Pic-of-the-Week for August 19, 2017

Hola from Bend/Sisters, Oregon,

Yes, that is where we currently are preparing for the Purkey Family Reunion which starts officially Sunday, the 20^th.  You have not heard much from me because I have been busy!  We have traveled, worked on: the new Model A Roadster, the latest quilt, and(I am sure there must be something else)!

Traveling:  Early this month we went to Florence, Oregon for a quick trip to visit our friends Tony and Janet.  They are planning on moving to St. Croix this fall so we had to get in one last visit, and Harriet had to update her wardrobe with some of the pretty clothing Janet sells!  

Then it was meeting up with our friends John and Marilyn.  They said that they needed a break from their work, so they invited us to join them dry camping for a weekend at the Brooks, Oregon "Great Oregon Steam-Up".  http://www.antiquepowerland.com/html/what_is_steam-up-.html  The link gives you a good overview of what we were able to see.  This event is held every year on the last weekend in July and the first weekend in August.  It is a fun event to watch.  Below is a very small sample of some of the items that we saw, and there are many more photos in our August photo album.

Then 2 days later we went camping with our friends George and Carolyn.  Both Carolyn and I have an interest in rock collecting, so that was one of our main goals this trip.  It was also a time to relax at one of our favorite RV parks in Oregon.  The Junipers Reservoir RV Resort is near Lakeview, Oregon, and is on a large working cattle ranch.  http://www.junipersrv.com/  OK, just because I am giving you the links for some of these places doesn’t mean that you should go there!  I don’t want to go there next time and find out that all our friends have already reserved all the RV spaces!  It is OK to go there if you just want to tent camp.  ~wink~ 

When we got to the RV park we were told that the reservoir had just had a toxic blue-green algae bloom.  http://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/77118.html  This particular algae bloom was deadly to their cattle, and 32 died within 72 hours.

We camped there 3 nights and on the first full day went to the small community of Davis Creek, California, where we picked up a map and registered to obtain obsidian.  We visited all 4 sites listed on the map and found some beautiful specimens.  The area has rainbow obsidian with blues and greens, and some pink at one site.  Now the challenge is to figure out how to cut and polish it into something really nice.

On the return to Bend/Salem, we stopped at the Cowboy Dinner Tree Restaurant near the community of Silver Lake.  It is a unique restaurant that serves only two types of meals, chicken, or beef.  The chicken meal is a whole, large, chicken.  The beef meal is a 26 – 30 oz top sirloin steak.  Both meals come with salad, bean soup, rolls, baked potato, and dessert, with your choice of ice tea, or strawberry lemonade.  Yes, they automatically bring doggy bags to the table near the end of the meal.

Now that we are back at my brother's home near Sisters, Oregon, there has been a forest fire about 8 miles away that we have been watching.  It is currently about 9,000 acres and is not close to being contained.  The sad part about this whole thing is that I think they could have put it out very quickly when it first started, but NO, they did not do much and now it is out of control.  This is after they have thrown probably well over 100 Borate Bombers at it not including water dropping helicopters and lots of man power and caterpillars.  They are now even using jets as Borate Bombers, including a DC10.  It really makes a person wonder what the people in charge really are trying to accomplish!  People have been evacuated from some homes near the fire.

Oh, did I mention “work”?  Well, this is a current photo of the Model A Roadster (doesn't look much different than last time, does it?), and the quilt that Harriet is making for me.

This doesn't show the running gear, chassis or engine, which are all on the other side of Bend at our friend Mike's shop.  Ben has been spending a lot of time there getting dirty and greasy, taking more things apart (and ordering more replacement parts)!  Meanwhile, Mike poured the babbitt for the main bearings, and is rebuilding the engine.  

Harriet got the binding sewn on, now she just needs to turn the binding to the back side and hand stitch it down.  That's the only thing that is hand-stitched on this quilt, so it takes a while!  

The August 2017 with more photos is ready for your enjoyment.

Until the next time Ben has time to put something together....
Your friends in smoky Central Oregon,
Ben & Harriet

PS.  Sam & Zoey are spending the summer in Baja with our friend Dalia.  Sam had an eye problem (dry eye?), but after some TLC by Dalia and our vet Gretel, (and lots of medication) he is doing much better.  

Pic-of-the-Week for July 29, 2017

Another week or so, has passed and Ben and Harriet have been busy!  Ok, so I have not kept up with Harriet’s tradition of getting out a Pic-of-the-Week every 2 weeks, but I really have been busy!

Remember that “Jeep” project.  I figured that not much would happen until I returned to Mexico in the fall, but about 3 weeks ago the painter, Kaliman, came to our house and towed the jeep to his shop for painting.  It seems that he has 3 high school age kids that wanted to earn some money this summer.  I THINK that the jeep is getting worked on and painted!  WOOHOO!

Remember the Model A Roadster project?  Well, it is making “regress”.

Actually, any movement I consider “progress”.  The removal of every nut, bolt and screw is a struggle!  As you can see there are not many nuts, bolts, or screws left to remove.  The engine is well on its way to being rebuilt.  Mike Stenkamp is a wonderful mechanic/machinist here in Bend who is rebuilding it.  We really appreciate all the help we are getting from the Model A Club here in Bend, so we decided to "join the club", and are now official members of the High Desert A's.  

While Mike is doing his part, I am taking things apart as quickly as I can, but my most successful endeavor is ordering parts and spending money.  So far I think I have spent about $5,000 on parts and getting things done.

Oh, speaking of  money, …………. Our truck broke down again (on Ben's birthday!) this summer.  It started missing and died in about the distance of 2 blocks.  We had it towed, hauled actually, to our favorite Bend mechanic and he tried, but could not fix it in a timely manner, so he had it hauled to the Ford dealer in Redmond, Oregon where a friend works that he trusts. Well, about a week later they got it in the shop and found the problem.  Seems that gasoline was put in the tank at some point with the diesel that should have been put in it.  No matter what “they” say, Gasoline and Diesel do not mix in a truck diesel tank! They had to replace 4 fuel injectors that were ruined due to the gas.  Fortunately for us, our truck is old and it doesn't do as much harm as it does to newer trucks...they pointed out a newer truck in the shop with the same problem, and it will cost them over $9000 in repairs!  Ouch!  

After waiting the first week for repairs we rented a car and visited friends in Eugene and Salem.  It was a rather quick trip, but nice to get away from Model A work for a while.  If we did not see you during that quick trip, we will try next time.  When we returned to Bend the truck was repaired and seems to be running good.  Now we just need to get the gas station to reimburse us for our costs.  We are hoping that all turns out good.

While in Eugene we went to dinner at Mazzi’s (Our favorite Italian Restaurant) with Harriet’s Uncle, Aunt, and Cousin.  When the bill never arrived, we were told that a prominent Eugene businessman who was sitting at the next table paid for our dinners!  (Malpass Farms (Harriet's Uncle) rents property from him.)

Cousin Tom got out the Mexican Train game, and Harriet admits she's lost her touch!  Tom and Karan, Karan's sister Pam and Harriet's brother Rich did much better!  

In Salem we went to Oregon Gardens with our hostess and enjoyed the visit at the gardens.  We had not been there for a long time and it was very enjoyable.  They even have a trolley that took us on a tour of the gardens and gave us a good overall view of the gardens.  Then we took a walking tour of the gardens, and Harriet took this photo.  What do you see?

Our Salem hosts say that I did not lose my touch fixing Baja style margaritas!

Then it was back to Bend to work, relax, and eat.  Don’t get me wrong, we ate well in Eugene and Salem also!  Last night we went to dinner with Kate and Mel, our friends in Sisters who come to our area of Mexico every winter.

The mountains still have a lot of snow....this is Mt. Washington taken as we crossed over the Santiam Pass on our way back to Bend.  

That is about it for this week(s).   There are more photos in the 2017 July album to take a peek at.  

Until next Pic-of-the Week,
Your friends in Oregon,
Ben & Harriet

PS.  Sam & Zoey are doing OK in Baja... Sam did have an eye problem, but he's been to the vet several times about it, and it is getting better.   

Pic-of-the-Week for July 6, 2017

Wow!  What a busy week of June 25^th!  The weather got hotter, and we decide to try to head North as soon as we could.  We wanted to be North of the border by the morning of the 3^rd of July so we could get replacement tires for the car trailer.  We think the ones on the trailer have been recalled.  Ben put in long days working to get everything ready so we could leave by Friday the 30^th. 

Also, Ben was still trying to get as much done on the Willys Jeep as he could.  Then on June 26^th the fellow welding the Jeep’s gas tank back together after getting the inside of the tank sand blasted gave Ben a call asking if he could come in about 1 hour, to the welding shop, to help put the tank back in the Jeep.  Well, a lot can go wrong in 1 hour.  He started to patch 2 leaks, and the tank BLEW UP!  He was a lucky guy that he was not hurt worse than he was!  So much for having the Jeep running by the time we left.  Now it needs a new gas tank manufactured.

As we probably mentioned in an earlier blog, we installed some new windows and window frames in our house a few weeks ago.  The changed windows are different from the old ones, so Ben had to modify the shutters for those windows and one sliding glass door.  More hard work on hot days.

 [He thinks I had time to take pictures of us hauling these shutters back and forth to make sure they fit proper.  Hah!  Instead, here's a picture of Eleanor helping him to  fill in the bolt holes.  She handed him the bolts and washers for each hole...very helpful! ]

We finally left Buena Vista on Friday, the 30^th of June as planned.  Our friend and house cleaner is house sitting for us this summer and taking care of Sam and Zoey.  This will be a different summer for us as we will be “dog-less”.  [In this photo we are just ready to leave, and they said, "Wait a minute....we're not in the truck!  Where are our beds?"]


We did have what we thought was a slow leak in one trailer tire, so we filled the tire with air before we left home, and by the time we arrived in La Paz (a 1 ½ hour trip), we had lost about ½ the air pressure.  Ben knew that would never do on our trip, so we stopped at a tire shop and had them check the tire for the leak.  We discovered a nail in the tire, which was fixed in about 20 minutes for about $6.00 US Dollars, and we were on our way with no detectable leak the rest of our trip. 

We arrived back in Bend on the 4^th of July.  A 5 day, 2000-mile trip.  That is pushing it for us.  Harriet is making Ben promise to take her to a newly discovered hotel in San Ignacio on the return trip this fall. 

A few details on the trip……

First night stayed at the El Moro Hotel in Santa Rosalia.  We checked in and then took a taxi to the heart of the town to a wonderful seafood restaurant.  [This is a picture our friend George took of the hotel with his drone when he and Ben went north in early May.]

Second night at Hotel El Jardine in San Quintin.  It looks like a hotel set in a beautiful park setting.  Nice rooms and nice restaurant as part of the hotel area.

The 3^rd night at Victorville, CA.  The most notable thing that day (Sunday, part of the 4^th of July weekend), was the extremely long auto line at customs, plus once we crossed, we had to walk back to Mexican Immigration and get our exit documentation since Ben may need to fly down if a hurricane is headed to our area this summer. 

The 4^th night was in Reno, NV visiting with Mike and Mary, good friends from Los Barriles.  Always an enjoyable evening with great hosts!

The 5^th evening was back home to our home away from home in Bend, OR.  5 long driving days.  

 [View from the living room window at Ken and Bea's house (Ben's brother) of the Three Sisters.]

Are you are wondering why we took the car trailer with us to Oregon?  Well, about 2 days before we were to leave for Oregon, we got word that a longtime friend of the Purkey Family decided that she wanted to sell her 1930 Model A Ford Roadster with a Rumble Seat to us.  This was a topic that had been discussed with her quite a while ago, and we thought that she had decided against selling.  It came as a REAL surprise when we got the word that she was going to sell it to us.  Now Ben will have two vehicle projects to work on when we return to Mexico in the fall.  This could keep Ben busy this summer also.  [Once it's all pretty and running good, I'm claiming this one! - HP]  

That is about it for this Pic-of-the-Week.  We hope you enjoyed the attached photos!  [I will start a July 2017 album soon.  Not much in it yet!  HP]

Ben, & Harriet without Sam and Zoey 

Pic-of-the-Week for June 20, 2017

Hola Amigos,

Yes, we are still in Mexico....enjoying the quiet!!!  This cactus flower bloomed in the quiet of the night last week while we were sleeping.  It only blooms at night, and only one night, so you've got to watch them closely so you know which morning to get up early to see it still in bloom!

The grand kids are gone, and peace and quiet has returned to our home.  We love 'em to pieces, but they sure make life interesting, sometimes more interesting than we can imagine.  Anyhow, we all survived, and had some great times and hopefully made some great memories for them all.  

We all enjoyed going out to eat, and the kids appreciated their chocolate milk in tall cool glasses!  With straws, of course, so you could also blow bubbles and get into trouble with Mom.

And sometimes we had little accidents, so had to have a pretty pink ice pack wrapped in a soft towel to put on our heads.  (Let me see that picture, Grandma...see if I'm looking sufficiently hurt, but still pretty!)  

Anyhow, they are now in California, and will be migrating to Illinois soon to spend the rest of the summer there.

Ryan is getting ready to head back to Shanghai, China.  He seems quite content there, and has become quite the continent hopper! 

We will probably leave for Oregon next week sometime.  The Jeep is not driveable right now, (no gas tank yet, and a fix to re-position the radiator needs further modification), but Ben is hoping to be able to get it ready for body work and paint before we leave (he'd like that done by our reliable body-man Caliman this summer).  We'll see!  Also, the 2001 white truck is in the shop.  The electronic accelerator is not working, so the shop ordered the needed part from Arizona.  Time for the part to arrive?  7 to 10 days, business days, probably.  That makes it maybe this Saturday, but probably early next week....we hope!  We put in some new windows in the house, and now our old hurricane shutters will not fit properly, so Ben went to La Paz today to get plywood to modify the necessary shutters.  He's also been going around cleaning out all the "bee goop" in many of the anchor holes, and putting in the bolts to keep the bees out!  

I did some closet cleaning today, and discovered that termites had done a number on some of my picture files; nice cardboard boxes that were quite tasty to those nasty termites, and many of the pictures were ruined, too.  (SAD FACE).  I did find a nice picture that I haven't seen in a long time of me and my three sisters, and it was in good shape.  This was probably about 1998, back when we were all much younger!  Sister Alice has been gone since January 2004, so it was nice to see her typically smiling face.  

I have finished my latest quilt (or at least as far as I can go), and it is ready to haul up to Oregon and mail to my friends who will put on the backing, insert the batting, and quilt it for me.  It has been a fun project, and I enjoyed working in all the bright colors.  I'll put on the binding after I get the quilted blanket back from Quiltmasters.com.  This is obviously one for Ben, since it's his antique car featured on it. 

We hope to see many of you this summer.  Let us know if you want us to visit, and we'll put you on our list of "places to go and people to see"!  

This will probably be the last Pic-of-the-Week from Baja this spring (Happy first day of summer manana!)  You'll have to rely on Ben for news of our summer fun.

More pictures in our June 2017 album.

Until the next time (who knows when?)

Harriet, Ben, Sam & Zoey 

PIc-of-the-Week for June 8, 2017

Hola Amigos,

Yes, I missed Tuesday.... and Wednesday!  Somehow, with three active grand-kids visiting here, time just gets away from me.  We have been having a very busy time, and we're hoping that Ben will survive the chaos and noise that he's not used to.  I believe the kids are having a great time.  They have a BIG wading pool,

 a sand box, and lots of books and toys to keep them busy here at the house, as well as two dogs to pet and pet and pet and get kisses from and pet and pet and pet some more!!  The dogs are actually pretty tolerant, and I've told them to stay away from Zoey or we'll get wet spots on the floor, so they're pretty good about that.  Sam has nipped Eleanor when she persist on being in his face.  She doesn't seem to get the message to back off until he's nipped her pretty little nose!  (Everyone has survived!)  Those of you following my Facebook page have seen many of these photos, but for those of you just getting this bi-weekly letter, these will be new.

Of course, one of the more exciting things to do down here is feed our local burros.  Eleanor called the "beeros"!  She and Grandpa gave each of the burros a couple gumdrops, which are much appreciated (by the burros!)  

The kids got to go swimming with their Uncle Ryan.  He took them out into the "deep" water, and they had a grand time; especially David, and he can hold his breath and dive underwater and paddle like crazy.  And Eleanor loved being held out there by strong Uncle.  And the water is feeling pretty good and warm, and no little stinging jellyfish....yet!  Last night their Mom and I took them swimming after dinner, and I've got to say, the water was a wonderful temperature and it was very enjoyable.  

Eleanor has become Grandpa's helper.  He is cleaning out the bee goop from our hurricane shutter holes, and putting in the shutter bolts.  She insists on knowing what he is doing, and then she helps.  She hands him the bolts one at a time (with a washer) and he puts them in (after cleaning out the holes).  

We've also taken a ride in Grandpa's Woody....no seatbelts, no carseats, no windows!!!  And everyone survived.  We took a ride to El Viejo and had a nice taco lunch, and the kids really loved the fresh air and no restrictions!  In fact, Eleanor was very disappointed when for the next ride we had to take the pickup with the car seats.  :-(   Check out our June 2017 album for a video and other pics of the ride in an antique car.  

We've also been working on cleaning out the freezer.  Although the kids, except for Aaron, don't eat much, we are managing to get rid of quite a bit of stuff.  (It helps that we have two more adults here to help us eat!)  That is nice before we leave for the summer, as we'd like to shut down at least one of our 3 fridges!! 

The troops are leaving on next Tuesday to meet up with Tim (their husband and Dad) and spend some time traveling and visiting friends in the US.   We will be starting to wrap things up here and getting ready to travel to the US ourselves.  Since we drive, we're not sure when we're leaving... it will depend on the weather (getting too hot!) and our task list.  Ben has some unfinished projects he needs to track and figure out what to do with, like the boat, and the Jeep (which will be runable but not perfect).   And then there's the tires on the car trailer, which need replacing (3 years ago these were brand new...remember our broken u-bolt in the middle of Baja on that trailer?  Those memories are coming up on Facebook right now!)  Ben did some research and found out those tires, one of which is going bad, were manufactured in China and had a recall.  That may be why the tire guy in El Rosario had them available for a decent price!?!  Anyhow, he called and found out that Les Schwab (tire store in Oregon) will replace them at no cost.  So we'll take two or so at a time up to the states and swap them out.  (What you call a "long range" project, in more ways than one!)

OK...If I'm ever going to get this out, I'd better do it now.  Like I said, more pics in the June 2017 album.  

I'll leave you with a cactus flower blooming in our courtyard.  It is getting tighter now, so it is evidently a night-blooming cactus.  I managed to spot it before it closed completely.

Hasta la proxima vez,
Tus amigos en Baja,
Harriet, Ben, Sam, Zoey, Rebecca, David, Aaron, Eleanor and Ryan!!!