POST 1461; BELLINGHAM, WA; JULY 19, 2015

My how time flies. 

After helping Bob move into his home, have donated nearly three weeks clearing the jungle of berry vines, strangling ivy, and miscellaneous weeds reaching the prodigious height of some eight feet, my task is complete.

On Tuesday, July 21, I plan to leave Bellingham, heading for the East Coast before Winter sets in.

Bellingham Bay...the last undeveloped deep water harbor (in America ?).  Work is set to start to change the water front and adjacent city neighborhoods - donated by Georgia Pacific to the city of Bellingham.

Bellingham, already one of the world's most desirable small cities, is about to become a major destination.

Fairhaven District offering turn of the century finest in just about every desirable finery, is the home of Bob Young.

Treasures abound in hidden alleys and main streets...Bob has treated me to many culinary delights...surpassed only by the profusion of breweries and chic residents and tourists.

Looking West to Lummi Island some seven miles distant offers the first of 172 San Juan Islands harboring the worlds largest octopi, the worlds clearest cleanest salt waters
offering year-round boating.

Wednesday Farmer Market is only one of Fairhaven gathering spots.

Offering ...

...and the world's primary source for Raspberries...as well as numerous delightful fruits and veggies/

...and it is true local skiing begins in late October ending with SKI TO SEA...our 80 mile relay race from our local Volcano, Mt. Baker on skis, racing bicycles, river canoe, mountain bike, and ocean racing kayak...ending in Bellingham Bay.

Wall Mural in Fairhaven.

Bellingham Eye Candy

Neighbor Hood Party...

Bellingham...a music lovers paradise.

JITTERBUG on the streets of Bellingham.

Home of Bob Young...after removal of most of the jungle growth during recent 5-year of rental activities.

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Tuesday should see SPIA and ME on our way back to fetch SAM, garaged in Culloden, West Virginia.  I plan to winter over again with Dallas, who is putting up the good fight against the nasty Diabetes.

Current routing is via Seattle, Portland, Boise, Yellowstone National Park, Scottsbluff, Ogallala, then via US Highway 30 to again visit Sister Carol in DeKalb, Illinois.

...followed by Indiana, Ohio and Culloden, some 2,600 miles from Bellingham.

Should be blogging daily.

POST 1460; BELLINHAM, WA.; JULY 11, 2015

Ten months it has been since settling in with my friend Dallas in West Virginia.  The past 1.5 months has seen us travel to Portland, Maine to fetch SPIA, our 1995 MAZDA MPV...then to The Outer Banks of North Carolina...then cross the USA to my recent home of Bellingham, Washington.

Following is a photographic rendition of highlights of these journeys.

Please say HELLO to my friend Linda Hooper, Mother in Waiting for the community of WAVE (Outer Banks), descendent of original homestead families.  Meals are always ready to serve at Linda's home

...such as this Sunday After-Church Dinner for three members of DADE COUNTY CHALLENGE...a church sponsored live-in program for young folks caught up in local drug addictions.

LIFEBOAT Community Church of Wave, Outer Banks, North Carolina.

2.5 years ago Hurricane IRENE devastated the Outer Banks.  I volunteered my efforts for 8 - months, cleaning 6 miles of Highway 12, tearing down Black Mold affected homes...then rebuilding them...; painting the rebuilt church, and setting up the Food Bank;  the island was, you see , inundated by 5.5 feet of water, effectively destroying homes, businesses and churches

Rental homes are built on stilts some 20 feet into the air...to avoid flooding.  Local folks have little income resulting in their homes ( and businesses) subject to flooding nearly every year. 

Columbia,North Carolina, where dear friend Karen lived before her death 1.5 years ago.  Husband Craig still considers me "family" with " MY " room always ready when I come home...as I did this trip.

Local wines are offered from this delightful bistro only one block from Craig's home on the banks of the SCAPPERNONG River in Columbia, North Columbia.

BACK HOME IN WEST VIRGINIA, WILD TURTLES greet me.

Home of my Lady, Sally on Cherry Lane in the HOLLOW off the Mud River.

Sally (r.) and daughter Suzy, who lives next door to Sally.

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Wedding of JASON and JENNY, attended from family as far away as Arizona.

Sally (r.) and Grand Daughter Sally Ann, visiting from Arizona.

Wedding Party.

Please say HELLO to Jenny and Jason.

Guest Sign-In Tree.

Suzy and Mike entertaining with some light shoe dancing .

Dan Davis of Haggarstown, Indiana, where I spent the night after an evening of reacquaintences with 50 or so of Dan's friends and family.

Haggarstowm city Wall Murals.

Haggarstown residential street.  SPIA is parked front and center.

Long Time Friend and employee of Dan's construction company.  This young AMISH man has been recently promoted to Project Manager

Following images are of America as we cross the Great Plains and Mountains to Bellingham, Washington.

Columbia River at Bridgeport, Washington... home of delightful family of ...

ANNA, LANIE, and little brother.  Last year I stayed overnight with them.  This year I kept on to the town of Pateros, where I spent the night sleeping in SPIA.

Picnic for the Children's Summer Bible Study Camp.

Crossing the North Cascade Mountain Pass, some 150 miles East of Bellingham,

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Have enjoyed helping friend Bob Young - Bob helped me construct SAM - move into his new ( Old) home, where I had to apply myself to clear away up to ten feet tall berry vines and thorny vines covering the new property.  Two days hence, SPIA and ME will once again say Good Bye to Bellingham, returning to the roads of America.

POST 1459; BELLINGHAM, WA; 07-09-15

Hi, All...


This is a computer / BLOG test.
Am currently in Bellingham, Washington at the home of Bob Young.  Have helped
Bob move to his own home (from a rental), and have worked in his "garden" for 5 days cleaning out 8-foot growth .

I am fine, working with a vengence.  SPIA has been upgraded in many ways, performing like new.

Have pics from the past month which will be posted by tomorrow.

Planning to depart Bellingham next week, heading South ... then East.  Daily blogs will resume with our departure .

POST 1458; BELLINGHAM WASHINGTON; JULY 02, 2015

POST 1457; CULLODEN, W.V.; JNE 05, 2015

Three weeks have slipped under the bridge with no blog update.  In a nutshell, I have enjoyed a one week sojourn to the Outer Banks in North Carolina, visiting old friends ...and clearing my mind from the tangled events of Mud River Road, West Virginia.

No, it didn't help.  Returned to as much confusion and mystery as left behind.  We all know baggage is ALWAYS taken along. 

Domiciled back in the comfort of Dallas' home, I find growing time on my hands with danger of losing the keen physical peak earned in the recent five years.  Disdain and rejection the result of offers to pitch in so as to work off growing frustration, am about to seek employment in a big box store...or even Mc D's.

Thankfully, SPIA is performing in a magnificent manner...no more oil leak. 

Have returned to WALKING daily for two-plus hours.  Pleased to have retained a good work ethic and with continued effort could return to 30 miles per day within a couple weeks.

Toying with the challenge to return to RUNNING, not embraced for the past 35 years.  Wonder if a 80 - plus year old could complete a marathon in under three hours.  Would be a kick to give it a whirl.

POST 1456; CULLODEN, W.V.; MAY 13, 2015

Incredibly, Sally has dismissed me !

I am not now welcome...for any reason.

Claiming she will not give up Claude...Claude who brings her so much hurt... sinks Sally to the depths of depression. despair and anger.at the mention of his name. 

Valiantly trying to convince me that SHE is "bad" and is responsible for the hurts, I have many times  reminded her that "BAD" people do not do the kindly things she does so often for so many

It is time to move on. 

A day or two more work for my wonderful host, Dallas, SAM, SPIA and ME will leave West Virginia. 

No firm plan has been set.  I am physically strong and fit;

I am mentally a shambles.

Enough tears have, for now, been shed.

POST 1455; CULLODEN, WEST VIRGINIA;; MAY 01, 2015

SPIA is back with SAM and ME from spending one year in storage in Portland, Maine.

The result of an incredible journey from Culloden, West Virginia by automobile to Columbus, Ohio, where I flew "Standby" to Baltimore, Maryland...thence again "Standby" to Portland, Maine.  A 10 minute TAXI ride delivered me to SPIA's parking garage.  Both flights were at the courtesy of Mike, Son In Law of Sally.  Thank you, Mike.

The parking garage offered SPIA's one year parking without cost.  Thank you, John.

I found SPIA with a dead battery.  A cell phone call to Triple A  ("AAA")  resulted in SPIA running like a new car in 10 minutes after a "BOOST" and electronic checkup...all at no cost, as I am a AAA custoimer for many years.

Driving out of the parking garage, I had to deal with a missing rear side window and a "TRASHED" interior...the handiwork of a sloppy THIEF who broke into SPIA, stealing my electronics (Inverter, charging equipment, GPS) , tool box, and other stuff, leaving the interior of SPIA a shambles saturated with glass splinters from the window being ripped from the car.

Visiting the local Portland MALL, purchased some items from SEARS, including 10 quarts of oil to feed the rear main seal oil leak.  The leak used one quart every `100 miles...just enough to get "home" to West Virginia.  Treated myself to a yummy dinner with wine...then slept in SPIA parked in the Portland Mall truck parking area.

Up before daylight, was driving South on I-95, Deadheading to West Virginia.  Planned to stop in a number of scenic  places along the way, but quickly realized SPIA needed to get home before risking losing the rear main seal completely. 

Crossing Manhattan, New York City, took three hours in the biggest traffic jam I ever experienced.

Kept driving to Washington D.C., where I exited I-95 on I-495.  Continued on I-66 to I-81, where I stopped at 11:30 (midnight)...then at 6:00 AM, continued South to I-64...thence to Hurricane, West Virginia, arriving as prayers were being given for the noon Senior Center lunch.

Entire round trip took 49 hours 30 minutes, including two night sleeps inside SPIA. 

Sorry for not stopping for photographs as promised.  Was anxious to return "home" to Sally  Her welcome was pleasant.  We have danced the time away since.  Actually, Sally has taken off "my" ring, setting our relationship back a wee bit.  I am intent on success, however, eventually spending our better years together.

The Tri-State region of OHIO, KENTUCKY and WEST VIRGINIA is the unlucky home for massive DRUG activities.  Daily murders and drug elated arrests occur on the TV News channels.  The above paper is all too true !

SPIA with ripped out side window.  Thief crawled inside, trashing everything and stealing some considerable $$$ worth of tools and electronics.

Massive Traffic JAM approaching the George Washington Bridge as we crawl our way out of Manhattan, New York City.

Sally's Daughter SUZY and husband Mike, taking delivery of their newly purchased Excavator.  Mike is starting work on building their new home in CHERRY HOLLOW.  Have offered to assist, if Mike can find his way to trust this old soul to be of some help.

Excavator being loaded for the short trip to CHERRY HOLLOW...

...continuing below...

Tie-down detail.

On the way to a new adventure.

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Me, Too;  the SAGA continues.