Visiting At Denny's

Above, Michelle in Silverton. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

When I woke up this morning, I found that I had about a cup and a half of coffee left in the coffeepot. And, on top of that, I forgot to get a gallon of water at the Flying J yesterday.

So, I headed over to the Flying J at 3:30 to get some water.

But, before getting the water, I detoured over to Denny's since Michelle was on duty there. I hadn't seen her since we ended up on the same train and the same car of the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad earlier this month.

As soon as I walked in, she greeted me with, "Hi, handsome!" (Nice ego-builder, eh?)

I then ordered some coffee and, in-between her duties, we visited and "shot the bull" about our encounter in Durango. We both had the same reaction of "it couldn't be" when we spotted each other on the train. 

I told her about her being in the background of a photo I took of Jessica after we arrived in Silverton and showed it to her. I said before showing the photo (a blow-up of her) that she looked serious. She laughed and said it was probably from getting mad at her husband over something.

We had a good chat about the road work near her home in nearby Coolidge and other subjects. She said her husband works in construction doing drywalling. I told her that friends in Jamestown may have need of some drywall work due to a pipe leak and will let them know. 

So, after about an hour and a half at Denny's I went and got the water and headed home. It was a nice start to today.

Japan's War On The Floppy Disk

Floppy disk. That is a name I haven't heard or thought of in ages. I disposed of mine long ago and use CDs instead.

It is the digital equivalent of 8-track tapes these days.

Apparently in Japan, floppies are still used in some government areas. Their digital minister (is that really an official job or ministry?) has declared "war" on them. 

According to The Japan Times:

Japan’s digital minister, who’s vowed to rid the bureaucracy of outdated tools from the hanko stamp to the fax machine, has now declared “war” on a technology many haven’t seen for decades — the floppy disk.

The hand-sized, square-shaped data storage item, along with similar devices including the CD or even lesser-known mini disk, are still required for some 1,900 government procedures and must go, digital minister Taro Kono wrote in a Twitter post Wednesday.

“We will be reviewing these practices swiftly,” Kono said in a news conference Tuesday, adding that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has offered his full support. “Where does one even buy a floppy disk these days?”

Who in the U.S. even uses them anymore?

To read more, go here.

Japan To Further Ease Border Curbs

Above, Miyajima's Great Torii Gate at Itsukushima Shrine. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Japan is still timidly easing border restrictions for foreign tourism. Visas are still required. Visa waivers for some nations had been suspended during the pandemic.

Reuters reported:

TOKYO, Aug 31 (Reuters) - Japan will further ease border controls from Sept. 7 by raising the ceiling for daily entrants to 50,000 and freeing up entry for travellers from all countries on package tours without the need for guides, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Wednesday.

Speaking to reporters after returning to work from a COVID-19 infection, Kishida said Japan will proceed with further easing steps, taking into account virus infections in and outside of the country, travellers' demand and border controls adopted by other countries.

This is still not sufficient enough to draw more foreign tourists. The Japanese government is hoping that this would draw people in to exploit the weak yen.

G-TOUR 4 had to be cancelled due to the restrictions imposed on foreign tourism. It was planned to take place this autumn.

To read more, go here.

Hawaii At Nearly Pre-Pandemic Visitation Numbers

Above, a Waikiki Beach view of Diamond Head. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It appears that Hawaii's visitation numbers have almost fully recovered since the start of the pandemic over two years ago.

TravelPulse reported:

Hawaii’s Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism (DBEDT) today released preliminary visitor statistics, which revealed that the Aloha State received a total of 919,154 visitors during the month of July 2022, demonstrating a 92.4 percent recovery from July 2019’s pre-pandemic numbers.

This represents the highest monthly visitor volume the Hawaiian Islands have experienced since January 2020, just before COVID-19 made its initial impact on tourism. Last month’s tourists collectively spent $1.94 billion during their visits, up 14.3 percent from July 2019’s total of $1.7 billion.

To read more, go here. 

Dry Week Ahead

Above, the monsoon rains brought out the wildflowers in New Mexico. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

On my recent trip to Colorado, I saw many fields along the way blanketed with sunflowers and other yellow wildflowers.

This is the result of the high amounts of rain we've received during this monsoon season.

The photo above, taken near the Whispering Cedars Fire Station, was typical of what I saw. 

According to the National Weather Service, this will be a dry week, with the possible exception of this coming Saturday. 

This will be the weather through Labor Day:

Today

Sunny, with a high near 83. East wind 5 to 15 mph.

Tonight

Mostly clear, with a low around 54. Southeast wind 5 to 15 mph.

Wednesday

Sunny, with a high near 84. East wind 5 to 10 mph.

Wednesday Night

Mostly clear, with a low around 54. East wind 5 to 10 mph becoming south after midnight.

Thursday

Sunny, with a high near 85. Light and variable wind becoming north 5 to 10 mph in the afternoon.

Thursday Night

Mostly clear, with a low around 54.

Friday

Mostly sunny, with a high near 88.

Friday Night

Partly cloudy, with a low around 56.

Saturday

Mostly sunny, with a high near 84.

Saturday Night

A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly cloudy, with a low around 53.

Sunday

Mostly sunny, with a high near 81.

Sunday Night

Partly cloudy, with a low around 53.

Labor Day

Mostly sunny, with a high near 81.

Gun Control Group Wants Credit Card Companies To Flag Gun and Ammo Purchases

Gun control activist organizations are calling on credit card companies to flag gun and ammunition purchases. Obviously, they don't give a rat's behind about people's rights of privacy besides Second Amendment rights.

From Breitbart:

Gabby Giffords’ gun control group, Giffords, is calling on major credit card companies to flag gun and ammunition purchases.

Giffords posted a tweet Sunday, which said, “The shooters in at least 5 mass shootings have stockpiled guns & ammo using credit cards and killed 145 people. Visa, Mastercard, and American Express have the power to flag suspicious purchases and save lives. Call on them to act.”

The tweet linked to a campaign by another gun control group called GunsDownAmerica.

The GunsDownAmerica campaign says, “Between 2007 and 2020, the killers in at least five major mass shootings used credit cards to finance their deadly rampages. These individuals exploited the banking system to purchase large quantities of firearms and ammunition — and the financial industry has the power to stop them.”

At least one card company has resisted this in the past:

On March 9, 2018, Breitbart News reported that Visa refused to succumb to the pressure, noting that it is not the credit card company’s job to “[set] restrictions on the sale of lawful goods and services.”

To read the full article, go here. 

Return To The Moon: First Step Today

Above, Artemis I on the launch pad (39B) this morning. 

The U.S. Space Program is the only worthwhile government program we have. This has been my contention for years.

Am I a fan of the Space Program? You bet, ever since Project Mercury.

If all goes well, the first test flight of Artemus I will take place today. It is unmanned. Right now, there is an unplanned hold due to some rocket engine issues.

From Fox 35 Orlando:

For the first time in nearly 50 years, NASA is preparing for a historic first, launching a new powerful moon rocket, the Space Launch System, on its maiden voyage. 

The last time the space agency conducted a test flight of a moon rocket was the mighty Saturn V in 1967. Two years later, a Saturn V rocket would launch the Apollo 11 mission, sending astronauts to the moon. Now, NASA is preparing to launch the SLS and Orion spacecraft from Kennedy Space Center in Florida under the Artemis program, named for Apollo's twin sister in Greek mythology.  

NASA is targeting Aug. 29 for liftoff sending the Orion spacecraft on the Artemis-1 test flight, a 42-journey orbiting the moon and back. No astronauts will be on board the test flight. However, if it goes well, four astronauts will launch on Artemis-2, orbiting the moon before the Artemis-3 moon landing in 2025.

To see how the SLS compares to the Saturn 5, go here.

UPDATE: Today's launch has been scrubbed due to a faulty hydrogen bleed test that didn't get it to the right temperature. The next availability to launch is September 2.

John Wayne's "True Grit" Ending Horse-Jump Scene

Everyone remembers the famous ending scene from True Grit (1969) of John Wayne horse-jumping a four-rail fence, right? 

If not, here's a video of the scene:

Last Saturday, I visited the area where the Ross family ranch was filmed. In the photos below, is the hilltop where the above scene (cemetery and horse-jump) took place. The approximate spot is circled in red.

Night Drive On The "Million Dollar Highway"

Above, a view of Silverton from a roadside overlook. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

If one thinks driving the "Million Dollar Highway" (U.S. 550) between Silverton and Ouray in Colorado is "hairy" during the day, they should try it at night.

I started heading home (245 miles) at about 5:15 yesterday morning from the Ouray KOA Kampground. It was still pitch black out. Driving south through Ouray wasn't bad, but once I got out of town, the road started climbing as a narrow two-lane road with a major drop. The speed limit averaged 25 mph along this stretch.

After that section of the road, the road widened and it comprised of more winding sections and switchbacks. I generally drove five to ten miles per hour less than the posted speed limit due to the possibility of wildlife and I was driving a motorhome. I did see one deer. Two birds, during course of the drive, flew in front of the RV and collided with it. 

Even though the distance between Ouray and Silverton is 24 miles, it takes around 40 minutes to drive it. 

It was still pitch dark when I reached Silverton. I didn't stop as I knew nothing was open. So I proceeded on.

I did slow to take in a view of Silverton from an overlook and with its lights on, it was a great view. I stopped at that viewpoint two days prior and took some photos. I pressed on to Durango.

I reached Durango at about 7:00 and stopped at the McDonalds next to the train station for a sausage McMuffin breakfast. I also filled the RV's gas tank ($160) while in Durango.

I reached home around 11:00.

Classic Rock Music Monday

The stuff that now passes as "music", particularly rock 'n roll, leaves me cold. So, to start off the week, here's a video of a classic rock artist.  

To start off this week, we have probably the most successful single by the country-rock group Poco, it is "A Good Feelin' To Know" that was released in 1972.

According to Wikipedia:

Poco was an American country rock band originally formed in 1968 after the demise of Buffalo Springfield. Guitarists Richie Furay and Jim Messina, former members of Buffalo Springfield, were joined by multi-instrumentalist Rusty Young, bassist Randy Meisner, and drummer George Grantham. Meisner quit the band whilst they were recording their first album, Pickin' Up the Pieces, though his bass and backing vocal parts were kept in the final mix. He was replaced by Timothy B. Schmit in 1969, and Messina left in 1970 to be replaced by Paul Cotton. The line-up would change numerous times over the next several decades, with Rusty Young being the only constant member. A reunion of the founding members occurred in the late 1980s-early 1990s, and the band has continued in some form through 2021, though they retired from active touring in 2013, with Young citing health concerns as the primary cause of his retirement. Young died from a heart attack in April 2021.

 

California's New Vehicle Engine Rules and RVs

Above, well, at least it's a Jeep.

The lunacy that dominates many state governments in voting to phase out gasoline vehicles to deal with climate change is running rampant, predominantly in blue (or Democrat) states. Welcome to the new socialism!

California's unelected California Air Enforcement Board has enacted new rules that will ban the sale of new gas-fueled vehicles by 2035. That's only 13 years away, folks. The only way to stop this craziness is to vote out every damn Democrat!

RV Travel takes a look at how this affects RVs.

They begin with:

Earlier this week, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) enacted new rules with huge implications. Come 2035, with few exceptions, only new “zero emissions” cars and pickups can be sold in the Golden State. That will include many Class C motorhomes. It’s expected that another 15 states will follow California’s lead.

By 2045, most Class A motorhome sales will see the same fate. The only “gas burning” engine vehicles exempted from the ban will be “plug-in hybrid” units that will still be allowed under the 2035 ban. What will happen to RVers? What about other related services that could have a deep impact under the new regulations?

As for my own state of New Mexico, the lunacy is as follows:

• New Mexico: Last month the state’s Clean Car Rule became the standard. The state will start phasing out gas engine powered cars, trucks, and SUVs in 2026.

That's only four years away! New Mexico is not a rich state. There's a lot of poverty here. How are people going to afford electric vehicles, especially those in tribes? For starters (pardon the pun), how are people going to afford to replace EV batteries? 

Here's an example (and this is for a current hybrid vehicle):

We can start fighting against this insanity by voting out Michelle Lujan Grisham and every Democrat legislator in November!

To read the full article, go here.

John Wayne Cancer Foundation "Grit Series" At Ridgway Photos

Above, yours truly and Patrick Wayne.

Here are some more photos I took at today's John Wayne Cancer Foundation's "Grit Series" half marathon and 5K in Ridgway, Colorado.

The area where they were held was used in 1969's True Grit. 

For more on today's event, go here.

John Wayne "Grit Series" Runs

Above, the starting point arch for the half marathon and 5K runs. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

It may have rained overnight in the Ouray-Ridgway area of Colorado, but it left a beautiful day for marathon runners and didn't dampen their spirits.

I arrived early this morning at the starting point for the John Wayne Cancer Foundation's half marathon and 5K run. It was located eleven miles west of Ridgway off Colorado Hwy.62 and near the Lost Dollar Ranch.

The area is more famously known as the location of the Ross Ranch at the beginning and end of True Grit (1969). Several of the buildings used in those scenes still stand and are now undergoing restoration by the current ranch owner.

To get there, one must drive on a dirt road among pines and aspen trees. The place looks just as beautiful as it did in 1969. I can easily see why this area was picked for the movie.

The event was well organized by the Foundation and they had several booths, one of which sold items including hoodies, t-shirts, hats and other items. 

As I got there about an hour before the first event (the half marathon) I was able to mingle with the participants, Foundation staff, volunteers and other spectators. I also was able to meet and talk to Ethan Wayne. He told me that this is the second year for the Grit Series marathon events. The first were held in 2019, but the pandemic forced them to put them on hiatus for two years.

Ethan Wayne (for you trivia buffs) was so named after his father's character, Ethan Edwards, in The Searchers (1956). He looks very fit for a man aged 60.

A little later, Patrick Wayne arrived and for a man in his eighties, he looks good and healthy. I was also able to chat with him about The Searchers, particularly the scene where he asks Ward Bond if he is able to join in a "joint punitive" action against Chief Scar. His delivery was rapid fire. He told me that his dad, Bond and others had fun at his expense by pranking him during the filming of that scene. He was 14 at the time, he said. He lamented that "everyone's gone" when I mentioned McLintock (1963), with the exception of Stephanie Powers and himself. He mentioned how fine a horseman actor Hank Worden was.

During my time with both of the Wayne sons, I had them pose under the Grit Series arch. 

It is safe to say that John Wayne would be very proud of his two sons. Both were very likable and easy to talk to.

Patrick and Ethan made some ceremonial remarks and they thanked everyone there for participating before the starts of each event.

Naturally, I had my trusty Canon camera with me and took some photos.

Above and below, Ethan Wayne and his dog Fin. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above and below, Patrick Wayne. Photos by Armand Vaquer.

Above, Ethan Wayne addressing the half marathon participants. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, Patrick Wayne addresses the half marathon participants. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the half marathon begins. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the Grit Series van. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, and below, Ethan and Patrick Wayne addresses the 5K participants. Photos by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the 5K run begins. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, yours truly with Patrick Wayne.

Above, the Lost Dollar Ranch. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, "Mattie Ross's House" in True Grit. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Above, the Ross family cemetery and where John Wayne jumped
the fence took place at the top of the hill. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

To learn more about the John Wayne Cancer Foundation, go here.

For more photos, go here.

Marathon Day In Ridgway

Above, stopped at a Silverton overlook on the Million Dollar Highway. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Right now, I am waiting for some daylight so that I can see what I am doing when I put the electrical cord away in its compartment and the water hose into the storage area. Then, I will be taking the nine mile drive to Ridgway for the marathons to begin.

They are to start in the eight o'clock hour.

I have to find the starting area, though. I have a good idea where it is from Ridgway, about 11 miles west of town. 

From what I've seen posted, Patrick Wayne and Ethan Wayne, John Wayne's sons, are here. 

The drive yesterday knocked me for a loop. The Million Dollar Highway was easier than I thought. This was the first time I've driven it. Still, the many switchbacks on the rain-slick road does tax one's energies. 

I went to bed at 7:00 and woke up earlier than usual. Just can't seem to win when it comes to sleep these days.  

Ouray KOA's Mountain Top Social Restaurant & Bar

Above, the exterior of the restaurant. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

One handy thing to have at a campground is a restaurant.

Fortunately, if one is in a motorhome (like me), they won't have to unhook everything to drive to town for a meal (that is, if one didn't bring anything to cook). 

That is what the Ouray, Colorado KOA Kampground has. They have a restaurant on premises that is also a coffee bar as well. It is called the Mountain Top Social Restaurant and Bar. 

Above, the pulled pork plate. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

This evening, I ordered the pulled port plate with the two side of barbecue baked beans and cole slaw. Well, I didn't much care for the cole slaw (I only had a few nibbles), but I did enjoy the pulled pork and the beans. 

I should have ordered the potato salad instead.

Good Marathon Weather Forecast For Tomorrow

Judging by the above from The Weather Channel, the weather in Ridgway, Colorado looks like it will be just fine for tomorow's John Wayne Cancer Foundation Grit Series Half Marathon and 5K.

It is pouring rain right now in nearby Ouray (9 miles from Ridgway). New neighbors just pulled in their travel trailer and are having to contend with rainy conditions as they level their trailer in order to open their slideout.

It will be interesting to see how the tent campers (they have their own area about 100 yards in front of me) are able to handle the rain. It is supposed to stop in the next couple of hours or so. I paid my tent-camping dues ages ago.

Meanwhile, I am just fine inside The Beast.