No Time!

I have not forgotten you but am suffering from the malady of exhaustion! We arrived safely in Salt Lake City after a couple night’s of boondocking; one a new spot for us with superb views that proved very quiet and peaceful despite being off I-15. And blessedly, the temperature had dropped from the previous night’s 104 near Las Vegas to a manageable 85 since we were at nearly 6500 feet.


Both Marc and I are struggling to get our bodies back into shape for the walking we’ve been doing; Marc is likely doing more than I but we’re both probably averaging at least four miles a day. Marc is working with his trainer in Park City and I am working with a different trainer on the far western side of SLC. It has been very tiring and hot, making it difficult to face all the studying we must do at night after work. Although the work isn’t hard, it is exact; with two large manuals of stuff we must learn for tests.

I may not get the chance to blog again from this location. We will spend the entire weekend purchasing some needed items specific to this job and studying! Come Monday at 4:30 a.m. we will be up getting ready to get back at it!

Crossroads

A friend called me a restless soul the other day in an email to me; bolstering my spirits. The word “itinerant” also comes to mind. (a person who travels from place to place with no fixed home). I feel as though we are at a crossroads that sometimes I would rather not have faced. Yes, we thankfully and mercifully finally have a job, but on the other hand we have to leave what we just wanted to build: a life in Yuma on our own property amongst friends. So now we will be back to supporting two places but on much reduced income from what we used to enjoy.


I keep saying I don’t have the answer and I don’t. I seem to go from pillar to post (as the saying goes) battered by the headwinds of a terrible economy, to the point where I have lost track of myself. What do I want? I was so inured to the dejection of the days that I didn’t even dare to hope, so I can’t honestly say what I want. What an age to be lost in life, eh? I thought this only happened to teenagers.

So it is with misgivings that I leave Yuma and take back to the road. Our cat is going to be hating life; cooped up all day in the RV by himself in (worse yet!) an RV park where he can’t roam nor even set foot outside without being leashed. He loves our lot here so much it will almost be like animal abuse to yank him away. He lies under the palms; he lazily chases lizards; he goes out as he pleases. Our time will be regimented; show up at this time, leave at that time, go home and then arise and do it all again the next day. The saving grace may be the lure of the road; the sights unseen that beg to be seen. We won’t know until we try. Wish us well; we’re on our way!

Secret Portals

(Disclaimer: not all of the photos on this page are mine)

There are certain aspects of architectural detailing that I have a fascination with and in addition to courtyards, which are my very favorite, gates rate next highest on the scale. Lucky for me and my camera we have an abundance of both around this neighborhood although I secretly fear I am probably becoming known as the crazed lady with the camera who is always stealing pictures of everyone’s place. Well…not so much right now; most of these beautiful homes sit entirely empty this time of year so I am left free to walk around and shoot my fetish in peace.

Most courtyards have entries guarded by a gate of some type; some of which I have already shown on this blog but will repost to make my point. Courtyards always evoke a sense of somnolent afternoons spent over good food, good wine or good conversation in a warm, inviting climate; what use is all that glorious outdoor space in a wet or cold climate? Maybe that’s why the Mediterranean countries all appear so relaxed, well fed, and high up on the quality-of-life scale not measured by dollars and number of possessions. Courtyards are inward facing, as decks, verandas, balconies and terraces are not. They contain the whole world within their walls; as they are meant to. By their very nature they are intimate rather than expansive; secretive rather than blatant; soothing rather than exposed, unlike all of the above listed sisters which invite the whole world in despite their oft-times lofty views. The following photos are compliments of vacation dream homes in idyllic locales.

I have been especially envious of many around my neck of the woods…er, that is this desert. Obvious care and professional planning were involved in these examples. As I walk by streetside I am cognizant of wanting to peek over and see in just a little more. That is probably the most intriguing thing about courtyard life—it draws in even a stranger to step more slowly and linger as they pass by, imaging all that exists behind the wall or better yet, all that has or will happen behind the wall. Now isn’t that tantalizing?

On to the gates: besides the intrigue, some gates merely seem to point to landscape items, like fountains or cushy patio furniture, which lie beyond. Many gates here use native materials, rustic iron and mesquite wood being two favorites. My hands just itch to open the really alluring ones; don’t yours?

Some gates are extremely welcoming, beckoning us in with beauty, grace, or both.

Yet others seem to scream “what were they thinking”? and totally miss the mark, like this gate which seems almost like an entrance into a fortress or dungeon. Yes, a nice piece of metal work but totally used the wrong way on the wrong house.

Take care with your secret portals; you don’t know who will be trying to peek in.

The Desert at 17

I came across something the other day I thought I would share with you. It probably goes back somewhat to my post on how many people miss the beauty in the desert if they aren’t looking closely enough. I read this and laughed at my struggling attempt when I was 17 years old to capture it.

The Desert

Some people say the desert is forlorn,
With barren land and with sands that are worn.
They say God's hand could not have touched this land;
Where is the beauty and where is the grand?

Tall cactus framed by a dark crimson sky;
Tired tumbleweeds roll with the wind and never die,
The sage stretches on for many a long mile;
I look at this detailed glory and smile.

Night comes on slow in the land deep and dark,
Dawn makes its way, with hues that soon depart.
Day finally comes and to heaven rejoices,
For this land is one of His mightiest choices.

Claudia
The Scribblings...1967 (The Scribblings was our high school collection of senior writing deemed worthy enough for publication.)

On the Road Again

From a recent Yahoo report: WASHINGTON – The number of people filing new claims for jobless benefits jumped last week after three straight declines, another sign that the pace of layoffs has not slowed.
Initial claims for jobless benefits rose by 12,000 to a seasonally adjusted 472,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. It was the highest level in a month and overshadowed a report that showed consumer prices remain essentially flat.
The rise in jobless claims highlighted concerns about the economic rebound — especially after a report earlier this week said home construction plunged in May after government tax credits expired.
If layoffs persist, there's a concern that the June employment numbers may show a decline in private-sector jobs after five straight months of gains, said Jennifer Lee, an economist with BMO Capital Markets.
"We've definitely seen the economic recovery hit a wall," Lee said.

With Yuma’s 28% unemployment rate it has been virtually impossible for us to find any jobs of note; the lone exception being that I was offered the remodel at WalMart for a period that might run about eight weeks but not starting until about mid-July and both Marc and I were offered a workamping job at Bryce Canyon National Park for what would have been a four month stint if we wanted to do housekeeping, or "guest room attendant" as its now called.

There’s been an interesting thread running through our Escapees discussion forum for years regarding the work done by gas leak detection techs. These are people trained to walk a designated route and neighborhoods with a leak sniffer machine which detects gas line leaks. All gas companies in the US are required by the federal government to provide details on such checks and any leaks in a yearly report. A few third party vendors have evolved to provide qualified technicians to the gas companies for them to accomplish this. So…we applied.

The third party companies have static jobs available in the larger cities but they also have traveler positions. The premise goes that basically once you are trained, they send you via your RV to an assigned area where you complete a contract for an hourly wage and a per diem. They pay for your travel between destinations. They obviously have other requirements beyond the RV; each technician must have a spotless driving record, their own vehicle, pass some tests, be capable of walking up to six miles a day, and they must have the ability to go from job to job rather than job to home than another job. In other words, you could be a long time before seeing home again. But in our case, it should work out since Yuma is now “home” and we virtually have nothing here that can’t be locked up and left for an indefinite period of time as we have done so many times in the past.

We like the fact that we will be working together, not always in close proximity to one another, but at least the same days, same shift. We will work fairly independently with only occasional direct supervision. In severe weather when we can’t work, we are guaranteed a set amount of hours per week regardless. The per diem should adequately cover the cost of our RV space, utilities and maintenance. We will get mileage anytime they require us to switch locations, which can be as quickly as two weeks or up to eight months in duration.

We’ll be on our way around July 7th or 8th. We’ll button Yuma up and be off to Salt Lake City for two-three weeks of paid training then (hopefully) get to pick our first assignment from what is available at that time.

Just a few short weeks ago, who would have thought?

You will most definitely want to keep up with the blog now because you will never know where it will come from next! Be aware that updates may not be consistent since internet may be sketchy for a time until we work out what we are going to do. Many parks now have WIFI but not all by any means. We’ll be a work in progress.

Bunny Hop

The streets are so deserted in our neighborhood now that it is a frequent sight to see cottontails feeding on plant life in vacant yards. Startled, they hop on down the street trying to evade me. The roadrunner I happened across this morning also did likewise, hot-footing it so quickly across someone's driveway I barely had a chance to swing my camera up to catch his photo. They are so elusive we never see them when all the snowbirds are in town so this was a special treat.

The days are really due to heat up later this week; to about 115. Just thinking about that heat has me wishing I could be back upon the Colorado River. I miss Marc and am bored sitting indoors all day. He found more to do so won't be returning until about the 4th or 5th of July.

"Killing" Time

Here I sit with my boring days of hibernation. If anything is to be done this time of year in Yuma it had better happen before 9 a.m. We haven’t had a break from triple digits during the day for two weeks and probably won’t until about, oh say October! Very early mornings are the only time really tolerable at about 75-80 degrees. I now try and walk by 5:30 a.m. so despite not being pressed to do so, I am up every morning well before dawn.

I’ve been alone this week; Marc took off to work on a small construction remodel and some various other projects for a friend in southern California. He expects it to take about a week to ten days and by the time he returns we hope to have heard positively on jobs we’ve been pursuing. But so far…nothing.

The good news to report is that my son-in-law Brandon was released from Afghanistan day before yesterday and is leaving the air force base late tonight, headed via Germany or Ireland to Dallas and thence Ft. Lewis. We’re all so relieved he is headed home safely after a really wretched year of service on his second deployment. He said Afghanistan was much worse than Iraq. At least Iraq has some vestiges of civilization; Afghanistan, nothing. Sure makes you wonder why we’re there. Oh that’s right: the “newly” discovered trillions of dollars worth of mineral wealth must have something to do with it. Unfortunately, 36 soldiers from Brandon’s 5th Stryker Brigade won’t be returning to home soil alive to have their reunions with loved ones and families. Please remember them in your thoughts and prayers while our Administration squabbles it out with its war generals.