, since I last reported we have:

Shopped several times (it’s a DOOC thing) Watched two WNMU basketball games – really good; both wins and one was an OT thriller – go ‘Tangs (Amy Sheldon’s brother-in-law is the coach) Watched a pretty exciting Super Bowl Consumed way too many adult beverages Eaten some wonderful food – many, many burritos – both red & green Taken a delightful drive along the Trail of the Mountain Spirits Had a beer in an 1860 Saloon Seen a most interesting Charlie Russell painting

And a lot more to be detailed in the trip log ... if we can remember it – lots of dying brain cells

Things are just going alone swimmingly ... this may become our permanent address ;-)


Hey Bogs- I hope your vacation is going smoothly and that the weather is not too crazy. I was in Lake Placid yesterday for a race and although I did two minutes better than last year I got bumped back two spots in the finish to 5th place. I tell you there are some tough mother 60-70 year olds! There was an 81 year old guy who raced the 50 Km (31 miles) and although it took him 9 hours he finished. The way home after the awards banquet was 6 hours of snow, white out conditions almost, sleet, freezing rain and rain with thunderstorms. I got home barely up the driveway while it was still soft enough and today I am stuck here clearing more ice dams off the roof and hoping the driveway de-ices in the next few days. Earle tried to come up it with his ATV with chains on it and slid backwards doing 360's the whole way down the hill. So I may miss jury duty tomorrow. On the good news part of this day I am listening to computer music on the new Klipsch Promedia 2.1 speakers. Rather excellent sound! Tell everyone there I say hello please. Jason


Good for you. It has been snow and ICE in PA. I am ready for spring!

Mary Jane

From: Dori Farthing2/8/2011

Wow...you folks make my days seem rather boring!


Sounds like you've found your place in the world! I'll have a beer in honor of both of you tonight! Wish it were in a 1860 saloon though.... Which Charlie Russell painting did you see? I'm a big fan.


Bogs- You can live where ever you want as long as you allow visitation rights... Agreed? Things have been good here. Lots of snow which you could guess was the case. We keep getting 3-6 inches every other night between bigger storms. We had a snow day today, our last...gulp! But I went to school to do lesson plans for the week, I'm on jury duty so far, I'll know more this time tomorrow. I graded lots of labs and home works, put grades into the computer and had my car serviced/ inspected while I was doing it. When I got back I had a wonderful ski and spent 1.5 hours raking the roofs and shoveling the doors and deck. If this sounds like last week’s email and the week before that it, probably is. I had some 50+ check ups with the various doctors recently and I found my LDLs are too high so I am off red meat and such for a while. I knew it was going to be high right after the holidays and a family visit where bacon, sausage and meatballs were served 3 times a day for 3 days. As a teacher I get lots of cookies, fudge, cake and pie for Christmas from students and I tend to eat it all so I was literally caught with my hand in the cholesterol cookie jar. For dinner tonight I am preparing fish and cauliflower. I like both and I like

setting goals for myself so this could be okay. I know that I can't exercise more, not without sponsorship anyway and why the hell would anyone do that. So I am going to try lowering my LDLs though diet. The lovely and magnificent Jennifer has agreed to research how best to do this. She is the best researcher there is and I know she will do me proud. Speaking of the lovely and magnificent Jennifer, I believe we are going through the longest stretch of relationship gap we have endured in 8+ years. As of today it has been 9 days since I have seen/ touched her and I am going *&%#ing INSANE! Sorry I had to let that out. Due to weather and last weekends XC ski race in Lake Placid we have missed our 2-3 visits a week. Needless to say I miss her, but come Friday after school or court I am Amherst bound. On a musical note I am enjoying my new speakers, but since my computer was debugged I am no longer able to access Media Monkey. So iTunes has been my only recourse. Alright Time to stretch and drink a beer. Miss you much. Jason


It's not all that bad here. Well, it was 2 degrees this morning, but we can deal with that. It's supposed to be in the mid 40s by the weekend. Goodbye ice!

We hope you will be able to stop by on your way back. If not, we understand. No pressure, but maybe I can talk G into the Mexican restaurant this time! We have all our "fun" under control now. Even that delightful odor seems to be gone now, so don't let that scare you away.

If I were you, I'd stay as long as you can in NM.


Permanent address in the southwest, I like the sound of that.A.J.


Interesting painting for sure.

I haven't begun yet on the sampler beers. Trying to finish the others first. One more to go.

Our 3rd Silver City offering. Oh my, things are going ever so well … unfortunately, we have to leave … sometime ;-)

From: P&J BogerSubject: Silver City Update2/11/2011

Well, hello there, we are still in Silver City enjoying the hospitality of our gracious hosts: B’n’C. Things are beginning to blur a bit, but maybe I can remember some highlights from the last couple days. Hmmm, let’s see, we’ve been spending our mornings drinking appropriate morning beverages while engaging in highly technological pursuits on the computers. What sort of things? Well, I’m tutoring Char in the fine art of The Monkey, so we spend a lot of time monkeying around with music files. We’ve also taken a couple walking tours of the town and visited many of the “unique” shops. Oh, and then there’s the eating

business. When Chef BAWB doesn’t produce one of his gastronomic delights, we find ourselves in one of the local eateries where we continue to evaluate the comparative quality of burritos, red & green sauces, and the occasional soft taco. We met Jenny & Mark Coleman (Jenny is Amy Sheldon’s sister & Mark is the basketball coach; both work at WNMU) for dinner at the Jalisco Café. We totally moofed out and had a grand time. I don’t think we’ve finished the HUGE desserts yet – mandarin orange & chocolate cake plus sopapillas w/honey ... may have to get some new pants when I get home. B’n’C are looking at houses for winter residence so they can shuttle between AK & NM. We, by default, are also looking and learning a lot about the process. Who knows, it might just come in handy in the not too distant future. It really is nice down here ... very tempting. We took a tour of a development they hadn’t checked out before and after that, just sort of followed this nice gravel road on and on and on. It gets very rural once you leave town. We didn’t see a human structure - other than mine tailings, fences and a RR track - along the entire sojourn. There were great expanses of high desert rimmed by lumpy mountains. Very nice. Last night ended up at an Andy Stein concert. It was grand. Andy is a wealth of musicological gems and dispensed them freely. There was a gathering after the show, and we actually got to talk with the man himself. He is exceptionally nice. We also got to meet a lot of the locals. The general population here is of our generation so we immediately have a lot in common. They are also extremely friendly; they came right up, introduced themselves, and engaged us in conversation. No problem fitting in here. Hell, some of them knew about Geneseo, including Mr. Stein. Gary, the local astronomer, even knows Dave Meisel and did some research at RIT years ago. The interconnectivity borders on scary.

That’s a taste of the good news. The bad news is RVan will be pulling out of the drive Monday morning. Yep, it is time to start heading home – damn.


NM WY MT - any place out west is great, I think. Wouldn't mind having a place in the foothills and out.

Leaving so soon? That's too bad. If time/inclination/need/desire/thirst/stomach rumblings strikes you, you are most welcome again to stop into the 402 Woodlawn Drive motel on your way back to one of the greatest glacial valleys of New York State!


Weather is supposed to start warming up here over the next week. It's been too cold.

It's going to be in the 40s this weekend and in the 50s by the end of next week. Woot! Goodbye ice! You've picked a good week to start back.

I keep trying to convince G that NM or AZ would be good places to live in the winters once I retire, but he wants to go to Florida (ick).

Drive safely. Hi to BAWB and Char.

T&G

From: Stephanie Kidwell2/11/2011

Yes, get a winter residence!!! The snow this winter is ridiculous!!! Why put up with this if you don't have to? Move someplace warm and sunny with an extra bedroom for mooching alumni. Enjoy your trip!


Major bummer we won’t get to see you guys!

Ah, there will just have to be a “next time”.

BnC – I’ll get back to regarding scheduling, maybe I can still pull off a multi-day multi-stop trip even if PB&J have already left the building (or it might make sense to re-schedule for a later date for a get-together, since things are a wee bit hectic right now with the new house purchase).

A.J.


Found out a person in the larger group we are part of here once lived in Silver City NM. She said it was becoming a smaller Santa Fe NM when she left 10 years ago. Was that you guys' impression? Are you on your way to Houston to visit folks there?

We had a small snow again last week midweek (2.5 inches) and today it's supposed to be 70. Welcome to spring!

Drive safely...

P.S.

Enjoy the Ride! If you happen to head a bit farther north and into the OK panhandle, stop by and see the dinosaur tracks west of Kenton, OK and Black Mesa... I'm sure they'll be some scissor-tailed flycatchers (OK state bird) for you to watch.

From: P&J BogerSubject: Where Are We Now?2/17/2011

The Parting has occurred. We bid farewell to our gracious hosts Tuesday morning and headed out on our own ... again. It’s pretty lonely, and if it weren’t for the great things we’re seeing, we’d be back in Silver City in a heartbeat. So what have we done since Tuesday? We got to Bosque del Apache NWR that evening, secured a campsite, and toured the refuge until dark. Oh my, this is a world-class refuge. The first thing we saw was a pond FULL of Snow Geese. There must have been thousands of ‘em. Then the Sandhill Cranes came in ... there were hundreds of them. And the puddle

ducks and the raptors and the ... well, you get the picture – or you will once we get home and I get a chance to post ‘em. We spent all day Wednesday in the refuge. There is a 15 mile tour road, so I put RVan in gear and let it idle us around at a cool 5 mph – 6 with a tail wind. Great wildlife, great scenery, great people – all extremely friendly and open. We stayed that night at the same RV place just outside the refuge ...Bosque Birdwatcher’s RV Park, where else? ... and then went back for morning beverages and breakfast this AM. Next it was off down the road to the Valley of Fires, which is where I am now typing this. The campground is located on a Kipuka, which is a ridge of bedrock surrounded by lava. It seems there was an eruption here in the Tularosa Basin (north of Alamogordo) some 2k years ago. It’s olivine basalt and shows lots of Pahoehoe and Aa structures. As I type this, the setting sun is washing over the Sacramento Mtns to our east, which, by the way, are snowcapped. Okay, time to pop the top on a Deschutes Obsidian Stout – very appropriate, don’t you think – and wait to see if we get a sunset. Wish you all could be here – P-A-R-T-Y ;-)

From: Jim Janora2/17/2011

Bogs and Janie;

I appreciate your updates while you're on your trip, more so than when you summarize them upon return. I guess I'd rather know what you're up to than what you've done! This way, I get to live vicariously through the adventure instead of studying the past.

By the way, the Brandi Carlisle song on 2010 is your best selection ever.


Wow. Nice. We went through Bosque del Apache once on our way west to run a field trip through Arizona. We were with my good friend, Rich Bradley, who is our campus' zoologist. His area of specialization is ornithology, so we got the deluxe expert type tour. He also went to grad school in NM, so it was amazing to travel with him.

We are having warm weather here today. It was about 55 degrees here. Supposed to be about the same tomorrow. Most of the snow and ice is gone. (Yay.) It will cool off a bit after tomorrow and be more seasonable after that.

You know you have a campsite (or hotel room) waiting here for you, should your travels bring you this way...


Bog,I love living vicariously through your RVan'ing! Tomorrow morning I leave Houston for Pittsburgh with the newly-turned 3-year-olds (Matt is driving up with the dogs. Pittsburgh will be our new home for the next 4 years (me with Shell, Matt with Talisman Energy). I am happy to be closer to home and Geneseo - I hope to see you and Janie in 2011 : )

... And we'll be just off 79 north of P'burgh in the Cranberry area if your trip takes you back home thru PA. Just let us know - we'd love to see you soon!

Cheers,Andrea


Hey Bogs- Sounds lovely there. I just dotes on them Sandhill Cranes. I'll have to get out there once I am no longer among the workforce. Have the temps broke out that way yet? It is supposed to be in the 50's here today and I hope it's not too damaging on the snow. Get home safe and hope to see you soon. Jason


Hey Bogs & Janie;

In WNY , the Snow Moon is full and bright in a clear dark sky, and it got up to 55 degrees today before the wind started. It looks like the Snow Moon is melting the snow. What does it look like where you are?

How do you feel about a bunch of alums setting up tents on Naweedna the weekend of Beth Demyanick's wedding? We-all want to get together and can't think of a better place.

From: P&J BogerSubject: Farewell To The Land Of Enchantment ...2/20/2011

Today we crossed the border and entered TX. Fittingly, we ended up just south of Needmore Texas. I believe I ended the last report at The Valley of Fires in Carrizozo NM. We actually wound up spending two nights there after a day of touring Billy The Kid and Smokey Bear territory. Just about everything in this part of NM references Billy The Kid, with one exception: Capitan NM where Smokey was found ... and is buried. The Billy The Kid thing got so tiring we fully expected to see, “Billy The Kid farted here” signs. We are not sure why Smokey “the” Bear is strongly discouraged by the locals, but Billy “the” Kid is quite acceptable, though decidedly not respectable. Saturday, we went from the Valley of Fires and headed back to Capitan where we picked up NM-246. This was an excellent road – very much like the Trace: no billboards, almost no utility poles, wonderful scenery, and essentially no traffic. Unfortunately, it is only 75 miles long and ends in Roswell, but other than that ... great. We saw exactly 14 vehicles in the entire length and only two of those came up from behind. We’d had such a wonderful time in Bosque del Apache NWR, we decided to check out some other NWRs. We spent the night in Bottomless Lake SP, just east of Roswell. Sunday morning found us tooling down US-380 (it goes from Dallas to Bosque del Apache) where we ended up in Tatum NM. We’d passed through Tatum back in ‘98 and remembered the interesting iron-art street signs. Yep, still there and looking as good as we remembered.

We took NM-206 north out of Tatum, heading for Portales where we wanted to check out the Oasis SP and Grulla NWR. Both were disappointments. It was too early to set up camp in Oasis and it was too exposed to the very brisk WSW wind we were encountering all day. Grulla was enshrouded in a dust cloud and we couldn’t see anything. On to Muleshoe NWR just south of Needmore TX. It too was very dusty, but – and this is a big but – they have a campground ... and ... it is on the west side of the dust cloud. So here I sit surrounded by Llano Estacado grasslands, looking directly at the setting sun, and sipping a State Pen Porter. Wish you were here ;-)


Ooh, they sound like such nice places. I hope to get there once I'm either retired or no longer have to work, whichever comes first. The porter sounds nice too. I am on vacation this week & trying to fill my dance card with interesting places to ski. Today it's the Tennessee Valley pipeline in Canaan, NY for some powder skiing, we got 6 inches last night, then to Art Omi for some track skiing this afternoon with some folks from school. Tomorrow I may ski Harvey Mt, on the NY-Mass border. Wednesday I'll be skiing with Jenn up at the NMH XC-ski trails and then Thursday up to the Daks to ski into the Pharaoh Lakes Wilderness for the day. Friday is wide open so far. We had wicked wind here this Saturday, 65-70 mph gusts, and I went to Notchview Nordic center in Windsor, MA. They were closed due to the wind, but let me ski there anyway. I got pushed up hill when I was in the open on ice and was accelerating faster than I was comfortable with, so I bailed into a snow bank and took to the woods where the wind was not nearly as bad. Banff Film Festival was this past weekend and it was great as usual. I'll tell you about them when I see you. Get home safe and have a great trip. Jason


It all sounds simply lovely. Sadly, you can't have hot dogs for chow. Nor can you have mustard on the next dogs Hebrew Nat. provides--both of your mustards are right here in S.C.

We took a field trip to Cruces yesterday for a look-see and had a decent time, for Las Cruces, that is. It's just a town.

On the way back, we went through Deming as fast as possible being that it is just a larger version of Lordsburg and not-so-much charming. However, we were turned back at the Chevron station when the operator asked if we had been to Palma's.... Well, no we hadn't.It WAS about dinner time and we were assured the mostly Italian menu would satisfy.So, off we went.

Palma's has the usual, for NM, oilcloth covered tables and uncomfortable chairs. The also usual little tub of grated cheese, salt, pepper and red pepper flakes completed the condiment array.Looking about the room, I saw several tables with blue Bud Light bottles and not a wineglass in sight. Hmmmm. A long day of DALASing about calls for good beer or red wine---certainly NOT Budweiser of any stripe.

The very friendly waitperson assured me there was wine to be had and she showed me the wine list.... Seven NM wines, uniformly undrinkable and a lone R. Mondavi cab were the choices. Mondavi it is! Well, it turned out the cab was a vintage select version for dirt

cheap and damn good. I'll bet it was the only bottle they had and it had been neglected for a very long time. It had the layer of dust to prove it.

Things were looking positive, wine-wise, when I tried the grated cheese expecting to experience the dry, grainy stuff Kraft puts in the big green jar. Not so. It was freshly grated and a blend of parmesan and romano, just like I do at where ever home happens to be. A good sign. Time to order. What to have......

Then, came the bread, warm from the oven with garlic laden olive oil to dip it in (Balsamic on request.) Char would stay for sure--bread gets her every time.

Well now, another look around the room revealed the portions were "Cowboy" size and more than we elderly sorts can manage. Too much of a good thing and the ol' hiatal hernia reminds me of my folly all night long. We opted for a house salad and a side of fettuccine with a meat sauce--to share. We left some pasta behind and carried away a full normal person serving of salad. Some salad! It occupied the entire plate, piled with olives, pepperonchini, cheese and croutons with a killer house dressing claiming to be Italian.

I mumbled something to the waitlady about the ethnicity of the meal and was assured "Palma" herself was indeed Italian. Palma's Italian Grill was looking better all the time. Minutes later, Palma, in person, came by the table to chat.

While chatting, music--a singing voice--sort of Sinatra-like crooned "Fly me to the moon...."It was coming from the other dining room. What the hell, somebody walking around with a boom box and a Sinatra tape? Deming is not exactly the cultural capital of anywhere, so I guessed that could be exactly it. Some guy celebrating a birthday or anniversary with the tune that caused the birthday or anniversary. "......play among the stars" echoed louder and louder when the source burst into our dining room. His back to us for the moment, it was a very tall guy with very blond hair---looking very Viking-like and toting a mike.".....Jupiter and Mars" belted our way and the song went on. The guy was sporting a once white chef's coat, now spattered with marinara sauce and accented with bits of multi-colored, unidentified smudges assumed to be kitchen detritus. So, we have an escapee from the cook line who at 6ft 7 or so and Built like a Viking--either the Minnesota type or a real one just off his long boat--crooning his heart out. Without looking you would swear it WAS Sinatra. He was that good.I did swear some vaguely crude utterance of disbelief. Palma looked not a bit surprised and said: "Oh! That's Harold."Harold? Who the hell is Harold?"Oh, he's my husband. He's not Italian, so we named the restaurant after me" she smilingly proclaimed.

"He learned at church and the Karaoke machine.""You can get his CD at the register as you leave" she confided softly.

Church? A dose of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, even Andy Williams would surely boost attendance and the donation plate. More churches should think about that.

Harold crooned his way through the song and the dining room and with a Big Finish, transported his high-altitude self through a doorway, presumably to cook the dinners for the next table of folks who were bitching at Palma for the slow service. Not everyone is a Sinatra fan.

For anyone traveling I-10 in the neighborhood of Deming, stop by for a Harold treat. It's the best game in town and the cannolli is superb.


Very cool! Palma's is on my list when I get out that way.


Phil & Jane - I know Phil could plug in even more things that the under 60 crowd would understand. Janie, you fit in to the under 40 crowd, right? Just thought it was a good laugh. Hope your trip is going well.

Growing up without a cell phone …

If you are 36, or older, you might think this is hilarious!

When I was a kid, adults used to bore me to tears with their tedious diatribes about how hard things were. When they were growing up; what with walking twenty-five miles to school every morning....Uphill... Barefoot...BOTH ways...yadda, yadda, yadda

And I remember promising myself that when I grew up, there was no way in hell I was going to laya bunch of crap like that on my kids about how hard I had it and how easy they've got it!

But now that I'm over the ripe old age of forty, I can't help but look around and notice the youth of today. You've got it so easy! I mean, compared to my childhood, you live in Utopia!And I hate to say it, but you kids today, you don't know how good you've got it!

1) I mean, when I was a kid we didn't have the Internet. If we wanted to know something, we had to go to the library and look it up ourselves, in the card catalog!!

2) There was no email!! We had to actually write somebody a letter - with a pen!Then you had to walk all the way across the street and put it in the mailbox, and it would take like a week to get there! Stamps were 10 cents!

3) Child Protective Services didn't care if our parents beat us. As a matter of fact, the parents of all my friends also had permission to kick our a**! Nowhere was safe!

4) There were no MP3s or Napsters or iTunes! If you wanted to steal music, you had to hitchhike to the record store and shoplift it yourself!

5) Or you had to wait around all day to tape it off the radio, and the DJ would usually talk over the beginning and @#*% it all up! There were no CD players! We had tape decks in our car. We'd play our favorite tape and "eject" it when finished, and then the tape would come undone rendering it useless. Cause, hey, that's how we rolled, Baby! Dig?

6) We didn't have fancy crap like Call Waiting! If you were on the phone and somebody else called, they got a busy signal, that's it!

7) There weren't any freakin' cell phones either. If you left the house, you just didn't make a callor receive one. You actually had to be out of touch with your "friends". OH MY GOSH!!! Think of the horror... not being in touch with someone 24/7!!! And then there's TEXTING. Yeah, right. Please! You kids (AND adults) have no idea how annoying you are.

8) And we didn't have fancy Caller ID either! When the phone rang, you had no idea who it was! It could be your school, your parents, your boss, your bookie, your drug dealer, the collection agent... you just didn't know!!! You had to pick it up and take your chances, mister!

9) We didn't have any fancy PlayStation or Xbox video games with high-resolution 3-D graphics! Wehad the Atari 2600! With games like Space Invaders and Asteroids. Your screen guy was a little square! You actually had to use your imagination!!! And there were no multiple levels or screens, it was just one screen.. Forever! And you could never win. The game just kept getting harder and harder and faster and faster until you died! Just like LIFE!

10)You had to use a little book called a TV Guide to find out what was on! You were screwed when it came to channel surfing! You had to get off your a**and walk over to the TV to change the channel!!! NO REMOTES!!! Oh, no, what's the world coming to?!?!

11)There was no Cartoon Network either! You could only get cartoons on Saturday Morning. Do you hear what I'm saying? We had to wait ALL WEEKfor cartoons, you spoiled little rat!

12)And we didn't have microwaves. If we wanted to heat something up, we had to use the stove! Imagine that!

13)And our parents told us to stay outside and play... all day long. Oh, no, no electronics to soothe and comfort. And if you came back inside... you were doing chores!

14)And car seats - oh, please! Mom threw you in the back seat and you hung on. If you were lucky, you got the "safety arm" across the chest at the last moment if she had to stop suddenly, and if your head hit the dashboard, well that was your fault for calling "shot gun" in the first place!

See! That's exactly what I'm talking about! You kids today have got it too easy. You're spoiled rotten! You guys wouldn't have lasted five minutes back in 1970or any time before!

Regards,The Over 40 Crowd

From: P&J BogerSubject: Where Are They Now ...2/23/2011

Well, let’s see, we are in Black Bayou NWR, just outside of Monroe LA. This would be our fifth NWR since leaving Silver City. Muleshoe was very nice, but not much wildlife. The campground was at the end of the refuge road and we were totally alone ... except for the coyotes and mule deer ... and other things we didn’t see. We took back roads across TX, north of Dallas-Ft Worth and ended up in Lk Arrowhead SP

where we shared morning beverages with a small group of big, fat Prairie Dogs ... and a Red Tail perched in a tree watching them. Then it was off to Nocona TX where we bought out their supply of Fat Tire (1 case), and eventually Hagerman NWR where we were entertained by lots of Snow Geese and other waterfowl. Definitely a place to go back to for biking. In one day we went from Yucca, Mesquite, Juniper to Daffodils, Dogwood, Cypress and green grass. Spent last night at a Corps of Engineers place on Lake O’the Pines. We had a great site and shared morning beverages with more waterfowl ... several Black Vultures ... white pelicans ... and a couple Mockingbirds. Today we found ourselves on I-20 and made such good time, we decided to stop at Black Bayou NWR to check it out. And that, dear friends, is where I am typing these words. Tonight we hope to be in Rocky Springs CG on the Trace. Onward ... Eastward ... Northward ...


We were in Canandaigua over the long weekend. Be prepared for snow and cold. We spent Friday at montezuma where we watched 4 mature and 8 immature bald eagles. Saturday was blizzard conditions and about 6" snow. Sunday was spent at Mendon Ponds feeding birds out of our hands. That night more snow. Back to our working home Monday and that night snow here. Where is spring??


You folks do know how to live. I'm envious of your desire to see and spend time in all these places. Has the temperature been okay? It's been cold here, but is supposed to be warming up soon and rain Friday and Monday. I'm not happy about it, but I can't control it either. I have spied & skied several new line in the woods around here in the last few days and have 6 new drop ins'. Very fun. Today I am off to Schoharie Co. to ski at Partridge Run with a friend from school. Get home safe and save me a fat tire! Love- Jason


Well there is a pretty good barbeque place north of the strip center where REI is. The barbeque place is called Corkey's. It's at the corner of Old Hickory Boulevard and Franklin Road, just west of I-65. If you don't like that type of fare, we could find another place closer to REI. There should be other places around the area. We could meet you for a late lunch or early dinner - whatever works in your schedule. Our phone numbers are 615-xxx-3662 and 3663.

As for a campground, I'm not knowledgeable of any down in the Brentwood/Franklin TN area. There is a place between downtown Nashville and where we live. It's on northbound Briley Parkway, north of I-40, and north of the Opryland Hotel. Supposed to be a KOA place. It's more "in town" than I think you guys may like. There are other state parks southeast of us but I think only one has a campground. It's called Cedars of Lebanon State Park, and it's probably 20 miles southeast of our place. Sorry, I don't have a dump station for you but the offer is still open if you want to stay at our place either in the driveway or in the house and start off fresh with a shower.

Joey is supposed to be home this weekend so hopefully you'll get to harass him a bit!

I know Bflo is supposed to get 10 inches of the white stuff today...

From: P&J BogerSubject: It's Almost Over ... sob ...2/26/2011

Well, we are now in Nashville. We spent a pleasant evening with Joe & Berniece over ribs, brisket, and fixin’s from Judge Bean’s, just across the street from the REI store, which is where we spent most of the morning. Janie is trying to find a 29er bike that fits her, so we collared three sales guys and she took three test rides on three different bikes. Then we learned that we couldn’t have it shipped to the house even if we bought one. We have to go to the nearest REI store, which happens to be in Pittsburgh. So how did we get here from Monroe LA? Via I-20 (yuck) and the Trace (yippee). We got to spend three nights in the very same Trace CGs we stayed at on the way down. This time it was bittersweet, since we knew the trip was winding down. At least we haven’t had any snow – yet. Tomorrow we head farther north for Marysville OH and Terri & Gunter’s Paradox Ranch. We’ll have a pleasant evening with them and head for Geneseo on Monday. It is now 8:30 central time and I need to get to bed so we can hit the road at the Butt Crack O’Dawn tomorrow. We’re not looking forward to the two days of freeways in our future, nor are we looking forward to the snow-bound driveway at 5451 Crossett. Sumus Quid Sumus.


Hello from windy, snowy, sunny, chilly Silver City.

Woke up to snow and wind....changed to cloudy and windy, morphed into sunny and windy and continues. High of 32F so far at cocktail, minus one.

Sheesh, this is NOT supposed to happen here in paradise. The locals all say "It is very unusual for this time of year."

Hell, it's winter--there ought to be snow, right? But THAT is what we left in AK-so far, not so much.

Important stuff:We just learned we are to have more visitors soon. Don and Marty of Klummuz, nee Westerville, are arriving the 3rd and a day or so later, the McKibbins on their way from Tucson to their disaster in Tennessee.

Y'all might as well turn around and come back. It'll be a house full, but who cares....(I'm sending this to AJ/Karen and MikeyMare also. What's a few more! Even if they didn't make the main event, there is always the encore performance.)

So, the Marin felt good, eh? OK....Whatever they call the frame size is of little concern. The step-over height and the relationship of seat to handlebars with a look at pedal location seems of greater importance.

ALSO, I think the Marin version comes with those pesky hydraulic brakes. I don't know if that's a deal-breaker for you or not. It was for me.

I am curious to know what about the Marin felt better than the Novara. Curiosity only.

I guess with all the non-shipping, etc. the best plan IS your local dude. You--Bog--don't want to be faced with assembly. It's a bit more than a tail light. ;^)

But, I DID think they would send it to your house. I was hoping to get in on the project with Jason. Your personal bike mechanical team at your front door. And, the front door of your beer fridge. What a picture! Throw in Mahoney and we have a quorum for sure.

Can't say whether the bike would work, but....

B.

From: Jen McMo2/27/2011

Sorry your trip is almost over - but I can't wait to read your travelogue.

I personally think you guys should winter in Silver City. It's only a 3 hour drive from my in-laws in Tucson, AZ. So when we're visiting them, we'll have an excuse to leave to visit you guys!


Hey Bogs & Janie- Welcome home from your trip. I hope all is well and the ugly weather moving thru the Ohio Valley did not pose too large a problem. We are supposed to get freezing rain and rain all day today. Unpack the RVan and take a nap. I'll talk to you soon. Jason


Well drive safely you two. I'm sure you're on the road again. Maybe all the rain WNY is getting will melt the snow off your driveway so you can get URVan off the road... Berniece was wondering yesterday if you guys got off early and I said based on your desire to get home I thought that you had. Hope you don't have to work too hard when you get there.

We told Joey about everything when he got home yesterday am (he spent the night with a couple of his skateboarding buds at one of the kids parents homes) and he said he wished he could of been home to see you guys but he had friends he hadn't seen in a while vying for his attention late Saturday afternoon/early evening. We told him he missed an absolutely great time!

Thanks so much for stopping in again, the great Bar-b-q, the conversation, slide show, and most of all your friendship! We had a great time. I wish it could be more often but we have to hold the times we do get together as something special!

Joe, Berniece, Chris, and the college boy Joey...


Indeed crazy weather we are having here in the SW. I ended up scratching my trip for this weekend due to the weather, so it was probably just as well that you folks didn’t hang

around waiting for me for a get together. I think we had frost this morning (that rarely/never happens here)!

A.J.

Well, it is all over. We are home, RVan is parked in the driveway, all the delicates are safely in the much warmer house, and I’m enjoying an appropriate adult beverage. We survived the trip home and used the long hours of driving to relive the many happy times from the past five weeks that we have gathered in our collective memories. It was a grand cruise … and we WILL do it again.

From: P&J BogerSubject: Home ...2/28/2011 7:16 PM

We arrived at Naweedna’s driveway around 4:15. The house was just fine – warm even - but the driveway ... about three inches of very wet snow. I trudged up to the barn, fired up Big John, and tried to plow a path without doing too much damage to our newly graveled driveway. I’ll have some raking to do. I also plowed out Mom’s drive with the idea of parking RVan there if I couldn’t get ours cleared sufficiently. We did a little testing in her drive (much shorter and less inclined) and I mustered the courage to try ours. Up she goes all the way to the end of the ramp leading to RVan’s stall. No way it was going to be able to turn the corner and climb up the very wet, slick snow. We just left it there at the bar, unloaded it, took a shower, and are now enjoying some cheese we picked up in Cuba ... and a long awaited adult beverage. It was a lovely cruise and we are both a little sad that it’s over. Thirty six days on the road and we are already planning our next trip. More details forthcoming; stay tuned ;-)

From: Mare McMahon2/28/2011

Glad you are home safe and sound. It must have been quite an adventure? Did you float the RVan to Cuba? Or did you just swim over?


Welcome home.

Yes, details please, as well as info on when you are going to make it to the west/left coast. Karen, Jen O. and I are all heading to the PNW to see Jen, Don and Seamus over the Memorial day weekend. Want to join us?

A.J.


We're glad to know you are home safe and sound.It was really good to see you both, but the visit was all too short.:)

From: Karen Leifheit2/28/2011

Hope that next big trip has a turn around point of San Diego. Thanks for all the updates along the last month. I've been living vicariously from my office chair. Karen

From: Stephanie (Fuentes) Kidwell2/28/2011

Glad you guys had a great time!! Not really surprised that you're already planning another one... Will you be around this summer for alumni weekend? Remember we 2001 girls have a habit of breaking onto the property of absent professors who bail on us (Brennan x 2!)


Welcome home Bogers. Please bring some of that southwestern sun with you! We're up to 11 hours between sunup and sundown, allegedly.

From: Bridget Mulvey3/1/2011

Glad to hear you made it home safely... after many fabulous adventures.

Cheers! Bridget


Bogs & Jane- Glad to hear you made it home safely. So how much snow you got there? Jason

From: Amy (Norton) Lagner3/1/2011

Nothing like some heavy driveway snow to welcome you home :) Glad you made it back safely. I enjoyed reading about your trip. Amy


Glad that you are home safe and relatively sound. Spring has hit PA pretty much. Our snow is gone and our temperatures are below freezing at night and 40s-50s during the day. There is probably one more snow in our future. I am looking at my gardens with longing.

MJ


Sounds like everything worked out. Now on to Dr. appointments and the like. I'm sure you'll get URVan in the garage very soon.

Lovely day here today after yesterdays bunch of rain in a short amount of time that lead to more flooding in areas around town. Maybe we'll have a string of days where it will be dry before more rain comes over the weekend...

Enjoy your estate!


So, the tree is cleared away, the replacement window is on order and the plumber has stemmed most of the leaks?

That burst pipe in the wall is going to be a hassle, I know, but just keep following the wet spot and you'll find the break eventually. The drywall and plaster can happen some other time.

Oh gosh, did the RV slide into the Forester--again? Well, that's what insurance is for and I doubt Mare will notice anyway....it's not THAT big a dent, is it?

You really don't need to get a whole new plow for the tractor. First, a good welder can fix it in an hour or so and it probably won't matter anyway 'cause Big John won't start until warm weather. Walmart sells shovels.

Good to be home, isn't it.

B.

p… · web viewwell, we are back and it’s time to start up saturday am again. the trip was...

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