Pic-of-the-Week for November 6, 2018

Hola Amigos,

Happy election day in the US.  Hope you've voted!  And that's all I'm going to say about that.  

I am going to try to keep these short, with plenty of pictures and few words.  I do tend to get rather verbose, given a chance!

Since our last POTW (Pic-of-the-Week), we have gotten into our routine here.  Unfortunately, Ben got sick last week (stomach issues) and spent a good part of the week in bed.  He's trying to make up for it now!

Gardening:  

One of our few Hibiscus is blooming.  This one is obviously a hardy one, and likes where it's planted!  

We have been doing some clean-up work.  When it's in the shade, we work on the west side of the house hoeing out the needle grass.  It comes out easy, but most of the lot is covered with it.  Phew!  

We got a delivery of good farmyard compost yesterday from a rancher in San Bartolo.  I'm going to enlarge last years corn growing spot.  I'd hoped to put in a raised bed, but I guess not this year.  Instead, we'll invest in some good wire to fence out the critters.  I have a nice crop of Blue Lake bush beans started, and some radishes, lettuce, spinach and squash in our existing beds.  I'm hoping the tomato seeds will sprout any day now!  

Fashion Show:

We have also been spending a lot of time working on the "Feeding the Hungry" Fashion show, which Ben and I started heading up last year.  We're doing a LOT of things different this year; change of location and time of day, ticket sales, no reserved tables, no set menu... Hopefully, it will be easier for us.  The proceeds from this fashion show go to supplement the program our church here started, feeding almost 30 families in town who are the poorest of the poor.  Last year we were very successful, and we hope to continue that this year.  The show will be November 29th.

Cars and things that are supposed to run:

When Ben hasn't been sick, he's been working on the Model A Roadster.  There has been a lot of time underneath, with me on top holding the nut, or being the "gofer" to get his tools.  It was coming along nicely, when he realized he needed the doors.  Well, he didn't have them!  He called the body shop in La Paz, and they said, "No, we don't have them.  We're sure you loaded them in your red truck."  Ben looked everywhere, and they were not to be found.  They looked again in La Paz, and found them behind some BIG heavy metal.  So, they had been scratched a bit, and need to be painted again.  He's hoping to get them this weekend.

Here's that classic look of the Model A.  Many of the parts that need to be installed are in those boxes on the shelves to the left.

 Do you know how hard it is for a 70+ year old to get inside this car and drill holes for rivets and/or bolts!  Ugh!  He has it jacked up a bit so that he can more easily get under it.  

This picture shows the blue color pretty well.  The green stripe on the gas tank is a reflection of our kayak hanging above it!

Fun stuff:

Who has time?  We did take some time for some visiting with friends and shopping some sales this last weekend...and eating out.  When we get the Jeep done (who knows when?) we will take it out for rides and exploring.  It has a ways to go, but the engine runs nicely.  And I guess my morning beach walks with Zoey are fun.  I'm always finding garbage to pick up, and once in a while I find treasures, too.  Yesterday, I found a nice Craftsman screwdriver!  And I'm always picking up glass.  I have a pretty good collection.

And of course, the burros are in the barrio, and I just happened to have some carrots for them the other day.  Probably the best thing they've had to eat in a while!

Can't forget the Trick-or-Treaters!  Had quite a few this year.  Good thing Ben went shopping for candy two times when he was in La Paz.

I have started a 2018 November photo album.  I might even put captions on the pictures.  

No pictures of Olivia this time.  😞  Grandma is having withdrawal pains here!  

Hasta la proxima vez,

Tus amigos en Baja,

Harriet, Ben, Sam & Zoey

Pic-of-the-Week for October 23, 2018

Hola Amigos!

We are back home in Baja, and enjoying the cooler (than summer temps) weather here.  We've had some cloudy skies due to Hurricane Willa, which is hitting Mazatlan south of us as I write this.  Ryan and Charlotte held down the fort for us here as baby Olivia continued to thrive.  They left this last Saturday for Los Angeles to get the babies Chinese traveling papers (a visa to enter China).  We will miss them and chances to snuggle this beautiful girl!  

Our trip was not the normal one, but was mostly uneventful, which is a good thing when you're traveling 2000 miles, with the 1000 road miles in Mexico always interesting!  

We left Bend on Sunday, October 7, and stopped at Summer Lake Lodge for breakfast.  We were pleased that they had a help yourself breakfast buffet for a decent price, so we were able to eat quickly and get back on the road.  That's a favorite place of ours to stop...seems like we travel Hwy 31 a lot in our summer travels!   I always like to stop a little further south down the road and get a couple pictures of the old schoolhouse.  It's in a gorgeous setting, and the community keeps the building up nicely.  

We made it to Minden, Nevada that afternoon, since we've found a hotel there right next to a block sized grassy park that the dogs love!  We also visited with a Baja friend of ours while there (Carlee), and practiced eating Mexican food at a restaurant within 1/2 block of our hotel.  While traveling on Sunday, I posted a few pictures on Facebook, and some friends from WAY back commented on my post that they had left that morning at 7:30 from La Pine on their way down Hwy 395!  We were just a little bit behind Jim and Gwen (I worked with Jim at Dept of Veterans' Affairs in the 80's and 90's).  We caught up with them at Topaz Lake the next morning, and had breakfast in the Casino with them there.  Unfortunately, we didn't get pictures, but it was great to visit with them.  They were on their way (earlier than usual) to attend Jim's class reunion in California, and we were on our way (later than usual) to go home.  

Highway 395 is our route of choice, and this is a beautiful time of year to travel through there, with the colors changing, and a skiff of snow on the mountains.

We crossed the border around noon on Tuesday, with no issues at all.  Of course, we weren't towing a Model A that didn't run!  (We weren't towing anything...very simple way to travel!)  I called our favorite hotel in San Quintin, and found out that there was no vacancy that night.  Oh no!  We were going to meet our friends Katie and Mel the next day in that town.  So, we punted, and called the Baja Cactus Hotel in El Rosario and had another long day.  We had to stop for road construction at Santo Tomas, but the wait wasn't too long, and there were vendors selling treats!  I bought a frozen Yaka treat.  (Google "Jackfruit")  This road construction will be a major improvement over the narrow, windy road that goes up the mountain here, as they are doing some MAJOR cuts and fills! 

The next day was supposed to be short.  We were only going about 76 miles and stop in Catavina to spend the night, and wait for Katie and Mel there.  Well....we got to Catavina, along with a whole bunch of other people involved in a Road Rally, who were all spending the night at the only hotel there (in the middle of nowhere).  So, since there was no cell service, we waited and waited for Katie and Mel to show up, because we needed to go on another 146 miles to Guerrero Negro and the next viable hotel!  They showed up at 3 in the afternoon, we quickly told them our dilemma, and they decided to go with us instead of staying in their campers at a campground just down the road (they were traveling at a slower pace than us with friends also with a camper and hauling a cargo trailer).  We were also trying to get ahead of Tropical Storm Sergio before it came across the middle of  Baja.  We made it to our hotel in GN, but no news from Katie and Mel on our cell.  That meant they were somewhere north of us, at least 20 miles, maybe further.  We hoped they were OK!  (They spent the night with their friends in the Pemex gas station lot in Jesus Maria...it was getting dark and there were cows out wandering by the road).  We finally heard from them the next morning just before we were leaving at about 7.  Thank goodness they were OK!  

That night we stayed in Loreto at the Oasis Hotel.  It wasn't Saturday night, like we'd planned originally so we could enjoy the Clam Buffet again, but it was a very comfortable place to spend our last night on the road.  We heard from Katie and Mel as they went through town just a little behind us.  They and their friends wanted to get as far as a trailer park in Constitucion, so they didn't have to go through the mountains south of Loreto in the rain (possible rock fall and/or slides are always a possibility when it rains in Baja).  We spent a quiet night in our hotel, and I heard some rain showers and wind, and there were a few palm leaves down the next morning.  

We got on the road early the next morning, and we had wind and showers off and on all the way to Ciudad Insurgentes, on the west side of Baja.  Later that day, Katie told us that where they camped the storm was extremely loud (thunder and lightening) and that they were camped in a lake!  The rain was substantial!!  

The rains this summer has made the desert here beautiful and green, and all the flowers are blooming like crazy.  We saw a lot of this yellow flower carpeting the ground!

We made it home at a decent time, greeted Ryan, Charlotte and Olivia, then went out with Katie and Mel for tacos!  (They spent that night camped at our house...we finally got together!!)  

Now that we're home and unpacked, Ben is diving into his various car projects.  The Jeep is here now, and it actually runs, but it still needs a lot of work, and a paint job.  It is a good possibility we'll be able to use it sometime this year!  The Model A, which Ben brought home on a Friday, and we left for Oregon on Saturday, needs lots of work, too.  The body shop put the body on the frame, but didn't put in the protective welting, or use the correct nuts and bolts where they should have, so he's taking it apart and putting it back together!  Tomorrow he's going to La Paz to pick up the final pieces that didn't quite get painted due to a dust storm right at their deadline in August.

I'm re-organizing the upstairs bedrooms since Ryan's family left, so we'll have two guest rooms available for your use when you come visit, one which has AC!  We'll even let you use Ryan's weight set!  😉  I've started my morning walks with Zoey, and am enjoying the fresh air and cool mornings.  Sam forgot himself and went the first day, just to make sure the beach was still there.  He hasn't gone since!  I saw a Heron sitting on a power pole this morning, and there are often people fishing on the beach.  I hear the Sierra are in!

I didn't create a September photo album, so I'm doing a combined September / October album.  It will have our Oregon vacation and our trip back, plus some granddaughter pics!  2018-Sept-Oct is the link to the album.  

Hope to hear from you all!

Tus amigos de Baja,

Harriet, Ben, Sam & Zoey

Pic-of-the-Week for October 4, 2018

Hello, Friends!

Several folks have been asking why no blog yet this summer since we've been in Oregon.  It was Ben's responsibility for the short time we are here, and we are heading back to Mexico on Sunday October 7th.  I can just say "he's been really busy".... vacationing!  So, because there is a "need to know" just what we've been doing with ourselves on our short Oregon vacation, here's Harriet's version!

The good news is, we found a "new" truck!  Hooray!  It's a 2011 Ford F350 4x4 with a 6.7 diesel engine.  We got a good deal, and a good trade in on our old red truck.  We also got a good price on a used canopy, and Ben is very happy with his new purchase.  We bought it from South Commercial Auto Sales in Salem, as recommended by a friend who buys his trucks from them.  The purchase of this new truck was one of the main reasons we decided to come to Oregon this summer...and we are glad we did!

We haven't been too far out and about.  We traveled to Eugene and Salem, visiting friends and family on our short time there.  There was an impromptu Purkey reunion for a morning while we were in Eugene.  It was good to see all Ben's brother's and sisters-in-law.  


Since we were close, we walked down the road and visited the grave sites of Ben's parents at West Point Cemetery, where my Malpass Grandparents and Young Great-Grandparents are also buried.  

 This is my father's parents, John and Hazel.  The H in her middle name is for "Harriet".  She lived 92 years!  Grandpa died when my Dad, the oldest of 6 sons, was 13.  

My Uncle Dave Malpass is the most recent addition to the cemetery.  He passed last December.  Notice the little John Deere tractors on his grave.  Appropriate, since he was a farmer for many, many years.  He was the youngest of the 6 brothers, and the last surviving.






In Salem, we visited with several friends who wined and dined us nicely!  Thanks Paula and Dan, and George and Carolyn.  George and Carolyn also gave us a place to park our trailer for a few days when the RV park ran out of spaces.  We hit up our favorite thrift stores in the area, and bought some fresh fruit (peaches and apples) at Olson Orchards.

When we went back to the Bend area, we did a day trip with Ben's brother Ken and wife Bea to the balancing rocks near Lake Billy Chinook.  It's always fun to see these rocks, and it's a miracle they're still balancing! 

Its a beautiful spot with Mt. Jefferson and Lake Billy Chinook making great backdrops! 

Then, we finally took a long awaited camping trip to Hart Mountain Antelope Refuge, one of our favorite places to visit in Oregon.  George and Carolyn went with us, too.  To start out our trip, we managed to get a reservation at the Cowboy Dinner Tree in Silver Lake.  (That way, we had enough food for several days after!)  A local rancher had this set of horses available for carriage rides at the restaurant when we got there.  (No, we didn't go for a ride!)  

We got our favorite camping spot at Hart Mountain, and set up our camp.  The dogs all love it there.  They are mostly leash-less, and generally stay close to camp.  They did get a bit grassy, however!

We took a drive around the park one day, and counted over 100 antelope!  

The hot springs were lovely, as usual.  And the people you meet there!  You hear some pretty interesting stories! 

The lakes below Hart Mountain were again very full this year.  It made a pretty scene coming down off the mountain!  The road was very wash-boardy this year.  Made for a pretty miserable ride, and we think that caused our camp trailer to get a broken leaf spring on the axle.  😕  That will be repaired tomorrow.  

Ben and Carolyn took some time to do some rock-hounding several days, so Ben will be bringing home a box of rocks to play with this winter.  

We are 99% packed, after trailer repairs on Friday, we will haul the trailer to it's winter parking spot at Tygh Valley (about 70 miles north of here) on Saturday, and we will leave for Baja on Sunday. 

Our dogs, minus Molly on the left, are ready to travel, but they have enjoyed the green grass and cooler weather.  (Brrrr....it's freezing here!)  😉

I am looking forward to cuddling with Olivia when we get back.  She's growing up quickly!  

Until the next time,

Your traveling in style friends,

Harriet & Ben, Sam & Zoey

Pic-of-the-Week for August 14, 2018

Hola Amigos,

Well, the baby won!  The car still isn't done, but should be by this weekend.  Not-so-little Olivia Su Purkey arrived Sunday morning, August 12, weighing in at 4070 grams.  (That's 8.97 pounds!!)  Everything her mamma was eating, she was grabbing!  She's got the cutest fat little cheeks!  

And here is Ryan admiring God's creation!  (It looks like she didn't get the long straight Purkey nose or her Daddy's red hair, just the BIG part!)

They are still in San Jose in a hotel right next to where the baby was born (Hospital H+) for one more day.  Charlotte isn't real mobile yet as she had to have a c-section when the baby didn't want to drop.  (Olivia was quite happy where she was!!)  

We haven't got our hands on her yet, because I have been battling a nasty infection under my arm where the lymph node was removed during my surgery in the US in July. Feverish, taking antibiotics that caused nausea.... I've been pretty much bed-ridden since Friday.  I went back to the doctor on Monday and he changed my meds and gave me something for my stomach as well, so I'm feeling much better.  Not the best way to lose weight, but it's worked! The infection doesn't seem to be getting any better, so I'm typing this with an ice pack under my arm (it is do-able!)  I'll return to the clinic on Thursday, and I'm sure he'll then send me into Hospital H+ to have it lanced and drained.  He said it's too big for the clinic to do.  (Thankfully for you all, I'm NOT taking pictures of this for you!)  

Nor are there pictures of the car being assembled.  Ben took the chassis into La Paz Friday morning and they worked on it for two long days, getting everything to fit together properly; they did some slicing and sanding and pounding and shimming to get everything lined up.  Then they took it all off.  They are spending this week painting it.  Ben will go back probably Friday with the chassis again, and they will do it over again....more carefully since it is painted.  Hopefully, that will be it, or at least enough of it to get it put in our garage to wait until we return in October.  

This has been a crazy summer, not like our normal ones at all.  Getting the car done took way more time than we (and the body shop) thought it would.  The baby was promised to come early August by the doctor (the original due date was August 11, so she was only one day over!)  Ben said last night he'd almost be convinced to just stay here if we didn't need a new truck to replace old Red.  I'm glad we need a new truck!  He works too hard here, and needs a vacation!  

Basically, we'll leave here sometime next week, and have the last week of August and all of September in Oregon, leaving for Baja sometime the first or second week of October.  Depends on if we can take the cold weather in Oregon that time of year... our wardrobe doesn't include a bunch of wool clothing!  

Here's a Baja treat for you!  Our twisty cactus is blooming.  You've got to get up early in the morning to enjoy this one as it's a night bloomer.  Seems like those buds were about 1/2" long when I saw them 2 weeks ago???  

If you're somewhere in Oregon, we might get to see you in September.  No promises this year.  (Sorry Purkey family, we won't make it to the family reunion next week. 😞)

There's an album for August 2018, (probably lots of baby pictures, maybe no car pictures!)  Lots of birds in this album...enjoy!

Until Ben writes one of these in Oregon,
Tus amigos de Baja,
Harriet, Ben, Ryan, Charlotte, Olivia, Sam and Zoey (whew!)  

PS.  Yes, we're bringing Sam & Zoey with us.  They deserve some green grass time, since they didn't come last summer!  

Pic-of-the-Week for July 19, 2018

Hello friends,

As you know, I (Harriet) traveled up to Oregon for routine doctor visits and time to visit some friends in the Central Oregon area.  The first appointment on Monday last week was to a new dermatologist in Bend.  They looked me over carefully, froze off some pre-cancerous spots here and there, and looked at and took a big slice off of a mole on my right shoulder that I was concerned about.  On Tuesday, they called back and told me that it was melanoma!  Oh my.  On Wednesday I saw a surgeon, and we scheduled surgery for last Friday, the 13th.  Surgery went well on Friday, and they also removed a lymph node under my right arm (that incision is more painful than the one on my back!)  Today I finally got the results, and it is benign.  Hallelujah!  Thanks so much to those of you who knew about it and were praying for me.  Of course, I need to be extra careful of sun exposure (and I live in Baja??) and watch moles very carefully.  Probably need to see the dermatologist more than once a year.  Anyhow, I'm feeling blessed and very satisfied with the timing and the results.  God is definitely in control!

Panorama of a sunset on Sunday night, with the end of the rainbow to the southeast, the Three Sisters to the southwest (?) and the sun going down in the west.  

In the meantime, I visited the Sisters Quilt Show for the first time ever on Saturday (I had a driver, so didn't have to walk too far when I was supposed to be resting  24 hours after surgery!)  This is just one sample of some of the beautiful quilts we saw.  It's the Virgin of Guadalupe, a very important figure in Mexico.  More pictures of quilts are in our July 2018 album.

I've visited and helped out at my friend Janet's Gypsy Winds clothing shop.  And of course, I had to buy some of her beautiful clothing.  Every time I go in the shop, it seems like I see something new.... to buy!!!  

This jacket is beautiful inside and out... yes, it's reversible!  

Our friends the Telecks came over from the Willamette Valley for a few days, and I was able to go out with them to dinner several times.  Also got re-acquainted with their cute dachshunds.  (Marilyn also discovered Janet's shop, and thinks it's wonderful!)  




I have been shopping for baby things, ordering parts for the smoker and our solar water heater pump, ordering things with Ryan and Charlotte for the baby, ordering things for me and eagerly awaiting delivery.  There is no way my one suitcase is going to work for the trip back, so I'm borrowing a big one from Ken and Bea and return it when we come back in August.  I'm also leaving most of my clothing here (most of it is too hot for Baja right now, anyhow).  

The weather here in the Bend / Sisters area is as hot as it is in Baja, but it is NOT humid (and the house is air conditioned!).  Ryan said that it rained at our house the other day, and those summer rains do help it cool down for a bit, as well as green up the desert.  

Ben is still monitoring the restoration of the Model A in La Paz.  They said he could bring the chassis in this next week and they'd start putting it together.  He pointed out to them (again) that the running boards and fenders need to go on first and the body sets on top of them.  The fenders are done, but the running boards?  Not done!  He said they looked just a bit panicked when they heard that!  We'll see how it goes!  

I'm scheduled to return to Baja on July 25th (I have a 5AM flight from Portland to Phoenix!!  Check in at 3AM???  Yikes!)  We will be in Baja until the baby arrives, and help Ryan and Charlotte out for a couple weeks before we head north, driving as usual.  This is one "different" summer for us, but we are adjusting.  I'm betting we'll have some great baby pictures to share in the next P-O-T-W!!  

Until then,
Your friend in Oregon, Harriet
and the Baja contingent, Ben, Ryan, Charlotte, Sam & Zoey

Pic-of-the-Week for July 3, 2018

Hola Amigos!

Happy 4th of July and Independence Day to you!  Tell me, is it a 5 day weekend, taking off Monday and Tuesday, or is it a 5 day weekend, taking of Thursday and Friday?  

Photo from my morning walk at low tide: Rancho Buena Vista

I (Harriet) will be coming to Oregon July 5th, so I'll miss the parades and fireworks this year.  Yes, my list of things to take and bring back is made, bags are getting packed, and "to do" lists are getting ready to be posted for the gang remaining here.  I will be "almost" footloose and fancy-free.  No husband, no dogs, and not too many responsibilities.  I will be house and dog sitting for my in-laws where I'm staying for a few days, but Duke is an easy guy to take care of.  I hope he likes walks!  

I am ready to get out of town... it is getting plenty HOT!  This is the longest we've stayed since the summer we built the house (2002).  I checked the temperatures in Bend for this week, and lows are in the 40's, compared to lows in the high 70's or low 80's here!  

Ben will be busy, busy as soon as he gets the Model A Roadster back from the body shop in La Paz.  He keeps saying "2 more weeks", so we'll see.  They are making great progress; unfortunately, it was in worse shape than anticipated as far as rust was concerned.

  
Here the body is upside down as they work on sanding the bottom.  The man in the blue shirt is the owner of the body shop; the man next to him speaks English and is our interpreter (he works at this shop).  The older man behind Ben was hired specifically to work on the Model A, as he has lots of Model A experience!  They have since hired one more man to work exclusively on it, so it should get done even faster!  I hope to see pictures with the final coat of paint on it very soon!  

I mentioned the dump fire and the noxious smoke in my last letter.  Ryan took matters in hand and contacted the proper authorities, developed a web site and we have seen a caterpillar at the dump to put out the fires!  Good job, Ryan!  There are still a few residual fires, but we're hoping they're out soon.  Here is a link to Ryan's web site.  Check it out!  Los Barriles Dump 

My morning walks with Zoey are still a highlight of my day.  After the rain so many things are blooming in the desert, especially the cactus.  Here are a few things I've seen:

 This shrub is blooming like crazy everywhere right now.  I love the color of the flowers.  

This last picture is an example of the Pitahaya bloom, and the fruit!  A small bird flew away as I was snapping the photo.  I think it had been eating the fruit, since it's pretty "holey"!  






I've finished another year of one-student piano lessons.   When Paloma likes a song, she excels!  We work hard at finding songs she likes!!  This was her 3rd year of lessons, and at 13, in spite of all her other interests, she still wants to do piano lessons!  Good for her!  It's my pleasure to teach her. 

Charlotte and Ryan have been to the baby doctor several times, and brought back some cute ultrasound pictures the other day.  I'm going to make you wait until we have the real baby in hand before I start sending pictures (so be prepared!  I'm a Grandma, after all!!)  Baby and Mama are doing well, and they still have the same anticipated due date of late July.  Yes, I will be back!  

I was rewarded for my beach cleaning diligence this morning.  As I was picking up empty beer cans, plastic bags and cups, and drink holder rings, I came across one can of beer they'd missed!  Wow.  Too bad I don't like beer!  I ended up with two plastic bags of trash and a gallon plastic jug!  I think they're going to miss me when I'm gone for a couple weeks....the beach could get messy!  














My other reward is beach glass.  This is what I've picked up since I started my daily walks in early January this year.  I just moved it to a gallon jar, because I'd filled up a quart jar and a 1/2 quart jar.  Don't ask me what I'm going to do with it... other than line it up on a shelf with the rest of my collection! 






I have created a July 2018 album with some more photos in it.  



























Not sure when we'll get the next issue out.  Will Ben write it?  Will I?  Who will have time?   Until then.....

Tus amigos de Baja,
Harriet, Ben, Ryan & Charlotte, Sam & Zoey