Sand Castle Competition – Ocean Shores, Washington

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.
Because we have 4,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

My RVing lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

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The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails Oceana RV Resort in Ocean City, Washington. I’ll be here until July 2nd.

Last Saturday a sand castle competition was held on the beach at Ocean Shores. The weather was perfect. Brilliant sunshine, 75 degrees with a brisk breeze coming off of the ocean.

Here are some of the photos I took…

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…

 

To see the other 26 photos that I took, click the below photo…

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sand Castle Competition – Ocean Shores, Washington

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hope you enjoyed the photos!

 Yesterday was mostly cloudy and 62 degrees. Forecast for today is mostly cloudy and 63 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

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

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity 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

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

There are more than 600 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://picasaweb.google.com/jimjrver

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

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet 2016

Chain Saw Competition – Ocean Shores, Washington

Mary is no longer available for RV traveling, but we remain good friends.
Because we have 4,000+ postings, I’ve invited her to continue posting entries on this blog.

My RVing lifestyle is changing, For more info click Here

---

The motorhome is parked at Thousand Trails Oceana RV Resort in Ocean City, Washington. I’ll be here until July 2nd.

Last Saturday a chain saw competition was held in the parking lot of the Convention Center at Ocean Shores.

There were also dozens of arts/crafts vendors on the parking lot and filling the interior of the Convention Center.

It was a difficult photo situation with brilliant sunshine and cluttered backgrounds.

Here are some of the photos I took…

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…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To see the other 38 photos that I took, click the below photo…

 

 

 

 

Chainsaw Competition – Ocean Shores, Washington

 

 

 

 

 

I hope you enjoyed the photos!

 Yesterday was cloudy/sunny and 65 degrees. Forecast for today is cloudy/sunny and 65 degrees.

Enjoying nice weather is another joy in the life of a full-time RVer!

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

Enjoying 65-75 degree temperatures with low humidity 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

My current travel rig is a 2006 Fleetwood 26′ Class A Motorhome and a towed 1986 Ford Bronco II, Eddie Bauer Model. This photo was taken in the desert at Slab City near Niland, California…

On October 27, 2012, I created a two-minute video titled America The Beautiful. The music America The Beautiful is by Christopher W. French. The photos, which I randomly selected, are from the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Montana, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Tennessee, Washington and West Virginia (not shown in that order)…are mine. Yup, That’s me standing in front of the Post Office in Luckenbach, Texas…Y’all!

Click this link to start the video. Make sure you have your speakers turned on and go to full screen asap.
http://youtu.be/FfZUzEB4rM8

If you would like to see my YouTube videos, click this link… http://www.youtube.com/user/JimJ1579/videos

There are more than 600 photo albums in my Picasa Web Albums File. To gain access, you simply have to click this link… https://picasaweb.google.com/jimjrver

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

For more information about my books, click this link:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/panamaorbust

All original works copyrighted – Jim Jaillet 2016

KEENLAND RACETRACK 2

Yesterday, we concentrated on the barns at Keeneland Race Track, the workers washing, walking and prepping their animals. We met owner/trainer Greg Burchell and the type of affection and dedication you see among horses and their humans. Above a beautiful, graceful animal with two hundred years of breeding and pedigree enters the track. Follow along with us and watch through our lens.

Notice two different types of saddles. The trainer has a conventional saddle, the exerciser behind him, has a light weight, practically bareback saddle. Trainers often ride a different breed of horse while training. They amble onto the track and discuss what expensive, precious horse needs to focus on.

The exercisers cantor and post around the track until the horse is warmed up.

The position of the feet is high on the saddle. The rider is positioned as though sitting in a chair.

Then they get moving.

Then they get moving a bit faster.

There is a good bit of camaraderie among the exercisers, but for the most part, it is a solitary task between horse and human.

Grace on the move. This rider carries a short whip and may be training her charge to the whip, though we watched and didn’t see her use it.

At times the exercisers work together, imitating a race.

Of course, what we like to see is those special moments when the horses are hell-bent for leather, but our cameras and our skills at photographing fast moving objects are somewhat limited but I got a few credible moments.

The trouble is, if you catch the horse just gathering for the next lengthening of those legs, it looks like he is going to land on his bent ankles or toss his rider in some other pictures I took.

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They’re flying.

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We walked and took pictures the length of the track. This is right in front of the grandstand. It was hard to leave, so fun and so beautiful.

We did though. We ran into Jim Cornes, an animal physical therapist. A much-needed guy on a race track. I asked him how he got interested in healing horses and he said his mother took him to Saratoga Race Track to watch the races. He was young and small and thought he’d like to be a jockey. His mother read all the horror stories about jockey injuries and kept discouraging any thought of it until she began to realize how much money they make. But, then he grew about two feet and the point was moot. He is addicted to the race track atmosphere, the horses the excitement. Can’t beat that if you love your job.

There is always an equine ambulance near the track, even during everyday exercises and training. It lowers at the back like a moving van.

Jim and I wandered into the grandstand and looked around. No racing now, so everything is empty.

A one minute lesson on how it is done.

People come here to bet the races from all over the country when and watch from these television screens. This is called simulcasting. It is very popular and it would have been nice to mingle with the crowds. Maybe another track someday.

A beautiful building.

Like an ivy covered college.

Two-hundred pound cement jockies carry the colors for the racers for that day so a bettor can identify his horse from the color of his “silks” from the worst, and highest seat in the grandstand.

We had a wonderful time at the track. Very cool!

THE COOKIE FACTORY

Peg Bracken, noted cook and cook book author, claims the best way to keep cookies is in a can marked Rat Poison. I wouldn’t go that far, but it is tempting to save your favorite ones for a later time when you can savor them the more.

Doug arrived first and we made room for his tins. He has several to deliver to the neighbors since I’ve given over the cookie baking to the kids.

Then Laurie unloaded her stash of tins and bags until there was no room.

But, somehow, we stacked tins and Virginia unloaded her treasures.

The many types are the result of Doug trying to out-do Virginia and Vice-Versa. Laurie brings the family favorites and adds something new each year, which happened to be gluten free almond chai cookies and marzipan stollen, so the list goes on and grows. With 22 different kinds of cookies, Virginia wryly commented, the ratio of cookie bakers to cookie eaters is out of kilter with four cookie eaters missing. She was referring to Daughter Kristannne, her husband and two boys who were unable to come for Christmas because of their son Alec’s work schedule.

The cookie factory started years ago when I made cookies with the kids, and sometimes the neighbor kids, allowing them to cut and decorate sugar cookies with paint brushes and bowls of colored frosting.

We traded painted cookies each year with the Evans/Dollar family and one year Joanne Evans said enough, and brought a variety of yummy cookies that didn’t have to be decorated. A nurse, she worked full-time,  often with duty hours during the holidays.  So, the cooky factory got started with more and more different types of cookies, easier to make and better tasting.

It is hard to pick a favorite, but, you might try this one:

1 8oz. package dates chopped., 1/2 cup firmly pkd. brown sugar, 1/2 cup butter, 1/2 cup orange juice, 1 tsp. grated fresh orange rind. Cook first five ingredients over low heat, stirring until slightly thickened. Remove from stove and cool a bit.

Beat in two eggs, 2 1/4 cups flour that has 1 tsp salt and 3/4 tsp. of baking soda mixed in it. Add a 16 oz. package of chocolate chips, and 1 cup chopped walnuts and stir.  Drop by rounded spoonfuls  2 inches apart on ungreased sheets. Bake at 375* ten minutes. Remove at once to cool.ing racks.  Makes 3 dozen. If you cool the ingredients a lot, the chocolate chips stay chunky. If you leave the batter quite warm, the chips get melty. I like them melty.

Ciao!

TOUR OF CALIFORNIA 2012

There was a time when  the Motherlode made national or statewide news only when something sensational happened, such as the Valley Springs rancher who  got arrested for drunk driving on his horse;  or the time a guy swallowed his bar mate’s gold nugget at the Murphys Hotel Bar.

Shoot, things have changed. Yesterday, the Capitol Christmas tree started its trip to the White House.  And, Assemblywoman Kristin Olsen unveiled a sign surrounded by about one-hundred  bikers that the Amgen Tour of California, a major biking event, is scheduled to have its fourth leg start in Sonora.  Mayor Canning, with city and county leaders, planned  to bring the tour to Sonora  for several months. They just learned they’ve been accepted this week.

The fourth leg will begin in Sonora and end in the City of Clovis in Fresno County.  The start for Sonora is expected to be mid-May.  Not only bikers, and their entourage, but friends follow this event all over the state.  A local member of the Gold Chain Cycling Club, David Bowman, expressed his opinion that cycling is a way of life, not just a sport. The ride will begin in Santa Rosa, followed by a ride across the famous Golden Gate Bridge, through San Francisco and on to Santa Cruz.  Third stage will begin in San Jose and end in Livermore.  It is a competition. The time trial will be held in Bakersfield, then on to Palmdale,  Big Bear Lake, Ontario and Mt. Baldy.  The race will finish in Los Angeles on May 20th.

I’d love to follow that event. What fun. It would even be better if I could bike it, but that is not in the cards. Not only would I not be capable, but it  is an elite competition regarded as a testing ground for top-tier riders who plan to compete in the Tour de France in June.  Wow!
I wonder how an extreme biker would do in an event like this?  Fascinating to watch You have to watch a 30 second ad to see this amazing video.  check it out on the following link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch_popup?v=Cj6ho1-G6tw&vq=medium