Janet Brien's photos with the keyword: rocks

(+7 insets) (seeing larger shows some fun fence detail!) (Please scroll down to "Today's Image" for photo info) Notes Written on the Road: You Never Know What You'll Find when Hiking! One day I was riding my bike around the campground loops when I saw what appeared to be a pet cat walking across the road. Couldn't be, I thought. I'd seen cats taken along on camping trips but they always had a harness and leash attached to a carefully attentive owner. And, anyone who's put a harness on a cat knows that such contraptions are mostly there for show…if a cat wants to escape, it can almost always contort its way easily out of a harness faster than Houdini! The reality of a missing cat on a road trip would be a total nightmare…just thinking about it makes me shudder. And yet, as I rode by, I confirmed what I saw: a lovely grey tabby strolling along with its tail held high over its back. I was amazed! Could there be a long-term host who had their cat with them? Something to ponder about. Later, Steve and I were walking around the loops with Pumpkin when we saw the cat again. Steve had seen it previously as well, and we both talked to it as we went by. The kitty was friendly enough that it didn't run away but couldn't be bothered to come over and visit. Fine by us, we had Pumpkin with us and didn't want it to approach anyway. The next morning I was on my walk, heading down the trail leading to North Harris Beach when I saw a couple of ladies with their dogs enjoying the view. Suddenly I saw a flash of movement--the cat! What was this?!! Was this their cat? A CAT going on a WALK?!! NO WAY!! I exclaimed in excitement, "I can't believe my eyes! Never in my life have I seen a CAT going on a WALK!" The two of them turned and laughed, nodding their heads. One said, "This is Whiskey! She really is amazing! Seriously--the first time we opened the door to let her out we thought, 'That's the last time we'll see the cat, she'll take off and never come back.' But she was fine!" I whooped my surprise as she continued, "She goes out and comes right back when we call! And when we go on walks, she comes with us! People are so surprised that they've been taking pictures of her and post them online--she's actually got her own Instagram account!" With another amazed, "WOW!!", I shook my head and stared in wonder as Whisky came running over when I knelt down to say hi. Running my hands over her soft, luxurious coat, I rubbed her ears and skritched under her chin as she rubbed up against me. I was in love--what a sweetheart! I learned that the ladies were sisters, traveling in their RV to Washington-one lived there, the other had joined her for this adventure from her home in California. "I always wanted to go on one of my sister's RV trips, and it's such fun that I'm going to figure out how to do it myself, full-time!" I told them about our adventures and plans, agreeing wholeheartedly that RV life is wonderful. Finally it was time to continue my walk, but before I did I asked them if I could take a picture of Whiskey and they couldn't be happier to say yes! :) What a wonderful encounter. :) Today's Picture We've been lucky enough to stay at a bunch of coastal campgrounds but Harris Beach is one of the best for dramatic, huge rocks. This battalion of boulders leading out to the sea also features unique and interesting shapes along with lovely coloring. And…what's that? There is a fence there, meant to keep curious kids off this sensitive and dangerous area. (The fence is at the beach-side of the park's day use parking area and includes a sign that asks people not to climb there.) Do you see the OTHER fence? This aerie's nest location marks the top of Harris Beach's little butte. It includes a jaw-dropping view of the coastline for all who make their way up the energizing trail to the top! (see inset!) Today's Insets The first inset shows the amazing view from the top of Harris Butte, featuring Goat Island, the largest island off the Oregon Coast and an important bird sanctuary. Other insets from my adventures here include: • A picture of Whisky for you to see--such a beautiful, dear cat! • An inviting beach driftwood fire on its way out (though the people left and should have doused it completely!) • South Harris Beach at low tide (that triangular rock is surrounded by waves at high tide!) • A picture of Steve enjoying photography on North Harris Beach • Extreme wind one day blew the tops of waves into a mist, shown here against a boulder off the coast • I saw a number of beautiful Yellow Spotted Millipedes on the beach and couldn't help getting this view, with my phone, no less! Thank You For Stopping By! It's sure been wonderful to get your blush-worthy comments and happy remarks--this never fails to make me feel very honored and lucky to be part of such a warm community of friends. When Steve and I are away in our RV, our internet is so inconsistent that trying to visit everyone is a trial in frustration, so I gave up. That being said, it's hard to be away and so now that we're home I've really enjoyed catching up with everyone! Here's hoping you guys have a lovely weekend! Explored on 11/20/21; highest placement #8.

(+9 insets!) (please scroll down to "Today's Pictures" for inset information) Trip Talk: Off We Go On Our Island Adventure! After chatting with the friendly fellow at the visitor's kiosk, we hopped on our bikes and took off down a trail which led to the island's popular coastal path, passing lovely forest on one side and wide open ocean views on the other. Bikes weren't allowed on the coastal trail because it can be rough in places, though we were told it wasn't enforced if we really wanted to ride. Steve and I liked the idea of hiking for some of our visit though. Looking at the map, we could see that the coastal trail met with another which led through the forest back to our bikes; at which point we could ride up and into the center of the island for a complete tour! A perfect plan! Arriving at the trailhead for our coastal trail hike, we locked our bikes up and then turned to look out towards the ocean. It wasn't so much looking as it was gawking at the sight before us. A vast tidal flat lay before us, laden with mollusk-covered boulders, rocks and seaweed. Piles of driftwood in all sizes--from small chunks to 30-foot logs--rimmed the edge of the flats in a huge jumble. Countless shells were everywhere with larger mounds settled at the base of the driftwood. We don't remember seeing anything like this before and we were suitably impressed. Taking careful footsteps through the shells, we made our way out onto the huge rock plates that formed the base of the tidal flat. Our feet sunk deeply into the slippery layer of shell-based mixture and it occurred to me that I could spend hours here just examining handfuls of shells, driftwood, seaweed and pebbles. It was nice to get out to the solid rock base where the walking was much easier. We were then stunned to see the boulders strewn everywhere, each covered by thousands of mollusks of various sizes--tiny snail-shaped periwinkles, tall, turban-shaped whelks, cone-shaped limpets, long, pointed augers and volcano-shaped barnacles a-plenty. Most were very small but there were lots of large mussels clinging together in masse too. Tiny crabs skittered about in little pools. Different varieties of seaweed lay about here and there, washed in from where they grew just off-shore. Overhead the gulls flew, calling back and forth to one another. There was a nice breeze out but not a strong wind and Steve and I had a great time wandering along, heads down and moving towards the ocean beyond. Looking up from time to time, we couldn't help noticing an enormous container ship sitting far out on the water. Staring at the immense boat reminded me that Vancouver Island and the many smaller islands dotting the area are very important for transportation of cargo and to a lesser degree, fuel too. There's a good reason why. Due to the proximity to the mainland of Canada and Washington--as well as the closest port to Japan—Vancouver Island is the perfect area for ships along their world-wide routes. Appreciating the sight, I was able to get some good zoomed-in shots with my Sony and looked forward to identifying the ship when I got home. The G2 Ocean Grouse Arrow This is a shipping vessel that travels the world with its vast capacity for cargo. Researching information for this post, I learned that the Grouse Arrow is currently located off the Kuril Islands archipelago north of Japan and south of Russia. After we saw it in August, it travelled to China where it stopped at four ports of call including Shanghai! It's now on its way to Port Mellon, an area north of Vancouver Island known for being one of the world's biggest producers of wood pulping and paper. Isn't that fascinating?! I just love being able to discover information about these globe-trotting vessels! The Mystery of the Hole-Covered Rocks As Steve and I wandered around the tidal flats, we noticed holes bored into many of the rocks and boulders but I couldn't remember how they were formed. As it turns out, the holes in these deeply-etched stones are bored by a mollusk called a Piddock or "Angel Wing" (named for the similarity when a shell is opened up completely). I remember seeing zillions of oblong shells laying everywhere, but at the time I thought they were some sort of mussel. No, they were the shells from Piddocks. These industrious bivalves grind holes into rocks by latching on with their muscular foot and slowly turning the ends of their modified shells around and around to; in time they eventually create burrows which contain their entire length. AMAZING! Interestingly, the extremely strong shells, when exposed to air and heat, become so brittle that finding complete shells is uncommon. That's the truth—I spent some time looking for complete shells and it was quite a challenge, given the piles of fragments heaped up where the tides receded. Now that I know why it makes sense that I couldn't find them easily. Today's Pictures My main picture today features one of the lovely mollusk-covered rocks with the tidal flat stretching out to the ocean beyond. In the far distance you can see the cargo container, the G2 Ocean Grouse Arrow . Insets include a pair of panoramas which show the amazing tidal flats and a marvelous row of mollusk-covered boulders. I've also included a close-up of the G2 Ocean Grouse Arrow along with pictures of one of the life-encrusted pools, an itty-bitty crab next to an open mussel shell with a tiny auger shell above it, a fun rock artwork and finally, a series of three pictures showing the rocks and boulders riddled with deep holes ground out by Piddock mollusks! Pam, I know you love the sea. This was a place you would adore. A healthy tidal area overflowing with life to appreciate was so wonderful to explore and enjoy. The views from near and far, the smell of the salt-water air, ocean birds flying overhead, it was very magical in this healing place. I thought of you often as we ambled out to the sea's edge. I hope you like this show...it's just one of many! *BIG HUGS* from southern Oregon. Explored on 1/30/20; highest placement #2.

(+15 insets!) (Please view large to see the pretty rocks closer! :D) (sorry for the book...go get some coffee!) :D I want to start this post with a huge thank you and endless virtual hugs to all of you for your support, care and understanding in regards to my low mood. I am very happy to report that things have been improving on a daily basis and this upward spiral has meant that I've been able to crawl out of the hole I've been in for the past few weeks. The community here at ipernity is wonderful and I am so thankful to call so many of you my friends and internet family. *MORE HUGS* I Got a Rock Tumbler for My Metal Detecting Hobby... and Now I Have ANOTHER Hobby! If you've been following my photography and writing, you'll know that a few months ago I got a metal detector, something that's been great fun to play with and a really interesting hobby too. It's opened my eyes to local history in addition to being an exciting treasure hunt! One of the things metal detectorists love to find are coins. Though I haven't found very many myself—since I haven't been to many parks yet--it's apparently very easy to find quite a trove when detecting at playgrounds and such. Since the majority of found coins are current, the best thing to do is save them up and then dump them into a "Coin Star"-type machine in exchange for paper money or store credit. These coins need to be cleaned up to remove the grime and oxidation so the machines can recognize them and the best way to do this is with...you guessed it...a rock tumbler! A couple of 20-minute runs with soap and water and grubby coins are shiny and easily returned. Here's a picture showing dirty and cleaned pennies so you can see the difference! Anyway, with the fact that I'll eventually be treasure hunting in parks and playgrounds, I decided to get a rock tumbler. Part of my reasoning was that I also have an interest in rocks, though it's never been anything more than appreciating the odd cool stone that catches my eye. So, a couple of months back I did some research and decided on a "two-barrel" rock tumbler which would allow me to do two sets of coins or rocks or one and one. Since I don't have enough coins to bother cleaning right now, the tumbler just sat there. I didn't have a pile of rocks to tumble and the rain at the time kept me from looking for any. Did I mention that our driveway is covered with a layer of gravel from a local quarry? Apparently the rocks they graveled our driveway came from an area which includes a percentage of mixed river and other mineral rock. This translates to mostly dark grey gravel with a blend of many interesting rocks. I've always noticed these rocks and, in fact, gathered the white ones and the ones that are flecked with black and white. Some of those I used as "counting" rocks, which I use to keep track of my laps as I walk up and down the driveway for my exercise. The rest I had in a pile next to my "counting stones". Naturally I began to think about using the rock tumbler for...oh, I don't know...TUMBLING ROCKS! After all, I figured that there were probably enough interesting rocks on our driveway to fill one of the 3-pound capacity drums. I decided that I would begin collecting any interesting rocks I found on the driveway as I marched up and down each day. Do you know how long it took me to gather a batch of rocks to fill the tumbler? About one lap. LOL, I couldn't believe it! Once I started looking at the driveway as a source of interesting rocks to try polishing, suddenly I realized what a treasure trove we had! Stones of all colors...white, mottled and marbled grey, some with stripes and striations, brown speckled ones, red ones with layer lines and interesting patterns, and lots of quartz that had patches of clear parts or tinges of pink, red, yellow or green. I found rocks with teal green tones and some that looked a bit blue. The more I looked, the more I found, and every time I'd do another lap I found more! The Interesting, Long Process of Tumbling Rocks I brought my treasure inside and washed the dirt off, dumped them into the tumbler and followed the directions included. My tumbler came with a beginner's tumbling kit, part of which were the various grits that are added to the rocks you're tumbling. Turns out there are 4 stages of tumbling, each of which takes 7 to 10 days. Yes, do the math. That's 28 to 40 DAYS before your rocks are polished! This is why I was never all that interested in tumbling rocks. It's true...I have the patience of a gnat. Heck, I can't even deal with setting up a tripod for my photography, so the idea of being forced to wait for a whole MONTH to arrive at finished stones was a big ol' NOPE in my book. But hey, if the tumbler is just SITTING there, not doing a thing, what's the harm in loading it up and turning it on, right? And that's just what I did. I measured the Step One grit and poured it on top of the rocks in the tumbler, added water to just above the stones, closed the chamber up tight and put it on the roller. All the rock tumbling machine does is turn the chamber of rocks round and round, day in and day out. Heck, if you could figure out how to get some hamsters or other rodents to take shifts running in their little wheels 24/7, you'd have the same deal! Cuter, of course, but the identical motion! I will say, I was very curious about the results of one week in the tumbler, and so was Steve. He's the one who got me to get off my duff and use the tumbler in the first place, so hats-off to him! We had the tumbler set up in the garage and every time we went out there for something we'd hear the tumbler going and wonder what the rocks looked like. By the way, these things are LOUD! The one I have is praised for being much more quiet than other rock tumblers but every time I went into the garage I thought to myself, "If this tumbler is less noisy than others, what do THEY sound like?!" WOW, what a racket! But it sits in the garage and it can make all the noise it wants out there! :) What Did the Rocks Look Like After Week 1?! Eventually the first week came to an end and it was time to see what happened to those rocks! Opening the top, I saw a thick film of mouse-gray mud covering everything. How interesting! I'd read that the grinding of the rocks produces a thick sludge of grey mud and that was totally accurate! Using a salad strainer over a large bowl, I dumped the rocks in and rinsed them off. There are stern warnings to never ever wash this mud down the drain because it will clog your pipes. Thinking about it, the logic is obvious so the water went into a bowl which I dumped in the back yard. It was like thick, very dense silt which packed into a clay-like consistency and took time to get completely washed out of the bowl, wow! Clogged pipes indeed! Finally the rocks were cleaned off and Steve and I eagerly picked up handfuls of the stones and looked at them with wonder. "LOOK AT HOW COOL THEY ARE!!" Both of us exclaimed our amazement at the worn-down edges and much rounder, smoother appearance of these once very rough stones. It was totally cool and with that realization, we were sold! "NEATO!!" I squeaked in delight. "AWESOME!" added Steve in pleasure. The two of us showed each other the wonderful rocks that caught our eye and soon we realized that every rock was wonderful and we laughed. What fun. We were also fascinated at the reduction in size of the rocks. They were all smaller than when they were first put into the tumbler, something that made sense but usually takes eons in nature. How interesting that we could reproduce this natural erosion over the course of a week instead of thousands of years. Groovy. Eventually we'd seen enough of our rocks that it was time to send them on to Step Two. Back into the barrel they went, only now the cylinder was barely half-full instead of two-thirds. The directions say that the rocks do best when the barrel is at the proper fullness. So what now? Why, add media to make up the difference, of course!* Because I'd forgotten to order the proper media to fill up the barrel, Steve went out and brought back some river stones from a hobby store which were smooth and hopefully wouldn't mess up our project. (In hindsight, river stones wasn't the best choice because they are very hard to tell apart from the rocks I found, but some of them I can see are more matt in tone which points them out.) With the rocks filled to the proper amount, I added Step Two grit, poured water up to just above the stones and off they went for another week! *Usual media used to increase lost volume in a tumbler is either plastic beads or ceramic media. (link to picture) The Next Steps Week Two results were even smoother and a bit smaller too. We appreciated the beautiful rocks and then sent them on their way to Step Three, after removing some broken rock chips and a few rocks that were broken and would ruin the finish of the other rocks. I let this batch of rocks go for 10 days because I hoped to counter the effects of the river rocks I'd introduced, which I thought might impact on their smoothing. Week Three results definitely showed a soft shine, how exciting! They were a bit smaller but not by much. The grit used was finer and much less abrasive, called a "Pre-Polish", and it all made sense judging by the matte glow of the rocks. I was really excited as I put them into the barrel for Step 4, the Polishing Stage. I wanted to give these guys the best chance for a nice shine, so I let them go for 10 days. I knew that my results wouldn't be perfect—glossy shine on blemish-free rocks—but I was hoping for some nice shine to enjoy for our first batch. Our First Batch of Tumbled Rocks The day finally came to unveil our finished stones! I opened up the barrel and carefully washed them off. I refused to look at them until they were clean, but when they'd been thoroughly rinsed I poured them slowly onto a towel, grabbed some paper towels and dried one off. The lovely mottled stone gleamed back at me with its round edges and shiny surface. IT WORKED!!! IT WORKED!!! I was so excited that it was all I could do to keep myself from blasting upstairs with my rock to alert Steve! But I kept myself in place. I wanted to dry the rocks off first so he could see the whole show and we could enjoy our first batch together. After a few minutes they were ready and I fairly boinged upstairs to gather Steve. I got his attention and waved a rock in front of him. "LOOK!!! Our first batch is FINISHED!! And they are AMAZING!!!" Steve nearly exploded out of his chair and basically left a vapor trail behind him as he raced down to the kitchen. Following him with a joyful chuckle, I entered the kitchen to find him bent over the rocks, rolling one over in front of his eyes and oohing and ahhhing over it. "WOWWWWWW!!!! They're so SHINY!!!!" Steve found his favorite rock, the one he picked out weeks before. It was a near-black, oblong stone that had a lovely band of white running through it at the half-way mark. "LOOK AT MY ROCK! IT'S PERFECT!!" Beaming happily, I gently took the offered stone and turned it over and over in my fingers, appreciating its beauty and shine. It really was a gorgeous rock. But then again...they all were! We would burst out with joy over an especially pretty rock, put it down, pick up the next one and...burst out with joy over the especially pretty rock! LOL, just about every single rock was a stunner. Some weren't quite as shiny, the river rocks we suspect, and a few were chipped. Most had "imperfections" of cracks but to us, they were all perfect! I eventually put them into a clear glass bowl and there they sit on our kitchen counter to admire. We pour them all out onto a dish towel every couple of days to look at and enjoy. Both of us are absolutely delighted and blown away that these were found on our gravel-covered driveway. AMAZING!! Our Property is Bulging with Awesome Rocks! One thing I didn't mention was that our property lies at the edge of the "agate desert" of this area, and this means that we have our very own treasure trove of stones that are at least as beautiful as the rocks on the driveway, but to be honest, I've been finding LOADS of rocks which are even NICER. In fact, I've collected piles of stones from around our pond that are so pretty, I can hardly wait to see what they look like when they are polished! Today's Pictures Today's main picture is our bowl of polished rocks, which I thought looked really neat in a top-down view. I have a mass of insets too, 15 in total, GAH! There are pictures of the finished rocks laid out on a towel for you to stare at...it will be a chore for you to come up with a favorite if you're like we are! I also picked out a bunch of stones that I showed individually so you can appreciate them on a one-by-one basis. Finally, I also included a couple of pictures that show unfinished "roughs" as they're called by "rock-hounds", and they're sitting in water to show why I was attracted to them. It's amazing how dull and boring these rocks appear when dry or unpolished! Anyway, I hope you enjoy the show! I've got two sets of rocks tumbling right now and the next finished batch will be ready next week, oh boy!!! Pam, are you a fan of rocks too? I've always been interested in them but never put them on my radar for a hobby because there was always something else I was doing. I never realized how rewarding it could be to find rocks and put them through this very long process, and at the end, to hold that same rock which is now gleaming and so lustrous and gem-like. Turning a rock into a jewel is an awesome experience and something you might like to try yourself? Anyway, thank you so much for your support, love, and attention...I'm thinking of you all the time and hope you are doing well! Explored on 1/11/20; highest placement #11.

(+2 insets!) (please view large for a much better view and impact!) Boy, it's amazing how memories blend together and start to fade so quickly. Steve and I have been home for less than a week but I find that remembering specific details on this past trip is becoming a rather muddled affair in many cases. This is EXACTLY why I have been so fastidious about writing everything down. That way we have our memories safe in both written and photographic forms. It's just so nice to go back and relive memories through written accounts. By reading and looking at pictures, more memories come bubbling up to the surface. I just love that. One of the places that we stayed along the Oregon coastline was an RV park near Coo's Bay. Via AllTrails.com, we found a wonderful hike to go on and discovered that we could actually get to the trailhead by walking three miles along a path that led directly from our campground! How cool is that?! :D The Sunset Beach to Cape Arago trail led us through verdant, lush and flower-filled forest which was the home to many happy and twittering birds. Every once in a while we would come upon a side trail that would take us out to a coastal view. Each time we were rewarded by incredible beautiful rocky coastlines and crashing waves that mesmerized us. Because we had to tack on six miles onto the official hike of 8.5 miles, the overall distance was too long for us to complete--and we also got a late start--but we didn't mind turning back before we reached Cape Arago. Every moment was so rewarding to us and this hike would be one of our favorite highlights of the trip! Today I am sharing a series of pictures I captured on our hike. A prominent feature we saw when we got coastal peeks was the attractive Arago Lighthouse. Both of us took lots of pictures whenever we got the opportunity. My main picture shows how far out the lighthouse is on its peninsula and shows the lovely landscape and watery vista all around. I am also sharing a couple of other views--one is a closer view and the other one shows the rugged coastline as well. I hope you enjoy the show! :) Pam, I see that you are a lighthouse fan too! I was delighted to discover that you love them so much, in fact, that you painted one as part of a Christmas card for your husband ! That's just so cool! What a marvelous design and a perfect idea. Red and white are often the color of light houses so that couldn't be better. Nice job, and what a treat to enjoy! Here's hoping that your day has been a good one! :)

We are still busy settling into our home after our last RV trip. I've been refilling supplies that were used, stripping the beds and washing all of the linens and so forth. Not too much left to do but I like to get it done and out of the way. This morning we also got a delivery...a replacement for the rinky-dink, cheapo plastic toilet that came with the RV! The new one is ceramic and normally-sized instead of feeling like something you might find at kindergarten. Steve was so excited that he had the old one replaced within an hour! It's a really nice upgrade, especially for 6'2" Steve because the original was so short and small. It made us wonder—we are both slender and yet that toilet made us feel like elephants...what are these standard RV toilets like for people who are even the least bit heavy? We realized soon after we bought this trailer is that the original owners did almost nothing to upgrade the RV except to put in a new dinette table...we figure it probably broke so they had no choice but to replace it. Having spent about a month living in our trailer now, it's amazing that they put up with all of the annoying little problems we needed to fix right away. RVs are CHEAP. The workmanship is truly abysmal. Anything that isn't visible is shoddy...there are missing screws, nails, boards, you name it. Rough-cut wood, uneven, lopsided, poorly done everything. "Care" is not a word used in the behind-the-scenes building of an RV. At least, that's been our experience. It didn't take long to learn that unless you pay top dollar—and I mean a LOT of money—an RV is just barely held together and must be upgraded, altered, tuned up and fixed if you hope to use it for a lot of traveling. Basically, getting an RV means that one or both of you must be handy and clever about the myriad fixes that are required to turn an RV into a comfortable home away from home. You won't believe everything Steve's done to the trailer! He's changed out the light bulbs, added a dozen light fixtures, put up at least a dozen hooks all over the place, replaced both the kitchen and bathroom faucets and the shower head too. There's a paper towel holder now, and every cabinet is full of removable baskets to keep everything organized. He added proper towel racks and a toilet paper holder in the bathroom and put in a super fluffy bathroom rug! Both the smoke and CO alarms have been replaced. All four of the tires are brand new and he had the brakes professionally worked on so they are factory fresh. We now have a runner carpet that goes the length of the coach so our 3-legged dog is comfortable and has traction. He's added a bunch of space under the counters just by making the hoses and wiring neat and tidy. He'll be creating a cubby hole cabinet by the door because the space is available and we have to wonder, why didn't they do this to begin with? Space is such a premium in an RV! Likewise, he'll be building two large pull-out drawers under the dinette seats instead of the stupid situation it is now: pull off the cushions, lift up the cheapo piece of plywood and get into the huge space on either side. A sliding drawer will be perfect and should have been there to begin with! Because of Steve's skills, we've got an RV that's really becoming an awesome place. We'll probably need to upgrade our refrigerator/freezer to a larger one but for now it's fine. Oh, and my bed required another topper to make it useable...and now it's perfect! We also have other things to fix and change but the changes we've made have made such a big difference. How could the original owners have put up with it as it was?! Oh yes, my main image! Today is my day to put up my Happy Fence Friday picture and I'm choosing one that I took on our Coos Bay hike. While we were at our turn-around point and eating our late lunch snacks, we noticed a fellow photographer off in the distance at another point. He was there for some time, enjoying the view and we wanted to see too, so after our break we found the trail that took us out to that point and...WOW! WHAT A VIEW! While I was walking over to get a better look, I was surprised to see a chain-link fence that didn't seem to be doing anything but stick out like a sore thumb. But then I thought, "What a perfect picture for HFF!" So here you go! (very busy tonight so no insets!) Pam, we have thought so many times how nice it would be for you to live out here on this coast. We don't know where we'll end up settling down after we've finished having our adventures but Steve feels the same way you do. I don't want to be in cold, foggy, windy conditions that the coast is so known for, but inland a bit would be ok for me. Access to the beach would be lovely. We'll have to see how things shake out way down the road! Wish we could wave a magic wand for you though! *BIG HUGS MY DEAR* :) Explored on 5/31/19; highest placement, #6.

(+3 insets!) (oops...I accidentally wrote an entire book! Heh...sorry...I needed to tell you about yesterday too! Hmmm...might I suggest an entire pot of coffee?! :D) Here in the United States, the observance of Memorial Day happens on the last Monday of May. The weekend preceding Monday is also the official beginning of summer vacation season and in some places, the end of the school year. This translates to being one of the busiest travel periods of the year. When Steve and I organized this trip we're on, it didn't even occur to us that we'd be sharing some days with the crazy Memorial weekend throngs. We only realized when we couldn't find anywhere to stay on Friday, Saturday or Sunday. It finally dawned on us that there had to be something going on and then it hit us. "OH NO!!! What are we going to do?" We spent hours looking for an affordable place to stay without any luck. Steve kept looking and then, to our total amazement, we found one night available at Bullard's Beach, which just happens to be one of the most popular campgrounds in the area. We were so happy. We were going to just drive home from there because we weren't finding anywhere to stay but with some more persistence, Steve found us two more nights on Saturday and Sunday night at a place that wasn't too expensive and was also just a short walk to the beach. SCORE! Even though it was too bad that we couldn't stay longer at Bullard's Beach, it turned out to be just fine because we got a fabulous adventure while we were there. What a great surprise that was! We are most definitely going to come back and spend at least four days there next time around, what a nice place it was. :) Another bonus to our Bullard's Beach site was that we were able to leave our truck hitched to the trailer and since there was no sewer hookup, we didn't have that time-sink either. That meant that leaving would be really fast the next morning, woot! :) To top things off, check-out time to leave our campsite today was 1pm which was great. Some places are 11am and it can be a bit stressful to get out the door and driving at that time unless we have done some of the work the night before. We loved being able to sleep in along with the luxury of a nice and relaxed morning. It also gave me the chance to fix a situation that happened yesterday. When we pulled into our campsite, I couldn't help seeing the beautiful yellow flowers all over the bushes everywhere. Naturally I wanted to take pictures and once we got set up, I popped out the door with my Canon and macro lens and spent about 15 minutes taking pictures of the flowers which were literally 10 feet from our rig! :) There was also rattlesnake grass which I adore. Last night when I went to copy my pictures over I was horrified to see that I managed to NOT have an SD card in the camera. Apparently we didn't change the settings to alert us when there's no card in the camera. ARGH!!! I was so annoyed. Steve quickly diffused the situation by saying that we'd have tons of time in the morning and I could spend all the time I wanted to retake my pictures. He also reminded me of how wonderful it was that my subjects were literally right outside the rig. I relaxed and looked forward to the morning with a happy smile on my face! So, this morning I popped outside as soon as I was able…mind you, it began pouring when we got up but then…it stopped! There was a constant drizzle when I went out but it was manageable, as were the breezy conditions. Sometimes I wonder if someone/something is making sure that all goes well for us because workable conditions keeps happening for us just when it's really important to us. I went out and there were droplets and dew all over everything…it was so much prettier than when I took pictures last night! :D I retook pictures of the pretty yellow flowers and the red-tinged ones I'd never seen before…and the pea pods…and the rattlesnake grass too. JOY!!! It only took about 15 minutes and while I was outside, Steve was making breakfast for us! I climbed back into the RV just as breakfast was ready, how's that for timing?! :D He was so happy I had a successful shoot and loved the few pictures I showed him on the camera. :) Yay for fabulous husbands! :) I haven't looked at my pictures on the computer yet but I saw a few on the camera and there are certainly some winners so I'm totally overjoyed!! (NOTE: I've peeked at a few...lots of keepers!!) Once breakfast was done, we merely did about 20 minutes of final prep and we left our site! What a wonderful experience. :) We had a very nice time heading back south as the rain came down periodically. I pointed out the Facerock Creamery in Bandon which we'd hoped to visit on the way back--Steve was delighted that I spotted it! This company makes fabulous cheese and curds which we adore and we hoped that we might find some specialty items only sold there. YES! They DID! Steve and I were the happiest of chubby-cheeked mouses (intentionally misspelled!) as we sampled all of their many offerings and left with way too much cheese and curds for the normal and sane person, but heh…we are all about keto and cheese is one of our yummiest staples! YAY CHEESE! How much cheese do we want? ALL OF IT! :D MORE CHEESE IS MORE! :D Along the two-hour drive we enjoyed the lovely views of the rugged coastline. There was a grocery store stop to get some more dog food for Molly and later we pulled off to take pictures at a place called Meyer's Beach because the views were just too lovely to resist! Stepping out of the truck was almost shocking--the raging wind and freezing temperatures were truly something else! I grabbed my Sony and got a bunch of pictures while the wind literally knocked me off-balance many times. I had to be careful, it was THAT windy! We were happy to get back into the truck, yikes! Worth it to stop though! :) Finally we pulled into our last two-nights stay of our trip, what they call an "RV Park" but what we call an "RV Parking Lot"…lol…we knew it would be like this and honestly it's better than most that we put in this classification but truly it's just a bunch of parking spots that you jam your rig into. Not special or pretty at all. In the case here, the property edges are nice with pretty flower-covered bushes but that's about it. Not what we'd accept normally but it's Memorial Day weekend so we were happy that these were available. :) Plus, the beach is very close! The weather is, let's just say, NOT macro weather. Heh. The wind is enough to rock the trailer and the rain is peppering the trailer sideways, lol. It's not raining constantly but enough. It's very cold out there too. However, Steve and I are very happy to be in our comfy little home and the internet connection here is super. Folks next to us are so nice and actually moved into their spot a month ago as a full-time living arrangement. We had a lovely dinner and I'm all snuggled into my nest, content as can be. :) How nice it's been to have some time to just write and work on my pictures! :) Today's pictures are all from Meyer's Beach, the incredible place we stopped at on the way down here. You just have to see this place, it's amazing! The main image is pointed south. The first inset is directly out to sea. The third is pointed north. And then a fun picture of our rig with the view south. Wow. The whole Oregon coastline is covered with views like this. How fortunate we are to be able to visit this place. And to think, it's actually just a three-hour drive from our house. We will be back and if we can, we'll be able to camp nearby so we can go on a long and wonderful day's walk and photo adventure here. For now, just to see it is a fabulous gift. I hope you guys enjoy the pictures! :D I braved ridiculous wind for all of you and I survived without turning into a Janet Kite! :D Thinking of you, PAM!!! *BIG HUGS*!!! :) Explored on 5/26/19; highest placement, #4.

I had a wonderful time growing flowers from seeds, and I especially loved growing Morning Glories! I adore climbing vines with their tendrils clinging to everything. There are so many interesting ways they attach to things they encounter. Even the beginning of a vine is wonderful to look at, with its gleaming, hairy green face peering out to see where it might find a place to begin winding and sending out tendrils!

Steve and I went to Ashland for fall photography back in 2011, and while we were walking around, we found these piles of rocks. At the time we didn't know what they were called, but we loved taking pictures of them! I found some very nice information about stacking stones on this page, Garden and Bliss: "Rock stacking has carried spiritual meaning across cultures for centuries. The act of balancing stones carries with it a practice of patience and a physical effort of creating balance. I love the idea of tangible prayer and finding new ways to express gratitude in my life. Each rock can signify an intention of grace for thankfulness, or offered up for another in need. Connecting nature in this externalized expression is uplifting and very powerful tool for expanding the spirit. A little silicone glue can help make smaller stone towers last through the seasons if used as a garden decoration or given as a gift."