Simple Living and Simple Travel

I recently read somewhere that Sherlock Holmes never said, Elementary, my dear Watson. What?! I’ve listened to quite a few Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce (my favorite duo, well maybe not Nigel Bruce) episodes on the SiriusXM Classic Radio channel and watched them on youtube. I could have sworn I heard that. So I looked into it. Apparently, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle never wrote those exact words for his detective. But Doyle’s character did say ‘elementary’ and ‘my dear Watson’ quite often. It seems the whole phrase started with other authors. Could be wrong. I never had a Taser and can’t see me ever purchasing one. But recently, I came across the story behind the idea. It brought to mind some books I read as a kid. It’s actually a loose acronym of the book, Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle. Jack Cover, the inventor of the modern ECD, named his prototype after the YA sci-fi novel he loved, and the very idea for a less-lethal electric gun was largely inspired by the fictional one descri

Think we were in the White Mountains of Arizona for this shot of Mesa on his throne. Yes, I know, not pretty. Light therapy lamps are most effective when used at eye level or above. Hence the jury rig with my stool for step-ups. Also meant to be used first thing in the morning while one is sipping a large mug of green tea and a smaller one of coffee. I go through periods of winter blues from time to time. Thankfully, never SAD. Good grief. Anyway, I purchased a Verilux HappyLight, 10,000 lux. Love it. Don’t know if it works on winter blues but that in-your-face bright light in the morning sure is a positive jolt for the day. It’s a keeper. As you know, the winter solstice is my favorite day of the year, the earth’s new year. It’s natural, simple, meaningful. Been celebrated for a long time. Here’s some historical text. “Humans may have observed the winter solstice as early as Neolithic period—the last part of the Stone Age, beginning about 10,200 BC. Neolithic monuments, su

Don’t think I’ve posted this particular shot of Mesa and Meadow on the cage. Don’t know where we were. And yes, they jump and climb up there on their own. Well, I’m not getting back to the state parks this winter, maybe next year. This will be the third winter I’m not making it to the parks, through no fault of my own. Guano. I had made reservations for this winter, but something came up and I had to cancel them. I’ll be staying in Alamogordo until some time in April. Might even look forward to moving back up to Timberon by then. From Timberon’s elevation of 7,100’, I generally drop down to around 3,570’ for the winter months. This winter I’m in a different valley and only down to 4,330’. A bit chillier. But I have daily access to wi-fi and cell phone coverage. It’s in a RV park, however. Thank the gods I only do this when I have too. In the NMSPs, sites are generally farther apart, with no frills or calendar of events. Simple, my thing. I have some deer photos that I have

I saw these two young gobblers early last month. Have not seen or heard any turkeys since then. Going to drop my last unopened 40 lb. bag of scratch grain with a friend to use. I was looking at some paintings by Normal Rockwell and came across The Shiner. When I read the story behind the painting, I ordered a 11x14 print and have it hanging in the Nash. For me, it’s the smile. Couldn’t get a photo of it without reflection, so this image is from ARTPublica Magazine. "The Young Lady with the Shiner" (1953) by Norman Rockwell “Out of the 321 covers that Norman Rockwell (1894 - 1978) created during his 47-year career at the Saturday Evening Post, “The Young Lady with the Shiner” painted in 1953 was his 277th. It ran on the 23rd of May, and served as the third and final work by Rockwell The Post published that year. To create the impressively detailed scenes that the artist is known for, Rockwell relied on meticulously planned photographic studies. So, when he was ready

It’s been raining quite a bit. I moved this photo from last month’s page to here, to compare 2017 to now. (taken back in 2017 when I first dug a flat spot to park the Nash, looking south) This is the same shot as it looks now. I extended the flat area out 22’ from the side of the Nash. Used logs, thick limbs and dozens of wheelbarrow loads of rock and dirt. The dirt in front extends to the left anther 12-15 feet and is the spot where I park the Nash when I get back in March. The large back window faces east. Built up the same way. Golden crown beard (thanks, Lynn) has a hold here. Not pleased about this. It seems like another of this flowering plant’s name, gold weed, is more appropriate. The first four years I’ve been here there was no gold weed. Last year it took over the flat spot. From Wikipedia, “The species responds strongly to disturbances on suitable sites and retards the development of other local species.” Guano. I took this photo last month. Since then gold weed

Turkeys and deer have started passing through again. They certainly add to the ambience of the place. I’m thankful for this. A week ago, I brought up the July page on my laptop. Damn. So many mistakes. My editing skills seemed to have quit without letting me know. Hopefully I corrected the errors and will be looking for a new set of editing skills. I do not usually go back and read an entry once it is uploaded. Wonder how many other pages are a mess. Guano. Rooster scooped out a bed under the wheelbarrow. I saw Mesa using this spot twice. Before this, he never snoozed under the wheelbarrow. When I get back from a town run, there are three weeks of supplies to unload. Some of the totes and the laundry go into the Nash so I leave the screen door open. Coming in with one load, there was Rooster standing on the threshold looking in. Sure was glad he chose to turn around and jump down. Could have been a messy fiasco. At times when Rooster is walking slowly, he stomps. One leg ki