Lets All Move To The Fun Side Of The Island!!!

Over all, I am happy enough to invite you over and launch the new site. Remember, I am still fiddling, but I think you are more likely to be able to help me find little tweak points anyway, so without further adieu, at least on this site, I give you my new location:

Please change your bookmarks to

lifeonourark.sicottepress.ca

Bye Bye. See you on the fun side....

Rain Again

I think that the area has now tripled the usual annual rainfall for the year, and we haven't hit the rainy season (near the end of summer).

Again the roof was drumming out a sleepy rhythm through the night. We had a bit of a lull, and a tiny patch of sun, but now being 2 pm, we are hearing rumbles of thunder.

We again have a huge puddle across the drive path near the red water tower.

This morning I noticed that the waterfall had returned, and again the reservoir by which we are residing has a really intriguing brown on green patterning going on.

I still declare this to be the best worst weather we have yet experienced. It was rather amusing as we did an exploratory drive seeing people out with toques and gloves. Now come on, it's not that bad!!

So we first wanted to see if Skunk Hollow was swimming again, and it was, though not nearly as bad as previously, then we decide that since there was not much else to do, we explored some of the side roads along Senator's Wash Road. We found Coyote Ridge, and a few other mesas and such places, but they were all a bit isolated for our liking.

I am enclosing some shots of both the aftermath of the wet, and some of the explored regions.

The Blogger version of this post has a few less pictures, but please revisit the post once I go live on the new page (really soon, I hope) as it is much easier to include a photo gallery in the new format. (The rain is starting again...)

Anyway, I am working really hard to get the new site ready for launch so bear with my less frequent posts. We are almost there.

But for now,

Adieu

The Start of Something New

I am in the process of setting up a new site for Life On Our Ark. It is an exciting step, and it is going to take just a bit longer, but I think any of you that are following will approve of the change.

By switching sites, I am moving into the less confined space of a self-owned site. This will also solve the issues I have been having with linking, photo limits, and layout.

I am just making sure the archives are accurate, and then I will post the relocation site. Hang in there as I focus on getting it right and then come on over to the "fun side of the island" - (Marty from Madagascar).

In the meantime, just for small talk's sake, it is interesting to watch as some of the locals have starting hiking across the mud flats. The water level has been down for about 2 weeks now, and it is not as moist as it was, so you can walk without sinking in. I am looking forward to the water level increasing.

I am rather surprised with all the rain we have had that the farmers feel the need to flood the fields when new crops have been planted. It seems that the fields have new crops in about every month and a half. It is quite a change from the Canadian standard. I think the most I have seen in a season is about 3 crops, and that was in the "lotus land" of Victoria where the season is much longer.

(One day later the lake is finally up to full status again.)

Anyway, I will bid you

Adieu.

Reminded OF Two Oldie Songs :-)

As I sit here listening to yet another unseasonal weather pattern - stormy, rainy winds with possible thunder and lightening, I am recalling a song I remember on the charts when I was much younger - I don't think I had even found a second digit in my numbering yet.

It was Albert Hammond's "It Never Rains In Southern California" To be more accurate, it came out in 1972, saying something along the lines of "it never rains, but it pours". (It is actually about the struggles of an artist trying to break into fame, but that one line rings as I sit here in Southern California ... serenaded by the melodious sound of wailing wind, and the patter of drops rhythmically striking the rubber roof of our cozy home. )

Which reminds me, I said I would show you my desert lawn. I remind you that the metaphor I gave to describe it was a young teen's beard.

Here is my lawn .....

(No, really, look close, there really is green there) :-)

The second song has found a new meaning that was never intended by the Doobie Brothers - "Black Water". Now, RVers of any persuasion - from weekend journeyer to full timer - can fully appreciate the humouristic feeling this classic song evokes as you stand by the driver side of your chosen mobile domicile, bending with a 3 inch hose and assorted attachments.

While connecting, perhaps to blue boy, perhaps to sewer connections at a full service site, or perhaps the middle ground, a public dump site, you find yourself quietly humming to yourself, or perhaps recalling the poignant lyrics, " Old Black Water, keep on rollin'....."

Like I said, it doesn't seem to be quite what the Doobie Brothers had in mind, but hey, it lightens the effect of the overbearing aroma that accompanies that particular activity.

In the words of the memorable governess/nanny, Mary Poppins, "A spoon full of sugar helps the medicine go down."

And so, having planted two pleasantly hummable tunes in as many heads as I could reach (and perhaps one more childlike, but pleasant one), I bid you

Adieu

The Best of The Worst

I sit here enjoying more of the best of the worst experiences which we seem to excel at over the last 4 years.

Clarifier: There hasn't yet been a place that we have come to that hasn't had the locals / regular visitors declare that "this is the worst weather we have had in years".

This particular version of worst has had about a week, or two tops of rainy days dispersed between 3 months, the coldest has never hit freezing, and I have never been inclined to wear more that a sweater and a light shell for weatherproofing.

If we are really lucky, the worst will continue in that the temperature won't exceed the high 80s before the end of March. (Much as we aren't fond of the cold, neither are we inclined to the fast approach of extended periods in the triple digits.)

So today's installment of worst weather included a wind storm that was moderate, with clouds. "We should be able to avoid precipitation, however......." , sayeth the weather prognosticator.

.... I took Midnight out for his morning business trip, and thought I had felt a drop. Not likely though, we aren't getting rain. I got the leash off and entered, closed the door, and then heard the torrent break loose. The dry wind predicted made the ground suspiciously wet is an amazingly short period of time.....

I do qualify this inclement arrival with the understanding that although I strongly would recommend a lined jacket once the dryness was being over-ridden, but while tending to canine inclinations, I was quite comfortable in a t-shirt.

Like I say, this is definitely the best worst weather we have yet encountered. Perhaps we shall return next year. - How bad can it get? ( As she quickly dashes around the rig desperately seeking real wood to touch. How much can one person tempt the elements, making a statement like that right out there for the whole world to view in cyberspace???!!!!!?) Never fear, my fate is in greater hands than even nature itself ;-)

So what on earth do you do on a day like that ... Just for something different, we went to town. No, wait a minute, it's just a rerun. I can't wait for the new season of this show to start!!

Nonetheless, progress was made. We got an air filter for the truck, picked up some bolts for various projects, picked up a magnetic CB arial (useful for communication on the ridge. You no longer require a license for them, so it provides longer range than walkie-talkies, and cheaper than cell phone minutes - especially if you are convoying on a cross country journey, but I digress.....), and some groceries.

All things considered, life is pretty good right now. :-)

Adieu

Model Air Show, Yuma Arizona

We went to see the Yuma Model Air Show today, and really enjoyed it. When we arrived, they were just launching the red jet and it put on quite of show.

The jet uses real jet fuel, and has a real scale size jet engine. It holds enough fuel for 8 minutes of flight time. It is capable of amazing speed, but is legally restricted to a speed of 200 mph. Watching it zoom by was amazing. It also did some maneuvering that clearly defined the caliber of the pilot guiding it.

Then they called the pilots to assemble their planes on the runway so that the crowd could view them up close.

Shortly after that break, they launched This plane:

It is a relatively simple craft, except that its under carriage is rigged for the fellow lying on its wings.

It can hold up to 3 paratroopers, and the fellow who owns the plane has a friend who runs the plane so that once he releases the paratroopers (I believe one at a time) he remotely controls them while the friend continues to fly the plane.

For the run that we viewed, he only set one paratrooper, but earlier, he released 2.

The following shot is of a B 25 bomber. We didn't see it fly, but it was an impressive replication.

The following video clip is of a Yak. The pilot is performing an extremely advanced maneuver called a prop stand.

We quite enjoyed the event. Less formal activities are continuing tomorrow. We however, will be staying up on the ridge. Again the laundry and sewer beckon.

Ah, well tomorrow is another day, so for now,

Adieu

Looking Ahead

I am not quite sure how we do it, but this week, we managed to have cause for a town trip every day. I do look forward to a day on the ridge..... but that will not be tomorrow....

Tomorrow, we are planning to go to the model air show just outside Yuma, in our direction. It promises to be quite an event, so I do hope we manage to go.

Our temperatures have been quite warm, climbing just across the 80s F, but the weekend is supposed to dip slightly and hold in the mid 70s. - great flying weather :-)

With any luck, we might actually hold ground for a couple days starting Sunday.

Having read up on some of blogs that I follow, I am catching a theme of "snowbirds prepping to return to their roosts."

Then I casually glance down at the calendar in the corner of my desktop, and shutter at the realization that in 6 to 7 weeks, we are starting the journey back. What happened, did I miss something? It has been a really good experience, and the additions to the ensemble to accommodate the more isolated outings has been a definite plus, but I am hopeful that we can return for a bit more exploration next winter as we were unable to this year.

We have to be back to Canada by April 12th, and we will be landing back in Sweetgrass Montana as we have an appointment in Okotoks that will take up 4 out of every 8 days for the following 5 1/2 months.

That should shock the system adequately - by then, Arizona/California should be hitting the mid to high 90s F, and occasionally tag into the 100s. Meanwhile, our arrival should in Alberta should find us shaking of the last few deposits of snow, and hoping that really soon it thaws enough to turn on the water supply.

The upside will be that shore power and individual sewer dump will be back in our world, and eventually the water will catch up when thawing permits, but it should jar the system somewhat, don't you think? :-)

Midnight has put a lot of though into this matter, and decided to get clipped now so that he will be cooler for the up coming warming trend, and yet have enough time to grow out his coat for the chilly return. He has also requested that the Easter Bunny bring him a winter coat. (We didn't tell him, but his wish was granted. It even has a nice collar that can be raised to protect the neck and back of the head while accommodating the leash through a slot - and it has 2 reflector bands, and is wind proof. - not bad for $15) I will get a shot of it later, but for now, use your mind's eye.

As for Glory, she has declared that as long as we ensure to keep the furnaces running at appropriate temperatures, she will allow the relocation of her house. She is only granted a window seat to the outside anyway.