Visiting Death Valley Again

Sep6

20160906_155850

I left Cedar City, Utah, on September 1st. I took a roadtrip to Death Valley to visit friends for a week before I head over to my next job in Grand Canyon National Park.

Today is my ex-roomie’s birthday.  Unfortunately Kim is on vacation in Texas visiting her daughter. So today I went for a drive with Rebecca.  That’s her dog in the above picture. I couldn’t post that pic on facebook because it’s taken in a spot where pets are not supposed to be.

After we went to Zabriskie,  Rebecca took her dog home then we went to eat at Stovepipe Wells. I had the salad, Rebecca had a burger with fries and we shared the quesadilla appertizers  2 lunches cost almost $50…OUTRAGEOUS!!! And the chicken in my salad was not exactly to my liking.

14222088_10154002795489370_6363986664508899309_n

I have been staying with Jeanette. She was my roomie for 2 months when we worked at Mt Rushmore and now she is Kim’s roomie in Death Valley. She has been talking to a couple managers to try and get me a job here. I sent HR an email early this morning,  but I really think this place has more drama then I want to deal with.

Sure death valley could be a full time job in a location without snow, but the location I will be in at the Grand Canyon has less drama. With only about 2 dozen people living & working together,  there isn’t as much opportunity for drama.

Random Writing

Aug28

PhotoGrid_1472441054372

I think I have around 30-35 books downloaded onto my kindle, all about “writing a book”.  You see, my middle daughter is waiting for me to write her book. I have been told that a family member who is spending the rest of his life in prison wants me to write his story, and that is 1 book that I don’t think I could ever do. Oh sure, true-life crime thriller stories are interesting reading for some people. But some other person will have to write that one.

Today I was searching through the website for a magazine called “Writers Digest”, and found a poetry contest. I haven’t written any new poems for quite awhile, but I might send in one of my old poems.

According to Amazon,  I started ordering ebooks in 2011. Right now I am on my third or forth kindle/tablet. But I have figured out how to get Amazon to resend me almost  everything that I had gotten years ago on my other e-readers. If you have seen the meme’s on facebook of a big 18-wheeler delivering stuff from Amazon, with words to the effect “oh boy, my books are finally here”. Well that’s me! Good thing because I will soon be living in such a remote area that I won’t have wifi. But I will have lots to read, and thanks to the local dollar store I have stacks upon stacks of paper to write on.

Some people say to write what you know or in whatever genre that you, yourself like reading. Well according to the books on my tablet that would be (not counting my writing books) yoga, alternative health,  cooking (raw food, vegetarian, or stuff in crockpots), a few travel books, and my sappy romance stuff…either amish life/ romance, or some story set in the old-west/pioneer days. Good thing all these books are in a tablet and not in a bookcase waiting to get packed up. Actually I have 1 bag of real paper books in the trunk of my car. I put them there when I left Yellowstone and never unpacked them.

It’s after 10:35pm, so I will play a few turns of  “Words With Friends”, which I won’t be playing so much after I move. Then I will probably grab one of my word puzzle books to see how many I can do before I fall asleep.

 

 

Haircut

Aug27

14045588_10153967928809370_6599587022057233719_n

I went to the Evan’s hairstyling school to get this new look.Not bad for a $3 haircut. According to the sign above their front desk, it’s usually $4 but every Thursday is discount day.

PhotoGrid_1472301123723 It was kinda funny, when I posted those pictures on facebook and a friend asked why I wasn’t smiling to show off my dentures. I told her that I hadn’t worn them all day…in reality I have only worn them maybe 24 hours with the last month. I have just not gotten used to them. They are not very comfortable to wear more then a couple hours at a time, and they are impossible to eat with.

Well today is Saturday August 27th. Which means I have about 5-6 days left to pack up my car again. You see, even though I don’t have to be at the Grand Canyon for my new job until September 12th, I have to be out of this house on September 1st so I don’t have to pay another whole month of rent. Will probably spend the first night parked at the Love’s truck stop while I wait for payday on the 2nd.

Well it’s now 7am, I am finishing my 2nd cup of coffee and my peach flavored instant oatmeal. I might as well do laundry while I figure out what to do with the rest of the weekend.

I’m Going “Home” Next Month

Aug21

Now usually when you hear anyone say they will be home, you might assume that they will be with their family…people bonded by blood/genetics. Home for some people is the town they grew up in.

I found my home when I was in my 40’s.  I unexpectedly found my niche in a far-away land known as the Grand Canyon National Park. In a way I even created a new family unit with my neighbors and co-workers. I had started moving around to different states so much that when I first traveled to the national park for my new job, I had no idea how long I would be there. I ended up being there for 5 straight years before taking a break and going to Alaska. Those 5 years were the longest that I had stayed anywhere for a very long time.

After my time in Alaska,  I returned to the Grand Canyon twice for short stays. This year the park seems to be my safety net again. This time I will be working for a new  company but I still get to enjoy the peace & quiet remote area of the park, which I love. I will be able to watch sunsets/sunrises without looking over a mob of  heads. One of the most amazing sunsets I have ever witnessed was during a rainstorm in that remote area of the Grand Canyon.

10351257_10152204369039370_4586792109342906213_n

A friend took that picture of me at Desert View, in the late Spring of 2014. I was enjoying the wide open space as far as the eyes could see. We were waiting for that evening’s sunset.

1538930_10152137045164370_2225383530081807419_n

I can’t wait to see all the changes at the Watchtower,  since another company has taken over it. Actually I have seen a couple pics on facebook but that’s not the same as seeing it in person. I took the picture above with my old tablet (that broke) and luckily had saved it on facebook.

There will be no television and no internet at all in this remote section of the park. I’m sure that nobody on their death bed has ever said, “geez I wish I had more time to watch television”. A few of my past co-workers did pay a yearly contract for dial-up internet when I was there in 2014. But my work contract is only until January 1, 2017, unless a spot opens up that allows me to stay longer.  I am hoping a spot opens up because I’m petrified of driving in snow and car-camping in the parking lot during winter would get mighty-cold.

3-Day Weekend & Farmer’s Market Again

Aug14

Somehow my body must of gotten used to the routine of going to class 5 days a week with a normal 2 day weekend.  Today is Sunday, but it’s my third day home and I still woke early checking the date on my phone a few times to make sure I really had today off.

Well Friday, I went to get another tire replaced on my car, and was told that I need to replace the front brakes & rotors for about $220. Sometime I also need to get the horn fixed along with the high beam light on the driver’s side. (Good thing I don’t drive much at night). The state of Utah requires a yearly car inspection and so far my car doesn’t pass. Geez, maybe it would of been easier to go to AZ. But it will be nice when it’s done and know the car is safe.

Well Yesterday was Saturday so I went to the farmer’s market again. I ended up winning 2 prizes. I gave the caramel sauce to the family I rent from. The ladies who make the sauce are from Beryl, UT. I am pretty sure that you can find them on facebook, just search for the Four Country Gals.

PhotoGrid_1471221994860

Unfortunately there wasn’t any peaches or blueberries at the market this week.  So I ended up going to the grocery store to buy bananas & diced up watermelon  (along with junk that I didn’t need) to eat this weekend.

PhotoGrid_1471223288551.jpg

As you can see there were some tomatoes & zucchini at the market which I love. The family I rent from has told me that I can eat some of the tiny tomatoes in their garden, so I don’t need to buy those for awhile.

Now I really need to do my laundry for the week. I have work tomorrow…yup I am still with “Convergy’s”, until something else comes along. I had a phone interview on Friday for a job at the Grand Canyon,  and I have sent 4 resumes into other places. It’s just the dreaded waiting game now to see which one will say …Yes, you’re hired.

Trying to Organize

Aug7

20160807_115122

 

Here is part of my closet, sorry the whole thing does not show up in 1 picture; but this is most of the clothes that I have worn for the last few weeks. I have 3 hoodies in the car, so they are not in the picture. I don’t have a dresser and for now I’m in no hurry to get 1. Hey if all your clothes fit into 1 closet then why would I need to spend money on a piece of furniture that would take up space in a bedroom and to much space in a car if for any reason I needed to move again. They might be hard to see in this picture but I only own 3 pair of pants (2tan/khaki & 1 brown), 1 pair of blue capris are folded on top of my black & green shorts. If I actually end up staying here during the Winter then I will need to buy boots & a warm coat.

Course this doesn’t mean that the rest of my room is clutter free. I WISH!! So even though I don’t collect alot of clothes, I do collect to much paper clutter. I have maps, newspapers, brochures, recipts, magazines, books, cards, bills (and other mail), work stuff, and menus for different places. It’s the paper clutter that always drives me crazy.

You know you have to much “paper” clutter, when all the paper takes up more room in your car then your clothes do. I’m not exactly sure but I might have a few clothes left in the trunk of the car. I know for sure that I still have to much “paper” thrown all over the back seat.

Well it’s time for a break from this clutter. I need more coffee and some of yesterday’s applesauce bread. Ok, so I only want coffee and really need to throw out some trash. Less trash = less stuff to lose track of = more peace in my head. Peace is always a good thing.

PhotoGrid_1470601991275

Saturday around Cedar City, UT.

Aug6

13920629_10153918895184370_1263285982285781605_n

This morning while reading a local free paper, I saw a notice for the farmer’s market. This will be going on every Saturday till the end of the Fall season (I think). I only got peaches, blueberries and a loaf of yummy homemade applesauce bread. Some of the best peaches that I have had in the past have come from little farm stands (or bigger farmer’s markets) and today’s fruit is just as good as I remember. I have to go back next weekend because I got a call from 1 of the vendors saying I won a $25 gift certificate.

Later I went to the library to do some writing. I ended up studying for my next test;  in my training class at work. I need all the study time I can get. Believe me, just because I can practically live online 24/7, does not mean I understand how to do a job on a computer.  Didn’t take long though for my mind to wander away from school/ work stuff.

So I decided to go for a drive and check out the new Veterans Memorial Park. I am calling it new because it wasn’t here in the 80’s when I lived here before. Unfortunately I had left home today with only my cell phone for picture taking. I will need to go back another day for better pictures.

13895143_10153919497844370_5298755312643775954_n

Seeing as I blog with my tablet and all today’s pics were taken with my phone, it can be time consuming to first post pictures on facebook and then download them onto my tablet in order to post them here. The above picture is from the Korean War memorial. Don’t you just love the red mountains in the background?

13939494_10153919499079370_7908244552199674566_n

Just an wider shot of the area as I walked back to my car. You can see the flags flying above the trees in the memorial areas. Hard to believe that this is the edge of the city. Nice spot to get away from the rat-race of life.

It was a pretty good day, that got a bit warm. It was about 75° when I left home and had gone up 10 degrees by the time I got home. To warm for the long sleeve shirt I was wearing.