We got back from Arizona today. When I went out to check on my patio garden, I found these three pink plumerias in bloom. Pretty! Click on the image to enlarge.
California
Goodbye Old Faithful Printer
After nearly twenty years, my old Hewlett Packard 4L Laserjet printer finally bought the farm. The venerable old printer started misfeeding the paper last night causing jams and errors. I tried troubleshooting it for a while but it stubbornly refused to cooperate. So I disconnected it from the network and loaded it up to go to the HAZMAT recycle center on Friday. I have a bunch of other HAZMAT items boxed up so the timing is right.
Even before showing signs of failure, it started getting hard to find toner cartridges for the old printer. Fortunately, one on-line source came through a couple of years ago when I ordered a couple of toner cartridges. I used one up and the last one we had started to exhibit signs of going out of toner.
The last time I installed the printer on the new laptop, I had a difficult time locating an on-line source for a proper printer driver. I guess the signs were all there that the time has come for a new printer.
We will be in the market for a new printer when the new house in Arizona is complete. In California, we’re going to scout out and buy a cheapie printer to use until we finally get the house on the market.
Arizona Home Progress Report
Verna and I went out to the construction site where our contractor is building our new house. I walked up the little hill at the east side of our property and snapped images of the site. We were there at roughly the same time each day, Monday through Thursday, mid to late morning.
The top panel in the composite image is of the work done on day one, the day of the groundbreaking. The entire foundation trench was already complete. This time of the year in Arizona, they get to work early and get the work done before daytime temperatures become very hot.
Image – Days one through four – click on the thumbnail image to enlarge
The second panel, day two, shows the nearly completed form for the foundation concrete pour. The crew used a level laser projector to ensure the forms were all at the same height.
The third panel, day three, shows the completed foundation forms and the rough blackwater plumbing. We asked for a blackwater dump to be available for our RV pad so it is available outside the foundation behind the master bath. You can see the sewer vent (the long vertical pipe) extending upwards near the RV connection just outside the foundation.
Today, day four, we stopped to get a final panorama of the progress. Inside the frame, the ground has been leveled in preparation for the concrete slab to be poured.
Verna and I are headed back to California for a few weeks to take care of personal business and family matters. We plan to return to Arizona after the Labor Day Holiday to track progress and to continue with the transition to the Copper State.
The New Lot Panorama
This panorama is from the perspective of the road across from the new lot. You can see from the west road to the east road with the compacted lot in the center. The house in the distance is on the next street over and up the hill behind the property. Click on the thumbnail below for the full panorama.
Fixing the Wall
Our neighbors are doing a face lift on their home. As a part of that work, they were kind enough to offer to fix an eyesore. A few years ago, a car went over the curb and hit their wall. They repaired it, but the patchwork was clearly visible on our side of the wall ever since the incident. Today, the neighbors’ construction crew put on a coat of concrete. In a few days, they will paint it white to match our fence and gate.
New Neighbors
Earlier this month, we drove to Arizona to the town where we’re planning to relocate. While we were there we saw some of the neighbors on a hillside waving at us. Click on the image to zoom out.
