Simple Living and Simple Travel

The Statue of Liberty was a beacon of feminism right from the get-go. I mean, it is a big woman, out on an island. And as typical mankind would have it, women were banned from the statue’s dedication. If ‘humankind’ were the norm, stuff like this would not occur. On that day, the ladies chartered a boat and held their own ceremony out on the water. They loudly proclaimed the hypocrisy of men “erecting a Statue of Liberty embodied as a woman in a land where no woman has political liberty.” One just has to admire all the women who fought so hard and for so long to get the rights they should have had right from the get-go. How can we still not give women equal rights, across the world, across the board? And men still do not understand why so many women think we’re idiots. When I lived in Lake Placid, NY, some friends and I took a road trip to visit the L.L. Bean store in Freeport, Maine. It is a classic trip for any New England or touring camper. Presently, just behind Acad...

I was not sure if I had dug out the slope enough and extended a backup area to 3-point turn the Nash around so I could get in position to drive down the access road (I didn’t). I decided to hook up the Nash and turn it around a few days before I thought I would be pulling out, just in case there was a problem. There was. I spent a couple hours doing more digging and cutting down four small trees that I really wanted to keep. Guano. Sure glad I didn’t wait until moving day. Meadow and Mesa seem to prefer this orientation. Generally, the view outside the back window looks into the distance. With it all in so close here, M&M spend much more time on the table looking out. One afternoon this doe came in close to the window. Pretty cool. This little spot is a favorite place for both M&M to chill out. Whenever I was going to do some work around the property, I made sure Meadow and Mesa were outside. They followed me around and got familiar with the land. When I’m with them, ...

Another hummingbird flew into the Nash through the cage window. The birds tend to just fly side to side across the back window, making things easy. I open the screens of the two bottom corner windows, put my hands close together and slowly herd the bird down towards the open screen. No throwing a towel over it as I had to do in the past when a regular bird flew in. In one of Janet’s emails, she wrote: “My Dad always signed off, "wake up happy" which is what his mom said to him before bed. I have been working on doing just that, waking up with happy thoughts. I know how easy it is to get discouraged when our bodies aren't at their best. Good luck and health I wish for you.” I’m also working on it. Thanks, Janet. As you can see, the owners accepted my bid. I wouldn’t doubt if I could have gotten the lot for even less. Most lots are tough to sell, but I thought my bid was a fair offer considering what lots actually sell for here. This lot would not hold much interest...

This is a photo taken out of the galley window, of a local family that I see from time to time. Another day, I was in the Nash working on my Mac when I heard turkeys. I looked out the back window, and there was a family. But a parent was watching me when I turned my head to look. Those of you who are familiar with wild turkeys, know that at that point, there was no chance of a photo. These birds are true survivors Timberon is an unincorporated community 32 miles south of Cloudcroft, NM, and 15 miles south of Sunspot, the National Solar Observatory. It sits at an elevation of 7,100’ in the Sacramento Mountains. The road from Cloudcroft to Timberon is paved and full of hills and curves, so it takes 45-50 minutes to drive from Cloudcroft to Timberon. Roughly 400 people reside in the 20 square miles of Timberon. Considering there are over 7,600 lots in the community, ranging from ½ acre to over 18 acres, and some 90-100 ranch acres, one can imagine how sparsely populated the area is...

It does not seem like a year to me, but last July 31st, was the start of, ‘here’s a little story,’ and all those bizarre photos. It sure feels good to be above the ground and still have both arms. In the area of the NM Sacramento Mtns. where I’m presently hard-wall camping, I was told there have been 45 mountain lion tags issued. I don’t know how many cougars they think are here, but there are suppose to quite a few. I wonder about this; I would think male pumas would be buttin’ heads over territory. A couple days after hearing this, I went off on a hike and mountain lions came to mind from time-to-time. The area is forested with quite a bit of underbrush; plenty of places for a cat to hide and get close to prey. I might be packing a handgun on hikes. I would just hope I could defend myself effectively if faced with a charging puma. Wouldn’t bet much in my favor. I wrote about what to do if faced with a predator back on the August 2014 page (‘more on the July page...

This is where I’m presently set up. Going through quite a bit of sugar for the little fighters. There were no tracks when I first got here, but the truck tires are making marks. Bummer. Not going to be one of my leave-no-trace spots. That’s an important aspect of hard-wall camping. Parking across a slight slope was the only option. So, as I’ve done other times, I dug out two holes on the uphill side for the wheels to drop into and rolled the downhill wheels up onto three blocks to get the rig near level. Just another aspect of hard-wall camping. As you can see, there are some nice Ponderosa down the hill, but I can’t get the Nash down there, so it’s out in the sun all day. I really prefer shade in the summer. I was not up for driving north and scoping out a couple new spots up at elevation to hard-wall camp for the summer. But I needed a base to recoup and this is working out well. I’m definitely getting back into exercise. I might even nail Diana’s Sixty Minutes for Sixty yea...

They recently released a huge amount of water from the Glen Canyon Dam. This is a shot from standing a few miles downriver of the initial wave. Oh wait, no, maybe the photo is from Tó Mané Porto, Portugal. The coast is known for its huge waves. Awesome. This time of year I’m generally north, in a forest, and up around 8-9,000’. Change of plans this year. The medical problems went on for TEN! months. I wasn’t up for much driving. I’m presently up in the Sacramento Mountains in NM and might stay through the summer, focusing on getting back into shape. I am much weaker than when I left Moab. It’s pretty quiet here but at only 7100’, it’s hot. I leave all the windows and roof vents fully open at night and inside morning temps, during the first week, were 49-51 degrees, but lately, in the lower 60s, not good. By mid-afternoon, the inside temps are in the lower 90s. There is no shade for the Nash and I use as many of the techniques I wrote about on the June 2014 page, ‘stay cool,...