A Lot of Work

Finally, today they began laying the concrete to complete our driveway and pour the foundation for our workshop and carport. The first workers showed up just before 7 am, way before the sun came up.

It was over half an hour later when the cement truck arrived. After the truck was backed in, they had to assemble the shoot to direct the cement to the proper area.



The concrete filled the footers for the walls and then they filled the deeper spots that will support the columns at the front of the car port.



The workers were very neat--taping up paper on the walls of our house so there wouldn't be spots of concrete stuck there. Later, they even used some wet paper towel to clean up some spots on the walls.





This is the cement truck driver, turning the flow of concrete on and off.



After they finished pouring the workshop floor, it was time to start smoothing the concrete.



The cement truck drove off about half an hour after it arrived. But, that doesn't mean the day's work was done. The men were working for nearly 8 hours, the last one leaving about 4 pm. Part of that time, they did a lot more work making the workshop floor really smooth. Finally, they removed the forms around the floor and the supports for the carport columns. They also graded the driveway and put the forms in place for much of that area to be poured tomorrow.

We had no idea how much work goes into pouring an RV slab, a driveway, the floor of the carport, the workshop floor and footings. These men--some probably in their late teens, others up to maybe 40+--work really hard physically. And they know how to do things I haven't got a clue about. I know some people install their own driveways, even build their own homes. There is no way John and I would know how to do that. We have learned a lot about construction in the past 10 years of volunteering. But these fellows have knowledge we lack.

I am reminded that all kinds of skills and abilities are needed to make our lives good.

I will post about the rest of the work on our front yard later.

Hiking with Friends

Tuesday we met blogger friends Jim and Gayle for a hike on the Hieroglyphic Trail in the Superstition Mountains. We have been on the trail several times, but they had never hiked in that area. It is a beautiful part of the Sonoran Desert.

As we hiked up the trail, a woman was coming back toward us, carrying a very small puppy. What a friendly, and really cute, animal. Jim and Gayle spent some time saying hello.

We had some rain in the past week or two, so there were pools below the heiroglyphics.

The hieroglypics are on the rocks on the other side of the pools. Both John and I were using our camera phones and didn't get very good photos of them.

When we hiked this trail in 2011, I got some really good pictures of them. You can see them here.

After our hike, Jim and Gayle followed us back to our new house. We showed them around, the went across the street to Rosati's Pizza for a good lunch and more good conversation. It was a great day.

Brrrr! But Beautiful

It snowed! Here in Gold Canyon, Arizona! On our truck! That really isn't fair. And it is really cold. The low this morning was 30 degrees. Yes, I know. It is a lot colder in most of the country. But we came to southern Arizona to escape the cold. This is what our truck looked like yesterday morning.

That wasn't pretty. But the nearby Superstition Mountains were beautiful.

If we live through this (and I am sure we will), it is supposed to be in the 60s by Sunday with lows above freezing. Ahhhh. That is what we expect when we come here for the winter.

2014--By the Numbers

It has been quite a year for us. Frankly, I don't have enough time or energy to review what we have done and where we have been. But I love statistics, so I did pull together that sort of information about the year just past.

This blog makes 152 for the year. That is a lot of writing and a great way for me to record our lives. Tomorrow, I will use Blog to Print to pull those posts into a bound book of memories. (If you are interested in doing the same, let me know. If I send you a referral and if you use it, I get a little bit off my book.)

We traveled all summer.  I have kept track of how many miles we towed the RV, a well as how many miles we drove without it. We covered a total of 14,477 miles which included 7515 towing miles and 6811 miles without the RV. We covered a lot of miles in our summer travels, but when I look at the total of 14,000+ I realize that for the whole year, it wasn't a lot. I think I drove that much just commuting when I was working. And I think 15,000 is the average number of annual miles for many people.

During our travels, we visited 15 states and stayed in 41 campgrounds. That is the dry overview of the year. If you want to see the interesting overview, you can reread the blog. And please, come along for the events of 2015.

About Finished

We are about finished--infusing cash into the Arizona economy, that is. Since arriving in early October, we have bought a house, contracted to have the concrete paving and a workshop/storage room built, bought furniture, dishes, silverware and many more items so we could live in the home.

Today, we purchased a set of kitchen knives and pans. That allows us to return pans and knives to our RV. We did not want to have to transfer dishes, pans and other kitchen equipment back and forth when we came to Arizona for the winter or left for our summer travels. Believe me, Bed, Bath and Beyond has been really happy we came to town this year.

On top of all this, yesterday I became eligible for an upgrade to my iPhone. So, guess what I bought today. An iPhone 6+. It will be so fun to use and I will be able to really read the email and websites on the new, larger screen. My phone is the one we use most when we are out and about and the new, larger screen will really help.

Now it is time for someone else to take over support of the local economy. Just about the only thing we still need for the house are a couple of ceiling fans.

Motoring of Old

Earlier this month, we were in beautiful downtown Apache Junction when we noticed a display of old cars. I especially liked this really old Chevy truck. It was made in 1939, before I was born.  It is really old.

And this older VW from 1973 is neat. Look at the sunshade (I guess) over the headlight.


The inner works of some cars had really been spruced up. This is a 1949 Meteor Club Coupe.

And look at this vehicle. It is different.

When we returned to the resort, we watched a Model T Ford drive in the front gate. Then another. And another.

We decided to find out what was going on. We learned that the East Valley Model T Club was having dinner here in the ballroom. How fun.  As you can see above, the cars were decorated for Christmas. Here in another decorated one.

This owner put a bow on the windshield--after he parked.

Best Christmas Lights

Thursday evening we went to Mesa with David and Alice for dinner at Waldo's BBQ and to see the Mormon Temple Christmas Lights. Their annual display is the best and most elaborate we have ever seen.

You can't beat this reflection photo of the temple.

This outdoor nativity scene is wonderful and there is a continuous narration of the Biblical story of Jesus' birth.

Each evening a different area group provides a Christmas concert. The Red Mountain High Singers  were performing the night we were there. The young people are very good.

We also visited the light display last year. If you would like to see even more photos, you can look at the blog I did then.

Inside the visitor center, they have a collection of nativity sets from around the world. It is so interesting to see how different cultures and artists celebrate their faith in Jesus' birth.

They had a similar display last year, with different nativity sets. You can see some of them here.

In case you want some special effects, look at what happens if you move your camera while directing it at Christmas lights. Oops, but interesting.