Hola Amigos,
Well, I did it again! Procrastinated until the end of the month, so you get another "Pic-of-the-Month". Why not? If you really want to find out what's happening with us, give us a call or come visit! Our US phone works fine down here.
We have had some fun in March. My good friend Jill (whom I've know just about forever...we met at church camp when we were 12) came down for 10 days. She was, and probably still is, recovering from Valley Fever. The infection had gone into her joints, so she was pretty sore in the knees and ankles. So, first thing I did was take her for a hike! The warm weather seemed to make a difference, and she said she was feeling somewhat better and had less pain in her joints. We did do several hikes while she was here, and she even made it to the top of the Flag Monument one day! (Ben dropped her off at the bottom of the hill; I met them after hiking just over a mile from our house. And no, Ben didn't go with us!)
Also while Jill was here, we went for a real ride in the Jeep!! If was hot, dusty and bumpy (stiff springs and a lot of bumps in the arroyo), but still fun. We went up the Buenas Aires arroyo where there is a small water fall at the end. Very refreshing after all that dust!
It is still running water for quite a ways (a 1/2 mile past the falls, maybe?) We haven't been here in quite a while; probably since we still had our old blue truck. We are looking forward to many more trips like this even farther afield.
This week, we had a roll cage built for the Jeep, and we're getting a few more ideas as we talk to Armando, the man who owns one of the hardware stores here in town, and is also a race car driver. (No, I'm not letting Ben race this thing!) It's going back to Armando's shop on Wednesday to get a few more modifications.
The 1930 Model A is coming along nicely. Our marriage survived the building of the soft convertible top. We didn't exactly follow directions, but did mostly, and it is looking very nice. We even got most of the wrinkles out of the top, and were also able to fold the top down. That's not the easiest process in the repertoire of "the way things work on Model A's". It took two of us to maneuver everything, and fold bars the right way, but we got it done. It's probably not something we'll do real often. Below it is sitting out in the sunshine so the fabric would soften, and we could maybe stretch it tighter. It worked! Pardon the dust...it has been sitting in the shop for quite a while with no cover and it does get dirty in there. Even the Model A's under covers get some dust. The picture on the right shows it with the top folded down. It has a cover that goes over that to keep it from flopping around in the wind.
Ben even got the rumble seat cushions in, and that's a practice in maneuverability! Poor Ben was practically standing on his head in there to get the seat back screwed down at the bottom of the seat. Believe us, that is NOT an easy seat to get in and out of! Cute, but not real practical, unless you're a teenager! We will be taking it to the body man in La Paz for some touch up work and to fix it so we can close the driver side door. The latch doesn't line up correctly. That's why we have a rope tying it to the other door right now.
It's too bad we didn't get this Model A done in time for the Spring car show last weekend in La Paz, but there is one more in May, and it will be ready then! We took the 1928 Martin Parry woody, and it was popular as always. Ben even won a few prizes. See our 2019 March album for more pictures of the car show.
Our garden is doing very well. The corn crop is tall, and is putting on corn cobs now. The bees are really working the tassels, so I'm hoping for lots of nice big full ears. (And we've managed to keep Sam and Zoey out since they like to knock down corn stalks and eat the corn!) The beans are doing well, too. I've picked enough to be able to can 15 1.5 pint jars. Plus we have eaten a lot... I love fresh green beans.
Zoey still loves to go for our daily walks. If we go to the Flag Monument and back, it's at least 3 miles, sometimes more depending on the route. I'm enjoying meeting various people from the neighborhood on my walks; we see the same people (and dogs!) very often. Zoey is excellent off leash. She stays right next to me 98% of the time. Sometimes she has to spend more time smelling some things, but then she catches right up. She also leans toward going in the direction of the shorter distance, hoping I'll go that way, but is always willing to follow me wherever I go. Many people comment on her short little legs going so far, and they're really surprised when I tell them she wasn't walking at all after her accident 3 years ago in April. She doesn't walk in the normal manner, but she does very well and keeps up a nice pace. Sam, our 12 year old dog, still insists on coming about once a week. When he does, that is our shorter distance day, and he ALWAYS has to stop and smell the roses, and ALWAYS is lagging behind, and hates going up hills! (I always encourage him to stay home, and can usually convince him.)
We are starting to think about summer travel plans, and we are planning on a full three months in Oregon this summer, but there is still plenty of time for you to come visit us. My favorite months here are May and November; the weather is just about perfect, and town is clearing out so it's not so crowded driving through the narrow streets. And there is always plenty to do and places to see! We will probably leave here in late June, unless plans change.
Hasta la proxima mes!
Tus amigos en Baja,
Harriet, Ben, Sam & Zoey
Well, I did it again! Procrastinated until the end of the month, so you get another "Pic-of-the-Month". Why not? If you really want to find out what's happening with us, give us a call or come visit! Our US phone works fine down here.
We have had some fun in March. My good friend Jill (whom I've know just about forever...we met at church camp when we were 12) came down for 10 days. She was, and probably still is, recovering from Valley Fever. The infection had gone into her joints, so she was pretty sore in the knees and ankles. So, first thing I did was take her for a hike! The warm weather seemed to make a difference, and she said she was feeling somewhat better and had less pain in her joints. We did do several hikes while she was here, and she even made it to the top of the Flag Monument one day! (Ben dropped her off at the bottom of the hill; I met them after hiking just over a mile from our house. And no, Ben didn't go with us!)
Also while Jill was here, we went for a real ride in the Jeep!! If was hot, dusty and bumpy (stiff springs and a lot of bumps in the arroyo), but still fun. We went up the Buenas Aires arroyo where there is a small water fall at the end. Very refreshing after all that dust!
This week, we had a roll cage built for the Jeep, and we're getting a few more ideas as we talk to Armando, the man who owns one of the hardware stores here in town, and is also a race car driver. (No, I'm not letting Ben race this thing!) It's going back to Armando's shop on Wednesday to get a few more modifications.
Ben even got the rumble seat cushions in, and that's a practice in maneuverability! Poor Ben was practically standing on his head in there to get the seat back screwed down at the bottom of the seat. Believe us, that is NOT an easy seat to get in and out of! Cute, but not real practical, unless you're a teenager! We will be taking it to the body man in La Paz for some touch up work and to fix it so we can close the driver side door. The latch doesn't line up correctly. That's why we have a rope tying it to the other door right now.
It's too bad we didn't get this Model A done in time for the Spring car show last weekend in La Paz, but there is one more in May, and it will be ready then! We took the 1928 Martin Parry woody, and it was popular as always. Ben even won a few prizes. See our 2019 March album for more pictures of the car show.
Our garden is doing very well. The corn crop is tall, and is putting on corn cobs now. The bees are really working the tassels, so I'm hoping for lots of nice big full ears. (And we've managed to keep Sam and Zoey out since they like to knock down corn stalks and eat the corn!) The beans are doing well, too. I've picked enough to be able to can 15 1.5 pint jars. Plus we have eaten a lot... I love fresh green beans. 
Zoey still loves to go for our daily walks. If we go to the Flag Monument and back, it's at least 3 miles, sometimes more depending on the route. I'm enjoying meeting various people from the neighborhood on my walks; we see the same people (and dogs!) very often. Zoey is excellent off leash. She stays right next to me 98% of the time. Sometimes she has to spend more time smelling some things, but then she catches right up. She also leans toward going in the direction of the shorter distance, hoping I'll go that way, but is always willing to follow me wherever I go. Many people comment on her short little legs going so far, and they're really surprised when I tell them she wasn't walking at all after her accident 3 years ago in April. She doesn't walk in the normal manner, but she does very well and keeps up a nice pace. Sam, our 12 year old dog, still insists on coming about once a week. When he does, that is our shorter distance day, and he ALWAYS has to stop and smell the roses, and ALWAYS is lagging behind, and hates going up hills! (I always encourage him to stay home, and can usually convince him.) We are starting to think about summer travel plans, and we are planning on a full three months in Oregon this summer, but there is still plenty of time for you to come visit us. My favorite months here are May and November; the weather is just about perfect, and town is clearing out so it's not so crowded driving through the narrow streets. And there is always plenty to do and places to see! We will probably leave here in late June, unless plans change.
Hasta la proxima mes!
Tus amigos en Baja,
Harriet, Ben, Sam & Zoey
