TUESDAY

    It was cold again today but the clouds broke up a bit around noon so doggy and I went to the river with my book and fishing pole. I was wearing my Blizzard suit and sitting in the sun with the wind blowing on the back of my neck for about an hour before the sun dived behind a cloud just long enough for me to gather my stuff and head home. I had had enough! I seem to be getting 'soft' when cool weather is in the forecast. I am afraid that MZT has spoiled me, there was not a day down there this winter that was as cold as I was today. Such a baby!

I wrapped my foot in Duk-Tape again today and had no problems with that. That was a good thing! All is not lost!

MONDAY

 It was very cool around here today but I am happy to say there was no rain. The cold wind was bad enough. I stopped by the bowling alley and averaged 119 for six lines. Not very good but I am going to blame it on my sore left foot. I broke a bone in that foot in 1970 and never had it looked at by a doctor. Since then I have had periods of time when it really becomes uncomfortable to live with. And it is not getting any better! At the moment I have a work sock on that foot and a wrapping of Duk-Tape around it to hold the thing in place. No pain that way but today I went bowling without the support and about died from the pain. I exaggerate only to make the point. Last week I went to Safeway for a gallon of milk and it cost me $48 to get out of the place. Today I stopped in for some apples and they ended up costing $57.00. Life is tough

SUNDAY

                      Wow! Did I not post a blog yesterday? I think I did but for some reason it did not publish. I did find it though so here it is. That happens once in a while.     .Things went well around here today; doggy and I spent three hours at the river trying to catch a fish but so far that has not happened, The weather was really nice except for an especially cool wind. I wore my Blizzard suit, the same thing I wear on the coldest winter day. I did not zip it all the way up the front or wear another layer under it but I'm still happy I had it on. Melvin was off shore in his boat and landed a eight inch trout from the hatchery fish that were released last year. It didn't even weigh as much as his sinker.

SATURDAY

 ChiChi and I got lucky when we went fishing, we got home before the rain started! It was not much of a rain but had it started while at the river I would not have stayed as long as I did. It was almost too cool to sit and read so I spent some time with the "idiot stick" cleaning off the deck one more time and also clearing all of the steps that still had sand on them. The river has done a job on the deck stones I had laid last summer, I am getting the impression that the river likes to crawl around under the stones and remove the sand. I hope we can find a way to keep that from continuing each winter. As summer advances I will throw more rocks in front of them and perhaps discourage the river current. It is supposed to rain for a day or two so perhaps I will get in some bowling practice before next Thursday.

I expect my bowling to improve with practice but I am not as gung ho about it as I was. That may be a good thing. Relaxing is the best way to deliver the ball anyway.

FRIDAY

Friday has turned out to be very nice, doggy and I walked in the sun for the daily exercise and had a nice nap in the afternoon. I'm starting a new book by Henry Kissinger, sort of a history of Diplomacy, a big, thick book, going to be a while before I get through it but he is an easy guy to read and the subject is something I am interested in. Just not too good at!

THURSDAY

 Bowling was pretty stinky today, 130-140-110. I didn't even bother to figure out what that averages to. The nice thing about today was the weather and the 73 degree temperature when I left the bowling alley. The river is still a bit high so I doubt I will even check out the fishing possibilities tomorrow. Perhaps I will break down and drive in to the bowling alley and get in some practice. I phoned the Jury Duty computer and found I have been excused for this session. I expect they will call again in a couple of years.

WEDNESDAY

The sun certainly is nice to see around here, it was bright and inviting today. Doggy and I walked to the river below the house and I noticed that it appeared to have receded a bit from yesterday but when I got back to the house and checked the Internet site it did not appear to be much better than yesterday. Instead of going to the fishing hole this afternoon I drove into town and bought a few supplies from Safeway. Tomorrow is bowling day so I doubt I will get the the fishing hole until Saturday. Lets hope I don't experience a rainy day. That hope could be a joke, around here.

TUESDAY

  This turned out to be a very nice day. I started out by washing my car before lunch and then I fixed a sandwich to carry to the fishing hole. I drove down there without first checking online to determine the river level and was surprised to find that the water was up about a foot from last time. It was washing at the lower part of the sitting area and there was a layer of mud about half an inch thick all over the sitting area. I lost interest immediately and loaded the doggy back in the car and had lunch at home. . . .After eating I decided to walk down the hill to the river and back. ChiChi was happy to follow along. It ended up being a forty minute walk and did us both some good. The rest of the day was spent reading. I have to phone the Jury Reporter Thursday evening to see if I will be needed on Friday but I doubt very much that there will be any use for me.

MONDAY

.........Long day at the courthouse, Got there at 8:15 and arrived home at 7:15. It was a DUI case, the guy plead guilty to keep from having his Drivers license taken away for a year. It didn't work. We got the case at 5PM and one of the jurors did not understand a few points that really had nothing to do with the guilt or innocence so there we sat until the others convinced her to vote with the rest of us. The lady was a nut case in to my way of thinking. We had beautiful weather though! And I was most happy to see the sun still shining when I left the Court House!

SUNDAY

   Doggy and I got in another walk this morning. It started out in a heavy mist but that only lasted a couple of minutes. The temperature got up to 50 today with promises of higher temps in a few days.

This afternoon I watched NASCAR but tried not to eat too much.

After all of the trouble I had with Comcast last week and thought the problem had been solved but I found through the computer link they are still asking for the higher monthly fee. Back to the phone Monday. Except that I found I must report for jury duty Monday at 8:30. Always something.

SATURDAY

Pup and I walked to the river today, it threatened rain all of the way and back but we never felt a rain drop. Later in the afternoon the sun was out, it got low enough in the sky to sneak below the clouds that were overhead. Most of the day was spent pigging out in front of the TV. I did pretty well not eating a lot but I'm sure the calories burned on the walk were replaced by the time the day ended. Life is like that, sometimes.

FRIDAY

I am happy to see they caught the Boston Bomber Islam loving Freak this evening. I predict he will never die for this crime. His brother was the cause of all the trouble and the poor little brother had to go along with him. That will be the Liberal take on his case. Some Judge will get him life in prison and parole in 25 years. Well, maybe life without parole.
My day amounted to nothing, I did walk six feet to my mail box but that was the limit to my exercise program. We had off and on rain and for that reason I was never able to get myself away from the TV and books. Spring has sprung and the flowers have riz, I wonder where the sunshine is.

THURSDAY

Bowling was not too great today but I am sure I will do better as the summer wears on. My scores today were 135-153-125. I am with a new team now, Ernie, my instructor is also on the team and the only other member to make an appearance today. Since no one had an average to work with the two of us were no match for the four players on the other team. We were walloped pretty good. And to add insult to all of that Ernie had such a bad day that I outs scored him in two of the three games. We are really in the mud, so soon too.... I stopped by Safeway on the way home and arrived there after visiting Teigens for a few minutes. Caren had some home made Tamales for me so naturally I had to stop by and pick them up. I had two of the previous offerings  for breakfast a couple of days ago, pretty good for breakfast!..... No pictures, I will try to get some local shots for posting but I feel they will be few and far between. It was a good day!

WEDNESDAY

Doggy and I arrived at the river shortly after lunch today and stayed for almost three hours. That was long enough to get the rest of the sand out of the sitting area and take a short nap in the sunshine. I lost two sinkers today but not a lure. Caught no fish, of course. I had prepared a very large Taco for lunch but decided by 2:45 that it had not been large enough so we left for the day. Tomorrow I go bowling and rain is expected so perhaps it will be a few days before we get down there again. I think the remaining pictures I have from MZT are the ones I will be posting today. Perhaps I should take my camera to the river with me next time I go and get some pics to show what I have been doing.

These are the last two pictures I had taken Easter Sinday.

TUESDAY

Doggy and I had a great day at the river today. I shoveled a ton of sand out of the fishing hole sitting area and after one more day of that [perhaps tomorrow, if the weather holds] the tables and chairs can be brought down. I lost a lure to a snag of some kind, each year the bottom of the river is different and this spot was clear most of last year. I suppose Mother Nature moved in big tree branch or something similar  into the area and I will have to learn to fish around it. That won't be easy to do at present because the water is too high to be choosy about where I toss out my lure. That will change as the water drops and I can move up or down stream.
I still have some pictures from MZT to post so I will continue with that today.

This is the bay at extremly low tide, there never is any swimming at this location and these rocks tell why.

These three photos were taken in the Gold Zone. The fish pond is in front of one of the fancy Hotels on the beach and the Gringo Lingo restaurant is right across the street.

MONDAY

I talked the doggy into going for a walk this morning. I was not called for jury duty so I was home early. The sun actually came out while we were walking, certainly not warm but comfortable enough with a light jacket. Later in the day it warmed up enough for me to vacuum out the car and get it looking spiffy on the inside again. As it turned out I ended up getting in some good exercise.

The three pictures above show how the unemployed in MZT pick up extra work by washing cars.  They find a parking spot then wave folks in to that spot and wash the car while they are shopping or just waiting for the job to be finished.  One busket of water  per car, they do a good job but I have never asked what they charge. This activity goes on all over town.

There are no water sprinklers for these large planters in the middle of the street so it is done this way.  They do not have  a way to turn off the water between stops so the guy with the hose aims it back inside the tank while they travel from spot to spot.

SUNDAY

ChiChi and I got brave today and walked for forty minutes. I felt good because I finally got myself off my duff and forced some exercise out of me. It is about time. We did get rain off and on this afternoon but the walk was all over by 10:15. The rest of the day was spent watching too much TV and napping. I will be on Jury duty for the next couple of weeks starting tomorrow; that will at least force me to get out in the morning.

The main square in front of the church in Old Town.

My view from one of my favorite park benches

Little businesses set up in front of the church on Good Friday.

 A nice looking old timer, I had never seen it in town before. Perhaps they only take it out on Good Friday and Easter.

SATURDAY

There was just enough rain falling today to keep me inside. That was my excuse to not take the dog for a much needed walk. Of course I can be included in that 'much needed' catagory too.
I down loaded my MZT pictures to my portable file and will attempt to post some this evening.

Waves crashing ashore at the Southern end of the Malecon.

A new restaurant being added at the shore line, anold one had been removed to make room for this one.

The fish market later in the day, mostly sold out.

Looking across the bay at Carnaval Time

The diving tower from a different viewpoint.

FRIDAY

The rain was nice enough to remain in the clouds while Mel and I put his boat in the river today. The water is high but there are a few fishermen out there on the banks giving it a try. The water is not dirty enough to cause everybody to stay home. A couple more days without rain would be nice but that is not due to happen until until next month. Or even August as far as that goes. This is Washington, the evergreen state, I mean the everrain state. His two dozen or so Pheasants look great for new hatchlings. I hope he does not lose any. They all look good but you never can tell what mother nature has in store. It will be exciting when they get turned loose and start running around the neighborhood. I'm sorry I left my camera at home when I went over there today. I will try to get pictures and post them. He has posted some on Facebook, I know.

THURSDAY

I had a fine time at the bowlers banquet this afternoon; of course it had to rain cats and dogs during the drive into town but that is not news for around here. I had a nice lunch, a great rum and Coke and sat at a table full of fun people. I also collected enough pin money to pay for it all with some left over. The pin money was enough to pay for 70 lines of practice bowling had I saved it for that. I am sure that by the time Summer league is over I will wish I had. Summer league starts next Thursday.............On the way home I bought another ink cartridge for my computer printer; so that problem is solved for about another year. It was another great day. Just the kind I like!...... I visited online TDAmeritrade last night and this morning to change my portfolio balance for the first time in 3-4 years. I have missed a lot by being out of the market. I hope and pray that now I can start making money again. Gotta get back to MZT next year!

WEDNESDAY

Several of my readers receive this blog via email and it has been pointed out to me that if you wish to reply to any of my posts you can't do it by clicking on 'reply'. You will be replying to a non-reply site.
Please reply by sending me an email to my email address in your address book or by logging on to the Blogger site and inserting a comment in the comment section at the bottom of each entry......
This was another day that I didn't accomplish a darn thing. It was too cool out to walk and there was no rain so that makes me double bad. Roy was visiting a garage sale a couple of days ago and brought home one of those Ski-machine exercise things. He said it only cost $20 and he thought it would be a nice thing for me to have when the weather is bad. Roy is a great guy but I don't need another 'guilt' item around to remind me I should get more exercise, I have yet to get on my 'stepper' since getting home from my winter vacation. Well, perhaps I do need the reminder and the thought is much appreciated. Thanks Roy, you are a good guy!

TUESDAY

Had a great lunch with the '52' gang today. I ordered the taco salad and was not able to do it justice so I brought it home and had it for dinner. It seems I can not get as much into my stomach as I used to. Perhaps that is a good thing.... I thought before going into town I would bowl a few lines after lunch but after leaving Silver Spur with a full meal inside me I was feeling too tired to bother. I stopped by Safeway and spent a few more dollars on groceries. When I checked out I got a ten cent per gallon gasoline discount on my next fill up. That is always good news..... After arriving home and putting the stuff away I loaded the dog in the car and drove to Teigens for an hour visit. Actually I went by to get my little bamboo plant they have been watching all winter. Before I left Caren handed me that and several Tamale's her housekeeper had made. If they taste as great as those Natalia's family fed me I will be in pig heaven. I should have mentioned that she came by a couple of days ago with a loaf of home made bread for me too. Life is great! I best be careful though, I really do not wish to gain back that eight pounds I lost in MZT this winter.

MONDAY

There is not a lot to ramble about today; I went to the Post Office this morning and visited my favorite ATM later in the afternoon. At one point I found myself in Billy's neighborhood and stopped in to visit with him for a few minutes. His apartment looked very clean and well cared for; his aid workers are doing a good job for him, I am glad to see it. I went online to pay my Comcast bill and found they had raised the fee by about $40 per month. I called their number and got some guy in the Philippines named Jay who helped by giving me an 'offer' that created a monthly premium without the $40 increase and no changes in the service. One year from now my rate will go up again because this 'offer' is only good for one year. That gives me a year to find some other way to get phone, TV and Internet service for a fee I wish to accept. He told me the special offer was for really good customers like me. I asked him if I was such a good customer why did they attempt to raise my fee in the first place. Naturally he had no answer, Comcast is not a good company to do business with. Trust me.

SUNDAY

Today I sat down at the 'puter to consider doing my taxes. I went to the same site I used last year, Tax Slayer, and started following instructions. I was not expecting things to go smoothly and thought I would run into trouble of some kind but that never happened. Forty minutes later I was finished and paid the $9.95 with my debit card. It will be automatically submitted to E-File and when the IRS accepts it I will be notified. I remember it was too easy last year and for that reason I was reluctant to get into it. It was still too easy but it was accepted last year so now I will see if it is OK again. All of the numbers I needed were in the papers the various investment houses sent me while I was in MZT. I have been too conservative for the last 3-4 years and for that reason I have lost a lot of potential earnings. I will now branch out more so you folks can be expecting the bottom to drop out of the market later this year because I am going back in. That is the story of my life with investments. However I play it it goes in the other direction. Expect a big crash in 2013!

SATURDAY

Today I finished going through my mail and delivered two boxes of trash to the fire barrel Roy has at the edge of the property. The trash was mail I had no use for; there certainly was a pile of it after three months away. We had more rain this afternoon so I never did get out of the house. I did cook up some pork in BBQ sauce to have on hand for breakfast eggs and sandwiches. Also had a nice and well earned nap of about an hour and a half. For some reason my email is not accepting a lot of things that I used to get, I hope no notes from folks are included in the filtered mail. One of these days I hope to load my MZT pictures to this 'puter so I can get back to posting the ones I still have available. We will see how that goes.

FRIDAY

I had a nice drive to Beaverton today; it didn't rain at all but the dark skies were gathering as I arrived back home. We suffered through a heavy rain for most of the afternoon. I expect lots of flowers to be the result............. The trip to Beaverton was to have my Pacemaker checked out and it got a good bill of health but the technician recommended I see my Cardiologist because of the chest pains that I reported were bothering me in MZT. I have not had the problem since returning but I will take the advice and make an appointment with Dr. Arden. I am still working on my mail and have paid some bills that I found were behind, they don't like being ignored. I'm happy to say they did not amount to a lot of money.

THURSDAY

The Protime results were very good considering that I have not checked in for three months. I wish my bowling scores were that nice too. But no such luck, perhaps one day I will get back in the groove.
Got my laundry caught up, Caren stopped by with a loaf of her home made bread this afternoon. Chi Chi was also happy to see her, it is not often he is glad to see anyone get close to the door around here. I spent a lot of time working on my mail, still have a way to go on that. I will be rested up in another day or so and all of this will be behind me. It is good to be home but it did rain a lot this afternoon. It's Washington!

TUESDAY/WEDNESDAY

Tuesday was a long day and Wednesday was about the same. Doggy is home, the care is running much better and I am still tired. Tomorrow is a Doctor appointment then bowling, hopefully a nap after I get home in the afternoon.

MONDAY

Natalia fixed another nice breakfast for us this morning before leaving for work. I cleaned up the kitchen before tackling the beginning packing.
It is not going to be any problem gettting that finished in the morning. Natalia has told me that her Nephew will pick me up around ten AM and deliver me to the airport, that is really nice of her.
I will not be posting the blog tomorrow because I don't think I will get home before midnight. I will try to get  back in the groove Thursday night.

This is the lady who set up the Equinox bus trip.

A resturant put together just for the tourists visiting the site on this day. Our bus did not stop here.

This is where we stopped. I pruchased the meal you see in the next photo. It was tasty, I don't know all the things they put in it but it had a lot of carrots and some spices. Something like a Salsa.

This is a strange field game. The ball must be batted with the hip. I tried to time a shot with the actual attempt to return the ball but it never happened

Perhaps a better picture of where we had our lunch break.