Weather update

We awoke this AM to temps in the upper 30's!  Gee, that's above freezing.  This is easily the warmest morning since soon after we arrived here November 18.  High pressure is already here (30.35) and progged to continue to build over the next few days.  That means Susun's Idaho Falls friends will arrive at Mesa Gateway Airport Friday with temps in the low 70's and enjoy a classic mid-winter Sedona interlude with temps there pushing upper 50's to maybe even a peek at 60 degrees.  No rain is in the forecast for many days.  Maybe that "dry & warm" NWS mantra is coming home to roost afterall.

Here's a weather factoid we found this morning.  As of right now, 49 states actually have snow on the ground.  Florida is the only one without any snow sitting on the ground.  La Nina and that big chunk of hot water in the North Atlantic are combining to kick the stuffing out of the South and Northeast.  La Nina meanwhile has caused billions of dollar of damage in Australia, submerging entire towns, destroying 10-million metric tons of wheat and shutting down practically the entire coal industry there.  The Aussie flooding woes continue and could even get worst with this La Nina.

Up North, Idaho Falls has been enduring a protracted deep freeze.  Temps there haven't plunged to double digits in the minus territory but they have stayed steadily either side of zero for what seems like a very long time.  Today they might get a break as temps are already pushing into the teens this morning.  When you've been subjected to a long period of zero degrees, the teens can actually feel warm.  It's all relative, ya know? (Keep an eye on that Greenbelt webcam is you wanna see what our frozen northland hometown looks like.)

Last night this blog post was entitled "It gets cold FAST."  Here's the blurb we coughed up yesterday evening:

Here's how it goes:  It's nice & toasty warm in the late afternoon. (It reached 53.)  We go out and prep a campfire.  We get it lit and life is good.  The sun goes down and so does the temperature.  By and by, the temperature goes a LOT lower REAL fast!  Pretty soon we are standing around the campfire realizing that the flickering flames are NOT warming us up.  That's when we all skee-daddle inside.  When we get inside, we whoop and hollar and say, "WHOA, It was COLD out there tonight!"  WOW, Yeah, it WAS cold out there tonight.

Even though the temp only dropped into the mid-30's, it just flat felt like it was freezin'!  Anyway, when you come into a nice, cozy straw house where the heat has been turned on for an hour, all is well once again.  Da cold don't matter no mo no how.

Cheers, jp

PS--For the record--the campfire got lit at 4:50 pm and we are in our "warming hut" well before seven pm!  Heck, that's barely two hours of campfire time.

Short update

Sorry for no blogs posts for almost 2 days.  Been REAL busy.  Left early Monday morning for the Verde NRCD meeting.  Then had to leave in the middle of the meeting to get back home for Roger & Nancy's visit.  That was awesome--much to tell.  Then had to go back to Camp Verde and upon return 'twas campfire time.  This morning arose real early and had to hustle the Zuki to the auto shop by 8 am and then get to West Sedona before 9 am.  Picked up a FULL Nissan load of stuff that's been in storage 5 years there.  MASS quantity of stuff.  Have spent the rest of the day "digesting" the stuff.  Had to build an outdoor storage area for a lot of it.  A big bunch of it had to go up in our tiny attic above our closets.  It's been a grunt day to beat the clock and get it all stowed safely.  Mind you, being stowed properly doesn't mean or imply that it has been "processed."  Nope.  That might take 2 years.  No kidding.  It's mostly all photos and files and such.  We have untold thousands of photos.  It's amazing. 

Now it's 4:30 pm and time to split some kindling and prep for campfire time.  I'm actually procrastinating by making this blog entry.  Why's that?  Well, believe it or not, there's a flock of Canadian geese that have spent all afternoon out in the Old Field not far from our campfire site.  I know I will spook them when I go out to mess with the axe and the wood.  They look so peaceful and serene out there with the late afternoon sun shimmering on their feathered backs.  They are lying around without nary a care in the world.  Meanwhile, I called the NPS to let them know about the geese.  None of us have ever seen geese in this location ever.  While chatting with Rex he passed along that their game camera captured a shot of a mountain lion taking a stroll in the Old Field.  How 'bout that, huh?  The cat's meow?

More either later tonight or tomorrow AM--just been REAL BUSY!

Cheers, jp

Man does not live by bread alone but...it HELPS when he does!

Susun pulled off a splendid production of her first bread rendition in years today.  It was an awesome reprise.  She knocked it out of the park.  The fans went wild!  What you see here is what wuz Sunday dinner--proving that Man CAN live by Bread Alone!

This bread was so retro, so awesome and so RIGHTEOUS!  DF & N Gary just bought a home wheat mill. He stone ground wheat berries into genuine, real whole wheat flour.  Meanwhile, Gary chipped in some unfiltered mesquite honey.  You could still see some of the bee wing parts embedded in the honey.  We're talking The Right Stuff here, folks.  Meanwhile, Susun got Her GAME ON!  She drilled down to what it takes to make bread bake beautifully.  She made it rise and fall three times before she put it in the oven.  The results were off the charts.  YA DUN GOOD, Sweetie!  (And it sure helps you had yer honey, too!)

The smell of the bread here in The Straw House was intoxicating.  When it came out of the oven, we both had a primal food experience.  Yea, verily, we ate a LOT of bread and learned just who doth butter our bread!

Life is good.

Cheers, S&J!

At Play In The Fields of The....

DF & N Gary took us on a Magical Mystery Tour today.  'Twas a trail built by renegades and one not listed in guidebooks or recognized by the Forest Circus.  We were At Play In The Field of Dreams today!  THANKS, Gary!

Tonight's Sunset

'Tis been awhile since we posted up a sunset shot from The Straw House.  This is a portion of tonight's sunset.  I wouldn't have captured it except for a story.  DF & N Gary and I were out at the campfire.  Susun came out and said we lost electricity in the house--all circuits non-functional.  So, while Susun & Gary enjoyed the ambiance of the campfire, I dutifully trudged off to deal with "whatever."  It turned out that something had tripped the GFI circuit and shut the system down.  While resetting the various stuff I saw the sunset was "happening," as we say.  This is only a small portion of the sunset panorama.  The entire western sky was lit up just like this small portion of the panorama.

Time for Ketchup

It's been awhile since we put together a regular style blog post. So it's time to ketchup! Let's see, the last newsy post was way back on Tuesday.  Each of the posts since then have been pretty short and specific.  Perhaps it's time to put together a post that is the online equivalent of a Sunday drive through the cyber countryside.  One of the nice things about such a rambling post is that you don't really have to start anywhere in particular and there's no particular order in how things unfold.

Last night we helped celebrate Marsha's birthday.  Frankly, I have no clue as to the real date of Marsha's birthday--never have had.  It's always on whatever day she conducts her party.  She's real flexible about the date of her birthday.  Marsha's a real Shining Star as you might surmise by the photo above.  The little photo at left is from her 50th b-day party some years ago. Each year, she holds court in the same queenly royal fan-back chair.  There was a good news, bad news situation at Marsha's party.  The bad news was that for the first time in 28 consecutive such birthday parties, it was NOT a pizza party!!!!  The good news was that it was a Baptist Church-style potluck.  Each visitor duly marched in carrying some edible thing hidden under tin foil. Surprisingly, the resulting dinner turned out pretty well, almost as if someone had planned a real menu.  There were a lot of new faces we've never seen before as well as all the usual suspects we've been seeing for more than two decades.  I wore a short sleeve shirt and received some odd stares and comments from people about "you Idaho people."  Everyone else was bundled up like Nanook Of The North.  Odd.  All-in-all everything went well and we left early to arrive home by 8 pm.  Thanks, Marsha!

After the morning fiasco with the virus infection, we were already loathe to spend much time online.  Then the tragic news came out of Tucson so we stayed offline all day. Our Prayers continue to flowto the Families and Friends of the deceased and the survivors.  May God's Grace Bless Them All.

Our biggest chore yesterday was "disgesting" stuff.  No, it was not a culinary experience.  On Friday, we traveled over to Bob's Place in Sedona.  Believe it or not, we've had stuff stored in teh garage there for five full years.  We don't even know what is in the boxes of stuff over there.  We vowed we would "deal" with our stuff in Bob's garage this winter and so began that saga on Friday.  While Susun visited the hair salon, I began the heavy lifting to dissect the stacks of boxes and stuff as much stuff into the Nissan as the little bugger could hold.   We're due to return to Bob's Tuesday morning for another mega dose o' stuff.  So, that meant to had to pull out all the stuff from the Nissan yesterday and find a place for it somewhere in a shed or the house.  We are running out of room to stuff stuff here so the digestion process took al day and involved all sorts of ancillary tasks such as moving around old stuff to make room for new stuff.  Why do we lug so much stuff from place to place?  Is it genetic?  Is it a disorder?  Is it a disease?  Is there a cure?  What about special medicines?  Voodoo, maybe?  I hope that someday we won't have to face the specter of stuff any more.  HA!  What are the odds of that?  Well, you know the refrain--it's about Slim and that Nun.

There was a small silver lining to Stuff Wars.  We found all of our photo albums from Year 2001.
Likewise we found four months of narratives from January through April 2001.  Believe it or not, I was one of the earliest so called "bloggers."  Why are we not surprised?  Way back in the dim mist of the dawn of websites, I painstakingly posted daily narrative entries on websites.  I just checked Wiki's history of blogging and I am pretty sure I qualify as one of the earliest bloggers since I started in the mid-1990's.  By the end of the 90's, I was pretty comfortable posting up daily entries to a website.  When we retired from the NRCD in January 2001, I was already posting daily entries to a domain we owned then called "fromthedge.com."   We went down to Rocky Point on 01/11/01 and stayed for over two months.  We lived on the beach in a small pop-top camper.  I'd get up at 4 or 5 am and use an old COmpaq 386 laptop running Windows 3.1 to write a daily narrative and save it to an antique floppy disk.  Then we'd drive into Rocky Point and rent a computer connected to the internet for 20 or 30 pesos an hour.  I'd copy the ASCII text from the disk and upload it to our website.  Well, there was a retired dentist and his wife in the same RV park who became smitten with our early blogging.  I mean REALLY smitten.  So they went back to their home in the States and printed out each and every entry I wrote over a four month time frame.  He then bound the entries in books for each month.  Amazing but true.  If you think I write a lot now, you should have seen the output 10 years ago--geeze--it was prolific.  Anyway, all four of those bound books make quite a heavy load.  We were quite happy to find them intact amid the chaos of our stuff at Bob's.  They made for great reading ten years later and we will post up some of it here in the near future.

Our weather's been pretty good lately--daily highs pushing 60 degrees and lows in the mere 20's  The Weather wonks say it's gonna get "cold" this week.  HA!  They are calling "cold" as something that sees daytime highs in the lower 50's.  That would be a tropical heatwave in Idaho right about now.
It's been great campfire weather and we're looking forward to a nice fire again tonight.

Susun's getting industrious today--she's gonna bake bread.  That ought to be real interesting.  Meanwhile DF & N Gary is gonna take us both over to Bell Rock and show us a new trail up to what's locally known as the "Transcept."  Frankly, I can't see how a trail could scale those cliffs so it's gonna be interesting to find out the secret route to the top.  We're trying to get a new hiking streak going again.  We've been far too sedentary each morning.  This week we started walking up the Blue Grade again and I think yesterday was the third morning in a row.  It feels good to get out again.  You can click here for a Google map of the Blue Grade hike.

Tomorrow is another "all in a day's karma" episode.  As you recall, we thought we were going to get appointed as  Verde NRCD Advisory last month.  But, nah, there was a reason it didn't happen last month.  Tomorrow is precisely 10 years TO THE DAY that we left the NRCD in the first place.  Yep, it was 01/10/01.  We're returning on 01/10/10.  Is that karma or what?  This time we are properly listed on the agenda and we have no doubt it will all come together.  Ah, Karma!

Hey, here's some good news--green chiles!  Yesterday, we scored eight pounds of them for a mere $1.97 "out the door."  Yep, Food City had them on sale for a mere 25 cents a pound.  We're gonna be roastin' and toastin' today!  Yes, they are all Straight Chiles.  We sure wouldn't buy 8 pounds of Crooked Chiles.

Susun's brother Roger and his wife, Nancy, are coming for a visit tomorrow about 11 am.  They haven't been to The Straw House in like forever--probably maybe 12-15 years, we can't remember.  So, that's gonna be fun and, besides, it gives me a great reason to leave the NRCD meeting early.

Have a great day & Cheers, jp

PS--Peggy gave Marsha this great hat for her birthday last night--it's just too good of a photo not to use here this morning.

Hijacked--All Clear

(NOTE added @ 11 am: It's all OK now--we did a 90-minute full system scan and everything's clean again. Whew!)  Here's the original blog post: I am just now beginning to recover and regain some composure.  My nausea and shaking is subsiding.  My computer was hijacked this morning by a malware virus.  It basically took control of this computer and prevented me from opening my security software.  The affect was very simple--I had a useless computer.  Luckily, there was only one program that still functioned--my Firefox browser.  And, luckily, the designers of this virus actually revealed its real name when it popped up on my screen.

I was able to ask Google's search engine how to help remove the virus.  Most all of the online instructions were very obtuse and complex and somehow smacked of promoting various malware removal tools, each of which seemed suspicious in their own way.  I went to Microsoft's malware removal site and downloaded a 12-meg file but the virus prevented me from opening anything with a ".exe" so I was out of luck.

Finally, I stumbled on some instructions which hinted at the use of System Restore through what's called "Safe Mode with Networking."  Unfortunately, the virus wouldn't let me get to safe mode via the normal route with the F8 key during reboot.  That's when I remember to do a crash close down of my system.  To do this, you simply hold the power button down until the screen goes black.

Then when you press the power button to turn it back on it goes automatically into safe mode.  I selected Safe Mode with Networking and then went into the Control Panel and checked various options until I was able to turn back time and restore the computer to what it was a few days ago.  In affect, System Restore wiped the slate clean of anything that had happened between then and now.
If that sounds hopelessly complex, trust me, it is.

Once System Restore worked its inscrutable magic, I was then able to open up and run my System Security software and do an immediate Quick Scan.  So far, so good.  I am now running the time consuming full system scan.  So far, so good.  I've changed my important passwords and will spend the morning off-loading all of our important files and folders.  I won't be comfortable with this machine for awhile.

This blog and our email are independent of this computer so there's no worry reading the blog or receiving an email from us.  For the time being, we will not send any attachments in any of our emails.  If you receive an email from me with an attachment do not open it unless I state specifically in my email that it has been scanned, checked and verified to be OK.

This is one of the most difficult episodes I've experienced in a long time in Computer World.  I think my blood pressure is coming back down to normal now and writing this description has helped me calm down.  I have absolutely no idea how all of this happened.  I had just clicked on what appeared to be a legit website for AARP and then to a site on Forbes detailing America's 10 Most Affordable Cities.  Somewhere on either the AARP or Forbes website, I picked up the offending virus.  Go figure.

Well, that's the story so far.  Stay tuned.  Cheers, jp

Today was a very good day

Yes, today was very good.  Yesterday was very good, too.  We trust tomorrow will be at least as very good.

There's been no time to write a blog post in a while.  We hope tomorrow will offer an opportunity to write a blog post.

Thank you for your readership of this blog.

Photo above By Gary & Robin Below!

Many Cheers  for Dear Friends & Neighbors from j&s

A Quinoa Kinda Night

Not that there be less to bear,
Not that there be more to share;
But for braver heart for bearing,
But for freer heart for sharing,
   Here I pray.


Not for scenes of richer beauty,
Not for paths of lighter duty;
But for clearer eyes for seeing,
Gentler hands, more patient being,
   Every day.


Not that joy and peace enfold me,
Not that wealth and pleasure hold me;
But that I may dry a tear,
Speak a word of strength and cheer
   On the way.


Not that I may sit apart,
Housed from hurt or fling and smart;
But that in the press and throng
I may keep a courage strong
   Here I pray.


Not that I at set of sun
Measure deeds of greatness done;
But that when my feet shall pass
To my low tent in the grass,
   One may say:


"Speed thee well, O friend, who gave
Freely all thy love did crave;
Love and truth and tenderness,
Faith and trust and kindliness,
   In thy day."

Sharlot Hall, "A Litany For Every Day" from Cactus & Pine 1911.

Sharlot said in her introduction to this poem: "This poem is my favorite of
all I have written.  It was printed first in a Dublin, Ireland, periodical and
copied into English papers before being printed in the United States."

It is Susun's favorite of all Sharlot's poems and perfect for A Quinoa Kinda Night!

Cheers, jp

Congratulations to Kelli & Mike!

Kelli and Mike are engaged to be married in June 2011.  This Holiday Season the Happy Couple traveled back to Chicago to visit friends and celebrate their engagement.  A professional photographer took and posted 53 pictures of them in an online album.  (The above screenshot capture is Copyright 2011 by Ruthie Hauge Photography.)  If any LBR's wish to see the whole album, email us and we will send along the link.  Kelli and Mike's wedding will be a real gala.  It's going to be at The Shooting Star Inn out in Kendrick Park between Flagstaff and the Grand Canyon's South Rim.  Susun and I are SOOO Happy for Kelli & Mike!  (Thanks, Mom Maggie for sending the link to the photos.)

Cheers, j&s

Getting Hitched

SuziQ has a couple of home grown angle iron "tabs" welded onto the front of the frame.  We surmise a former owner used those tabs to connect an equally home grown yoke to hitch and tow the Zuki behind their motorhome.  Our Blue Ox yoke won't fit.

So, yesterday it was off to Cottonwood to go to an Old School welding outfit called Smelter City to see if they could adapt the tabs to fit the Blue Ox yoke.  The guy took one look at the situation and said his insurance company won't let him touch anything to do with towing apparatus.  Period.  Case closed.

So, I next went to Camelot RV Park (nice oxymoron, eh?) The kind guy there said, "I won't touch that--you're going to have to cut all that off and start from scratch, it could cost you as much as $700."  Very encouraging news, to say the least.

Since I had been soundly trounced by these two pronouncements, I retreated to recover at a tried and true refuge--Food City.  As I walked in the store I grabbed their new weekly ad as well as a fresh copy of our local classified rag--The Ad King.  (I've never seen an Ad Queen but I presume one must exist.)  My goal in perusing the Ad King was to hope to find a coupon special for wheel balancing.

As I was recovering from the shock of the two deliveries of bad news about towing SuziQ, I happened to see an ad for a falcon tow bar.  That's all it said and the price was $125.  Having no clue what a falcon tow bar is I decided to call and, luckily, caught the seller before they were departing for the day.  Also, luckily, they were located right up the road at a trailer park for geezers.

Much to my surprise, it wasn't just the tow bar--it was the whole shooting match--a brand new tow rig that is much more well known as the famous Roadmaster 5250 outfit.  I was easily as shocked by this turn of events as I had been by the earlier bad news.  Bear in mind the actual suggested retail for this rig is a cool ONE THOUSAND dollars.  It can usually be had for much less at around $750 or so but still, we're talking the kind of money we simply wouldn't ever spend in this lifetime on earth to hitch up a cheapo Suzuki Samurai. (You can click here to see a typical retail listing for it.)

Being the Career Skinflint that I am, I offered $100 and the seller reluctantly nodded "yes." I zoomed off to the ATM and made the round trip is less than 10 minutes being breathlessly eager in my haste.
POOF, just like that we were back in the hitch game again.  I had been the first caller.  If this would have been a golf game, it would have been a hole-in-one moonshot.  Frankly, I was rather stunned by the Sir Real turn of events.  From being down in the dumps with nowhere to turn to being on top of the hitch world in less than an hour was a most dizzying turnaround.

Later in the day, I stopped off at Beaver Creek Service here in Dimrock (as The Goatherder calls it).  We've known the owner Pat forever and he's game for anything.  I showed him the rig and he agreed to do all the welding modifications on SuziQ next Tuesday morning.  Pat said everything would work just fine.  He's probably gonna charge maybe a hundred bucks so we will be getting hitched for a reasonable price while using a genuine Cadillac rig.

One of the coolest things about the Roadmaster rig is that the actual tow bar folds flat against the tow vehicle so there's no need to stow is someplace.  Our Blue Ox yoke is a real pain to stow.  Meanwhile, with the Roadmaster, the towed vehicle can be attached to the tow vehicle by ONE person.  That's huge.

Well, there's even more Zuki Zarma in yesterday's legacy.  As the seller and her male friend were walking away from SuziQ around behind the vehicle, the guy turned to me and smiled and said, "Your spare tire is completely flat!"  Yee gads.  I was dumbfounded.  Somehow in my lunacy, I had forgotten to check the spare tire when we bought the Zuki.  That means we drove it all the way through Phoenix during rush hour and into the pitch black, lonely desolate high desert dark night with NO SPARE!  Geeze, I felt like a total dunce.  Luckily, the tire aired up fine.  It was flat because it had lost its bead sitting around all summer in Maricopa.  However, who knows what might have happened if that guy hadn't alerted me to the situation.

And there's even more to yesterday's Zuki story.  For the past few years, I've been hearing rumors of some Zuki Guru that hides out someplace in the Camp Verde area.  Yesterday afternoon I went looking for him and came up empty-handed.  I really didn't even have the sketchiest of clues to find this purported guru so it was a short search.  OK, earlier on Wednesday, I had called a Zuki seller in New River and he hadn't returned any of my calls.  I was calling on behalf of DF & N Gary.  Well, whilst I was standing alone by last night's campfire (the temp had dropped to 32 and Susun deemed it too cold for her) the cell phone chimed and it was that New River guy.  We had a great talk--he had been inundated by callers--two or three dozen calls and emails about his $1800 "bone stock" 86 Zuki.
He was a real nice guy and, somehow, the subject turned to the mysterious Camp Verde Zuki Guru known simply as ZOR.  (NOTE: If I would have had the ZOR keyword, it would have been easy to find this so-called guru.) Lo and behold, the New River guy had actually visited ZOR!  He said it was really hard to find and they had to guide him in on his cell phone but he had their website and contact information and said he would email it to me right after the phone call.  Sure enough, the New River guy kept his word and the info was sitting in my inbox when I came in from the cold.  You can click here to go to ZOR's website.  (WARNING:  There's a risque biker image on the website gateway page.  Our G-rated family readers might not want to go there.  It's a PG-image, not an R-image.)

All-in-all, it was a very rewarding, entertaining, exciting, unexpected and memorable day in the Life of a Zuki Dude.

Cheers, jp

PS--And get this: Yesterday I actually visited three grocery stores and didn't buy a single thing at any of them.  That's a first for my entire life on earth.

Verde River snowpack well above average

Here's the stats.  The Verde's looking GREAT.  The Salt? Not so much.  Pretty crummy, actually.

S N O W  -  P R E C I P I T A T I O N    U P D A T E
 
              Based on Mountain Data from NRCS SNOTEL Sites
                    As of WEDNESDAY: JANUARY 5 , 2011
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
BASIN                    ELEV.  SNOW WATER EQUIVALENT   TOTAL PRECIPITATION
 Data Site Name          (Ft)                      %                      %  
                                Current  Average  Avg  Current  Average  Avg
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

ARIZONA
 

VERDE RIVER BASIN

 BAKER BUTTE              7300     2.8     2.6   108     11.0     8.7   126 
 FORT VALLEY              7350     2.0      -M      *     9.5      -M      *
 FRY                      7200     5.2     3.1   168     13.1     7.3   179 
 HAPPY JACK               7630     7.2     2.3   313     12.9     7.3   177 
 MORMON MOUNTAIN          7500     4.1     2.8   146     12.3     8.0   154 
 MORMON MTN SUMMIT        8500     6.6      -M      *    11.6      -M      *
 WHITE HORSE LAKE         7180     4.2     2.4   175     13.4     7.5   179 
                                                -----                  -----
                Basin wide percent of average    178                    162 

UPPER SALT RIVER BASIN / WHITE MOUNTAINS

 BALDY                    9125     3.1     3.8    82      5.2     7.3    71 
 BEAVER HEAD              7990     1.5     2.1    71      2.6     8.1    32 
 CORONADO TRAIL           8400     2.2     2.1   105      4.1     6.5    63 
 HANNAGAN MEADOWS         9020     5.4     6.0    90      7.3     9.2    79 
 MAVERICK FORK            9200     5.5     4.6   120      6.1     8.0    76 
 NUTRIOSO                 8500     1.3      -M      *     3.0      -M      *
 WILDCAT                  7850     2.0     2.0   100      4.9     7.3    67 
                                                -----                  -----

Basin wide percent of average     96                     65 

source URL http://www.wcc.nrcs.usda.gov/ftpref/data/snow/update/az.txt

Meanwhile, The Snake above Palisades is look okie, dokie--nothing spectacular but still above average.

The Salmon is merely average. 

SNAKE BASIN ABOVE PALISADES

 BASE CAMP                7030    10.4     8.8   118     13.5    11.0   123 
 BLIND BULL SUM           8650    14.5    13.9   104     11.2    11.7    96 
 COTTONWOOD CREEK         7670    14.5    10.3   141     19.1    14.3   134 
 EAST RIM DIVIDE          7930     7.1     6.2   115      7.0     6.1   115 
 GRANITE CREEK            6770    10.9     8.2   133     13.3    10.1   132 
 GRASSY LAKE              7265    17.1    15.8   108     20.3    18.5   110 
 GROS VENTRE SUMMIT       8750     8.9     7.3   122      8.7     6.7   130 
 GUNSIGHT PASS            9820     9.3      -M      *     9.6      -M      *
 LEWIS LAKE DIVIDE        7850    19.1    15.8   121     20.2    18.6   109 
 LOOMIS PARK              8240     9.7     8.5   114     10.8     8.8   123 
 PHILLIPS BENCH           8200    16.9    13.4   126     18.3    14.4   127 
 SALT RIVER SUMMIT        7760     8.3     5.8   143     12.3     9.5   129 
 SNAKE RIVER STATION      6920     8.1     8.4    96     14.4    11.6   124 
 SPRING CREEK DIVIDE      9000    16.4    13.2   124     17.1    13.9   123 
 THUMB DIVIDE             7980    11.9     8.1   147     12.4     9.6   129 
 TOGWOTEE PASS            9580    15.2    12.3   124     16.4    12.7   129 
 TWO OCEAN PLATEAU        9240    19.2    14.2   135     15.4    14.2   108 
 WILLOW CREEK             8380    16.6    15.1   110     21.8    16.4   133 
                                                -----                  -----
                Basin wide percent of average    121                    121 

SALMON BASIN

 BANNER SUMMIT            7040    13.3    12.9   103     17.1    15.1   113 
 BEAGLE SPRINGS           8850     5.7     3.9   146      6.1     5.6   109 
 BEAR BASIN               5350     8.5     8.5   100     14.0    12.5   112 
 BIG CREEK SUMMIT         6580    16.5    13.8   120     19.3    18.0   107 
 BRUNDAGE RESERVOIR       6250    13.6    13.1   104     20.2    18.6   109 
 DARKHORSE LAKE           8600    13.9    14.8    94     15.2    16.1    94 
 DEADWOOD SUMMIT          6860    21.5    19.8   109       -M    22.9      *
 GALENA                   7470     8.7     8.5   102      9.8     9.9    99 
 GALENA SUMMIT            8780    10.1     9.2   110     11.1    10.8   103 
 LEMHI RIDGE              8100     5.6     5.1   110      6.6     7.2    92 
 MEADOW LAKE              9150     8.7     8.2   106      9.7     9.8    99 
 MILL CREEK SUMMIT        8800    11.3    10.0   113      9.8     9.4   104 
 MOONSHINE                7440     5.6     5.4   104      7.4     6.5   114 
 MOOSE CREEK              6200     8.5     8.4   101     11.7    10.2   115 
 MORGAN CREEK             7600     4.9     6.0    82      9.5     8.2   116 
 MOUNTAIN MEADOWS         6360    10.1     9.9   102     14.6    12.9   113 
 SADDLE MTN.              7940    13.0    12.5   104     12.6    13.7    92 
 SCHWARTZ LAKE            8540     5.1     4.9   104      7.9     7.7   103 
 SECESH SUMMIT            6520    14.2    15.2    93     15.2    17.9    85 
 SQUAW FLAT               6240    10.9     9.5   115     19.0    15.8   120 
 VIENNA MINE              8960    14.4    15.6    92     16.2    16.1   101 
 WEST BRANCH              5560     9.0    11.0    82     17.8    16.0   111 
                                                -----                  -----
                Basin wide percent of average    103                    105 

 

Tuesday Tales

Brian R. came to visit yesterday.  He hadn't been here in 15 years.  It was great to see him.  We spent hours catching up and swapping tales from yesterlore. Brian lives near Boulder, Colorado, now.  He's been two Africa for two multi-week deep backcountry jaunts.  He's still very active in river running and just finished up an 8 year stint with the Forest Service.  He's ever young at heart and in appearance, too.  Susun asked him when we was gong to turn forty.  He blushed and said he'd already turned 50.  We were both shocked and surprised.  he doesn't look a day over 40.  Brian played a key role in getting Susun and I together back in 1987.  It's a long story best told another time.  Thanks, Brian, for going out of your way to visit us.  We look forward to seeing you again--and much sooner than another 15 years!

Chip N. also went out of his way to come to The Straw House yesterday.  We went out to the picnic table and spent an hour going over the grant proposal for the Verde River Recreation Guide.  Chip's a real Ace Grant Writer and this one is a shoo-in to get funded.  One of the exciting aspects about it will be the opportunity to use BAT.  WTH is BAT?  Acronyms R Us.  BAT="Best Available Technology."  So, Chip is going to get a real nice GPS unit that will talk to the GIS people and we will all hold data hands online and sing a stirring virtual version of kumbaya.  We're looking forward to it.

Otherwise, we spent the day messing with the camper.  Made a nice external battery mount and figgered how to rig and stow all of our kitchen bivvy and chuck box.  This rig rox.

Another nice night for a campfire and DF & N Gary W. came to visit.  Susun was jazzed because she could brag about getting to-her-door delivery of Aussie Bites.  Gary stopped off at a metro Costco Monday to pick up the Bites and two more giant bottles of Pace salsa.  Pace is perfect "sipping salsa."  It's a little too watery to use on most foods but it sure makes a great sipping salsa.  I love drinking that stuff straight all by itself with no additives.

Wayne R. used Twitter this morning to announce the publication of an article he authored for the flagship publication of the Arizona Geological Survey.  You can click here to read it.  It's great.

The Daytime highs are finally warming up a little bit.  We reached 54 degrees yesterday and it felt wonderful.

Have a Great Day & Cheers!  jp

Life's a Beach, SuziQ's legal, Art Benches, Chiles & Silver

It's a potpourri post this morning.

Stasea sent some photos of a Kona beach called Makalawena. She visited Chandra again on the Big Island over the Holiday. The two happy friends cast a long shadow on their sunrise beach walk this weekend. Thanks, Stasea!

Monday was a pretty laid back day. The highlight was getting the Zuki street legal. Title and registration was only $27.67! Insurance, however, is much higher in cost here than in Idaho--$300 a year for a Zuki vs. $180 up there. The difference is easily explainable--too many people here and too many bad drivers. We all pay a price for bad drivers.

Although Idaho insurance is cheaper, it would have cost $200 to register the Zuki there as opposed to about $28 here. So, it's a wash in overall cost.

Susun drove SuziQ for the first time yesterday and she was delighted. That's a good thing.

We did a few more minor things to the camper but overall, the day was nondescript. Perhaps the real highlight was our second campfire of the new year. It was much warmer last night and we were able to stay out well after total darkness. We love it when the campfire smoke rises straight up into the night sky. Hopefully, it will be even warmer today.

We rec'd a call from Brian R. yesterday. We haven't seen him since forever--can't even remember when--90's maybe? He's going to visit sometime today. That's definitely gonna be interesting. Meanwhile, Chip N. will be here at 1 pm to talk over details of the Verde River guide project. Sue K. is moving forward on the geo-caching project.

Forgot to mention: The Idaho Falls Post-Register featured the Greenbelt Art Bench project as one of the city's top highlights of Year 2010. Carrie sent the article and we talked on the phone about it. She is real jazzed and fully expects the remaining benches to be funded in time for a May installation.

Here is a piece of total trivia: it's all about straight green chiles.  Believe it or not, these are the very first straight chiles we have seen in about a year!  For some odd reason, ALL of the green chiles have been crooked and twisted beyond imagination for almost a year.  Who knows why?  Sunspots?  Such a small thing as STRAIGHT chiles can be a sources of great glee to a guy like Little Yonni.  Why's that?  Well, Class, straight chiles are so much easier to roast on a table top grill.  The only way we can roast the twisted chiles is with the flame thrower weed burner.  That's dangerous, no fun and the chiles don't give off their aromatherapy essence.   So, we are very happy to be able to play with our straight chiles.

OK, and one last item I've been forgetting to mention for maybe two weeks--Susun bought a silver coin.  It's a full one ounce US Silver Eagle Dollar dated year 2000.  She paid $30 and change for it at Coin Heaven in Cottonwood.  Why's that so special?  Well, in case you haven't noticed, the price of silver went up over 70% in Year 2010.  In fact, it had an interim peak yesterday at $31!!!!  Well, the skyrocketing silver price caught Susun's attention and she wanted to go buy a coin herself.  She's really happy with the little one ounce dollar.  There's a lot more to the story about at least I remembered to mention it.  DF & Neighbor Gary W and I think Susun's newfound interest in silver is a sign that people who've never paid any attention to it are beginning to get a whiff of things to come and they're stepping (albeit gingerly) into the market.  If so, that bodes well for this burgeoning bull market.

A fitting task

'Twas a pleasant New Year's weekend.  We watched nary a nano-second of football.  That probably puts us in the .000001% of the red-blooded American male population.  We spent portions of both days fiddling with fitting The Skamper into the big truck.  Fittingly, we finished fiddling yesterday.  'Tis all right and proper now.  What's so special about jiggering this camper?  Well, it's designed for a smaller bed.  So, it's all about the feng shui of position & plum and square.  Plus, the rig has to be braced so it can't wiggle and waggle and yaw and all sorts of other bad things mismatched campers can do.  Meanwhile, we maximized the side spaces so we can now store all sorts of stuff under and beside the camper. 

Even though we've only worked with this new unit for a couple of days, we can already tell it's a keeper.  It's just about as perfect for our needs as we can imagine, even if it is 25-years-old.  We're hoping to take it over to Marsha's Place next Saturday for its first trial run.  Marsha has a tradition that's been going on forty years.  When her January birthday rolls around she throws a party for her Dear Friends and give them gifts.  No one gives Marsha gifts--SHE gives gifts.  She's a renowned potter so the gifts are always some sort of glazed and fired clay thing.  The other part of the tradition is that it's a pizza pot luck but no one can bring a store bought pizza.  All pizza has to be made from scratch in Marsha's kitchen.  You wouldn't believe the amazing variety of creative pizzas we've seen over the last couple of decades there.  Well, as you can imagine, libations flow long and strong at Marsha's birthday party.  As you know, we don't imbide if we're driving.  So, it could well be that our new camper becomes the de facto "designated driver" next Saturday night.  It will be mighty interesting to see just how cold it gets inside that thin tin and canvas contraption.

Speaking of cold, we see it's been as low as -14 this morning in Idaho Falls.  That's cold but it's still a yawner for most of the old timers there.  They brag about surviving minus 50 and such.  As those old timers grow older, the depths of Good Old Days temperature fall farther.  What was once probably minus 30 soon becomes minus 50 and it wouldn't surprise me to hear the same people pushing it to minus 60 or 70.  It's one of the licenses that comes with growing old.  When younger people exaggerate, their friends call 'em on it.  When old people exaggerate, we all smile and nod in agreement and enjoy the fib.  It's the Grand Pa Story Teller's License and nobody minds bald face lies when they are told by gray-hairs with a friendly smile.  "Why, Sonny, I remember when it was so cold, it froze the cows right solid in their tracks--you could just go push 'em over and they'd fall right flat on the snow.  Took 'til spring to thaw 'em out."  You know how that goes.  We've all been there, done that.

And speaking of real snow, here's the New Year beginning situation.  The Verde River is looking good.  Happy Jack as over 30 inches.  The Salt River's watershed is pretty paltry with hardly two feet of white stuff.  Meanwhile, Two Ocean Plateau at the head of The Snake is sitting on five feet.  Galena Summit (a Salmon River indicator) has a little less than four feet and Harriman State Park looks good with almost 3 feet.  If a normal winter ensues from this point forward, it looks like we will have decent river runoff both here in Arizona and up in Idaho.  If La Nina thumps the Pac NW like it's supposed to do, we might have another gang-busters river flow up north.  Being in the desert, Arizona can look real good in early January and then vaporize before March.  The NWS people keep holding tight to their La Nina mantra here:  "Dry & Warm," they chant.  Time will tell and we shall see.

Cheers, jp

Back To Work We Go

We all face Year 2011's First Monday together.  Hi, ho,hi, ho, it's off to work we go!  Some are heading back to their Day Jobs and we salute your dedication, loyalty and tenacity.  Some of us might not have day jobs but work still happens.  We may be self-employed or, in our case, self-motivated to bite off a bunch of extracurricular work. 

When people work for free, as we do, it's called "volunteering."  As you well know, we love volunteering but the bottom line is that it is often work in the same sense as regular work in the real workaday world.  We've been putting off a LOT of volunteer stuff with a wide range of classic procrastinator lines.  Here are the ones that have kept us away from work: 

1) We don't have time right now as we're packing to leave for Arizona;
2) We don't have time right now as we've unpacking from Idaho;
3) We don't have time right now because we have to do homeowner chores before winter sets in;
4) We don't have time right now because the weather's perfect and we have to enjoy before winter sets in; and the Age Old Standby everyone uses,
5) We don't have time right now because of the holidays.

Well, guess what, we've run out of procrastinator excuses and it's Back To Work We Go.  Here's our backlog and current plate full of volunteer work tasks:

Process all of the material from our August trip to Salmon, Idaho.  (est. Time = 40 hours)
Process all photos and notes from Salmon River field trip floats (est. time = 60 hours)
Begin research of nationwide policies for geo-caching on public lands (est. time = 80 hours)
Begin serving as Advisor to Verde NRCD Board of Supervisors (est. time = 20 hours)
Begin field work on Verde River Recreation Guide project for Chip N.  (est. time = 50 hours)

Hum...that's gonna keep us busy at least until we head back to Idaho in April!

So, whazzup with the photo atop this blog post?  Well, for one thing, it's the truth.  The older we become the more that statement rings true.  No matter how much any of us might have done, we also tend to remember the things we wish we shoulda, coulda and oughta have done. 

We salute those of our Dear Friends who don't let the typical excuses stand in their way of getting "out there." 

And with that lead-in, we'd like to congratulate some Dear Friends and Loyal Blog Readers for their "go for it" attitudes.

First, let's take Rachel, Jan and Lee from Idaho Falls.  Way back last fall, they jumped all over the new Allegiant Air service from Idaho Falls to Mesa, Arizona.  They are coming down in a mere 11 days to spend the MLK Day weekend with Susun in Sedona.  Ever the Party Planner, Susun has quite the itinerary lined up for the adventurous trio.  Lee, Jan & Rachel could have easily found any number of reasons not to so a short hop here in the middle of winter but they forged on.  We're very proud of that attitude and it's inspirational.  Thanks, Rachel, Jan & Lee! 

Next, let's take The Spudboater. Not only does she have the "go for it" attitude but she also walks the walk, too.  She's done all manner of trips in Year 2010 that would have been all to easy to forego for all kind of reasons.  But get this, she's actually coming down here to The Straw House in late March!  Yep, she's hopping a plane in Boise, shuttling through Portland and then landing in Phoenix on March 24 for a six day sojourn here at Happy Hour Central.  She's actually already bought the ticket and sent us a confirmation!  Thanks, Spudboater, ya dun good!

Now how about the case of Adventurer Wayne R.? If there ever was an "out there" kinda guy, it has to be Wayne.  We remember about 25 years ago when Wayne up and decided to go spend the winter down on Antarctica!  Yep, he actually got a job at McMurdo Station near the South Pole.  That was a real milestone that set Wayne off since to every continent and into a career few can imagine.  Wayne recently announced he's got another gig escorting tourists by private jet to Asia.  Per person prices START at $66,950 for this trip.  That's not a typo.  You can click here to read about it.   Wayne's the type of guy who looked at the slogan shown in the photo above this blog post and said, "Yeah, I know what that means and I'm living by it."  Way to go, Wayne!

Or how about Terry M.?  He's heading off into the wild, blue yonder in two weeks for some little-visited nooks and crannies of Eastern Europe.  Terry goes almost everywhere a whim can take a man.  No exotic locale is too "out there" for him.  Thanks for the inspiration, Terry.  You GO, Guy!

Lastly, let's revisit Deano and Lora.  That Happy Couple never misses a chance to make memories by traveling hither and yon far and wide when the opportunity arises.  Even though they live near Ashland, Oregon, they merrily skipped over hill and dale to visit friend in Flagstaff, Mogollon, Rocky Point and, as you know The Straw House, during their short recent holiday break.

As we've mentioned recently, you make your best memories when you go out of your way to do something special and visit some place far beyond your normal haunt(s).  As this year begins, perhaps we should all ponder the slogan above and wonder just how far and wide we can wander in the months ahead.

Cheers, jp

Playing with their food again

Oh, no, there they goes again!  Little Johnny, Maggie and Susun are playing with their food.  How can we get them to stop, Maude?  Electro-shock therapy perhaps?

Wot a fun way to begin the New Year--Johnny's got his a sriracha hot sauce smiley face on fresh avocado guacamole atop low carb flax seed toast while Maggie made a candy face this morning. Susun's is titled "Arizona Sunset." And this just in--it's an OMG Smiley Face fresh from the skillet of The Goatherder.  WOW!

Last New Year's Day, The Spudboater winged in an entry called The Whampus Burger.  Here's how she described it: "Here's my entry. This is what's known as a "Whampus Burger" is some parts of Idaho around Hagerman. My Whampus is minus the bun because when I make burgers at home we use no bun. Kind of Atkins diet like. The Whampus has a burger, cheese, and two slices of ham, so those are adorning eyebrows etc.Fry sauce is the nose and of course, a burger would not be complete without some fries. The avocado is extra to help out with the flavor'  (NOTE: I color corrected the original which was heavily yellowish.)

This was (is) a very successful way to kick off the New Year 2011.  There's a slim chance we might get an entry from Houn' Dawg and maybe even Wayne.  Since today is Sunday, we've arbitrarily extended the deadline for entries until midnight tonight.  Voting will begin tomorrow.  The winner will get an all expenses billed trip to CAT MOAN Country.

Whenever these things happen, we like to intone a favored cliche: "Small pleasures for small minds."

The Big Chill

OK, Weather Fans, this is a truly memorable way to begin a New Year.  This morning's graphic from the Flagstaff NWS sums it up.

BRRRR!

Here at The Straw House, it reached a low of +7.  Our coldest ever was also in single digits.  We think we recall it was six degrees once here.  Officially this morning, it reached a low of +10 at Lake Montezuma.  Get this: our temp at The Straw House this morning equaled the morning low today in Idaho Falls!  Amazing, but true.

We can truly say this year's got nowhere to go but UP after this morning.

Many Chilly Cheers, jp

PS--Let the record show that the former California & Maricopa Zuki did NOT freeze.  Luckily, we remembered to drain out a lot of water that WOULD have frozen and refill with real antifreeze.

Happy New Year

'Twas a Happy New Year for one and all.  Dear Friends & Neighbors Maria-Elena and Tim invited us to join them for a great dinner and warm welcome to Year 2011.  We gathered at 9 pm to enjoy happy camaraderie and some awesome traditional Venezuelan delicacies. Wisely, our Hosts segregated the the sexes.  The Ladies Only table had a fine time while the men at the bar were, well...men.  Maria-Elena really went the extra mile looking for banana leaves with which to wrap her special tamales.  THANKS, Maria-Elena!  Tim is a Master Barista with a genuine hot rod commercial espresso machine.  He turned out cup after cup of custom brew to order.  Well done, Tim!
Our neighbors Tim & Sue from Queensland, Australia, brought some of their Aussie Friends and we all enjoyed a memorable way to usher in a Bright New Year.  It was a pleasure spending the evening with everyone and a night we'll long remember.  Thanks & Cheers to ALL!  j&s

Then & Now

Here's the story.  The top photo was obviously taken five years ago today.  We tried to replicate the bottom photo as close as possible right down to the same time of day.  We both think we did OK.

Now let's let the story expand a little.

Back five years ago tonight our lives were filled with uncertainty.  We had made a commitment: we were selling out to move to Idaho.  

Who would buy this place?  And Why?  And When?  We knew not.  But we huddled around our New Year's Eve Campfire and talked as if it was a done deal.  

Oh, how full of braggadocio we were.  (Some would use the letters "B" & "S" instead of that fine Italian word!)  We burned a big pile of mesquite and told grand tales of living in Idaho Falls.

But here's the bottom line:  That's the Power of Vision & Belief  & Faith  & Hope.  

Dreams CAN Come True if you BELIEVE they can.  We are all in charge of our own destiny.  As my Grade School Nuns loved to say, "It's Your Choice, Young Man."

To have come full circle between "Then & Now" is a truly inspiring story.  Heck, we are inspired by our OWN story!  It's really amazing to us that we are back here at The Straw House once again in Y2Ten looking at the same timeless vistas and savoring the same primitive joys we once knew.

 If you would have told us five years ago tonight what we would have experienced in the upcoming five years, we would have laughed you right off our property.  Hollywood fiction writers couldn't come up with a better story line than the one that unfolded between "Then & Now."

We're Grateful for our heritage and legacy here at The Straw House.  We're Grateful for the New Life we've created in Idaho. We're Grateful for Family in Arizona, California, Hawaii, and Indiana. We're Grateful for our Lifelong Dear Friends here.  We're Grateful for Our Newfound Dear Friends in Idaho.  We're Grateful for have Rivers To Run everywhere.  And, as the New Year's Sun draws to a close, We're most Grateful for being able to be back here at 2nd Chance Ranch posting up photos of "Then & Now!"

We LOVE YOU ALL!!!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!! 

MANY CHEERS!!!!

Susun & John

A door to the future

For some reason, I keep forgetting to put up a status report on the door.  Our goal was to have it finished by the end of the year.  We didn't quite get to the "finished" part.  However, the door is blocked in place and we can enjoy its primary benefit--all that great light streaming in through the large glass pane. 

It's going to take a lot of tedious shimming work to get the door finished.  Neither upright beam is plumb and the opening isn't square either.  Dex came over the other day and was as perplexed as we were about how to mount the door.  It doesn't really matter much.  We'll figure it out one way or another.  In the meantime, it's great to have that large dark area punctuated by some much appreciated light!

A Year Ago

A year ago today, we arrived back in Idaho Falls after spending nearly 2 months here at The Straw House.  It was a real whirlwind last year.  First, we shared a great Christmas Dinner at The Wheelers on Friday. Then we had two days to pack up and rig to go.  We left Monday morning after tinkering with all of our security stuff here.  We drove into the teeth of a storm north of Beaver, Utah, and somehow made it to Nephi in the night.  We have to layover in Nephi a full day before departing again on New Year's Eve.  I think we pulled into Idaho Falls about this time of day a year ago on the 31st.

Today I went back and re-read the first dozen or so blog posts.  It was very entertaining and for a few LBRs it might also be fun for you to revisit those posts.  While reviewing the blog posts I realized I never put up the photo album of our entertaining stay in Nephi.  So, here it is exactly one year late!
You can click here to see it.  It has 27 photos and they are all captioned.  There are a lot of cool historical photos of Nephi itself.

OK, if you are bored and want to read those early blog posts, here how you do it.  Scroll down the left column until you get to the Blog Archives.  Go click on "January."  That will bring up a list of all the posts of January.  Scroll down that list and click on the first one entitled "Y2Ten Blog Born."
Then simply click "Newer Post" at the bottom of that entry.  That's the easiest way to read the first few posts.  They all sure ring as true today as they did a year ago.  I got a kick out of this snippet from one of the first posts:  "I enjoy writing aimlessly.  I enjoy writing stuff that's focused, too, of course.  But writing about nothing in particular is a fat lot of fun.  It's like taking a mental hike through some pleasant landscapes.  I can go off trail any time I want without the Trail Police giving me a ticket."  You can click here to read the full post from which that quote was lifted.

It's been a fun year writing this blog--we're looking forward to more such fun and games in the year ahead.

Cheers, jp

Resolutions?

Once upon a time, we engaged in the annual tradition of making New Year's Resolutions.  Didn't we all?  Now such resolutions have long since been relegated to the deepest recesses of the dustbin of history.  Resolutions R Not Us.

With that disclaimer done, however, we'd like to think out loud about stuff we'd like to do in the upcoming Year 2011.  These aren't resolutions, mind you, they are just things we hope happen.  Here's The Top Ten:

1) Visit more often w/Family & Dear Friends.  Keep in better touch, make more phone calls & FTF visits.
2) Organize more "get togethers" with our Dear Friends. (Eat @ Diablo Burger!)
3) Build an earth oven at The Straw House. Cook and bake more outdoors in Idaho & Arizona.
4) Spend more time in boats of all types.  Float The Snake often.  Spend more time on the Salmon between Challis & Corn Creek.
5) Explore more Idaho backroads, especially in the Beaverhead & Lemhi Ranges.  Put lots of back country miles on the Zuki.
6) Do more spur-of-the-moment camping in the new pop-top rig. Downsize tent camping rig.
7) Do more oral history interviews with Dear Friends & Family.
8) Play more cribbage & chess
9) Improve our golf game
10) Get better at darts, extreme croquet, horseshoes and hand grenades. (HA! Just kidding.)

How 'bout you?  Leave a comment, share your thoughts about the New Year.  Whazzup in 2011?

Cold Cone Coming down tonight

Here's a photo taken yesterday morning in downtown Flagstaff by The Arizona Daily Sun's Jake Bacon.  (Great name, huh?)  That's the historic Weatherford Hotel sporting its New Year's Eve 70 pound pine cone.  At the stroke of midnight tonight, the cone will drop in Times Square fashion while (presumably) huddled masses of partiers cheer and cavort in the frozen Flagstaff streetscape.  Hum...let's see now...the overnight low up there is supposed to be well below zero.  Doncha wonder just how many brave souls will actually be standing outside to watch the venerable pine cone make its annual descent?  Brrrr....it gives us the shivers just thinking about it.

Point of clarification--As you will note from the comment below, the Esteemed Cone comes down at 10 PM for anyone born before 1970.  Who thinks of these scheduling things, anyway?  Will that make 40-year-olds feel even older?  Anyway, as Wayne notes, it will only be about -1 about then.  Thanks, Wayne.  Are you & Helen going?

What's that funny thing at left?

Oddly, nobody has quizzed us about the funny black and white thingie at the top of the left hand column.  Maybe our readers assume it has a purpose and don't wonder what it is.

Well, it's time to unmask that thingie.  It's called a QR Code.  The "QR" stands for "Quick Response."  Naturally, the Japanese devised it.  It has sort of an Asian artistic look to it, doesn't it?  real Zen feng shui-like with every black dot and white space in its precise place. (Here's the Wiki.)

Believe it or not, you can actually embed over 7000 alpha-numeric characters in that funny-looking thingie.  People with Smart Phones simply point their device at a QR code and all of the embedded information shows up on their phone screen.

The Drewster's Geek Blog helped me discover and appreciate QR codes.  THANKS, Drew!  You can click here to read his blog post that spawned my interest in QR codes.  (NOTE: Beware--This is SERIOUS Geek Stuff so don't go there if you are allergic to geek pollen.)

So who cares about QR codes and what good are they anyway? 

Well, Class, we can safely say QR codes are coming to your neighborhood soon and will be one of Year 2011's big techno phenomena.  As more and more people begin using Smart phones, you will see more and more QR Codes.  The proliferation of QR codes this coming year will be in direct proportion to the increased sales of smart phones.  It might even be possible that QR codes could become the tail that wags the dog.  How's that?  Well, QR codes are so useful that people might want to buy a smart phone just so they can actually USE QR codes.  Honest, that could happen.  I know that Susun and I are already considering a smart phone simply to use QR codes.  That's a fact.

QR codes offer potential to truly amp up our own personal learning curve.  Let's take a real world example from Yellowstone National Park.  The park is working with a Montana university to study and interpret astrobiology.  Meanwhile, a lot of this information is now available to the visiting public via QR codes.  The academic people even made a really cool poster to explain QR codes and how they facilitate the education component of the astrobiology project.  You can click here to see the poster.

We believe QR codes are poised to go exponential.  We're seeing them sprout up in the Sedona tourism market.  We found a nice brochure at the Visitor Center the other day.  Each business advertisement has a small QR code at the bottom.  Without doubt, we know that one could instantly learn more about those motels and restaurants using a smart phone.  We fully expect to see QR codes popping up on all sorts of state and federal interpretive resources.  We're certain that the museum industry will jump on the QR code bandwagon this year.  We even suspect they will become a mainstay of municipal Parks & Recreation.  I suspect Idaho Falls will soon be at the forefront of municipal QR usage.  There's unlimited potential for this geeky stuff.  It's going to be a great phenomena to observe in the months ahead.

OK, so what information is contained in the QR code here on this blog?  Simple: It's my name, actual real mailing address, email, cell phone and personal contact information.  So far as we know, the spam robots haven't yet figured out how to harvest this information from QR codes embedded in blogs and websites.  It's a safe way to post up our contact information without giving away the farm to the spammers and the telemarketers.  If you have a smart phone, point it at our QR code and see for yourself.

That's my Year End Geek Prognostication and I'm sticking to it!  Cheers, jp

Year 2010 Statistics

Happy New Year's Eve!  Wave Bye-Bye to Y2Ten!

As you know, we finally put a counter on this blog back on June 19.  The stats below are from that date until this morning.  We won't bother interpolating them back to 01/01/10.  You can do that math if you wish.  The key thing about the stats is that they are remarkably steady and don't vary much from week-to-week.

There might be a week or two when the "total time onsite" goes way up, but it almost always soon returns to the long term average of roughly 3 minutes per visit.  We're quite happy with the base of Loyal Blog Readers we have.  It's roughly a couple dozen Family & Friends who somehow find time to check in on our daily narratives.   We sure do appreciate you!  You give us a reason to get up each morning and attempt to write something.  THANK YOU.

We started this blog a year ago tomorrow so today closes out our first full year of diligent blogging. Altogether, we've written more than 650 posts.  Some have been shuffled over to the companion website.  So there's probably about 640 that actually remain here on the blog.

Meanwhile, we've received 317 comments as of this morning.  That's a LOT of comments from a small readership.  THANK YOU for each and every one of those comments.  Both Susun and I really enjoy your comments.  Please keep them coming.

Here's an interesting statistic: We've posted 830 photos on this blog!

OK, below are this morning's stats.  Cheers!  jp

The Daily News                        
                      (s41livesimple)                       

                    -- Site Summary ---                     
          Visits

            Total ........................ 3,800            
            Average per Day ................. 23            
            Average Visit Length .......... 5:58            
            This Week ...................... 159            

          Page Views

            Total ........................ 7,163            
            Average per Day ................. 55            
            Average per Visit .............. 2.4            
            This Week ...................... 385

Engine 51

OK, a couple of days ago, I promised to tell a story about this photo.  On the surface, it looks pretty typical.  Here's a bunch of Bubba Boyz.  They are National Park Service Wildland Firefighters on the Engine #51 crew based in Kings Canyon-Sequoia Nat'l Park's Grant Grove.  They look pretty much like any other Engine crew in the NPS, Forest Service, BLM or whatever.  What makes them so special as to wind up on this blog?

This story is actually about Social Media in the federal government and how it is a "game changer" and how it's restructuring the way a lot of people think, especially including me, myself and I.  That's why I decided to use this photo as a lead-in to a Social Media story.  (Quit here if Social Media bores you to tears.)

The National Park Service is embracing social media with such enthusiasm it's almost scary.  The highest level of the National Park Service--the very tippy, top highest level of this age-old bureaucracy has decided social media is totally cool.  And to prove their commitment, the Big Wigs of the NPS have a Twitter feed where they place the most unlikely of material.  Obviously, that's how I found this bunch o' Bubba Boyz.  Now in The Old Days, you would have expected the NPS to use their Twitter feed to brag about rarified bureaucrats and how the Director did this or that and how the so and so's at the highest level were God's Gift to Mankind.

Well, it ain't that way no mo.  Nope, the highest level NPS Twitter feed is using its power to showcase unusual stories of unusual rank-and-file people who toil out in the field.  We're talking a Twitter feed that COULD be talking about people in the GS-20+ pay grade instead showcasing people in the GS-5 pay grade.  This amazes me.  That's why I wanted to talk about it here.

This newfound reality is a Game Changer because it's completely restructuring how people view the NPS--both people INSIDE the system and people OUTSIDE the system.  Frankly, prior to this amazing development, I had a low opinion of the NPS that had been formed with many years of a negative feedback loop.  My experience with the NPS started in 1980 with the Grand Canyon.  Oh, the stories I could tell.  Then we became neighbors of Montezuma Well Nat'l Monument in 1984 and had nothing but angst for 18 years before a new Supt. came onboard.

Earlier this week, I was chatting with Rex V. , the local NPS Ranger here, and I shared with him how much the NPS social media strategy is working and how it has given birth in me to a whole new level of respect and admiration for the NPS.  I told him my enthusiasm for the NPS is at an all time lifetime high.  I am excited again about the NPS.  I don't see them as a bunch of bumbling, inefficient bureaucrats in self-imposed strait-jackets any more.  It's an entire life sea change for me and I am loving every minute and every Tweet of it.  Sometimes when I see the great stuff that the Top Level NPS Tweets or some of the individual units Tweet, I want to jump out of my chair and CHEER.  Gosh, I know that sounds pollyanna-ish but it's true.  I'm "all in" now as a reborn NPS Fan--Big Time!

Let's take the story behind the photo above.  Who do you suppose the NPS featured in this group?  The Engine Captain?  Nope.  The Crew Boss?  Nope.  No, the NPS featured some lowly guy from Samoa.  He's 22-year-old Charles Ve'ave'a.  He's standing in the back row of the Bubba Boyz second from the left. You can click here to read his story. It 's a great story, of course, but what are the odds that it would wind up showcased on the primary NPS Twitter feed.  Back in the old days, those odds would have been Slim and None and, as they say, Slim left town last week and None ain't nowhere to be seen.  It's a great story but it's just one of many unusual stories that have been popping up on the NPS Twitter feed.  Get this, their latest Tweet is about ASTROBIOLOGY and Yellowstone's geothermal features.  HUH?  You've got to be kidding.  Nope.  It's real.  Here's their Twitter address and you can see for yourselves:

http://twitter.com/NatlParkService

Not long ago, the NPS Twitter feed featured the awesome blog of some obscure people up in Denali, Alaska, who run the NPS sled dog program up there.  The blog is so danged good, I get goosebumps reading it.  We're talking about real people here--not hoity-toity big wigs.  Nope, these people are down in the trenches doing stuff that normally no one on earth would know or care about.  But that's not the case now.  I am such a big fan I can hardly wait to read their next installment of a life that is basically beyond my comprehension here in relatively sunny Arizona.  Click here for the main blog address.  However, if you want to read about a typical work day in -30 to -40 F degree conditions, click here.  (Note: If that last link doesn't work, go to the main blog and find the December 18th post called "Days On The Trail."

Other unexpected Tweets you will find on the NPS Twitter feed are all about making a New Orleans jazz gumbo or how an 1860 map depicted slavery with graphics much like a Google or GIS map could do today.

This is really rich and exciting stuff to a geek like me but somehow I feel it is only the tip of an emerging iceberg.  I feel now that we are on the cusp or many great and amazing things yet to come from the NPS and it's brethren.  I mean, gee, look at the staid ol' Forest Service posting up YouTube videos!  All these new and surprising developments remind me of that classic line of code sent by Samuel F.B. Morse on May 24, 1844, to open the first telegraph line between Baltimore and Washington, DC--"What hath God wrought?"

Who sez it don't snow here?

Been snowing real hard this morning.  Visibility not even a quarter mile.  Since Susun took this shot, the ground's all now white.  Good coverage and sticking well.  Maybe they will be right about the 1-3 inches of snow forecast for today here.

A look around our blogosphere

The Spudboater had a recent burst of blogging.  She made 5-6 new posts here in the past few days.  Susun and I are featured in some of them.  Check this great sentence she wrote: "Amongst this crowd of miscreants with qualities ranging from dubious, doubtful, double trouble, dumb and dumber, DINKS, donuts, doozies, dangerous, and downright silly is Johnny Montezuma..."  Click here to go to her blog.

The Goatherder messed with his Muse shortly after Christmas.  As usual, you will find whatever he has to say and share a real hoot to read.  Thanks, GH!  Click here to go to his blog.

As you know, we took a LOT of photos at The Goatherder's on Christmas Day.  GH even gives us credit for kind words for them in his blog post above.  Meanwhile, back in Ohio, our Virtual Dear Friend & LBR, Kirsty put together a a LOT of photos of a wonderful Christmas morning and dinner on her blog.  Kirsty's blog, as you know, is a never-ending source of inspiration of us.  Thank You, Kirsty, for going the extra mile in making your Christmas blog post so fun!  Click here to see it.

OK, meanwhile, we found a new blog to watch.  I think we found it when we were looking for the Thomas Nast drawing of Santa Claus.  The blog author is way into foodie stuff and that suits us just fine.  If you like some innovative new recipes once in awhile, we suspect you will find her blog a lot of fun.  Click here to go there.

One blog we follow is overdue for a fresh post.  It's DF& LBRs Earthly Musing blog.  His last post was December 17.  In Internet Time, that's 34 dog years ago.  The 12/17 post on hiking into the bottom of Meteor Crater is a fun read.  Click here to check it out.

We added a post to one of our long-dormant blogs.  We've lost count of the number of blogs we have.  We're guessing maybe it's getting close to 50 but we long ago stopped counting.   Obviously, we put most all of our time in here at Live Simple Care Much Headquarters. Once in awhile, something comes along that just wont really fit in here at all.  So, we scratch our head and wonder, "Where can this item go?"  Then we roam around our pile of dormant blogs and find a blog where the item might be appropriate.  With that said, we reactivated a blog this morning so we could add a post about a new video on the 1959 Hebgen Earthquake.  You can click here to find it.