Family

You’re Never Alone if You Have a Smart Phone

Posted on October 7, 2014 by queenbookworm

If you are going to travel solo, I suggest you run, don’t walk, to the nearest store to get a smart phone if you don’t already have one. This one small device is all you need to:

Communicate with family & friends your whereabouts & your plans via phone, text, email
Use as a GPS
Find the nearest WalMart, Starbucks or Subway
Call for help
Locate the next rest stop
Take photos & videos of your adventures and send them to family & friends to make them jealous via text or email
Post your adventures to Facebook, your blog, etc.
Locate the nearest gas station
Determine the weather where you are & where you’re headed
Surf the Internet to research highlights along your route, identify snakes/spiders/poison plants (just kidding or maybe not)
Find the correct time
Call for road service
Set an alarm to wake you up (why???)
Check your calendar for appointments
Map out your route
Listen to music
Play games
Follow the news (why??)
Follow other bloggers
Take notes
Calculate stuff
Use as a flashlight
Google, Facebook, Twitter
Orient yourself when you’re on a trail using the built-in compass

If you think this handy, dandy little device is too expensive or too frivolous, you’re wrong! When traveling/camping alone I use my phone as my GPS to locate state & national parks, to make camping reservations, to check the weather and road conditions, to stay connected to my family so they know where I am and where I’m going and so I know that everyone is OK at home, as a phone of course, to listen to music, to make notes for future blogs, as a camera (takes better photos than my cameras), to check my bank balance & even pay bills if necessary, and when I wake up in the middle of the night I play Solitaire. If you activate the locator on your phone you can be found if you get lost as long as you have your phone with you.

I also have applications on my phone for siren/alarms (hope I never need it), my bank, exercise journal, motivational radio, flashlight, Cracker Barrel (sometimes I boondock in their parking lot – did you know you can do that?), dutch oven meals, travel deals, national parks, games and much more. Everything I need fits right in my hand.

So do some comparison shopping (I love my iPhone) and then find a 10 year old to show you how to use it.

Categories: Camping, Family | Tags: boondocking, camping, communication, phone applications, smart phone, solo travel, solo travel for women, travel safety | 1 Comment

“Death, be not proud …” John Donne

Posted on October 2, 2014 by queenbookworm

Death, be not proud

BY JOHN DONNE

Death, be not proud, though some have called thee

Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;

For those whom thou think’st thou dost overthrow

Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.

From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,

Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,

And soonest our best men with thee do go,

Rest of their bones, and soul’s delivery.

Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,

And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,

And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well

And better than thy stroke; why swell’st thou then?

One short sleep past, we wake eternally

And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.

Natalia was one of my daughter’s best friends and although my daughter is no stranger to death, having lost friends to accidents, elderly relatives to various illnesses and even some of her young students (she teaches visually impaired and multiply handicapped children); this was her first up-close and personal encounter with the viciousness of cancer.

Heidi stayed with Natalia and her husband in the hospital every evening after work, spending the night when needed. She called me every morning to vent about the previous day’s declines, fears and horrors. We talked about death and spiritual matters, our experiences and our realities. My daughter and her husband were with Natalia and Franco until yesterday when it ended and will now help Franco continue without his beloved wife.

Over the past few days as I ‘ve gone about my happy life, planning my upcoming travels and enjoying my days doodling around my house and playing with my granddaughter, I have held Natalia and Franco in my heart, but even more so my daughter. I ache for the pain she is experiencing but I am so proud of her faithfulness to her friends, her wonderful supportive husband who stayed by her side through this journey and her belief in my ability to comfort and guide her. We have learned a lot about each other this past week and I am so grateful for the beauty of her mind and heart, her compassion, loyalty and strength of character.

So, death, be not proud … “One short sleep past, we wake eternally and death shall be no more…”

Categories: Family, Life, Uncategorized | Tags: cancer, compassion, death, death be not proud, faithfulness, friendship, John Donne, loyalty | 2 Comments

Wonder Dog, Quilts and Black Water Tanks

Posted on September 30, 2014 by queenbookworm

I got to doggy sit my grand-puppy this weekend. Oliver is a 9-year old chocolate Lab who thinks & acts like a puppy. He may be the only dog I’ve ever met with a sense of humor. When Matt goofs with the dog, Ollie gets it and goofs back. He’s very well trained. You know how dogs take forever to sniff out the perfect spot to do their business? Matt’s command is, “This is the place, now POOP!” When I took Ollie outside I tried the command and it worked! Now if I could just figure out how to market that command for potty training parents I’d be a millionaire.

Ollie is also the only non-human allowed to use my hand-made quilts. Quilts are made with hours of loving stitches and should be well used but treated respectfully. I want my children and grandchildren to use the quilts I make for warmth, for crawling & changing diapers, for picnics & beach trips, for wetting & spitting up and sleeping. I’ve never allowed an animal on my quilts. But, I was cleaning out the Casita from my trip to the Keys and threw the used bedding on the floor and just didn’t have the heart to kick Oliver out of the bed he made from my quilt. He’s just so damn cute, and, since I was going to wash it anyway ….

Speaking of cleaning out the travel trailer, I finally have it down to a science. It took me a while to realize that instead of taking all my camping gear; chairs, carpet, buckets, cords, hoses, charcoal, etc. and schlepping them out to the shed, I can just store them in the camper. So, now I begin by removing all the food & drink; the wine bottles cushioned in my underwear and the vodka & tonic bottles wrapped in WalMart bags under the sink, & other perishables and valuables. Then I strip the bed & convert it back to a table & benches and remove everything else from the Casita. After a thorough cleaning & polishing, I load my camping gear back into the bathroom & I’m ready for my next trip.

Did you know that you can make your own black water tank cleaner? 1/2 cup Borax laundry detergent and 1/4 cup Calgon Water Softener. The Borax controls the odor and cleans the tank and the water softener makes the water softer and more slippery preventing waste from sticking to the walls of the waste tank. Just another great tip I picked up on Pinterest. Other women use Pinterest for recipes, fashion & design tips and I use it for tips on cleaning toilets – lovely.

Categories: Camping, Family | Tags: black water tank, black water tank cleaner, Borax, Calgon, camper toilet cleaner, chocolate Lab, quilts | 3 Comments

Aquaman tells Mom, “Procrastination Eliminates Choice”

Posted on September 27, 2014 by queenbookworm

It began as a small rough patch on the bottom of the pool, then a little chip, then a silver dollar size chip but, hey, the kids & grandkids were visiting & having a ball in the pool. When they left a week later it was about 3 inches in diameter. Then we were traveling, then more company, then traveling again. By the time the chip was 6 inches in diameter we called the pool company. Waited a week, called again. We were told to get two part epoxy underwater putty and someone with scuba gear to seal the edges so it didn’t get any bigger until we’re ready to re-marcite the entire pool. More traveling, other priorities, husband working on the roof of the cottage up north and now the chip is a crater about 14 inches in diameter so I called my son Matt – scuba diver, surfer, paddle boarder,water baby extraordinaire. We talked several times about the hole and what we should do about it. Eventually, he told me what to buy, A & B Epoxy Putty, and we scheduled a time for the repair.

Aquaman

I think he was slightly horrified at the size of the hole but put on his weight belt & mask & chipped out the edges while I kneaded the 2-part epoxy putty getting it ready for his use. He regretted not bringing his scuba gear because it took him almost an hour to free dive and mold the putty around the edges of the crater. He was shivering & light headed by the time he was done, but his work was meticulous. I made him hot broth & hot coffee.

I gushed over Matt telling him how much I appreciated his good work and thanked him lavishly for helping me out & told him how much I love him & how proud I am of him. He looked at me with his big soulful, hazel eyes and sadly said, “Mom, I love you but you gotta remember procrastination eliminates choice”.

Smartass.