Home Again

SAM & ME have been back home in Bellingham for 43 hours after completing a 13-1/2 hour drive from Brian's Cromwell Services 22 miles West on US 20 from Vale, Oregon. There was a 2-hour delay for an accident on Snoqualmie Pass, 50 miles East of Seattle.

Since returning to my Business to clean up admin of the past 3 weeks, the phone has been busy with client orders...something that has not happened in many months. Between phone calls and processing orders, have been wading through a morass of inconsistent accounting entries . Driving me nuts trying to match up $$ to documents...what a mess.

Taking time out to clear my head of numbers, I have put Motorcycle to bed. Tried to sell her, but in 18 months she has depreciated from $7,000.00 I paid down to $2,500.00...a loss I simply cannot/willnot take...so Motorcycle sleeps for now.

Have also wrangled over how SAM should be handled. We could transport her in the Trailer. The trailer is heavy and poor tired Van is dubious about pulling it up & over the Rockies. So, I have modified SAM a bit and low & behold, SAM has found a way to fit (sans wheels) into the Van...still leaving room for ME to bed down beside her. Just like old times in our tent - which is in the Van ready if needed.

I.E.,, Trailer has become excess. Back she goes tomorrow to the dealer, who promised she would fetch up to 90% of her purchase price...we shall see.

Seems to me like an awful (really awful) lot of starts - stops - restarts SAM & ME have gone through to get our walk underway and continue in an intelligent economical manner. All our efforts have worked just fine...they just cost a lot in real $$ or in demands on ME.

I feel we have now trimmed down our program to the bare bones. SAM & ME go into the Van.
Van is Home Base for 2 walks a day for up to 30 - 40 miles a day. Upon restart - hopefully in the next few days - at Brian's, we will put our nose(s) to the grindstone and put some significant miles under our shoes/wheels.

Nephew, Dale, who has worked in my Company off and on for the past 25 years, has volunteered to re-enter the fray by putting out Client Invoices for ME. This will negate my coming back to Bellingham every 2 - 3 weeks to do that chore. Once a month will be enough to take care of admin upkeep, such as month-end reports for tax purposes, etc. I will continue to take and process orders while walking. It has worked fine up to now, and see no reason why I should change that.

My Significant Other just treated me to a very nice Clam Linguine dinner for my 75th Birthday. A nice way to begin the next quarter century, which I very much intend to complete in good health and still walking. She is not so sure and suggests that I will be interred into a rest home with someone dabbing the slobber from my hanging sagging mouth. Encouraging? No ! I always plan for the best but have options if less-than-best should happen. I have found that one usually gets what one expects. Slobber dabbing is not on my agenda.

A word about a lady, Danielle Hebert, I met & befriended a few weeks ago walking the Oregon High Desert. Danielle is circumnavigating the USA, starting in Vancouver, B.C. Alone, on her Suzuki Motorcycle. She is having a less than good time at the moment. Go Danielle, Go.

See, I'm not the only solo act out there.