Hot day here!

Dang! It's HOT here today! We *were* going to go for a MC ride, and probably still will, but not for long. The A/C will keep running, that's for sure. Since the A/C is only in our bedroom, I guess we'll be spending lots of time in our bedroom *grin*. OK with me..................

Father's Day

Well, Father's Day has come and gone, I was blessed with visits from both of my daughters' families, and Jacque's son Dave showed up as well! He was "in the neighborhood" (as in, Southern California) for a friend's wedding, so stopped on in to visit. We had a great day, but that evening, Jacque didn't feel well, at all. After a session "praying to the porcelain god", she went to bed, I cleaned up the house, and then I went to bed. About 0100, I awoke with nausea. Oh-oh, there's been a "bug" going around at her work, and I was starting to wonder. I ignored the nausea, and went back to sleep, had a long day (including Mexico) on-the-job coming up. That happened yesterday. I thought I wasn't going to make it thru the day a few times, due to "intestinal instability". Accordingly, I asked for today off. Of course, now I feel much better! Figures.... Oh well, it was a relatively slow day at work anyhow.

SPAB Days

So, what does SPAB mean? "School Pupil Activity Bus". In California, tour buses double (as in most other states) as school activity buses... meaning, extracurricular activity buses, field trips, band trips, and, this time of year, grad night buses. There's LOTS of that right now, and, since the bus company I drive for lacks enough SPAB drivers (it requires special certification from the CHP), I do *LOTS* of SPAB runs. Not that I really mind, dealing with kids is usually pretty easy and straightforward. When I call in to see what my assignment is for the next day, I merely ask "What SPAB run am I doing tomorrow?" (grin). It all comes to a screeching halt around mid- to late June, then it's back to the more traditional "mix" of work.

Me and Tom Bodett in Ventura

Hi again.... it's Memorial Day weekend, and you know what that means... I'm out-of-town with my backpacking group. However, in an unusual twist, they're not headed 300 or 400 miles up into the Sierras; just 200 miles up the coast to Ventura, CA. From there, it's onto the boat going to the Channel Islands National Park. A couple days camping on Santa Rosa Island, and then back to Ventura, where I've been waiting for them. Me and Tom Bodett, that is (grin). My "digs" on this trip is the Motel 6 here in Ventura. I can't really go anywhere, the cost of diesel fuel dictates that the bus be run as little as possible, so here I sit, except for long walks. Fortunately, I have this laptop to help pass the hours. I did go to Blockbuster yesterday and rented a couple movies. Another great use for the laptop! I spot today at 1400 to pick up my tired passengers, and then join the insanity on the freeways. Wish me luck!

Forgot about posting :-(

Geez, it's really been a long time, like, a month! It's been busy at work, but that doesn't really explain why I haven't posted. I basically *forgot* about it for a while! In the meantime, since that Yosemite trip I last blogged about, I did a 5-day Palm Springs trip, and am currently doing a 2-day military trip to Fort Irwin, the huge Army reservation where desert tactics are practiced and perfected, with hummvees, M1A1 Abrams battle tanks, and Bradley Fighting Vehicles. They say that the decisive desert battles of the first Iraq war were the direct result of both superior equipment and superior training. The training part was largely due to Fort irwin's facilities and similar terrain to a lot of Arab lands.
I'll try not to forget about my blog again *grin*

A Great Trip

Lenny (fellow driver) & I did a major hike today... Yosemite Falls. What a butt-kicker! Goes from 4000' to 6750 or so in 3.4 miles. either of us made it to the top, me because I ran out of water (DUMB), Lenny because he's not (yet) in physical condition to do so. Nonetheless, I made it about 80% of the way to the top, Lenny made it to a point where he had a great view of the Falls. A perfect Grand Finale to a great trip. Not a "big money" trip, it has nevertheless been rewarding because of the hiking. We leave tomorrow , back to San Diego and "the world". It's been refreshing!

April in Yosemite

Wow, it's been a while.... been busy with work and a new laptop. I'm using it right now, on batteries, while sitting at a picnic table in Yosemite. Why? because it puts me within reach of the only unsecured wifi hotspot in the valley (grin). One of the employee trailers has wifi, it's part of their overall system here in the valley, but inexplicably, they didn't secure it. Lucky me! Anyhow, I'm here in Yosemite on a 6-day trip, a 2-bus move with Lenny. Got an 8th grade group, Lenny's younger daughter is in the class, and on the bus. Lenny and I are sharing a cabin... a little too "cozy" for my preferences, but it's going well. We've gotten in a hike every day, and plan another one tomorrow. We leave Friday to return to San Diego, and I'm hoping to have the weekend off. Guess I'll find out soon enough.....

In between trips

Hi all-
OK, the winter snow trips are over, and I've done one 5-day trip up US 101 since then. Would have blogged, but it was a VERY busy trip. Also very lucrative ($). I would do more, and have a sneaking suspicion that I will be. The customer was very pleased with the level of service (pat, pat). Anyhow, I'm sort of "between trips" right now, altho not for long. A 7-day Yosemite spring trip is just around the corner. Kinda different, I'm doing this with our #1 driver, Lenny (I'm #3, in case you're interested). It's apparently not a "big money" trip, basically take them to Yosemite, and wait 5 days to take them back. Or, at least, so I've been told. Kinda looking forward to doing Vernal Fall and Nevada Fall again, it's been a long time. I plan on bringing hiking gear, and using it. Probably won't have Internet access, like the last time, bt will shoot lots of pix with the digital camera and upload them later.

On the road again....

Hey, it's that time of year.... I'm on day one of a 5-day trip up the California coastal valleys, with stays in Ventura (where I'm at right now), Pismo Beach, Monterey, and Burlingame. It's a 2-bus trip, Theresa's my co-driver. We get along well, so no problem there. The group is seed distributors, or so I guess. We visit nurseries where the growers can showcase their efforts. Anyhow, it's a short night tonight, so I guess I'd better bail outa here and get my butt to bed! Good-night!

Da wife comes along

Hi, I'm back in Mammoth Lakes, doing my last snow run of the season. It's a whirlwind event, we left Friday night, return Sunday evening. As luck would have it, that coincided nicely with Jacque's weekend, and she was able to join me! Also along for the trip is my new notebook computer, an HP zv6130us. It's an AMD64 3200+ system, 80 GB hard drive, CD/DVD burner, on-board 802.11G Wi-fi, UltraBright 15.8" widescreen display, 128 Megs dedicated graphics memory on an ATI Mobile Radeon chipset. Not too shabby, got it for $699 from Fry's. Anyhow, Jacque and I are having a good time, it snowed last night and most of today, but not a huge amount. Our passengers are campers, they're out camping in this!!! Sorry, doesn't fit my description of a "good time". We leave later today, Sunday, should be home by maybe 2100 or so. Hopefully I will have Monday off, I'm gonna go get a Corsair 1 Gig memory DIMM that Fry's has on sale, for this laptop, to boost the total memory from 1/2 GB to 1.25 GB. Also high on the wish list is a Hitachi (IBM) TravelStar 7200 RPM drive that NewEgg has for $145, to replace the 4200 RPM drive that's currently in there. Spending my cash before I earn it, oh-oh (grin).

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

"In like a lion, out like a lamb".... no, this is not an xxx-rated post (grin). It's the way March is looking here in California, and especially in the Sierras, which is exactly where I am right now. Mammoth Lakes, around 7800', and it's been snowing and snowing. Not huge quantities, but steady and consistent. The weather people were starting to worry about our upcoming summer, due to way-below-average precipitation. I don't know where the numbers are now, but it's a certainty that they've improved considerably over the last couple weeks. Even San Diego, which was WAY below normal, has picked up some rain lately. Nothing like the record-setter last winter, but respectable. In the meantime, my chains sure are happy! Here's a picture from out my window, yesterday morning (it looks about the same right now).

Back in the snow

Hello from Mammoth Lakes, CA, where it's supposed to dump, big-time over the next 36 to 48 hours! I arrived in town a few hours ago, finally got everyone dropped and got my room, put the bus to bed (after I chained up...) and now, finally, am relaxing in my room. Got wi-fi here, so that's kewl, although I noticed it seems to be running a bit slow tonight. Maybe there's lots of other people online. I'm showing an "excellent" signal strength.
Anyhow, this is a 6-day trip, so the chains should have plenty of exercise. Unfortunately, if it's as crappy as the weatherman says it's supposed to be, looks like I won't be getting so much exercise. The hotel I'm at has a workout room, and a pool, so maybe I'll avail myself of them. Anyhow, it's gonna feel strange to be away from home for 6 days, although I gotta admit, I'm "missing out" on a whole lot of shuttle and airport transfer runs by being out-of-town. Geez, I'll miss that so much....

Kewl! Unexpected day off...

I'm keenly aware the forecast at work is very busy for at least the next two weeks, with a lot of questionmarks after that. Typically, the first 6 months of the year are quite busy. In fact, typically, the only slow times are *perhaps* some spots in July and August, and usually early December. So, I was happy to discover, much to my surprise, that I had today off! I'm sitting in bed with a newspaper, the laptop connected via wi-fi, and a cup of coffee. Oh, and 9 hours of sleep under my belt (grin). Guess I'll refill the coffee cup, finish up this stuff, and get my ass in gear! Supposed to drop some stuff off at Melissa's, I guess our newest grand-daughter has been giving them fits. She thought it was colic, but the pediatricion says otherwise. He says it's Arabella (at 4 days old) has already learned a "cause-affect" relationship. She wants to suck (like all babies), and, even though she's just been fed, she howls until Melissa picks her up and offers her what she wants. The she latches on, and falls asleep. Doctor says that's gotta end, right now. I had no idea a 4-day-old could actually figure out something like that! Anyhow, in an attempt to help out, Jacque has put together a couple meals, which I'm supposed to deliver today. Guess I'll include that in with my hike, which is near her house....

New Grand-daughter

Little miss Arabella Elizabeth Sullivan came into the world on Feb. 24th, at 10:36PM. Weighing in at 7 lbs, 1 oz, and 18 1/2" length, she let everyone know right away that she wasn't happy with having to leave the warm surroundings she'd just vacated (grin). Her color was good, and she had lots of hair. Mom and dad are both doing well. I have pictures posted here
I'll be updating that page and adding more pictures within the next few days! We now have *8* grandchildren! Here they are:
Tenaya
Breckin
Becca
Aiden
Chloe
Gracie
Jade
Arabella

Good morning! A fairly good night's sleep has left me feeling better, here in Mammoth, although I think a small nap might be in order. Between the noisy heater and the dry air, I couldn't categorize last night's sleep as "ideal". I did get in 2 long walks yesterday, did the "Meridian Loop" twice (about 2 1/2 miles each time). The weather is turning here today, becoming breezy and turning colder. Still not "cold" by Mammoth standards, though. Supposed to be mid-20's tonight, with a high of only upper 20's tomorrow. Then a low in the single digits Wednesday night, but we'll be gone by then. It's a quick turn-around for me, I return Wednesday evening to San Diego, leave Thursday afternoon for Yosemite. Here's the good news; Jacqueline's coming along! She was able to extricate a couple days off of work, and it's a "go" for her to join me. Makes it seem more like a vacation than work (grin). So, needless to say, I'm happy.
I talked to my parents for over an hour yesterday, they're both doing well. In fact, they've both embraced the South Beach Diet, in part because they saw the success that Jacqueline and I have had. My weight loss has been somewhat more spectacular the Jacqueline's, at my heaviest I was ~192, am down to 153 now. That's nearly 40 lbs! I read with interest that the *average* US male is 5' 9 1/2" (that's me...) and 191! (That *was* me...). I REALLY enjoy the added energy and mobility gained through the weight reduction. It used to be hard for me to do 1 Meridian Loop walk, between the altitude, the elevation gain and loss, and my weight. Now, it's no big deal to go twice, and yesterday I was running on "reserves", having gotten a terrible night's sleep the night before. Now that's a major difference. The dividends paid by dropping the weight are worth the effort, many times over. Besides, the South Beach Diet makes it relatively painless. Jacqueline hasn't lost as much weight, but proportionately, she's not that far behind. She continues to whittle away, moving in the right direction. She wants to get to 110 (she's 4'11") and she's within 6 lbs of her goal. I wanted to get to 152, I'm essentially there, 1 more lb to go. 150 will be my "base" weight, the number I don't want to go below. I may actually have to *increase* my carb intake to maintain 150 (grin). That's fine with me, I really miss that sourdough toast in the morning!
I ran the beta of Internet Explorer 7 that's on the Microsoft webpage, and, while I like the new interface (very reminiscent of Firefox), it messed up at least one element of my online experience.... clicking a web link in an email (using Outlook Express) no longer launches ANY web browser, UNLESS you make IE your default browser (pretty sneaky, Mr. Gates....). Well, what that has done is caused me to do something I've been intending to do for some time now anyway... break away from Outlook Express and make Thunderbird my default Email program. The Valentine's Day e-card I sent to Jacqueline couldn't be viewed by her, GRRRR. I'll "fix" the desktop when I get home. I've run Thunderbird for some time as a secong email app, looks like it just became my primary one.

Been a while

Hello again, it's been quite a while since I posted. No particular reason why, just life's little obligations and distractions. I'm in Mammoth right now, about to go get my people at the main lodge, bring them back down into town. More to follow later.....

Watchin' the snow fall

I'm currently in June Lake, CA, a small town nestled against the eastern Sierras, north of Mammoth Lakes. The 21st Century hasn't arrived here yet... 8 TV channels, no outgoing phone calls, cellphone coverage non-existent, but, amazingly, the motel I'm staying at JUST installed wi-fi. Sounds good, hey? Well, it sucks, can't get a decent signal anywhere, I finally found a spot in my room where I could get a half-decent signal. It's on top of the dresser/TV console, about 6 feet off the ground! So, I'm currently standing on a chair, typing this out *grin*. The weather outside is deteriorating, a winter storm's moving in, and I'm having some bus troubles. Nothing major (I think...), but the "Battery" idiot light is on, although my charge rate on the guage appears fine, and the charging system appears to be working normally. Cold weather does strange things to these vehicles. Anhow, we're supposed to leave tomorrow morning, so hopefully it won't cause problems on the way home. Guess I'll be keeping my fingers crossed......

Not too bad a week

Everything is relative, right? This week was looking ugly, with a big shuttle looming large, promising long hours and the usual "no life" scenario. It didn't really turn out that way, however, partially because of the way I was dispatched, and partially because we weren't the "primary" transportation provider. Soooo, it wasn't too bad. I'm watching the AFC playoffs right now, a barn-burner game between the Steelers and the Colts. Steelers were the unfortunate recipients of an incredibly bad call (IMHO), otherwise the game would be all but over. Instead, there's an incredible game in progress. The Steelers had the game won again, but "the bus" fumbled at the 1-yard line, and gave the Colts another chance. Incredible 4th quarter, the Colts are about to try a 46-yard FG to tie the game. My heart rate is about 150!! Oooooh, my, the Colts missed it, looks like Pittsburgh is headed to the AFC finals.

Woo-hoo, weekend off!

Jacque and I have the weekend off together, somewhat unexpectedly, so we're planning a busy day today. Maybe go hiking at Mission Trails Regional Park this morning, followed by lunch at Red Lobster (thanks, Donn & Chuleen), then I'm thinking about us going to see Syriana, with George Clooney. We haven't been to a ovie in a long time. Tomorrow's still being planned.....

Back in San Diego

Here I am, back in San Diego. The trip home turned out to be WAY less of a marathon than I'd feared, although still a long day. I had a day off (hurrah!), then worked a day, then off today (Thu). Tomorrow I have a relatively easy day, just local stuff. Jacqueline and I got out on the motorcycle today, one of the advantages to living in San Diego in January. It was a beautiful day here today, temps well into the 70's.