New Red Fender

Posted by mammal on September 1st, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Bertha, the big truck, is getting her new fender and tailgate painted red to match.
I will have pics tomorrow, I’m at school right now waiting for a class to start. I got some good pics of him spraying the primer on in the back yard. One tip, always put some thinner in the primer when it is a hundred degrees and dry, like today in Phoenix. He had to clean everything in the middle ’cause it gobbed up too soon.
I am just about packed for my VACATION to the Bahama’s!!!! I decided to take some of my Beading Tools and wire twisting tools so I can twist up some vacation necklaces from shells off the beach. I think my aunt and cousin will like that.
Could I get any more excited? Doubtful.

Vacation Excitement

Posted by mammal on August 30th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Now I am getting really excited about the Bahama vacation! In just four days I will be winging my way east and off the continent. I have not been off this continent in my life, unless Dutch Harbor/Unalaska counts, and it probably does.
I was out in the Aleutians for several years and now I get to go the extreme opposite direction. Kind of balances things out.

good friends

Posted by mammal on August 30th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Good friends are hard to find.
Somehow I am in the middle of several really good friendships here in Phoenix. One of my good friends has a birthday in a couple of days, I would like to get her loose diamonds or something else valuable, but due to student funding concerns (I’m broke) I am not able to do that.
What I think I will do is make a delicious cake in one of my bread baking pans from last term’s ceramics class and give her the whole thing. Cake and gift.
Gwen, you’re not going to read this before then and spoil the surprise, are you?

Summer’s Over

Posted by mammal on August 29th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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At least it feels like summer’s over at the moment. We had a squall of rain yesterday and some sun-blocking clouds today, so it never even got above 100 degrees. Balmy by Phoenix standards.
School is a hoot, though, whatever the temperature. Taking the full load of twelve credits at a school is one way to get the information you seek, but Forex training webinars is just another method of self-training.
I just prefer the normal school approach because of easier funding. It sure is a lot of work, though, maintaining grades and getting the grants.

Sorry

Posted by mammal on August 28th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Sorry for the pic you are about to see. I couldn’t help posting it, but I know the fat factor makes it hard to look at. I know I am a good candidate for apidexin and the only reason I posted it is because it makes me look even less fat than I really am. The curve of the truck window is the reason, I think.
But I am now really dieting, though I should, I am kinda militant about judging my fat, I judge myself harshly enough to listen to other people’s criticism.
So take that!

School

Posted by mammal on August 28th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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School is great this term, I have really good classes and even though I am carrying 12 credits it seems like a light load and my schedule is easy.
I am going to miss long weekends in Ajo once the weather gets good, but I still have three days off in a row each week, so that will have to suffice.

so here is a shot of me in the side window of the truck. We were out walking the dogs and I had a do-rag on to catch the sweat… because it was HOT.
It will get progressively cooler now for a few months, so we can breathe easier.

University

Posted by mammal on August 28th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Universities are starting to contact me! This is so exciting, it looks like my hard work and Honors classes is going to pay off.
San Diego State U. has contacted me and I am now finding out from them how much money they can help me come up with in case I decide to go there. I love the weather there! It gets cool enough in the winter to need an electric fireplace , but not so cold that it snows. I love the summers.
I am not ready to move on to a university yet, but it is nice to know that I will have choices.

Retirement, It’s a Hoot

Posted by mammal on August 27th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Since my spouse retired the end of June he has been catching up on vehicle maintenance and house maintenance. Seems like we got real lucky that the cars didn’t need so much work until the time he retired. My clutch went out, for one problem. He had time to fix it.
We are not missing shopping for mens ties, although he did wear one last week in California at his nephew’s fancy wedding. He got to visit with both his brothers in one geographic location for the first time in years … maybe decades. What fun.

Changes in the Air

Posted by mammal on August 26th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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My honey and I are considering whether or not we should move to Ajo and rent the Phoenix house in January.  It would be a big step for us, but would relieve us of the total expense of mortgage and utilities on this house, and the Ajo house is paid for.

I would have to take at least six credits online to keep from having to make payments on my student loan and to keep my funding simple and to keep my hand in as far as school goes.

So I have been looking into Accredited Online Schools.  There are web sites all over with real good information.

I have a neighbor here in Phoenix that takes her accounting classes online, so I could do that, I need more math, and accounting works for that.

It would be a big change, moving to Ajo full time.

Solar Arizona

Posted by mammal on August 25th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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We are staying home this week. We have too much to do here, him in the garage and for myself, the first week of school.
We are going to Home Depot today to look at flooring for when we go next time.
The living room looks so together we are planning where to put the couch and where the Christmas tree is going to be. We might even get some new led christmas lights, a friend of ours in Ajo is contracted to install solar powered LED lights in the town square, and I hope this sets his new solar business on fire!! What a good concept, solar in Arizona. The sun shines every day and LED takes so little energy. I’m stoked to watch the progress.

1448

Posted by mammal on August 25th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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We are staying home this week. We have too much to do here, him in the garage and for myself, the first week of school.
We are going to Home Depot today to look at flooring for when we go next time.
The living room looks so together we are planning where to put the couch and where the Christmas tree is going to be. We might even get some new led christmas lights, a friend of ours in Ajo is contracted to install solar powered LED lights in the town square, and I hope this sets his new solar business on fire!! What a good concept, solar in Arizona. The sun shines every day and LED takes so little energy. I’m stoked to watch the progress.

Motorcycle Racing

Posted by mammal on August 24th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Dear Heart is gearing up for another race. He needs to get his health insurance first, looking around online, like at bcbsnc for instance. He needs it to race, the tracks won’t let a rider race unless he has proof of insurance.
But I have no doubt he will get it all in order before the race. He’s out in the garage tinkering right now.
He’s also re-building a new bike for sale. It’s so great that he has time for it now that he’s retired. I’m so happy to have him around that I don’t even mind when he hogs the computer all day. Although I am thinking about setting up another computer somewhere in the house so we have two.

My New Mud

Posted by mammal on August 24th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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I talked to my ceramics teacher last night while I was wandering around on break (math class), and told him about the new mud I got from my friend who has Sue’s Trading Post in Ajo. She got the clay from some Indians who make pots for her shop. He was curious, so I will lug buckets of that in today.
I love ceramics, you need good headphones, so go to the headphone reviews and get a set, put on your tunes and work for hours in the mud.
I am really looking forward to that. I did a few hand-built things this summer, mostly on Monkey Fridays with Mike, my ceramics buddy, but there’s nothing like working for hours in a well-equipped studio.
School is great!

First Day of School part V

Posted by mammal on August 24th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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This is my fifth term at PVCC, a two-year college. I know I’m slow, but I’m thorough.
Last year I did a bunch of two hundred level classes, this term I am back on the one hundred level classes. I have English Composition 101, which is my honors class and looks to be a real good thing for me. You know I love to write, so the writing (over 3,000 words) is no problem, and what I will learn is the MLA style and there are some other technical styles that I don’t even know the names of that I will learn this term. This class will really help me at the University level.
The other solid I have is a five credit Math Anxiety class. It is actually a remedial math class, 093 is the number, not even a one hundred. I need this because I failed so spectacularly last term with the same class taught by a very fast and confusing teacher, Terry Grygiel. Don’t EVER take a class from him. I got out on the last day I could without losing grades, I lost money because I thought I could do it, but I couldn’t. He signed my withdrawal form and said he didn’t understand, I was getting the second highest grade in the class, a “C” and that should make me proud, but I informed him that I am an Honors student, with money tied up in the good grades, and if I was getting a “C” then I didn’t think I was really ‘getting’ it. I was spending hours each day in the math tutoring room and still not understanding. But this math anxiety class looks like it is good, and I had friends take it who raved about how good it is. I really need to understand the math before I can continue.
Today I have Ceramics … WOO HOO!

Ajo This Time, Hot in August

Posted by mammal on August 22nd, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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We may camping with only a microwave, fry pan and the outdoor grill to cook on, but we won’t be savages. Roasted cumin is heavenly in the cowboy beans I made for dinner. Roast the whole seeds until they are dark and then grind them. Yum!

His New Floor

Posted by mammal on August 22nd, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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The Ajo house got a new bathroom floor this trip, and the living room got its floor prepped for when we find the right flooring.

We had a couple of ‘pool party’ dinners, where we put the patio table legs in the dog water pool and eat dinner with our feet in the cool water.
I need to get some outdoor cushions for the chairs to make it complete.
It’s much cooler outside at sunset than it is inside. Then the swamp cooler catches up and the nights are pretty comfortable in the bedroom. But having dinner on the front patio in the breeze is our evening ritual in Ajo.

Artwork for Living

Posted by mammal on August 18th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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A good friend of mine covered a briefcase with a collage. This lady is one of the best collage artists I have ever seen, and pretty darn outstanding in all areas of artistic expression. Her field is Graphic Design, but she’s not the type of person who will limit herself.
She has a good grasp on how to save briefcases. Another alternative to buying new.

I really have fun with this particular friend, and really enjoy staying in touch.
Liz, thinkin’ of you today, girl! Thanks for the pics.

Off my Diet

Posted by mammal on August 15th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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I have been a bachelor for two and a half days now, and have been eating personal favorite foods rather than organized meals at regular intervals; for the last two days I have been eating pumpkin pancakes, as a ‘for instance’. Yum Yum. But try getting anyone else (my sweetie) to eat them.
These pancakes turned out a little heavy for a couple of reasons.
*heavy wheat flour with added bran
*a whole package of organic pumpkin (or was it squash?) soup — anyway, the whole thing minus one cup. (It was tasty.)
*extra raisins
Now that’s a pancake!
I have another carton of that soup, so maybe I will find a recipe and follow that. … if all else fails, find the instructions. If the pancake is fluffy enough, he’ll eat it. Me, I could care less about fluffy, I like the bran and the peanut butter. And the raisins.
My lambie-pie is back tonight, so I will fry an eggplant and cook some spaghetti, he likes that. Maybe wait to try squash/pumpkin pancakes next week in Ajo, I’ll be hungry for them again by then.

Kitchen Sink

Posted by mammal on August 12th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Well, I got to give the new kitchen sink a good workout this time. I was so nice to have a basic kitchen counter top and dish washing area. Then we got the floor down! What a wonderful thing!

And now we have a new floor in the kitchen and pantry and utility room. It is the Pergola type flooring that snaps together. This one looks like tile and feels so good on bare feet. Or rather bare feet feel so good on it.

Dupont Flooring

Posted by mammal on August 9th, 2010 filed in Ajo
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My new kitchen floor is going in today! I am so excited. It’s the kind you click in, the same stuff we used in the bedroom, but this one looks like tile. It is so luxurious to my bare feet.
As soon as I get back to Phoenix, where the cord to my camera is, I will have pictures.
This Dupont flooring is really great. Now with my new sink, Home Depot countertop, and new beautiful tall faucet, I have a real kitchn.
Next time we come down I hope we have a fridge.

Ajo, Again

Posted by mammal on August 6th, 2010 filed in Ajo
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The kitchen is at the point where I am actually looking forward to working on it. The new sink works perfectly and is at just the right height. It also looks beautiful!
Now for the floor……
This will be a short trip, only five days, but we should make some significant headway on the kitchen. With school coming and various trips we have scheduled, this might be the last long visit for a few months.
We’re putting down a pergola-type floor that looks like 12″ tile. It should be nice to the bare feet, I’ll let you know. The blond “wood” we have in the bedroom is nice to barefoot on, and it’s basically the same stuff.
So we’re leaving today with our extra dog, BoydLur, whom we are dog-sitting so I have to pack enough home-cooked dog food for five days of seven dogs (counting Star). It’s to the point where I am thinking of getting them their own ice chest.

Dog Sitting Fun

Posted by mammal on August 2nd, 2010 filed in Ajo
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We had Star for a week, and then we spent a week down in Ajo, where Star lives, and got to see her every day. So now with only five dogs it seems quiet around here.

We are gearing up for a week-long visit from BoydLur, our little blue cattle dog pup. One of Reddy’s litter mates. We are probably going to spend most of the time in Ajo, but we’ll see.

Sewer Construction

Posted by mammal on August 1st, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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Our end of Ajo is all dug up. This is right outside our driveway, Dear One and Neighbor discussing the parking situation.

They start around 5:00 or 5:30, which makes it about the time Reddy stirs us around. That’s his summer hours; daylight driven. Reddy likes to get us up at daybreak, hoping we’ll play with him, or take him for a walk, or even just give him a little snuggle and pet.
So in Ajo, even though the coolest time for sleep-related activities is around that same time, the construction and Reddy together pull us out of bed for an early dog walk. It’s also the only time to get out in the summer desert.
We saw centi- or milli- pedes this time, they appeared to be feeding on the lichen, which bloom in the damp weather.
It was overcast all week but we only got moisture in town once, really. I heard that we missed a belly-washer here in Phoenix.

Fairies

Posted by mammal on July 26th, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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My neighbor invited me to her birthday party Saturday. It was a fairy themed costume affair. What a blast! We had a lot of fun and I got some great pics. Click on the link here to see the pics.
http://s815.photobucket.com/albums/zz71/shellysha/AvasFairyParty/
It was one of the funnest parties ever.
Another neighbor was supposed to have his birthday party later Saturday evening, but his wife got sick so they postponed. They just got married, too, so we’ll have double the reason to party once she gets back on her feet.

Finally Healthy

Posted by mammal on July 21st, 2010 filed in Uncategorized
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I feel so good today! It’s like it stopped raining or something … no, actually, since we’re in Phoenix with skies full of threatening humidity-packing, heat-trapping thunderheads, it’s more like it finally started to rain.
I popped up at five o’clock just because I couldn’t lie in bed any longer. I have been spending more time in bed than out for three days, and couldn’t wait to get out.
Then the house smelled closed up and I had to clean the corners. The house is sweet now and I feel so healthy! I could give prototype 37c reviews all day long!
We are going to see a movie this evening, and the world is fine!