Where's Hazel? Pet Hazel. Hazel needs her dreadlocks
trimmed.
The Winter That Thinks It’s Summer?
Leftover from the end of “Cleaning Up
After & Planning Ahead” when I ran out of
words: The remainder of the drive to Tonopah was very
eventful but except for a couple of quiet days at Train
Spotter Hill the very last day was the worst of the entire
adventure. Only a rant would encompass that storey:
End Of Summer Rant
Traditionally, when The Cat Drag’d Inn returns to
Tonopah from a Summer On The Road we visit a certain truck
stop in Gila Bend for one last dump and fill, fuel and
scale. Sometimes spend a night in an Escapees friendly
campground, maybe dinner at a certain Italian Restaurant
favoured by
Prince Harry of British Royalty. Now
things have changed in Gila Bend. The friendly little
truck stop with attached campground and dinosaur playground
has been replaced by a poorly laid out monster Pilot staffed
by crass people who don’t know anything. Used to be
one could drive in through the RV  fuel island, around the back to the dump and
fill and water, find a place to park for a shower and camp,
and exit next morning, through the scale if you like.
Now, one cannot get from the RV fuel island to the propane
fill but by driving across the auto parking traffic between
the auto fuel and the store, around the auto fuel island,
across the incoming traffic, and back in beyond the RV
island. Providing there is no RV waiting on queue for
fuel in which case you sit there blocking auto
traffic. Really STUPID!
A Puzzling Interlude?
And after all that rigmarole there is no call button at the
propane tank so one must walk back to the store, stand in
line at the fuel desk and in your turn ask for
propane. "There is no propane". What’s that big
tank out there for? "There is no propane". How
about a sign out there saying NO PROPANE so I don’t have to
drive all the way around Hell’s Kitchen to get parked over
there so I can walk back here only to learn There Is No
Propane. And the wench didn’t even say Sorry about
that.
I didn’t bother with dump and fill and scale there.
Didn’t see any scale—the old station had their scale right
out front. Didn't bother looking for Dump and Fill,
couldn’t get back there with out going out to the street and
returning by the truck entrance. On up the road to
Wintersburg. Usually The Cat Drag’d Inn can
sidle up to their propane tank except this time when two
pickups are parked in the way. No matter, Wintersburg
Store has a new rule: No Propane Before Noon.
What is this, some sort of Blue Law?
On up the road. My original plan, after getting tanked
up in Gila Bend, was to proceed to Winter Quarters Bay, get
parked and plugged in, and then go to the post office
tomorrow. After Wintersburg the next propane is in
downtown Tonopah across the street from the post
office. I may as well keep going. The post
office was open, my key still worked, lots of mail; at least
this part of homecoming is still OK. Across the street
to another Pilot.
 I used to
like Flying-J and Pilot when they were separate. Now
they are “Flying-Pilot”, twice as big and twice as
worse. Traffic backs up into the street when there are
a lot of trucks waiting to fuel and that queue blocks access
to the propane and the scale. Wait—wait—wait...
Finally get to the propane and walk to the fuel desk.
The register associate calls the propane guy—there is only
one person qualified to pump propane—and calls and calls...
He’ll be out in a while. Next? Half an hour later I
work my way up to the register again and start over.
This time they page the pumper. Finally he shows
up. At least this guy apologises. His radio was
off. Eventually the propane is full (26 gallons, 86$)
and the bus is weighed (Steer Axle: 10,420 lb; Drive Axle:
18,740 lb; Truck: 3,980 lb; Gross: 33,140 lb. Don’t
tell those weight limited bridges back in New Mexico a few
days ago) and I’m ready for a Gin&Tonic. And a nap.
Urination Station
Somehow, in another thread, we got onto the subject of
toilet seats and how some always fall closed when you’d
rather they stayed up and out of the way. I had that
problem at The Cat Drag'd Inn some years ago when
Sara(h) La Gata conMigo Booger Mesquite La Rubia Frankencat
Sinte Ikusheya Cat o' Mine Tales 11-11 TacoCat (Her name was
a storey in itself) lived here with me. Despite
several options for water she preferred the freshly flushed
bowl. To keep the lid and ring up whilst the bus
was in motion I devised a simple snap catch. An
elongated Z shape of sheet aluminium attached to the wall
would snap around the ring rim when lifted into
cat/travelling position. A prod of the pinkie would
allow me to lower the ring to accommodate my uses.
Sara(h), having since gone out to lunch with a coyote,
obviates further need of that latch—Hurricane Hazel-Rah
prefers her water from a fountain—so the lid and ring
recline in repose whilst riding.
As far as the scattering pee part... I use a funurinal (that
is a funnel on a hose under the lip of the basin at just the
right height and plumbed into the basin trap) during the day
and do a squatting squirt at night when I am too sleepy to
stand. Step by step instructions and photos are
available upon application. My venerable Yellow Chevy
G-10 Van once won Honourable Mention at a Van Rally for
being the only van with Front and Rear
funnels: The Front Funnel was on the end of a hose and
stowed under the driver's seat. With the assistance of
a co-driver peeing was possible even whilst piloting the van
at highway speed. One time in particular I was caught
in slow moving traffic and well... when you gotta go you
gotta go. I was up against the crosswalk at a stop
light when my bladder reached crisis condition. One
foot on the brake to keep the van from rolling forward and
one hand on a towel just in case and a pedestrian stopped in
front of the van and bent down to look under. He
straightened up, pointed and hollered: “You got some fluid
dripping out. Looks like antifreeze.” I nodded
and thanked him and zipped up as the light turned
green. The Rear Funnel was stuffed into the right rear
wheel well for the use of my guests. A subway hanger
strap was affixed overhead for stability.
News from the galley of The Cat Drag’d Inn is that
my venerable Braun 3045 coffee grinder [a present from Betty
P. umpteen years ago] failed this morning. Fortunately in a
non-fatal manner so I'm not hurting for my first mugga. I
think I can get through the next 2-3 days but after that may
have to resort to mortar and pestle or maybe hammer and
tongs.
Food Bank Wenzday
The thrift store is gearing up for gift shopping so there
was a glut of plush toys in need of AA cells and tangles of
lights requiring untangling and testing. The food
boxes were rather thin while shopping at the grocer was the
ongoing battle between the opportunistic wanderers shopping
for what catches their eye and the shoppers with a list who
know what they want but stagger around looking for where the
latest shelf shuffle has put their needs.
All that frustration was brought to a head by my friend
Michael's dialysis ride refusing to stop here so he could
pick up the groceries I brought for him. Insurance, rules,
procedures... no matter the inconvenience they cause their
clients the drivers have to follow the rules. Big
Brother is watching. So now I have to drive extra
miles over dusty washboard to make up for the ride "service"
recalcitrance.
I have no patience for this stupidity.
21 October: The Ides of October Are Late or Food
Pantry as Opposed to Food Bank
Hazel The Alarum Cat woke me with a gnarly growling instead
of her usual feeed me-ow. I Illuminated the pre-dawn
darkness with megawatts of yard lights to catch a streak of
grey wearing white socks flash past the front door and
disappear under TinyTruck. Could that feline flash be
the return
of Paul’s cat missing since the roll-over that trashed
his truck? I set out a dish of kibbles. We’ll
watch for a return engagement.
Proceeded with coffee and crossword and prepping for a day
at the Food Pantry. Part One was to move Paul’s car
from the front of the garage so I could open the double-bay
door to get at things to lade TinyTruck.
Paul’s car was MIA. WTF Over?! Reporting his car
missing is another storey; I won’t go there. Part Two:
TinyTruck loaded, almost ready to go, Cheryl called
to tell me I’m late and I have the keys. I need to
water the weeds in my arboretum but ran out of water filling
the watering can. Some fool of a student left their
car parked in the shade where the food pantry line goes so
we had to move the operation out into the sun. That
hurt.
Why are so many things going wrong today, these
days...
"The people will not revolt. They
will not look up from their screens long enough to
notice what's happening."
—George Orwell, /1984/ (written in 1949)
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Back at The Cat Drag’d Inn now, the water tank is
full, I’ve had a nap, where’s my supper?
 Critter Cam Update
Outback beyond the DuckThroughGate the CritterCam has been
collecting images since August. Over a thousand
pictures, mostly of waving weeds and tree branches.
The camera is triggered by Infrared Activity and takes three
frames a few seconds apart. My Autumnal Equinox letter
included a flying red tailed hawk. Most of the
critters are canines. Birds are the more interesting
subjects. Several recent images show a large bird
standing in front of a tree next to the water trough.
One of these photos is of the bird standing tall as if
ready to take off. Another is of the head of the bird
up close in front of the camera, an avian selfie.
Click on the images to see a larger version. Your Back
Arrow returns here.
Trunk or Treat
 Here
are three recent images from the ISS passing overhead here.
This entire series is of historical moments in amateur
satellites.
By filename Date Time group:
...07.21.36 is
the suitsat
I was telling about at supper last night.
...10.35.25 is
of the first Russian
Sputnik. When that launched I was in high school
in Cambridge Massachusetts, listening to the
beep-beep--beep-beep that stunned the world and galvanised
the U.S. into action.
...14.42.20 is a
collage of four Russian school groups building CubeSats.
Jeopardy!
I read a lot, books mostly, but I don’t often write reviews
or recommendations. This one however is special.
“In eighth grade, Amy was voted “Most likely to appear on
Jeopardy!” by her classmates. Decades later, this
trailblazer finally got her chance. In
the Form of a Question explores some of Amy
throughout her life... to illustrate, and celebrate, the
results of a lifetime spent asking, why?”
11.11.11
My Annual Poke&Prod was last week. Lab results
have my numbers mostly in the green—fit as a fiddling geezer
can be—but for one: Lab tests - Blood (Blood, Venous);
Results: Lead, Blood (Adult). Normal range: 0.0 - 3.4
ug/dL Mine is 6.0. Occupational and avocational exposure:
Too much sniffing
solder?
November 18—a Red Letter Date
First of the Winter Rains dumped 0.96” of water on the Ajo
Lily plants. Huge puddles on the roads. Verry soggy
Food Pantry at the high school car park. What are your plans
for thanksgiving ?
Eat!
...and eat some more.
Monday I have CHiropractor and PhysicalTherapy and post
office and then a nap. My sciatica is acting up again.
 Tuesday, get ready for wenzday.
Wenzday, food bank, the fixing things work was good.
The food box was a bit thin but then I am not going hungry
by any means. I chose ham as my meat choice. Big
several pounds cooked bone-in ham. We'll quarter and slice
when the beast thaws. Thanksgiving shopping, followed by
first Thanksgiving dinner--community dinner at the Middle
School cafitorium; I'm the Trash Miester in charge of
cleaning up after, washing pots and serving trays.
Thursday, baking four Acorn Squash for Another Thanksgiving
Dinner That Can't Be Beat with friends. Friday?
resting up for Saturday when I'm attending a friends wedding
in Phoenix; with the driving to and from that will be an all
day affair. Perhaps I will even find some time this
week to be thankful. But the cleaning up after is
becoming a disaster. Must have picked up a couple of
germs along the way between doctors and dinners. My
nose is running at one end and my butt is running at the
other.
Aftermath of a Cold...
s’not rags from all over: L-R: USA, USA, Import, IDK, USA,
China, RN, IDK, China, Korea, IDK, China. Most are
100% Cotton or “All Cotton”, one is PolyCot. One is so worn
from use and blowing in the wind I have to fold the cloth
thrice to catch all the leaks.
Welcome To December
Restless night. Long hassle with an ignorant Help
Deskie at my bank: "America's Most INconvenient
Bank". Towards the end of the phone call I really lost
my control; I was swearing at the wench. All these
places are alike... "can't do" whatever... ship something to
a p.o.box, register a phone number, whatever... When
what they really should be saying is "Won't do". Or
they tell you something won't work but they don't say why or
what to do next or where to go for the correct answer.
I just lost my cool. By the time I went to bed I was
in no condition to sleep.
Got a raise in my SS stipend.
More money to spend on higher prices.
Re: FASTSIGNS Checking In
A few years ago FASTSIGNS of Goodyear AridZona
produced the Geocache TravelBug signage for the rear window
of The Cat Drag’d Inn. Occasionally they write
to remind me of their “visibility projects you may be
considering”. I reply to thank them for checking on
me... Your occasional letters are so refreshing
compared to the dunning deluge from most businesses.
Thank you for caring. My needs at this juncture
include a new starter and carb for my TinyTruck and
insurance for my bus. No need for signage except
perhaps for a sandwich board [ WILL WALK FOR TRASH ] I can
wear whilst collecting roadside trash and aluminium cans for
the recycler.
11th December - A Penultimate Paragraph?
I have eleven days to go to post this letter in time for the
Winter Solstice. Moving right along... A rebuilt
starter is on order—let’s hope the truck will start so I can
fetch the parcel from the post office—a carb is on order,
perhaps they will both arrive in the same mail—AridZona
liability insurance for The Cat Drag’d Inn has been
secured from StateFarm. That was quite an
undertaking. Allstate’s Notice of non-renewal said
“Allstate is no longer offering this coverage in your
state...” Reading here and there, and listening to
other providers refuse me coverage I find that in some
places providers are refusing coverage for DIY bus
conversions, particularly school bus conversions. In
my case this bus is not a Skoolie. Superior for a
while back in the late 50s earlier 60s made RVs.
Another issue is perhaps the vehicle’s age. The
paranoid part of me is convinced there is some collusion
between parts of the insurance industry and parts of the RV
manufacturers to force people to buy newer vehicles.
Another Ides
Yesterday I put in six hours at the garage changing starter
and carb in TinyTruck. She runs a lot better now and
I slept like a log despite the Alarum Cat frolicking on my
bed.
 Visitors Visitors
Walking for trash yesterday we came across a Horn
Toad walking across the labyrinth. Horn Toads, as with
toddlers and cats, are exempt from the magic of a labyrinth
and may cross the lines with impunity. Trash
accumulated during this walk about the back yard included
several soda cans, two square feet of 1" white insulation
board, and a weather
balloon radiosonde.
 Winter
Solstice
The days start getting longer now. At Tonopah, at this
time of year, there is a little over nine hours of
daylight. During June, around the time of the Summer
Solstice, a little over 14 hours.
Shopping For Parts To Fix A Water Leak
At Lowe’s Strange A Thing Happened On My Way To The
Exit: At CheckOut I had scanned my two items of
PVC and was unzipping my wallet to look for a
two-dollar-twenty-seven-cent-piece when this heavyset guy a
head taller and behind me in the queue said Here let me get
that; I'll pay for that. I looked up in surprise and
he said again, Here, let me get that for you; do you
need the receipt? I fumbled my wallet out of the way
and said No--no thanks as he scanned his item. Thank
you very much I said again and we shook hands and wished
each other a happy holiday.
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2023 Winter Solstice —
Greetings Virtual Travellers and Pen Friends: 
