Pinnacles Visit

Monday: (03/08) I noticed that the sun wasn’t shining so I watched TV in the morning. I got outside around 1100 when I noticed the sun was shining and worked on the brick patio expansion. I finished the bricks that needed to be set in mortar and laid all the full bricks in sand. I just need to saw the edge of the patio and cut and lay the partial bricks. Then I need to start laying the red bricks under the arbor. Granola and banana for breakfast. Lou made pizza for lunch. Dawn made vegetable soup for dinner.

Tuesday: (03/09) I finished most of the new garden patio by the arbor. I ran out of bricks so still have about six half bricks to cut and place before transitioning to the red brick installation under the arbor. Lou keeps worrying that I killed the wisteria when I cut it back all the way this year. Hopefully it does eventually sprout out. I have cut it back much further previously like when I replaced the arbor. After lunch I added manure then rototilled the old garden. Rice with honey and milk for breakfast. Chinese food for lunch. Leftover artichoke chicken over rice with asparagus for dinner.

Wednesday: (03/10) A very rainy night and day. I checked on the sump pump and it evidently is working properly. Still haven’t seen it work but the level is good and the discharge debris pattern says it worked. I also checked out the construction project hole in the ground. I did have a little water in it but they are still working today. I also checked the new patio. No puddles on it. I prepared breakfast sandwiches for all of us this morning. Lou picked up salads for lunch at the Corner Bakery Cafe. She had a dental appointment in the afternoon. I tinkered on the computer inside all day including attending my Wednesday webinar. I got an email from the Santa Clara County Medical Center that my scheduled 2nd Covid shot had been cancelled. We are Kaiser members and now Kaiser members must go through Kaiser. Before Kaiser never had any vaccine to schedule shots and everyone was supposed to get it where they could. May be interesting getting it anywhere near the correct period between shots. Leftover soup for dinner.

Thursday: (03/11) Another rainy day. I made a tool and material run to Harbor Freight for some tools and Lowe’s for material. I need to build a porch and ramp for Ernie’s trailer. I have some old metal tubing but I need to make a sawing jig to cut the tubing with a hole saw so it fits better when welded together. In the past I’ve just flattened the end of one of the tubes but that doesn’t end up with a flat joint. I got a small drill press and will make a V jig to hold the tubing while I cut the tube to length with the hole saw using the drill press. No way this could be done freehand. I also got a grinder to replace my old one which has a bad switch. Cheaper to replace than repair at $15 for the grinder. HD had more sand, EMT tubing and other misc items for projects. Back home, after unloading the car, I got to work in the RV putting things away in preparation for our trip. Even though the outing is only for two nights now, I still have to undo my mancave to convert it back into a motorhome. I made corned beef hash and eggs for breakfast. Ham and cheese sandwich for lunch. Sauerkraut potatoes and sausage for dinner.

Friday: (03/12) Nice day, mostly sunny. We made a run to Home Depot. I try really hard never to shop at HD any more but they are the place that has the bricks that match the rest of our yard. I got enough for the remaining needed for the patio and a few spares. Back home, I did tank duty on the RV in preparation for our trip. Nice fresh water and empty holding tanks. Lou and Dawn were working in the garden erecting bean poles. I received an email about 1700 from Kaiser asking me to schedule my Covid shot #2. I’m now scheduled for next Thursday. I could have gotten it tomorrow but don’t want any side effects before our trip. Leftover corned beef hash and eggs for breakfast. Lunch at Baji’s Cafe. Meatloaf, asparagus and a baked potato for dinner.

Saturday: (03/13) I tinkered out at the shop setting up my new drill press and building a tubing cutting jig. I need a deep 1.75” hole saw to cut my tubing but only have a 1.5’ deep hole saw. I’ll order some from Amazon but don’t want them to arrive while we’re gone so I’ll have to delay further action and the order. We worked on cleanup and loading the RV. Lou and Dawn visited the Ace Hardware store and found an Asian pear tree which they planted in our front orchard. I took the RV out and got the LPG tank filled. We’re all hooked up and ready to roll in the morning. Granola and banana for breakfast. The usual Saturday lunch from Harry’s Hofbrau. Cottage cheese and mashed potatoes for dinner.

Sunday: (03/14) Pie Day. We were up at the new 0700 after the time change. I happed to be awake at 0200 and changed all the clocks at the proper time to the proper time. After showers we hit the road in the RV toward the Pinnacles. We stopped in Gilroy at the Walmart to get new wiper blades for the RV. We can expect rain on this trip and I noticed yesterday that the blades on the RV are very bad. The windshield faces the sun every day so that probably reduces their lifespan. We also tried to locate a neck brace for Lou. The bouncing of the RV is bothering her neck. No luck finding the brace in Gilroy. We had intended to have breakfast at the Longhouse Restaurant but were driven out by people not maintaining social distance. We stopped at the Super Taqueria for our breakfast. Breakfast was after 1100 so it could have been called lunch. It looked like it. Then on to the Pinnacles. We were in our site a little after 1300 and all setup and checked in before 1400. There have been changes at the Visitor Center/Store since our last visit. Now there is a permanent wall between to two functions. Also, only two people allowed inside at a time for either. Our National Park Pass wasn’t even needed for admission because they aren’t charging right now. We took a walk out to the Bacon Ranch after our afternoon naps. Lou made Shepherd's Pie for dinner. Not her usual oven baked type but made the RV’ers way, in the microwave.