The movie..."Groundhog Day"..or hubbys birthday..

Construction is going on on just about every road and highway we have been on lately.  This is the government at work, stimulating the economy with road construction and bridge repair.  But, there are so many barrels, (wonder if they are full of "pork"?) and just one man to do the job.  I think that there should be at least four.  One to drive the truck. One to toss the barrels and rings down and two on the ground to catch them and put them together.  Now we would have four people employed instead of one.

But, then again, why would we want our government to pay someone who isn't working?  Not the elected officials, we know about them already.  It appears to me that we are having a meeting of how things should get done. Wait and see how many cars and trucks it takes to create a back up for miles.  Now if they just sit there for a few more minutes...

But, wait.  There are two guys working on a bridge.  Or is he fishing?

Mission accomplished.  There is a back up in the traffic for at least five miles.  On this stretch it seemed that there were more trucks than four wheelers.  (four wheelers is what the truck drivers call a car)

With the back up in the construction zones we had the time to appreciate the fall colors.  There weren't many trees changing yet, but the ones that were were beautiful.

One of these days I am going to look up in the history books and find out what the battle at Chickamauga was all about during the Civil War.  There are so many battlefields throughout the North and South.  I never thought that there were so many battles fought in the Civil War, but I guess from all the signs along the roadways there were quite a few.

This picture is a little distorted.  It almost appears as if the restaurant is sinking into the mountain side.  But, I just took the picture as we were going around a curve.  There are rib joints and bar-b-que places in every town and city in the South.  Some are very good and others...well ..let's just say...I wouldn't go back there again and if you really really didn't like someone....send them there.

So on that note, I will say..until the next time I will see you ..on the other side.

Heading East.

We made it to California and the race track.  That was an interesting place to say the least.  It wasn't what I thought it would be, but then again we were on the back end of the track, not where the public goes.  We didn't see any race horses, but did see a lot of hay and recycled hay, also known as horse apples.

From California we were sent to...not Oregon, but to Idaho.  The roads we took were some that I hadn't been on since I was in high school and went hunting with my dad.  Things hadn't changed much in 50 years.  The buildings were just older.

The small town of McGill, Nevada is just a bump in the road.  You blink twice and you are on the other side of town.  A lot of the buildings there are very old and quaint.  One of my classmates from high school lives here.  She is lucky to live in a small town and not have to worry too much about crime, for everyone knows each other.

Yep, that is snow on them there mountains and winter isn't even here yet.  It has been very cool in the daytime as we head towards Idaho.  I am not ready for winter, even though I have our winter gear on the truck with us.  It doesn't hurt to be ready for any type of weather when we are out here, especially when we are in the months of Fall.  Maybe we will head South and stay warm. ..Just a thought...

As we were going into Idaho we were on this road that had the strangest overpasses.  They looked as if someone squished them from the top.  It was almost as if you could picture yourself going into a snakes belly, but could see daylight on the other side.  There were several of these as we continued on to our destination.

As we traveled on Scenic Highway (US) 30 out of Twin Falls, Idaho we saw some of the most beautiful sights.  There were waterfalls all along one stretch of cliffs.  One right after another.  There were camp grounds along the river that you could camp and fish.  This is one of the places that I would like to return to in a little baby truck to enjoy the beauty.

Now in Smity's Country Store you can buy just about anything, including Flies.  Now why someone would want to pay for those pests I have no idea.  I guess some people will buy anything just to say they bought it.  But, then again, maybe Smity is saying that there is flies and to beware or just where they are landing.  This needs to be investigated in more detail.

You can go from one type of beauty to another.  Here I can picture a wagon train coming across the land and the Indians following them to see if they stay or go.  It is almost as if you can step back in time and see the Old West.
 It is time to stop and feed the driver.  I will write more later, so until then ...I will see you on the Other side.

To the race track we go.

We are heading for the racetrack to deliver shavings of wood for bedding, I guess for the race horses.  I have only been to a racetrack once, and that was in Evanston, Wyoming many, many moons ago. I think it will be interesting to see the back end of a racetrack.  I read in the paper today that they are having races there this weekend.  I suppose that is the reason we need to deliver this load on Monday morning.  Can you picture a huge 18 wheeler pulling onto the racetrack property during a race.  Not a good thing.  Some of these races have large purses.  The highest I read in the paper for this weekend at this track is $45,000.00.  No wonder they take such good care of these horses.  They can make in one race what an average person would make in a year.  If there is such a thing as reincarnation, I want to come back as a winning racehorse.  No, on second thought, the owner of a winning racehorse.  That sounds a lot better.

Going the back way to reach I-5 we get to see some beautiful sights.  I believe that the structure in the background is a silo, but not real sure.  Here in California you can never be too sure what anything could or could not be.

 When I saw this sign, I thought it was referring to a town.  But, Tom informs me that Rolling Rock is a type of beer.  So, does the sign mean that the beer was born in a small town or the small town was born due to the beer?  A question to ponder.

The morning mist was thick in some areas.  As I looked out the windshield I saw the Flag waving in the mist.  I think I will never get tired of seeing the beauty of the American Flag.  It flies so majestically in the air, and when the breeze catches it you can't be help but think of the  song, The Star Spangled Banner and where in the song it says, "Forever may it wave." 

  As we went through Butte, Oregon the local saddle shop sign caught my eye.  They carry just about everything you would need to outfit a cowboy or cowgirl.  I wonder if this store is another one of those places that is information central?  The appearance of the town would suggest to me that this just might be the place to go to find out what is going on the the community

I made this photo a little be larger than the rest, for the sign/painting on the side of building makes a statement.  The first part has the flag and the next part says," The Bill of Rights, what part of this is gang related"?  Below this is gang graffiti, that is very artistic.  I would have to understand "gang" lingo, in order to understand what the graffiti means.  As it stands now, I have no clue and would like to remain clueless in some instances.  Sometimes no knowledge is good knowledge

As we came into the first town in California, I saw this fire engine parked outside of the restaurant/bar, and there were

three firemen walking into the place.  Now I suppose that if they are going into eat that it would be a place that you would feel that the food would be good.  If firemen eat there it must be good.  Kind of like, if you see trucks outside a restaurant the food must be good.  But, don't be fooled by that saying.  Sometimes that is the only place the truckers can park their rigs to eat and if they are hungry they will eat just about any type of food.

 As we continued on US 97 towards Southern California we saw some old buildings.  This one was a old log home that they haven't destroyed, but kept it as part of the towns history.  Can you imaginee living in a house like this?

Mount Shasta had a new dusting of snow on its cap.  I wonder if there is anyone up there that is going to try and ski down the face of it?  There are some dare devils out there, I am sure that have tried it.

 We then came into the town of Weed.  You can see the mountain from just about anywhere in the town. 

The food must be good here.  I could smell it cooking from inside of the truck.  This man was busy cooking on the outside bar-b-que.  I wonder what was on the grill?

As I was taking the pictures, he happened to look up and wave.  Now that is a friendly town, when the residents wave to you as you go by.  As I have mentioned before, I like small towns over the larger ones.

We are about to call it a day as we draw closer to the truck stop and the mountain lakes are looking as they are full of water.

And as the lone walker walks along the road, I will say...I will see you on the otherside.

Stuck in the California Oregon loop.

As you can see by the photo, the weather has turned to rain.  But, we are in Oregon and it rains there all the time.  It seems as if when you cross the state line from California into Oregon the landscape changes to green instead of golden brown as it is in California.  There must be some type of dividing line for the weather in this area. Go figure.
  I thought that this was a cute church.  Well, it must have been a church at one time, but now it is a Yoga studio.  Yoga deals with serenity, so I guess this would be a good place after all, for a yoga studio.  At least they didn't tear the building down and replace it with something modern.

Now with the history of Oregon and what they are known for other than trees, makes one wonder what the Wild Harvest could be?

I tried to make this photo a little bit larger, so that you could read the sign in the background.  It says the Shotgun is open daily from 7A til 2A

Then: Sun-Thur 11PM - Mid Nite

It is a little bit confusing to me, but then again you wonder what is the the smoke that hangs over the towns in the area.  Just a wonder because of the next sign I saw along the side of the road was...

Now I can only assume as to what this might refer to, but then again it might be a road, stream, or maybe a sewing stitch. 

But it is part of the Mt. Hood National Forest as the sign says as we entered the area.

The sign for the up coming towns was rather interesting, I thought.  At least the school children from Rhododendron would be able to spell a hard word, for sure.  I just wonder if the plant abounds in the area?

The rain seems to just follow us up the road.  It would be nice to see some sunshine for at least a few minutes.  The weather outside makes you think of winter and we aren't ready for it, just quite yet. The weatherman called for two feet in the Northern California mountains today.  Is long as it stays in the mountains and not in the lower elevations I will be happy.  Come to think of it..rain is OK.  At least it makes things look green and healthy.

Whenever I see the American Flag I can't pass up the opportunity to take a picture of it.  There is just something about seeing the Stars and Stripes waving in the breeze that reminds you of our freedoms.  Of those who are fighting for them and those who have given their life, so that we remain free.

                                This is what I call a contrast of seasons.  Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall.

As we pulled into the truck stop and parked for the night, I looked over towards the building and what did I see, but this.  I know we are in hard times, but I guess UPS is really downsizing its fleet.  It is just as well, for they can be rather aggressive in how they drive at times.  How many times have you gone down a street, only to find a UPS truck stopped in the middle of the street and you can't go around it.  Maybe with the downsizing of their vehicles it will not only save them on fuel costs, but also now we can go around them when they are parked in the middle of the road. 
  So on this note, I will close and ..See you on the Other side.

still in Oregon and Winter is on its way

Winter is on its way here in Oregon.  The clouds were hanging low on the mountains and the weather man said that snow could be at elevations as low as 6,000 feet.  It rained on us for most of the day, but no sign of snow. Thank goodness

The rain still didn't give the trees enough water to make them look a healthy green.  There are parts of Oregon that look like California, but I think Oregon is a little bit smarter than California and would not take water that was vital to crops away from the farmers.

We are now just outside of Salem, Oregon and the traffic is awful.  Bumper to bumper going south.  The Oregon Ducks are playing California and they take their football serious. 

Mile after mile of cars with flags flying with their teams names on them.  I just hope that the opposing teams fans don't get into it on the interstate.  Not a good thing.  Soon we will be stopping to wait for delivery.  The receiver tells us not to come in but 15 minutes early, for there is no parking.  That is a huge problem in the trucking industry.  There is not enough safe parking for all of these trucks.  We go past Rest Area after Rest Area that is closed and no one can go into them.  Oh well, that is something for another day.  And on that note, I will close and see you On the Other Side.

Back to Oregon we go.

We made it back to California, to Long Beach.  The journey was interesting.  Tom decided to listen to the GPS lady and we ended up on a dead end street.  At the end of this street was the garbage dump, or as they want to call it the reclamation center.  It is just a few blocks from a public elementary school.  Now if the wind was blowing just right what a sweet smell those at the school would get.  Only in California.  Back to the dead end.  The street should have gone through, but there was the dump.  So, back up and turn around and go back to the freeway and the next exit.  There was the customer at ...yep..another dead end.  I imagine that that area is just full of dead ends, just to drive those from out of the area nuts.  I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't cameras mounted on poles so that some university student could observe the traffic,like they would rats in a maze.  It was a nice area to wait in, though.  There was a Target and other shops that I could go in and look at what they had.  From there we were directed to Redlands to pick up a trailer load of cat food to take to Clackmas, Oregon.  Yep, back to Oregon we go. 

As we were taking the back road to catch I-5 North we went through this town of Phelan, California.  They have an interesting way of helping the school children across a busy road.  They have women mounted on horses walk across the street with the children. Now if that wouldn't get a drivers attention, I don't know what would.  It is a unique idea and one that would work in many areas.  Especially in  those areas where there are high rates of accidents or speeders in school zones.

As you can see by the picture above, the riders take their job seriously, but they also

waved as I was taking the pictures as we drove by.  What a nice community to live in.

As we continued on our journey the scenery was beautiful.  I could look off into the distance and see the mountains and clouds and the valley below us. 

The road to the town on Pearblossom was just to the left of us.  I tried to see if there were any pear trees, but couldn't see any.  Maybe they all died do the lack of water.  As we traveled I kept on seeing signs along the road that would comment on the lack of water.  That crops needed water and there wasn't any.

The road was like a rollercoster up and down up and down for the longest way.  It is a good thing that I don't get car sick.

I noticed the sign for sausage and thought that this is a place that I would like to go and visit and see what Hungarian sausage tasted like.  Something else to go on my "bucket list".

Now what would you think if you saw these towers sticking up in the sky.  We at first thought it might be towers that were part of a prison.  Nope.

Some type of "Big Brother" spy thing that was collecting information, but not so.

It was a solar collecting station.  There were row after row of mirrors facing the sun that collects the energy and that in turns powers homes or other things.  Very interesting to see.

As I looked off towards the hills, they were a golden color.  It was beautiful, but the color meant that the grass was dead and fuel for fires, if there were ever to be a lighting storm.  As I was admiring the beauty around me I would notice signs along side the road about water.  It appears that the government has taken the water away from the farming area to use as drinking water elsewhere.  Now that doesn't make sense to me.  Here we are importing all types of produce from various countries, and we could have farmers growing the product right here in the good ol' U S of A.  Now what is wrong with this picture,...once again?

I've made this picture a little bit bigger, so that you might be able to read the sign.  It has to do with the loss of water to the area by year.  In just about every area that has some type of farming in California, these signs pop up.

We passed by several orchards that were barren.  It appeared to be due to the lack of water.  It is sad to see row after row of dead trees, when they could be producing fruit, if they had water.

Areas along the interstate were charred from fire.  The land is soo dry that anything with a spark will set off a fire. Don't you think that if there were producing crops there would be less chance of fire.  There were many such spots along the way that were just like this picture.  What is wrong with people?  Don't they listen to those who are in farming industry?

So maybe one day all of the farming areas will look like this; water pumps with no water to pump and a lone tree, all for the sake of water being diverted somewhere else for personal use.

    Well we are just about to the end of our days journey.  Tomorrow we return to Clackamas, Oregon and deliver the product in the trailer.  So, until the next time, I will see you on the Other side.