Baker, Louisiana – Day 3

Note: Mary flew from Baton Rouge Airport, Louisiana yesterday to her home in California. I’m hoping to get her back with me by mid-April. My current plans are to stay here for a few days and then start SLOWLY drifting north along the Mississippi River to Memphis, Tennessee where I’ll then turn northeast heading for New England. Can’t go north too fast because it’s still cold up there!
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The motorhome is currently parked at VFW Post #4224 in Baker, a few miles north of Baton Rouge.

Yesterday I drove the Bronco the about five miles to the Baton Rouge Airport…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

On the way back to the motorhome, I stopped by to visit American Legion Post #503…

During my one hour visit I enjoyed meeting and talking with Steve, Duke, Al and Commander Robert. A great bunch of fun guys…

They gave me a souvenir license plate…

 

Enjoying meeting fellow veterans is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

The red dot on the below map shows our approximate location in the State of Louisiana. You may double left-click the map to make it larger…

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures most of the year is a primary joy in the RVing lifestyle!

“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving”…Albert Einstein

If you have not checked out my Ramblin Man’s Photos Blog, you can do so by clicking this link…
http://ramblinmanphotos.wordpress.com/

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2013
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Heron Lake State Park, New Mexico – Day 1

Yesterday Mary caught the 7:00 AM Albuquerque Airport Shuttle from Farmington, New Mexico. Here she is with her baggage. You cannot see that she is wearing a large backpack. I just chuckled at her load…all the stuff she had collected and bought in the last several weeks…

As always you may left click upon an image to see an enlarged view and then click once again to see an even larger view…

Shortly thereafter I fired up the motorhome to begin the about 130 mile drive to Heron Lake State Park. Along the way I passed though Dulce (in Spanish means sweet) Valley…

I made the trip in just four hours including being delayed about 30 minutes for road repair delays…

I’m pleased that I was able to make the drive without using the small pillow between my seat belt and right rib cage area. I’ve had to that while driving since the May 27th accident. I hope that’s a sign that I’m healing.

Upon arriving I found a nice large level site…

This is my view from the dinette window…

I’ve got a good Internet/cell phone signal and an electrical hookup so I can have air-conditioning (83 degrees yesterday)…so life is good!

In other news…

Mary got replaced by our bathroom door…kinda-sorta!

She used to help me in applying the elastic bandage around my chest that I’ve needed since the accident. But now that she’s gone, how am I going to properly apply the bandage? There’s an old saying…necessity is the mother of invention. I had Mary take these photos before she departed. The process now involves locking the end of the bandage in the bathroom door and “rolling” myself in to it…

I’m pleased to report that I  had a good nights sleep and feeling good this morning. I’ve only got a five-day supply of my codeine-based pain medication left. After that I’ll be on just the Ibuprofen. I’m hoping by time I leave here (expecting that will be 14 days),..I’ll have gotten sufficient rest and recuperation that I’ll no longer have to wear the elastic bandage.

While here, I’m planning just to take life easy, get lots of rest and get out for some nice walks and photography.

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2012
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

Mary Returns to Me…

After an absence of 48 days back at her home in California to take care of taxes and other business, Mary has returned to me. I met her at the Albuquerque, New Mexico airport yesterday afternoon.

Today she’ll start reviewing the Albuquerque visitors guide magazine to decide what we’ll be seeing and doing in the next 10 or so days. Mary is a very artsy kind of gal and Albuquerque is an artsy kind of city, so whatever she decides should make her happy.

Seeing and doing fun and interesting things is one of the primary purposes of being on the road!

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2012
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

It Appears More Adjustments Will Be Necessary…

Yesterday I departed the Moose Lodge #2241 and went to the Workhorse Chassis repair facility about one mile away. The ABS light on the motorhome would not go out. I had such an interesting experience there that I want to cover it in a separate Blog entry real soon.

In yesterday’s Blog entry I indicated I was moving to VFW Post #401 near the airport where I’ll be meeting Mary one week from today. The proximity to Interstate Highway 40 at the Moose Lodge made it far too noisy for sleeping.

I arrived at the VFW Post in mid-afternoon and got settled in…

The locals tell me that Albuquerque ranges from 5,000 feet in elevation at the Rio Grande River valley to 7,000 feet on the eastside…which means it’s a little difficult to find a level parking spot. After surveying the VFW parking lot this was the levelest spot I could determine and settled in. However…all is not ideal.

The first thing is the weather. Albuquerque temperatures are at near all time highs. Yesterday at 84 degrees it was really hot! The forecast for today is 86 and tomorrow is 88. YUK! Which means I need to leave all the windows and vents open.

About 150 feet behind where I’m standing when I took the above photo is a busy four lane city street which gives off a substantial amount of noise.

But…here’s the real problem. To the left of the trees in the above photo is commercial storage facility. The VFW Post itself is in an industrial business complex. All this means I’m in a commercially zone area and not a residential zone. Last evening/night…in the commercial storage area to the left…there are apparently two young “musicians” and I use the term very loosely. They apparently are very dedicated and I’m told by the locals practice every night from 6:00 PM to after midnight. Last night they quit at 12:30 AM. There’s only two…one plays a bass guitar and the other plays the drums. Their “music” sounds very angry…hard/acid rock?…and they play it at full amplified volume! Not a good thing for an old guy like me!

So, what am I going to do about this situation? I don’t know at this moment. I really like the fact that the VFW Post is within locked security gates at night…so I’ll try to figure out something that will allow me to stay here.

A little later this morning I’ll survey the parking area on the other side of the building and see if I can find a spot that will somewhat move me away from the volume of the road noise and the “music”.

Have I ever told you I really do not like being in big cities? I’m sure I have! If I didn’t have to meet Mary one week from today…you can be bet I’d be a loooong way away from here!

All original material Copyright – Jim Jaillet 2012
For more information about my three books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust