Cap'n Bob & the Damsel

Retirement

Gas Under Two Bucks

Under $2Gas prices have been coming down all over the country since the summer season ended. The lowest prices here in our town are still over two per gallon, but when we were going down to the Northwest Valley today, we saw gas advertised for under $2.

Having recently made a commitment to a new gas consumption entity, we have been tracking gas prices. When we take delivery of the new beast after Thanksgiving weekend, we will need to top off the 80 gallon tank. Searching on Gas Buddy reveals a lot of prices near the delivery location to be just a shade over two bucks; hopefully, those will go down by the time we get there.

One of the business magazines (I don’t link to any Bloomberg sites because they are rabidly anti-second-amendment) speculates that gas prices could fall to $1.70 or below by Christmas. That will be good for us since we will be going to Palm Desert California one more time before then and gas will probably keep coming down in price.

20 Nov 2015 by Arizona Money and Business Retirement Wanderlust

Work Day

Ready to Transplant In the Ground

Now that the temperatures have cooled (only 90° today), we started some of the chores we have been putting off. My first order of business was to put Damsel’s Prickly Pear cactus in the ground in the rock and cactus garden. She grew this cactus in a pot from a single paddle over the last year or so and it is now ready to make it on it’s own. The two images above are of the cactus in the pot transported to the spot we picked for it and the cactus in the ground taken later in the day. Click either image to enlarge.

There was another prickly pear cactus we planted in the yard that needed to be moved since it was in close proximity to the new RV drive. This variety spreads like crazy and we didn’t want to chance it growing over the concrete. Since it was still small enough, I dug it up in one piece and moved it thirty feet or so over to the west property line fence.

Meanwhile, Damsel was doing her thing inside the house and on the patio; she mopped the tile floors and started draining the patio spa, the latter needing the water changed for the fall season when we heat the spa (it is at ambient temperature when we use it during the summer).

We decided to remove some other invasive cacti, also in close proximity of the RV drive. These were Beavertail cactus that we rescued from the back of the lot and that we no longer wanted by the drive not only for the proximity issue, but they had some sort of malady that was eating holes in the paddles. I took out one on each side of the RV drive and, with Damsel’s assistance, transported via wheelbarrow and put in the dumpster.

At this point, we called it a day for the yard work. Perhaps over the weekend we will refill the spa and get the heater started. We might also remove a couple more Beavertails that are close to the RV drive. Or we might postpone all of it until next week.

09 Oct 2015 by Arizona Home & Garden Retirement

Six Years Down the Road

six.png

It’s hard to believe that I have been retired for six years. October 01, 2009 was the first full day of official retirement from big aerospace, although excess leave and personal time off hours allowed us to take most of the last three months off. But on this day, six years ago, the first pension check from the second stint at the same company I had retired from a decade before. Sorta weird, but I get a separate check (directly deposited, of course) for each term of service.

I say that retirement has been damn good because we have had ample opportunity to relocate, build a new home, travel and just enjoy the leisure time. There have been a few pitfalls, but the outcome of those (so far) have not had a very negative effect on our retirement.

As we go forward with our life of leisure, we will be able to travel a little more often than we have in the first six years which is important now that our families have presented us with a new grandson and a great grandson. We will be visiting them and going to visit our other extended family from time to time. We envision an upgrade in our RV status in the future and will be organizing a vacation get-together with some of the family who also have that capability.

We eagerly anticipate the next six years of retirement and even more, God willing.

01 Oct 2015 by Aerospace Arizona Retirement Wanderlust

Sixth, Seventh and Eighth/Ninth Day Out Camping

Sixth day – Stockton, CA

Stockton, CA

Our excuse for not posting when we were in Stockton is that we were camped at Damsel’s sister’s place. Naturally, having not visited with family for several months demands that we sit and yack about whatever until after midnight. It was a good visit and the sister took good care of us, feeding us supper and breakfast the next morning.

Seventh Day – Bakersfield, CA

Bakersfield, CA

We were unable to post anything while staying at Bear Mountain RV south of Bakersfield. The WIFI connection was so piss-poor, that we were barely able to check mail. Trying uploads resulted in timeouts and extremely slow uploads, so we threw in the towel, set up the TV and watched some DVDs we brought along.

Eighth and Ninth Day- Palm Desert, CA

Palm Desert, CA

We are currently in Palm Desert this evening and will be here for a couple of days while visiting the other grandparents, the new baby grandson and his parents. Damsel set up the little charcoal grill and cooked up a delicious porterhouse steak, which we split and still had leftovers much to the puppies delight.

21 Sep 2015 by Panorama Retirement Wanderlust

Fifth Day Out Camping

Cloverdale Camping

This evening, we are camped at the Cloverdale (CA) KOA, about forty miles north of Santa Rosa, CA, about seven miles up in the hills east of US 101. It is a nice place once you get here, but the road is narrow and twisty, not exactly fun pulling a trailer behind the truck. Plus we get to leave the same way. Oh, well.

We crossed the Sierra Nevada Mountains and followed I-80 most of the way across the state. I swear, the next trip I plan will exclude traveling through major urban areas. The traffic and the road construction in Sacramento was terrible. Traffic in the North San Francisco Bay area had its level of suckage, too. We came through this same part of the Bay Area a year ago and the traffic hasn’t improved. Despite those drawbacks, camping in wine country is scenic, quiet and restful.

Tomorrow night, we will be in Stockton camping in Damsel’s sister’s driveway. But, before that, we’re stopping in Santa Rosa for our great grandson’s first birthday party. It should be an interesting day.

18 Sep 2015 by California Panorama Retirement Wanderlust

Fourth Day Out Camping

Gold Ranch RV Verdi NV

We’re in Gold Ranch RV Resort located a few miles west of Reno, NV, along I-80. The park is literally just on the Nevada side of the border with K-Stan. I took this picture of our rig in the park and the border was only a few yards behind me. I know this because of Google Maps.

Our trip today took us from Hawthorne, NV past Walker Lake and on up through several small towns, farmland, Fallon, NV and on into Reno. We haven’t been this way in quite a while and both of us were astonished at the urban growth of Fallon. It was just a crossroads the last time with a Naval Air Station being the only Major item. Now, it’s traffic signals, restaurants, Walmart and a bunch of stuff along the main drag for several miles.

We stopped in Reno so Damsel could do a little shopping at Walmart for provisions and also for some warmer clothing. We desert dwellers have thin blood, I guess, and the forecast for the low temperature here tonight is 37°. Not that we don’t get those temperatures too, but that’s not for a few months when it is actually winter. Hell, we haven’t even hit the Autumnal Equinox yet!

Tomorrow is a fairly long drive for us and some of it is through metro Sacramento and outlying Bay Area ‘burbs. We’re eager to visit the granddaughters and great grandson, but we’re not anxious to see all that urban traffic.

17 Sep 2015 by Retirement Wanderlust

Third Day Out Camping

Whiskey Flats RV Park

We’re in Hawthorne, NV, tonight relaxing after a pretty long drive from Pahrump, through Death Valley, thence via US 95. We stopped at Scotty’s Castle in Death Valley to admire the architecture and get some gifts/souvenirs. After climbing out of the valley and back into Nevada, we got on the scenic highway through Nevada mountain country and the rustic towns of Goldfield, Tonopah and eventually, Hawthorne. The drive was long, but no traffic or weather complaints, thank the Lord.

We packed for fall weather, but the forecast for the next couple of nights are for brisk lows in the 40’s tonight and maybe even the 30’s tomorrow night in the eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada mountains. Damsel assures me that there are warm clothes in the trailer just in case we need to bundle up.

We’re headed to Reno tomorrow, to do some shopping and sightseeing and then on to the next campground in the high country west of there just on the Nevada California border. No sense going into the K-stan any sooner than necessary.

16 Sep 2015 by Retirement Wanderlust

Categories

Archives