Doing Security in Ft Worth. :-)

Well....I'm back to working with SiteWatch doing construction security in Ft Worth. But this site is really good...right downtown, in the middle of it all. That is a good view of the buildings...but not as good as my mountains in ID!  LOL

I'm also learning to "make do" with what I have available to me for getting my NCAA Football fix each week during the college season and then the bowl games!  

It is snowing blizzard style in El Paso for that game right now. And we have nasty weather coming in here and there is the "Dallas Bowl" going on right now at the Cotton Bowl here. It is going to be getting real cold (real cold for DFW that is) starting tonight, and we even have a good chance of getting some frozen mix here. Right now we have tornado warnings all over the place.  

Just had a "people powered" trolley from "Cow Town" come rolling by. Not a good focus..but that is hillarious!

As much as I don't like "the big city" I have to admit that I understand why people like it....you can find almost anything that interests you, meets you epiurian needs, socialization needs....it is all here.  And if there just wasn't so many people here I would probably like it too! But there is just too much of a crush of humanity here for me to be able to really enjoy any of it. I have not been in one yet that is quiet and peaceful that unless it was either $70+/person or Vegan!  LOL!

Every time they cut in with a weather update it just keeps looking worse! Another hour and I'm headed for the house. Hopefully I'll be home before it starts for real here!

Since I started tis update we had a massive group of storms come thru the area, mainly SE from where we are. We got LOTS of rain and thunder...but on the other side of DFW they had 10 tornadoes....most have been registered as EF3 or EF4 size. They tore up Garland, TX and Rowlett got it pretty bad also. There were a total of 8 or 9 deaths and I have forgotten the house destroyed count. The really mangled that side of town! Just keep those folks in prayers & good thoughts!

I'm muddling along each day. Still doing food delivery and also Security work (as I started out this update with). Doing work on Bertha still. Lining up what parts I will be having to order to get the front end fixed. I also got a 4X5 storage room at the U-Haul place close by. So I'm also sorting out what I don't need with me all the time and getting it setup. Will probably put some of those plastic storage shelves they have at Lowe's in it and it will be about perfect for what I have/need to store.

I guess that about covers it for now. Had a quiet Christmas and will have a quiet New Years (working this weekend also).

So I will close with hoping you had a great Christmas and that your New Year will be just everything that you are hoping for it to be!

HMMMMM.....Oil is DOWN....Again!?

Hey kids, just had to take a moment to get on here and update a little bit!

Still doing the "deliver food" gig!  And actually still loving it. Have to keep reminding myself that the company is young...growing....learning....and using LOTS of young folks!!!  So it has and is a very good way for me to work on my "patience quotient"!!!  Heheheh! 

I'm almost done with Christmas shopping...first year in a bunch of years that I have actually do shopping...be it that I am wearing out Lakeside Collection and Amazon...both online....and they deliver!!!  LOL!

I'm also deep into keeping up with the oil prices....and it doesn't look except for us end users. The price of crude Brent opened today under $37....that's not a good thing. And just read an article dealing with how "supply" numbers are about to take a very big beating ( http://oilpro.com/media/ec?l=642743939&r=1979684 ) and an "open letter" that everybody should read...to maybe think about the issues the the O&G field has to deal with every day to meet "our needs/wants" ( http://oilpro.com/post/20785/open-letter-to-anyone-tired-og-industry-causing-climate-change-bo?utm_source=DailyNewsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter&utm_term=2015-12-11&utm_content=Article_5_txt ).

Folks, we all need to decide what we are going to leave for our grand and great-grand children....where are you in this thought process????

Christmas is on the way!

Christmas is getting into full swing here.....well.....at least full swing as far as the outdoor lights & decorations!  LOL

These shots are from an area in Addison, Tx called "Vitruvian Way"

Winter is here?? Could Be!! LOL!

Well, the coldest in the past 8 months was here about a week ago and the past several nights and days have been pleasantly cool.  The low here at Bertha last night was 38*,  hi for today is supposed to be about 56*. Still better than Stanley..they have already seen -6* and snow on the ground. I do believe that this is why I tell folks that I'm a "modified snowbird"!!  LOL!  I've seen enough snow in my years to do me for the rest of my life! So I'll just go south to see the kids and grandkids for the winters and then go back to Idaho to do the camphost thing for the summers.  :-)

Slowly getting a few things done on Bertha. Not sure just how much will get done by next spring, but she will be in much better shape for the run north when we head out in April '17.  Right now just trying to get into the habit of getting things done each day!  Like keeping the house cleaned up!!  LOL!  And doing some rearranging. Will probably start doing some painting in Bertha this coming week. Hoping that I have finally gotten all the leaks stopped. I guess I'll know for sure this coming weekend, supposed to rain some on Sunday.  Also have to start pricing out the parts to rebuild the frontend on Bertha. That will be a job and a half...but have to get that done before I head out north. And probably will have to replace shocks and possibly beef up the springs on the rear of Bertha.

Sidekick is doing great. Getting about 25mpg in town delivering. On the run to AL averaged about 30-31mpg on the highway. Couldn't ask for better!!  And she is still a joy to have...I enjoy every day with Sidekick.  And haven't seen another one on the roads around here since I got here....so I guess she is almost a novelty!  :-)  And since I wrote the beginning of this, on the way to work yesterday I pulled up behind a twin to Sidekick! Same color, JX model, original spare tire cover....a twin....all the way down to having a towbar mounted on the front!  LOL!  First one I've seen....and it had Oregon tags on it!  LOL

Speaking of rain, this area has had 58.78 inches so far this year...that is about 25.5 inches over the annual amount or rain.  And we still have December to get thru and they say it is usually one of the wettest months of the year...so there is no telling just how much the total will end up being for the year.  I can assure you of one thing, whenever it rains now about 90% of the water runs off, headed for waterways or lakes, because the soil here is totally saturated. And the lakes are very close to being beyond full!  But after all these past years of drought, it is actually a pretty pleasant "issue" to have!  :-)

For those of you that are following my blog, especially my campers, I have "re-activated" my Facebook page, and I have created a "Sunny Gulch Campground" page also.  I also started a page called "America, You Need To See It" page. So if you have a chance, check them out.

Time to finish getting ready for the day...have to dump tanks on Bertha today, Abbie needs a spa day, need to get propane and a some more "sealant" to try adding to the roof...have slowed down all leaks, but still have a couple that still have to be "plugged"!  There are times that I consider possibly getting a "newer" rv...but Bertha is what I was looking for, and once I get it all done, there is no way I could buy one setup the way that I would want one, so the "restoration" goes forward!  Not to mention some updating of the insides of her!  :-)

Have a great day and I'm trying to get more consistent with the updates!  :-) 

Some things never change!

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-16/oil-theft-soars-as-downturn-casts-u-s-roughnecks-out-of-work

Not my normal post.....

Folks,  this is not what I normally post about,  & i usually stand clear of these types of subjects.....but i truly feel that everyone needs to take the 7-9 minutes to read this article.

I don't really care what your politics are,  but this surpasses politics....this his at the basic base of our culture & our overall daily living....both in the near term & the future for our kids & grandkids!

Take the time.....and think about it.....

http://m.truthdig.com/report/item/the_most_brazen_corporate_power_grab_in_american_history_20151106

Rain, Rain, Rain!!

Things are going well here in Texas! I've been totally amazed at the weekly income that I've been able to attain doing food delivery! It is crazy to me! The neat thing is that we deliver from any food/deli operation! I've done Taco Bell, Wendy's, Olive Garden, Pei Wei, Burger Street, Best Thai, sushi, Indian, Wing Stop, Phil's Philly Grill, Little Greek Grill....And I have been to 5 Star places and hotdog joints!!  It is cool!  And I have found some really neat little hole in the wall places that I will be going back to try personally!!

We had rain and storms last weekend, a few days of dry & sun, and now we are bracing for another night of storms! And the humidity here is unreal right now for this area! Cool...but muggy!

It's time to get ready for another night of delivery!  So this little short update is done!!  C'ya!!  B-)

More Rain!!!

We are getting wet again!  And seriously wet!  I woke up this morning to a very heavy rain, and it has been raining off and on all day....and now we have wind coming into the picture!  But it has made the temps here very comfortable and almost "fall like"!

I've gotten most of the leaks in Bertha taken care of...for the time being anyway!  Just still have one around the front roof vent...I'm hoping to conquer it tomorrow!! If it wil stop raining for a few hours.  But at least the "major" leaks are apparently stopped....so now to get the rest of them "plugged"!

It's about time to head to work...another night of delivering food!!  And seeing if I can find more "little" hole in the wall restaurants that I want to go back and give a try!!  So far have found several that actually spark an interest in me!  And I am not one that is big on eating out!

C'ya in a day or two with an update!!  :-D

This makes for a good read on economy!

The gov't and Wall Street are a little in the dark about the average "US Consumer"...and their income and their spending of what monies they have. This little read was and should be an eye-opener to a lot of folks that say "Oh, well, we are doing well"....are we????

http://nr.news-republic.com/Web/ArticleWeb.aspx?regionid=1&articleid=49946537&source=blogger

The HEAT Is Still Here!! (Late to Publish!)

For those of you that are in the "cooler" parts of the country....stay away from Texas!!  The record hi here for today is 99...calling for 98 today.  The record hi for tomorrow is 92...calling for 96!  Today's record Hi is 105 years old...tomorrows was set in 1999.  I know I said I was going south for the winter where it was "warmer"....but this is ridiculous!!  LOL!  Checked this morning at 0830....it was 34 in Stanley....sob, sob!!  :,)

Oh well, next year I'll just waint a couple of extra weeks before I head south for the summer!!!  :-D

And I thought I would add a couple of photos of my current "campsite"!  :-)

Since I've been here...for a month!  LOL...It has been HOT, fairly cool at times....and RAIN!!!  This past weekend, in case you missed the news...Texas almost got drowned!!  Here in NRH we had about 6 inches...but just south of Dallas, in Corsicana, they had over 22 inches in 3 days, and over 13 of that fell in one day!  It has been unreal!!

I have found my "winter job"...I'm delivering food!  And really overall enjoying it! The company I'm with is called "DoorDash". I've picked up and delivered food from high-end French restaurants to Taco Bell to Wendy's to Pizza places to smokehouses to Panera Bread to oriental & Greek!  So needless to say I have found some really neat places to go and try out eventually! 

That about does it for tonight...got in late from work and I'm ready for some sleep!  I'll try to get some more pics on in a few days and give you an update on Bertha and what has and is going to be done on her in the coming weeks!  :-)

YUP!!! I'm in Texas!!

It's nice to have a spot to stay....and "enjoy" the scenery!!  :-)

Back In TX...Looking Back @ The Summer!

I have been sitting here thinking about this past summer....and all that went on and all the great campers I have met....and just started looking at pictures of it....and thought I would send some a few of them back up again!!

....a lot of good folks that really enjoy being in the outdoors.....

....introduced me to a few "new" tastes......

...I have an "office" there that most folks just dream of...plus things just taste better when you're in the woods.....

I just had to pass along a few thoughts of the summer again while I was sitting here! But it is now time for staying a little warmer during the winter months...but I have decided that next year I will wait a couple of more weeks before I head south...it has been in the 90's here ever since I got here...just a little bit warmer than I would like!!!

C'ya soon!!  :-)

Texas Yesterday!

I crossed over into Texas yesterday afternoon...and boy was it windy!  I was either fighting fog/low overcast or wind in CO and OK. And the wind was the worst in Oklahoma....but it carried right over into the panhandle of Texas also!  So I got across into the panhandle of TX and found a roadside table pulloff and called it quits for the night!

My little 4K generator has either given up the ghost and needs to be laid to rest, or she is in need of some major "doctoring"!  So thank goodness I have my solar panel set! I set it up this afternoon and charged my van batt for several hours, then changed over to the aux batts and charged them for an hour or so and then hit the road again!

Made it to Childress, TX for the night, parked in the Wally here....there is no telling how many times I have parked here!  It is one of my favorite spots to break for the night.  In the morning I'll charge the aux batts first thing, then let Bertha's batts charge for several hours, and then I'll try to knock out about 150 miles!  I'm about 224 miles from Tif & Cary's...I plan on being there by Thursday evening...hopefully!

That about covers it for today.  More of the continuing saga soon!!

Colorado...and almost Sunshine!

In Ft Collins, CO and the day is looking better...except for the traffic!  And boy, I had forgotten about the traffic!  I had been surprised about the traffic that rolled by us last night where we spent the afternoon and nite....US Hwy 287 just north of Livermore, CO.  Wellllll.....then we hit Ft Collins this morning!  LOL!  Welcome back to "civilization"!!! It is still crazy on the roads!!

We stopped at the welcome centeer in Ft Collins, Abbie just chillin' and watching the folks come in.

Me checking the skies and weather reports....and trying to still get used to having a car follow me so closely and for so many miles!  LOL!!  But it is a really good feeling to have an "escape pod" just in case it is needed!!  And from what I can tell, Bertha can not really tell that Sidekick is behind us!  It might be costing a little bit in mpg's, but overall we are averaging 7.2-7.6mpg....not bad for a rolling "collectable" and driven by an "antique"!!!  :-)

And now that I am a "full-time" RVer...I just had to play the part and make sure that I loaded up on "propaganda" from the great state of Colorado!  Have started a file box for all my state propaganda that I will be collecting as I roll from state to state!

It is about time to do a few more miles! It is nice to not really have a schedule...but I do still need to get to Texas sometime this month!! And the sun has almost come out! So it should be a good day!

Heading South!! :-)

I have headed south for the winter! And things are going pretty well. Bertha is still not charging like she should, but that is why I carry a generator with me...for backup for whatever doesn't work right!  LOL!

I'm about 9 miles west of Laramie, WY tonight...and I got here and parked just in time to fire up the TV, scan for channels....and catch the Thursday Night Football game! There are good points to getting back to some segments of society! Not many at times....but there are high points!  ;-)

Today was a good driving day. I actually covered a little over 200 miles today. More than I planned on doing each day, but trying to find a decent spot to park in WY is almost  a lost cause. They just don't give many spots for parking...I now remember why I didn't like driving thru here when in a truck.

But the one thing that has made me quite happy is that Bertha, overall is averaging a little over 7.4mpg! That is great for my budget and my upcoming winter!  And it makes me rest a little easier that as I get things fixed/updated on her, it will continue to get better.

It was a gorgeous evening. The sunset was just beautiful!  Sat here and watched the football game....the Ravens won over the Steelers in OT....and then I started shuting down for the evening. A very relaxing evening! Just a little while ago, I realized that I was rocking from side to side in the house...and the wind has picked up a lot....a steady 12-15mph gusting to 25+mph. And it is trying to rain!  It made me think about what it must have been like for the homesteaders and miners that came out here over a hundred years ago. What it must have been like to be in wagons, on horseback and walking in a land where the weather changes in a matter of hours!  It makes me appreciate Bertha, even with all the little issues she still has....but I am sitting here with lights, out of the wind/rain, warm....and comfortable! :-)  And with a nice warm cup of coffee!!

Guess I had better get to sleep so that I can roll in the morning...sometime!!  I have gotten used to not having to worry about a schedule too much...just go with the flow of the day!

More to come later as the trip south continues!!  :-D

Closing Down & Locking Up!

Getting closer yet to leaving. Sunny Gulch closed it gates at noon yesterday...and I have the campground to myself once again!  And boy is it quiet here....after setting occupancy records for the  majority of the summer it is almost surreal the quiet here!  It is so quiet that I haven't seen any deer the last couple of days!  LOL!

I've been cleaning up, locking up and getting ready to roll out of here this coming weekend. I'm waiting for my solar panels to arrive on Thursday, "play" with them for a couple of days and then hit the road for Texas.

But I just had to give you an update on my last "die-hard" campers that I had here.......

This is Tom, Marsha & Barney! They are Idahoians and were out for one more trip before the summer totally ended....and to try to escape the smoke back home! They live near some of the fires that are still going on in Idaho. Tom said that when they pulled out of home that you were doing good to see more than a few hundred yards due to the smoke!

This is Richard & Rebecca, from Oregon. Just making one of their annual trips around the country and trying to stay out of the smoke and away from the fires. They said that it had seemed that the smoke had been following them around.

And this is Lisa from Montana....and she is a "traveling nurse"...which I had never heard of a traveling nurse!  She moves around the country filling in where there are short-term shortages in the nursing field! I thought that was quite cool!  She had been in Boise for a few months and is now headed south to the AZ area for part or a lot of the winter!

While I was cleaning firepits, I noticed a little eyeball looking at me thru one of the vent holes in a pit....and look what I found!!

I think I had interrupted his winter stocking activities! He stayed in the side until I was done, then hopped up on the side and gave me the evil eye for a couple of minutes before heading off to his "home"!  LOL!

I keep taking picture of "my mountains" because I just truly love this area! They look different every day in some way due to the light, clouds and angles.  I already can't wait to get back to Sunny next year!

And I have been determined to have some "good" fires before I leave, and I have succeeded on having some really good ones!  In fact they have been so good that I have burned up about 75% of the wood that I had stacked up on my pad in about 4 nights!!!  I'm gonna miss my fires!!

So as the season closes out the skies here still give me a show each evening that is worth taking pictures of and I will probably be taking pictures of the evenings for quite a few more years....and I just can't wait!!

Time to get the day on the road, get a little more put up, my pad cleaned and Bertha ready for the run south!!  See you again in a couple of days!

The End is Near...And I have "New" wheels!!

It has been chilling down here for the past week and it is now warming back up again! Last weekend, Labor Day, I only had about 16 campsites occupied. Why? Because it dropped down to the low 20's all weekend, even had some sleet here. So needless to say, a lot of the potential campers stayed home! But this weekend is looking at low 80's and I'm already having folks roll in to get at least one last good weekend on the lake and in the woods for the year! I'm guessing that I will be busy for the next 3-4 days.

I have also, this week, become the proud owner of a 1997 Suzuki Sidekick that is in extremely good condition...almost pristine! Found it by total accident...totally unexpected...was not looking for a vehicle yet...and it fell into my lap! My thanks go out to Mike & Julee for working with me on holding the car for me until I was able to get my financial update taken care and for hanging in there with me! They were good enough to let me put a "downpayment" on it so that I would have time to get the monies in for it.

I haven't given her a name yet, but that will come with time! There are almost no blemishes except for the normal road chips that you get over the years. Just a couple of minor dings on the body...barely noticeable. Gave it a good bath (that was fun...using buckets for the water...very invigorating when you toss the water and forget about the fact that it will "bounce" back at you!!  LOL! and yesterday I actually waxed her! It has been MANY years since I was excited enough with a vehicle to wax it! LOL!  And between digging out fire pits AND waxing the car....my foot is killing me! Time to take a couple of days break from walking on it!

These pics are of the interior...and it is like new! It even has the original carpet in it and it is in excellent condition! I'm so pleased!

Meet (L-R) Hans, Dorette, Teo & Eric...a really great family from Switzerland. These two boys are the grandsons and the last time they were here they were about knee high!  LOL!  They were a great family and I enjoyed having the here. 

This is Tim & Tonya...they have been here a couple of times and have been a joy.  Always a smile and pleasant conversation. They are camping in a (I think I remember correctly) a restored 1960 Airstream Bambi...a really sweet little trailer!

I would like you to meet Alessia & Ilaria....from Italy! My first Mediterranian travelers!

This is Biswa & Manisha from India. They were a very pleasant couple and were just a great pair to have in Sunny!!

This is James...he has been here a couple of times. He is a "local" and just enjoys getting out! He has been a great camper and I have really enjoyed getting to know him.

This is (L-R) Celeste, Ken & Mark. They were fantastic folks...always smiling and great to talk with!  They were even smiling even when they had vehicle issues, and when they went to put the boat in for one last time ended up having to be towed back to the dock! When you can keep smiling and have a positive attitude....you can get thru anything!! I look forward to seeing them next year!

Scott & Candace dropped in just to have a couple of quiet days in the mountains! It got cold while here...but they seemed to have enjoyed the time in the woods and I hope to see them again next year!

And as usual....my campers have still been creating havoac with my diet and keep me having to "re-time" my eating schedule! This was some fabulous lasagna and salad!  It's tough being a camphost with campers like I have here at Sunny!!  Heheheheh!

And it is really nice to come down the road entering into Sunny and seeing a second vehicle in the #1 site!  It is amazing how good it feels to have your own wheels again and being able to drive yourself to do the things you need to get to!  :-)

This update was started about 5 days ago...in that time I have been closing down some and also trying to get myself a little bit recharged after a long, busy summer of getting broke in as a camphost!  And I got broken in right!!  It has been a full summer and the campgrounds here have set records in occupancy for all of July and most of June and August!  But I have enjoyed this summer more than any I can remember!

Today I spent most of it in Challis, ID getting a towbar mounted on the Sidekick. My garbage man, Earnie, brought me a towbar and handed it to me & told me to make use of it if I could! And boy am I going to make use of it!  Thanks to Earnie I have found a shop in Challis that is not only a fantastic welding shop, but they specialize in Mopar engines!  The mount that they built for my towbar is about 200% better/stronger than the one that I could order from the company that made the towbar and for about half the cost! I am very comfortable with the fact that if this towbar falls off...the front of the car will be falling off also!!

The shop is a father/son operation and they do great work...and were a blast to watch and listen to!  Above pic they started work on the mount. Below was what we thought was it!  Then Cody (the son) realized that this put the towbar too low to work, so he added angles up of metal that put it at top bumper level....I'll put on a pic of that later (I forgot to take a pic before it got to late today!! ).

Meet Kevin Turner, a fellow camphost (at Mormon Bend campground)...he and I are almost kindred spirits! I have been very happy to have met and gotten to know him and we will be keeping up with each other. Kevin is a great guy and seems to always have a happy outlook on things...no matter what!

Tom and John came by while I was gone today and took my solar panels & batteries!!!  Sorry guys!  LOL!  That just means the end is near. The lower loop of the campground was closed today when they left, and Monday the 21st I will be closing the upper loop also. So I will probably be headed out of here by the 27th at the latest, apparently! And from the  looks of the mountains around here, it is definitely time for his boy to be heading south for the winter!!

I'll try to do an update this weekend to let you know the end is really near!

C'ya latr!!  :-D