15 Minute Photography Assignment #3

Three days ago I didn’t know I would be doing this. It all began while Mary was away babysitting her two grandsons…my chores were essentially done…and I had a lot of time on my hands. So I ventured out into Mary’s yard with my self-assignment of…take 15 photos in 15 minutes within a circle radius of 100 feet.

Today is my third day with the same assignment. This time all the photo were taken of/on my 1986 Ford Bronco II. I think these photos do a good job of illustrating how a photographer sees things that people who are not into photography miss as they walk through the world.

Reflections have always been a favorite subject of photographers…and I found a bunch. I urge you to click upon these 15 photos that I took in 15 minutes so that you may see them in their larger view…

It’s kind of unusual for me to have a lot of free time on my hands. I know I’m retired, but generally I’m on the go, places to see, people to meet, cleaning, preventative maintenance on both of our vehicles, a good book to read, etc… So, in the future, when I find myself in this mode…when finding something to write about for a daily Blog entry…that problem has been solved. I’ll just assign myself another 15 minute photography assignment and viola!…another blog entry.

I just love being a photographer and a full-time RVer. What a lucky guy I am!

13 days until my departure to the sunny and warm south land. Towards that departure date yesterday I drained, flushed and re-filled the hot water heater on the motorhome. We also started loading basic supplies aboard.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Single RVer Tow Car???

I’m sure you have seen an RV towing an automobile. As you have probably correctly guessed we use these as a satellite vehicle for miscellaneous chores such as shopping, laundry, sight-seeing, etc. We also use it for visiting places that would be impossible or at least inconvenient to bring the larger RV.

Here’s a photo of our RV with towed Ford Bronco II…

I was a single RVer for many years prior to meeting Mary three years ago. I wonder if this might be more practical for a single RVer???
http://www.theweeklydriver.com/smallest-production-car-ever-made-its-the-real-deal-peel/

I wonder if they make a 4…err…3 wheel drive model?

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

A Slow Day In Never-Never Land…

In yesterday’s Blog entry I described helping Mary with her yard sale…something which I swore 16 years ago I would never-never do again after departing my house to begin my full-time RVing lifestyle. Due to her inexperience with such matters..she made it a two-day event. Shoulda made it a one day thing as there were few customers yesterday.

Since it was so slow activity day…I decided to work on a couple of my to-do list items. First job was to put on a new steering wheel cover on my Bronco. After 25 years the sun was finally taking its toll…

Online I found and ordered a product called Wheelskins and went to work…

The directions said installation time was about 60 minutes. That’s if you know what you’re doing. In my case…being the meticulous type…installation proved to be three hours. The instructions also indicated “Tight is Right”…so after each stitch  you must pull very heartily to end up with a tight fit. My hands are still kind of sore this morning…but I’m pleased with the results. Good for another 25 years…

The second job of my day was changing out the rear-view camera on the motorhome. The company sent me a free replacement after I advised them that out unit had moisture inside of the glass covering the lens. I blame this on poor sealant techniques at the factory…so I went ahead and applied my own sealant on top of the factory sealant.

Hopefully we’ll have no more moisture-inside-of-the-camera problems.

When we completed our day…Mary said never-never again about her yard sale. Hopefully we will never-ever do another one again!

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Another Electrical Problem Pops Up…Excuse The Pun…

Or rather…the power door locks decided to stop opening (popping up) a few days back on my Ford Bronco II. In light of my Blog entry about one month ago…”It Helps To Be Technically Minded”… I thought I’d share this story with you.

After about an hour of cleaning electrical contacts…unplugging and plugging in the concerned solenoids..there are two of them…one for the locking and one for the unlocking functions…I finally decided it was a defective solenoid. I had replaced both of them about 1.5 years ago when I was in Pensacola, Florida.

So I stopped a NAPA Auto Parts and bought a new one. Buying electrical auto parts can be chancy…if you’ve guessed wrong. Once you’ve walked out of the door there is no returning them for a refund of your money. In my case the part number and diagram on the solenoid I was guessing was defective did not match the unit that the NAPA guy said was the right NAPA part…according to his computer.

Fortunately I guessed right and the NAPA guy was right. I installed the NAPA solenoid…doors now lock and unlock as the are meant to do. Another problem fixed. Shouldn’t electrical devices last longer than 1.5 years?

As discussed in the earlier Blog entry…by doing the repair myself I probably saved myself $120 an hour labor charge and a 100% mark-up on the $23 solenoid if I had gone to an auto repair shop. Instead I get to put that money into the motorhome gas tank and move on down the road!

In other news…

Yesterday we moved the motorhome the about 15 miles back to Thousand Trails RV Resort in Bow, Washington. They primary reason for the move was so that Mary can enjoy her daily swim in the Olympic-sized swimming pool here. We expect to be here for an eight-day stay.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust

Here’s Where We’ve Been…

for the last three days and nights while we waited for the repairs to my Ford Bronco II transmission to be accomplished by my friend/mechanic Mike…here in Monroe, Washington.Mike did the work at his home only a couple of miles from here. This place belongs to the Fraternal Order of Eagles and has about six RV parking spots in a park-like setting along a small river. It’s been a very nice, peaceful and enjoyable stay only a short walking distance from the small downtown.

But the work is now completed and so this morning we’ll depart for Thousand Trails RV Resort in La Connor, Washington for a brief four-day stay. The weather lately has been just delightful…70-75 degrees…sunny with a few scattered clouds and a very pleasant gentle breeze. The Weather Wimp…as my life-partner Mary calls me…has been a very happy camper! 

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust

The Repairs Are In Progress…

We are currently in Monroe, Washington where my friend/mechanic Mike is currently in the middle of accomplishing repairs to my Ford Bronco II. He removed the transmission yesterday and at about 2:30 PM he picked me up and we went to the auto parts store where I sprung for almost $200 in parts and supplies.

In this first photo you see my grease-covered transmission…

In this second photo is the transfer case and drive shaft…

In this third photo is the general repair area…

And finally Mike is beginning the de-greasing of the transmission exterior…

Today he will re-assemble everything and hopefully tomorrow morning Mary and I will once again be on the road again.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust

Is NASCAR Ready For This????

Here’s another unusual RV story…

http://www.rvvideos.com/2008/10/watch-out-nascar-here-comes-trailer.html

In other news…

Yesterday was a cleaning/laundry day. Today we’ll move about 60 miles south to Monroe, Washington to hook-up with my friend/mechanic Mike. During the next couple of days he’ll remove the transmission from my Ford bronco II…install new seals all around including the rear main seal of the engine…then re-install the transmission. If all goes well we expect to be back on the move on Thursday.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust

Yesterday Was A Good News Day…

in four different ways.

First…my new Sony Digital Camera…which replaces my factory defective camera sent to Sony for repair…arrived from Amazon in less than 24 hours after I placed the order…with no shipping charges to me. Amazing Amazon.com! I carefully inserted the memory card…took a couple of photos and it seems to be working fine.

Second…after five different phone calls to the Sony Repair Center in Laredo, Texas I finally got an Email with a Fedex tracking number. The un-repaired camera is scheduled to arrived by 4:30 PM today. Once it arrives…I’ll open the package to add the associated components and documents and then tomorrow ship the unit to Amazon…completing the replacement exchange.

Third…my friend/mechanic Mike in Monroe called last evening to tell me that he will have the time to do my Bronco transmission work for me. The transmission leaked some fluid last Friday after it got hot climbing Mt. Constitution on Orcas Island. While it’s not leaking at the moment….I’ve decided that because of the age and mileage on it…to replace all the associated seals. On Monday we will drive about 60 miles south to Monroe so Mike can do the job next week. I’d rather have him do it here…a person who I know and trust…rather than have it breakdown out on the open road and have to deal with an unknown transmission shop.

Fourth…last evening at dusk Mary and I took a walk to test the low-light capabilities of our new camera. Using the Anti-Blur setting…the one we will use in museums that do not allow flash photography…I took the below photos. After I ran them through Picasa…which I do with all my photos…they turned out just fine. If you left click them…they should be viewable in the larger size…

I would not have been able to take theses photos with my old Olympus camera without using a flash…which is a very harsh direct kind on light. The new camera…in this low-light setting…actually takes six shots…all at different exposures in one second…then combines then into one final photo. I’m most pleased with this first test of my new Sony DSC HX5V camera.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust

It All Began With These Two Wet Spots On The Ground…

last Friday when Mary I were heading out for our day trip to Orcas Island. As I backed the Bronco back out of our camping spot at Thousand Trails in Bow, Washington…there were…these two wet spots on the ground…Hmmmmm…

They were obviously fresh and must have come from my Ford Bronco II…that I tow behind the motorhome. The Bronco does not leak any fluids I thought to myself…what could be causing them? I had just had the oil changed at Jiffy Lube a couple of days ago…that must have something to do with it. Crawling underneath the vehicle I discovered that the oil pan drain plug was loose…they had not snugged it up with a wrench. Okay…fortunately I caught it…got out a wrench and snugged it up. Let’s get on with our day.

Later that afternoon we…in the Bronco…climbed Mt. Constitution on Orcas Island…five miles to an elevation of 2,409 feet. Exiting the Bronco I saw a wet trail on the asphalt…leading to under the Bronco. Looking underneath…I saw a fluid liberally leaking out on to the ground. Not a good situation! Further investigation revealed it was not oil…but transmission fluid! I checked the transmission fluid dipstick…nothing! Fortunately I had about 3/4′s of a quart of high-mileage transmission stop-leak left over from my old 1984 Ford Bronco II. Since I had no choice…down the mountain we went. About 15 mile later we came to a small town where I bought a quart of transmission fluid. Put in about 1/2 quart and managed to get us back to our motorhome…a distance of about 40 driving miles. Further evaluation indicates the front seal of the automatic transmission is tired and the guilty party. Online I manged to find out the average mileage for this occurrence is 127,224 miles…the odometer on my Bronco is 128,122…less than 1,000 miles above the average. Interesting.

So…what this story is finally getting to is that…it appears the transmission needs repairing. Yesterday we had planned to cross the Cascade Mountains and spend some time in the area around Leavenworth…a Bavarian-like town…and as such…kind of out in the toolies. Instead I’ve elected to stay in the more-populated western Cascade area where repair facilities are more available. So instead…we’ve to stay another week here.

I’ve placed a call to my friend/mechanic Mike in Monroe about 60 miles distant and he’s supposed to call me back soon to let me know if he can find the time to do the job. If not…I know a good transmission shop in Burlington that did work on my old 1984 Bronco…only about 10 miles from here.

All vehicles are basically mechanical/electrical devices and periodically need attention. Fortunately it’s something that a little time and money can easily fix. Better that it happened in this area than in the toolies!

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust

A Day Trip To Orcas Island, Washington – Part 2…

Last Friday…A day that started foggy and cool which turned into a delightful sunny and 71 degree day…I drove the Bronco II on to the Washington State Ferry Yakima…for the 50 minute trip to Orcas Island..part of the beautiful San Juan Islands of Puget Sound. We spent about five hours on the island savoring the abundant beauty.

Here is a Google Earth view of the area…

This illustration is from the below Wikipedia link. There are MANY smaller islands not shown…

Below are just a few photos. You can left click on each photo and they should open to a larger view…

Here we are arriving in the hamlet of Orcas…

Here is a view of the ferry landing as seen from a cafe deck…

On the cafe deck was a wooden replica of an Orca Whale…

First stop was at Rosario Resort (see below link) which was the mansion built in 1909 by Seattle shipbuilder magnate Robert Moran…

Old time photos direct you to the appropriate rest room…

Not a bad view with which to enjoy a meal…

Part of Robert Moran’s library atop an unusual fireplace mantel…

The music room…

Includes a huge organ..

Here’s another view of the music room…

Lot of colorful flowers here…

The Rosario Marina. We had lunch overlooking this view…

Then we moved on to the small artist’s hamlet of Olga…

Where I met this guy…

Here’s a local artist’s interpretation of an Orcas Island scene…

And another view…

From here we moved on to 2,409 foot high Mount Constitution…the highest point on Orcas Island.

Here are four links describing this paradise…

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orcas_Island

http://www.visitsanjuans.com/The-Islands/Orcas-Island/

http://www.orcasisland.org/

http://www.rosarioresort.com/

Tomorrow you get to see more photos that I took atop of the island. See you then…

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2011
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://lulu.com/panamaorbust