The Migration North, began when I moved north out of the bottom of Texas and by 01 June I arrive in the Colorado high Rockies at Red Feather Lakes for my first sojourn. Then when I leave Colorado, I find it much too hot elsewhere in the interior of the continent, so I Journey west to the coast of Washington and sojourn on the Rock, or known by most as Whidbey Island, and I sojourn here for many weeks.

Finally, when the days were just beginning to turn cold, I began my Migration South once again. The first stop was along the Columbia river at a campground called The Wind, or better known as Viento State Park.

Furthermore, by the time that I reach day 200 of the current count, I should be at or nearing my winter sojourn.

This fall, I continue my fall migration upon my arrival on the Gorge, I stop in my travels to enjoy the cool sleeps both here along the Gorge as well as further south in south coastal woodlands of this state.

Up at the sound of my alarm, dress, grab my shower bag and walk to the shower house for another of many how showers that I have take here at Viento. In fact for the five days since I arrived late Sunday morning, I have had about seven, with two on most days. After my shower this morning, I get out my stove and tea pot to boil water and make my regular meal. Then, I climb into jammer, turn on my computer and pound keys.

I try to connect to the Oak Harbor ministry meeting but it just does not begin so I call one of the friends and find out that the brother who was suppose to start the meeting lost his internet and could not set up the meeting.

While I have been here, I have taken two hot showers most every day, more hot showers than I usually get in an entire month. The key pounding continues until four this afternoon, when I get out and make a pot of soup, similar to the onion soup I made Monday evening, however, today, I included a whole sweet potato and more collard greens. I am waiting for it to cool now so that I can begin eating.

Later, I get another call from Gordon to update me on his current circumstance. At seven, the meeting begins and I connect to Oak Harbor for that program. When it ends at 8:45, I turn off the electronics and get into the horizontal.

Awake, walk to the shower house for one last shower before I leave today. Upon returning to the jammer, I get out my stove to boil water and make breakfast. Then like many days before, I pound keys while eating. Afterwards, I open up the jammer and continue to clean it, sweeping the floors, and reorganizing the things.

I next open the hood to do a check on the fluids and the man in the space across the road asks me if I need help, or possibly a jump start. I answer that I am checking fluids before I drive today and a conversation ensues during which he tells me that there is so much damage done to the earth now. I ask him if he is a Bible reader. He replies yes, but he should do more and his wife does every night. After agreeing about how bad the situation is concerning man ruining the earth, I then show him how the Bible prophesied it to be a sign of the last days, by reading Revelation 11:18.

We continue talking about the Bible for about an hour, then he sees a ranger talking to his wife and he leaves to find out what about. I finish the fluids check, close the hood and then unplug the power cord from the pedestal. Then I make one last walk around the campsite to check for any trash, get into the jammer, drive to the recycle station to dump my recyclables and then drive out of the park.

I drive east on IH 84 until I arrive at Hood River, Oregon and drive to the d-mart, at which I find signs posted stating No Overnight Parking so I leave there, drive to a w-mart, go inside with my computer bag to upload files to my website but I have the same problem here that I had in camp, there is an error each time I try to log on to the website C-panel. Too, I am not the only one having this problem, it seems to be wide spread among the free users. I keep trying to find out how to bypass the problem but do not find a solution.

Finally, I leave the Hood River, drive further east on IH 84 to The Dalles, Oregon to locate a g-mart to purchase more organic fruit and vegetables. By the time that I finish shopping it is getting close to dusk, so I park in the g-mart parking lot and set up for the night. I continue to try to long on to the website server with no success, so I put away my computer, get into the horizontal and close my eyes.

Awake before my alarm, drive to the w-mart, go inside with my computer bag to purchase coffee and pound keys. I try again to connect to the web server without success and then go back to the community forum to search for an answer to the problem of not being able to login. I come upon a staff text entry that I had seen a couple of days ago, when I tried to follow the directions without success, but today, I read it again and something in the instructions connected with me and after following the direction, I am able to log on to the C-panel. Wow, another prayer answered! I go right to work uploading the many files that have been updated and in a short time, my website is updated with the new files.

At about nine-fifteen this morning, I connect to the Saturday morning ministry meeting in Oak Harbor to work with the friends, a small group but still good friends. At eleven, everyone has other plans, I leave the meeting as well and return to pounding keys. I also make reservation at Memaloose state park for Sunday night through Friday morning, again because the weekends are booked up. This campground is only twelve miles from where I am in town and so has good access to shopping and such.

In the early afternoon, a man comes in for a cup of hot and I over hear him say to the barista, And I want to pay for the order from the next car. After paying for his coffee and the rest, he turns toward me to walk to a place where he can stand and wait. I then tell him, I have been a recipient of that kindness, and then thank him for his kindness.

I go on to tell him that I just read on a social media post about a poor man who was selling eggs for fifty cents each when a rich woman said, I will take 6 eggs for $2.50 or I'm leaving. The old man put six eggs in a bag and gave them to the woman for $2.50. After that transaction, another man and his son, who had watch the previous transaction approached and the man said, I will take 6 eggs as well. The poor man put six eggs in a bag and when he handed the bag to the customer, the customer gave him a twenty dollar bill and said, keep the change. While they were walking away, the son asks, Dad, why did you tip him so much? The father said, It is charity wrapped in dignity, son.

At that time the man here is the store says, Thanks so much for sharing that with me, and thanks for your business card, I will look up your web site. He then leaves and I go back to pounding keys.

I continue here in the w-mart until about six this evening when I pack out, drive to a d-mart to resupply my water, buying seven gallons and well as few other items. After shopping, I feel that I am ready to head for the campground tomorrow after the meeting and will have enough food and water for the entire five day camping reservation.

Finally, I drive to the g-mart parking lot and park for the evening.

Awake, dress in my fall blues, start the jammer engine and drive to the w-mart to purchase coffee. I then study for the meeting today, after which, I work on my computer to update my journal while waiting for the weekend meeting to begin. At nine-forty the zoom app opens up and the friends begin greeting one another, and the meeting begins. Afterwards, I return to pounding keys and working on several web pages until about twelve-thirty. Then, I pack out and drive to the state park to take up my camping space for this week.

Upon arriving, it is the hottest part of the day and I am so glad that my space is in full shade, in the mid 80s and way too hot for me. However, it is suppose to cool off tonight and some what during the rest of this week, the more it cools, the better, as far as I am concerned. This has helped me to decide that I will be taking the coastal route south instead of any inland highway. Around three this afternoon, all I just want to do is take a nap.

Awake to a windy and cool morning, open the jammer and begin my morning meal preparations. When my meal is ready, I climb inside to begin pounding keys while I eat. I then work on the web site upgrade and upload photos and files. By two-thirty, not because it is hot today, just because I feel like a nap. However, I remember that I have not finished watching the Sunday Afternoon session of the convention, so I grab my phone, lie down in my bed to rest while I watch the convention. Wow, it is such a wondrous story, that about Daniel. This is my second time to watch this movie, one which I will definitely return to watch again in the future.

Then, I rise to step outside and begin my supper preparations, a vegetable soup with bone broth, sweet potatoes, onions, garlic, ginger, collard greens, all fresh and chopped. I also add some spice mix, dried seaweed, and a half cup of quinoa. Once the meal is ready, I clean up the kitchen, move inside the jammer and then have to wait for it to cool. Once, I put some of the soup into my sierra cup, I add a large tablespoon of coconut oil and allow it to melt. Next,I use several slices of spouted grain bread to sop up the broth and oil and that tastes so good. I have two cups of the soup before I put it away.

Next, I pound keys to update my journal entry and then, climb into the horizontal to and read for a time before I close my eyes.

Awake, dress, get out my stove to boil water and then make a cup of hot and a cup of Daystart. Afterwards, because it is still cool from the night, I climb back inside to eat and pound keys. After my meal, I continue pounding keys all day. For lunch, I have the left over soup from yesterday and later, for my evening meal, I eat most of the ripening fruit that I still have.

In the afternoon, I walk to my neighbor to discretely offer them a Bible study but they tell me no, they have their own religion. Then, I return to the jammer to pound keys until I just must get into the horizontal and then watch more of the regional convention. After dark, I turn off the electronics and close my eyes.

Another day in the Columbia River Gorge and it has been very windy most all of the day. During mid day, it warmed up into the mid 70s, but that was not bad at all. However, for the next two days of my stay here, it will be getting up into the low to mid 80s.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, step outside to open the rear lift door and get out my stove for preparing breakfast. When the meal is steaming, I climb back into the jammer to pound keys while I eat. I make a mental note that today is the first day of a new service year and I have heard from two of my friends that they will begin pioneering on this day.

I spend most of this day at the keyboard and later, in the late afternoon, I chop up some celery, onion, add mustard and a package of tuna fish. Then, I mix it all in my cook pot lid and have what I call tuna salad. I would have added some of my spice mix but I am completely out of the spices. I make another mental note to buy more next time I am at the d-mart.

I continue pounding keys into the afternoon until just after dark when I put away the electronics and retire.

Awake to a much colder morning, dress in my fall blues, walk to the mens room, after which I return to the jammer, get out my stove to begin boiling water to prepare my breakfast. While I am get the cups ready, a fat Steller′s jay lands on my picnic table looking like he owns this place and requiring tribute for me to stay. I walk to the other end of the table and tap on the top where I have put out an avocado seed which has broke in half and some oats. He flies to where the seed is spikes one piece with his bill and flits away to a tree branch where he can decide what to do with it.

Meanwhile, my water begins to boil, so I pour some in each of my three cups, carry the cups into the jammer, stow away the stove, tea pot and then close the rear lift door. After that, I step inside to eat and to begin pounding keys so that I may get caught up on my journal entry.

At a few minutes before nine this morning, I connect to the Oak Harbor ministry meeting and join the group for the morning of letter writing. I continue with the ground until after eleven when I disconnect and begin preparing my lunch, the same as I had yesterday to use up the celery but this morning, I have salmon instead of tuna. Methinks, the tuna is a better choice for this recipe and will continue to purchase the foil packs of tuna whenever I see them.

I eat while I continue writing my journal and update web pages. As I pound keys, I continue seeing several western scrub jay

Awake, turn off the alarm, go back to sleep. Later, I finally rise to a very comfortable morning, dress in my summer blues, do my morning run to the mens room, then return and take out my stove to boil water for my morning meal. Once the meal is cooked and every thing is stowed, I climb into the jammer to pound keys for a time. Well, quite some time as I do not pack out until nearly eleven this morning, and then drive east on IH 84 to Viento state park for some hot water.

After my shower, I leave the state park, drive west on IH 84, stopping only to photograph locations in the Columbia River Gorge, and then connect to IH 205 south and drive to the Oregon City exit 9 and take SH 99E south through Oregon City and south to Woodburn, Oregon, then right on SH 211 and drive west to IH 5. Next, I drive south on IH 5 to the Kiezer exit 260B, turn right for one block and enter the parking lot of the w-mart where I park right in front of the cafe and connect to the internet.

When I leave the cafe, I drive south again on SH 99E into Salem following the Willamette river then turn west on SH 22 and continue for a short time along the Willamette. I continue west on SH 22 until I arrive at Grand Ronde, Oregon and connect to SH 22 and continue west arriving on the west coast a short distance above Lincoln city. I then turn south on US 101 and drive into Lincoln city, to stop to purchase some groceries and then continue south on US 101, arriving for photos of a Pacific Coast sunset at one of my favorite locations for photos of both the suntouch and then sunglow.

After the sun sets, I drive south on US 101 for another 12 miles to the Oregon Coast Trail trailhead parking, pull in, turn around and park, and then prepare for then nights rest.

Awake, dress, drive south on US 101, fourteen miles to the w-mart for coffee, com and computer. I spend the entire day pounding keys and uploading both photos and web pages.

Then, after the sun sets, I drive north on US 101, find that one of my previous overnight stops has been posted No Overnighting, so I drive the fourteen miles again to return to the trailhead parking to stay here once again.

Awake, dress, drive south back to the w-mart, park, carry my computer bag inside, plug in and begin my study of the Bible for the weekend meeting later this morning. After studying, I then work on updating photos on my Sunglow gallery but I still have quite a large amount of work before the gallery is finished. Then at nine-forty this morning, I connect to the zoom meeting.

After the meeting, I say goodbye and then begin a one hour drive south to my next campground, one that I have never stayed at before. In fact both this one, where I will stay Sunday night and Monday night, and the next location, where I will stay Tuesday night through next Sunday morning are both campgrounds that I have never stayed at before.

On the drive south on US 101, I stop at the sea lion caves, thinking it will be really crowded because it is a holiday weekend, but no, I find a parking spot right near the entrance. I in and buy some pop corn, like I have been doing for years every time I drive this highway. The price used to be one dollar, but this time, it is two dollars. I do not stay, but leave immediately and continue my drive south.

When I arrive in Florence, Oregon, I stop at the d-mart and shop for a few more supplies for my pantry, hoping to stock up before I leave this state and begin the drive south through California. I have been looking at the possible routes to take me to southern California to where Richard and Kim have now located and I really do not like any of the routes because of all the large cities that must be traversed. I am still thinking about it and will need to do a lot of prayer before I will make a decision.

Arriving at the campground, I stop at the registration station and get a permit from the ranger. Then I drive to my campsite, set up the jammer and plug in my electric. Soon, after, I walk across the street to the shower house for some hot water on my body. I am so glad that the water here is actually steamy hot and will be taking several more before I leave this campground.

Afterwards, I return to the jammer and begin pounding keys on my computer working on my website. I continue until it becomes dark and then I read for a while before I sleep.

Awake, dress, walk to the shower house for a hot shower, after which I continue in my routine of sipping coffee and pounding keys. Later, I talk photos of the site, the shower house and the tall trees, with photos I include in the new campground page for the Honeyman state park.

For my midday meal, I chop celery, onions, bell pepper and then add tuna and mustard. Continuing in the afternoon, I pound keys until dark after which I read and watch videos until late.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, and with my shower bag in hand, walk to the shower house for another hot shower. Return to the jammer, I set up my stove to boil water, which with I make my regular breakfast. Then, while pounding keys to write journal entries, I have my morning meal. Once I have completed updating my journal, I then begin to pack out for my departure from the Honeyman state park and drive to Loeb state Park near Brookings, Oregon. Once I have unplugged, stowed every thing in its place, and checked engine levels, I then get into the jammer, start the engine and leave Honeyman state park.

Exiting the park, I again turn south on US 101 and begin the next leg of my migration south, which should not take more than three or four hours, which includes stopping for photos. The drive takes me first to Reedsport where I stop to replenish my fresh vegetables, then on to the Umpqua River lighthouse where I stop briefly to take photographs.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, grab my shower bag with my towel and walk across the street to the shower house for some hot water. The water is most nearly steamy hot or a couple degrees cooler, but just fine for this old man. After my shower, I walk back to the jammer and talk briefly with Brian, his wife Lorain, and his brother Mike. Both Brian and Mike were Boy Scouts, Life and Star respectively, and tell me that they began in the Cub Scouts very early. I give my card to Brian and he tells me that he would like to look at my book. I then go back to my campsite, sit outside to prepare my breakfast and cooking begin looking at the thick forest here where are several birds including numerous Steller′s jay.

This location is about ten mile inland from the Oregon coast and on the Chetco river, a campground with both river access as well as a sandy beach. Too, there is a mature hardwood forest in this park included Myrtlewood trees which seem to be a coveted wood in these parts. One thing this part does not have, at least for me personally, is phone reception and I will have to go back into Brookings, Oregon, eight miles west of here to connect to the meeting Thursday evening.

Later this morning, one of the rangers here, Jered walks by my site with a clipboard in his hand and I step out to say hello to him. I conversation is started and I, at one point tell him I am writing a book. He then asks me What is it about? to which I tell him, It is about the search for the meaning of Life?

Immediately, he replies, What did you find out? My answer is To serve the most High God, learn about him from the Bible and come to accept him as a Father, one who is the loving provider of all of our needs. I then ask him, Are you a Christian? He replies, I was brought up as one, but in my life, I have not found proof of Faith, and have since become agnostic. I read the Bible from Hebrews 11:1 and then explain what the meaning of Faith is. I tell him that there are two books that provide the evidence of things not seen, in other words, the substance or proof for the promises that God has given us and we hope for. One book is the Bible, that has a one hundred percent fulfillment of prophecy and the second is the Book of Creation and all of the marvelous features that could only have come into existence by Creator.

We talk for a time longer and I give a tract answering the question, Will Suffering Ever End? and my business card, telling him to contact me if he has another question.

In the early afternoon, this park become very quite, well except for the noisy blue jays, and I find this to be a very peaceful forest, even though I have not even gone down to the river yet. However, later, I do walk to the back of my campsite and find a trail down to the river where I take a few photos of the green water. Upon return to the jammer, I immediately load them on my computer, view and crop the ones I like and then include them in the Loeb State Park campground page.

Next, I make more of my tuna salad and this time, I put the mixture on bread and have a sandwich, which, I feel is some must better than just eating the salad like I have done for past meals. Too, I return to working of my web site pages and get quiet a few completed today. However, I will not be able to upload any of my work.

I continue until about ten when I stop to get into the horizontal to read from the Bible before I close my eyes.

After a night of strange dreams, I awake a the sound of the alarm, rise immediately, dress in my summer blues, walk to the back of the jammer to retrieve my shower bag and then walk to the shower house for some hot water. Then, I return to the jammer to prepare my morning meal, sit in the office and pound keys, first to update my journal, then to work on more of the campsites that I have be updating.

At noon, I drive into town and shop for some groceries at the d-mart, then just sit in the parking lot afterwards to wait for the meeting to begin. While waiting, another Ford Aerostar parks near mine and when the couple come out from shopping, I comment that they have a very nice van. I then meet Doc and his wife Joe who are like in their 70s as I am and we discuss many things during which I turn the discussion to worshiping of the true God Jehovah. Joe tells me that she always invites the witnesses in and asks me if the Watchtower and Awake are still being printed. I then retrieve a set for her from my jammer.

Also during the conversation, Doc, says three or four times that he really believes that God brought us together. I give them my business card and Joe uses her phone to look up my website to find the campsites. She says that they were only recently talking about how to find campground when they also begin to travel in their RV and now they have a large list to search. I then tell them that I have to go and connect to my meeting so we say goodbye and Doc says, We will see each other again. to which I say, I hope so.

The meeting is very encouraging and I see that Aaron is connected from his home and I tell him that I am glad to see him.

Afterwards, I drive the eight miles back to the campsite, park in my space, plug in my extension cord and before getting horizontal, I complete today′s journal entry.

Finally, I lie down in the complete silence of the riverside coastal forest, listen to the September broadcast of which I am only able to watch about twenty minutes before it is too hard to keep my eyes open any longer

Awake, dress in my summer blues, and with my shower bag in hand, walk to the shower house for a hot shower. After the hot water, I return to the jammer, get out my folding step stools, stove and tea pot and put them to use boiling water. Soon, I am in the jammer at my computer eating my breakfast and getting caught up on my journal writing. Once I get to this point, I resume my work on my web pages.

After eating some fruit and vegetable for my evening meal, I again walk to the shower house for more hot water, a second time today, after which I return to my work and by the time I turn off the computer, I complete the campsites rated five and close them Out. Too, I have completed the all the templates and open them once again to make sure all the new features are included in each template.

Then, I turn off my computer, and get into the horizontal to read and also watch more of the new videos on the JW library app. Finally, I turn off my phone and close my eyes for the night.

Awake, turn on my computer and begin today′s journal entry and before long, it is time for me to walk to the mens room. While I am there, I also take a hot shower and then return to the jammer and start my stove to boil water for my breakfast. When the meal is ready, I climb inside and continue with the work that I have made for my self.

I have made my tuna salad again but this time I have chopped up some garlic to add to it as well as some dried tomatoes. Again, I put the salad on sprouted bread and really enjoy my food.

When the day draws close to its end, about six this evening, I have completed another rating level and begun on a second one. But I wrap my work up for another day and begin my study of tomorrows lesson. The study is on endurance and why we must follow Jehovah and his son′s examples.

After the study, I turn of the computer get into the horizontal and begin to read until I am sleepy.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, grab my shower gear and walk across the street for one more shower here at the state park. Methinks about were I am in my migration and realize that it has been three weeks since I left my summer sojourn and began heading south. Too, when I awoke this morning, there was need to turn on my heater for a short time to take the chill off, which to me is an indicator that I need to resume my travel southward.

However, first, I must needs pack out, drive to town and connect with the weekend meeting on zoom, however, on route into Brookings, I decide to get a jump on my travel I will first gas up in town, then drive south on US 101 to Crescent for coffee at the w-mart there and connect to the meeting. when the meeting is over, I will then continue on my journey to southern California.

Arriving at the w-mart thirty minutes before the meeting begins, I am able to go inside to purchase a large cup of coffee. I then return to the jammer, set up my computer, connect to the internet and then connect to the meeting using the zoom app. It is a pleasant meeting and I enjoy visiting with the friends in the breakout rooms afterward. When I disconnect from the zoom app, I then begin uploading all the files and photos that I have been working on for the last few weeks and it is not until one this afternoon when I pull out of Crescent City and head back to the IH 5 in Oregon.

When I pass through Cave Junction, Oregon and the highway to Oregon Caves National Monument, I call my longtime friend, Eric and we talk for a time. He invites me to his home for some lemon bars but I tell him that my schedule this year just does not allow me to stop, but I will put him in the schedule the next time I travel this path. I continue on to turn south on IH 5 and soon after locate the hg-mart in Medford to buy some fruits and vegetables. Then, when I finish shopping I decide to only drive to Klamath Falls for my overnight stay tonight and not to Lava Beds National Monument.

Arriving in Klamath falls after six this evening, I check to insure that parking is allowed in the d-mart and find no posted signs. Then, I drive to the w-mart to get online and on the way to the cafe, I notice another hg-mart of the same name as the one in Medford but this one appears to be a larger store. If this hg-mart has more selection, then I will save the location on my GPS for future purchases when I journey south.

I sit in the jammer to connect to the internet and while I am parked next to the w-mart, I get a text from Richard in California to which I reply. Then, I give him a call and we talk for some time. He asks me When will you be here? and I tell him, Thursday or Friday. Richard tells me he will not be back from work until Saturday, so I tell him, Then, I will arrive Saturday morning. He then says, See you Saturday.

After dark, I drive to the d-mart, park the jammer and then climb into the rear to get horizontal and I read for a while before I close my eyes.

Leaving Klamath Falls, Oregon, I enter the Klamath Mountains ecoregion on my way to southern California so that I may help my friend Richard restore another home, only this one will be for his mother Patria when she later moves from Washington to be near to Richard and Kim there in California. It does not take too long before I enter the central valley.

There is need to check the route that I choose to drive south through California because much of the forested lands are on fire. I go on line to find where the fires are located and then mark my map in red to show the areas to stay out of. Doing this allows me to see that the path through the central valley is clear of all the burning zones. Thus, I will take the IH 5 all the way to southern California.

Awake to a much cooler morning than what was on the coast and there is much more smoke from the fires burning in the western forests. I dress in my fall blues, drive to the w-mart and with my computer bag, go inside to sip coffee and pound keys, until four this afternoon when I pack out and drive to a car wash to clean the jammer. After that, I drive to the hg-mart to see if it has any of the items that I was not able to get in Medford.

Today, I go a Goggle search on how far it is for me to drive from Klamath Falls to Oceanside, California and find the route that I wish to drive is just less than one thousand miles and will take from fifteen to seventeen hours to drive. If I split the travel into three sections of five to six hours each, then it will take me the majority of three days. Thus, if I leave before noon tomorrow, that will allow me four and a half days. Too, if there is some problem, I will have extra time to correct it.

When I arrive, I find out that this location is not much better than the one in Medford and do not buy too much. So, I drive back to the w-mart, stay in the jammer and watch some Star Trek until after it become dark. Then, I retire to the d-mart to rest for the night.

I am writing this journal entry in Kettleman, California, 338 miles south on mostly IH 5 from were I awoke this morning.

When I awake, I drove to the w-mart for a large coffee, then to the hc-mart to have my ears lowered, or is that called a hair cut, one that I needed. Soon after the stylist is finished, I leave Klamath Fall, heading south on US 97 and through the Klamath national forest, which has large areas of it is burned; someone at a rest stop tells me it burned last summer. I continue south on US 97 to Weed, California, connect to IH 5 and drive south until the sun sets, all along the temperature soars into the high nineties. The actual drive takes me about five hours but I do make several stops mostly for photos, but also to refuel once.

Too, all along the way, the scenery was extremely smoky from the fires here in this state and the drought has really scorched the rest of the northern areas of the state, some much so that I have never seen anything like. Further, I have taken many photo which I will in the upcoming days and weeks upload to my website.

Then I pull off in Kettleman City with the temperature still over ninety degrees, go inside a w-mart, and so glad that their air conditioner is working. I order a large ice water and a chicken caprese sandwich. I sit at a table and pound keys while I eat my food. I will stay here for a short time and then I will resume my drive, but to make sure that doing it this way will allow me to meet with Richard when I get there, I call him and tell his that I will be driving tonight and taking the IH 5 route through Los Angeles so that I can get there in only four more hours.

When we connect on the phone, he says that he will be home all day tomorrow and working on his mom′s house. Now, I just have to get in the jammer and keep it going for 246 more miles, which will be at least until midnight. The drive is uneventful and there is no traffic slow downs and I am able to keep my speed close to the limit, and after I drive through all of Los Angeles county, I soon after enter Orange county and an area that I once, for as least some months, called my home, which at that time in my life when I was married to Becky Rose, serving in the Marine Corps, and was stationed at Marine Corp Air Station El Toro. This part of my drive down the IH 5 corridor, at lest in the north section of Orange county was enclosed in nostalgia for those days, not the type were I want to return to those days, I was just full of emotions for familiar things of past days, especially when recognizing so many exits where I had frequented back in 1970 when I was last here. Yes, a trip down memory lane!

The drive continues southward and I am totally appalled at how much this area, which was, when I was last here mostly untouched, undeveloped and full of natural beauty, has now been developed into a huge megalopolis replete with all the corporate chain stores and restaurants common to the lowlands of this wicked system.

Then, I pass San Clemente, what once was a small coastal community and see that it too has become part of the megalopolis that is now southern California. Next, I enter the area of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, just another base that I was stationed at during the time I was in the military and soon come upon vista point where I exit the interstate and because there are both truck and auto overnighting, I too, choose to park for the night and pull into a space.

I step out of the jammer and even though it is dark, I can still see that I am on a bluff overlooking the Pacific ocean. Then, I climb back into the jammer, move into the rear and get into the horizontal for the night.

Here in California, I wait until the fuel tank is near the half mark before I stop, which, due to the high prices here costs about fifty dollars to re-fill. Elsewhere, I would normally fill the entire tank for about fifty dollars. Nevertheless, prices within California are not as high as I expected them to be which I thought would be five dollars a gallon, no, most gas stops that I stop at are about four and a half dollars a gallon.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, step outside to look at the view and notice several Marine Corps Assault Amphibious Vehicle driving south on the upper beach road.

I then leave the viewpoint, drive to the w-mart for coffee, com and key pounding. Then, at about nine I call Richard to tell him that I the w-mart and he answers that he will meet me here in a short time. I continue pounding keys and when he shows up, I pack out and follow him to the mobile home park where he now lives. He drives, not to his home, but to the home that his mother has purchased and we both get out and do a walk through and talk about what needs to be done.

Foremost in the work to be done, he wants me to help him replace the galvanized pipe with the new Pex plastic pipe, which I have never installed before but I have looked at it on several occasions and have a very good idea about the installation process.

Second, he will purchase a shower surround and door for me to install, that is after I remove the old bath tub, and when I install the new valves and shower head, also install a plumbing box for in the closet for an apartment stand up washer-dryer unit.

Too, there are several outdoor receptacles that he would like me to add gray conduit up to a lamp with photo and motion sensors, something that I have done many times before.

In the late afternoon, Richard and I go to a hw-mart to look for a new shower stall and doors that Richard wants me to install later. Upon returning, it is near dark and Richard leaves for his meeting while I climb into the jammer to write in my journal and commence my evening activities.

Thinking about what I shall name this project location, and due to the fact that the home is on Hummingbird Lane, I quickly determine that the job title I will give this is A Wayfarer′s Work: Hummingbird House, Oceanside California.

Although near the coast, the Hummingbird house is about five miles inland along the desert hills of south California and the temperature during the day here is still quite warm. However, the nights are not too warm, often in the mid 50s.

Awake to a very warm day, start the jammer and turn it around, backing into the space. Richard had asked me to do this so that when I have my tail gate open, the neighbors can not see that I am living in my van. Then, I grab my cook pot and go inside to use the stove to boil water. Once that is complete, I make my regular morning repast, a cup of coffee, a cup of daystart and a cup of hot tea. After the preparation is complete, I take the food and drink out to the jammer to consume while I begin my writing on today′s journal.

Then, at ten this morning, I begin the restoration work on the Hummingbird House and upon climbing the back steps into the home, I see that the steps them self are quite wobbly. So, I lift the unit out of its place to look at the underside and find the problem. Not only is it quite old, but there is some rotten wood and the entire base needs to be strengthened by adding additional structural boards. So, before I start anything else, I take it on myself to restore the steps, first, because I will be in and out of this home many times every day, and second, when Patria arrives, she will need to have a good solid entrance to her home.

I begin by adding supporting braces along the bottom of the steps, increasing the footprint from one and a half inches wide to two and a quarter inches, which helps solidify the unit. Next, I rake the gravel away from the entrance area, pull back the black plastic and then begin adding soil from the previously filled large pots to the deep swale that runs through the area. Then, I rake the dirt to remove many of the rock and level the dirt. Once the entire area is level, I begin working on creating and leveling a solid foundation by using several of the bricks that are on the property. Once I place the steps onto the foundation, adjusted for the door to open and not hit the hand rail, I then begin installing several twelve inch by twelve inch by one inch thick flat blocks around the foundation in order to hold the steps securely on the foundation brick and not slide off of them.

Once the black plastic is back in place, over the foundation, I reset the flat blocks in their place and finally replace the wooden steps into the precise slot which will both support it and hold it in place. Then, I begin cleaning up the area, putting away the tools, and finishing up for the day.

I then hear a voice call my name, which voice I recognize is Kim and I tell her that I am in the back, that she should look at the new rear deck. She then parks her dog stroller on the front porch and walks to the back to see the new addition. We talk for a somewhat long time, but I tell her that I have a meeting tonight and need to shower. When Kim leaves, I finish putting away all the gear, then grab some clean clothes, my shower bag, towel and walk into the house to take a hot shower. There is very little water presser but the water is nice and hot. Afterwards, I walk out to the jammer, climb in and get ready for the meeting. In no time, the meeting begins, I listen to all of the talks and when it ends, I am sent into a breakout room with several of the friends, who ask were I am now and what I am doing.

After answering their question, I bid them good night, turn of the zoom, all of my electronics and get into the horizontal for the night.

Awake and rising, I then go inside to boil water for my breakfast, after which I come back out to the jammer to pound keys and eat.

Later, about ten this morning, I drive to the hw-mart to purchase supplies for the work that I will be doing and the store is so disorganized that it takes me quite a long time to find the parts that I need. Even so, there is on specific item that I can not find so I have to purchase other item to compensate for not having the one item. After I have most all of the items that I will need, I then leave and drive to a second hw-mart and find the specific part, so I buy them at this store. Next, I drive back to the first hw-mart and return the items that I did not really have to buy and then purchase the correct parts.

On the way back, I stop at a hg-mart to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables, after which I go the dollar store to buy paper goods. Afterwards, I return to the Hummingbird House, park the jammer and carry all the work supplies inside and also bring in the fresh food that I purchase and put it in the refrigerator. After completing all the chores, I finish up the work day sweeping the carport, after which, I go inside for a shower and put on clean clothes.

When I return to the jammer, I begin recording my time and purchases on one of my old invoice templates, but I know that I will have to do some work later on creating a new template for this specific job. Not long after dark, I get a call from Kim who says that she is at the front gate and her remote gate opener is not working. I tell her that I will be there is a few minutes, but as I am approaching the gate, she calls me to tell me someone else came to open the gate and she was able to get through. I return to the carport and soon after get into the horizontal.

Awake, dress in my work blues, go inside and boil a pot of water to make my breakfast, then return to the jammer to catch up on my journal writing. I also look back into my archive files to find one of my invoices to use as a template for the work that I am doing here now. Then I create a new template for the 73 Hummingbird Lane home and begin filling it in. Too, I make blank templates for each week through the end of November this year so that I will only have to fill in my hours and purchase items. I have been doing it this way for as long as I have been working for Richard.

Later this morning, Richard calls to tell me that his meeting is at ten-thirty this morning and that he will be by this afternoon. I tell him that I will be here when he arrives. I then continue to update my journal and by one this afternoon, I am done pounding keys and have some lunch. That is when I decide to get out of the jammer and work while I wait for Richard to arrive and he shows up soon after.

Then, at seven, not long after Richard leaves, I stop work pick up tools and then go inside for a shower and by eight this evening, I am back in the jammer and not long after that, I am in the horizontal reading before I sleep.

Awake, dress in summer blues, walk inside to boil a pot of water, make my morning meal and then carry the meal back out to the jammer to eat while I study for the meeting which is later this morning. Then, at nine-forty, I log onto the zoom meeting and listen to the friends greet one another. Soon after, the meeting begins with a guest speaker, Jason Perry, from Arlington, Washington. His talk is about Learning to Live with the Unchangeable by developing and keeping joy. Afterwards, we begin the Bible study dealing with promoting peace, unity, and not stirring up competition.

At two, I climb out of the jammer and begin work on installing the outside lighting while I await Richard to arrive. No long afterwards, Richard shows up and we talk for a time, then go to his home for him to show me what he wants me to accomplish there. Afterwards, we return to the hummingbird home and continue working. Richard then leaves to buy supplies and when the darkness arrives upon this coast, I take a shower and then retreat my the computer in the jammer.

Soon after, Richard arrives and I help him carry the supplies inside to the Hummingbird House while we discuss work times. I find out that his schedule for work is now Monday, Thursday and Friday each week, which other than these days, he will be available to join me to work on the Hummingbird House.

Then, at about eight this evening, he leaves, I return to the key pounding and shortly after that, I retire to the horizontal for the night. It has been a long day for this old man and I am ready for this night′s sleep.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, pound keys for a time, then unplug the jammer and drive out of the park to the l-mart but it is totally packed with people, so I determine that it will be better to come back early in the morning to have better access without so many people. Then, I drive to the w-mart to connect to the internet and when I am done with do that, I go next door to the bank to ask for a replacement card for one of my I return to the Hummingbird House to take a shower and then work on my website.

When the sun sets, I get my camera out and sit down on a chair at the end of the driveway awaiting the moon to rise. Soon, I see a slight glow above the horizon and think, Right on time! I take some nice photos of the Harvest Moon rising and of Jupiter which I should have posted in a couple of days.

After the sun sets, I put away the computer, get into the horizontal and watch videos and read for a long time before closing my eyes.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, drive to the l-mart and do two wash loads. When I begin drying my shirts, the new shirts that I recently purchased did not dry as quickly as the other, so I look at the label only to find out that the material is not poly or nylon but cotton. Methinks, the discounted price for these shirts are not worth them being cotton, besides, when I purchased them, I was thinking that they were poly, my mistake. I then leave the l-mart at ten minutes before nine and drive back to the Hummingbird House to begin my journal entry while awaiting for Richard to arrive.

At nine this morning, Richard sends me a text telling me that he is walking Jennie and will be here soon, however, I have learned from years of working with my brother, that soon to him could be hours, so, I begin working on updating my Harvest Moon photos to the website. Still, I must needs give him credit for all that he does. Later, he arrives and resumes the caulking and other painting preparation work he has been doing.

I begin working on the outside lighting and install the second of three unites that I will be installing on the Hummingbird House. After that I stop for the day, take a shower and the prepare something for me to eat. Finally, I retire for the evening to read and watch a newly downloaded video, after which I get into the horizontal to sleep.

Awake, go into the mobile to make my breakfast, after which I return to the jammer to pound keys while I await for Richard to arrive. Then, at noon, I begin work on the home and soon after Richard drives in. We begin work on the water service, or that which is where the mobile home connects to the main service and where we are installing a new valve for the new Pex piping in the mobile home.

I start work on the Hummingbird house at noon and work on the water service station. Currently, there are two valves, the old water service and a hose bib on a vertical extension. I change the hose bib to be the old service and will replace the gate valve with a quarter turn ball valve to connect to the new Pex water line. After the new Pex pipe service installed, then the vertical extension will be removed and plugged.

When Richard arrives, I have dug and leveled a five by five section next to the water service box and have made it ready for pouring a concrete pad. He asks me if I will continue across the same section to the opposite fence so that we can pour concrete to extend the driveway an additions five feet. I tell him that I will have it done before he returns from work Saturday. Richard tells me that he would like to put a water pressure regulator in the new water service line and I tell him that we should put it in a separate utility box just down from the shut off ball valve. We both continue to work for several more hours and we are able to get the old water line turned back on so that I will have water for a shower tonight.

Shortly after six, Richard leaves to have his supper and get to bed early before his drive to his job in the early morning. I put away the tools and clean up, after which I go inside the mobile for a shower. After my shower, I retire to the jammer to pound keys until I am too tired and hurting too much to stay up any longer, so I turn off the computer and try to get to sleep, but instead just lay here for a couple of hours. Richard shows up to drop off a board that I had asked for in order to complete the concrete form for the driveway extension and we talk for a short time.

He then leaves and I get out my bottle of aspirin and take three tablets, after which I am able to fall asleep.

Awake, rise, unplug the jammer and drive out of the mobile home park. My first stop is for coffee and scone at the w-mart, then I drive to the d-mart for groceries and finally to the dollar store for water but they are out of the one gallon bottles, so I return to the Hummingbird House without more water. Once under the carport, I take the refrigeratables into the kitchen and put them in the refrigerator. Then, I go back outside to the jammer and climb in to resume pounding keys.

Later, Kim walks by to say hello and I show her our progress. We talk for a while and then she leaves to get Jennie and take her for a walk. I return to the jammer and continue pounding keys.

At six-forty this evening, I connect to the Oak Harbor midweek meeting and enjoy all the parts after which I pound keys for a little while longer and finally, get into the horizontal.

Awake, unplug the jammer electrical, drive to the g-mart, the one that Kim has told me still has the Crystal Geyser spring water and I purchase eight one gallon bottles along with some organic vegetables. Returning to the Hummingbird House, I unload the fresh vegetables, put them inside in the refrigerator and also bring in three of the bottles of water.

Next, I prepare my breakfast, after which I walk back to the jammer, turn on my computer and initiate today′s journal entry while eating my morning meal. Then, at about eleven, Kim calls me to ask if I will drive her to the garage where the Toyota pick is currently at, then follow her to a different garage and then drive her back to her home. I reply: I will be there in a few minutes.

After dropping Kim off at her home, I return to the Hummingbird House, park the jammer, grab the shovel and begin digging dirt from an area where Richard and I will be installing concrete some time next week. After finishing the concrete forms, I then go inside to take a shower

Awake early, go inside to make coffee, tea and a cup of Daystart, then return to the jammer to have my breakfast while pounding keys. I continue in the jammer until noon when I go to the rear of the mobile home and begin working on the third of three outside lights that Richard wants me to install. When I complete installing the light, I can not get the screw that hold the box where the wiring connection is made, so I will wait until I can get a couple longer ones.

Richard shows up to climb under the mobile and remove the trash. He also finds a small leak in one of the sewer lines and stops it temporary with duct tape. When he comes out from under the mobile, we talk and he asks me to spend the night at the d-mart so as to break what other people my think is a routine of me staying here. I accept his request and then at six this evening, I stop work, go into take a shower and pack out my belongings.

Then, I drive to a ff-mart for a tray on nachos and two bean burritos for my supper. After eating, I then drive to the d-mart, park, put up my window shades and climb into the back for the night. It is very noisy here with many crazies everywhere, many hollering out loud at the demons in their heads.

Too, my legs and back have much pain, so I take two 325mg aspirin to help me sleep. Later, I awake in pain again so I take three more of the pain relievers to help me get back to sleep. So far on this work project, nothing has been as bad as the pain was during the work at the Oak Harbor House, the last work project I did for Richard, more than a year ago.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, drive to the w-mart, walk in for coffee and hot water, then walk back tot he jammer for a time on the computer pounding keys, but soon stop to begin my preparation for today′s Bible study and finish just in time before the meeting starts.

The meeting ends just before noon and I disconnect from zoom so that I can drive back to the Hummingbird House to meet with Richard. When, I arrive, I go inside and prepare something to eat from the food that I left here in the refrigerator. Then, I come outside to pound keys while I await for Richard to arrive.

After a long sleep last night, I spend another day much like many gone before, pounding keys in the morning until Richard arrives, then working with him to accomplish several tasks of his direction.

One thing that he asked me to focus on is completing the electrical work, so I turn off the electric power at the pedestal and then rewire the two circuit breaker boxes making them look like a professional electrician had wired them. I do replace one 30 amp (white tape covered) black wire with an actual white wire. Also, I clean up the spaghetti that was in both circuit breaker boxes and run each wire along the edges of the box where they really should be.

Too, Richard and I go to the hw-mart to look for or to order a shower stall but the clerk informs us that the store is totally out of the units and only has a few incomplete sets. I begin walking down the aisle and soon come upon a three piece shower surround set for about three hundred. Then I look for a floor base and find one with the correct configuration but by a different manufacturer. I call Richard and say, Come look what I have found, to which he says, I am buying this right now. Next, I drive Richard to pick up his truck from the ar-mart and while he goes to pick up the shower kit, I return to the Hummingbird House to resume work.

Kim arrives to paint the walls and ceilings while Richard works on beginning the new plastic pipe installation. Richard arrive, we unload the shower kit and then he begins work on the new plumbing system. Soon into his work, he has to leave to buy some more parts

Too, Richard had given me the longer screws that I had asked for, so I finish up installing the last (third) security light on the west side of the mobile home. Then, when all that is done, I stop for the day, take a hot shower, get into clean clothes, prepare a large salad from the ingredients that I have in the refrigerator and retire to the jammer to eat and pound keys for a couple more hours. I know exactly when it is time for me to get horizontal because my legs begin to throb and spasm in pain.

Awake, walk inside, prepare my breakfast, carry the meal back out to the jammer to eat while I pound keys and catch up on journal writing.

When Richard arrives, we begin work on the plumbing upgrade, first connection the new 3/4 inch brass pipe to the water service, then a shut off valve, and then plastic (Pex A plastic pipe) to a coupling and continue with 3/4 inch plastic pipe through a 2 inch carrier pipe to a position under the mobile home. Next, Richard crawls under the mobile and pulls the 1/2 inch red and blue plastic pipe to the front of the mobile for the kitchen sink connection.

Meanwhile, I am in the kitchen and drill down with a long 5/8 inch flat bit through the cabinet floor, the kitchen floor, subfloor and the mobile belly fiberboard. Once the hole is out the bottom of the mobile, I then put a long screw drive through the hole, and then Richard puts the blue cold water line on the screw driver and pushes the pipe through hole that I drilled. I use the screw driver to direct the pipe through the multiple holes and out the top one through the cabinet floor. I then tape the new plastic pipe to the old plumbing to keep it from falling back through.

With these two pipe lines completed, now we go to Richard′s home so that I can work up a material list for the electrical upgrade that I will be doing on his home later this week. Then, we drive to the hw-mart to purchase the materials after which, we return to the Hummingbird House to finish up our day of work.

Finally, I retire to the jammer, update my journal entry after which, I get into the horizontal for another night of rest and recuperation from the throngs from the current work induced aches.

Awake, walk inside to take a shower, one that I was way too tired to take last night before collapsing into the horizontal. After the shower, I then unplug the jammer, drive out of the park and then drive to the w-mart for a free hot cup of coffee. When I arrive at the cafe, I go in for the coffee and then return to the jammer to connect to the internet to upload files to my website. Richard calls to tell me that he is walking Jennie and soon after that, I leave to drive back to the Hummingbird House.

We begin working on the plumbing and not long into the work, when trying to drill holes for the new Pex plumbing, I drill through the old galvanized pipe and water squirts up through the hole. I holler to Richard, Turn off the water!, which he does immediately. After this point, having water to take hot showers is a mute point. We can no longer turn on the water using the old plumbing, in fact, we just turned the water heater off after this incident. Now, we just need to finish installing the new plumbing before turning the water heater back on and for me to have hot water again.

That is acceptable for me as a long time ago, I have learned how to clean my body with cold water. In fact, when we finish working on the home at eight this evening, I go into the bathroom with a large bucket of water and begin dipping my sierra cup into the bucket water and pouring it over my head to take what I call a bucket bath.

After putting on the clean once again, I ask Richard if he would like some watermelon to which he says, Yes. I then go inside, take the melon out of the refrigerator, slice the bowl off of the top of the melon and give it to Richard who goes to the front porch to sit down to eat it. Then I cut off another large slice, cut it into two pieces and join Richard to enjoy the watermelon as well. The fruit is perfectly ripe and we both comment on how tasty it is. When we are done, Richard leaves to drive home and I clean up the kitchen after which I walk out to the jammer and retire for the night.

Awake, unplug the jammer, drive to the w-mart for coffee and sip on the hot drink sit in the jammer while I pound keys and upload files to my website. At eleven, I drive to the d-mart for a short time and then back to the Hummingbird House. I feel very tired so I lie down to take a nap and sleep until four. When I awake, I eat some more of the water mellow but it is already becoming soft, so I end up throwing some of it in the trash.

Returning to the jammer, I pound keys until after dark and then return to the horizontal for the evening.

Richard sends me a text and I tell him that I took today off to rest up.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, drive to the w-mart for coffee and then sit in the jammer to get online and sip coffee. Then, at ten this morning, I drive back to the Hummingbird House to gather tools and material for work on Richard and Kim′s home.

Arriving at the Swallow House, I begin work on the outside electrical upgrades, working on the patio flood light and receptacle. I stop once to get some more tools at the Hummingbird and while there, prepare a large salad for me to eat. I gather the needed tools and drive back to the Swallow House and sit on a bench to eat not far from where Kim is pulling weeds in the front garden so we can talk while I eat my lunch.

After my meal, I return to the work and by sunset, I have installed the end of the circuit run, a vertical run with a flood lamp at the top, a receptacle at the bottom, and a switch for the light in between the two. I still have to install the overhead conduit, the down run where there will be another receptacle, this one being a GFIC. Lastly, when Richard is here, he will go under the mobile and install a wire from the circuit breaker to the GFIC receptacle, but that will come later after we get the water back in service at the Hummingbird House.

Then, I clean up, pack out and drive back to the Hummingbird House to park for the evening.

After sleeping in, I rise, dress in my summer blues and go inside to prepare my morning meal. After the water boils, I carry my food to the jammer, climb in and begin pounding keys while I eat. On of the first things that must needs be done is to create a daily journal template for the month of October so that I can continue writing my journal online.

Richard arrives at two and we then return to installing the cold water lines, Richard under the mobile and myself working from the top. Later, Kim arrives to resume the inside painting she has been working on. By seven-thirty this evening, we call it good for the day and when Richard and Kim leave for their home, I packing out my tools, after which, I get into the bath tub and use my sierra cup to dip water from a large bucket and pour it over my head and body. Yes, the water is cold, but as I told Richard, it is a mental things, that of getting use to the cold water to bathe with instead of the hot.

Finally, I prepare a large salad, carry the meal to the jammer and sit in the back and pound keys until I am tired and must needs get into the horizontal and sleep.

Awake, unplug the jammer, drive to the w-mart for coffee and a spinach-feta wrap. Then, I sit inside to eat the eggs while I sit on my coffee, but when I finish the wrap, I return to the jammer to pound keys and update my journal for today and soon after connect to the Oak Harbor zoom meeting. At noon, I leave and return to the Hummingbird House and while waiting for Richard to arrive continue to pound keys.

Richard arrives, begins calking the kitchen walls and soon after, Kim arrives to paint the kitchen.

Today, together, Richard and I remove the water heater tank and we both work on cleaning up the closet it was in. I begin by removing all the old copper and galvanized plumbing, then the floor tile and finally vacuum the dirt and dust out from the bottom. Then, Richard uses a large bit to drills holes in the floor to enable access for removing any remaining wet insulation. Later, when Richard returns to calking the walls while I then cut a new piece of 3/8 inch plywood to install in the bottom of the water heater closet. Richard and then Kim both leave to go to their home but later Richard returns to continue to work until late.

Once the floor board is cut, I stop for the day, take a bucket bath, and then retire to the jammer for the evening.

Awake, walk inside to begin my morning meal preparations, which when that is done, I carry the food and hot drink out to the jammer to eat while I work on catching up on my journal writing. Monday is usually a work day for Richard but he is allowed to take the day off. I expect that he will be here sometime around noon, but at nine this morning, he drives into the driveway and we will continue working on the Hummingbird House. Sometime later he leaves to buy more material and I work until noon at which time I stop and make a salad for my lunch and have a can of unsweetened coconut cream to drink. Richard comes back and we begin working on the water lines.

It is not until after sunset when we stop and notice the summer thunder head shooting lighting bolts in every which way. We then change from our work clothes and drive in a heavy rain shower to a local pizza baker for a twelve inch three topping pie with onions, mushrooms and spinach. On the way there, the lightning keeps illuminating both the sky as well as the landscape beneath. Upon arriving, lightning strike just behind the bakery and the lights go out on the entire block, but upon entering, the clerk tells me that the over is fired be gas. Once we purchase the pizza, we sit in Richards truck and each have three slices. Afterwards, we drive back to the Hummingbird house while all along, the rain and lightning continues.

Upon arrive back at the work site, Richard leaves to go to his home and I climb into the jammer to pound keys until the leg pain is too much for me. Then I get into the horizontal and watch the latest update from JW.org, after which I close my eyes and soon fall asleep.

Awake, walk inside to make coffee, tea and my Daystart, then, I return to the jammer to have my morning meal and pound keys. Richard arrives shortly after noon and we go in to begin working on the home. Today is just one more day of working of many things. Along with the ongoing plumbing upgrade, we install another electrical circuit, this one for an outside receptacle at the back door and made provisions to provide a future receptacle in the bath room, both ground fault protected. Once again, Richard works under the mobile home while I work inside and outside making the connections.

Late in the afternoon, when we come to a good stopping point, we stop work, clean up, pack out the tools, and then I get into the tub for a bucket bath while Richard changes clothes. Then, we go out for pizza because Richard earlier tells me that he found another bakery that is suppose to be really good. We buy a fourteen inch pizza with onions, mushrooms and tomatoes, split it in half and eat it while sitting in his truck in the parking lot of the bakery. Next, we drive to the hw-mart to buy some materials and I use my veterans membership to receive a ten percent discount.

After we leave the store, we return back to the mobile home where I climb into the jammer for the night and Richard goes back inside to continue working. Methinks, when I was younger, I too, had that stamina and could continue working for back to back long days, but now, this old man is good to get five hours in a work day.

Awake, open the jammer sliding door, turn on my computer and begin pounding keys to catch up on my journal writing, when Richard drives in. I comment to him, Wow, you are here before nine in the morning, that is a first. A little later, I walk inside the mobile home to boil water to make my morning meal and when it is done, I come back out to the jammer to eat and continue on my journal writing. Richard then arrives before nine but only to drop off materials and then he leaves. He does come shortly after noon and we both go to work. Also, Kim arrives with Jennie and Kim resumes her painting work, now in the back bedroom.

Together, we continue to work until about six when we pack out, drive to a restaurant for a meal and then to the hw-mart for some material to finish a new circuit that we had installed. After wards, we drive back to the Hummingbird House and I climb into the jammer to pound keys until I can no longer endure the leg throbbing. I then get into the horizontal to begin watching the new monthly broadcast from JW.org but I need to stop it about half way through because of being so tired and needing sleep.

Too, I take several aspirin to help relieve my pain and not long after, I am asleep.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, drive to the w-mart and go in for a hot coffee and a spinach feta breakfast wrap, eating it inside while check on my phone for messages. Richard left this morning to work for two days, during which I will take the time off to recuperate. Then, at nine this morning, I leave the w-mart, walk next door to the m-mart to see if my new debit card has arrived and to exchange some large bills for smaller ones. When the bank manager comes back from checking their mail, she hands me an envelope with my new debit card within and then the bank clerk helps me to activate the new card.

Once finished with setting up the debit card, I leave the m-mart, walk back to the jammer, climb into the back and catch up on my journal writing and other key pounding. However, before leaving the parking lot, I go back to the bank to use the outside kiosk to insure that I can access the new card but find that I have need to set it up with my PIN to access the card. I go back inside and the same teller helps me to reset the PIN on the card, after which, I check the card and find that it works. I thank her and then head back to the jammer to write in my journal entry before I drive out of the parking lot and head to the hf-mart to shop for some groceries.

The shopping expedition takes me to three separate stores but I am glad that they are within a two mile radius and complete my shopping for today. When I arrive back at the Hummingbird House, I most likely have enough food for ten to fourteen days after which time, I will also most likely be on my way out of southern California; but that date is not set as of yet.

Furthermore, I have been thinking about the journey on after this work sojourn which has caused me to revisit in my mind many of the previous overnight campsites to the east.

In the later afternoon, I stop work, open the JW Library app and study for the meeting tonight and when I complete my study, log on to the congregation meeting.

After the meeting, I resume the work I had been doing on my computer and watch as the encroaching darkness gains fruition. Then, at ten, I finally turn the computer off, get into the horizontal and use my phone to read and watch videos for a time. Later, I hear rain on the roof over head, which rain is suppose to last through tomorrow.

Awake, walk inside to begin my morning meal preparations by boiling water and then pouring the hot water into three cups. Then, I carry the food and drink back out to the jammer, climb into the desk and begin pounding keys while eating my breakfast.

I continue my work on Episode Three, to organize and enhance the digital book and have begun with the front and rear map pages that be just inside the covers. After a full day of this effort, I stop at about four to walk inside and prepare my supper, a soup from bone broth, fresh chopped vegetables, herbs and coconut milk. It turn out better than the last pot that I had done last week and I have plenty left over to share and eat later. I return to the jammer to eat my evening meal while I continue to work on the computer and again work until all light fades from the sky.

Then, I turn off the electronics, get into the horizontal and close my eyes for the night. There is a pain in my lower right back that screams at me so I rotate into a position where the pain subsides and lie there until I fall asleep. Later, when I awake, I find that the pain has subsided and I am able to roll over into a more comfortable position and sleep until morning, well, except for having to rise several times to pee.

Awake, rise, dress in my summer blues, walk into the Hummingbird House to prepare my regular morning meal, after which, I return out to the jammer, sit down at my computer desk and begin updating my daily journal while I eat breakfast. I continue well into the afternoon before Richard and Kim arrive, today is their week end meeting day and that always keeps them busy until the early afternoon.

I appreciate having then extra time to recuperate and when they do arrive I begin work at five this evening and work until eight, completing most on the new bathroom and outback 20 amp circuit. Well, except for installing the circuit breaker because we have not found a breaker yet. So, Richard and I leave and travel to three of the local hw-marts only to find that none of them have any of the breaker we need.

Upon returning to the Hummingbird House, I go into the kitchen and prepare a pot of soup from the leftovers from Friday evening. When the soup is ready, I climb into the jammer to eat my meal and pound keys until I am done, mostly done with staying awake. So, I put the cook pot on the floor between the front seats, to clean tomorrow, get into the horizontal and assume the sleep position.

While working in the bath room, I leaned on the toilet with my chest and had a sharp pain in my right rib cage. I did not know what it was at first, but later, I recognized it as a cracked rib, which I have had before close to the same location.

Awake, dress in summer blues, walk inside to prepare my breakfast, and return to the jammer with my meal to log onto the weekend meeting at Oak Harbor, Washington. This is the second time that I have not turned on my video and just listened to the entire meeting, not speaking. I am not yet sure why I have the need to do this, maybe I will understand it in time, but for now, I remain detached from the friends there.

Also, Gordon has called me a couple times in the last week and he is going through something similar, a detachment from the friends in his congregation in Loveland, Colorado. He told me that he has never received a shepherding visit in all the time he has been in that congregation, not even when his wife divorced him and shortly after was disfellowshipped for adultery. Myself, I too have not received any such visit for over ten years, nor do any of the elders try to contact me. Richard told me a couple of days ago that because both Gordon and myself are homeless, we have been deemed as outcasts by the mainstream membership in the congregations. What that has to do with anything, I do not have any idea, but it is factual because, I remember a comment from one sister who said to me, and I might say, in a very derogatory tone, You are homeless and don′t have a job. Still, I do not know why either one of us is being treated in this manner.

Richard arrives while I am still connected to the zoom meeting and when it is over, I press the Leave button, turn off my computer and join Richard in the mobile home to help with the work. Thus, it is noon when I start work and I work until seven this evening. When I was cutting boards on the front porch, I see in the even sky, Venus, the crescent Moon, Saturn and Jupiter, all of which I have been watching for most all of my stay here in Oceanside. Too, just after the sun sets, I notice that the sunglow is separated from the eastern horizon by the phenomena known as the Earth shadow, and tell both Richard and Kim that they should come see it, but only Kim walks out to the front of the mobile. She tells me that she would never had noticed any phenomena, but would have just thought that it was the sky. I say to her, I have only seen this phenomena three times since I learned that it existed.

When I finish work for this day, I walk out to the jammer to get some clean clothes, return to the bathroom and get into the tub to take a bucket shower. The first two cups of cold water over my head make me shiver, but then I do not feel the cold any more and take the shower unaffected by temperature of the water. Methinks, I have truly become acclimated to taking cold showers, even enjoying the time pouring the water over my body. Next, I dry off with my towel, put on my clean clothes and return to the jammer for the evening.

Finally, I climb into to prepare for my nights rest.

Richard will be going to work tomorrow so I will be taking the day off to rest.

Awake, walk inside to prepare a meal, then return to the jammer to eat and pound keys. I continue to work on Episode Three, spending all day proof reading previously written sections. At four this afternoon, I stop to heat up the leftover soup and then return to the jammer to continue pounding keys. Then at nine this evening, I stop, shut down the computer and get into the horizontal to sleep.

Awake, go through my normal routine and when Richard arrives at two in the afternoon, I am still pounding keys, but stop, turn off the computer and go inside to help with the restoration work. Once inside, Richard hands me a twenty amp breaker and I go to the circuit breaker panel to connect the breaker and install it; then he leaves to acquire some additional material. Previously, I had installed and connected all the receptacles in the circuit and even connect all but the black wire in the breaker box. After that, I take a lunch break awaiting for Richard to return.

Upon Richard′s return, we go to his home to work on the outside lighting and receptacle circuit and we are able to complete everything but the circuit home run, which will traverse the underside of the mobile to the circuit panel box.

When the sun sets, I go to the front of the mobile to see the alignment of the moon and planets and find that the moon has move eastward and in now between Pluto to it′s west and Saturn to it′s east.

Afterwards, Richard and I drive to the local Chipotle restaurant for a salad, mine being a vegetable salad, but he gets the brisket salad. When we return to the Hummingbird House, I retire for the evening while Richard goes inside to continue working on the plumbing.

Finally, a cold night to sleep in and I do so with all the windows closed for the first time since I arrived here in southern California. I awake, drive to the w-mart for coffee, com, and computer. I update my journal and then upload files to my website. Then, at eleven this morning, I drive to the Hummingbird House to see if Richard has arrived yet. He arrives at noon and I go to work, work until three and take an hour off for lunch after which I continue at four to eight with another stop for a meal. Richard takes me to an Indian food restaurant and we split a meal, very strange but tasty,

Then, I retire to the jammer to pound keys until my legs begin to throb to much to not be in the horizontal, so I get there.

Awake but return to sleep for a time longer, trying to recuperate from all the pain, throbbing body aches. The four week working here in southern California has taken a huge toll on my body and each and every day, I tell myself that I will not do this again. Methinks, only time will tell if I hold true to my resolve.

I walk inside and put a pot of water on to boil, then make my regular morning breakfast, after which I return to the jammer to resume my key pounding and continue until it is time to get ready for the meeting. I go inside and take a shower and then return out to the jammer to connect to the Oak Harbor zoom meeting.

Awake, drive to a ff-mart for coffee and then to the l-mart to do my wash. While washing my clothes, I meet Johnny, who is there also doing a wash. At first, from the expression on his face, he looks to me like a very angry person and after he puts his wash in the machine he returns to his car, opens the trunk to get out a wiping rag and then begins to wipe down the windows and painted surfaces. After a time, I step out of the jammer to check on my wash and say to this person, Did you know if you keep wiping you car down, you are going to wear it out? A smile comes to his face and I tell him, Hello, my name is Thom. He answers, My name is Johnny.

A conversation is begun, then I direct the topic to the last days and Johnny agrees that times are bad. I then share a How Do You View the Bible tract and encourage him to look up the website on the back page. He then reads the tract through. When I have folded my clothes and stowed them in the jammer, I return to Johnny and tell him that I hope he will look check out the website, JW.org. He smiles again and bids me good bye.

I then drive to the hw-mart to purchase some metal wrapped wires, then drive back to the Hummingbird House to gather some tools and then drive to Richard and Kim′s home to work on installing a lamp above the kitchen sink. I am able to get the lamp installed but I have problems with the switch and need to purchase and install a larger box for both the switch to the light as well as for the line box which holds a receptacle. Both of these current boxes are too small for what is needed and will have to go to the hw-mart to buy larger ones. One of the other home owners stops by to tell Kim that a couple of the homeowners are complaining about my overnighting in my van at the Hummingbird House and all indication is that I will no longer be able to overnight here in the mobile home park. This is fine because I have found several locations where I will be able to stay instead.

In the late afternoon, Kim prepares something to eat and shares her meal with me, which she calls lemon chicken and I tell her that the meal has a very good taste. Afterwards, I go back to work and after an entire day cutting holes, installing wires and boxes, I am able to get the lamp to light up but with the wall switch installed, have to turn the lamp on by using the breaker. Kim says that she likes the increased light that the lamp provides.

While I was working there at the Swallow House, a sister comes by to say hello to Kim, the one that has been providing the Borscht to Richard and Kim, who have also have been sharing it with me. Her name is Eva (here husband is Eric) and together, they spent many years working at the Brooklyn Bethel facility. During our conversation, I tell her about the health and wellness research that I have been doing, that I have been recording it on my web site and when she asks for the name of the website, I share my business card with her.

Going back inside, I continue work with the lamp and when I come to a good stopping point, I then pack out, clean up the work area and drive to the hw-mart to purchase some larger boxes and other material that I will need when I return to the Swallow House to finish the kitchen electrical upgrades. Also, I let Kim know that I am too tired to return tonight, that I will pack out of the Hummingbird House and drive to a location nearby to spend the night.

I drive to the hw-mart, find a nice dark spot and park the jammer for the night. Then, I climb into the back and get into the horizontal.

Awake, drive next door to the w-mart, park in the parking lot and then go inside for coffee and hot water. Then, I return to the jammer, open the windows, put up my window shades and then set up my computer to pound keys until Richard calls me to return to work. Last night, when I returned to the Hummingbird House, I loaded all of my gear into the jammer walking through twice to make sure that I had got all of my things. Too, I am so ready to get out of southern California, having now been here for an entire month and starting the second one today.

I continue pounding keys all morning and when Richard calls, it is to meet him for lunch not far from where I am located. He buys and we have a curry dish from the local Indian cuisine restaurant, after which we drive to the Hummingbird House to work on the plumbing upgrade. Today, we continue to look for leaks and because we are not plumbers, we finally find out that the leak is at the shower mixer valve where we have air pressure leaking from the cold side and out into the hot side. After we correct that, we then get the cold water system to hold 90 psi for over thirty minutes. Next, we connect the hot water and pump the system up again and after correcting two small leaks, we are able to get it to hold pressure again.

It is about seven when I stop pack out, drive out of the mobile home park and then go into the bath room to take a bucket bath, after which, I leave and drive to the hw-mart to park for the night.

Awake, drive next door to the w-mart for coffee, a cup of hot water, and return to the jammer to prepare my breakfast. Then, I eat while I study for the meeting today, connect at nine-thirty and enjoy the meeting with Oak Harbor. After the meeting, I go to a break out room and talk with JP, Sherry and Sherry′s nephew, Drake Bacon, which has the same last name as Sherry′s maiden name.

Just before noon, I drive to the Hummingbird House to help Richard on the plumbing and I get the water heater straps ready to re-install the water heater. We also remove the old tub, tub surround and clean up the area under the tub, which we find in really good shape with no water damage what so ever. We take out the old cast iron trap, cut the old pipe and get it ready for installing the new plumbing and shower base.

This takes us most all day and by late afternoon, we go out to buy the new trap and connecting pieces, after which, we go to a Mexican restaurant for something to eat. Upon return to the Hummingbird house, we decide that we are going to quit for the day, so I clean up, and then I pack out back to the parking lot at the hw-mart.

Once parking, I catch up on today′s journal writing and then get into the horizontal.

Awake, drive to the w-mart for coffee and hot water, then spend the early morning pounding keys. When I check my com, I find that Richard had arranged with Kim for me to come to their home to work on the electrical upgrades and that Kim had emptied the cabinets again so that I can work inside of them. So, at ten, I call Kim to ask if it is ok for me to come there and she says yes, it is ok.

I drive to the Hummingbird House to pick up some tools and the to the Swallow House to begin continue work on the kitchen sink lamp and switch which now that I have the right box, the switch goes in quite easy and since I connected to an existing receptacle, I am able complete the sink light upgrade and turn the breaker back on. Next, I start the kitchen island receptacle upgrade, cutting holes at either end, installing the metal clad wires and then installing the two receptacles. This upgrade will require a home run to the breaker box and the installation of a new breaker, which will be done at a later time when Richard can install the home run under the mobile home.

After I finish the two upgrades, I then drive to the k-mart to purchase a bottle of power steering fluid for the jammer as well as some vegetables. After my shopping, I return to the Hummingbird House to wash the jammer as well as my feet and legs. Next, I sit in the jammer and call Gordon so that we can talk for a time. Finally, I drive back to the hw-mart to park for the night, arriving at seven this evening and pound keys to catch up on my journal writing.

At nine this evening, I get into the horizontal to sleep/

Awake, dress in my fall blues, step outside to wipe the dew from the windshield and then drive to the w-mart for coffee and a breakfast wrap. After eating, I carry my coffee back to the jammer, climb inside and begin pounding keys while waiting for Richard′s call for work, which he does at a quarter after ten this morning. I pack out of the w-mart and then drive to the Hummingbird House.

After checking in with Richard, we then to the Swallow House to finish the island cabinet receptacle update and we are able to drive the hole from the cabinet down to the underside of the home, then insert the wire from the cabinet into a box. Next, from the box Richard pulls a romex wire to the area directly under where the breaker box is located and then pushes it through a whole in the floor. These wires will be connected later. We still have one more wire to run but any further work will have to wait until another time.

I am able to step outside to take some photos of the Hunters moon as it rises

Next, we return to the Hummingbird House and resume the work on the installation of the new bathroom shower base and connecting it to the existing drain line. After working for many hours, I finally decide to call it good for the day, pack out and drive to the hw-mart for the night/

Awake, dress, wipe of condensation on windshield, drive to w-mart for coffee and hot water, then walk back to the jammer to have my morning meal. At nine this morning, I walk into the back to make a deposit, after which, I return to the jammer to continue pounding keys and updating my journal entry. Richard calls me at about ten this morning to tell me that he is working on setting up his new printer and will call me later to come to work at the Hummingbird House.

I finish my journal entry and then drive to the dollar store to buy some paper napkins, after which, I drive to the Hummingbird House to await for Richard to call, which he does at eleven-fifteen telling me he is on his way. We then begin work by eleven-thirty and keep busy installing the water heater and the shower base and surround until Richard leaves at six-forty. Another long day but much is accomplished. Now, Richard will be gone for two days to his work in the city, while I clean up and finish up odds and ends, hoping to have the water to turn on by Saturday when he arrives back at the Hummingbird House.

I then clean up and pack out, leaving by seven-thirty to head to my place to park for the night.

Awake, dress, drive to the w-mart for coffee and hot water after which, I return to the jammer to prepare my morning meal. At nine thirty, I connect to the Oak Harbor ministry meeting and say until the meeting ends at twelve-thirty. Then, I drive to the Hummingbird House and continue working on the ongoing project of installing the new bathroom shower.

Today, I connect together the parts of the mixer valve, attach it to the backing board and even put the escutcheon plate on both the head and the mixer valve. Too, I add some of the trim around the surround and cut out plastic panels for the wall above the surround. Kim arrives at about three and asks me to remove the towel racks and other wall mounts so that she can paint the walls in the bathroom. I am only able to remove one of the three so Kim says that she will tape the pieces before painting. At six-thirty, I pack out, walk to the back yard and use a bucket of water to take a bath, well somewhat of one since I would not take off my shorts but just wipe underneath them.

At quarter to seven, I connect to the Oak Harbor congregation mid week meeting and when it is over, I leave right away to drive to the d-mart to park for the night arriving just after nine this evening. Once here, I complete my journal entry and then get into the horizontal for the night. I am really tired and in a lot of pain, so I take three aspirins.

Awake, rise and dress in my summer blues, then drive to the w-mart for coffee, com and computer. In the afternoon, I drive to the Hummingbird House to finish up some miscellaneous items and after two hours, I pack out, lock up and drive to the d-mart for the night. Upon driving out of the mobile home park, I see Kim driving in and we exchange greetings on passing.

Short day, but still tired and full of pain.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, empty my garbage into the parking lot receptacle, drive to the w-mart for coffee and hot water and then return to the jammer to have my breakfast and pound keys to begin my journal entry.

At twelve-thirty, I drive to the Hummingbird House, soon to connect with Richard and together we complete the finishing touches on the water system. Then at two this afternoon, with the ball valve to feed cold water to the water heater turned off, we turn on the water at the water service valve outside under the car port and begin checking for water pressure at all of the locations and looking or leaks. Amazed, we only find one, which Richard, upon examining is a small leak through the quarter turn shut off valve. He decides that the fix to this leak, rather than replacing the valve is to connect the braided cable to the sink faucet.

Both sinks have good cold water pressure, the toilet fills up but the shower just dribbles. I tell Richard that the shower mixer valve must need to have pressure at both the cold and the hot for it to work. Then, he tells me to fill the hot water tank so I turn on the ball valve about half way open and immediately hear the water rushing into the tank. Too, we open the hot water valves at all the sinks and hear air blowing through. Once the air is bled from the system and water is flowing at all the faucets, then Richard turns on the gas and lights the pilot light at the bottom of the water heater. Once he has the pilot lit, he turns on the heater to the normal range and after some minutes, warm water begins to flow through the faucets.

Then Richard and myself remark about how Jehovah has totally been with us on this major upgrade of replacing the water system in this home. Yes, we agree that, because we both have never before done this type of plumbing, and because we have so few difficulties in the installation, Jehovah must have sent his angle to guide us through the entire process.

We finish up just as the sun sets but we are not finished yet. Together, we go in his truck to install the last home run under the mobile home. Once we have drilled through the outside wall into the bottom reaches of the mobile we notice that the lights in the back of the home are out. We go inside to check the breakers but they are all in the on position. While Richard and Kim and both telling each other, I did not do it and The lights were on earlier today, I call out, Hey guys, we did just drill through the wall.

So, assuming the worse, Richard and I tell Kim that we have drilled through a wire, and comment, Just as we were getting ahead on this project and had planned to go out together for supper, this happens. Now, for sure, we will not have time to go get something to eat.

Richard and I return to the Hummingbird House to acquire the tools and materials to repair a cut wire. Since I do not crawl into a tight crawl space, I go over the procedure with Richard on how to repair a cut wire. Prior to going under, we turn off the breaker but I tell Richard that he still needs to check the wires to see if they are hot, both ends of the cut wire. I then tell his the rest of the procedure for repairing the cut wire. He dresses up in his overalls, replaces the batteries in his helmet light, gathers the tools and materials and goes under the mobile home. I tell him that I will be just outside where the cut wire is to help verbally if he need me to.

I am sitting in a chair near the damaged wire, when from under the home, Richard calls out, Thom, come here, it is not a cut wire! I did not hear what he said, me thought, so I walk to the access door where he went under the mobile and stick my head in. He tells me that it is not a cut wire, but says, I must have pulled out the plug to the mobile doublewide cross over connector. He shows me the plug and says, One end was unplugged when I crawled under the mobile home and that was where the electrical break was, not a cut wire.

Richard come out and says to me, Let′s go eat. We drive to our favorite restaurant and have a salad bowl, my choice is for a vegetable bowl but Richard chooses the shredded beef and we sit down inside in one of the corners to eat. Afterwards, we return to the Hummingbird House where Richard goes in to do a few more things while I drive to the d-mart to park for the night.

Awake, drive to the ff-mart for coffee and a breakfast burrito, then drive to the Hummingbird House to park. I go inside to clean up using the hot water in the bathroom sink to wash with. The shower stall was calked yesterday afternoon and needs twenty four hours to day, so should be ready for taking a hot shower tonight. Yes, it has been nearly a full month since my last hot shower on Day 135 TN. It will be most welcome when it comes!

At nine-forty this morning, after putting on my dress shirt and tie, I connect to the Oak Harbor congregation to listen to a visiting speaker Mark Taitano give a talk about being steadfast and united in the last days of this old system. Then I listen to the Watchtower study, after which, I take off my tie and go inside for one more day of work here in the mobile home park.

First to do this morning is to clean out the shed in preparation of moving all of the tools out from inside the Hummingbird House. Actually, Kim will be moving the tools and then cleaning up the entire mobile afterwards. I believe she also has some painting left to too prior to Richard returning with his mom Patria next Saturday.

My job today is to install the trim around the top and sides of the shower surround. Richard had gone out last night and purchased glue and plastic trim and I had already cut up an old tub surround panel to use to cover the wall surface above the new surround and glue the cut panels and trim in place around the top and ends of the surround. The work goes well and in about three hours, I am done, after which, I call Kim and ask if I can come to her home and finish the electrical work there, to which she says yes.

I arrive at the Swallow House just before Kim leaves to go to work cleaning up the Hummingbird House and give her my access keys and gate entrance clicker. I get out my tools and start connecting the final two sections of the upgrade that we have been working on. It only takes me about three hours and every thing is installed except for a connector box that Richard will install under the mobile home. After he connects the wires there, then he will have to go to the breaker box where I have installed the new circuit breaker and then he will have to connect the two black wires that I have already run but left unconnected with the ends wire nutted. Once he has made these connections, then Kim will have her two kitchen island outlets and the outside rear patio will have lights and receptacles.

I then drive back to the Hummingbird House, go inside to the bath room and take a hot shower. However, the shower was not the wonderful experience that I envisioned because the drain was stopped up (not sure what caused that) and I could not linger in the hot water like I would have loved to. Instead, I had to do a quick wash and rinse. I walk outside, sit down in a chair on the front patio. Shortly after, Kim locks up the Hummingbird House and returns home leaving me on the front patio by myself.

I then called Richard on my phone and tell him, I have some Good News and some Bad News, which do you want first, and he said, The Good News. I said, The hot shower worked perfectly and the water is just right. He asks, What is the Bad News? I answer, The shower drain is clogged up and does not drain. He then begins to verbally try to figure out why and asks me if I would go get the drain auger to clean out the clog. I reply to him, Sorry, I have already given my keys and gate entrance clicker back to Kim and now, I have no access to enter the Hummingbird House. In fact, I will be leaving southern California tomorrow morning right after I make a deposit. He tells me, Ok, drive safe.

When, I hang up, I then drive out from under the carport at the Hummingbird House, down Hummingbird Lane and up to the closed gate, which opens automatically for all cars exiting, and then, I drive out of the San Luis Rey Mobile Home Park for the last time, well, at least for this year.

I drive to the d-mart one more time and park for the night. Typical of most other times during this stay, there is much noise and lots of people walking about. I retire early this evening, getting into the horizontal to search for sleep and recovery from my unending throbbing pain.

Never has California, much less southern California, been a place that I enjoy spending time in during these last days. If anything, I would say that it reminds me of the time when I crossed the border into Mexico on Day 1011 BR. It was not until Day 956 BR, nearly eight weeks later, after having returned to Laredo, Texas before I no longer felt that I needed to be guarded.

Yes, when in California. I feel I must needs keep my guard always on the ready.

Awake, dress in my summer blues, drive to the w-mart for coffee, hot water and to wait for the bank to open. Once I leave the bank, I also leave Oceanside, California heading east to acquire the first state line in this fall crossing to the site of my winter hiatus. Except for the very first segment, the route is one that I have mostly traveled before. Leaving the w-mart, I connect to SH 76 drive east to IH 15, then north to Temecula, California where I turn north on SH 79, this beginning the familiar route. Once on Winchester Road I drive through French Valley, Dutch Village and Winchester all with the Peninsular Ranges looming just to the east.

Then, SH 79 turns right at Green Acres, California and I continue to Hemet, California where I stop at La Bufadora for a couple of fish tacos for my lunch. I have been looking forward to returning here because with the meal, there is a free condiment bar loaded with different types of onions, salsa, and lemon grilled peppers. However, when I enter, I see that the salsa bar is closed.

Wow, the meal is just not the same without the salsa bar.

Leaving Hemet, I continue driving north on SH 79 until I arrive at IH 10, turn east and drive towards the state line, crossing the Lower Basin and Range in California. As I travel east, I take several photos of the mountains jutting out from the desert plains. Too, I will be trying something new with reference to taking photos while driving as I have purchased a new mount for my camera which will only require me to touch a digital button to snap a photo. Only time will tell if this actually works, which if it does, will allow me only to slow down rather than pulling completely off the road and stopping for taking photos.

After crossing the Colorado River into Arizona, I continue taking photos of the Lower Basin Ecoregion but only now in Arizona and I continue to Phoenix when the scenery is nothing by building and roadways. After driving through the megalopolis, I turn northeast from Mesa, Arizona on SH 87 and drive through the Tonto national forest, turn on the Bush Highway to take photos of the Salt river hoping to find a place to overnight but everything along this highway is mark either Closed or No Overnight Camping. I continue over the Mount Ord highway summit, driving after dark for another hour until I arrive in Payson, Arizona, where I pull into the d-mart parking lot. Here, I find quite a few RV′s parking all around the perimeter and methinks, I have found my home for the night. It does not take me long to park, climb into the back of the jammer and set up for the night.

Awake, dress in my fall blues, drive nearer to the d-mart entrance, walk inside to buy some fruit and vegetables and then leave for the w-mart for my morning coffee. Upon arriving at the cafe, I grab my computer bag, walk inside, set up at a table and then go for my cup of hot. I then sit here inside pounding keys and working on my website pages and actually amazed that I am able to complete quite a few of them.

I keep busy until about five this evening when I pack out and drive to the Houston Mesa Campground which I was to understand was twenty dollars per night to camp and had a hot shower available. However, the fee was now $27.00 per night and the shower building had a closed sign with a yellow tape stretched around the entire building. Needless to say, I left the campground and returned to spend the night at the nearby d-mart for free.

Upon arriving at the d-mart, I park, climb into the back and climb into the back for the night. Too, because it is suppose to be much colder tonight than previous nights, I get out an extra blanket for cover.

Yes, it was quite cold last night and especially this morning so I rise early and drive to the w-mart for coffee and a table to sit down at until it warms up outside. Then, at about nine this morning, I pack out and head west on SH 260 to Show Low, Arizona and then east on US 60 to Pie Town, then Datil Campground and finally stop for the day at a d-mart in Los Lunas, New Mexico where I will camp out for a couple of days so that I can connect to the internet for the meeting tomorrow evening.

However, the climb up from Payson, Arizona on SH 260 to the Arizona Escarpment is one that I have been wanting to do again ever since the first time I drove up to the rim on November 03 2016, which was on Day 345 TB that found me awaking from a cold wet night of camping at the Campsite Seven in the Mogollon Rim Recreational Area.

Leaving Payson, I begin the thirty mile drive up to the rim of the plateau always ready to talk a photo of any spots where I can see the rim from the roadway.

Upon arriving atop the Arizona Escarpment, I stop at the visitors center, which is already closed, and walk to the rim here to photograph the canyon. I hear a woodpecker overhead and try to take photos but the sun is right in my eyes. Moving about the area allows me to finally see the bird and get some photos of him, but I am not able to ID him as a hairy woodpecker until I upload the photos to my computer.

Next, I drive across SH 260 and follow the Rim road (FS road 300) to the Military Sinkhole overlook for photos and then the Rims Lakes Vista overlook. I stop here and because the previous three campsites have already been closed for the winter, I do not drive the extra three miles to Rim campsite seven, but turn around and drive back to SH 260. Once I arrive back at the SH, I turn left and drive east through Show Low, Arizona, where I connect to US 60 and take this highway east to Springerville, Arizona and then across the state line. Once in New Mexico, I continue up to the continental divide to Pie Town to stop for a small piece of pie, which cost over twelve dollars. Thus ends another stop on my travels across this country, a piece of pie for $12.00 dollars, and that was with my veteran discount. Leaving Pie Town, I cross the Continental Divide at elevation 7796 feet, and down onto the east side of the divide. Next stop, at least briefly is a Datil Well Campground so that I can take some photo of the site. Too, as I drive by the VLA, I take photos of the very large array of telescopes. However, the east side is actually a continuation of the escarpment, now in New Mexico because it remains above seven thousand feet in elevation until just about fifteen miles after passing Magdalena, New Mexico where US 60 drops into a canyon and follows the canyon down to the Rio Grande valley at Socorro, New Mexico.

Once arriving in Socorro, I turn north on IH 25 and drive fifty-five mile to Los Lunas where I stop at the d-mart for the night. It is shortly after sunset when I arrive, so I locate a space to park the jammer and then climb into the back to write today′s journal entry, finishing before nine this evening.

Then I get into the horizontal and try to sleep but the throes caused by the work at the Hummingbird House persist as strong as it was during the work. Finally, I am able to sleep and sleep through most all the night.

Awake, dress in my winter blues, drive to the w-mart for coffee and hot water. Then, I return to the jammer and pound keys until eight this morning when I connect with the Harlingen, Texas congregation for the morning ministry meeting. Several of the friends greet me, ask where I am and when am I returning to south Texas. As for the when, I tell them, Not until later December. I continue writing letters which are addressed to homes in Oak Harbor, Washington. I will continue with these until I run out of the addresses, at which time, I will ask for more address most likely from Texas.

After three hours in the ministry meeting, I say good bye and then drive to the bank for a short visit inside, after which, I return to the w-mart for more sitting in the jammer pounding keys while awaiting the meeting tonight to begin.

I connect to the Harlingen, Texas congregation and many of the friends greet me. It is always good to be back with a loving congregation. I continue for a short time after the meeting ends but then say good bye. Then, I drive to the d-mart, park for the night and climb into the back to pound keys until my battery no longer charges my computer. I shut down the computer and then get into the horizontal for the night.

Awake, drive to the w-mart for coffee and hot water and after I use the hot water to make a cup of tea, I uncover the solar panel on the dash so that the battery will charge and then, I take my computer inside the cafe, sit at a table and plug in to an electrical outlet. Later today, I drive south on IH 25 to just below Socorro, New Mexico and turn east on US 380 on my way to Valley of Fires campground hoping to find a site to camp and for the showers to be open. I see several mountains in this Basin and Range region and take photos of most.

I arrived here today at about two in the afternoon, set up my RV and then made a fresh salad to eat. I had just driven down from Los Lunas, New Mexico and will stay here in this campground for two days. Then, at three, I drive to the shower house for some hot water, but the hot water is not like it use to be here, it is only warm, and because of that, I will have to change the rating from nine down to eight.

Next, I check to see what time that the sun will set today and find it to be 6:14 PM, so while waiting for it to get closer, I work on my web site and even take a short nap.

At five minutes before 6 PM, I grab my camera and walk up the short trail to the campground view point which is a small rise of about one hundred feet above the campground. In past visits, I have always climbed to this hight point to take sunset and sunrise photos. Today is no different and as I walk up to the top, I take some photos of both the campground and my vehicle, which I call the jammer.

Afterwards, I walk back down to the jammer, and work for a while cropping photos and adding them to web pages. At nine, I finally turn off the computer and get into the horizontal.

Awake to a cold morning but because I have a campsite with electricity, I turned on my heater last night when it became cold. I stay inside during the morning hours but by eight, I have already turned off the heater and begin to open windows.

That is when I step outside to start my stove to boil water for coffee, hot tea and a cup of Daystart.

At about three, I make a tuna salad with onions, celery, tomatoes and mustard, which normally I would put on bread but I do not have any left. So instead, I just use a fork to eat it while I drink my tea that I had made this morning.

By eleven this morning, I have taken off my long trousers and shirt and spend the rest of the day with the temperature in the mid to upper 70s. I say inside the jammer and pound keys until about five-thirty this evening when I step outside and find that it has cooled off quite a bit. Too, I get out my camera to take sunset photos after which, I begin making conversations with my next door neighbors and any one who walks by. My goal is to start a conversation and then see if I can steer it to a spiritual conversation. After about an hour, it becoming dark so I climb back into the jammer to finish up my journal entry for today.

By seven, it is totally dark outside and my legs are beginning to throb so I put the computer away and get into the horizontal to read in the Bible.

Awake and begin planning my route for today, and decide to drive to Roswell and stop at the w-mart to access the internet for the zoom meeting, which in Harlingen, Texas is not until noon my time.

I leave the campground, turn right on US 380, drive through Carrizozo, and continue east through Capitan, Lincoln and arrive in Roswell where I turn left on US 385 and drive north to the w-mart. I go inside for coffee and hot water, return to the jammer, put up my window sun blockers, and have my breakfast while I study for the meeting later today.

At two this afternoon, I drive out of Roswell, travel east on US 380 and continue over the flat grass lands east of Roswell, which are commonly called the Great Plains, but more specifically, the Western High Plains.

What I see in this region is oil well pumps and cattle ranches and sometimes the two over lap, nothing more just oil and beef. Well, there then began to appear some sand dunes and when I stopped at a road side map, found out that this was called the Mescalero Sands.

It was on Day 950 TG when I arrived at the Monahans Sandhills state park that I was to learn about the proliferation of sand hills in the Western High Plains of both Texas and New Mexico, even driving north from Kermit, Texas through Hobbs, New Mexico on SH 206 all the way to Clovis, New Mexico before returning to Texas and on to Palo Duro Canyon state park so that I may get into some hot water.

Then, with little change to the landscape, I enter the state of Texas, but a short time later, I begin to see fields of cotton ready for picking. I continue east on US 380 until I arrive at Brownfield, Texas where I turn north on US 62 and drive to Lubbock where there is both a d-mart and a hf-mart. I drive first to the d-mart, go inside and purchase some organic vegetables but afterwards, the sun has set, so I park in the outlying area and retire for the night.

Awake, dress in my fall blues, drive to near the d-mart entrance and then go inside to use the mens room. Afterwards, I drive to a w-mart for coffee and hot water, then, I return to the jammer to drink the hot liquid while pounding keys to update my journal, all before sunrise. When the sun does rise, I continue for a time more, after which, I drive to the hf-mart to purchase more vegetables. Finally, I leave Lubbock drive south on US 84 back to connect with US 380 where I turn east and continue towards my next stop.

I know that the ecoregion changes from Great Plains to Interior lowland and in most previous crossings, I have seen a marked change with the Caprock escarpment, however, this crossing the change was non existent as it gradually decreased in elevation from the higher Great Plains from 4000 feet and above elevation to the low today of just above 1000 feet in elevation.

When I began to cross the Brazos River and the several forks, I knew that I was no longer on the Great Plains. The first fork was the North Fork Double Mountain Fork Brazos River. What a name for a river. Still crossing the many rivers took me off of the Western High Plains.

I continued east on US 380 through many north Texas towns, Post, Clairmont, Jayton, Aspermont, Rule, Haskell, Throckmorton, Newcastle, Graham, Bryson and finally Jacksboro after which, I arrived at Fort Richardson state park, pay the $22.00 for an electric site so that I could camp next to the shower house and then cooked a pot of soup. Then, I put away my kitchen, climb into the jammer and eat two large cups of the soup while I am pounding keys so as to catch up on my journal writing.

After I upload today′s journal, I then walk to the shower house to get into the hot water and yes, finally a shower house with steamy hot water, so much so that I linger under the shower for some time. Then, I dry off, don my summer blues and walk back to the campsite. I climb into the jammer and resume my key pounding while outside in the distance the sunglow lightens up the horizon with a bright orange. I open up the Windows Media Player and drop in all seventy-five of the original songs from the Watchtower. Then, I press play and enjoy listening to each one while I pound keys. Outside, orange fades to gray and then dark encroaches upon the moment and I relish in the fact that we are in the last day of this old wicked world. Soon, God′s Kingdom will destroy the wicked and bless his people like never before. I continue to thank Him for the knowledge that He give not only me but all of my spiritual family. Too, I pray that all of us will succeed in making it through these last days and walk into the new world paradise.

When the darkness has enveloped the entire day, I put away my quill (keyboard) and then get into the horizontal and begin to read more in the Bible.

Awake, dress in my fall blues and pound keys for a time before I unplug and leave out of this state park. I do not stop at the shower house for more hot water because I made a reservation at Doris Campground near Cache, Oklahoma for tonight and there is hot water in that campground.

I drive north on US 281 to Wichita Falls, connect to IH 44 to the Oklahoma state line and because the interstate highway is a toll road in Oklahoma, I get off at the second exit and travel east on US 70 to Grandfield, Oklahoma and then turn right on SH 30 driving north to Chattanooga. Just past Chattanooga, I turn left on SH 115 and drive north, thinking I have driven on this highway before. I continue north on this state highway and soon begin to see the Wichita Mountains on the north horizon. As I continue getting closer to the mountains, I suddenly realize that this is the highway that leads north from US 62 to Doris Campground.

I continue north on SH 115, cross US 62, drive up to where SR 115 turn east towards Mount Scott and drive straight onto SH 49 when turns east and in just over two miles arrives at the entrance to Doris Campground. I enter and do not see a single refuge employee, neither at the entrance gate (where a sign says, Do not enter without reservation), nor the visitor center (which is closed), nor any where in the campground. In fact, the entire time I am in this campground, it is like all the refuge employees are on a winter hiatus and not working here anymore. Odd as it seems, I also notice that there are very few campers in the park, only a few clusters in a couple of locations.

I drive to my campsite, climb into the back and work on my computer until about ten this evening, then I get into the horizontal.

Awake, drive to the shower house and go inside to take another hot shower because I do not know when the next one will be available. After leaving the shower house, I drive out of the campground, south on SH 115 to US 62, then east into Lawton, Oklahoma, stop at a w-mart, walk inside with my computer purchase a cup of coffee and sit at a table where there is an electrical plug. I work on several pages that need to be updated and by two this afternoon, I leave the w-mart, drive east on US 62, then south on IH 44 to SH 7 where I turn left and drive east to where SH 7 follows the Duncan bypass to the south side of Duncan and then turn right on US 81 and drive south into Texas, crossing the Red River.

Only after a short drive south on US 81, I take an exit at Ringgold, Texas to eastbound US 82 and continue east across the top of Texas on a highway that I have previously driven from Amarillo, Texas to Texarkana, Texas. However, this today, I only drive to Gainesville, Texas and stop at the d-mart here for he night, arriving by seven this evening.

Once in the parking lot and finding a nice spot, I climb into the back of the jammer, turn on my computer and update today′s journal entry. I have check the temperatures in several cities in Oklahoma and north Texas and even though tonight will not be too very cold, low to mid 40s, the next two night, that is Thursday and Friday nights will be in the low to mid 30s. Thus, I have checked the nearby state parks and hope to find the next two nights camping with electric service.

Awake, dress in my fall blues, drive to the af-mart to fuel up and then drive east on US82. Although the day begins with a complete cloud cover of thick and methinks that this is going to be another day of gloomy shroud. Then, on the horizon, there appears to be a clearing of blue sky which slowly grows larger as I continue to travel east. Soon, I it is completely blue overhead and I look back to the west and see the quickly fading cloud cover near the western horizon. Again, methinks, what a amazing change!

I then continue east on US 82, under the interstate in Sherman, Texas and on to Bonham, Texas where I turn south on SH 121 to Sam Rayburn Drive where I turn left and drive east on SH 56 for a few blocks, then turn right on SH 78 and drive south about a mile and a half to FM 271 where I turn left and drive about two miles to the entrance to the Bonham State Park.

Stopping at the headquarters, I ask for two nights but the ranger says she only has one night available because the weekend is booked full. I take the site available for one night. Then, I drive to my site and plug in the electric cord. Next, I have some lunch and pound on the keyboard for most of the afternoon. The restroom-shower house is about one hundred yards from my site, but I still decide to walk the distance in the mid afternoon to use the restroom.

Later, I grab my camera and walk across the park grounds to photograph some of the features. Afterwards, when the sun begins to drop low to the horizon, I walk to the lake and photograph the sunset. There are large birds flying into the east and I try to photograph them but they are too far away to determine what they are. I then meet Michael, who is setting up his camp and he tells me that they are vultures but is not sure if they are black or turkey. We talk for a time more and I direct the conversation to the Bible, and even though he says that he is a Bible reader and has two with him, his comments tell me that he has not developed a real love for God nor his Word.

With the sun now set and the color completely turned gray, I tell him good night, walk back to my campsite, climb inside and turn on my computer. Then I connect with zoom to the Harlingen congregation and watch the mid week meeting. Afterwards, I stay in the breakout room for a short time before I say good bye and leave back to my never ending key pounding. Later, I watch some videos about the amazing animal creation and continue doing so until after eleven this evening.

Finally, I turn off the computer, get under the covers and close my eyes for the night.

Awake, dress in my fall blues, walk to the restroom for a hot shower and then back to the jammer to boil water and make my morning meal. Then I sit inside pounding keys until eleven when I drive to the headquarters to check if there is an opening for tonight. The ranger tells me that there is no cancellations so, I thank here and drive back to my site to pack out. Then the volunteer worker comes by and asks, Did they find you a campsite for tonight? to which I reply, No, I will probably just stay in a d-mart parking lot tonight.

To keep the conversation going so that I might direct it to the Bible, I ask, Where are you from? to which he replies, Houston. When I get an answer that is a city that I am familiar with, I always reply, What Part? and he answers, Bellaire. I then tell him that I grew up in east Pasadena and went to school in Deer Park. We continue talking for a time until he says, I have got to get back to work, nice meeting you.

I roll up my extension cord, leave the campground, drive back to Bonham, Texas and then resume my east bound travel on US 82, first to Paris where I take the north bypass loop, then the north loop around Clarksville, Texas, cross under IH 30, through New Boston, Texas and finally arrive at the d-mart in Texarkana on US 82 just outside the IH 369 loop, an overnighting location I have used now for many years. I arrive just before the sunsets, park, and go inside to shop for a few vegetables, after which I drive to the outer area of the parking lot and stop for the night.

After a noisy night caused by a generator running in another RV near to my vehicle, I rise, dress in my fall blues, drive to the very busy w-mart and go inside for coffee. Then, I walk back out to the jammer and sit at my desk and pound keys. I am waiting here, methinks, for it to cool off further south so that I can move into my winter hiatus. It was cold last night, colder than I prefer, but with two blankets I do well. During the day, the temperature rises to hotter than I prefer, and it makes me think, How much I desire the paradise to come.

After the sun sets, I use up my battery power until it is nearly depleted and then stop, shut down the computer and drive to the d-mart, only to be annoyed again with a large truck who parks right next to my vehicle and leaves his truck idling. And this truck has a very annoying idle, so rather than do any of the acts of retaliation that goes through my mind, I simple move to a less noisy location in the same parking lot.

Not being able to get to sleep, I use my phone to pre-read the Watchtower study for tomorrow. Afterwards, because I am still in pain, mostly in my lower back and legs, I take some aspirin to help relieve the pain and hope that will allow me to fall asleep.

Awake and find it to be daylight and it is only six-thirty this morning and find I am confused. However, it does not take me long to remember that today is Fall Back and then the light is turned on in my head. This means that the day will not only start earlier but it also means that the darkness will arrive earlier as well. I drive to the w-mart, park, walk in for a cup of coffee and a cup of hot water, then go back to the jammer, open the real lift gate and prepare my breakfast. Once the meal is ready, I close the lift gate, climb into the slide door of the jammer and take a seat at my desk.

While I eat my breakfast, I also prepare for the study today, which will not start until one this afternoon. After finishing my Bible study, I then open my website editor and begin recording my journal entry. About eleven, Richard sends a text to tell me that he connected the last two wires on the work that I did on his home and everything works. I am glad to hear that. Methinks, for the most part, I am still capable of installing electrical circuits and wiring but my body just can not hold up to the stress of the job any more. Even to this day, two weeks later, I am still reaping the pain from that job, however, I have noticed that this pain that remains in my body is slowly abating.

Too, after the meeting today, I drive east on IH 30 the two hours to Hot Springs, Arkansas in order to get into the hot water there and hope this will help relieve the pain even more. Upon turning off of the interstate at Caddo Valley, Arkansas, and turning north on SH 7. However, I stop at the intersection to buy fuel and for a meal at the Cracker Barrel and talk with a family who was sitting in the table next to me, even speaking about the Bible. When I return to the jammer, I drive the thirty miles to the d-mart just before entering Hot Springs, where I turn in, park and then get into the back to update my journal entry for today.

It was dark before arrive in the parking lot but not very late, about six this evening and I do not stay up very late until I get into the horizontal to read and watch the November broadcast.

Awake to another cold morning, rise to turn on the jammer engine and notice that the dark orange sunglow is just rising from the horizon. I return to my under cover position to await for the heater to warm the jammer interior. Once it is warm enough, I rise again, dress in my fall blues, drive to the w-mart, grab my computer and go inside to get online.

However, the network is down in the w-mart and I have to resort to using my own hot spot. Methinks, it is a very bad thing when I come into Starbucks for the WiFi and have to resort to using my own hot spot.

Then at nine this morning, I leave the w-mart, drive into town, park in the free high rise parking lot, grab my day pack which has a change of clothes, walk to the Quapaw bath house and pay the twenty dollars to enter the hot pools (I do get ten percent off my price because I am a veteran).

Once in the pool room, I spend most all of my time in the hot pool, which is 104 degrees, while other pools are cooler by several degrees. Too, I endeavor to start conversations with many of the people who are in the pools, hoping to direct the discussion to spiritual topics.

Once, when I return to the mens room to pee, I talk with a young man who begins be saying a lot about politics. I listen to all that he has to say, even asking a few questions. Then, I stay, I once heard an expression from a very wise man who said 'It does not belong to man who is walking even to direct his step.' Then, I tell him that the wise man was Jeremiah. I then explain that I am a Bible reader and that I believe that God has not only the right but the ability to direct matter on this Earth and make life here just and righteous for all of mankind. In fact, God will destroy all the governments that exist today and then set up his government which will return the Earth to the paradise that he originally set up.

Next, I say that Jesus taught his disciples to pray for, and I quote the Lord′s prayer, the part where Jesus said, Thy Kingdom come, thy Will be done on Earth as it is in heaven. The young man agrees that Jesus taught us to pray for that. Too, I tell him, God′s Kingdom is the only government that will correct all the wrongs that the men here on Earth have done, and it will make the Earth into a paradise, where all of God′s people can live in peace and happiness. Finally, I give him one of my business cards and we then part company, myself going back into the pool room to get back into the hot water where I continue soaking for a couple more hours.

When I do leave the bath house, I stop for fish tacos at a Mexican restaurant, then drive to the w-mart and take a nap. Later, I pound keys until after it gets dark and then drive to the d-mart for the night.

Awake, drive to the w-mart for coffee and to spend the day inside to pound keys. I pick one web site subject, Hot Springs and spend the majority of the day updating all of the pages. Then, I continue updating other pages of the Geological Wonders.

I continue until almost eight this evening completing moat all of the wonder pages and then pack out to the jammer to spend the night again in the d-mart parking lot.

Awake, dress in my fall blues, drive to the w-mart, walk in to purchase my cup of hot and then return to set up in the jammer, but because I have been having a problem with my sinuses, I choose not to go back and sit in the hot water today. Instead, I continue pounding keys here at the w-mart until about ten this morning, when I pack out, drive through town, turn left on Whittington Avenue, due the u-turn at Woodrin street and stop at the Whittington Avenue cold spring fountain to fill up two of the bottles that I have kept for this purpose.

After the water stop, I drive up onto West mountain and really enjoy the amazing color of the foliage, taking photos. Then, I return back to the w-mart to upload the photos to the web page, and go inside to use the mens room. When I am walking back outside, methinks, it is going to rain. I then continue in the back of the jammer pounding keys, cropping and uploading photos until about three this afternoon when I hear the tap of something on the outside of the jammer. Looking up, I see that it has begun to rain.

Later, after dark, the rain begins to come down quite hard, I then unplug my electric cord and drive to the d-mart for the night.

The rain stops about half way through the night.

Awake, empty my garbage into the receptacle, drive to the w-mart for coffee and hot water. I will use the hot water to put in some tea tree oil and gargle because my sinuses are draining heavily and causing a sore throat. Leaving the cafe, I drive to the I-hop for a free breakfast of eggs, bacon, hash browns and pancakes. However, I scrape the sugary topping off of the pancakes and just eat the cakes. All that sugar topping is just too sweet for me. After my meal, I drive to a hair salon for a hair cut. For lunch, I stop at another restaurant with free food and do the same later this evening. Once a year, I splurge from my healthy food and have a day of restaurant or other words, garbage food.

During this time when I am using the veterans day free meals to fill my stomach, Kim sends me a text to tell me that she have found a copy of Princes Bride, a movie that I had told to her was my favorite and that I loaned it to someone but never got it back. We text for a short time and she sends me a photo of the finished bathroom at the Hummingbird House.

Finally, I arrive back at the w-mart, take my parking location and then continue to pound keys while awaiting for the mid week meeting today. Then, I fall into a food induced comma and take a nap this afternoon. At five, I rouse from my nap and begin to study for the meeting after which, I work on updating my journal entry for today.

Much like many evening meetings I join of late, I do not stay much past the closing prayer. Methinks, it is because I seem to always be very tired and need sleep at this time. After I turn off the electronics, I climb under the blanket and close my eyes.

When I awake this morning, sunlight is shining into the jammer but it is so cold that I just want to stay covered up and do not rise. However, I had set my alarm for seven so I at least have to get up to turn it off. Methinks, it is time to move further south again, not too far, just below the Red River.

For the last dozen or so days, since shortly after I crossed the Climate Divide on Day 168 TN, I have experienced an onslaught of the symptoms of allergies. However, I also really felt that I needed to go to the Arkansas hot spring pool to soak. Thus, during and after my plunge into the hot waters that once belonged to the indigenous people known as the Quapaw, I continued to suffer even more so from these allergies.

Therefore, I know that to gain any relief from the allergy symptoms I am experiencing, my next direction must be to return as soon as possible to the dry side, and I needed to do this posthaste.

Leaving Hot Springs, Arkansas, I drive, first south on SH 7 and leave the Interior Highlands, then southwest on IH 30 across the mostly flat and wooded Coastal Plains, not stopping at any of the the locations that have diverted me in past journeys, but continuing to the Red River, after which, I soon enter Texas at Texarkana

Once I am in Texas, I drive south on US 59 and locate the Atlanta state park. When I pull up to the headquarters building, I ask for a campsite for two nights. The volunteer tells me that there is only one campsite left open and it is only available for one night. I pay the camping fee, drive to the campsite, and set up by plugging in my electric cord. Then, I greet my neighbor, who I find out is Jim and who is driving a 1975 Volkswagen Westphalia camping van. Too, I find out that he is in the Air Force and parks this van at some government installation while he goes back to his duty station to work between his travel outings.

After talking with him for some time, I leave to go get a shower, which water is quite hot and I enjoy it even though the pressure is not very much. Afterwards, I retire to the jammer and pound keys for some time until I am too tired to continue, at which time I get into the horizontal to sleep.

It is well after ten this evening when I get in to the horizontal; that is what having electricity to plug into gives me.

Awake, open up the jammer, climb out of the jammer and begin preparing my breakfast. As I am heating the water, my next door neighbor, Jim, says hello and I return the greeting. He asks me if I have coffee and I say Yes, do you have some? to which he replies Yes as well. When my breakfast is finished, I walk to his campsite so that we can talk some more. Soon, he is packed up and drives out of the campground. I return to the jammer an begin updating my journal entry.

When Jim leaves, I continue here for a bit longer to update my journal as well as to create a new page for this campground. Finally, I unplug and drive out of the campground and head further south on US 59, not stopping until I come into Lufkin where I go to the w-mart to connect to the internet. Later, I drive next door to the d-mart and park for the night.

It seems that each night now, I am getting into the horizontal quite early, especially now, since the time change and it is dark before five-thirty. I suppose that I could go into the w-mart in the evening and plug in to an outlet, which would extend the number of hours of my time after sunset, however, I just have not begun doing that yet, because I would rather not spend too much time being in and around those people who are still part of this old world.

I get into the sack here at the d-mart by eight this evening and that is after pounding keys for as long as I can keep my battery alive.

Awake, drive to the w-mart but they are not open yet, most likely some kind of staffing problem, so, I drive to the ff-mart for a egg and bacon tacito and a free senior coffee. After that, I drive back to the w-mart, park and begin doing my study for today′s meeting. Then at quarter to one this afternoon, I connect to the Harlingen congregation for the meeting on zoom. After the meeting, I drive out of Lufkin, Texas and drive north on US 69 until it gets dark and then begin looking for a d-mart to park for the night.

In fact, it is not until I cross IH 20, where immediately on the right is a d-mart that I pull into, park for the night and then pound keys until I complete today′s journal entry. Before I get into the horizontal, Gordon tells me that he believes that girl he has been talking about is going to buy his buss for five thousand dollars.

I tell him that I am glad for him, but that he should be aware that their are a lot of scam artist out there who will try to get the title from you and for some reason before giving you the money. I tell him to beware. Too, I tell him that the money order for the five hundred dollar deposit should be immediately deposited into his bank to make sure it is a real money order. If for any reason, I tell him that he should give it back to her and demand cash, and only one hundred dollar bills because they have the most anti-counterfeit security features. After we stop talking, I climb into the back to work on my journal writing.

I have been feeling a little better from the allergies and sinus problems that I have been having. I was feeling so bad for a couple of days that I began to think that I had contacted the COVID virus, but then I remember that I have not had a fever nor have I been having a difficulty with breathing, just a lot of sinus drainage, hacking up snot, headaches and sore throat. Too, I decided to move west again so that I could get back onto the dry side hoping that this will help dry out the hacking problem. I remember that the my condition began several days after leaving Doris Campground in Oklahoma and coming back into Texas on Day 170 TN in order for me to travel eastward across the top of Texas and into Arkansas to drive to Hot Springs. I was going to spend two days in the hot water but did not feel good enough to return for a second soak. Instead, I just kept gargling with the tea tree oil and finally, began the return trip back to the piney forest in east Texas.

It was even before I arrived in Lufkin when I began thinking about moving back across the top of Texas to the dry side and today after the meeting is over, I leave Lufkin, drive north on US 69 and stop in Tyler, Texas at both hf-marts in town to purchase some organic food. Then, I continue north on US 69, cross under IH 20 only soon after to arrive at a d-mart where I pull in, locate a place to park and work on my journal writing for a short time.

However, when I finish with my journal writing, it is just only eight this evening. I am tired and ready to get horizontal but I am not sleepy so I will read for a while in my Bible.

Awake, start the jammer and drive north on US 69 to the first location that has hot coffee. Then, with coffee in hand, I begin my day of travel to the Texas panhandle by continuing to drive north on US 69 up to and over IH 30 in Greenville, where I then begin my travel west on US 380 through McKinney, Denton, Decatur, Bridgeport, to Jacksboro. (Previously, when traveling east on US 380 from the panhandle, I had left this highway on Day 169 TN to drive to Doris Campground in Oklahoma.)

Upon arriving back in Jacksboro, this completes my drive across all of US 380 and confirms for me that this route, between from central New Mexico starting in San Antonio at IH 25 and then traversing some 670 miles to Greenville, Texas at IH 30 is a great crossing from the central New Mexico Rio Grande valley to the wet side of the continent across the top of Texas, especially if I am on my way to Hot Springs, Arkansas. Too, I have learned about several new places to camp along this path and except for a few suburbs of the Dallas-Fort Worth megalopolis, the entire route avoids all major cities.

However, today, I just use the section that I had not driven and when arriving in Jacksboro, Texas, I turn northwest on US 281 and drive to Wichita Falls, where I pull directly into the d-mart on the south end near SH 79. Upon my arrival, I am so tired that I immediately climb into the back of the jammer and take a nap. Later, when I awake, I do not climb out of the jammer but stay inside to pound keys until dark.

This is when a man walks by and asks me if I want to sell the Ford Aerostar. I tell him, No, why do you ask? and he replies, I did not want to startle you but I have an Aerostar also and I love mine, and just wanted to ask you what year this one is. I step out and we talk for a time as the sun sets and the sky darkens. Had I gotten out of the jammer a little earlier, then I might have seen the Kingdon Hall just east of the d-mart parking lot and no more than about one hundred feet distance.

Afterwards, I climb back into the jammer and resume my work on the web site until I am again to tired to pound keys, so I get into the horizontal and read for a time.

Awake, drive to the w-mart near by and purchase a large coffee to go, return to the jammer and continue north on US 281 through town and then take the exit for US 287 to the northwest, which soon takes me across the Climate Divide onto the dry side. I continue northwest on US 287 through Vernon, Quanah, Childress but right before arriving at the Prairie Dog Fork of the Red River, I turn west onto SH 86 and continue west along the Caprock Canyon Trailway, a sixty-four mile point to point trail along an old railroad grade, while during this route, I leave behind the Interior Lowlands and climb up onto the Western High Plains.

Once on the high plains, SR 86 takes me right into the north side of Turkey, Texas where I turn west on Main street and stop at Goldsby′s Philips 66 station to take a couple of photos. Then, I continue west on SR 86 and soon arrive at Caprock Canyon state park, where I make the final decision to continue west to US 87 in Tulia, then north on IH 27 to Amarillo, Texas and stop at the same w-mart which I have spent time before, which take much of the rest of this day and I arrive in the parking lot in the late afternoon. I then go inside, have a sandwich, water and get caught up on my journal writing.

Too, I go online and make reservations for staying in the Palo Duro state park for tomorrow night, and reserve an electric campsite since the temperature will be in the mid twenties. However, I am not sure as to what I will do on Thursday evening, probably drive south to Monahans state park, or even Abilene state park, but this decision will be for another day.

Then, at nine this evening, I park out of the w-mart, drive to the street where the eighteen-wheelers park and take my spot.

Awake to a comfortable morning, dress, start the jammer and drive back to the w-mart for coffee and a spinach-feta breakfast wrap. With my purchase, I sit outside and pound keys for several hours to await for the day to get along. Previously, I had made reservations to camp at the state park but the official check in time is not until two in the afternoon, however, I plan on arriving around noon.

With the wind picking up throughout the morning, I leave the w-mart at about eleven, drive to Canyon, Texas and stop at the d-mart to purchase some yellow squash and salmon to test out the new charcoal grill I purchased when I was in Lufkin. Unlike every location I have checked at, I find that this location has single wrapped rolls of toilet paper, so I buy two of these rolls. Also, I purchase a stick of butter for the sweet potato that I am going to bake tonight. Then, I drive on into the park, stopping at the entrance gate to get my permit.

Stamped in large bold letters on the outside of the package are the words, Burn Ban, No Wood or Charcoal Fires. Well, all the best laid plans of men are soon lost, as are my plans to those to lit the charcoal fire tonight. So, all I have to do is leave the salmon out tonight and it will freeze, especially since the temperature is going down into the mid to low twenties.

Then, I drive to my space, plug in the electric and resume charging my batteries. At noon, I unplug, drive to the shower house and take a steamy hot shower. I had previously found out that the Hackberry Loop has such great hot water, so hot, that it is necessary to turn on a little cold to cool it down enough for me to use it. Love it when it is so. After that, I drive back to the campsite where I continue the battle against the flies that have snuck into the jammer. Then one shows his face and I beat him to a pulp with my whip. Two down and one to go! I then drive to the restroom to use the toilet and upon pulling in, I see a man walking down the street carrying an empty garbage can. When I get out I greet him and he returns the greeting. I then try to plug in but the plug will not go into the receptacle and I comment about it as he approaches my site. He stops, walks toward where I am and we begin to talk. I then try another two prong plug and I am able to force it into the receptacle, so, I use the same force with the three prong plug on my cord and I am able to plug it in.

We continue to talk and he says that he has the vehicle with the roof top tent and I ask him if I can look into it. He says, Sure come on over. I say, My name is Thom, to which he replies, Mine is Barry. I tell Barry, I have a younger brother with that name. We walk together to his space and he introduces me to his wife, Sherry. Then, he opens up the roof tent. I look at the base and see that it is hard board and then see that the cover is also rigid. It is just the pop out tent that is made with tent material. Barry says, It has a four inch mattress.

The conversation continues and when Sherry hears that because fires are ban in the park, including charcoal fires and I was not able to cook my salmon, she asks, Have you eaten? When I tell her No, I cant use the charcoal stove, she says, We have half a pot of clam chowder that we just do not know what we are going to do with, would you like it? I answer, Sure, and thank you very much? I return to get my cook pot and she begins to reheat the soup. Then, she put the soup into my cook pot and hands it to me. As I put the lid on the pot she says that it does not have any salt. Immediately, I espouse the idea of giving her some of my spice mix and ask her, Can I give you a small bottle of my own spice mix? to which she says Ok. I walk back to the jammer, grab one of my bottles from the pantry and walk back to give it to Sherry. Soon, I am talking about the Bible and sharing what I know about the up and coming paradise, using scriptures such as Matthew 5:3 and Psalms 37:9-11 to explain to both of them that God fully intends to have a paradise here on this earth. Barry shares a prayer and both he and his wife put a hand on one of my shoulders.

About this time, the moonglow begins to light up the canyon rim to the east and I go again back to the jammer to carry the cook pot of soup and to get my camera. When I return, Barry is also photographing the moon with his camera. I take several photographs and not long after that, I say good night and return to the jammer to have my hot supper, which is quite tasty but even though I am very glad to have something hot to eat, the soup had a little too much meat for my taste. I turn on my electric heater, and then pound keys to update my journal entry.

Finally, I get into the horizontal and read from the Bible until I am too tired to continue.

Awake to a very cold morning, seven degrees below freezing. I have kept the heat on all night to make it comfortable inside the jammer and not wanting to get out into the dark cold, I opt to lie back down and sleep at least until the sun awakens me, however, because I an in a canyon, the sun will not rise above the eastern rim until after eight this morning. I am good with that.

Finally, I arise and check the water spigot only to find that it is frozen. Then, I walk up the hill to the restroom at about the same time as Barry and Sherry are heading there so we walk together and talk about our next place on this journey. Barry tells me that they are heading home and then relays the list of places they have been. I tell him that I want to go to Big Bend national park so that I can get into the Langford hot springs there along the Rio Grande river. Finally, we arrive back at their site and I continue to mine.

Once back at the jammer, I open up the rear lift gate, grab my stove and tea pot, then walk to the table to begin heating water for my breakfast. Several people walk by and I greet each, some even stop to talk briefly as I continue my meal preparations. When the water boils, I pour the hot liquid into three cups, one for coffee, another for hot tea and a third cup of Daystart. Next, I carry all the cups and place them in their place near my computer station inside the jammer, after which, I put away my kitchen. Finally, I climb into the jammer, sit in front of my computer and begin pounding keys while I sit on the coffee and take spoonful bites of the breakfast. All along, my small electric heater has been pumping out hot air on the high setting endeavoring to keep up with the fact that the rear lift and side slide doors have remained open, but now, with the doors closed, it begins to get a little too warm inside so I turn off the heater while I get caught up on my journal writing.

Then, at noon, I step out of the jammer, unplug the electric and leave the campsite. I drive a little further downstream along the Prairie Dog Fork of the Red river hoping to stop at the next campground so as to check the temperature of the shower house. However, I have lost the map that was given to me and can not find the next shower, so I leave the park, drive west on SH 217 until I arrive at IH 27, and contrary to my custom, I turn left onto the interstate and drive south on it. This interstate takes me all the way through Lubbock and as I drive past the south loop 289, IH 27 changes back to US 87 upon which I continue south first though Lamesa, Texas then Big Springs, Texas, the reverse route from the song, Amarillo by morning, up from San Anton. However, I do not sing the song this time because I had just left Amarillo and it just does not feel right, even though I have been singing that song ever since my first journey north, which I believe was in November of 1976 when I was toting a back pack.

By the time I arrive in Big Springs, I have just enough time to stop at the w-mart, a familiar one, just after I cross over IH 20 and there, have something to eat as well as to upload my journal entry for the last several days.

Upon leaving this parking lot, it is dark outside and I turn south again on US 87, only this is the business route through town and soon, I arrive at the d-mart, pull in and find a place to park on the outer perimeter. Once I have climbed into the back, I just turn on my phone to check com and a short time later, I have gone horizontal.

The full moon begins tonight after midnight, and the partial lunar eclipse reaches maximum eclipse at about four tomorrow morning. This is one I will not get up for, but will include one of the many that will be taken by others.