How many Hours in a Day? How about minutes in an Hour??

If anyone could tell me the  real answer I'd like to talk to you.

I am sure I have been missing some hours or minutes lately. Time can't possibly go by that fast, can it?? Either that or someone decided to borrow some from me. and forgot to bring them back.... just sayin'.

So here is what I p ainted for day 2 of my challenge 

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"Breaking the Time Habit"

The idea being to s-l-o-w down and enjoy enjoy the moments.

 

 

Anyway, I had a wonderful time getting together with Jo of "Momma's Little Runaway and the Tin Can Cabin". and "The Good Luck Ducks" girls, Anne and Roxanne; as well as Lucy and Terri, a couple other RV'ers and Jojo's friends. The food was excellent as well as the conversation.  I had some of my boon-docking questions answered by Anne and Roxanne. We also talked about what Jo was looking for in an RV, vegan food, Lucy's interest and talent in mechanics, and Terri's upcoming trip. That was on Friday. Thanks so much, Jo, for opening up your home for all of us to get together. You were the perfect hostess!!

Saturday was to be spent on more painting and "organizing" the outside RV compartments. I had the compartment emptied out and stuff sitting all over the ground when Deaf Ranger came out of the house to announce he and Carol were going to some estate sales, run by a "Three Sisters" company, and invited me to go. I hesitated..... but not for long. Off we went. Now, I can't post all I got here cuz some might be for gifts, but I also found 4 classical music cd's ( I listen to them while I paint), a few more storage baskets I needed, a novel by Debbie MaComber, and a chee se knife. Ohhhh, I so want to tell you about the other finds, but can't. I may just burst from the suspense! Hard for me to keep secrets :-/

We stopped at a "Baggin's" for lunch. I had never been to one before. The sandwiches are fab! I would go again. Then we went to look for the new Hobby Lobby store, as I needed more small canvases, but it is still under construction. So we found the Michael's store. They had all sizes of canvas, and some on sale. I usually order mine online, but needed them now.  We arrived back at the ranch in time to get my things put back into the outside compartments and let the dogs out for some time on their cables. No time for a walk today. Then I tore apart the inside and re-re-organized stuff in there so I could get all my canvases in one place, rid out food items in cold storage under the bed, and make room for my "finds". No painting tonight. I'll just have to catch up later.

Day #3

"Treat them Special"

Need to have treats for the fur-babies .... especially to bribe one that easily slips their collar!

Here is Deaf Ranger enjoying his morning coffee and the sunshine in my rig.

Even though I am parked right now at my brother's, I still stay in my RV. I like routine and I think it's important for my pups. I tried staying in their beautiful and comfy guest bedroom, but really like the coziness and at-home feeling of my rv.

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Today we went to church, then headed out to Walmart for sandpaper and to return the second heater I had purchased that didn't work for my situation. I did manage to find some flannel sheets I had been wanting at a reasonable price. Also bought some new rechargable batteries. What I got back on the heater paid for my purchases today.

Enjoying the time together

After that we went to La Parrilla Suiza, an authentic Mexican restaurant, for our dinner. The food was delicious and the atmosphere quite friendly, in a beautifully structured setting.



Our attentive waiter



Woman making tortillas








After arriving home I tended to Miss Izzy and Curley Joe, taking them for a long-awaited walk.

I then got out some of the canvases and prepped them for painting, 15 smaller ones and 2  8 x10's.

Looks like I may be painting all day tomorrow it looks like the weather is not going to be so nice.

 

Till next time!

New Challenge (s)

Today I got my RV into All RV Service Center in Tucson.

I needed to get this roof vent

replaced!

 

....as well as a shorted-out turn signal in the rear driver's side that I had previously *fixed*, and needed to get the batteries checked because when I went to start up to leave this morning the engine complained.... alot!... and would not start. This was the 3rd time in 3000+ miles. We arrived about 10 am, brother and s-i-l enjoying the ride.

The guys at the service center did a good job. They had the roof vent and the arm and it was installed quickly. Good thing I had them check the batteries, as one was dead and 2 were "compromised". So, new roof vent and 3 new batteries.

They checked the turn signal and it was badly corroded, which I knew, and they had to replace the whole thing as the turn-signal/tail-light comes as a sealed unit. No biggy, as I was sure it was as old as the rv itself. And I had them check the other side as well. I didn't want trouble down the road. Yep, it was corroded also.

So, new roof vent and arm, 3 new batteries, 2 new turn-signal/tail-light units, and 4 hrs later we got back to the *ranch*.

Carol started on linner (lunch/dinner) while I got Miss Izzy and Curley Joe out for a walk. We had hamburgers and Texas fries! Oh they were so good! We had not eaten much that morning and were hungry!

After that, true to my committment, I got my painting stuff set out. Barely dipped the brush in the turp when the phone rang. I almost didn't answer it .. but decided to. It was daughter #3 telling me about the awesome advancment in her job. Whoo-hoo! A company car and a gas card!!! She does alot of traveling working for Visiting*Angels. I was so happy for her, and glad I had taken the call.

Back to painting, determined..... pressing on.

I decided my theme would be about my experiences while RV'ing this winter.

So here it is  And I accomplished Day 1 !!

"In the Beginning ... Winnebago Winnie"

3.75 x 4.75 Oil on stretched canvas

and now I am finishing the other half of my other daily committment. Thanks for stopping by!

Stay safe out there!



It can be a really good thing ........... or not

.... those rare times when I wake up in the middle of the night and get on the internet.

 

Tonight (today) was one of those times.

 

I checked my facebook notices and saw a post from one of my painter friends about a painting challenge. The idea is to paint thirty paintings in thirty days........ You can decide your theme (or the paintings could be random) and they can be small paintings. I had wanted to do this before and wasn't sure I could commit to it. So now is a good time to do so, right????

Hmmmmm.......... lets think about this...........

I am in the RV.... traveling some days... planning a couple long day trips with brother and wife...... hopefully CC classes here in AZ with brother..... walking the fur-babies 3 times a day...... trying to keep up with blogging my adventures.... AND just started another challenge of reading the Bible through in one year (I am a s-l-o-w reader), as well as all the other day to day routines I do at a much slower pace than 30 years ago..... hmmmmm.

 

Oh yes, I need another challenge......not! That would mean committment. I really like to run from that word. COMMITTMENT! So what do I do ?? I run headlong into it and sign up!! That means making a public announcement of my intentions..... whoa!!

 

Am I in my right mind? Do I have a mind left? Some days I wonder......

A partial quote from "Fiddler on the Roof" I like is when the Papa says, "On the other hand...."

So.... on the other hand, this painting challenge can push me to help me accomplish something that would be benefitial, and is one of my main goals and purposes of being out here RVing anyway. 

So I guess it might be a good thing ......this time.

Time will tell...

 

 

 

 



Seeing the sites near Tucson, and a broken roof vent

Old Settler town buildings at Fairbanks.

 

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SASS shooting range and livery

 

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  Town of Tombstone

I loved the old stagecoaches.

 

Just look at those big feet on the horses!!

The old frontier town

Street to Boot Hill

We went shopping at Tombstone in the quaint little shops. We especially like the jewelry shops. By the time we were ready to get something to eat, the restaurants were closed . But this was on Christmas Eve, so I guess it was to be expected.

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On Wednesday, the day after Christmas, we went to to the courthouse to apply for my passport as we are planning a trip to Nogales soon. I paid the extra to get it sooner ...... 2-4 weeks :-/

At least that is done and out of the way.

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Today after church we drove to Camper World to pick up a couple small things I needed for repair for the RV. Those plastic covers for the bumper ends where you store the blackwater hose needed replaced, and some hooks to attach the bottom of the miniblinds that had broken off. I looked for a knob that holds my shower curtain closed but no luck there. I could have stayed and looked more but  needed to get back to the fur-babies. We also drove around a couple rv sales lots just looking....

 

Good thing we got home when we did as I had left the top vents open a ways to make sure the dogs were cool enough. Well apparently the wind had been blowing and the roof vent over the driver area was blown clear off and broken. As rain was threatening I had just time enough to duct-tape plastic to the inside in a funnel shape, and poke a hole in the middle of it to hopefully drain the water into a bucket on the floor underneath it for the night. I will see about getting it fixed in the morning.

 

Going to get cozy and listen to the raindrops, which I hope are not too loud nor too close together :)

Aww...... Beautiful but Cold .... Arizona!

I am enjoying my time here with my brother and his wife, catching up and reviewing our childhoods and some of the crazy things we used to do. Still doing some crazy things..."cowboying" around; however the type of "horses" has changed.

(Just got back from a romp into the desert a couple blocks from their home)

He usually smiles, but I caught him offguard, haha!

He goes by "Deaf Ranger" on fb and just for some background, he and wife Carol spent many long years in and being an administrator of a YWAM base in (Youth With A Mission) in Titusville PA, and then many years in Deaf World Ministries. For nearly all their lives they gave of themselves, doing with little. They were, and are, really blessed to be able to retire to Arizona after their numerous years of ministry.

They still work with the deaf and some of the homeless as opportunity presents itself.

 

 

This is Ron and Carol with their beautiful little orange tree.

Some of Carol's flowers....

And Ron's cacti gardens.....

These were taken at different times of day/evening.

 



And  a beautiful sunset to end the day!

More of our adventures later....

Merry Christmas! Greetings from sunny Tucson, AZ!

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a very blessed New Year!

Last Day in Big Bend Nat'l Park

Dec 17th, Monday

I have been seeing some beautiful places here in the park! I am just awed by the ever-changing mountains and land forms. I left the Cottonwood campground near Castolon, and headed for Santa Elena Canyon. (long distance photo)

I stopped along the way at the old Grand Canyon farm, own for years by the Sublett family.

It was very interesting to me to find that alot of the area, now grown up in mesquite,  in the early 1900's was once valuable cropland.

These are the main house ruins behind the brush growth.



How many feet walked in and out of these doorways; how many hot meals awaited Mr Sublett, after a long hard days work............. I can picture him coming in tired, sweaty, and hungry.

If these walls could tell us of the happy times and hardships these settlers knew.......

Back on the road to Santa Elena Canyon...

Rules say no dogs on the trail, so I had to leave Izzy and Joe in the RV.

and so I started down the path...

The Canyon walls are gorgeous!

 There are sections of board walk down to the river.

 I went for quite a way ..... snapped the best picture I could,

then remembered I had forgotten to lock the RV, so back I went.

It was interesting but you cannot see much though the opening as it seems to curve, and the law forbids any crossing of the river. Still worth the visit, realizing Mexico was near enough to reach out and touch.

Heading back toward Castolon, and the Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive (because vehicles over 24' are not recommended to take the dirt base Old Maverick Road) I stopped to get photos of the Tuff Canyon.

 

I was standing on the edge of a "cliff" in this lower picture , which is quite bold for me :)

Continuing on back to Castolon I spotted these free-ranging horses near the side of the road.

This tri-axle truck came barreling down the road just as they were about to cross. Fortunately they turned and weht back.

I was able to get several photos before I, and they, had to be on out way.

Three beautiful horses!

I felt very blessed to experience all of this in one day!

the beautiful mountains, the vast open spaces, the history of this valley,

 and the spirit of freedom displayed by these horses.

 

I drove  northward and picked up RT 118 at Maverick Junction. leaving the  BBNP. I turned west on RT 170,  and headed for the BB State Park. Iwanted to fo;;ow the border as far as I could.....

But that's another post......