Adventures of Shadow The RVing Dog

Butterfly Alphabet at the Mt. Vernon Fire House Museum

2012-02-11T20:51:00.001-06:00

Franklin County Mt. Vernon, Texas Fire House Museum has an unbelievable Butterfly display!

Below are some of my favorites. Again, I apologize for the awful photos, the lighting in the museum made it very difficult for me to take good pictures. I am sure someone who knew something about photography would know how to do better under florescent lights and glass displays!

They were able to make an Alphabet Card from different parts of several different butterflies!

(You can click on the photo to make it larger or check it out in the photo album link below)

They have a very large display of butterflies, apparently many years ago, people traded butterflies like people trade baseball cards!

If I remember correctly, this is one of the largest butterfly collections around. The alphabet Card amazes me, it took me a while to comprehend that the letters are actually found on different species. I think it would be interesting to see a side by side card with the whole butterfly they took the letter out of!

Here is the link to the Franklin County Historical Association, they have much more factual information on the butterfly and egg display. Click Here: Franklin County Historical Association

They also had some BEAUTIFUL Old Fashion Cash Registers on display, these were some dandies!

One was nicer than the next, this was a remarkable collection!

A display of handmade Violins a lot of Arrowheads and other Native American artifacts. They also had a lot of information on the different kinds of Arrowheads and other tools. I also liked this huge index sheet that they had I broke this graph down into 4 photos in my photo album, hopefully large enough for you to be able to read the information provided below each example.

The Firehouse museum was a real treat, it had very interesting items.

Click Here to see my photo album of the Fire House Museum

Be sure to check out my two previous blog entries for more information on the museum including their Rare bird egg exhibit as well as the Don Meredith exhibit.

Some day I hope to explore more of the history in this area, If I do… I will post it on here!

Technorati Tags: Mt. Vernon,Texas,Fire House Museum,Arrowheads,Bird Egg Exhibit,Butterfly Exhibit,Franklin County,Native American Artifacts,Cash Registers,Violins,Don Meredith

Extinct Birds, Most Unique Bird Egg Collection in the world!

2012-02-11T17:16:00.001-06:00

Part Two of the The Franklin County Mount Vernon, Texas Fire House Museum.

This is the only museum in the world that Houses the extinct Carolina Parakeet,

Passenger Pigeon and the Heath Hen

I was told by the curator that the owner of this collection had no idea how rare his collection was. Once the word was out, everyone wanted the opportunity to house this world famous collection. They even had people from the Smithsonian Institute come and pitch their stake for the placement of these rare eggs in Washington DC.

They told the gentlemen that there is no way a small town would ever be able to house these eggs safely; that these eggs needed special lighting and kept behind special glass, that it would be in the best interest of their preservation to be housed in the Smithsonian where they could be adequately cared for.

According to the curator, this really struck a nerve with the small town red hair lawyer, he now more determined than ever was going to make sure this collection remained in a small town! He researched the needs for the preservation of the eggs, then made it happen.

Mount Vernon, Texas is the proud homestead to this collection! I have some photos, but they are not the best, the lightening is the best for the eggs, not this amateur photographer! I asked if I could take some photos with the flash on to try to compete with the glare of all the lights. Even though they granted me permission to take one photo with the flash on for the purpose of the blog, I opted not too. Even a great photo, wouldn’t do this great collection justice! The only way to capture the essence of the beauty of this exhibit is to see it in person!

They have all kinds of different Bird Eggs with an informational page for each. The information includes a description of the species, their habitat and other interesting facts. It was a wonderful display and a classy presentation!

Two thumbs up for the lawyer who needed no more inspiration than to be told that it couldn’t be done, to show us all that it most certainly could! (Anyone with human insights, would never challenge a red headed anything, let alone a red headed lawyer)!

The museum is open on Tuesdays through Saturdays until 2:00 p.m.

Here is the link to the Franklin County Historical Association, they have much more factual information on the butterfly and egg display.

Franklin Franklin County Historical Association

If you are interested in more photos of the museum, click the link below.

Click Here to see my Photo Album of the Museum

Be sure to look at the blog entry before this and after this one to see more information of the Mount Vernon Museum.

Past entry: The Don Meredith Exhibit, Coming up, Butterflies, Cash Registers, Violins and Arrowheads!

Technorati Tags: Franklin County,Mount Vernon,Texas,Fire House Museum,Extinct Birds,Extinct Bird Eggs,Carolina Parakeet,Passenger Pigeon Heath Hen,Arrowheads,Butterflies,red heads,Cash Registers,Smithsonian Institute

Mount Vernon, Texas Don Meredith Exhibit and Museum

2012-02-11T15:03:00.001-06:00

Franklin County Texas has an awesome museum with a Don Meredith Exhibit and the rarest of rare Bird Egg display!

The museum curator was most informative and gave Dave and I some excellent information on the exhibits!

I am a football fan, but my interest involve the Green Bay Packers, Not the Dallas Cowboys! With that being said, I was shocked how interested I was in the history of this small town sports star Don Meredith.

I have crap for brains when it comes to memory and details, but I will share with you to the best of my knowledge some of the stories the curator shared with us. Proof in point, I was told the curators name once, then asked two other times because I kept forgetting.

Anyhow he told us that the Principal of the school asked permission to take him out of School to play catch with him when he was in the third grade, because the principal saw potential in him. He was a good student and nobody objected to this.

Also an interesting tidbit was the fact that Don was more interested in basketball than football. He play basketball and as you can see, these young men use to wear very short shorts!

If I remember correctly, Mr. Meredith suffered from childhood polio and had to wear special braces on his legs, to strengthen in his legs.

Instead of being ostracized by others for being different, the leg braces were sought after in in high demand by other young athletes! How cool is that!

Don was into golfing as well and played with some of the all time great golf professionals.

He played football at SMU and later for of course the Dallas Cowboys. While he played football in high school (I think), anyhow he apparently had gotten injured and they needed to cut open his jersey. According to the story the curator told, Don was much more worried about the jersey than the injury!

He said as an after thought, how shocked they were when they realized that the jersey they had on display was the actual jersey that Don’s mom had sewn back together and Don continued to wear!

There are some great stories and items in this exhibit. Please look for my next entry when I talk about Birds, Bird Eggs, Butterflies and more!

A sneak preview… It will include the Rarest of them all… 3 Extinct Bird Eggs:

Carolina Parakeet, Passenger Pigeon and the Heath Hen.

Click here for a photo album of our visit to the museum.

Technorati Tags: Don Meredith,Dallas Cowboys,SMU,Basketball,Golf,Mt Vernon,Texas,Museum,Football,Rare Bird Eggs,Butterflies

A foal stands up and walks just a few hours after it is born.

2012-02-10T23:10:00.001-06:00

I went out to check on Memory around 9:00 p.m. because we all knew she was getting close to deliver. This is the first time I went and forgot my camera.

I walked over by myself, Dave was going to come with me at 10:00 to check on her. I got up to the stall and didn’t see her, that could only mean one thing… She was laying down!

I shined my flashlight toward her and on the ground I saw a little foal inside of what looked like a plastic bubble! It was still inside the sac and the cord was still attached!

She had just given birth, I wanted to stay and see what happens next, but instead I gimped to the RV as fast as I could (I am disabled, so I can’t run) so I could get Dave and my camera.

It only took a couple of minutes to get back so we didn’t miss much! The foals head was now out of the sac, Memory was still laying where she gave birth and the cord was still attached.

Then in the blink of an eye, Memory stood up and the cord snapped right off and that was it! The colt was laying on the ground still half covered, he kept trying to get up, but his legs were stuck inside the bubble (sac).

Memory, didn’t seem too interested in helping the little guy out as she never even approach the foal while he was struggling to get free.

Johnny Brown (the horse expert) was there to give the mare a shot. He didn’t seem overly concerned about the mares behavior toward the foal. He went in to give Memory her a shot, then tore open the rest of the sac freeing the newborn horses legs and identified the sex. The Double S Ranch Has just had its second colt of 2012, Born on February 9th.

We left the colt and mare alone for about an hour, Johnny wanted to come back to make sure that Memory began nursing.

We were all pleased to see that Memory was much more maternal when we returned!

What a beautiful experience that whole process was! I have NEVER seen anything like that in my life! I could not believe how this new born horse within minutes knew his legs were made for standing! He kept trying to get up while we were their the first time.

One hour old and the little guy was just standing there next to his momma!

When Memory got up and walked away the little guy followed her, his little legs were still weak and quite wobbly, but he didn’t let that stop him!

They seem to be born with natural instincts and he knew when Shadow or Shiner came near the stall, that he should be on his feet and near his mother. What made this even more amazing is that the colt could not see the dogs or hear them.

I thank God for giving me the opportunity to witness life at its finest!

Technorati Tags: Deer Lake Cabins,Double S Ranch,Johnny,Horse Birth,Colt

Had some guests staying at the Log Cabin From Wisconsin!

2012-02-08T00:16:00.000-06:00

While Dave was renovating Cedar Loft a few weeks ago, some guests arrived for a stay at the log cabin.

Dave got to talking to them and found out they were from Wisconsin! We invited them over for a couple of campfires while they were here and really enjoyed their company.

Jayme didn’t like her photo taken, so I respected that. She didn’t mind if I photographed their dog, so I have a couple photos of Lilly to share on the blog. Lilly is a beautiful dog what cracked me up the most is the fact that she is a lap dog like Shadow! While we were enjoying their company sitting around the fire, Lilly wanted to sit on Jayme’s lap so up she went!

Lilly isn’t a little dog and lawn chairs are barely big enough for a human, I wished I could have gotten a photo of that!

Shadow and Shiner got along great with her, that is after Shiner quit pouting! She was upset because Shadow had eyes for another girl! I would add LOL, but the first night they came over, Shiner went into the camper and didn’t come out until they were leaving. She didn’t want to watch Shadow flirting with that blonde! And flirt he did! The next day Shiner was back to her old self and joined the festivities! Shadow must have had a talk with her last night! LOL

They all played together and had a great time, I wished I would have gotten better photos, but these are all I got!

What a pleasure it was meeting Jayme, Dan and Lilly, they have been keeping in touch with us by email and that is very nice. I hope our paths cross again!

Technorati Tags: Log Cabin,Deer Lake Cabins,Double S Ranch,Scroggins Texas,Dogs,Camp Fires,Wisconsin

Giving Shiner a bath before the next Thunderstorm.

2012-02-07T22:58:00.000-06:00

What do you do when your dog is afraid of thunderstorms?

Well for starters… give them a bath before the storms set in!

Shiner Had Her 10th Bath while staying in our RV!

Shiner usually slept outside or in a guest cabin if someone would let her in. So it would only make sense that the good ole wild animal smell would be all over her!

Even after 9 baths, the stink still came back within a few hours, it was really set in strong.

Finally after number 10, she smells like a dog, a clean dog! She has gone almost five days without the smell!

We give her a bath before each forecasted thunder storm because she is terrified of them. She barks at the thunder and at the lightening and goes into attack mode running at the door.

She gets so worked up and whines and wants to be right next to a human after the sound is gone. She usually ends up on the bed, so the smell problem was an issue.

I will share all things with animals, but I draw the line at my pillow! Well I thought I did. LOL

The last storm, Shiner jumps up on the bed and walks to the head of the bed, I put my head up to get the flashlight so I could see what she was doing and she sits on my pillow! I couldn’t get her off the pillow so I got up and went to the bathroom, that is when she got off my pillow but laid down on my side of the bed! I didn’t have the heart to move her, so I grabbed my pillow and slept on the couch! (Actually there is no sleeping until the storms pass)!

Shiner jumps on the bed after the thunder stops then jumps back off the bed the next time it thunders again; most of the time she lands right on top of Shadow!

Shadow has been awesome toward her about this and doesn’t even get upset with her. I think even he feels sorry for her.

After the last storm, it took her all day to get over it. She went the whole day without eating and has this look of guilt all over her face.

We have tried to correct the behavior but nothing seems to work consistently. Sure would be open to suggestions on this! Please feel free to post any comments in the comment section (in the margin on the right side of the page).

Shiner Barks at Thunder, Gun shots, Hawks and other big birds that fly over her and when the coyotes howl…

Shadow on the other hand barks at people who are walking or driving by, people riding or walking a horse, knocks at the door, and when Dave or I say “hello”!

Together they have things pretty well covered,

except neither of them bark at cats!

Things that get Shiner to hide under the table: Clicking noises like the refrigerator latching, the clicker for the gas stove, pressing into an aluminum can and other noises like that!

Things that get Shadow to hide under the table are: Thunder Storms and when it is time to get his nails clipped.

Things that get them both under the table: Is when we are eating a steak dinner and… their monthly dose of flea and tick medicine! Shiner Looks like she is saying… “He can’t get us under here”! Shadow looks like he is saying, “oh crap, you wanna bet”!

Technorati Tags: Thunderstorms and Dogs,Shadow,Shiner,Barking dogs,horses,Double S Ranch Dog,Scroggins Texas,Deer Lake Cabins

The First Foal of 2012 was born at the Double S Ranch!

2012-02-07T00:46:00.002-06:00

Dave and I celebrated our 18 year wedding anniversary yesterday, February 5. This was same day DC gave birth to her first foal!
It arrived last night sometime after dark and was standing by his momma when Johnny checked on the horses early this morning!
I have learned so much in one day about horses just by watching these two and even more by talking to Johnny.
A newborn horse is called a foal, if it is a female it is a filly, the male foal is called a colt.
A pony IS NOT a young horse, a young horse is called a yearling: these are the 5 yearlings on the ranch: I have referred to them as ponies… but technically they are not really ponies.
A “Pony” is a smaller horse and it can be any age. Lady and Mr. T are ponies, they are both over 20 years old! They are POA’s Ponies of the Americas.
Anyhow… the ranch has a special barn that they use for the pregnant mares and Johnny puts them there when they get close.
Last night Johnny put a horse in that barn her name is Memory. Dave and I have gone and checked on her late last night and every hour until we go to bed and so far nothing yet. Last night we checked on her after 11:00 p.m., but nothing! Little did we know, across from Cedar Loft… DC was doing her thing!
She doesn’t look anywhere as ready as Memory Looks, but Looks can be quite deceiving at times!
This morning as soon as we heard the news, Dave Shadow, Shiner and I headed over to take our first peak. This was the first foal I have ever seen that was less than 12 hours old. I think the youngest I ever saw before this was about 6 months old.
I was SHOCKED! I don’t know what I expected, but seeing it standing, walking around and looking like a horse was not on my list of first thoughts! LOL
He is so cute! I can’t quit smiling every time I look at the pictures!
DC’s maternal instincts were awesome to watch. Precious, the other pregnant mare that shared the pen with DC is the dominant one. In the past DC always backed off whenever Precious came near her, Precious would bully her if I tried to pet her our give her carrots or any attention what so ever.
Anyhow, I was pleasantly surprised to see how DC reacted when Precious got near her colt, DC held her ground and kept herself between them most of the time.
Once Precious got right next to the colt and I wasn’t sure what was going to happen, but it didn’t last long and DC charged right between them and sent Precious packing!
I will post a photo album with a lot more photos at the bottom of this post.
When I got done taking it all in and getting some photos, I went to find out from Johnny what they do next. Dave and I heard the coyotes this morning and they were REALLY close, so I wanted to make sure he knew they were back on the property and to find out if they separate Precious from the occasion.
So later in the day, I got to help Johnny move the horses around. I guess even though DC was done giving birth, she still goes in the maternity barn! LOL (for lack of better ideas on what to call it)!
He also didn’t want to leave Precious alone for two reasons; one she would be anxious away from DC AND her time is also near so it made most sense to move them all at the same time.
I wasn’t sure how they would move the colt, but it was much simpler than I thought!
Johnny said the colt would follow the mare so he walked the mare out, I had Precious and the golf cart and the two dogs!
I asked if I should put Shadow in the RV while we did this, because I assumed he would bark and upset the horses, but Johnny thought they would all be fine, so off we went!
so far so good… the colt is backing off just a little he needed a little encouragement, but not too much… and we were off again! Shadow and Shiner were very well behaved! Shadow would actually guide the colt back to the mare if she got behind or wondered off to the side a little bit. I was so proud of him!
I couldn’t have done anything if Shadow would have gotten out of line because I was holding onto the lead for Precious while driving the golf cart and taking pictures all at the same time! (Proof that women can multi task)! LOL
It is truly a miracle when you think about the whole birthing process of these beautiful creatures; how they do it all by themselves! I feel totally blessed to have witnessed the first day of the colts life and to watch how the mare just adapts to the role of being the caretaker and protector! Just think, she didn’t even get to read Dr. Spock’s book on babies! LOL
What a beautiful day!
Click here to see more photos!!!!!

Technorati Tags: Horse,Mare,Filly,Colt,Mare Giving Birth,Ponies,Deer Lake Cabins,Double S Ranch Scroggins Texas,Dr. Spock,Shadow,Shiner,Multi tasking

Shiner Makes going for a Motorcycle Ride a little Challenging!

2012-01-31T23:03:00.000-06:00

Dave and I are trying to leave the resort so we can play tourist on the motorcycle. Shadow is tucked safely away in the RV, but how are we going to get out the gate without Shiner following us!

It called for the use of the mule and the help of a stranger!

Dave rode the Motorcycle to the gate and I tried following him in the mule, but Shiner ran right beside me the whole way. Dave parked the motorcycle and waited for me to run Shiner to the red barn on the mule

But when I got there, she refused to get out! She doesn’t wear a collar and I didn’t have a leash, so I had to take the cord off my camera and use that as a collar and asked a lady at the barn to please hold her until we got outside the gate!

I am thinking great… now I have two dogs who make me feel guilty if I leave the ranch with Dave for a while! LOL

We drove around the country roads and went through many small towns, we stopped in Winborro, Texas and walked around some of the historic town,

After we left there we drove into Mount Vernon for lunch, we were going to stop in the museum there but it had closed 5 minutes before we got there! Oh well, we had a great day anyhow and headed back to the ranch.

When we got back to the gate Dave let me off the bike so I could bring the mule home. On the way to our RV we ran into Johnny, I went to the RV to let Shadow out while Dave and Johnny chatted for a bit. ( I sometimes call Dave “Chatty Cathy”

When we got out, both dogs are thrilled and greet us happily! Shiner waits for us in a hole she digs, just outside our camper. Shadow barks from inside the camper until I let him out so he can join in on the reunion!

That was about a week ago, today I took our truck into town and I was wondering what Shiner would do because I didn’t thing I could get her up in the truck. I pulled out Shadow’s step stool and was waiting patiently for him to remember how to use it.

He stands on the first step with his front paws and can’t figure out what to do with his back paws! I was pretty sure Shiner wouldn’t even give the stool a try, but no sense worrying about that. She was sick of waiting for Shadow and managed to jump up on the chrome nerf bar between Shadow, the stool and I and took up her place on Shadow’s comfy bed in the back seat!

Both Shadow and I looked at each other, like how in the heck did she do that! With me standing there next to the stool there isn’t any room at all for her to do what she did! I guess anything is possible when determination is a factor! There is no way she was being left behind!

Her problem came when we got back, Shadow knows to jump to the floor of the truck to the nerf bar to the ground, Shiner refused to give it a try. She sat on the seat looking at me like, “lady, how are you going to get me out of this thing”!

I didn’t know what to do, so I cleared all the stuff off of the floor, moved the seat back as far as I could and patted my hand on the floor telling her to jump here, she just looked at me like I was nuts! After about 5 minutes of this game, I just left the truck door open and got into the mule, and pretended like I was leaving. It was just like magic, after her “don’t you leave me” mode set in, she jumped right out!

Shiner and Shadow are just as much alike as they are different, they make everyday I live so much brighter!

Technorati Tags: motorcycle ride,Shiner,Shadow,Funny dogs,Ranch,Deer Lake Cabins,Horse,Johnny,Winnsborro,Texas,Museum,Mount Vernon

Horseback Riding at the Double S Ranch

2012-01-29T22:01:00.000-06:00

For the first time since Dave and I have been here, we saddled up some horses and went for a horseback ride. He was going to go by himself, because I haven’t been a big fan of riding on oversized dogs! LOL

That’s what Dave says to others when he talks about why I don’t enjoy horseback riding. I am always afraid the horse is going to get hurt.

Anyhow, I was pretty stressed out, because Kodiac the horse that Dave rode, seem to have his own ideas on what it wanted to do! Dave handled him very well. My horses name was Kody and he was awesome. Kody liked to play catch up, so I nick named him Cantering Cody! It was fun, until he started cantering down a hill, then I was a little freaked out!

We were going to leave Shadow at home, because we weren’t sure how he would do with me up on the horse. I knew I would enjoy my ride more if I wasn’t feeling bad about Shadow being locked up in the camper, so we took our chances!

Besides we knew if we left Shadow at home, Shiner would follow us anyhow so we let the two of them come with us on the ride.

They ran ahead for part of the ride, ran between us some of the time and ran off into the woods chasing the deer, the rest of the time!

They both did AWESOME and the horses didn’t care one way or the other! We rode over by our RV so the dogs could get a drink of water.

We headed back to the stables after that and brushed the horses down and got them back in their stalls. It was really cute as we were riding into that area, Buttercup, the donkey was waiting to greet his buddies back.

On the way back to the RV we stopped by the Red Barn to show Johnny his treasures (the things I found while metal detecting in his yard). It was pretty funny because Johnny said he wanted two thirds of all the finds, so I wanted to square things up with him!

ALL Junk! I dug up all of the nails and staples in his sand driveway so he wouldn’t have to worry about getting a flat tire.

I also dug up an antique cookie cutter, an 1850’s Poultry scale, 48 cents and a bunch of bullet Casings!

Also an old farm tool brake, and some other misc. things.

So as you can see… even if I gave him all of it, he wasn’t going to be able to retire on what I found! LOL

We let him get back to caring for his horses and we went on with our day.

It was a beautiful day!

Technorati Tags: Horseback Riding,Double S Ranch Scroggins Texas,Deer Lake Cabins. Dogs,Horses,Deer,Metal Detector Finds. Metal Detector.

Been Metal Detecting with my x terra 705 in East Texas

2012-01-28T06:53:00.000-06:00

Took a trip to Lake Cypress with Dave and the dogs and did some metal detecting in different places (All my detecting is done on Private property with land owners knowledge and consent).

Any how, I always find things I can’t identify so I started using the forum “What is it?” on T-Net ( Treasure Net). I joined this site last march and finally used it for the first time a few weeks ago! This forum allows you to post your photos and a description of your find and other detectorist help you figure out what it is.

They have been VERY helpful on there and I have learned SO much.

Whenever I go detecting, I usually have the two dogs following me and watching over me.

Large photos and more photos of the dogs detecting can be seen by clicking the link below:

Click Here For Detecting Dog Photo Gallery

Shadow has the most fun when I detect in water, he loves to dig in the hole I am trying hard not to stir up! Shiner just loves to dig holes anywhere!

It was a treat to have my husband along even if I had to promise I would quit in an hour! LOL

Since we have been in Texas, I have found some cool things identified by people on the forum.

The coolest thing I found since my last posting was a Civil war era British-made Enfield model-1853 rifle's buttplate. Not the gun, just the buttplate. I was told with its distinctive number-marking that was on it meant it was imported across the Atlantic ocean to America during the civil war years.

How cool is that! I thought it was a hunk of bent up metal with numbers on it!

I have found more rusted cast iron whatchamacallits than anything else, and each dig is like opening a present! Around the ranch I dig everything on the roads, so that means I have more nails than the local hardware store! In the woods I am a little more selective at which tones I will dig, but I do pick up all the trash I see and or dig.

I spent two days over by Johnny’s House and dug more nails than I care to count, but I also found an old poultry scale that may date back to the 1850’s. another jack knife and some other cool things. I don’t have photos of the other things yet, but when I do it will be in my photo album of metal detecting finds, which you can click on the link to view if you would like to see my rusty gold!

Detector Finds:

I learned a few things about detecting places with lots of acreage, and that is take notes! I have NO idea where I dug that buttplate from. I can narrow it down to five places, but if I knew for sure, I would cover that area VERY carefully!

Another thing I learned is if you don’t know what it is, don’t throw it in the scrap heap pile! (I had to dig the buttplate out of my junk pile when I found out what it was! Thank goodness I didn’t get rid of that pile of junk yet!

Technorati Tags: Metal Detecting,X terra 705,Metal detecting tips,T Net forum,What is it? Metal Detecting finds,Civil War Era Enfield model1853 Rifle Buttplate

Cedar Loft Work by TF Tiling and Remodeling

2012-01-27T11:14:00.000-06:00

The Cedar loft is all done, it turned out to be a little more work than planned, but it turned out beautifully!

I have a full photo album of the old and new, it can be seen by clicking the link below.

Link to Cedar Loft Photos

I do need to get some new photos, since they have gotten some new tables in Cedar Loft and also new Photos of the Wild West. Dave put in new Counter Tops and completed all the windows. Those photos will go into the album gallery when I get them!

Technorati Tags: TF Tiling and Remodeling,Cedar Loft Cabin,Double S Ranch,Deer Lake Cabins. Scroggins Texas,TF Tiling and Remodeling From Greenville,WI.,Rvinig,workamping,work kamping

Couple of nights of ear chilling coyote screaming!!!

2012-01-18T13:20:00.000-06:00

We were at the Double S Ranch at Deer Lake Cabins in Scroggins for over 6 weeks, never hearing even one coyote distant or otherwise, then one night just before dark two packs that seemed to be less than a blocks away seemed to have found dinner! It was a chilling sound and scared the crap right out of me!

The next night, I made sure I was back to the RV before dusk, so I didn’t have to worry about Shadow and Shinner making the wrong kinds of friends!

They stuck around for about a week and now I have not heard them again for 3 weeks!

I still haven’t seen a Bobcat or anything like that. A lot of deer, squirrels, raccoon, opossum, birds and of course a lot of HORSES!

And just a few of the horse photos!

That is just some of the wildlife at the Double S Ranch!

Technorati Tags: Deer Lake Cabins,Double S Ranch,Horses,Birds,Coyote's,Bobcats,Raccoons,Deer,Scoggins,Texas

“Shiner” the Infamous Ranch Dog at Double S Ranch in Texas

2012-01-18T00:16:00.001-06:00

Before we came to Deer Lake Cabins, Stan the owner told us about the ranch dog named “Shiner”.

This is an actual framed photograph of her that hangs in the Log Cabin.

When Dave and I first got here we were reading some of the journal entry’s that were left by guests while we were working in the Wild West. Just about every entry was about Shiner, one more heartfelt than the next. We had pretty much just gotten here and already the tears are strolling down my face! I am thinking about how much I am going to miss this dog that I have only known for three days! Now lets multiply this by four months!

We have been here now for about one and a half months, I have gotten to see first hand the impact Shiner has on everyone’s life at the ranch. Not just the guests, but the employees too!

Johnny made sure that Shiner got her medicine and flea and tick stuff each month. He has a bed for her in his car port. Cathy would leave food and water out for her on the office porch everyday. Shiner goes into the office (when the door is open long enough for her to get in) and waits patiently to be petted and lays under the desk until the door is open long enough for her to get out!

Shiner decides where she wants to go and when she wants to go there. Since we have been here, she has spent 90% of her time with us. Shadow and her are buddies.

While I am out working on limbs or metal detecting she is usually not too far from me,

neither is Shadow.

I can always tell when new guests are approaching because the first thing I here is, “SHINER” followed by doggie talk, petting and plenty of kisses!

All the returning guests know and look forward to seeing her.

One night, Shiner didn’t come home (that’s what I call our RV) the next morning I still didn’t see her, I was trying really hard not to worry. Shadow was trying just as hard not to worry and trying not to look like he just lost his best friend!

I tried to go about my normal day and went out to trim some trees. About an hour went by and my trying not to worry wasn’t going to well! Then when I heard some gun shots in the distance and It wasn’t followed by the sound of Shiner’s bark my ability to not worry was right out the window.

I packed up my gear and went back to the camper to get Shiner’s food and Medicine (Since Shiner spends most of her time here, we now have her food and medicine).

Anyhow I loaded up the mule, and then Shadow and I went to find her. We drove down by the park near the office and

Shiner came a running!

She was just fine and Shadow and I worried for nothing!

The two of them enjoyed their meal together When Shadow and I started to leave Shinner started following us, the kids in the park were yelling Shinner… Come back, Shinner… etc.

I told her to stay and drove off as fast as I could. It broke my heart, but I figured they will leave tomorrow and maybe Shinner will come back to us for now, she needs to be with them.

Shinner is after all the Ranch Dog, I just think she lives in our RV!

Larger and more Photos of Shiner, Shadow and the Ranch can be seen here: Click Here for more Shiner and Shadow Photos!

Click here for photos of Guests and Sights at the Ranch

Technorati Tags: Shinner,Double S Ranch,Guests,Staff,Dogs,Love Is,Ranch Dog,Hugs and Kisses,Deer Lake Cabin,Meals on Wheels,Wild West,Journal,Heartfelt

Cedar Loft Cabin: The Perfect East Texas Getaway! Deer Lake Cabins Double S Ranch.

2012-01-08T00:15:00.002-06:00

The Wild West is almost all done, Dave still has 3 new windows to put in but he had to quit the work over the holidays because it was already booked out.

So we moved on… TF Tiling and Remodeling at the Cedar Loft Cabin which was next on our list!

Initially Dave was just going to put in new flooring and counter tops. But after getting inside and taking a closer look, it needed more work than that. The Photos below are the before photos. I will post After photos when it is all done.

It needs a new paint job (walls, ceilings and trim) and some of the doors need repair.

Then instead of just putting down new flooring, the whole floor had to be ripped out down to the joists,

because it is so uneven it is the only way to lay a straight floor! Dave will need to be cut the joists down then put in the hardy backer then put in the new flooring!

So Cedar Loft will be out of commission for three weeks instead of two as initially planned. To date we have all the old carpeting ripped out carpet strips and staples removed, washed down the trim so it could all be painted, scraped all the popcorn style plaster off all of the ceilings, and we removed the entire floor in the living room.

Both the bedrooms are completely done: they have been repainted, the new wood looking floors are installed, the closet doors we reframed and rehung and etc.Photos won’t be posted until the rest of the Cedar Loft Cabin is completed.

For Complete photos on the rip out and or Larger Photos of the ones on here…

please click on the photo link below.

Click Here for the Photo Album

When the work is all done here, This will be a perfect East Texas Getaway! it will be an awesome cabin to stay in! I love the balcony deck with the view of the horses!!!!

Incase you can’t read it it says, “ The Perfect choice for those planning on staying at Deer Lake Cabins with another family or friends. With these cabins you can be close but still have plenty of privacy!

These are the only Cabins with a view of the Ponies! Watch them play or keep your eyes open for the 12 point buck who roams around this area. These cabins are also right by Dream Lake, a stocked fishing pond; so don't forget your fishing pole!

Technorati Tags: Deer Lake Cabins,TF Tiling and Remodeling,Cedar Loft Cabin,Cedar Cabin,Ponies,12 point buck,stocked fishing pond,Dream Lake,Perfect East Texas Getaway

Guests at Deer Lake Cabins Enjoy a morning Horseback Ride

2012-01-07T10:21:00.001-06:00

I knew there was a scheduled horseback ride this morning, so I headed down to the barn with my camera.

Dora and Isa are going for a morning ride, the rest of the crew was there to see them off.

Isa rode on Cody, Dora rode Hollywood, Dave took up the end spot with Mister to assist Nicki on the trail ride, with her horse Gambler.

They rode for about an hour and really enjoyed their ride. I have a photo album below of some sights and activity at Deer Lake Cabins:

Photo Album Here

Technorati Tags: Horseback Riding,Deer Lake Cabins,Blackjack,Black Jack,Gambler,Guests,Trail Ride

Metal Detector Finds With Minelab’s X terra 705

2011-12-30T19:32:00.002-06:00

I have been able to get some detecting in as well! I haven’t found anything too cool yet, but I did find $2.43, plus a really old nickel, some bullets, buckles, buttons and and whole lot of Iron!

I know what some of these things are, but please feel free to comment and tell me if you know what something is, or if you know that something might be worth more than the cost of its recycled worth!
You can see a complete album of my finds here: Detecting Finds:
Shadow and Shiner follow me everywhere I go, so I always have my guide dogs, that keep me safe in the woods!
Shiner is camouflaged in this photo, it is like, “where’s Elmo”!
Shiner loves to dig holes,

I always cover my holes back up then when I am done doing that, I have to go and cover all of Shiner’s holes! Shiner doesn’t just dig holes, she digs trenches! She sticks her nose in the ground about 4 inches and then pushes while she digs! She would be a great addition to the cable company if they are hiring! No Shovel required!
Shadow and Shiner will run off every now and then and chase the deer around,
but mostly these two will not be too far away from me.
They both like riding on the mule, Shadow on the seat and Shiner likes to sit on the floor so she can get out fast! She tries to jump out when it is moving so I put a bungee up so she can’t do that.
Shadow won’t even get off the seat unless I take the key out of the ignition! He doesn’t take chances that I might go somewhere without him!

Anyhow, we are hoping to get a good amount of time in detecting tomorrow, so hopefully I can find some great things!

Technorati Tags: Deer Lake Cabins,Wild West,Shiner,Shadow,Metal Detector Finds. Minelab Metal Detector,

Tags: What is it? Metal Detecting Mystery finds

Wild West Cabin Remodeled By TF Tiling and Remodeling Completed

2011-12-25T14:18:00.001-06:00

I didn’t get a photo of the Master Bedroom before we piled it full of all the other stuff from the other rooms. We Scraped the popcorn plaster off the ceiling and painted the ceiling. Tore out the old carpeting and put in the new floor and of course put up the doors on the closets.

The Same with the photo of the living room, we had already emptied most of it into the bedroom before I took any photos.

View Photo Album Here: Wild West 1' target=_blank>Photo Album of Remodeling Project of Wild West

Technorati Tags: TF Tiling and Remodeling,Wild West,Scroggins Texas,Deer Lake Cabins,Greenville WI,work camping

Merry Christmas From Deer Lake County in Kings Country

2011-12-25T13:33:00.001-06:00

We went to the staff Christmas party on the 15th, it was nice.

Shadow and Shiner waited patiently for us out in the rain, Shadow didn’t mind he had his favorite rug and Shiner was smart enough to lay under the overhang. Shorty, Nicky and Joe’s dog came inside because the other two dogs intimidate him!

We had Mexican food and did a gift exchange, it was a good time. Cathy did a great job pulling it all together.

Christmas Day Johnny took Dave and I to Mt. Pleasant

for Breakfast at the IHop. It was a really good time.

Johnny gave me all the names of the riding horses, I took notes so when I post photos of most of the horses I will now have names to put with them!

We haven’t gotten any snow here it is all in West Texas, we did get rain and we even got a rainbow on Christmas, it wasn’t very colorful but because it was on Christmas it was a beautiful sight!

Simple but nice Christmas, just the way I like them!

Technorati Tags: Ihop,Mt. Pleasant,Texas,Rainbows,Dogs,Horses,Cypress Springs Texas Water Tower

Wow Nearly 3 weeks at Deer Lake Cabins!

2011-12-17T22:14:00.004-06:00

It is so hard to believe that tomorrow will be our 3rd week here!

I haven’t had much time to blog because I haven’t spent much time on the internet.

Dave and I are continuing the work in the Wild West Cabin,

The Floors are in and all the painting is done, I will wait until we get the trim up and get the furniture back where it belongs before I show the pictures of the floors.

Today we hung two Double Size Doors in the master Bedroom and took out the curtains that were previously used to cover the closets, I will get photos of those after they are stained.

This past week there has been less for me to do to help him; so I have done more tree trimming

Before: After:

These vines grow uncontrollably and take over the trees and the ground. It takes a couple hours just to clear a small area. These vines grow so thick, they will prevent dead trees from falling and make it nearly impossible to cut out dead limbs. The vines hug the ground so tight you can’t run a rake two inches before it is held in place by the vines.

I would probably be able to get more done if I had decent tools, all we have is a cheap Fiskar Pole saw that Dave picked up for me at Home Depot. If I were getting paid to do this kind of work, I would request a Silky pole saw! I get paid when I am helping Dave which is really nice. When I do outside work, it just makes me feel good doing something more constructive than sitting on the internet all day or metal detecting all day.

Technorati Tags: Deer Lake Cabins,Wild West,Shiner,Shadow,Tree Saws,TF Tiling and Remodeling

Deer Lake Cabins Double S Ranch Week one and two!!!

2011-12-09T23:19:00.001-06:00

Meeting the owners was a pleasure. Both Sally and Stan are very nice and down to earth type of people.

They seemed happy with Dave and I and our work so far. Dave spent more time going over things with them and got the details on other cabins and the work they needed to have done.

Dave and I have been here for nearly two weeks already and if this is any indication of how fast our winter is going to go we should just head for home! Time is just flying!

We have been very well taken care of here and really appreciate the internet connection. We are most likely spending most if not all of the winter here. There seems to be plenty of work and so far we are very happy.

We have done quite a bit of work in the Wild West Cabin, We have torn out the old and put plastic on all the outside walls, put up dry wall, taped, mudded, painted, scrapped off the popcorn style plaster on the ceilings and pulled out the sink and cupboards.

Last week Dave worked with Benito to raise part of the foundation of the cabin and I spent a few hours, cutting down vines and over grown trees by the tanks. It looks much better, Benito came and started working on the big downed trees and plans to pick up my pile of brush on Sunday.

Kitchen:

So we are making progress, I hope to post more things than just work, so please keep checking for animals and other things!

Technorati Tags: TF Tiling and Remodeling,Work Kamping,Scroggins,Texas,Deer Lake Cabins

Wild West Cabin at Double S Ranch

2011-11-30T21:54:00.000-06:00

Dave and I started our first remodeling project. We tore out the paneling and trim in the Wild West Cabin at the Deer Lake Cabins on the Double S Ranch.

The Wild West Cabin is next to our RV, so I cleared a path so we could easily get back and forth without falling in holes, or tripping on the vines and roots that were coming out of the ground. It is much nicer and easier to haul the tools back and forth.

Tomorrow we will put up plastic on the outside walls and start taking up the floors. We will then find out from Stan and Sally what else they would like done.

Dave and I work great together and it has been fun working with him again like I did when our business, TF Tiling and Remodeling first got going.

Technorati Tags: TF Tiling and Remodeling,Deer Lake Cabins,Wild West

Deer Lake Cabin’s Double S Ranch

2011-11-29T21:59:00.001-06:00

One of many beautiful views at the Double S Ranch in Scroggins, Texas.
We are getting settled in and finding our way around and getting to know some of the animals and staff.
Everybody here is so nice and so down to earth, it is a very comfortable atmosphere. When we first got here we met the first animal, a grey kitten that came up to eat Shadow’s food.
The next day we saw the cat again, but this time Shiner was with us. The cat survived its encounter with the two dogs.
Dave and I were riding on the mules
to the different horse stables on the ranch, (they are spread out). When we got up by the youngest horses, we saw several deer in the pen with the horses!

The deer are all over the place on the ranch, I rarely go out with out seeing a half dozen of them! We are told that there are also Bob Cat’s, Mountain Lions, Wild Boars, Coyote and other critters around too; than goodness I haven’t seen them!
On our way back to our RV we stopped ran into Johnny, one of the ranch workers. He owns some of the horses here. He takes care of a lot of the horses, in particular the cutting horses. He trains and works with them.
Stan and Sally, the owners of the ranch have cattle that they keep on the ranch for training purposes. Some day I hope to watch him while he works.
Shiner follows Shadow and I everywhere we go, she sleeps in our camper at night, the first night she slept under the table, the second night she started whining when we went up to bed.
She apparently wanted to be closer so I drug her dog bed up to the bathroom and open the door to our room. She just kept looking up at the bed, and then over by the foot of the bed where Shadow Sleeps, I know she is working on getting even closer!
When we let her outside she will lay in front of the window, I have to pull the shade so I don’t feel guilty leaving her outside while I feed Shadow!

Technorati Tags: Deer Lake Cabins,Double S Ranch,East Texas,Horses,Ranch Dog,Shiner,RV

Double S Ranch Deer Lake Cabins Nov. 27

2011-11-27T21:27:00.000-06:00

We got to the ranch before noon, Kathy one of the employees met us at the gate and got us safely to our RV spot.

We had to stop and trim a few trees in order to get through, but we made it!

They had hooked up an RV site just for us and our stay! They put in water, 50 amp electric and Sewer! When we were driving to our spot, one of the horses was very curios and watched us closely while we were parking our RV. I later found out his name is Bandit and he is a Stallion, he watched us very carefully. I already claimed him as one of my favorites!

The grounds are just BEAUTIFUL! They got us set up with a couple of Mules and or golf carts to get around the 850 plus acres on the ranch.

When I went to the office to get the mule, I met Shiner the ranch dog, who greeted me with kisses! I drove the mule back to the RV which is about a half mile away and helped Dave set up the rest of the Camper.

We were a little concerned how Shadow was going to do with the cats on the ranch, (he does fine with house cats, but I wasn’t sure how he would do with wild/pet outside cats. It didn’t take long to figure that one out, we were putting out rugs and stuff and a beautiful grey cat showed up under the camper.

Shadow did awesome, he tried sniffing, she swatted at him and told him that cats rule! She then proceeded to eat his dog food that was on his rug in front of the RV! Then I put out two water bowls on opposite sides of the rug. Shadow is drinking out of one and the cat is drinking from the other; I wished I could have gotten a photo of his first cat encounter here!

Later Angie, another employee gave us a tour and showed us all around the ranch. This is when Shadow got to meet Shiner. After the normal dog sniffing party they engaged in some dog play, so I think they are going to get along just great!

We got back just shy of dusk, so we had time to take a short walk to look at the lake near our camper. It was a great way to complete our first day.

The only downfalls are 3 TV channels (I liked only having one in Dragoon so Dave can’t Surf all the time LOL)

No internet, I could handle that for a week or two but I don’t think I would want to go without it all winter. I later found out that the owners are working on getting internet on this part of the ranch, so it may not be an issue after all!

I guess we are going to get to meet the owners, Stan and Sally on Thursday, so we look forward to that. Tomorrow I look forward to getting over by some of the horses and Introducing myself!

Technorati Tags: deer Lake Cabin's,double S Ranch,horses,dogs,employees.

2011-2012 Fourth Year of Winter RVing the Southern States.

2011-11-26T22:02:00.000-06:00

We left WI on Friday Morning the 25th of November, Shadow’s Birthday. We drove about 12 hours with stops and spent the night in a Truck Stop in Poplar Bluffs, Arkansas.

We were going to stay in the Wal-Mart parking lot, but the squealing tires and young kids hanging around didn’t leave us feeling any to safe!

The Truck Stop was just outside of town, it was small but a nice place to spend the night.

Day Two: Drove with stops for about 7 hours and spent the night at the Atlanta State Park. We were very surprised to find out that you can fish in any Texas state park WITHOUT a Texas fishing license! That is REALLY awesome! Unfortunately for us it was raining and cold; so other than a short walk we didn’t do anything outside the RV.

We played some cribbage and that was about it.

We are both excited to find out what the Ranch we are headed for is going to be like. The photos of it look beautiful. It is the Deer Lake Cabin’s Double S Ranch in Scroggin’s, Texas. They hired Dave to do some remodeling and other maintenance types of things.

We have talked to the owners on the phone, they sound nice and we are hoping that the place is as pretty as the photos and the owner’s are as nice as they seem!

I guess we will find out soon!

Technorati Tags: Double S Ranch,Deer Lake Cabin's,Scroggin's,Texas,Fishing in Texas State Parks,RVing.

Thank You for those of you who have responded to our Ad

2011-11-14T22:13:00.003-06:00

We have a couple of promising leads for work for this winter, and are very excited to be getting on the road again! I might have an opportunity to be around some horses and that REALLY makes me happy!

I am not sure our whole winter is filled, so please continue to contact us if you are interested in hiring us.

Once we are on the road, I will try to get some more exciting blog entries on here instead of work related and resumes!

In the meantime enjoy some of my favorite entries: Just click on any of these titles for the posting.

When do Rattlesnakes come out of hibernation?

How To Get Your Partner To Stop Snoring

11 Tips for safe Hiking in the Desert:

I was starting to lose hope

Contractor With RV Looking For Seasonal Work: Development / Excavation or Any Type of work.

2011-11-07T00:21:00.003-06:00

This would be my husbands idea job! We are a Semi retired RVing couple looking for work in a warmer climate for the winter months (the end of November 2011 – the first week in April. Last year I cleared trees and and leveled the ground. I also planted new trees in the new area in the camp ground. I also formed up cement patios pads, also installed patio pavers, ran electrical and sewage piping for new sights.
This was at the KOA in Blythe California, This park was located right on the Colorado River, While we were here, I also did some remodeling work. Put a bathroom in the living quarters for their regular maintenance man! This was in Arcadia Louisiana, where I also did some grounds work and some building repairs. Dave has farm experience and has his CDL license. He can drive just about anything. (If there is something he hasn’t driven, I am sure he could learn VERY quickly!
Cindy and Shadow did some public speaking and education.

We also recovered a lost wedding ring for a friend of the owner of the resort. They hired someone two years ago to find the ring and had no luck. But with my assistant Shadow;
and my Minelab x terra 705 metal detector, we took turns digging and we found it!
We also cleaned up the swimming beach of broken glass, bottle tops and all sorts of things lurking under the sand!
These are just some of the jobs we can do and are available for hire starting the end of November. You can continue to scroll down this page or go to my most recent entry's and you will find cover letters, resume, job experiences and if you want to know ALL about us, keep on reading!
There are some pretty funny stories, heart touching moments and RV tips that we have shared on the road. The most viewed pages include these: When do Rattle Snakes Come out of Hibernation, 11 Tips for Safe Hiking, and Dave locking himself in the tool shed! Look around, have fun. If you are interested in hiring us for any amount of time for this winter, please send me an email.
I will send you more information, answer questions and etc.
RV Work' target=_blank>Click here to see photo album with photos of us and some of our past jobs and life on the road.
Click on any photo to make it larger, then use the arrow or watch slide show.

Technorati Tags: Work Camping Couple,Excavation,Landscape,Electrical,Sewer,Installing Patio Pavers,Metal Detecting,Finds,For Hire.

Professional Couple Looking For Ranch Work For Winter of 2011- 2012 in a Warm Climate

2011-11-06T02:05:00.002-06:00

Preferred States: Texas, Georgia, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and etc.

My husband Dave & I are leaving WI in late November we are looking for work. We are Responsible, Quiet, Don’t Drink or Smoke & have No Criminal Record!

We own and operate a small family business called TF Tiling and Remodeling LLC. We have been in this business for the past 11 years. All of our customers could be used as references, because we have never had one that wasn’t 100% satisfied!

Dave’s skill level and work ethic is the key to our success. He does an excellent job no matter how big or small. He works hard, gets the jobs done on time and requires no supervision. He has done all sorts of carpentry work ranging from small repairs to building a house! (I can send you photos of past jobs upon request). He also can operate just about any type of heavy machinery and he does have a CDL license! (Commercial Drivers License).

(Make sure you read through the whole posting so you know what we do besides tile and remodeling work)!

You can hire 1 of us or both of us, for 1 week or a few months! We would love to find a temporary job that will last anywhere from one week to a couple of months. We would prefer a place where we can hook up our RV. All we really need is electricity; but sewer and water would be fantastic! We have a beautiful 40’ fifth wheel Toy Hauler. Dave brings all of his tools with him and he can use our truck to pick up supplies!

We can do all different kinds of work, but are the happiest when it is on a horse ranch! We love the animals the atmosphere and the work!

We have a dog and love being someplace where he doesn’t always have to be tied up!

Last year Dave was hired to refurbished FEMA trailers, remodel cabins, Casita's, and park models. He remodeled a cook house, built new troughs, fence repairs and all kinds of general maintenance. (I don’t consider Dave to be a “Jack” of all trades; he is more like the “Master” of all trades)!

I (Cindy) did general work around horses including mucking, brushing and making improvements to their stalls. I was told by a ranch owner that I would be and excellent imprinter. I felt humbled by such a compliment! (I was a therapist for 26 years) so when it comes to interpersonal communication it comes to me naturally. What I didn't know is that the horses seem to benefit from these skills too!

I have also been hired to do metal detecting work on private property. Last year I was hired by a ranch owner in Arizona and recovered civil war relics for them.

Dave has taken the back position on many trail rides even in rough terrain. He really enjoys riding and socializing with everyone, I know he would love to do the whole dude ranch thing where he could cook and sit around the fire and talk to the guests! For me, I can do the socializing thing, but honestly I’d rather be talking to the horses! Neither of us has a whole lot of experience pertaining to horses, but what we lack in or knowledge we make up for with love and we learn quickly!

Depending on the type of work you would have for us would depend on the wage we would ask for. If it is work that any general hire could do; I am sure your normal hourly rate would be acceptable. If you are looking for the skills of a professional Contractor, a fair wage would need to be offered. We would consider any amenities such as RV hook ups, Wi-Fi, cable and etc. as part of the wage.

I have a photo album on Picasa (Google's Photo Page) This has photos of us and some of our past jobs. It will show you some of our adventures as well. Click on the photo below it will bring you to the photo album, (when you get there click on any photo to make it larger then use the arrow by the photo to go through them).

RV Work

If you are interested in discussing this further, or if you have any questions, feel free to contact us.

Thank You in advance for your consideration of our resume.

Cindy and Dave

Resume from a couple who live in their RV for the 2011-2012 winter. Workamping Couple

2011-11-01T01:50:00.002-05:00

Looking for jobs down south for the winter.
A week or two of work or several weeks. Horse Ranches would be a BIG plus!

Our Resume is below. Be sure to check out the blog for a lot of other information!

About us:
We are in our late 40’s, down to earth, honest, hard working people. Most people find us likeable; we do not drink or smoke, we are responsible, clean and quiet! We have never been arrested and both could easily pass a background check! We started traveling to southern states from November to April in 2009.

We have an 11 year old Border Collie Mix, he is Canine Certified and can go into nursing homes and hospitals. He loves to perform and make people laugh. (At the Yogi Bear resort, he became the golf cart mascot; he rode on the gulf cart while we escorted Campers to their camp location. He was the talk of the town, but don’t tell YOGI!

Types of Jobs we had while traveling: Bathroom Remodels, Installed Ceramic Tile, Built skirting and decks for park models, Paint and trim work, installed siding, Installed patio paver's, tree removal, and ditch digging.
We have also had several jobs that didn't require contractor skills! We have done miscellaneous camp ground hosting duties, bar and grill, horse ranches, horse grooming, mucking and general maintenance and repairs.

Our Qualifications:
We own and operate a successful Tiling and Remodeling business in Wisconsin and have our own liability insurance. Our small family Company was started in 2001 We have non stop work when we are back home and haven't advertised in over 8 years!
By treating our customers and their homes the way we would want to be treated, keeping our appointments and time lines and by providing top quality work has kept us going just by word of mouth.

Dave’s Qualifications: He is a contractor by trade and can do most any type or building and repair work. His favorite work activities are jobs that require power tools or operating heavy equipment! He has a valid CDL (but no Fed Med card). He can drive anything from a Bob Cat to an 18 wheeler. He has experience landscaping, working on farms dairy labs and etc. Dave's work ethic, knowledge base, and skill level are top notch! (He has most of his tools with him, so if you hire him for a project you don’t have to worry about that)!
Limitations: Dave has no physical limitations and is willing to work 15 to 40 hours per week.

More about Cindy’s Qualifications: I am not anywhere near as handy as Dave, (LOL) but here is some information about me: I am a licensed therapist certified by the State of WI. I worked in Behavioral Health as a therapist for 25 years. Prior to my disability, (I have nerve damage in my leg) I also worked with Dave in our business and we drove team for a local trucking company. I still hold a CDL License (no Fed Med Card). I have some computer skills: making flyers, announcements, business cards, web pages, blogs and more. I can place ads online for advertising or selling, however I am not good with excel or office programs. I prefer to work in places that my dog can go; therefore I prefer to with animals instead of people. I can do a lot of work from our RV for your office. I will gladly work in the office, if Shadow can come inside .

References From Other RV Parks and Resorts:
Brandon Johnson: Owner: (800) 562-3948 KOA (Colorado River) Blythe, CA
Ray Worshen: Owner: (318) 263-2437 Bonnie & Clyde Trade Days Arcadia ,LA
Linda Kelly: Owner: (520) 586-7533 Triangle T Guest Ranch Dragoon, AZ
Ken Butschek: Owner: (512) 266-8001 La Hacienda RV Resort Austin TX.
Nick Kuklenski: Owner: (817) 874-1035 Lone Oaks RV Valley View, TX
John Kaylor: Manager: (260) 687-1114 Yogi Bear Resort Pelahatchie, MS
John Werchan: Caretaker: (830) 796-3510 Camp Sionito San Antonio, TX

If you are interested, please contact us.
Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
Dave and Cindy S

Technorati Tags: working Couple,Resume,workamping,for hire,horse ranch,2011- 2012 winter season,southern states.

RVer’s Looking for work for hire, or Barter for two weeks to two months during the winter of 2011-2012

2011-11-01T01:08:00.002-05:00

Dave and Cindy
are looking for work as work campers or just to barter some work hours for RV hook ups. for the winter of 2011 –2012.
We prefer horse ranches or anything with animals looking mainly at these states: Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, Arizona (someplace with minimal snow and mild temperatures)!
We leave WI toward the end of November, then we just head south and stop at places where we find work.
We aren’t looking for a 3 month position, we like to move around so we can see more things on our travels. (we would consider a three month term depending on the circumstances).
The blog entry before this one has more information on the type of work we do and has more of our personal information on it as well. I have a link to that entry toward the end of this writing.
I will be doing several entries with our work experience in the next week or two, so come back and look again to see if we might be just the couple you are looking for!
We started workamping in random places in 2008, at that time we didn’t even know there was a term for this: “workamper”, we learned about that the following year!
Our first RV job was one we landed just by stopping and talking with the owner- We told him that we were looking to barter some work for full RV hook ups. The next thing I knew we were parking our rig and staying for a while at the Lone Oak RV Park in Valley View, Texas.
Dave did mostly maintenance work while we were there.
Shadow (our dog) and I got our first introduction to some ranch animals and spent our time around them when I wasn’t helping Dave. I hadn’t been around ranch animals for over 30 years; and Shadow had never been around them before! They had Horses, Llama's, Goat and Sheep!

I loved being near the animals, but truth be told, I was too afraid to go in by them or let a horse eat out of my hand!
(If you put the word “horse” in my search bar on the blog you will find out how much that has changed in the past 3 years)!
I am now the happiest when I am around horses, my connection with them is really strong. I really hope we can find work on a horse ranch or several different horse ranches this winter!
Dave can mend or fix nearly anything, and I love working outside in stalls with horses in them. I don’t mind mucking, brushing or just talking to them for hours on end!
Please Click right here to see our work history and qualifications. (this is a look at my previous blog entry which is like our resume so you can see what other work experiences we have working on a Ranch or RV Resort).
Then check back in a day or two where I will outline our next job while on the road in our RV- Like I said, I would prefer to work on a horse ranch, but mainly we just need work. If you have any job for us please contact us.

Technorati Tags: Work Camp,Barter,Horse Ranch,Texas,RV,Couple,Resume,Workamp,2011 2012 winter work,hard working couple

2011 2012 Winter Season Seasonal Work Responsible Couple Looking for Work in exchange for RV Hook ups and/or for Hire

2011-10-26T18:34:00.001-05:00

My husband and I are leaving Wisconsin in late November and traveling somewhere warm! We stay down south until the first week of April.

We are looking for a place where we can work approx.10 hours a week each or 20 hours from one of us in exchange for full RV hook ups. We would work more hours for pay or all of it for hire if you weren’t able to accommodate us with RV Hook Ups and there was someplace close by to stay.

Last year we both worked in a bar and grill at a Guest Ranch, did some fence building, general landscaping, tree pruning and more! We can do all different kinds of work, but are the happiest when it is on a horse ranch! We love the animals the atmosphere and the work! Also we have a dog and love being someplace where he doesn’t always have to be tied up!

Neither of us are wranglers, but Dave has taken the back position on many trail rides. He really enjoys riding and socializing with everyone. He would love to do the whole dude ranch thing where he could cook and sit around the fire and talk to the guests.

For me, I get a long with everyone and can do the socializing thing, but honestly I’d rather be talking to The horses! If there are stalls with horses in them, I would rather in there mucking or brushing them then riding them! I was told I would make an excellent horse talker, (I don’t remember what it was called, but someone who talks to them and gives off a positive energy). I was a therapist for 26 years and I am a natural when it comes to interpersonal communication. What I learned two years ago is that the horses seem to benefit from these skills too!

Dave skills are in a whole different area, I don’t consider him to be a “Jack” of all trades, he is more like the “Master” of all trades! We own and operate a small Tile and Remodeling Company. He has been doing this for 12 years now, and has never gotten negative feedback from anyone! His work ethic and skills are excellent! He is for hire for skilled work while we are on the road too!

Depending on the type of work you would have for us would depend on the wage we would ask for. If it is work that any general hire could do; I am sure your normal hourly rate will be acceptable. However, If you are looking for a skilled contractor and want to have something built or rebuilt or have some remodeling projects, that is another story. Back home he charges $40.00 an hour. While we are on the road, he will work for $25.00 to $35.00 an hour, depending on what discounts he will give based on the accommodations/amenities you are offering in exchange. He will even give you a discount if you can line him up with another remodeling type of job.

Last year he remodeled a cabin, a cook house, and a Casita; he also refurbished FEMA trailers and built new troughs at a horse ranch.

I will send you a copy of our resume upon request.

Thanks for Looking!

Cindy and Dave

Information pertaining to Belle Starr's Silverado Ranch

2011-07-19T14:52:00.001-05:00

I have recently received two comments on my blog; I don't usually do my blog while we are back home in WI, but because of the importance of this information, I felt compelled to share this with the rest of you.

The first comment was Anonymous, with a link to a video I could not even watch beyond the first minute! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkWmTQlaqt0

If the link does not work, just Google "Belle Starr's Silverado Ranch" and I am sure you will be able to find it.

By Anonymous: on Belle Starr’s Silverado Ranch in Douglas, AZ on 7/14/11”

youtube belle starr silverado ranch and know the truth!

From the Bayfield Bunch:

Hi Cindy & Dave, Az. stepped in and confiscated some of Belle's livestock. I can send you the links if you want. Some recent helpers had contacted us and it wasn’t good. I'm trying to find out about the dogs. Hope you 3 are well. We lost Checkers & Max in May within a week of each other. VERY difficult. We still have little Cora. Kelly By THE BAYFIELD BUNCH on Left Dragoon and Headed for the Gila Mountain area... on 7/18/11

This was my response to her and Al:

I would love to get the links and continue to learn more about what is going on there.

I got an anonymous comment on my blog last week with a link to a utube video.

That inspired me to send this to Mike Duffey who is an animal cruelty investigator in Tucson, Arizona:

“Hi Mike,

My name is Cindy; I called you Saturday at 11:30 a.m. and told you that I would send you this link.

(same as the one above) Please let me know when something has been done, I could not watch this video in its entirety; I am still shaking and crying. I can not believe this.

My second email to Mike: I have since learned that 12 animals were removed and there was a court hearing on July 06, 2011 to see if she could get them back.

My husband and I were on her ranch in 2009 in December, I posted information on my blog mostly a plea to help Belle get things back on track and to help improve the condition of the animals and their living environment.

Through my blog and/or emails from people I have met as a result of being at Belle's, I have been informed at times of some of the conditions in 2010. I know she was under investigation for animal neglect in 2010 as well.

What happens is that boondockers, like us come along, looking to trade free camping in return for some hours of work and that is how we stumbled upon her place.

When we first came to Belles, we tried to help as much as we could. But like many others before us and several after us the realization sets in that it is an up hill battle. I know of other boondockers and passer byes that have spent their own money trying to make things just a little bit better. Eventually we all have to move on and then things just sit until someone else happens along.

I think this is how she keeps dodging the bullet. It appears to the county that things are improving; but what they may not know is that NONE of it is on an on going basis; so things quickly deteriorate. This cycle just goes until the next RV’er comes along.

I also know that there were horse remains on the property when we were there two years ago, because we saw one. We were told it got a disease of some sorts and died. We did not think any more of it.

I was just wondering if you knew what was happening there or if you thought this type of information could be of any help to the County. I would love to see all of the animals removed from that ranch.

I can't believe that anyone could watch this video and think that any animal should be left behind.

If you have any thoughts or comments I would really appreciate it!

Thank You in advance for your efforts to try to prevent animals having to go through life like this.”

Back to my note to Kelly:

I sent this email on Saturday and have not gotten anything back from him yet.

I gave Mike my full name and phone number and gave him permission to use this information if he needed to in order to get results. I don’t care if Belle finds out; these animals need to be protected.

So yes, please do send me any links on any other developments and I will do the same thing on my end.

I am very sorry to hear about your dogs, I can’t imagine having to deal with the loss of one at a time, let a lone 2!

Thank you so much for contacting me, I hope all is good your way.

Thanks again,

Cindy

So that is all I know so far, I would be very interested in links and more information if anyone has any. I am not capable of watching some of the videos or looking at the pictures, but I will post as I see appropriate.

I have emailed the person who posted the video on utube and thanked her, I hope this information does not go unnoticed by those with the power to do something about it!

Have a great summer everyone, I will be back in November or sooner if I have something to share!

Technorati Tags: Belle Starrs Silverado Ranch,Animal Cruelty Investigator,Tucson,Arizona,Bayfield Bunch,Utube,Horses,Animals

Left Dragoon and Headed for the Gila Mountain area near Silver City, New Mexico

2011-04-24T12:58:00.002-05:00

                                                      MARCH 07, 2011

We spent two weeks in Dragoon, then planned to spend one week at the Hot Springs Ranch near the Gila National Monument.

We only had a four hour drive (or so we thought)! It all started out great, we spotted the Kneeling Nun Site along the way. It was actually cooler than what I thought it would be.
         When we got to Silver City we took highway 180 to 152 to 35 then back over to highway 15, that was the recommended route for larger vehicle's.
   We have a 2008 Dodge Cummings Diesel and a 40 foot trailer, we thought best to take this route!

We saw a signed that said the monument was 35 miles away, I was glad thinking that we are almost there.
Then we saw this sign:        it said it would take 2 hours from this point!
                          We are thinking no way will it take two hours to drive 35 miles…
                         Then we started down the road and came across things like this:

                                                 About an hour later we saw this sign:
                  Doc Campbell’s Post Gila Hot Springs Ranch 14 Miles
                        (Doc Campbell’s Store is right across the street from the RV park)
Normally a sign that says 14miles, you’d think that that would be about 15 more minutes of driving; but we knew all to well that we were looking at another hour!
I learned a trick on my Garmin GPS, and that is if you press and hold by the battery indicator, this screen pops up and shows you your elevation and your coordinates! I love this, as we were climbing from 4 to 7 thousand feet, we could watch and see how high we were.


The Dodge was working overtime with the elevations, then we heard the dreaded warning sound and then the light came on…
         so we pulled over.
Dave read the Dodge manual it said, just to sit and let it cool so we did. Up to this point I was doing pretty good as far as being nervous goes.

When we pulled over our elevation was over 7400 feet, I was a little more tense when we got back on the road, then way more tense when we started seeing the steep downgrade signs!
We went down 1800 feet in 3 miles. We were no longer worried about the transmission, now we were worried about the brakes!
I was so glad when we finally got there, it was one heck of a drive!
                         The GPS Coordinates and Elevation of the Gila Hot Springs RV park


                  More information about the ranch and our visit there will be posted soon!

Technorati Tags: Gila Hot Springs Ranch,Silver City,New Mexico GPS,Garmin Tricks,Elevation,Coordinates,Kneeling Nun,Praying Nun

Connecting With a Friend in Dragoon

2011-03-31T22:56:00.002-05:00

Spent two weeks back in Dragoon at the Triangle T

I took a photo of the GPS coordinates, which shows the elevation at the gate being 4670 feet.,
Beemer, a friend called us when we were in Blythe and he is meeting us there for a two week visit.
Dave and Beemer met two years ago near Austin, Texas where they worked together at the same campground. Then last year Beemer showed up while we were workamping at the Triangle T.
What a surprise that was and proof the world is a small place!
   Dave and Beemer both look pretty happy connecting with their old friends!



         They worked together on remodeling the cook house.

They did a great job replacing the torn up screens and covering up the lower half, which needed to be done after a state inspection.
They got a chance to go for a bike ride,
and spend some time by the camp fire with their buddies!
For me, I spent most of my time by the horses
        mucking the stalls, brushing them and trimming the trees in the stalls and around the ranch.
Dave and I did some hiking with Shadow and Jada and again enjoyed the beautiful scenery.


The two weeks went really fast, we said our good byes and headed for Gila Hot Springs in New Mexico!

Technorati Tags: Work Kamp,old friends,GPS,Dragoon Elevation,Horses,Gila Hot Springs New Mexico

Finding the Arabian Horses… Day Two

2011-03-02T23:13:00.002-06:00

Got up early and went out by the horses, I mucked a few of the pens, Steve came out later and invited me to the big area to stand in the middle as the horses ran. That was so cool!


It was so Beautiful to watch them all move. I have never seen Steve’s horses run! At Triangle T, they didn’t have the opportunity to run, they just stayed in there pen.
Monique started falling behind, and I encouraged her to keep going, she picked up her pace, passed
Rose Queen and then looked my way to make sure I was watching!

The horses would run a few laps, then stand as far away from Steve as they could, then watch intently to see if he was going to notice!

                  Steve would walk toward them and they would all take off running again!


Passion was so Beautiful , when she would run she would throw her head back and fan her tail.


                                              She is so majestic.
                      Rose Queen is also looking mighty fine! She too is a beautiful Horse.


                                       She loves to make faces.
Chocolate I found out is spelled Kchocolate, he is still the sassiest horse I have ever met!
             I can not get over how much he has grown up and how strong he looks!

   He is very handsome, Playful
and fast.
The rest of the horses are just as beautiful. I will post the rest of the pictures on my Picasa photo album.
              Dave and I left around noon, and made it in time to see Mystic and Recital.


Mystic came right up to the fence to see me, but the other horse moved in front of her and she backed off. I couldn’t go in the pen to see her, the person who now owns her wasn’t home.
Recital was too busy eating to acknowledge us;

                   but the ponies came right up to us so we could take a lot of photos!

             I got to see all of the horses and that has made me very happy.
                        Thank you again Steve for making that possible.
To see all the photos of the horses please click the link below.
Horse Pictures

Technorati Tags: Horse Pictures,Arabian Horses

I was starting to lose hope

2011-03-02T00:45:00.002-06:00

Just two days before leaving California I knew that if I didn’t find the owner of these horses now;
I may never get another chance to see them.
I had sent out over 100 emails the night before. I googeled every horse ranch, rescue, blog, stable, farm that I could find. Anything to do with horses and they got an email!
I am sure some places got my email more than once, because I started my search months ago and it was hard to keep track of it all.
The following night, I was working on another email I had about 50 more addresses on it; and was searching for more. When the ,”you got mail” sound came from my computer.
It was from a Ken guy I never heard of, I opened it and this it what it said, “ Cindy, I'm so very pleased you took the time to contact me. It sounds to me that you fell in love with the Arabian horses. I to, am in love with them. Mystic Airy Fame has been sold to a person in Tucson, along with Rose Queens' foal of 2010. He is outstanding. You would want him for your own.
Until he mentioned Mystic, I didn’t even realize this was not just an email about the guy who owns these horses; it was from the GUY HIMSELF!
Steve, the owner went on to tell me more about his location and his phone number. He said, “Please feel free to call me at ### ###-####. Please know in your heart, that you made a difference in my horses lives. Looking forward to hearing from you. Steve P.”
I screamed in delight and scared the crap out of Dave, by now I am crying and Dave is like, “are you alright, what is the matter etc.”
I said through my blubbering tears, “I found my horses!” It was the greatest feeling ever! I think I felt better than the guy who got his wedding ring back a couple of weeks ago!
It was late when I got the email, so I waited until the next day to give him a call. I was so excited, I don’t think I slept more than an hour all night!
Saturday came and went and Sunday we hit the road, the first stop… to see the horses!
This was the longest 3 hour drive ever! When we got there, Dave barely had the truck parked and I was gone. The first horse I saw was Monique.

Last winter at the Triangle T. Monique was very stand offish, She did not like to be touched or approached. I was told that the previous owner was abusive to her and that Steve had rescued her.
That explained why she did not like people in her pen. I always talked to her before I went in, making sure she knew I was there. At first, when I came in, she would get as far away from me as she could.
After spending a lot of time in her pen working or just talking to her, she started to trust me a little. She let me brush her out once or twice; but mostly it was just talking. I always called her “momma” because I was told that she was pregnant.
I did not think that I made much much of a difference for her in her life.
That was until February 20th, when we got to Steve’s house.
I saw her in her pen, and said, “Hi Monique… how’s my momma!” I approached her she did not back away. I always approached her with my hands behind my back, when I got closer, I expected that she would flea, but she didn’t, she just looked at me. I got up to the fence and stuck my head inside, I was amazed when she moved toward me.

When Monique was close enough I just blew a little,(I was told if you blow your breath into a horses nostrils they will never forget you; so I use to do it last year at the ranch) she moved even closer to me then put her face right in my face. She had a wet face and green slimmed me, It was the most beautiful green slime I had ever seen! I did not move, expecting that she would touch and back off, but she did not move either. It was truly beautiful!
Steve later said, he was in awe to see that, because he had never seen her respond that way to anyone; not even himself!
I also got to see Passion, CC, Rose Queen, and Chocolate! It was totally awesome. The horses looked great and they all seemed so happy being back by Steve. Recital and Mystic are near Tucson and hopefully we will get a chance to see them tomorrow afternoon.
Steve had ask Ken if he would run the horses around a little so we could see them in action. That was totally beautiful! I have more pictures of them running, but I will share more of that tomorrow as well.

Steve and his partner were feeding, and giving some of the horses some medicine, they let us stay on their property overnight in our RV as it was getting late.

We could hear the Coyote’s howling in the near distance, we were told not to let Shadow out alone after dark and to check before going out.
I asked Steve and Ken if it would be alright if when I woke up, if I could come out and muck some of the stalls. I really enjoy doing that and that is how I was able to bond with the horses in the first place. I would have actually paid them to let me do it; of course I didn’t have to pay them; however I think they both thought I was nuts!
Now that I found and saw the horses, I thought tonight I am going to sleep like a baby; wrong! I was too busy thinking about tomorrow morning when I get to go back out by them!

Technorati Tags: Horses,Coyote's,Found Horses,Slime

Final California Activities Before Heading Back To The Ranch In Arizona

2011-03-01T02:09:00.002-06:00

We took some other motorcycle rides that I never got around to documenting, however if you are traveling in a Toy Hauler or Tow your Motorcycle behind your Vehicle, Blythe is an Excellent location to spend a couple of weeks.
From this location you have several different trips you can take ranging from a couple of hours to full day trips. If you don’t have a motorcycle, don’t worry the trips would be just as beautiful from your car, just not as much fun!
           scribble maps.com/maps

For cooler days and other types of adventures, having a four wheel drive can take you to some beautiful locations as well!
                       Our last trip was the blue line, which took us near the Salton Sea;
                               We stopped near Bombay Beach for lunch at the Ski Inn.
On the way back, we spent an hour at the Dunes and watched others play with their toys! The Dunes were wall to wall dune buggies. We were told it is a busy weekend at the Dunes because of “Presidents Day”.
First we stopped at the look out
Then made our way down the road
To the Glamis Store. All I could say was WOW! These machines were crazy bad!!!!
I loved this one:

           I asked a few guys if they wanted to trade
their wheels for Goldie and the Shadow Box; even though they were amused I couldn’t get any one to make the deal!

Technorati Tags: Blythe,CA.,Motorcycle Rides,Mapped Routes,Scenic Drives,Imerial Dunes,Bombay Beach,Joshua Tree,Quartzsite,Parker CA.,Yuma

Several Great Weeks at a KOA

2011-02-28T02:30:00.002-06:00

Leaving Blythe, CA after several wonderful weeks of fun, adventure and some work too!
Dave got a lot of work done around the campground, and had fun doing it.

(He is the happiest when he can play with his chain saw and operate heavy equipment!)

Shadow enjoyed his jobs: teaching,


                escorting campers to their sites,
                         cleaning up the beaches,

helping at the information booth, and assisting with one of the pancake breakfasts;   (I think he was asking this guy if he wanted more coffee!)
We enjoyed meeting new friends, socializing, and being part of your team.
       We will miss Noah, and the rest of the Johnson family; not to mention the beautiful sunsets!



Thank you all for a wonderful time at your beautiful campground, we will keep you in our thoughts and prayers, along with a couple extra prayers that Noah can take his “Make a Wish” trip real soon!
Shadow and I already miss you, you are an awesome young man!
Hopefully we will see you again next winter.

Technorati Tags: Work Kamp,KOA,Sunsets,Make A Wish Foundation

GPS Coordinates TO the Gargoyle Canyon (8 Miles South of Palo Verde, CA)

2011-02-19T23:24:00.006-06:00

It took us a few tries, but we finally found Gargoyle Canyon. The GPS Coordinates on the Road to the Correct Wash are: N33.31242 / W114.73717. At an elevation of 225 feet.

The drive through the wash is about a quarter mile. The GPS coordinates at the Canyon entrance are: N33.31211 / W114.74581

If you don’t have a four wheel drive, it might be best to walk the quarter mile to the canyon entrance. It is fairly flat, however the sand/gravel is pretty soft in spots and your tires could sink in.

If you do drive to the entrance, there is plenty of room to park and turn around.



The Canyon is Beautiful and you can walk right into it. If you are like us… We do it all the hard way! We went along the side of the Canyon up to the top, then all the way to the back then walked through the whole thing.
This is the view from the top it is beautiful and majestic!
Getting up here is not that difficult, it does include climbing on some loose gravel and fairly steep incline.
Once you get to the end of the top, and start your climb down you are again dealing with steep inclines and lose gravel. The walk through the Canyon from this direction is very difficult and Challenging.
If you go through the entrance from the front, is is a pretty easy walk.
So we started our journey into the canyon, A couple of times, we thought we would have to turn around and go ALL the way back around!
Just like Van Halen's song, “I been to the edge and there I stood and looked down ....

Here we had to back track a little, but managed to get to the other side. Dave had to carry Shadow off a 5 foot ledge! Shadow did not like that one bit! Shadow had to get close enough to the ledge so Dave could reach him. He dug his claws in and took a little of Dave’s skin with him. At this point, we had already walked about a mile, so now turning around would be a bit disappointing!
We go about a quarter mile and we hit Road Block Number Two:
Dave waited here: while I went ahead to check things out.
Here you had to sit on your behind then slide and wiggle your way to the other side. Shadow didn’t have any problem with this maneuver what so ever!
We decided it was passable, at least for the next quarter mile or more, so we kept on trucking along!
As we continued on our journey we came across Road Block Number 3:
This was a narrow ledge, followed by a 6 and a half foot drop!
This time Dave went to check it out while Shadow and I waited for him. We had two problems, one he had to be able to get down there, and #2 we had to get Shadow to walk along this ledge. He stops about half way through and looks down. I think he was trying to decide if he really wanted to do this or not!
I think he realized that walking straight ahead would be easier than trying to turn around so he kept on walking right to the PAPA! I am amazed by his instincts. It seems that Dogs know exactly what they need to do in situations like this. I don’t think the ledge walk was scary for him. The Scary part was again needing to get close enough to the ledge to let Dave grab him again! Now Dave is standing on some rocks he stacked up so he could reach Shadow, his platform isn’t all that big and having the cooperation of our dog is an important factor in this situation! Unfortunately Shadow resisted, he dug his claws into the rocks and puts all of his weight on his hind legs. (I don’t know if you ever experienced this with a dog or not, but their strength is unbelievable!)
I made my way across the ledge and helped unhook Shadow’s grip and got him in the right position so Dave could grab him. I would get one paw loose and he would lock down the other one! Again he dug his claws into Dave’s skin and ripped his shirt.
Dave bless his heart gets Shadow down safely and gives Shadow some praise for being a good boy. He is the most patient man I have ever met.
We are in awe of the beauty of the Canyon and took our time hiking through it.


We have gone maybe two miles now, when we came across a welcoming sight, a split in the Canyon. We knew now if we came across something we couldn’t get through, we only had to come back to this point to find an alternative route.
It didn’t take long before we came across Road Block Number 4:
This one was another pool of water, that had another drop off. Comparatively speaking, it looked a heck of a lot easier than our other challenges.
However, Shadow instinctively knew it was another situation he wasn’t going to like,
So… instead of walking with us… He just sits down!
To top it off, It looks like he is sticking his tongue out at Dave!
Dave is trying to tell Shadow; “it isn’t that bad”, “it is just a little ledge”… “It will be really simple”… But Shadow was having none of that!
Shadow’s response is like, “bite me”, “I am NOT going to do it!”
As for me, I am laughing so hard I am almost in tears, so I am not any help what so ever!
So now Dave has to go back up the ledge and try to convince Shadow to come down! This is footage for America’s funniest videos if I ever saw any!
It took a little coaxing, but Shadow eventually came down on his own. He was even able to jump this ledge on his own, he just couldn’t go the way he wanted to because of the pool of water.
Once we got to this point, we figured that this was the place that most people would walk up to, if they walked the Canyon from the entrance and not from the top to the back! From here to the entrance the walk was easy and it was also beautiful.
I am glad we did it the hard way, because we saw some things that most people who visit the Canyon miss. We saw some really neat formations, caves and shelves.
We also saw what looked like a skull in the rocks, we THINK it was just rocks that looked like a skull! Then this Cove Seat was really cool, It was certainly an adventure! If you keep your eyes open, you may even see a strange looking lizard!

Technorati Tags: Gargoye Canyon,GPS Coordinates,Hiking,Dog stories,Striped Tail Lizard

Looking for Gargoyle Canyon Near Palo Verde, CA

2011-02-15T00:26:00.002-06:00

Dave was talking to Brandon, and he had told him about the Gargoyle Canyon Near Palo Verde, CA.
Dave gets general directions, take the first wash after the brush past the farmers field… (LOL) So we did just that.
We headed past Palo Verde, found a wash and into it we went with our 2008 Dodge Ram Duallys and all down this rock bed, slash flat mountain road! He got out several times to move big boulders

and I got out several times to help hold brush back from scratching the truck.

We went as far as we could go in the truck and got out and walked about a mile and saw some beautiful sights, but nothing resembling a canyon! The most beautiful was a desert cactus in bloom. It was the only one for miles; its solitude made it even more beautiful!

So with no canyon in sight, Dave calls Brandon to get better directions… so we headed back down the road to the next wash!
This road was a little better, but still pretty rough. We were feeling pretty good about our perverseness and being convinced we were now on the right track… we came to a fork in the road!
Dave said what do you think , (he knows that I am never right about directions), so I figured he would go the opposite way of what ever I said! I just said that it looked like the road on the right was more traveled and he took it!
So down the bumpy road we went… went as far as we could and then walked about a half mile.
What we found was beautiful. The canyon or cavern looked like it caved in on itself. since Brandon said he hasn’t been here for years, so we figured he would like to see the pictures.
It Was all white limestone, it was so cool, Shadow led the way. Dave looking pretty pleased that we finally found it.
What we found was the Porky Pig Rock!
When you walk up to it, you can go down into the first cave, it has collapsed, so the walk would end there, unless your willing to do a little climbing!
            It was a really cool room.

We didn’t work this hard to get here, to see only one small part of the canyon, so we climbed to the top.
      From the top you could barley even see limestone. Then you get to the edge…

Even though Shadow is 10 years old, he loves to hike with us. Sometimes Dave needs to pick him up and get him over big gaps or big drop offs.
Then we started exploring… and found more rooms and dens,


    These Shapes and Patterns were on the back of the limestone. I can’t find any formations like this on the internet. They intrigue me, and I hope I can find some information on them.

                 If anyone knows what they are, PLEASE leave me a comment below!
When we got home, I decided to google Gargoyle Canyon, to see what it use to look like, before it fell in.
It was hilarious to look at the photos online and realize that we STILL haven’t found Gargoyle Canyon!
           In our attempt to find Gargoyle Canyon, we have discovered more Desert Beauty.

Technorati Tags: Limestone Formations,Searching for Gargoyle Canyon,Caves,Caverns,Pig Rock

The Desert Bar in the Buckskin Mountains “Nellie E Saloon”

2011-02-14T21:45:00.001-06:00

This solar desert bar is located on an old mining camp five miles into the Desert! The road, or lack or road, is not a maintained road. It is bumpy, uneven and in some places pretty tight when trying to pass another vehicle!
I am sure cars that don’t have four wheel drive make it there, but for me… I was glad we had it!
Once we reached the destination, it was well worth it. The Church was the first thing you could see.

The atmosphere was really cool;
I loved that we could take Shadow (our dog) with us; Shadow on the other hand, wasn’t too crazy about the bridge he had to walk over to get there!
(he walked very slowly and ears back and tail between his legs)
The band played excellent music and the live music started right away.
We went here on February 5th 2011, It was our 17 year wedding anniversary . This place was amazing, my only dislike was the food. Granted is does say right on the menu that all burgers are cooked well done. I did not think that meant burnt. It taste like crap. It was crunchy and disgusting.


I knew from reading about it online that they did not have cheese. I was going to bring my own cheese, but I forgot it! Not only did they not have cheese they also did not have tomatoes, lettuce, mayo… so there was no way to doctor up the burnt burger.
The whole not having cheese thing irritated me; how difficult could it be to include cheese and the other condiments for people who are willing to drive this 5 mile bump fest to get there!

they even had a horse shoe pit behind the outside bar.


We got there about a half hour before they opened and the place was already busy, within minutes, it was standing room only.
The buildings are made of scrap metal: random odds and ends.

The inside bar was also packed, they sold souvenirs in here.
This bar lead out to one of the outside patio’s              where you could eat, drink and listen to the music.
The bathrooms had look out windows, that viewed the mountains, and my husband!
    The doors on the women’s stalls were made out of cast iron and are VERY heavy. (If you bring Grandma here, be sure to go with her to the bathroom! The pipes are built right into the rocks. I am not sure what the men’s bathroom looked like on the inside, but I do know they also had a lookout window!
The staff was friendly and the whole concept of a solar bar in the middle of the desert is a big success! Like I said, my only dislike was the burger.


The owner house, is also solar powered and is right on the property.
      There are several cool rock formations and we also saw a lizard!

The "Nellie E Saloon" is located 5 miles off the Cienega Springs Rd exit on Hwy-95, approximately 5 miles north of Parker, Arizona. It is open on Saturday’s and Sunday’s from noon to dusk, Labor Day weekend through Memorial Day weekend.
THE BAR IS CLOSED During the week and during the HOT Summer Months.
   Below I put the link to the owners web page; he has more information, and more photos.
Click here to go to the official web page of the desert bar.

Technorati Tags: Nellie E Saloon,Desert Bar,Solar Bar,Live Music,food,Lizard

The Desert Races

2011-02-14T19:48:00.002-06:00

Technorati Tags: Desert Races,Parker CA

Dave and I took a ride to Parker to check out the desert races and to check out the Desert Solar Bar.
The race was a 100 mile race, we stopped and watched it for a half hour or so. It was cool to see the different types of vehicles. On our way there, when we glanced into the distance, all you could see was sand!
It was almost perfectly calm, I would think that would make driving a little rough! The sand never seemed to settle.
Spectators watched from all over the place. A lot of cars parked along the highway and the people found places to sit. Hill tops were most popular!   Some got a birds eye view, an eye in the sky! this guy I think had the best view ever! Have you ever watched a race while water skiing?!!    These people down below
          are sent running when this white car lost control and did some fish tailing right toward them. I think these people are nuts! I would not want to be standing or sitting this close to the action. From where we sat on top of the hill, we could see everything perfectly well!


Don’t know who won, it was just something neither of us have ever seen before.

This World Is A Small Small Place!

2011-02-11T12:05:00.002-06:00

     Since I posted my ad about the ring that I found at Goose Flats, I have spent hours and hours looking up lost and found ads, trying to find the owner of that wedding band that I found with the 10 diamonds on it.
I even posted an ad on Craigslist for the Inland Empire in California. I found an excellent lost and found web page just for rings. I even posted it on there.
Click here to check out this lost and found website.
Yesterday I was out metal detecting in the campground and Brandon, the owner or owners son comes up to me and says, “hey who’s names are in those rings you found?” I told him Richard and Nickie. He said, “Oh my gosh, you have got to be kidding me! Hold on one second…” Out of his pocket comes his comes his cell phone.
I am thinking yeah right… what are the chances, I thought he was just blowing smoke.
Next thing I hear him saying is, “Richard, have you or your wife ever lost anything at Goose Flats? Then I hear a pause on the other end and hear Richard say, “I lost my wedding ring about two years ago” Brandon says, you’ll never believe this, we have your ring here at the KOA.” Richard said, shut the front up”… (Okay… maybe that isn’t exactly what he said, but you figure it out!
Brandon no more than hung up the phone and Richard was standing at my camper door, with Brandon.

Richard’s smile was stuck like super glue! It was ear to ear and you couldn’t have knocked it off with a baseball bat!
                                   Richard told me    , he lost his ring about two years ago when it fell off of his finger while giving his dog a bath at the beach!
Devastated they hired a guy with a metal detector to try and find it, but all he turned up was bottle caps! The guy should have had the Minelab’s X-terra 705!
Thinking his ring was gone forever,he replaced his beautiful diamond band with a $10.00 band, just so he had a ring on his finger.
It turns out that Richard and Brandon are good friends. Brandon stood up in his and Nickie’s wedding and Richard stood up in Brandon’s wedding!
The best part of the story is the place Richard proposed to Nickie… on the beach at Goose Flats!

Nickie and Richards anniversary is less than a month away.
I am so happy they got their Circle Of Love back to put on his finger!
Getting the ring back to the owner has been the best part of our trip so far this year!
Maybe I should start my own ring finders company and Dave and I can travel to your location and find your lost treasure!

Technorati Tags: Lost and Found,Wedding Ring,small world,x-terra 705

K9 Logic was a Success

2011-02-11T03:56:00.002-06:00

I took Shadow to the beach early today so I could tired him out a little bit, before his big presentation.
He seemed to have a lot of fun. That was until he saw me pull out the bottle of Shampoo!

Oh no… a bath!!!! He loves the water as long as he is in control of it! LOL

We got to the community room, about 15 minutes early to give him a chance to wonder around and get use to the people coming in.

I thought it was going to be a huge group of four, but thank God a few more people showed up!
We had 15 or so, so that wasn’t too bad.

I first explain to the group a little bit about addiction and things that people can become addicted to. Like Alcohol or Other Drugs, Food, Shopping, Sex, Work, Gambling, Computer, Games and ETC.

   I share with the group that addiction is not a choice; I tell them about the insanity that an addict experiences.
A definition of insanity that I like is: a person doing the same thing over and over again expecting different results. This can only apply AFTER learning that life is better once this behavior is stopped.
Relapse and Addiction is just like that. One way for an addict to help themselves is by learning about replacement. An addict needs to find activities that are healthy and constructive. Finding things to do with your free time is really important.

This is where Shadow comes in… a replacement activity could be teaching a dog some clever tricks. This takes time and patience. Once that part is mastered you can take it one step further by getting your dog Canine Certified so you can take it to Nursing homes and hospitals. That is what I did with Shadow.

The smiles and laughter he brings to the faces of others is very rewarding to me. It is awarding to him to and he eats up all the attention he gets not to mention that he gets lots of treats for doing his tricks!

While I am talking about addiction I generally tell the group that I need to get something and I will be right back. As I leave I close the door behind me leave Shadow in the room. He will go to the door and start making grunting noises. As if he were saying, “momma don’t leave me"!

When I come back in the room I talk about how at first look, it would appear that perhaps Shadow is addicted to me. You will soon learn that that is far from the truth.

We go on with the presentation, now it is time for Shadow to do his stuff. At this point I show the audience some of the tricks that he can do. He knows how to: Shake , give Eskimo kisses, tells secrets , tells stories, imitate motorcycles, catches treats off of his nose , crawls like a baby , rolls over, stands, sits pretty, and fetches my slippers. A crowd favorite is first I tell him to lay down then point my finger at him and say, “Bang dead dog” and he slowly falls over. He will lay still until I tell him, “your alive!” When all of his tricks are over, he even takes a bow.

Once he gets going on the treats I could hand anyone in the room his bag of treats walk around the world and he would care less! (That is until the food was all gone!) Now a dog addicted to food isn’t really much of a story, but the reality is that he is not addicted to me or his food!

Through out the presentation, there are times where it looks like a switch goes off in Shadow’s head, he has this weird look on his face and stares strangely at my hands or the floor. I point this out to the audience, because he is beginning to show signs of his addiction. He is beginning to anticipate “his next fix”.

From the momma’s boy to the show dog to a dog that seems to be only thinking about one thing… his drug of choice. His preoccupation is obvious. He is no longer interested in our partnership, he is ignoring me and I feel hurt and unimportant in his life. How could he do this to me again! I must have done something wrong, I should have tried harder. If only I would have…

Sometimes I can get his attention again and get him back on track to finish out the performance. Sometimes I can’t, he is just gone. I am left holding the bag again, embarrassed, scared and alone. I do my best to salvage what I can.
These are some common beliefs and questions and feelings that a family member of an addict might go through.

Then when I am ready to show the group what it is that Shadow is addicted to, I tell them to watch his hind leg and his eyes. I move my hand close to my pants pocket, Shadow is trance like, just starring at my every move. I move my empty hand away and talk to the group a little more.

I move my hand back by my pocket and put my hand inside, the intensity in my dog’s eyes is unbelievable, his pupils are getting bigger and bigger.

You could throw treats at him at this point and he is more interested in getting his fix. His back leg begins to shake, just like the drug addict going through withdrawal.

He stares at my hands and watches my every move. I show him both of my hands and say, “I don’t have anything”. He looks a little disappointed, he may relax a little; but the power of addiction has him in its grip. The cycle is in motion and it won’t be long before he uses again if he doesn’t get help.

Again my hand goes for my pocket, this time I take the object out of my pocket and turn it on…
It is a laser light! I shine it on the floor, run him around in circles, and up walls. He just goes nuts for this thing. I turn it off and he just stares, sometimes at me others he will stare at the last place he saw the light.
Now lets check out an addicts ability to make sound decisions. I have the laser light in one hand and a piece of ham in the other. I throw the laser light on the left side of me and the meat on the right.

Shadow stops dead in his tracks. The dog doesn’t know which one to go for! Now that is NOT normal!
An addict does not know how to make sound decisions and may quit doing things they should be doing.
He will stare at this in anticipation, waiting for the next time, convinced that it will be different this time… He doesn’t love me or his treats any less, It is just that his addiction is causing him tunnel vision.

                              The only thing in his world right now is the laser light.

The addict isn’t the only one in the family that gets sick, this illness affects the whole family.
If left untreated it can destroyed you and your life. There is help available, you can google “addiction services”or contact your local human service office.

For those of you that came to the presentation Thank you for taking time to learn through K9 Logic
For animal activists Shadow WAS not hurt by this in anyway. I exaggerate his affects to make a point.
By using him in lectures and presentations for clients in treatment programs, he has been able to help others understand the power of addiction. It is a great technique for treating resistive clients.

Looking for a horse actually horses! Mystic, Passion, Monique, Chocolate, CC, and…

2011-02-08T02:18:00.003-06:00

These are horses that I spent a lot of time with last year, I heard that they are being boarded in Maricopa, not sure if it is the city or the county.
We will be leaving California next week some time and going right through the area of Maricopa.
The horses are Arabians. I just want to come by and say hello to them and give them a hug!
Mystic was my favorite and I will be so happy if I could just see her. The owner of the horses moved them from the ranch we worked at last year, shortly after Dave and I left to go back to Wisconsin.
The owner of the horses name is Steve, I am sure he would be okay with us stopping in to see them.
PLEASE if you know where these horses are being boarded, leave me a comment.

Below is one of the posts I did last year:

Thursday, February 18, 2010

Who Ever Said the Eyes Are the Window To A Man’s Soul; Never Looked Into the Eyes of a Horse!

Mystic is like the mirror to my soul.
The characteristics of this horse intrigued me like no other. When I first met her, she appeared strong, independent and in control.
Looking a little deeper it was obvious that she was fearful and anxious and non trusting.
She wore masks similar to the ones I wore growing up in a home with an alcoholic parent.
The rules growing up: don’t talk, don’t trust, and don’t feel. Three of the hardest rules to change even as an adult.
Getting to know Mystic was a process, not just an introduction. Take nothing for granted and make no fast moves. Take all things slow and if she says go away… you back off, but don’t leave her.
Reproach slowly letting her come to you if she will. Share your fears and vulnerabilities let her know you are not above her, that you are there for her. If you feel it tell her how special she is and why. Not to soon, but if its there, tell her you love her.
Don’t try to tell her that her fears are irrational, affirm her and tell her that it must be awful to have to live with that fear.
That is just the beginning to reaching that lost soul.
You decide if I am talking about a horse or if I am talking about you or someone you know or knew.

Sometimes when I get to her pen, she has a tear in her eye. I love that she will let me wipe it away.
When I was little, I had hair down to the middle of my back. My mom did the best she could with six kids and and alcoholic husband. Linda was the oldest of the kids, and had a lot of the responsibility to help take care of us.
One of the things she had to do was comb out the rats nest (snarls… HUGE snarls) out of my hair. Linda would try to be gentle but of course she had to pull.
I would start to cry then scream and the more upset I got, the madder she got and the more it all hurt.
So when I am brushing Mystic, I am sharing all of this with her. I am sure the horse and anyone in ear shot would think that I am crazy!
I stopped caring for the most part what people think of things like that, a long time ago! Besides it seems to help relax Mystic.
These are some links to blog entries on the horses from last year.
http://rvingdog.blogspot.com/2010/02/who-knew-chocolate-could-be-such.html
http://rvingdog.blogspot.com/2010/02/cindy-is-now-pretending-to-be-wrangler.html
http://rvingdog.blogspot.com/2010/02/dancing-ponies-made-my-day.html
http://rvingdog.blogspot.com/2010/02/alfalfa-and-bermuda-sandwiches-for-all.html

Found A Diamond Ring with my X-terra 705 Looking For Owner

2011-02-08T00:49:00.002-06:00

I found a beautiful Silver or White Gold Wedding Band/Ring. It has 10 diamonds on the band. It also has an inscription inside.
If it is your ring, please leave me a comment on the blog, with the inscription and your email address, and I will get it back to you!
I found it on a beach on the Colorado River near Blythe California. I know for a fact that it has been there for less than three years. As a matter of fact… Your anniversary is right around the corner!
What an awesome anniversary present that would be; to be able to give the ring back to your partner!

Please spread the word, if you blog or know a way to help me find the owners I would be most thankful.
I have tried to find them on google by their first names and the date of their wedding inside the ring, but I did not have any luck. I sure wish it had their last name in it!
Hope to hear from you soon!

Strange Travel Findings: Shoe Fence AKA Shoe Tree

2011-02-07T02:02:00.002-06:00

Shoe Tree along Hwy CA-62 Rice to Vidal Junction in California
We were out on a motorcycle ride and came across the strangest sightings on Highway 62. This road was a mystery to us, and could not find any local information on what it was.
In the middle of the desert along the road we saw a fence, full of sneakers, shoes, socks and other things. This road runs parallel to some railroad tracks and for about 17 miles I saw hundreds of names along the berm of the tracks.
I assumed maybe a train crash took place there and the tree and the names were some kind of memorial for those that died. We stopped at the general store right on the border to Arizona thinking that maybe there would be a museum or a memorial or an explanation… but no such luck.
I was able to get some information later with the help of google and other smart people. This is what we found out about this stretch of highway in the middle of nowhere.

I guess there used to be a Shoe Tree where travelers would stop and leave a pair of shoes on the branches of this tree. My best guess is that the first person to leave shoes on the tree found them on the road and hung them there so maybe the owner would find them. But instead of the owner coming back to claim their shoes, a clever person

saw the shoes hanging there and decided that two pair were better than one so they left a pair there as well. Then another clever person left the third pair and so on and so on! LOL Like I said, it is just my thought, I never said it was a good one!
From what I read, the tree was the tallest thing in that area. It was decorated by the traveler who like the rest of us had more time than money; so they stopped and contributed not only to the tree but hundreds of people took the time to spell out messages in the embankment of the railroad. Names and messages written out of stones, glass, logs, railroad ties, rocks and what ever they could find. Some of these names are two feet tall!
From what I read, the tree caught on fire and looked like the end to this traveler inspired conversation piece.
Traveler’s are not a force to be reckoned with on or off the road; the tradition would not die with the tree. A chain link fence became the new resting point for the shoes that bring a smile to those who happen down this lonesome highway.

I did not take pictures, and because I am afraid of copyright laws, I am attaching some links that I found with more information and some photos from other travelers.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/meteorry/4367404483/
Click here to see someone else's photos and write up of this area.
Click here to see another write up with photos.
It looked to me, like there were a couple of places on this stretch that had sitting areas or memorials, we were so dumbfounded that we didn’t think to stop or turn around. Now of course I wish we would have, and I wish I would have taken some pictures but we passed the things so quickly and it must have taken me about 17 miles to decide to get the camera out to take photos of the names in the tracks, because I know more than got it out of my bag and it was all over!