On The Road Again . . .

Like a band of gypsies we go down the highway
We're the best of friends
Insisting that the world be runnin' our way - Willie Nelson

Listen to the Audio Version: 

Hi Everyone . . .

I know it's been a while since I've posted anything new here. Frankly, I needed a short break. There were just a lot of things going on and my poor little brain was getting fried.

Additionally, I was devoting time to straightening out the space I had been occupying at my friend's place in WV where I was based camped for way too long. And, I was devoting more time to completing some modifications and changes to “My McVansion” before heading out on the road again. I ran it past my mechanic and we found a few minor things that needed some tightening, replacing or refilling. I wanted to make sure it was road worthy before I started wracking up the miles again.

Just about the time I was finally ready to roll out the door, one of my few remaining clients (from my 50+ year career in the recording & voice-over business) called with a new project. Actually, the 3^rd or 4^th complete update and redo of one of his training programs. I had to record the program at his offices in Fairfax, Virginia (where I have an office at my disposal whenever the need should arise). But, the scripts wouldn't be ready and cleared by his lawyer for another week and a half. So, one more delay, but certainly worth it. Dave and I have been working together on his programs for over 35 years.

So, due to all kinds of circumstances (and probably a few excuses) I got a late, er, make that LATE start, by several months getting back out on the road. My last post was a week or so before I finally headed out, probably close to a month ago. When you're in one place too long, there seems to be a longer transitional period than one might think, at least for me.

So, I headed to northern Virginia as soon as the scripts were ready, bunked in with my Air Force buddy in Falls Church, Virginia for a few nights, recorded the 8 CD's worth of new material with my client, then headed west. Unfortunately, I had to forego all my planned visits and wanderings south of the Virginia border. That bummed me out, but I'll plan more time for that this coming fall and winter.

I did get to visit my long time book editor and his wife, good friends from my book publishing days. I also got a chance to run through Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg, Tennessee and camp for three nights in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park – most pleasant and relaxing (as I spent time editing my client's programs). Since then it's been a continuous road west, doing my best to avoid interstates, although the yesterday was and today will be interstate days. This was only because to get to my destination for the next couple weeks I'd have to go a hundred or more miles out of my way and expend gas money I'd rather conserve at this time. I've actually seen quite a bit of Americana that I haven't seen before on this trip already.

I stopped in Jackson, Tennessee to visit the International Rock-a-Billy Hall of Fame, founded and curated by one Henry Harrison. I had only planned to spend about an hour at the Hall of Fame and then move on to Memphis. But, I met Henry, a delightful and knowledgeable man about the rock-a-billy genre of music and friend of many, if not most, of the notable artists. While there, a delightful woman, Debe, who looked much younger than her age, befriended me. After we left Henry and he closed the Hall of Fame, Debe filled me in on the city of Jackson, drove me past the late Carl Perkins home, then took me over to her new massage salon where I met her husband, David.

We had a delightful dinner and parted ways until Sunday morning when I followed them to their church service – at a Unity Church. I had never been to a Unity Church service before and always wanted to attend one. Seize the opportunities when they arise. That was in Memphis. We spent the rest of the day in Memphis and had dinner on the famous Beale Street, enjoying live entertainment and good food. They also put me in contact with another person I met with on Monday before crossing the Mississippi River and heading west.

This is what is so great about my life and lifestyle. It's one serendipity after another.

So, it's Friday morning as I write this. I'm parked in a Walmart (Motor Inn – bring your own accommodations – as I like to quip) parking lot in Amarillo, Texas. This is where I spent the night last night with other vandwellers and RVers parked all around me – all headed for their own adventures and serendipities. It was wonderfully cool and comfortable sleeping last night and it was a beautiful sunrise shining right in my back window this morning. The temperature was about 49 degrees here at about 3,600' above sea level.

I will be leaving here shortly to head to my destination for the next couple weeks in high desert country of central New Mexico. I'll be meeting up with a fellow full-time traveler and his wife. Sharon is heading out on an adventure of her own with her sister, so John will be baching it for a couple weeks. So we're going to enjoy some of our own adventures. I'll complete my client's project, do a few more things to the van I didn't get to do before I left and enjoy some time to catch up on a lot of reading.

I've received some emails from some of you, my loyal and much appreciated readers. Thank you for your concern. Several of you were concerned something happened to me (illness, accident, died, dropped off the face of the Earth). Let me reassure you, I AM FINE – better than fine, actually. It is so great being back out here on the open roads (and knowing my writings were missed). So, yes indeed, I'll also be WRITING and will be preparing a number of new articles for the blogs.

Yes! I've been taking photos – how could I not. It's what I do. I'll be posting them with some stories to go along.

Some travelers, whether in larger forms of RVs or vans, travel almost continuously. Others select a location and stay there for, perhaps, anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple months, some even longer. I'm kind of between those two extremes. I don't like to be traveling everyday. But, sometimes I may do that in short spurts like I am right now. But, when I get to an area that I really like and can find a comfortable place to park for several days to a couple weeks or so. I do that and spend time on my personal projects and writing. I may venture out from there and do day trips to explore the region.

So, life is grand. As the late Gene Autry wrote and sang, I'm back in the saddle again, out where a friend is a friend . . . Stay tuned! My batteries are recharging and getting near full. There is so much to write about and discuss. Keeping life simple, living free and being happy in a world full of turmoil. This may be one of, what may turn out to be, the most historic election cycles in our country's history. We could end up (I'm not making any predictions or endorsements) with the first non-political establishment president in 64 years since Dwight Eisenhower or the first woman president since the beginning of our national history. Who knows? It's an exciting time to be alive, yet there is certainly much to fear and be concerned about. Let me finish this article with this quote from “A Tale of Two Cities” by Charles Dickens:

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.

Nothing is really all that new except for the technology and the players. That's why it's important for us to live free and be happy. EH

Photo-of-the-Week #251 – Once in a Lifetime – WWII Veteran Honor Flight, Fresno, California, April 2015

This photo is one of those once in a lifetime photo ops. This was taken at the Fresno International Airport in Fresno, California in April of last year. This was the Welcome Home celebration for a group of World War II veterans who had just spent a couple days in Washington, DC being honored for their service to their country and getting to visit their World War II Memorial.

This was a VERY special time for me and a great honor because the lady in the photograph with me is very special to me. She is my former mother-in-law, but even more than that she has been one of my best friends in life, for nearly 40 years and continues to be so. Her name is Bonnie June Gardner, but she goes by her initials, BJ. She served in the medical corps of the U.S. Navy.

It was especially an honor for me since my own father was a WWII veteran of the U.S. Army Air Corps, but, unfortunately, I will never have the opportunity and honor of celebrating his contribution to our country since he died 49 years ago. So, BJ not only represented herself in my eyes, but she also represented my father.

Her ancestors came to the New World on the Mayflower and, if I remember correctly, she is a member of the D.A.R. (Daughters of the American Revolution). She's the mother of my former wife, Cynthia, who is still a good friend, and to her six brothers and one sister, all my “brothers and sister.” She's also the grandmother to my son, Pete.

This was quite a celebration. There was a band, cheerleaders, a military honor guard and a bagpipe corps. The airport was filled with people there to welcome back these very special people. I believe the oldest on the trip was 99 years old. There were five women veterans, I believe, and BJ may have been the oldest of the women.

Thank you, BJ, for your service. As a veteran myself, I know how important it is to be remembered for the time and sacrifice you made. Live free and be happy. EH

Photo-of-the-Week #242 – The Commencement Site, The Oakhill Ranch, Winchester, Virginia, October 2008

Photos of this house have appeared here before. But, as I was sitting here the Sunday before Christmas 2015, I find myself contemplating a number of aspects of my life. The idea of “commencements” crossed my mind. Most people experience several commencements of various kinds during a lifetime. This week's photo actually represents both a graduation and commencement in my son's life and mine.

I moved into this house in February 2003 and I departed the house the end of October 2008. That was exactly five years and nine months from the beginning to the end of my tenancy. It actually ranks as the home I lived in the second longest time during my adult life. My son lived here with me for about one year of my tenancy. It's actually the only residence I've lived in since 1972, or about 30 years, where I didn't have a full-time spouse/significant other living with me for any part of my tenancy.

To be a little more accurate, a graduation, beside the traditional definition of receiving some kind of academic diploma or degree, also means markers of some kind of designated measure. While a commencement, often used to refer to the meaning of the word graduation, actually means the beginning or starting place. This house and property, I called it The Oakhill Ranch after my business name, is both a graduation marker and a commencement place in both my son's life and my life.

There are a several markers or graduations, this house and the 49 acres it sits in the middle of, represent for me. I mentioned two in the previous paragraph. A third is that living on a property with a sizable amount of acreage fulfilled another of my dreams. Still another is it was the last residence/property I lived in that was under my name and control. Yet another, it was the last place my son lived on the east coast before departing for and commencing his life on the west coast 12 years ago. And, finally, it is the commencement place of the new, non-conforming, alternative, living free, nomadic lifestyle I embarked on at the end of October 2008.

When I moved to this property, The Oakhill Ranch, I only planned to stay for two years. Ultimately, I lived here just short of six years. From my birth until this property, I have lived in no less than 17 properties. That's one for about every four years of my life. There are probably not many career military people who can claim that many locations. Frankly, I'm not sure if that's a positive or a negative claim. It is what it is and, of course, it's part of who I have become.

So, today I've been ruminating about my past and present. I just viewed a YouTube documentary titled, “I'm Fine, Thanks,” and a feature film distributed by Amazon.com titled, “The Words.” Both of these movies moved me to my state of contemplation. Throughout our lives we are inspired and moved by many people, places and things. I have called them “pivotal” people, places and times on this blog. As Thoreau wrote, something over 150 years ago, “ The mass of men (and women) lead lives of quiet desperation. What is called resignation is confirmed desperation.”

Everything this final third of my life is about commenced October 31, 2008 at this location. Since that day, I have been assembling all the pieces of the puzzle that have been my life. The vision has become clearer and clearer and now, just over seven years later. I believe the words of a popular song, penned by Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff and made popular by Johnny Nash, are apropos, “I can see clearly now, the rain is gone. I can see all obstacles in my way. Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind. It's gonna be a bright bright sunshiny day.”

I hope you have had or are on your way to your commencement of living free. I hope you can see clearly and the rain, obstacles and dark clouds are clearing and your bright, sunshiny future is beckoning you.

More on some of the things I touched on in the article will follow in future articles. For now, live free and be happy. EH

Photos-of-the-Week #232 Blast From The Past, Gone But Never To Be Forgotten, Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania, August, 2008

This unassuming building with the antique Chrysler parked out front and the ExecutiveBooks.Com sign is not what one would assume from the outside. It was, in fact, the personal library of my dear, long-time friend, the late Charlie “Tremendous” Jones. I write this in the past tense because Charlie died October 16, 2008. I took these photos on my next to the last visit I had with my friend about two months before he passed away.

As you can see from the other interior photos, this building held a treasure in old and antique books and other memorabilia. There is nothing new in this room. There are no new or current books. There are no new or current recordings. There are no new or current paintings, photos or graphic works. Even the fliers, brochures and booklets on the tables are vintage or antique.

Yes! That is a real, working player piano with a large selection of piano rolls. You can see one threaded in the window on the piano. Over near the windows there is a wax cylinder player. I believe it was an Edison unit. There was a large selection of historic wax cylinders including some important speeches. There was also an old Victrola from the Victor Talking Machine Company with a collection of historic 78 rpm phonograph records.

There was an aura about this room. Over the years I knew Charlie, I had been in the library on several occasions. The building stood adjacent to the guest house Charlie maintained on his small farm in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. For many years during some of the tougher times and the start-up days of his publishing business and his international speaking career, this guest house was his headquarters. The building where the library was housed was the warehouse. Charlie had his personal, private office in the guest house where it remained until his death. Yes! There was a sizable library of books there, too. Some of those were more contemporary. Charlie and I spent many hours in conversation in that comfortable office.

As you look around the library you'll see all kinds of books. Charlie loved books, all books. There were many first editions. He would be speaking to a huge audience and he'd hold up a book and kiss it to get his point across. I don't recall a lot about Charlie's childhood or education. I know he was originally from Alabama. I don't recall if he attended college. He became an insurance salesman for one of the largest U.S. insurance companies at age 22. By age 23 he was winning major sales awards. By 30 he was one of the most successful insurance sales people in the U.S.

This room is the essence of Charlie Jones' love of books, learning and sharing the books and the knowledge gained from them. During his lifetime he published countless books for, at the time, lesser known or unknown authors, several of his own books, supplied millions of books to individuals and businesses and spoke to over 5,000 audiences around the world. To say I cherish these photos and the photos I have with Charlie, is an understatement.

This building still exists. It's now owned, along with the guest house, by one of Charlie's daughters and her husband. I haven't been in either building since the ownership changed. I do know the library, and everything it represented to Charlie, to me and the countless others who visited it, is gone. Charlie had made arrangements to donate all of its contents prior to his death. So, being in that room in the past and now looking at these photos is definitely a “blast from the past” for me. However, while the library is gone, it will never be forgotten, nor will my friend, Charlie “Tremendous” Jones.   

Photos-of-the-Week #194 - From Sea to Shining Sea and Gulf to Lake, America the Beautiful, 2014 - 2015

From Sea - The Atlantic Ocean

To Shining Sea - The Pacific Ocean

From the Gulf Shores - The Gulf of Mexico

To the Great Lakes - Lake Erie

I've been sitting here in sunny, warm southern California enjoying the time I'm spending with my son as I await the recovery of My McVansion from it's "heart attack" (engine failure). I began recapping the past 12 months of travel My McVansion and I have enjoyed and experienced. I have literally been from sea to shining sea and from the Gulf to the Lakes. What a wonderful year.

So, all I can say is that life is good and personal freedom makes it even better. Don't misinterpret my thought. It's not like there haven't been a few challenges and adversities. Of course, there have been some of those. Life would be pretty boring if everything was perfect all the time. And it's certainly not that I haven't been to both oceans and the Gulf of Mexico and the Great Lakes before (although it has been a long, long time since I've been to the Great Lakes). But, to experience all four extremes of our beautiful country over land, without the assistance of an airliner, within a 12 month period is definitely a first for me.

I was actually at the Atlantic a second time and at the Hudson River, the north shore of the Long Island Sound, on the shores of several of the Finger Lakes in New York State, at Ocean Pond (a large lake in northern Florida) and Lake Jackson in Sebring, Florida as well as crossing the Ohio River (at several crossings) and the Mississippi River again and at the confluence of the Ohio and Mississippi River, a place I've never crossed the Mississippi river before. I was next to the torrents of water passing over Niagara Falls and found several other waterfalls in New York State, one of which had a longer vertical drop than Niagara Falls. And there has been so much more and even more to come.

The amazing thing is that I've only begun to scratch the surface of seeing this great continent and country. It's not like I haven't been traveling most of my adult life through college and ever since. But, it's different now. I get to see it all from the ground view rather than the eagle's view. Additionally, I get to see it on my terms, not the terms of some business deadline that had to be met.

If you're a fellow traveler, you know exactly what I'm saying. If you're not, you don't know what you're missing. Americana is waiting for your and calling you.   

Things Are Looking Up For My McVansion

If you look over the fence, below and left of the street
 number, 12501, you can see My McVansion's roof.

Today is the eighth day My McVansion has been undergoing "treatment" for its "heart attack." I admitted it to One Stop Engine Rebuilding a week ago Tuesday. Wednesday of last week, the master engine surgeons began the procedure of disassembling and rebuilding, from the basic engine block up, a completely rebuilt "heart" (engine) for My McVansion. Eight days after they began, the heart of My McVansion is firmly seated in its cavity in the front of the patient.

For all practical intents and purposes, the engine is almost all new except for such things as the engine block and the camshaft. It's been cleaned, machined and refitted with everything it needs to return to its job as the powerhouse that drives My McVansion. The only things they are still working on are finding (or fashioning) two hose configurations dealing with the heating system. Since this particular engine has basically been out of production since around 1996 or 1997 or slightly less than 20 years, some parts are a bit challenging to locate.

All things being equal, according to Wilson, the head engine surgeon at One Stop, everything should be back together and My McVansion's heart will be restarted tomorrow (Thursday) and road tested a couple times, at least. If everything checks out and it's fully expected it will, the patient will be discharged. I'll receive a call and I can pick up My McVansion.

There will be a recovery period (break in) of a couple thousand miles. After that everything should be running to full factory specifications again.

Interestingly, they found a significant amount of rust on the engine. Several bolts broke trying to remove them and had to be drilled out and re-tapped. One of the valve covers had so much rust that it had actually eaten a hole through the valve cover.

And here is a shot of My McVansion with the rebuilt engine back in place where there had formerly been an empty cavity. You can see right into the cockpit area of the van that is usually covered by a "doghouse" engine cover.

Once My McVansion is back in my hands, I'll take it to the nearby Walmart in Torrance, California where they will either repair the flattened new right rear tire if it's repairable. Or, I had them order in a replacement tire (it's a special order tire) to have it there just in case the tire can't be repaired and has to be replaced.

I'll pick up some provisions, put everything back in the van I removed prior to the work beginning and, if all goes well, My McVansion and I will be on our way to Quartzite, Arizona on Friday morning, looking to arrive at some reasonable time on Friday afternoon to join up with the rest of the Vandwellers gathered at the annual Rubber Tramp Rendezvous. I had hoped to spend a good part of the two weeks there, but it appears I may only get to spend about four and a half days there. I'll have to do a lot of making up for lost time.

The next post should be from somewhere other than Hawthorne, California.    

Photo-of-the-Week #193 - Griffith Observatory, Griffith Park, Los Angeles, California, January 2015

Here is the Griffith Observatory. The Observatory is prominently located on what may be the highest point in Griffith Park on Mount Hollywood, a 3,000 plus acre preserve donated to the city of Los Angeles in 1896 by Col. Griffith J. Griffith. In his will he also left the funding to build the observatory with detailed specifications. The observatory was built in the mid 1930's as a WPA project during the Great Depression. It was officially opened to the public on May 14, 1935. It is and has always been free to the public in accordance with Griffith's will.

In addition to the huge planetarium theater in the large center dome of the observatory, there are large telescopes in the east and west observatory domes. During World War II the observatory was used to train pilots in celestial navigation. During the 1960's the observatory was again used to train Apollo astronauts for the lunar missions. The observatory has undergone at least a couple major renovations over its lifetime. The latest one took from 2002 to 2006 and included a major excavation project under the observatory to add more exhibit space. It also included the installation of a huge, modern Mark IV Zeiss projector inside the new dome of the planetarium. The older projector was installed in a second theater built underground during the renovations and expansion.

If you look closely you can see the Goodyear
blimp slightly right of center and above the
opening in the clouds.

There is way too much to tell about the fascinating exhibits housed inside the beautiful Art Deco structure. And, as of this time, I have not had the opportunity to experience the inside of the observatory. Pete, my son, and I arrived at about sunset and reaching the observatory on the two lane, winding road leading to the too small parking lot was impossible at that time. So, we found a great vantage point overlooking the Los Angeles Basin and captured photos of the sunset. We later drove up to the top of the mountain, but there was nary a parking place to be found and the traffic and congestion up there was like being on an L.A. freeway at rush hour on a Friday afternoon of a three day weekend. So, this becomes another addition to my life list of places to experience.  

By the way, this photo was taken from about a mile away as the crow flies. The photographic quality, of even an inexpensive point and shoot (in this case, my Samsung WB250F) camera, amazes me. The long lens in this little camera (and I wasn't even close to fully zoomed) provides great detail, remarkably sharp images and, for documentation purpose, very useable photographs. And, while this camera has a 14 mega pixel resolution, I usually use a 5 mega pixel resolution to keep the file size down to allow for faster up and down loading. Ain't technology great? 

The Good, The Bad, But There Is No Ugly Today

Today's article is going to mainly be a photo essay. It is said a picture speaks a thousand words and in this case, I think that's truer than not.

I'm composing this article as I sit parked on the beach in the SoCal city of Manhattan Beach. My son's home is approximately three miles from the beach and the office he works at is conveniently about half way between his pad and the beach. So, this is not a bad arrangement.

The Good!

So, the good is that while My McVansion has suffered an automotive heart attack, I'm fortunate enough to have close family in an idyllic location, especially considering the weather conditions back at my eastern base camp in Keyser, West Virginia. The temperatures there for the past several days have been in the 0-10 degree range at night with 25 to 50 mph winds creating wind-chill temperatures in the -10 to -20 range. Additionally, they have had a nominal blanket of snow on the ground.

So, here is my current location as I compose this piece for, you, my loyal readers --

Surfers on Manhattan Beach, California at
 73 balmy degrees

A small party of onlookers on the beach
in the late afternoon sun

A tanker at anchor off Manhattan Beach

Some volley ball beach babes practicing

Not a bad place to live - if you can afford it

A Pacific Ocean sunset at Manhattan Beach, California

The Bad!

The bad part of this situation is that My McVansion sits about five miles from my present location with a large cavity where its heart (its engine) resided until yesterday. Since my son was kind enough to let me have his car for the day, I took a little time late this morning to visit my micro-condo on wheels and take a look at its current condition.

Here are some current photos of the "patient."

My McVansion with its chest cavity empty - its heart has been removed

The engine block undergoing steam cleaning

One of the two heads and the camshaft
awaiting cleaning and machining

This may be the "bad boy" - one of the pistons is very badly damaged -
the other seven pistons had their miles showing, but were generallyin much better condition.

The NOT Ugly!

So, while this is not a convenient or a planned set of circumstance and turn of events, I don't see anything truly ugly about it. First, I get to enjoy some great time with my son. This is something we haven't had the privilege of having very much over the past decade or so. Second, I'm located in a warm, sunny and very pleasant environment. One couldn't ask for a better situation under the circumstances. Third, this failure of automotive technology was neither planned nor was the expense in the budget, so it's going to take a significant bite out of my resources. However, it will only alter my lifestyle a very small amount.

The upside is that I will have a like new engine in the van that should last many, many miles. This will provide reliable travel and opportunities for exploring more of Americana and the adventures that lie ahead.