Summer Road Trip – Part 4

We left Ensenada on July 11 and drove to Yuma, AZ. The trip across Baja California felt like it took forever, and from our US re-entry in Calexico, CA to Yuma felt like we drove through a lot of nothing. I apologize to those of you who love the desert – I am definitely a water person so my views are shaped by that. Yuma is a pretty town and after checking into our hotel we did a little shopping and then had dinner

The next morning, we were off to Phoenix, where we would spend the night, then pick up K2 (Kat’s husband) at the airport early evening. On our way, we made a stop in Quartsite to look at gemstones and have some lunch. I have no idea what made this BLT different from any other BLT, but it was definitely the best I’ve ever had.

Heading on to Phoenix, we were appreciating the air conditioning in the car.

We spent the day in Phoenix relaxing, not venturing far from the hotel before going to the airport because of the temperatures. Heading from the airport back to our hotel, we could seem a dust storm ahead of us:

As we got closer, the rain joined the dust

Again, a drive through a lot of desert the next day, but finally we approached Sedona, where we’d meet up with Gep and special friend Sandy, who were driving there separately from their homes in California and New Mexico.

Our first afternoon in Sedona, we visited the Tlaquepaqua Arts and Crafts Village, but there are so many pictures I want to share from there, today I’ll put in some of the Sedona scenery photos I took while we were there.

This feels like this trip was going on for a long time, so I might cut it short, show you the Arts & Crafts village next, then skip the rest of the trip home which was not very exciting anyway.

Summer Road Trip – Part 3

The three of us – Gep, Kat, and myself – stayed in Orange County for a couple of days so we could spend the 4th of July with Kat’s best friend from high school and her family.

Gep went back home on July 5th – there were World Cup games he wanted to watch with his friends – and on July 6th, Kat and I headed south to Ensenada in Baja California.

That part of the trip wasn’t especially exciting, but we were thrilled to find our resort hotel and very pleased with our room, the patio, the view – all of it.

The view from our room.

Enjoying our patio.

The weather was beautiful, but a little cooler than we wanted to spend time in their pool,

so we wandered, checked out their beach,

went into Ensenada one day for pedicures and lunch, and, in general, just relaxed.

I caught a beautiful sunset.

The food at the resort restaurant was delicious.

Sometimes some of the locals would join us for a beer and chips. They were primarily interested in the chips.

Then, sadly, it was time to say goodbye.

We saw a lot of this all the way across Baja to Calexico, where we re-entered the U.S.

Sigh.

Summer Road Trip – Part 2

On our third day, we left Eureka and headed south, staying as near the coastline as possible.

We hadn’t gone far when we made our first stop for road work. It turned out to be the first of many.

A bridge in Marin, with a view off to the side. Views of the ocean make my heart happy, even if it’s just a quick glimpse.

Ahhh, we’ve reached Santa Cruz, where we’ll spend this night. Because this is supposed to be a relaxed road trip, we’ve opted to drive for only around 5 hours each day, which is working well for us. Well, I have no problems, because I haven’t done any of the driving – but sitting in a car more than 5 hours, even with some breaks, is not my favorite. This photo was taken from the wharf, where we headed to find food.

Looking out from our table in the restaurant we chose, we are thrilled to see some baby seagull chicks.

Mom is not far away – good girl. She takes the kids for a walk a little while later. Apparently they know enough not to jump off the side of the wharf.

Dinner was delicious. I ate a lot of shrimp on this trip – when near ocean, seafood should be consumed.

After dinner, as we meandered back to our car we heard a lot of chatter going on of the non-human kind, and had to check it out. This guy was obviously king of this pier and he let everyone know it. I have a video of him challenging a seal that wanted to come up, which was not something he felt he should allow at this moment. Too bad I can’t put videos on WordPress.

The next morning we headed more south, our goal being Ventura where Gep would meet us for dinner.

We made it, had a nice dinner near the Ventura beach – no photos of that – enjoyed a little sightseeing in the evening, then met for breakfast the next morning.

Breakfast was a good as it looks. Afterwards we parted so Gep could get his suitcase and drive in his pickup to meet us in Orange County, where we would stay for a couple of days to spend time with friends. We join them every few years for their 4th of July celebration.

That’s enough for now. But, I have a completely unrelated side note – when I hear lots of chatter coming from the hen yard, I keep thinking it’s egg songs and someone has gifted us with a fresh egg. Turns out those girls have a lot to say about any number of things – not just laying eggs. I prefer to believe what I’m hearing is not someone registering a complaint.

Deborah, our Barred Rock and the most forward of all the ladies, is missing from this photo. Maybe she’s inside doing her job – laying an egg. That would be nice. She’s the girl that will jump up on my back when I’m in the run or coop and bend over – I’ve learned to pick her up and hold her for a bit when I first go in – self-defense.

Summer Road Trip

June 29, 2026 – on our way:

We drove down the coasts of Oregon and California with lots of ocean views. Lots of ocean views require a lot of stops to take pictures.

Day two started out of Florence, Oregon, and I don’t know why I don’t have any photos from there. We went down and over the North Bend bridge

Through Port Orford

And down to Brookings

Where we stopped at the Harbor for lunch

And then into the Redwoods, headed for Eureka, CA, where we’ll spend the second night.

More to follow.

This and That

I was just playing a game of solitaire on my iPad, and I thought to myself “wouldn’t it be nice if thoughts were visible?” Then I realized that would be horrid, because then I’d be able to see nothing around me except the thoughts that have escaped my mind 30 seconds after they appeared, before I had a chance to act on them. Or – maybe then I could read them and do what I had thought of. Most likely I wouldn’t be able to move, the air would be so thick with thoughts.

In my email every day come a few different quizzes. One is from Team Brainy – actually, two come from them each day – and my current life goal is to answer all 20 questions correctly. The questions are of random topics – and often some of my correct answers were just very good guesses.

Ok, so Team Brainy is a goal, but only one. The other is to find the “perfect” – whatever. Right now it’s bras. This paragraph may be TMI for some, in which case I’d suggest you skip on by. My skin has decided in its old age, to not only thin out so it takes little to create a scratch that bleeds, but also to dislike anything that fits snugly – and it makes its dislike known by becoming very itchy – mind-altering itchy. Which means now I wear long pants with snug waistlines less often, and loose dresses most often. But there is that undergarment females almost always wear for reasons of modesty as well as comfort, and that is the infernal bra. I cannot tell you how much money I have invested in my search for the “perfect” bra. My latest acquisition is waiting for me to try it on, give it “the” test. Sigh.

Our weather has gone manic, and from what I read, I suspect it’s not limited to where I live. Two days ago, our high was 86, then came a major thunder/lightening/wind storm and yesterday and today our high has been 66, with a chilly wind. The temperature isn’t bad, but the wind makes sitting out and communing with nature not pleasant.

Another thought about visible thoughts – it could become quite awkward when I’m thinking how stupid someone who is speaking within my hearing is being in their viewpoint that our current government is worthwhile. I could end up with many enemies. Or with bodily harm, even. Picture walking down the aisle of a grocery store and seeing everyone’s thoughts floating around.

The photo above is one of those “I wish I were. . .” things. I hope to create more photos like that this summer to look back on in future. Kat and I are going on a road trip, heading south to beaches and swimming pools.

Wishing you enough – today, tomorrow, and forever.

Wherever My Mind Wanders

I’ve had thoughts for a post wandering around my mind for a few days, but I haven’t done a thing about it. I’ve spent a lot of time outside, doing nothing much but moving pots of plants around – to the front yard for a few days, then back to the patio, shuffle here to there and back again. I think that’s my outlet because I really can’t move things around much in my indoor space.

The girls are growing. Based on assuming they were a week old when we got them, they’re now 10 weeks old – except Gertrude, because we know she was two weeks old when we got her. She’s no longer the largest bird though – she’ll be sleeker than the rest of them when they’re full grown. It’s the nature of the breed. Here are photos of the girls I took yesterday evening when I spent time in their run with them.

Deborah got up close and personal, as she always does. She’s always first to do anything, except go to bed in the evening, when she is invariably last.

Left to right: Wynonna with Gertrude, Ashley with Wynonna, Deborah with Ruth. Whoops, where’d Penelope go?

There she is! When I join the girls now, I cover my legs and arms because their toenails scratch, and their beaks pinch. They’re fun to sit and watch, and they run back and forth across the run area, flapping their wings madly.

Here’s Ruth, showing off her newly fluffy chin.

I’m very much in summer mode. Meals are pretty much whatever can be easily found – I make a large pasta or rice salad occasionally which I’ll have for lunches, but dinner is a loaded green salad, and maybe apples and cheese for a late snack. Or potato chips. Or whatever my heart thinks it wants. I’ve been mixing strawberry lemonade to dilute my Chardonnay, and it makes a really nice summer drink.

Our country makes me unhappy. When you put a bunch of bumbling idiots in office, you should never expect good results. It’s all about in-fighting and screw the country and the people, my party matters most. Let’s not buck the guy “in charge”, because he’s mean and small and not very smart, but he is very invective and retaliatory. The universe needs to step in and save us from ourselves.

I’ve been spending my evenings out in the backyard, when it’s very quiet and peaceful. It’s my favorite time of the year. I usually sit until the girls go to bed or are nearly ready to go to bed, so I can lock them up securely (raccoon preventative) before I head inside. https://www.facebook.com/reel/1347798874114503/? explains why that’s necessary.

I hope your world is filled with enough and you have your places of peace, quiet, and contentment. Unless you prefer it loud and exciting.

Fluff and Feathers

We have from left to right, starting at the top: Deborah, Wynonna, Ashley, Ruth, Penelope, and Gertrude.

A small part of the view outside the coop and run:

The pink poppy is a volunteer that chooses different parts of the yard to pop up in every year. I’m encouraging her, along with the California poppies, to proliferate in the planter boxes in the backyard. Here’s a closer look at her:

We’ve been working with the girls to teach them to go into their coop in the evening at sunset. For the first two nights, Kat blocked the doorway partway up, scooped up each girl, and put them inside, then closed the main door with the smaller chicken door blocked, removing that blockage later when they were all asleep. The third night, I went out to check and all the girls but Deborah were inside, so I put her inside and put up the door block, thinking she was needing reminding. Last night, I sat on the patio and watched them run in and out of the coop as the sun was setting, until 5 of them were in and I could hear them scratching around, getting settled. Of course, it was Deborah who was still outside, but I continued watching and it wasn’t long before she went inside and stayed there. No more door blocking required! Yay!

It’s going to be another lovely day, part of which I’ll spend outside with the feathered girls, some of which I’ll spend outside with the Nong, some of which I’ll spend outside just enjoying being outside. The pleasures of being an old lady who is retired.

The Girls After Their Move

Well, four of them at least. From front to back, Deborah (on my feet), Ashley, Wynonna, and Ruth.

Clockwise, starting at 6:00: Deborah, Penelope, Gertrude, Wynonna, and Ruth. Missing from this one is Ashley.

Deborah is the Barred Plymouth Rock, and she is always up front.

We moved them outside on Saturday -originally the plan was to bring them back in Saturday evening, but they were so happy with their larger space, we finished our security efforts so they could stay out. Security is necessary because we have raccoon visitors most night, and raccoons will kill and eat chickens.

Their new space is 80 sf of interior space, where we have a large perching roost – as yet untested by the girls – and an outdoor, hopefully secure enough, run of about 75 sf.

Kat and I built the coop using materials we had on hand – panels for dog pens, lattice panels, miscellaneous 12” square grids. We did buy 2x4s for the perching roost.

Deborah on my legs.

Deborah on her way up my legs.

Wynonna in the sun, fluffy butt facing me.

Penelope standing next to me, showing her lovely chest colors.

Ruth. She is the Americana or Easter Egger – gotta check to see if they’re the same breed. She will be showing up more in the next post, because she is so photogenic. But then, they all are, and of course we don’t pick favorites.

Penelope on my leg.

Penelope coming up higher.

Wynonna again.

Nong Saow (Little Sister in Thai. She was born in Thailand, as I’ve probably told you before). She’s letting me know how she feels about me paying attention to the chickens.

Wynonna again, right behind Gertrude. Her colors in the sun.

I think that’s enough for today. I have more photos – of course I do – but we’ll save them for tomorrow, or no one will be able to load this post.

I might need to start posting more often, so I become more familiar with WordPress and its controls again. I’ve been struggling with this one today, which I think has been common for my past few posts. Maybe I’ll go back to grumbling about the state of the world, or maybe I’ll find more things to take photos of, now that things are growing and blooming.

Wishing you a day full of enough.

True Colors

I always thought puppies and kittens grow up far too quickly, but when compared to chickens, they are very slow. Our girls are rapidly leaving their chick stage, growing up into teenagers, and starting to show their true colors.

This one is Deborah, the Barred Plymouth Rock. Deborah is the bravest and friendliest of them all, always front and center, always ready to climb into a hand and out of her pen – which we don’t encourage because we do have cats, and our Vlad cat spends a lot of time sitting on the chair by the pen, watching them. It’s like he thinks that’s his cat TV.

Deborah

You can see that although she’s getting her big girl feathers on her body, she still has her chick fluff on her head. This is true for all of them.

This one is Ashley, a Silver-Laced Wyandotte. She is always right behind Deborah, wanting to know what’s going on.

Then we have Penelope, a Speckled Sussex. She has white on her neck and breast, which you can see, and when she lifts her wings she has more white. Her body feathers have the speckles of rusty brown, and some charcoal gray/black. Her head feathers are not nearly as fluffy as Deborah’s.

Say hello to Wynonna, the Gold-Laced Wyandotte. You can see she has a rose comb instead of the single comb. This is common to the Wyandotte breed.

Here is Ruth, who is either an Americana (which is what the label in the farm store said) or an Ameraucana, which is what I think she is. She has a pea comb. I am learning so much about chickens!

And last, but certainly not least, is Gertrude, who is a White Leghorn. I worry that Gertrude might turn out to be Gerald, but we’re keeping our fingers crossed that she is not. She has the single comb. She is a week older than the others, although we think Penelope might be older than the others too, perhaps not by a full week though.

We’re getting their chicken house/coop and run ready for them to move into in about 3 weeks. We have almost all the accessories they need – the bedding, a feed bin, a dust bath, a tarp with tie downs for over part of their run. The water jug will be here in a few days, and we’ll get the sand for the dust bath when we get the 2 x 4s to build the roosting bars/perches for them. Pictures of the completed coop/run to follow.

I gotta say, chickens are a lot more fun than what’s going on in the world.

Wishing you enough.

A Quiet Tuesday Morning

It’s a quiet, cloudy morning, with a chance of rain in the forecast. This week is cooler than the past week or so, so inside seems a good place to be – in my comfy chair, with a cat on one side of me and a cup of coffee on the other, the fireplace providing some warmth, and the sounds of our chicks coming from the next room. Those girls are growing so quickly. Just a few days ago, they looked like this:

That’s Deborah, the Black-Barred Plymouth Rock, in front. Deborah is always in front, and always the first to jump to the top edge of the pan when the pen door is opened. In the rear, left to right, is Ashley, the Silver-Laced Wyandotte, Gertrude, the White Leghorn, Wynonna, the Gold-Laced Wyandotte, Ruth, the Americana, and partially out of the picture is Penelope, the Gold-Speckled Sussex.

This morning, the girls are bigger, growing real feathers, developing little tails and tiny combs.

Once again Deborah is front and center. Behind her, left to right again, are Wynonna, Gertrude, Penelope, Ashley and Ruth.

They’re rapidly outgrowing their pen, so one of our projects for the coming weekend will be creating a larger living area for them. They have about four more weeks before they can go to their permanent outside chicken house and run area. We’d like to allow them to free range, but there are just too many risks for escape and worse in our back yard, so we’ll give them as much run space as possible.

In other “news” Kat and I will be driving to Vancouver, WA on Saturday to go to a psychic show, then find a place by the water for dinner before we drive back home. The new chicken pen will be our Sunday project.

I watched the PBS news last night. Just when I think that man in the highest office of the country can go no lower, he manages to do just that. Apparently he views himself as the God-like Almighty ruler, king of all. I view him quite a lot differently – rather like a mad narcissist, not fit to hold the office he currently has, surrounded by syncophants, also not fit to hold the offices they currently hold. Will the world wake up, or will be crash and burn?

What was it I was just thinking I should look up? The story of my life, the escape route for thoughts has been enlarged and off they go. Perhaps one day I’ll remember to write things down immediately.

Now I think I shall go clean myself up a bit and put some clothes other than my robe on, prepared to face the day in a very laid-back, lazy manner. I have enough and hope that all of you do too.