Winter Sunshine

Winter Sunshine
Winter Sunshine in the Desert

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

12-29-2015 At Least It’s Never Boring

Current Location: Old Fort Road Klamath Falls OR at 22 Degrees F and Overcast

Horses in the yard (1 of 7)

Horses from down the road escaped and decided our yard might be nice.

We woke up to a day with no new snow, nice for a change.  Mo plowed the drive six times in the last 7 days.  Melody and Axel have cars that aren’t exactly good on the steep and often slippery hill just outside the driveway on the short three mile drive to town.  Once up and down the hill, all is good, but for simplicity I have Melody use our pickup to drive Axel to work.  This morning, however, the road was blocked by 7 furry beings, all wandering around the driveway looking for something good to eat.Horses in the yard (2 of 7)

Mattie thought the big critters in the yard looked really exciting.  See that little ridge on her back.  It is important to protect us from any possible evil, and she barked to be sure those horses knew they shouldn’t come in the house.

Horses in the yard (4 of 7)The neighbor showed up fairly quickly as we were trying to decide what to do and blocked the road so they couldn’t escape.  After some apples and some conversation, they put a rope on the lead horse while other trucks blocked the road so they could lead the small herd back home.  All’s well that ends well.Horses in the yard (7 of 7)

The snow has been here since Thanksgiving, and in the last week or so it just keeps getting deeper.  Icicles provide entertainment as well, like corn on a hot summer day, you can almost hear them growing. 

snow and icicles on Old Fort Road (14 of 16)Many days begin with Mo plowing and me shoveling before we come back inside and settle in for coffee and breakfast. 

snow and icicles on Old Fort Road (1 of 16)snow and icicles on Old Fort Road (10 of 16)For the first time in a very long time, our calendar is almost empty, with nothing really big showing up until we leave for Southern California mid-month. 

I am cleaning up the card making clutter upstairs, and today will get back to my quilting project.  New Year’s Eve will be spent right here at home.  Mo and I have even returned to cards and dominoes in the late afternoons before supper.  After living life at an incredible pace for the past several months, even being a little bit bored is wonderful, and not the least bit boring!

Friday, December 25, 2015

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Apartment A (10 of 19)

Christmas in the Klamath Basin with snow on the ground, highs in the 20’s, and lows in the single digits. 

May you all have a beautiful Christmas Day filled with the love of family and friends.

Tuesday, December 22, 2015

12-18-2015 A Wild Ride to California

Current Location: Back on Old Fort Road in Klamath Falls  and it is snowing

Last fall, when lifetime friend Maryruth asked Mo and I if we would come to Maryruth’s mother’s birthday party, I felt a bit of hesitation.  The party was scheduled for the 19th of December, way too close to Christmas.  But it was Elsie’s 90th birthday, and the celebration was drawing friends and relatives from far and wide.  I really couldn’t miss it.

south roward the SiskiyousOf course, at this time of year, in this part of Oregon, there is no telling what kind of weather we might encounter, so we took our chances and decided to skip making reservations at the Feather Falls Casino KOA.  We like the campground, just minutes from Maryruth’s home, with all the amenities we could want.  Somehow I wasn’t too worried about the park being filled up on the weekend before Christmas.

We now are living in Klamath Falls, 45 minutes east of our former home in Rocky Point, adding that time and mileage to the trip over the mountain to Grants Pass to the west.  The MoHo was waiting all cozy in her big shed, the baby Tracker is already over there, so we just needed to fit everything required for a couple of days in Rocky Point as we travel west, a couple of days in Grants Pass, to load up, do a few small chores, and get ready to go, and a couple of days in California.

I can’t begin to explain how crazy making it is for me to try to think of food for each stop on the way, for clothes appropriate for the various weather conditions we will be encountering, and deciding just what I want to wear to the big Saturday night party.  The truck was filled to the brim with sweats, jeans, some slinky dress up’s, way too many shoes, working clothes, snow boots and coats, lots of hats and gloves, and of course all the gear for the dog.

Mattie is a bit like having a kid.  We have her crate and bedding, her round bed for non sleeping comfort, another blankie since she gets cold so easily, and a bag of “doggie stuff”, which includes her shampoo, her favorite toys, treats, leash, a sweater, and a raincoat.  As I read this, I am beginning to think we are really eccentric parents.  That is a lot of stuff for a very small dog!

Snow at Rocky Point (7 of 17)When we arrived in Rocky Point, all was well.  When I found out that the power was off for many hours, I was really glad that Mo and I had returned home to the apartments for a couple of days in between trips.  This time the power was on and all was well. 

The next morning we headed for Grants Pass, driving over High Lakes Pass in some snowy conditions, but nothing unmanageable.  The weather predictions were not encouraging, however.  Winter weather warnings were going off every hour for extreme weather impacting most of Southern Oregon and especially the passes, including the route south on I-5 over the Siskiyous.

On to I-5 toward Rogue RiverWe waited till Friday morning to make the actual decision, waking up to heavy pouring rain, and reports of temperatures above freezing at Siskiyou Summit.  We hoped we could get over the mountain before the snow levels dropped.  Neither of us have any desire to chain up the MoHo.

South toward YrekaSure enough, the snow at the first summit was just flurries and the temps were above freezing, so no black ice.  Whew.  A nice long stretch to Weed and then once again the snow started blowing.  As we passed the turnoff to Mt Shasta City and McCloud, we breathed a sigh of relief. 

sluchs on the windshieldThat sigh was a bit premature I guess.  It snowed all the way to the Pit River Bridge just north of Redding and much below the 3,000 foot elevation snow prediction.  It was wet slushy snow, but not so much that it made driving impossible, and no chains were required.  Thank goodness.

Once past Redding, the snow turned to hard pourning rain, not much easier than snow for driving, and there wasn’t a bit of letup till we got to Oroville. 

KOA at Feather Falls site 38Finally settled into our campsite at the only KOA we have ever really liked, we relaxed, knowing that we didn’t really have to think about the drive home for a couple of days.  We could just relax and enjoy the party.

01 party preparations (6 of 14)Maryruth and her sisters held the party at a lovely small local winery in Oroville, Purple LIne Winery.  The owners are good friends of another of Elsie’s daughters and were happy to share their lovely venue with the 100 or so guests who arrived on Saturday afternoon to celebrate.

02 Elsies party (7 of 29)I have known Maryruth for 53 years, and of course have known her mother for that long as well.  Elsie was a part of my extended family and I am so glad that Mo and I were able to be there to honor her.  She was genuninely happy with all the attention, something that Maryruth had been a bit worried about.  Today when I talked to Maryruth, she said the party was wonderful for her mom, that it elevated her mood and lifted the bit of depression she had been dealing with because of ongoing tiresome health issues.  Elsie is a trooper, has always been a strong and incredible woman, and some of the issues of aging are extremely frustrating for her, as they would be for anyone.01 party preparations (7 of 14)

Mo and I managed to get a bit of time to enjoy the casino, which is really quite nice.  I even won enough money to pay for breakfast the next morning and our wine at the party.  We don’t play the slots all the often, but it seems lately that I have been pretty lucky when we do.  Lucky as in tens of dollars, not thousands of dollars.  LOL  I never play big enough to win that big.

After the casino Sunday Brunch with Maryruth and Gerald, we once again tackled the long drive home over the passes.  By the time we left, the rains had started up once again and after getting gas in Chico for 2.15 per gallon at Costco, we drove 99 to the interstate and watched the road cams, the weather warning signs, and listened to 1610 AM radio for chain updates.

Radar for our tripThe predictions were rather scary, and chains were required earlier in the day over the Siskiyous.  We pressed on, hoping that the warm temperatures and rising elevation of the snows would stay with us till we reached Grants Pass. 

IMG_1352Again, the snow was wet and slushy, the chain requirement for the Siskiyou Summit was lifted just before we reached that point and by the time we landed in Grants Pass it was just raining.

Neither one of us was really concerned about the drive from Grants Pass back home to Klamath Falls via Rocky Point.  We have driven High Lakes Pass for dozens of years, and the Dakota has 4 wheel drive.  We packed all our stuff back into the pickup once again, put the MoHo to bed, and headed back up the mountain.

UhOh!  That drive took us both by surprise!  There was a LOT of snow on the side of the road from the previous storms, and yet yesterday the temperatures were rising.  We had deep slush and ice on packed snow at the top of the pass, and neither of us could remember a transit as hairy as this one for a long time. 

anitas van in our roadIn Rocky Point, the road that Mo usually plows, was unplowed.  The neighbors who live farther up the road than we do don’t have a plow and evidently couldn’t get anyone out there.  We drove up as far as we could and then walked through the deep snow to get to the house.  Don’t laugh.  I have three houses and two vacuum cleaners.  I refuse to buy a third vacuum, and I had taken the main vacuum from Old Fort Road to Rocky Point.  I needed that vacuum.  I refuse to live through Christmas at home without a vacuum!  Ha! 

Back on the road to Klamath Falls, the snows were deeper than we have seen in years.  And that snow just keeps coming.  Sometimes it gets a bit warmer and rains on the snow, and then it dumps some more of the white stuff.  Mo has a lot less to plow here at the apartments, but this thick wet stuff is keeping her busy.

Daytime Christmas on Old Fort Road (2 of 8)I am glad to be home, glad to have a few days at least to make cookies and fudge, get ready for Christmas dinner with the family members that are close, and play in my craft apartment making cards.  Christmas will come so quickly, and it seems that we didn’t have a lot of time to do some of the small town Christmas things that I like to do, but with the really yukky weather, I really have no desire to brave the storms to try to go look at Christmas lights.  I think I’ll just enjoy my own.

The Soltice has come, the days are getting longer, Christmas is here!!

Thursday, December 17, 2015

Update: OLW working just fine here

Current Location: The Cottage in Grants Pass Raining and 45 degrees

At the moment, Mo is outside washing the MoHo.  Yes, washing it in the rain.  I am pretty sure she is thinking that she needed to get the salty residues removed that are left over from our last trip to the coast.  It was raining back then as well, and we put her away without our usual cleanup.  After 9 years on the road, the MoHo still looks shiny as new.  Good paint and good care make a difference.

More than a week ago, the snows hit hard all over Southern Oregon, even here in the Rogue Valley.  When we arrived at the cottage yesterday, our neighbor told us that there was more than six inches of heavy wet snow dumped on Grants Pass, and he was without power for 48 hours after a big old oak fell on his power lines.  We were lucky.  Mo had the trees trimmed last month and we didn’t have a lot of debris down to contend with.  According to the neighbor, he watched our Christmas lights go on and off with the timer with considerable envy. Everything here was just fine and the house was nice and cozy since we left the gas heat on 55 degrees.  Just enough.

One day of snow at the apartments

Since the first snow fell at the apartments, we enjoyed home time, cozied up with the fire and actually relaxing a bit.  I worked on homemade Christmas cards with daughter Melody up in Apartment B (my crafting and quilting apartment) and managed to get a decent number of Christmas lights up to make everything cheery. Mo taught Jacob (one of the tenants rooming with grandchild Axel) how to run the plow, so that when we are away, the driveway and parking lot will stay clear.

It was a very cold week, and quite delightful. We decided to return to Rocky Point to spend a few days working on painting touchups and other little chores before our planned quickie trip to California.  While we were there, the big snows hit, including the one that dumped on the Rogue Valley, and Mo and I shoveled the driveway by hand.  With the plow at the apartments, we relied on the 4 wheel drive in the pickup to get us up and down the road leading to our house.  It worked.  We didn’t get snowed in, and even managed to get the trailer hooked up for the trip to Grants Pass to pick up the motorhome.  Mo wanted her big compressor in the RV shed with the MoHo.  Gotta keep those tires up!

My favorite view on Highway 140 between Klamath Falls and Rocky Point

Driving from the brilliant sunny skies of the east side of the Cascades to the gray, rainy skies of the Rogue Valley was a treat.  For the first time in a few years, crossing the High Lakes Pass was a bit of a challenge.  Not too much, just a bit. Seems as though the wet, heavy snows were too much for the big trees on the pass and one had fallen across the road.  Traffic backed up for awhile before some logger with a chain saw managed to clear the road.

Slow going over the High Lakes pass between Rocky Point and Medford/Grants Pass

Tomorrow we are heading to California.  Friend Maryruth’s mother is celebrating her 90th birthday and Maryruth is putting on a very big party.  The MoHo is ready and waiting, and we are hoping that the weather continues to be only rain as we will be traveling south on I-5 over the Siskiyous in the morning.  We do NOT want to chain up the MoHo, in fact the main reason we bought property in Grants Pass was to be able to travel north or south in the wintertime without having to get out of the snowy Klamath Basin.  Of course it snows in this part of Oregon, but thank goodness, not nearly as often or as long, and hopefully not tomorrow.

Again, mid January, we will again travel south.  Desert Hot Springs is calling, as it does each winter.  I called to find out what kind of rules Catalina Spa and RV Resort might have this year.  It changes every year it seems, ranging from a maximum of 2 nights with our Passport America card, to no discount nights unless you sit through the long and boring sales pitch.  Imagine my surprise when they said, “No problem.  You can stay for 30 days and half price (22.50 per night) with your PA card, leave for two weeks and come back again if you like.”

Catalina spa_181

My favorite pool at Catalina Spa and RV Resort.  95 Degrees F of heaven 24 hours a day.

What a treat?!  If I hadn’t already made reservations for Catalina State Park near Tucson I would have reserved more than the 4 nights we had time for on this round.  I love that pool.  Love it.  I am excited about three weeks in the south this winter and hoping that El Nino doesn’t send us any big southwest surprises, but we will be ready for whatever comes.

Today I raked leaves on green grass in the rain.  A far cry from shoveling snow in Rocky Point and Klamath Falls. 

On another note, I am letting this particular post be a test.  I am writing it with LiveWriter…planning to pop it over into the html tab of blogger after in insert the photos from SmugMug links and see how it does.  Erin sent me the instructions, so we will see how it goes.  Then, just for fun, I am going to try to build the same post from Blogger.  Just to see the difference, if any.  Then, at last, I will write the same post over on WordPress, using their fancy smancy editor, and see how the whole thing looks.l

This was a great plan when I started this day, and now it is after 5pm and I am nowhere near finished.  I am working on my laptop, the one I use for traveling.  I upgraded it to Windows 10 Pro, and decided to just wipe the thing clean and start fresh.  So far so good, but as I am beginning the blog, I realize that I have yet to install Lightroom and Picasa.  That done I start again, but ohoh…some of the photos are on my iphone and ipad…and what do you know, I haven’t downloaded and installed iTunes yet.  Ok…that done and now I can finally get around to finishing this post! 

Here we go.

 

 

Posted with LiveWriter!

Current Location: The Cottage in Grants Pass Raining and 45 degrees

At the moment, Mo is outside washing the MoHo.  Yes, washing it in the rain.  I am pretty sure she is thinking that she needed to get the salty residues removed that are left over from our last trip to the coast.  It was raining back then as well, and we put her away without our usual cleanup.  After 9 years on the road, the MoHo still looks shiny as new.  Good paint and good care make a difference.

More than a week ago, the snows hit hard all over Southern Oregon, even here in the Rogue Valley.  When we arrived at the cottage yesterday, our neighbor told us that there was more than six inches of heavy wet snow dumped on Grants Pass, and he was without power for 48 hours after a big old oak fell on his power lines.  We were lucky.  Mo had the trees trimmed last month and we didn’t have a lot of debris down to contend with.  According to the neighbor, he watched our Christmas lights go on and off with the timer with considerable envy. Everything here was just fine and the house was nice and cozy since we left the gas heat on 55 degrees.  Just enough.

Since the first snow fell at the apartments, we enjoyed home time, cozied up with the fire and actually relaxing a bit.  I worked on homemade Christmas cards with daughter Melody up in Apartment B (my crafting and quilting apartment) and managed to get a decent number of Christmas lights up to make everything cheery. Mo taught Jacob (one of the tenants rooming with grandchild Axel) how to run the plow, so that when we are away, the driveway and parking lot will stay clear.

It was a very cold week, and quite delightful. We decided to return to Rocky Point to spend a few days working on painting touchups and other little chores before our planned quickie trip to California.  While we were there, the big snows hit, including the one that dumped on the Rogue Valley, and Mo and I shoveled the driveway by hand.  With the plow at the apartments, we relied on the 4 wheel drive in the pickup to get us up and down the road leading to our house.  It worked.  We didn’t get snowed in, and even managed to get the trailer hooked up for the trip to Grants Pass to pick up the motorhome.  Mo wanted her big compressor in the RV shed with the MoHo.  Gotta keep those tires up!

Driving from the brilliant sunny skies of the east side of the Cascades to the gray, rainy skies of the Rogue Valley was a treat.  For the first time in a few years, crossing the High Lakes Pass was a bit of a challenge.  Not too much, just a bit. Seems as though the wet, heavy snows were too much for the big trees on the pass and one had fallen across the road.  Traffic backed up for awhile before some logger with a chain saw managed to clear the road.

Tomorrow we are heading to California.  Friend Maryruth’s mother is celebrating her 90th birthday and Maryruth is putting on a very big party.  The MoHo is ready and waiting, and we are hoping that the weather continues to be only rain as we will be traveling south on I-5 over the Siskiyous in the morning.  We do NOT want to chain up the MoHo, in fact the main reason we bought property in Grants Pass was to be able to travel north or south in the wintertime without having to get out of the snowy Klamath Basin.  Of course it snows in this part of Oregon, but thank goodness, not nearly as often or as long, and hopefully not tomorrow.

Again, mid January, we will again travel south.  Desert Hot Springs is calling, as it does each winter.  I called to find out what kind of rules Catalina Spa and RV Resort might have this year.  It changes every year it seems, ranging from a maximum of 2 nights with our Passport America card, to no discount nights unless you sit through the long and boring sales pitch.  Imagine my surprise when they said, “No problem.  You can stay for 30 days and half price (22.50 per night) with your PA card, leave for two weeks and come back again if you like.”

What a treat?!  If I hadn’t already made reservations for Catalina State Park near Tucson I would have reserved more than the 4 nights we had time for on this round.  I love that pool.  Love it.  I am excited about three weeks in the south this winter and hoping that El Nino doesn’t send us any big southwest surprises, but we will be ready for whatever comes.

Today I raked leaves on green grass in the rain.  A far cry from shoveling snow in Rocky Point and Klamath Falls. 

On another note, I am letting this particular post be a test.  I am writing it with LiveWriter…planning to pop it over into the html tab of blogger after in insert the photos from SmugMug links and see how it does.  Erin sent me the instructions, so we will see how it goes.  Then, just for fun, I am going to try to build the same post from Blogger.  Just to see the difference, if any.  Then, at last, I will write the same post over on WordPress, using their fancy smancy editor, and see how the whole thing looks.l

This was a great plan when I started this day, and now it is after 5pm and I am nowhere near finished.  I am working on my laptop, the one I use for traveling.  I upgraded it to Windows 10 Pro, and decided to just wipe the thing clean and start fresh.  So far so good, but as I am beginning the blog, I realize that I have yet to install Lightroom and Picasa.  That done I start again, but ohoh…some of the photos are on my iphone and ipad…and what do you know, I haven’t downloaded and installed iTunes yet.  Ok…that done and now I can finally get around to finishing this post! 

Here we go.

 

 

Saturday, December 12, 2015

Playing with WordPress

Like so many lovers of LiveWriter, I am reduced to using the blogger platform for the time being.  I have no clue how to make it "pretty".  Frustrating, since pretty is one of the reasons I like to blog. Erin taught me how to use the HTML thing from LiveWriter, but oh what a slow process, at least for me.

I thought I would try WordPress.  Just a start, and I have no clue how to notify my followers and readers of the move, but here it is.  Comments would be greatly appreciated.  Is it tolerable?

For me it is extremely frustrating that I cannot seem to change my background or text colors without paying 99 bucks a year, just for a theme I enjoy looking at.  I imported from blogger, so everything is there, at least I think so.  There is a very strange widget thingy in the upper left corner that I cannot seem to find to get rid of or edit, probably part of the fancy theme I am using, who knows.  It is Greek to me so far.

try it here

The MoHo and Other Traveling Tales on Wordpress
And here is an update. Now the comments don't go with the blog. But they are still on the old one here, so I probably won't take it down even if I use Wordpress in the future.

Monday, November 30, 2015

October and November

Current Location: Old Fort Road, Klamath Falls, Oregon, at 9 degrees F and cloudy.

1-11-03-2015 Hiking to the TowerOur new digs: closeup on the upper right is a view of the apartments from the tower trail.

I am sitting at the same desk as usual, but the view outside my window has changed.  Instead of the dark forest I am looking at open sky and the back side of Plum Hill in Klamath Falls. Life has finally shifted a bit, and Mo and I are now spending most of our time at our cozy apartment only 3 miles from town.  Yes, we still have the house at Rocky Point, decorated for Christmas, on the outside at least, and still comfortable for Rocky Point stays now and then.

Putting up the decorations (2 of 10) We also have our little cottage in Grants Pass, where we also spend time, working on the property, enjoying the little cottage and the green grass that pops up when the first fall rains come to the Rogue Valley.

Cottage before dirt leveling (34 of 40) It is all part of the transition from living in the woods, plowing snow, driving 45 minutes each way to the grocery store, and our plans for the future, living in mostly snow free Grants Pass.  We chose Grants Pass because of the lack of snow plowing and shoveling days, the proximity to the ocean, and the ability to travel north or south on I-5 when we want to soothe the hitch-itch that strikes often.  We are gypsies.  That travel bug is ingrained, and not likely to dissipate any time soon. 

Hiking to the tower with Melody and Mattie (1 of 1)-5View of Klamath Falls from the tower trail near the apartment

The apartment in Klamath Falls is an interim stop, at least that was the original plan.  At the moment, I feel so comfortable and cozy here, enjoying it so much that I don’t think I will ever want to leave it.  I love the Klamath Basin.  Here on Old Fort Road, we are at the edge of the high desert, with tall ponderosas and a few Doug firs around, but the hills are also covered with sage.  Love that smell, love that air, you all know I love the desert. 

Each of our places has its own special feeling.  Rocky Point for the huge cool forest in the summer, the beautiful refuge just a short walk from the house, the birds, the deer.  It is a wonderful place to live in many ways.  Grants Pass is wonderful in spring and fall, ten to twenty degrees warmer than either Rocky Point or Klamath Falls, with good shopping just minutes away, and yet a lovely rural feeling on our little piece of land that was once part of a walnut grove more than 100 years old. 

Old Fort Road is part of the magical basin, with views of Mt Shasta, the Klamath River, the dry winter air, and as stated before 10 to 20 degrees cooler than Grants Pass in the summer.  I am glad that at the moment I don’t have to choose any one of these places over the other.  Of course, the MoHo always waits as well, with the road to the desert, to the ocean, to other mountains always waiting for us.  It may be a bit complex at the moment, but it is so good and I feel incredibly lucky.  And thankful.

I keep waiting for life to settle in a bit, for things to slow down.  I have waited since mid October when we returned from Ireland, all through the month of November, and here, finally, on the last day of November, I have some time that isn’t allocated to anything else.  I can write.

I began this post as usual, with a visual cruise through my photos.  I have to admit I was a bit shocked to realize that I haven’t written a thing since we got back from Ireland, six weeks ago!  Geez. I do have some good reasons.   IMG_5337Just a couple of days after our return from Ireland, best friends Maryruth and Gerald drove up from California to spend a long weekend with us at Rocky Point.  Daughter Melody was starring in the musical Chicago, playing Velma Kelly, and they wanted to see the show.

Chicago the Musical (36 of 300)Chicago the Musical (226 of 300)The final performance of the show was amazing, and the reviews reflected what a wonderful job the Linkville Theater did with the staging, the casting, the dancing, and of course the music.  It was wonderful.  I was amazed at how a small community theater could put on a production as lavish and complex as Chicago.  Fabulous.  And not just because my daughter had a major role. Lower Klamath and Tulelake NWR (20 of 27) Lower Klamath and Tulelake NWR (22 of 27)We had a fabulous weekend, visiting the Lower Klamath Refuge where Judy volunteered this summer, enjoying the gorgeous skies and the birds. We shared good meals and lots of talking and laughing and fun.  It is so wonderful when friends can visit.  Next month we will go south to visit them and share in Maryruth’s mother’s 90th birthday celebration.  Elsie has been in my life since I was 18, and is like family to me.  Looking forward to seeing everyone at the big gathering.

Kayaking Pelican Bay (3 of 46) A few days later, Mo and I managed to get out on Pelican Bay for another gorgeous paddle.  With the fall migration in full force, there were so many birds out there.  Gorgeous skies and perfect weather are part of the Klamath Basin wonder in October.  Late September and October are the very best months to be here, in my opinion.  Nearly perfect, and no mosquitoes.

installing the cistern (13 of 17) We spent a few days in Grants Pass, for an exciting project on the property.  With a low GPM well, Mo decided that our solution would be to add a cistern, rather than taking the chance on a new well.  The cistern holds 1750 gallons, is filled automatically by the well pump, then the water is pumped from the cistern through the pressure tank to the cottage.  Now we can water the trees and small lawn during the summer without fear of drawing down the well too much.  Cottage before dirt leveling (15 of 40)

There are 27 trees on the .89 acre, several of them are gorgeous old oaks and a couple of pines and firs that are more than 100 years old.  Tree work was in order, and it turns out that the guy who ran the backhoe for the cistern installation was also an excellent arborist.  He did a great job on our trees, removing dead branches and making it much safer. He also removed 5 huge stumps that were still in place from tree removals prior to our purchase of the property.

moving with Don and Dan (17 of 19) Then it was time for the “big move”.  Late in the month, Mo’s brothers drove down to Rocky Point to help us with the heavy lifting.  Dan and Chere came from Beavercreek near Portland, and Don came all the way from Spokane.  I have no idea how we would have managed without them, short of hiring some expensive movers, which we promised both brothers that we would do when it comes time for the next move.

don dan and dogs We had fun in the midst of the moving stuff, and I did my best to cook good meals and make sure that both homes had food and beds for everyone, even though said beds were in transit.  Dan and Chere’s two dogs were especially helpful, making sure that everything done just right.  They also provided a bit of entertainment and company for Mattie, who has developed a great love for big dogs.  Most of the time, they know how to play with her and like Judy’s Emma, will lower themselves down to her level for playtime.  It is fun to watch.

Apartment A as we settle in (2 of 16) By November 1, our target date, almost everything we needed to be comfortable in the apartment was moved and we settled in. We spent five beautiful days doing the “nesting” thing, enjoying the sunshine, the smaller space, all the little things that can make moving to a new place fun and exciting.

Apartment A as we settle in (7 of 16) As the main cook, I was a bit concerned about my new kitchen.  Compared to Rocky Point, my current apartment kitchen is about the size of my big counter in RP!  I discovered that a small kitchen has some advantages:  I can reach all the drawers from one standing position, the floor is a quick wipe up rather than a major mopping event, and without a dishwasher, running a sink of soapy water as I cook keeps things in line.  I am actually enjoying it, although I still sometimes open four cupboards before I remember exactly where I have stored a particular item.

Another fun thing about the apartment is that we actually have two.  One for living, and the one next door for an extra guest bedroom, storage of “stuff” and best of all, an entire dining room and living room for my sewing, craft, and quilt room!  I can make a mess and don’t have to keep cleaning it all up mid project.  I do love that part.  In RP I did my sewing on the dining table which required lots of bringing out and putting away of stuff when meal times approached.

Hiking to the tower with Melody and Mattie (1 of 1)-3 With the early November sunny weather, I took some time to explore places to walk nearby.  Daughter Melody  and grandson Xavier live in another apartment in the complex and it is fun to walk down the path to her door and go for a spontaneous walk together. 

IMG_5359 Granddaughter Axel and her room mates also have an apartment here, and just last night Mo and I were invited to dinner at her place.  This family compound thing can be pretty nice at times.

Mo has had these apartments for years, and decided last year that property management companies and weird renters were no fun at all. Now it is an inside deal, everyone pays their rent on time and pitches in to keep the place looking nice.  It is a good place for us to be while we transition, and I get the benefit of being closer to my daughter and grandkids.  Mattie at Mills Beach (8 of 41) Mattie at Mills Beach (12 of 41)Mattie LOVES the beach!

At last, with the major chores of moving behind us, it was time for a quick trip to Brookings.  The MoHo was waiting patiently in Grants Pass and we needed a break.  Seems as though the only way to get a break from chores is to leave home where there are no chores! 

IMG_5373 We had a great three days, enjoying the clearest skies I have seen in a long time at the ocean.  Judy had mentioned that Harris Beach SP would be closed to camping this season, so we didn’t even bother checking.  We decided to stay at Beachfront RV Park, on the Harbor.sunset and sunrise at Beachcomber campground (11 of 12)

It was so much fun to listen to the surf all night, and to watch the waves right outside our front window.  One morning we drove up to check out Harris Beach, and were surprised to discover that the campground is still partially open, albeit without reservations.  As usual, the front view row was full.  We were glad that we did something different this time.

morning beach walk (2 of 16) I loved taking Mattie for walks right out the door to the beach.  It did rain on one day, but that was the day that we had scheduled some maintenance for the MoHo generator.  Seems as though the fuel pump gave out.  Brookings Harbor RV Repair had good reviews, and Mo decided that a trip to Brookings was worth it to get someone we could trust for the repair.  They did a great job and I would highly recommend them for this kind of work.

sunset at Harbor (17 of 23) With a few days of gorgeous beach time and quiet afternoons in the MoHo reading and napping, we were rejuvenated and ready to return to Grants Pass.  We hauled the tractor from Rocky Point to the cottage on our way to the beach, and Mo was ready to make an attempt to level the huge pile of dirt left behind from the cistern installation.

Cottage after dirt leveling (3 of 5) She made quick work of that pile and got most of it leveled and moved in just one day!  We raked  and moved a LOT of rocks, and then seeded the sticky red soil with a good fall mix, hoping that it will take before spring. 

Back to the apartments with a load of firewood from our stash in Rocky Point, and we settled in for the rest of the month.  I enjoyed cooking and sewing a bit, going for walks with Mattie, visiting with kids, and doing a little bit of shopping in town (takes 8 minutes to get to the main intersection of Klamath Falls!).  First snow at the Apartments (3 of 17)

The day before Thanksgiving, we got hit with the first snow and some really cold temperatures.  It is still white out here, and Mo was really smart to haul the tractor back from Grants Pass so that she could plow the apartment parking lot.  With just a tiny walk to shovel, we got the snow removal job done in record time.  One BIG benefit of not living in Rocky Point.

First snow at the Apartments (7 of 17) By Thanksgiving day, the skies were clear, and the temperatures were in the single digits.  It was a great day to travel over High Lakes Pass on Highway 140 to Shady Cove, where daughter Deborah  and her sweetie Bob hosted a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner for us, and for Melody’s family, and Bob’s parents, who live in Rocky Point. 

Mo, Melody and Robert, Deborah, and Bob carving the turkey All I had to do was bring the candied yams!  Such fun having daughters who take on the big family celebrations sometimes and being only a guest.  We had a lovely day, with sunny skies and a warm cozy home to enjoy. 

Front row: Sharon (Mo), Sue, Axel, Melody, Xavier Back row: Jack, Bob, Jean, Deborah, Robert and Mattie watching it all Instead of driving all the way back to Klamath Falls, Mo and I opted to take the short drive to the cottage and spent the night there before returning home to the apartment the next afternoon.  thanksgiving travels With a shortage of groceries in the Grants Pass fridge, we decided to go out for breakfast.  Sitting at the warm and cozy dining room at Elmer’s, with the sun pouring in through the windows, the fire crackling in the fireplace, and a fabulous breakfast, I felt that crazy happy feeling that comes without warning.  I do love that feeling so much, can’t make it happen, can’t really explain it, and it comes quite often ever since I first noticed it while hiking in Joshua Tree last winter. Later we actually managed a little bit of shopping on Black Friday, something I usually avoid like the plague.  However, most of the stores we visited mid morning in Grants Pass were not busy at all. First snow at the Apartments (2 of 17)

Home now, settled in and cozy with a nice fire going, office space all set up and comfortable, quilting and card making projects waiting in the apartment next door.  Life really IS good.