“Take the time to wander. For it is in this time that you will find your way.”
– Unknown
Happy first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. Wait. I’m confused. This is the SECOND Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox. Did Easter change? I had to consult my friend who is an Episcopalian Deacon for clarification. His theory is that the liturgical day starts at sundown, and therefore the full moon happened “Liturgically” on Sunday the 13th and not on Saturday the 12th as my moon calendar suggests. I defer to him. Religious people get to decide when their religious holidays happen. Anyway, happy first or SECOND Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox, depending on when your day starts.
Cosmo and I spent the first part of the week on Arizona Land Trust just north of Phoenix. It was hot every day, but the breeze made it tolerable. The landscape is nothing special. It’s mostly dirt and rocks with a smattering of Saguaro cacti. It is bordered by I-17 to the east and another highway to the south, so at night I can often hear traffic in the distance. I had no nearby neighbors, but I began to recognize several vehicles coming and going on a nearby dirt road. I suspect they are working in Phoenix and living on the Land Trust. One slept in a sedan within walking distance. Another man in a truck with gardener’s equipment in the truck bed drove deep into the land, so I couldn’t see if he had an RV or a tent. It was mostly quiet.
One night as I was drifting off to sleep, I was startled awake by the sound of propane igniting. (You know that whoomp sound when a gas stove ignites.) I immediately recognized it as my hot water heater that is under the head of my bed. I had forgotten to turn it off after my morning shower. I jumped out of bed and turned it off. The next morning, just about sunrise, I heard another distinctive, but different sound of propane igniting. As I swam up into consciousness from my dream state, I knew immediately what it was, and looked out my window to see this about to crash into my van:
And although the pilot was heading right at me, he ignited the burner only briefly to keep from hitting the ground. He stayed low and the wind blew him just to the front of my van and he passed by at nearly eye level. I was impressed by his ability to steer the giant balloon by knowing that the wind blew in a different direction as he got lower and he was able to navigate around me. He was soon followed by another, passing behind my van.
Both landed softly to the south of me and were followed by a third. It was a nice way to wake up in the morning.
I’ve been exercising in the mornings. I have a visit with a new doctor in Prescott Valley early next month, so I’m eating better and exercising before my intake in an attempt to appear just a tad healthier on my initial visit. It’s sort of like cleaning your house before the cleaning service arrives so they don’t know what a slob you really are. Otherwise, it’s been quite a lazy life. The days were unremarkable, but the sunsets have been breathtaking.
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I was running low on a couple necessities (coffee and half and half…really the ONLY necessities for me other than dog food) and since I had to pack up my bike, cacti, and solar panels, I decided that I’d move a bit more north where it would be slightly cooler. So on Wednesday, I headed to Cordes Lakes and pulled into my favorite spot on Bloody Basin Road (Seriously. It’s a lovely site. Not sure who named the road, but maybe they did so to keep the crowds down.) On the way I stopped at a Walmart in Anthem, AZ. Along with food, I picked up a new tent. I had to throw my old one away as some of the poles had broken and the rain guard ripped in several places. I think it was dry rotted from so much time in direct Arizona sun, and for 20 bucks, I think I got my money’s worth out of it. I also bought a new pair of shorts as my favorite old pair were threadbare. I got cactus soil for my composting toilet, and batteries for my chirping smoke detector and a new barbeque lighter for my propane stove. From there it was a short ride to Bloody Basin, and we set up easily at the end of our favorite spot. The wind was howling so it turned into an “inside day.”
Friday the wind continued, the temperature dropped (a high of 55⁰) and we had thunderstorms in the afternoon. It struck me that it is quite weird to be heading “into winter” at the end of May after being warm and often fighting heat during the winter months.
Lessons From The Road: Entropy caught up with me this week. My smoke detector started chirping (in the middle of the night, of course). I took out the batteries and couldn’t find any AA’s to replace them until I got to Walmart the next day. My propane detector had acted up several times during the week, but fixed itself once I turned the van’s electricity off to do a hard reset. It finally protested Thursday night, and would not shut off even after a hard reset, so I got out my screwdriver, removed it from the wall, and disconnected the wires. I reconnected it on Friday morning and I suspect that the wires had just come loose from all the vibrations from the rough roads I’ve traveled. The verdict is still out on that theory. I woke up Friday morning to a dead coach battery (the one that runs everything DC in my van). I plugged in the auxiliary solar panels and it seems to be charging for now, but I’m not sure if the battery was damaged by draining down to zero. I’ve already replaced it twice since I’ve had the van. Perhaps it’s time to get some instructions on proper usage?