Officially a UBER-ite

It was 10 AM by the time I got the Jeep vacuumed and ready for my first trip as a driver for UBER. I set up the phone on the UBER site and signed on. It wasn't more than a minute before I received my first rider. I did three pickups by 11:30 and took a lunch break before doing another three pickups between 1:30 and 3 PM. The lunch break included a stop at Josie's shop to pick up her check, say hello and deposit the check in the bank. Overall, I did 6 pickups in three hours on the clock and made close to $50 net for the first day. Not bad for three hours work.

There were only a few concerns and/or problems on my first day. It will take some time to get use to using the application on my phone. There are some features I'm not sure about yet and there are some things I'm not sure about as far as messages that are part of a transaction when the trip ends. An unexpected problem I had was the battery discharging so fast on my phone. I only get about three hours of use on each charge with the phone being on all the time.  Everything will become clear as the time goes on and I gain more experience. The great things are: Rides are available all the time when you are signed on to drive, the riders are notified when you arrive to pick them up and they are told what vehicle to look for so that I don't have to worry about whether I'm seen or not, there is no money exchanged, I can work as long as I want - when I want - and I don't have to worry about wasting time between pickups. There is also always somebody available to chat with online if you run into any kind of problem or situation that needs immediate attention.

Projecting the first day activity, if I work 5 hours per day between 10AM and 3PM for 4 days per week, I should make about $1200 per month. That is better than any job I've seen considering the hours and the pay and the flexible schedule. In short, I love it so far.

I will work again today as the plan is to work the same schedule as Josie. She works until 5 today, and with it being Halloween, we have some things to get ready before the kids begin to show. Don't forget that Daylight Savings time ends tonight and, if you don't live in Arizona, you will turn your clocks back one hour.

Happy Halloween everybody...

WMU Wins Big

Western Michigan's game this week was played on Thursday night and was broadcast live on the CBS Sports Channel. The game, against Eastern Michigan University was a blowout, won by WMU 58-28, and wasn't as close as the score indicates. Austin had a stellar game and made many Special Team tackles, including the first three kick coverages in the first quarter. That makes them 4-0 in the conference - 5-3 overall - and in first place in their Division. If they continue to play at this level, they will again be invited to a bowl game this year. Speculation at this early stage is the Bahamas bowl which would be a great trip. It is so exciting watching Austin and the WMU team on TV, especially as they improve with every game.

Our second - and final treatment for scorpions was yesterday. Unfortunately, it rained not too long after the application, so we aren't sure just how effective the treatment will be. We haven't seen any scorpions for about 3 weeks now, so we have our fingers crossed that they are hunkered down for the winter season.

It's back to work for Josie today and I plan to begin my driving experience with UBER. I am a little nervous about the first few trips as I am not quite sure how the application will work on my phone. Everything is set up to go, so I guess the only way to eliminate the concerns is to dive right in and begin the trips. I will sign out for the day at 5 PM so that I minimize most chances of picking up questionable fares. I hope I can report good news of my first experience in tomorrow's post...

Holidays Prep

Even though it isn't even Halloween yet, we took some time to go through our Christmas stuff to see what we had and what we might need to get for this year - our first in the new home. We went to Lowe's to check out lights and to see the new offerings for this year. There are some nice, new lighting offerings that are new to us, if not new to the market. We will be hanging outside lights on a house for the first time in years and we also want to decorate around our plants and trees in the front of the house. I measured the length we would need to run light sets on the roof-line and along the driveway and we ended up buying some lighted candy canes for the driveway, and have our eyes set on a new roof-line set of lights that are icicles and snowflakes combined. We will buy those when we decide which set we like the best.

We also settled on where we are going to locate the Christmas tree - in the space between our family room and the eating area. This way, we can enjoy the tree more as opposed to having it in the living room where we would only see it while passing through the room to get to the front door. We have a small, 3 foot tree, that we will place in the living room/dining room area. I had forgotten how these "hidden" expenses of home ownership can accumulate.

Our second treatment for scorpions is scheduled today between 10-12. We haven't seen any scorpions at all for the last couple weeks, so they are either settling in to warmer locations or we have exterminated all of them. We hope it is the second case. Most of the tasks that we wanted to complete on the house are done which is great for freeing up some time to enjoy the holiday season...

UBER Clarification

There is a misconception about driving for the transportation company - UBER. The first reaction was that I would be picking up drunks and crazy people and be at a high risk for injury or worse. The fact is, I get to choose the times that I will drive and I get to choose the fares that I want. In other words, bars and midnight rides are at my option. I will most likely just sign on between the hours of 8 AM and 5 PM and not drive during any other time frame. The pay is excellent (avg. of $19/ hr) and the pay is weekly. Plus, I don't have to worry about handling money as all fares are collected by the company before the ride is initiated, and they pay me at the end of the week.  I only worry about the wear and tear on my car and the gas which, for now, is very inexpensive. It seems like a good way to earn some extra cash, on my schedule. I am all signed up and ready to go, so I will probably begin on Friday while Josie works at the shop. I plan to drive only on days she works so that we can still have our same days off.

We have the Goodwill truck scheduled today to pick up some heavy and bulky items. We have the refrigerator left by the previous tenants (that doesn't work), a table and several boxes of clothing and miscellaneous stuff that we no longer need. The pickup is scheduled between 8 AM and 5 PM which is nonsense as we will have to wait around to make sure we don't miss them. I guess we could just move everything into the driveway and we wouldn't have to be around if we had to leave for any reason.

It looks like our neighborhood is ready for Halloween. Most of the neighbors have decorations on and around their homes. We have some that will be on display along with the candy bowl that will be on our porch. It is an experience that we haven't had for a long time. Our neighbor said that he went through about 5 bags of candy last year. We bought three at Costco, and when they are gone, the lights go out and Halloween is over for us. Too often, the older kids come back around for a second time and we would like to avoid that, if possible. It promises to be a unique experience...

Jump on Christmas

I'm sure there are some folks that can say they have done all their Christmas shopping already and are set for the Holiday. We aren't one of those households. In fact, we didn't even have a tree before yesterday.

We donated our Christmas tree when we left to go on the road over seven years ago. Our Christmases have been celebrated using a three foot tree that we could travel with. So, we have been looking around at deals on trees and we pulled the trigger yesterday. Michael's issued an ad yesterday for artificial trees at $100 off on the size we have been looking for (7.5ft). I went to Michael's to check out their selections and discovered that the trees that were on sale were not as good quality as the ones we spotted at Costco, even though they were about $80 cheaper with the coupon. I verified the differences by going to Costco to make sure, while the tree at Michael's was still fresh in my mind. While at Costco, I saw that their inventory of the tree we liked was shrinking, so I bought one. As you probably know, if you see something at Costco that is a good deal, you need to buy it right away or they will run out of them. So, we are set now with a nice tree for Christmas - all we need is some money to put some gifts under it at Christmas time.

I did more research on UBER as a possibility to earn some extra money. As I have completed all the steps to become a UBER Partner (driver), I am ready to give it a try. That seems like a good fit for what I am looking for - a job where I can work whenever I wish without a set schedule. I just need to sign on as being available to drive somebody somewhere and they will text the information to me and I can pick them up at the designated location and drive them to their destination using the UBER navigation application on my phone. There is no money exchanged as UBER collects the money and pays me directly. I've read some good reviews by people that have signed up, so I'll see how it goes.

Great win by the Cardinals last night as they defeated the Baltimore Ravens, 26-18. It looks like a long season ahead for the Ravens who made the playoffs last year. The Cardinals go to 5-2 and it is looking good for them to have a great season - if they can stay healthy...

No Amazon

I was seriously considering a return yesterday morning to the location where Amazon was conducting interviews and hiring people. That is, until I had a few flashbacks and thought about my incision problem which hasn't gone away. I thought about the mob scene that I ran into on Saturday and didn't want a repeat of that scenario. I thought about the extremely physical activity associated with Amazon jobs along with the 10 hour work days and, finally, I still have a problem with my incision that hasn't healed totally and I can't imagine having a problem during the work day with a relapse of the incision opening again and being stuck at work. Maybe something will happen that could change my mind, but at this point, I'm going to pass on that opportunity.

I enjoyed watching a couple of the football games on TV yesterday while Josie went to a baby shower at Cave Creek Park in the afternoon. The football weekend ends tonight with the Cardinals playing the Baltimore Ravens on Monday Night Football. I hope they regain their sharpness tonight.

It's back to work again today for Josie and I have lots of projects lined up to keep me busy. I am very happy that the cool weather has arrived and I have choices about working inside or outside again...

Retry at Amazon

My second attempt to discuss opportunities at Amazon.com yesterday was derailed. I arrived at the location for an interview and the first problem was that I forgot my phone which I felt I needed to extract phone numbers for the application process. So, it was back home to get the phone and return to try again. The location is only 10 minutes from our house, so it was no problem. The real problem when I returned was that there were no parking spaces within a hundred yards of the door. That should have been my first clue. When I walked through the door, my first reaction was that it was a zoo. There must have been two hundred people divided into 5 areas in various parts of the application process. It seemed like all of them were young people, Mexican and/or blacks. I was so discouraged that I asked the person manning the computer station at the entrance when would be a good time to come so that it wouldn't be so crowded. She only said that the earlier, the better. So I am considering another attempt at 8 AM this morning. Amazon.com is known for hiring young people as a result of their fast pace and heavy physical requirements for the job. The fact that they have five different locations within the Phoenix area also could be a reason for so many applicants. At this point, I am not holding out much hope for satisfying my requirements for a job.

Western Michigan University won again yesterday - 35-13 over Miami of Ohio - to bring their record to 4-3 for the season. They are undefeated in their conference and are in first place in the division. A bowl game is becoming a possibility if they can continue the winning ways. Another pleasant surprise from Kalamazoo yesterday was the first place finish by Patty in their tailgate group chili cook-off. She won the crown for the best chili - congratulations to Patty. We look forward to seeing some pictures on Facebook from yesterday's events.

Today's football schedule on TV is ho-hum as the Seahawks already played - and won - on Thursday night, and the Cardinals play tomorrow night against Baltimore on Monday Night Football. I'm sure I can find one or two games that would be worth watching. That is, as long as Josie doesn't have other plans for me...

Amazon Potential

One important (to me) omission in yesterday's entry was reporting the result of the Thursday Night Football game between the Seattle Seahawks and the San Francisco 49er's. It was no contest. The Seahawks played the kind of game they are capable of and won, 20-3, while giving up only a total of 150 yards to the 49er's. All four losses that the Seahawks have are the result of blown leads in the 4th quarter. Thursday, they were not going to allow that to happen. In fact, the analysts indicated that the Seahawks should be 6-1 at this point in the season instead of 3-4. They clicked on all cylinders although they still need to protect Russell Wilson, their quarterback, better than they have been so far this season.

I received a phone call from Amazon.com asking me to come back and work at one of their warehouse/fulfillment centers in the Phoenix area. The interviews were being held close to us here in Glendale, so I drove over to the location where they were conducting the interviews. The company handling the interviews - integrityjobsphoenix.com - needed to have more identification from me before beginning the process. I didn't have the proper forms of ID - passport and driver's license - so I have to come back today, if interested. I talked to Josie about the possibility last night and if I can get a job working the same days she works (Mon, Tue, Fri and Sat), can work a less physical job than before (in Campbellsville, KY), the pay is good and the warehouse isn't too far away - I would sign up. I will talk to them today.

I also have communicated with the company called UBER that I'm sure you have heard about. They are a transportation company where you actually operate your own vehicle as a taxi service for local customers that pay their fares online and want more personal service. There are some concerns about that job that I am sorting out and trying to resolve in my mind. The main one is that I would have to be on call most of the time and that is not the kind of schedule I want for any job. The pay is good though, so I haven't eliminated it totally as yet.

Don't get the idea that I have to have a job as I don't. The extra money would be great and we could do some of the things we have planned to do that are beyond our budget right now. If the right opportunity comes along, I would jump on it, and get back into the workforce. I feel that working would also keep me healthy and active and make it easier to lose this excess flab that has appeared since I quit working at Sam's Club...

Back Together Again

Just like humpty dumpty - our patio furniture is back together again. The lesson we learned is never to leave the house with the umbrella open as you never know when a strong wind or stray storm will pop up and ruin everything. This is what we have once again:

Even though that was the most photogenic of our activities yesterday, we accomplished much more. We finally have the garage organized - totally - to where we can find almost anything we need at any given time. Our vehicles fit nicely in the garage now and we can even open the doors without banging into boxes, furniture or bicycles. There are some items that we are donating to Goodwill and to other charities, like an old refrigerator, clothes and a coffee table. They are scheduled for pickup next Wednesday.

We also had the "new" landscaper out yesterday and we have everything in perfect working order now in the irrigation system. They replaced the entire main line in the sprinkler system on the one side of the yard and installed the proper sprinkler heads to ensure that all the plants and trees get the right amount of moisture every day. That is a huge relief and we should be set now with our yard for awhile.

Halloween is the next challenge for us. This will be the first one in many years where we actually will have kids coming to the door for candy. We have three huge bags of candy that we got at Costco and when they are gone, the lights go out and we will call an end to Halloween. It seems strange to be in a neighborhood where there are lots of kids to be able to enjoy this particular holiday once again. We are also proud that we were able to fight temptation and keep the bags of candy - untouched - in our pantry --- so far...

Wraping Up Garage Project

There is one side of the garage remaining to be organized. There was one more metal rack required which we purchased yesterday at Lowe's, and I will assemble that today and we will finally get the garage all done so that both vehicles will fit nicely in the three car space. It was cool and raining off-and-on during the day so it was a good day to make progress on that project. We still have much too much "stuff" and we will have to make some tough decisions on keeping or selling/donating items so we can downsize to a realistic storage amount.

Today is the day that the "new" landscaper comes that I hired from Angie's List to fix the damage that the "cheap" landscaper did. We have several leaks in the water lines, among other problems, that the other guy left behind. It will be nice to get those problems fixed before moving on to more pleasant changes that we have planned.

While we were out, we made a stop at Costco to pick up the newly released movie on Blu-Ray - Jurassic World - which we watched last night. I have to say that we were disappointed in that movie after hearing all the accolades about how great it is. We didn't think it was as good as the original Jurassic Park films, but how much more can you do with dinosaurs? The special effects are still tremendous, but films have come a long way in that area...

More Stormy Weather

The stormy weather is still with us and we expect more today. I'm hearing that the El Nino effect is going to be felt more this year than in recent years, and it looks like we have a good head start. It not only rained - hard - but we had hail to boot. This is what the storm deposited outside our house:

And to think that just a couple days ago I was pointing out that summer just doesn't want to go away. Going away is one thing, but with a vengeance is another.

I finished the task of removing all the broken glass from our shattered picnic table. I ended up taking the Shop-Vac and sucking up all the rocks and broken glass and moving them to the corner of our property where the glass won't affect anything or anybody. That leaves a fairly thin layer of stone in the area where the table shattered, but, eventually, I will get it all raked and evenly distributed once again. I also was able to assemble the new table and today we will place the new glass on the table and place the umbrella back in the stand. We will be more careful with this one.

I discovered while working on that project that our shovel is missing and I had to go buy another one. I'm guessing that our landscaper and his partner drove off with it after they were moving the sand for our backyard project. It only cost $15 for the new shovel so I can just chalk that up to the final payment (I hope) to that guy...

Scan Done

I called my doctor's office yesterday morning before leaving for my CT Scan to ask about the problem I had with the incision opening. I didn't know if it was something that should be looked at before the Scan or not. The doctor wasn't in, but the very capable assistant asked that I come into the office for her to check the incision before going to the CT Scan appointment. She applied a dressing to the incision and asked that I return following the Scan to have the doctor, who would be in the office by then, check it out. The Scan was completed by 11:00 AM and I returned to the doctor's office. He looked at the incision and changed the dressing to a different one and indicated that there was no problem with the incision opening. Evidently, there was a fluid buildup behind the incision that drained and created a scary scene around that area. He instructed me to keep a dressing on the area, change it daily, and it would heal over time. I picked up some gauze and tape at Walgreen's and I will begin the healing effort today.

The rest of the day was spent organizing another area of the garage. I stopped at Lowe's to get another rack of shelving and the parking space used for the Jeep is now cleared and organized. The garage is actually beginning to look pretty decent. We still have too much "stuff" and a major effort is looming to reduce our non-essential possessions. Once we get that chore done, the garage will be super organized.

It rained again during the night last night and the forecast is for a possibility for even more rain today and tomorrow. The weather is becoming a real drag and isn't very typical for AZ at this time of the year. Let's see some sunny and cool days for a change...

Bad Football Day

Yesterday was not a good day to watch my favorites on the football field. The Cardinals lost to the Steelers, 25-13, in a game that the Steelers looked like they didn't miss their starting quarterback. In fact, they beat the Cardinals with a third string quarterback. The Cardinals are still in good shape as the Seahawks stumbled once again in the fourth quarter and blew a big lead to lose to the undefeated Carolina Panthers, 27-23. All four of the Seahawks losses have been in the fourth quarter after leading each of those teams. It is not typical of the Seahawks and it is a mystery how they can be so dominant for three quarters and then go to lunch in the fourth quarter each game. It may be a very long season. I keep reminding myself that they were 3-3 after six games last year and they went to the Super Bowl.

We went out and bought a replacement table for the one we lost during the wind storm last Friday. We ended up buying the same table we had as it is still the best deal for us. I will assemble that today.

I have a doctor's appointment this morning to get a Cat (CT) Scan of the device that was inserted over my aneurysm. The doctor wants to be certain that all is well with the device and I will have to have annual scans from now on. I also developed a problem over the weekend as one of the incision points opened up as a result of work I have done over the weekend in the garage combined with sweat around that incision area. I don't think that is a major problem, but I will have that fixed while out for my Scan. I think I will be able to "walk-in" to my doctor's office for that problem and get it repaired without an appointment. It seems like there is always something unexpected from these health issues...

Perfect Visit

The visit ended yesterday as I took Kristine and Justin to the airport at 12:30 for their return flight to Seattle. We stopped at Josie's shop on the way to say a final good-bye and she gave each of them a long stem red rose to take home. It was a perfect week and all of us enjoyed the time together. Hopefully, another visit will not be that far off, and I should mention that the house was perfect for handling the visit.

The day was also one where Western Michigan had a game scheduled. Austin played a super game and WMU beat Ohio University 49-14. Patty also texted that they went to the twins' games and Brandon scored two touchdowns in his Waubonsie High School (sophomore) game. It looks like he might follow in Austin's footsteps on the football field.

It's Sunday and that means pro football day. The Seahawks play the Carolina Panthers and the Cardinals play a tough game against the Steelers in Pittsburgh at 10 AM this morning. They should win the game against the Steelers who are without their starting quarterback. The Seahawks play an undefeated (4-0) Panthers team that really hasn't been challenged yet so I look for the Seahawks to win their game. I hope I'm right on both games.

In between the games, we have some work to do - outside to clean up the rest of the glass from our "busted" table from the storm on Friday, and in the garage to move some boxes onto the racks so that we are able to move everything off the garage floor. The games will come first :)...

Stormy

We went to the Grand Canyon on Thursday because of the not-so-friendly weather forecast for yesterday. It was a good thing. We had a pretty vicious storm yesterday afternoon while we were out-and-about that caused some damage to our outdoor furniture. We expected rain, but not high winds.

We neglected to retract our umbrella before we left in the afternoon - actually, the skies were clear and the air calm when we left so we never thought to do that.little chore. We should know by now that even if it is clear and no rain or wind is in the forecast that we should do that anyway.

This is what we saw when we returned home:

The glass top to the table shattered and the umbrella sustained a broken arm so it is also ruined. We are thankful that the wind wasn't blowing the opposite direction or the disaster would have ended up in the pool. Now, I have that mess to clean up today.

We ended the week last night with a nice fish and chips meal at Cracker Barrel. Here are the shots from our final night out for the week:

Kristine and Justin will leave to go home today. Their flight is at 1:50 PM, so I will take them to the airport by 12:30 while Josie is at work. What a fun week we had. It was great seeing both of them again and we're sure that the week was a wonderful time for them to be able to spend so much quality time together. We will miss them and hope that it isn't so long now before we get to see them again...

Grand Canyon

We made it out the door by 6 AM yesterday for our visit to the Grand Canyon. As mentioned before, Kristine has never seen it, and Justin saw it many years ago. The drive took us almost 4 hours and we made a couple stops along the way to gas up, get some ice and to pick up some cash at the bank. The weather was perfect and the drive was terrific.

The Grand Canyon never disappoints. The scenery is among the best in the world and we never get tired of reading about, and seeing this wonder of the world. We got some great pictures, some of which are below. For starters, of course, are some of the Canyon itself:

You will notice in the last picture above that there is a crazy person sitting on the point of the cliff. We saw many crazy people doing similar suicidal stunts. I, for one, couldn't get anywhere near the edges of the cliffs where there were no railings or guardrails. Here is another of the crazy people:

This is more like the areas that we used to see the splendor of this magnificent place:

Justin and Kristine attempted to generate some fear in us:

and it worked! Josie and I were afraid for them on a few occasions and we were concerned that a small slip could create a disaster. It's a wonder that there aren't more accidents along the Grand Canyon Rim.

We saw a squirrel that obviously was not afraid of people. This one came right up to us looking for handouts:

Unfortunately, we didn't have anything to give him, so he moved on.

The visit was wonderful and we had a great time checking out the various lookout points. This shot was taken at one of them:

We had lunch at the car where we made some sandwiches from the goodies we brought with us and enjoyed a nice picnic. The trip was a long one - we got home at 7 PM last night - and watched a movie (Trading Places) before going to bed. It was a memorable day, for sure.

Today is the final full day before they head back to Washington tomorrow. There are a couple places we want to check out before they leave. There are just too many places to go and things to see in one week...

Hanging Out Day

We had a couple of appointments to take care of yesterday so we just hung-out at home. Josie had a doctors appointment and I had a meeting with a new landscaper to get an estimate on fixing our irrigation system from the damage that our previous landscaper did.

I'm also having response time problems with my Verizon connections again so this will be a short entry. Our plan today is to leave by 6 AM to drive to the Grand Canyon for the day. Kristine has never seen it and Justin hasn't seen it for many years - he was fairly young the last time and will appreciate it more at this age. We hope to beat the forecasted rain which is suppose to arrive late today. By the way, we set a record yesterday in Phoenix at 100 degrees. We went to 102 at our place, so I have no idea when we can expect summer to disappear...

Dillons for Lunch

As Josie had to work yesterday for her only scheduled work-day this week, we were on our own. I took Justin and Kristine to Lake Pleasant to check on our fifth wheel and to have lunch at the Marina. I also wanted them to see where we lived during the winters of the last two years. The fifth wheel is doing great, and there are no problems with the cover or the rig itself:

Following a drive around the Resort and showing them the space we occupied for the last two years, we went down to the Marina to grab some lunch at the Bar and Grill:

The walk to the restaurant was nice, but, unfortunately, the restaurant was closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. Bummer! The best option was to go back to the car and drive around to the other side of the lake and try Dillon's restaurant in the Scorpion Bay Marina:

:

We found a real nice table on the water and we had an excellent lunch while watching the boaters and the ducks. Here are a couple shots of us at our table:

 

 

As we were leaving the restaurant, Kristine wanted to try an unusual bar stool on the way out:

It wasn't your typical bar stool.

The next stop before heading home was at the old house where Justin lived with his father and grandmother before moving back to Washington about 12 years ago. That was located in Avondale. The house hasn't changed that much and it brought back some memories for Justin. Our final stop before reaching home was at a DQ where we all had dessert from our lunch. It was a fun day and, once again, the weather cooperated as it was hot, but not stifling.

We have a couple appointments to take care of today so I'm not sure how much exploring and/or driving we will do today. I'm sure there will be something that is different that might be close by. Tomorrow, we leave early in the morning to drive to the Grand Canyon where Kristine has never been, and Justin visited with us many years ago...

Challenger Space Center

The main event for yesterday was a visit to the Challenger Space Center in Peoria. The plan was to try to be there when it opened at 10 AM, but Kristine has a lingering cold and congestion that delayed our visit until the afternoon while she treated herself with some medication and extra rest.

I still cannot get over the fact that we have such a neat place so close to our home. It was early afternoon when we arrived:

The entryway into the facility was lined with interesting facts of the planets and their relationships to each other:

Once inside, we paid our entry fee and began the self guided tour around the first of three levels of exhibits. There were many interactive exhibits, including this one that was a flight simulator where you actually pilot the Challenger:

And then there were these space suits:

There were so many exhibits that I would like to have shown, but there just isn't enough room to publish all of them. This final one is of a replica of the Challenger and it's launch missiles:

 

 

You can see the emblems of all of the space missions on the wall behind this model. There are 8 designs for Gemini missions, 12 for Apollo, 3 for Skylab, 1 for the Apollo Soyuz Test Project (ASTP) and 135 for the Space Shuttle Program.

 

There were also memorials for the lost Astronauts and missions they were associated with. All in all, it was an excellent museum and one that we will visit again someday.

 

We stopped in Waddell on the way home to see the home where Kristine and Justin lived when Justin was just a baby and young boy. It hasn't changed much at all except that the trees in front completely hide the house.

 

It was a fun day and a busy one, once we got started. We missed our second scorpion treatment as we were gone when the exterminators came to do the treatment in the afternoon. It is now rescheduled for October 29, so we will make sure that someone will be home.

 

Josie has to work today, so the plan is to drive to Lake Pleasant and check on the fifth wheel and give Kristine and Justin a chance to see where we lived, off and on, for the last two years. The week is going well so far, and we all are enjoying the time together...

Football and More

The most exciting thing yesterday morning was watching the Seahawks game against the Cincinnati Bengals at 10 AM. At least it was exciting for three quarters until the Seahawks left the game early in the fourth quarter. I never would have believed that they could lose a 17 point lead in the fourth quarter to any team, but they did, and lost in OT 27-24. I am getting worried now that this team might be in for a long season with the unpredictable offense and the disappearance of one of the league's best defenses.

The afternoon game between the Cardinals and Lions was much better as the Cardinals continue to roll - 42-17 over the Lions - and remain one of the top teams in the league.

We had a relaxed day with Kristine and Justin. We went to the Tanger Outlet Mall between games and didn't spend a lot of time walking around as it started to heat up - we had a high of 99 yesterday. Go away, summer! Here is the shot from the visit to the Mall:

We couldn't wait to get home and jump in the pool to cool off. It was a nice swim in the heat of the day as you see from these shots of Justin:

The day was complete following dinner with a walk around the neighborhood:

Our plan today is to visit the Challenger Space Museum in Peoria. As it is Columbus Day, there may be larger crowds at the museum, but we will take our chances. It is one of those places where you live in the same area and never get to see the attraction. Today is the day...

Visit Begins

The flight that Kristine and Justin took from Seattle was on time and arrived at 5:45 PM. Josie and I sat at the security exit where all passengers had to pass to exit the terminal and we somehow missed them in the crowd that walked past us. We finally caught up with them in baggage claim and made it to the house before 7 PM. It was a smooth trip for them and we were happy that they connected without any glitches.

Justin has matured so much since we last saw him and this is a final visit with him before he goes off into the Air Force. He is waiting for his assignment and is expected to leave by the first of the year. The services are very different these days as far as enlisting and getting assigned. They used to take any warm body off the street and give you a uniform and a ticket to go to boot camp. Today, it is a formal procedure and one that is not guaranteed.

Here are the first shots of their visit which will last the whole week. The first photo is of Kristine and Justin:

Then, mom and Kristine:

And, finally, at the dinner table:

We have lots of activities written down to try to enjoy, so we hope to get as many of those done as possible. Today will be mostly taken up with the Seahawks game on TV from Cincinnati. It will be nice to start the week with a big win...

Garage Project

As the weather begins to cool - at least in the mornings - I have started to do some of the tasks in the garage that we have been putting off. I did a lot of research on storage solutions for the garage and the best option for us was to get portable racks instead of getting built-in closets. Although the built-ins would be a cleaner look, they are more expensive and they must stay with the house. The racks can go with us if/when we leave this house. The scorpion situation has planted a doubt in our minds about the long term prospects of staying in this house, even though we love everything else about it. Anyway, the garage project is underway.

I assembled all five of the racks in the garage before the temperature warmed up - to 94 in the afternoon. I am still waiting for the days when the highs reach 80 so that a full day can be spent on that project.

Our guests - Kristine and Justin - arrive today for the next week. We have a long list of places to go and events that we can enjoy while they are here. This is the main reason we bought the house that we did and was to be able to have family visit and have a place to stay with us. Stay tuned for a week full of fun activities and lots of pictures...

Visit and Dinner

We had a terrific visit with George and Cheryl yesterday and I have to start with an apology - we got caught up in the visit and didn't get a photo for today's entry.

The original plan was to have pizza brought in for dinner but the recommendation by the folks at the Pizzeria - LaPiazza Al Forno - was to eat at the establishment to get the full benefit of the great homemade taste and freshness. This opened up some other options for dinner and both Cheryl and Josie opted for an Italian entre in lieu of a pizza. George and I ordered personal pizzas. I never thought to take a photo during the meal, and we were watching the President's Cup golf tournament at the house where I again forgot to get a snapshot. I'll take double pictures next time. It was fun catching up on our summer activities and family updates.

Next up on our schedule is the visit by Kristine and Justin which begins this Saturday - tomorrow. We are ready for that visit except for filling in the schedule with some fun places to go during the week. The Arizona State Fair opens next Friday, so that probably will be one event for the schedule. There are other places we are considering, but will run those by Kristine and Justin before scheduling them. Whatever we schedule, it will be nice to spend the week with them...

Better Shots

We did some re-arranging of our outdoor furniture and then took a few more shots of the changes. They are a bit better than the ones shown previously, and give a better idea of how the changes affect our backyard:

 



Of course, there is nothing better than seeing the changes first hand, so come visit us!

We went around to a few places to return the leftover materials from our backyard project. That involved visits to Home Depot, Lowe's and a landscaping place called Pioneer that is not too far from us. The returns amounted to over a hundred dollars, so it was worth the trips.

Our attention now is focused on preparing for our expected guests - George and Cheryl today, and Kristine and Justin on Saturday. There are some things that need to be moved around inside and in the garage to provide more room in the bedroom closets and to better organize the garage. The garage will never be organized, but at least we might be able to locate things a little easier...

Landscaper Done

We finally have the backyard done to where the landscaper was sent on his way. He didn't show up until 11:30 after saying the day before that he would be here at 8 AM. Of course, he arrived in time for the storm to arrive and he completed the work during a .75" rainstorm. I settled up with him and he packed up his tools and the trash and left by 4 PM. I have some shots that show the transition. These are before and after shots of the areas we changed:

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

 

 

 

I'm not happy with the shots we have so far, so I will get some better ones today when we get it all set up the way it will be. There are still some modifications that we want to make, especially with the grass. The important thing is that the hard work is done and the landscaper is gone.

 

Our scorpion treatment had to be rescheduled for later this week as the rain washed out that activity. There was no sense applying the chemicals in the rain and taking a chance on them being ineffective.

 

George and Cheryl are coming over to the house for the first time on Thursday. Between their trip over the summer to Oregon and my surgeries, this is the first real chance we've had to get together. It looks like the weather will be fabulous, so we look forward to a nice visit...







Dodged a Bullet

The Seahawks dodged a bullet last night on Monday Night Football. They barely beat a huge underdog Detroit Lions team, 13-10. Their defense is superb, but the offensive line is not up to championship quality. I'm afraid that if the offensive line doesn't improve its protection for Russell Wilson, it will be a long season for the Seahawks.

Our landscaper has just about driven us crazy. He once again showed up toward the end of the day - when neither of us was home - and did practically nothing to our yard. We are so disappointed in the way this has turned out and are sorry we gave this guy a chance to start his own business. He works hard - when he works. His quality of work leaves a lot to be desired. Our goal now is to get the job as close to being acceptable as possible and settle up with him to get him out of here. Our yard will still look 100 times better than it did, though.

I had a recurrence of my "check engine" light problem on the Jeep which is where I was yesterday afternoon. The problem this time was the battery, and after a $125 battery replacement, I was on my way. The Jeep only has 64K miles on it, so I hope to get some more miles out of it before making a change.

Our second - and final - scorpion treatment is scheduled for today between 1-4 pm. We hope that our landscaper can get all the trash and debris out of the yard in time for the treatment. This is important for our sanity...

Home Show

The Maricopa County Home Show was at the Fairgrounds in Phoenix over the weekend. The only chance we had to go was yesterday as Josie had to work on Friday and Saturday. We could have stayed home. First of all, I cannot believe that Phoenix, as hot as it is, conducts any kind of public show in conditions without air conditioning. We found ourselves hurrying through the buildings and exhibits in order to get outside for some air, and eventually, back to our car and air conditioning. The vendors and the customers were all fanning themselves and  trying to find where the fans were located and where the "misters" were located. Also, the exhibits were mostly the same as there were many vendors selling the same stuff. It was a large show, and one that should have been held in air conditioned facilities, or during the cooler winter months.

Our "flakey" landscaper showed up in the morning to water down the pavers and to inform us that he wouldn't be working yesterday. He needed to pick up a check from us to buy some materials to complete the grass portion of the project and to finish the coating on the pavers and run some water lines to new plants. It is really going to be nice when it is all done. We are hoping that today is the final day for this project.

We had another episode with a scorpion yesterday afternoon. It seems that we are being treated every day to a visit by these creatures. All of our neighbors also have the problem which is a huge mystery. There are no mountains or foothills around us which is a natural place for them to be. There are some agricultural areas which must be the explanation. All we know is that the number of episodes is beginning to wear us down. The one yesterday was discovered in our bathroom near the closet door. Most of the ones in the house have been in our bedroom and bathroom area. At any rate, we have decided to "freeze" any more improvements to the house until we get our arms around this scorpion problem...

Nearing Completion

We made some strides yesterday toward completion of the backyard project. It has been a real experience working with this landscaper and I will be happy when it is all done. It becomes more obvious every day that he is new at handling these projects, but he has to begin somewhere. He is a very hard worker and is gaining the experience, but I have to watch every step he makes. Here is a  shot of the extended patio area that is nearly complete:

 The grass area at the other end of the pool will also be completed today following the completion of the patio. I'll have shots of the entire project - probably tomorrow. In addition to the hard-scape that is being done, we made some changes in the plants and the water lines have to be installed for those changes when everything else is done.

Along with standing watch over the backyard project, we have football on TV today to occupy our time. Josie isn't crazy about the football, but she is also anxious to get the back finished so that we can finally spread out our furniture and enjoy the outside.

There were no new sightings of scorpions yesterday...

Stirring the Nest

I neglected to mention that the other day, while the landscaper was picking up the pavers that we brought from Lake Peasant, he saw 4 scorpions under the bottom pavers. The treatment we had obviously didn't include the underside of the stacks of pavers, so it was not unexpected. What was unexpected was the one that I discovered on our ceiling by the back door yesterday:

It wasn't more than three feet from the doorway and I have no idea how it ended up where it did. I sprayed it with the scorpion liquid we bought at Lowe's and it dropped to the floor - dead. I'm sure that the activity outside has probably resulted in the scorpions that are remaining to move around and find new homes. We are sick of scorpions.

The work is progressing in the back yard and there is one small problem that was discovered. The new pavers I bought to make up the difference in what we had versus what we needed to finish the job are a different shade. They are the identical pavers except the ones we brought from Lake Pleasant are sun bleached from sitting outside for the last two years baking in the sun. The new ones will eventually fade to the same color, but in the meantime, it looks strange having the two shades of pavers. This is the status of the project:

I will get some shots of the total project when it is completed which will be either today or tomorrow - hopefully. The landscaper comes and goes on his own schedule, so I never know when to expect him. He needs to bring in another two tons of sand and I already bought some extra grass for him to use. The end is in sight...