Yup...its been a year since my last post. One thing this year has not been for us is "Idle". There has been constant movement, not always forward, but movement never the less. I will try to keep this short, but still have content.
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| (c)2022HorstKellyphotographer |
The New Year brought us snow, and more snow. Add to that a few tornadoes here and there, throw in some medical issues and Bang, before we knew it was April 2022.
April was a time of sorrow and reflection . We lost Janet's Father...98 years young. He had a rough two years with a couple hip injures, broken arm, infected foot and other sundry mishaps. He kept a positive attitude till the end.
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Father-in-Law 2013 age 88
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One of the good things about moving to this area was our ability to take frequent day trips to visit him. Another "great one" of the greatest generation passes! He is missed!
Some photo's while traveling the Back Roads of Missouri...."Blue Highways" as JerryC of Eggrolling calls them!
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(c)2022HorstKellyphotographer
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| (c)2022HorstKellyPhotographer |
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| (c)2020HorstKellyPhotographer |
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| (c)2022HorstKellyPhotographer |
The summer brought many trips to Kansas City and some hot weather...it rivaled our weather that we had in Texas. We did manage to plant a small veggie garden, other sundry plants and finally got our home somewhat in order. Had out of town friends come visit and the big event was a trip to Charleston S.C. to attend our youngest grandsons H.S. graduation!
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| How time flies... 2022 Freshman at Coastal Carolina.. |
PGA golf pro Dustin Johnson attended CCU. Maybe just maybe......... Opi can dream!
What a super visit it was to see the kids, grandkids and SIL's parents. Great memories from that trip. The trip to Charleston and back was very scenic. Sure beat the old way from Texas and the Texas to KC trips. Relaxing to say the least.
On a Blue Highway.(c)HorstKelly
Late summer I took a couple 3 day camping trips around the Mark Twain Forest. I started my truck build, at least version 1.0. I found that I didn't need the amount of "Stuff" I had always taken in the Casita, plus with only a 5 ft. truck bed there wasn't the storage room I had before. I put in 3/4 inch plywood floor in two pieces. Tongue and groove . On top of that I built 2 storage units on each side using 2x2 inch framing and black caulk boards for the sides. The dimensions are about 50+ inches long, 22.5 inches high and 16 inches deep. The passenger's side holds my Bluetti solar power station, which consists of about 200 amp hour lithium battery and 1000 watt invertor and a mpp solar charger. Also on the passenger side I installed a 12 volt marine type fuse box. Simple wiring set up but it meets all my electrical needs. I have a 200 watt solar panel on the roof top. Also have 2 twenty liter water containers. both with their own 12 volt pumps. One for drinking water, the other for showers, washing dishes, etc. I have a sitting area with a makeshift (portable) desk. The aisle is a little less than 24 inches(about the same as the Casita aisle). I put a Bass Boat seat in the aisle to relax, read and do some work on the laptop..... My 12 volt fridge sits in the back seat area of the truck as does 2 extra storage boxes. Plywood floor is not bolted to the truck bed. It is wedged in. does not move. The two storage areas are not bolted to the floor , are bolted to runners on the side. They don't move. The beauty is I can take the entire camping module out in less than 10 minutes, which includes the plywood flooring.
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| 3/4" plywood flooring, tongue and groove |
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| Electrical system |
I've taken it out a couple times and so far am happy with how it's set up. If I think that it needs no more tweaking I will probably tear it down are rebuild using Aluminum extrusion as the framing. I still need to put a heat source in there. I have a couple ideas I'm playing with.
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| Bed of truck. Side panels are chalk board |
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| Loft Bed |
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| with clam shell open, can stand up and move around |
No, its not as comfy as the Casita, but it will take me to places the Casita couldn't. I don't know how much longer I can physically go on these trips so this provides the best opportunity get up and go without too much effort.
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| Lake side dispersed campsite in National forest |
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| Ridgeline dispersed campsite in National Forest |
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| River bank dispersed campsite in Nat'l Forest |
In early October had some more friends from Texas come visit. Since then I've taken a couple more short trips and some day trips just scouting around. Photography has taken a back seat this year and hopefully the coming year I can get back in the photography groove...Settling in has taken longer than I anticipated, especially with all that has been going on, and just trying to find new doctors, dentists, etc.
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| Lakeside dispersed campsite, early morning fog |
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| Another shot of the lakeside campsite in Nat'l Forest |
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River bank campsite. Nat'l Forest
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In a nutshell, this past year had it's ups and down's, I had hoped to go on more extended camping trips...but sometime stuff happens but at the end of the day it all works out in the wash. The good news is that this was the right move. Janet is closer to family and that has brought a big smile to everyone....if we could just figure out how to move Charleston to Missouri...that would make it better then perfect!
Hopefully more to come with the next trip "around the Sun". Thanks for stopping by! Horst sends
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| Memory shot...Ahhhh, Big Bend |
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Ah-ha. I've been wondering how things were going with you. It has been a long time. Sad to read of fil"s passing, but it appears he had a great life. Not many of his kind around, anymore. Grands grow up fast. Coastal Carolina would be proud to have two champion graduates.
ReplyDeleteThe mods on the new camping unit look great. Everything you need to camp in one small package. It appears there's no place you can't go with that rig. I like all the photos, especially the mill. But my favorite is the last one. Big Bend is hard to beat. Don't stay away so long.....jc
Yup, Its been a challenging year....but there where more highs than lows. I wish I had been able to go out on more trips. Hopefully next year will accomplish that. ...we still need to share a campfire, flatiron steak and a Moose Drool. :)). I am enjoying reading your Facebook adventures ! Take care and You, Wanda and Family have a Blessed Thanksgiving. Your Buddy Horst
DeleteAlways love when I see you pop up! That new set up seems ideal to me to just have access to get out of dodge! I have a pic folder, marktwain072013. Our first stop when we sold bricks and sticks. Grand time there. Stepdaughter and grandkids at Mizzou and settling in Columbia from Illinois. Us, still under an RV port in Alabama with shop for Jer, a Zen Den for me, park maintenance, not traveling. Ready to give up the homestead, the southern coast and move into a small forever place. What, where, when is the hard part. Sorry for your loss. That generation!, Never a complaint! MIL 100 next year and we'll be heading to Illinois. And a HS grad! I remember your tales taking them on travels. I'm starting to write again. Wish more about travels but still fun to release junk in one's head, especially the older I get. Back to look at your photos more. You've always been a creative, kind soul!
ReplyDeleteWhat a pleasant surprise. Glad to see you and Jerry are still enjoying life. Hopefully next year I'll be going on more trips than and seeing some of this area.... still would like to take some trips out West like the old days... I still have my sights on a trip to Alabama Hills and Death Valley.
DeleteWishing in advance Happy Birthday to your MIL!! Take care and You and Jerry have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Horst sends