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Tight Fit

Palazzo Parked in RV Drive

When we upgraded the RV from a 32 footer to the nearly 36 footer we now have, we worried about whether or not it would fit in the RV Drive behind the house. Well, it does, but without much room to spare.

The first time we brought it home, Verna was outside watching all clearances as I drove the big guy in. Now, each time we bring it home, she does the same to guide me to the exact spot where we can deploy all three slide-outs.

We wrote about the clearance issue on the Minstrel Blog a week or so ago. That write-up has several images showing proximity between the rig and the structures from several angles.

April 25, 2017 by Arizona Home & Garden Retirement Vacation

Throwback Thursday Wanderlust

Four Corners Area These pictures must have been taken somewhere between 1998 and 2004. Verna and I were touring the southwest states back in the days when we were both working and living in California.

We took the top two photos at the Four Corners Monument where the state lines of Utah, Colorado, Arizona and New Mexico intersect. I took the bottom photo the same day at Monument Valley, which is about a hundred miles west of the corners along the Utah-Arizona border. Verna is posing in front of the famous “Mittens” escarpments made famous by their repeated appearance in Hollywood western movies, mostly by director John Ford featuring John Wayne.

Later this month, we will begin an excursion that takes us to California for a couple of days, then on to Nevada, Utah and finally Arizona again. The Four Corners are not on the itinerary, but we plan on spending a night at Monument Valley.

We always take pictures of our trips and plan on posting some of them here and on other social media. Stay tuned!

April 20, 2017 by Nostalgia Retirement Vacation

Maximizing the RV Parking Spot

Patio Clearance 3D

I figured a good way to demonstrate how close the new RV fits into the parking spot was to take a 3D image pair showing the overlap between the RV, the patio and the RV bedroom slide out. Click on the image to enlarge.

Here are a couple of images showing the RV parked in the barely big enough parking space with slide-outs and awning deployed: image 1, image 2.

From the other blog:

Now, we have upgraded to a Class A diesel pusher which is just about the shortest in the diesel category at 35 feet nine inches. We have three slide outs and an 18 foot awning, all of which can be deployed in the space available behind the garage. But just barely.

Of course, if you don’t yet have your free pair of 3D glasses to view the image above, you can see the 2D version here.

April 14, 2017 by Arizona Bob's 3D Stuff Retirement Vacation

Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko in 3D

Comet in 3D

Today’s Astronomy Picture of the Day featured an anaglyph image of Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko taken by the Rosetta comet-probing spacecraft. I was impressed by the stereo image of this object in space in an up-close and personal view of another world.

From APOD:

Get out your red/cyan glasses and gaze across the surface of Churyumov-Gerasimenko, aka Comet 67P. The stereo anaglyph was created by combining two images from the Rosetta spacecraft’s narrow angle OSIRIS camera taken on September 22, 2014. Stark and jagged, the 3D landscape is found along the Seth region of the comet’s double-lobed nucleus. It spans about 985 x 820 meters, pocked by circular ridges, depressions, and flattened areas strewn with boulders and debris. The large steep-walled circular pit in the foreground is 180 meters in diameter. Rosetta’s mission to the comet ended in September 2016 when the spacecraft was commanded to a controlled impact with the comet’s surface.

March 31, 2017 by Bob's 3D Stuff Nerdliness

Curve Billed Thrasher

Curve Billed Thrasher

I was up on the hill behind the house looking at some of the vegetation up there when a Curve Billed Thrasher lit atop the bird block feeder. I had my camera and 300mm lens with me so I took several shots of the bird before it flew away.

Wikipedia has this information on this interesting species:

The curve-billed thrasher (Toxostoma curvirostre) is a medium-sized mimid that is a member of the genus Toxostoma, native to the southwestern United States and much of Mexico. Referred to as the default desert bird, it is a non-migratory species. Several subspecies have been classified since 1827, though there is no consensus on the number. Allopatric speciation is believed to have played a major role in the variations of the curve-billed. It shares striking similarities in appearance with another Toxostoma member, Bendire’s thrasher. Nevertheless, it is recognized for its grey color and sickle-shaped bill. It generally resides in desert regions of the United States and Mexico, but can inhabit areas predominately populated by humans.

The demeanor of the curve-billed has been described as “shy and rather wild”, but it allows humans to view it closely. It is very aggressive in driving out potential threats, whether competitors for food or predators of its chicks. The curve-billed thrasher sometimes mimics several other species, though not to the extent of other mimids. It has a variety of distinctive songs, and this extensive repertoire of melodies has led it to be known as cuitiacoache (songbird) in Mexico.

Click on the image to enlarge.

March 28, 2017 by Arizona Critters Home & Garden Photography

Hassayampa River Flowing

Hassayampa River Flowing

I cropped this panoramic image of the Hassayampa River from a shot that Verna took from the bridge on Friday. Normally, the river is dry above the surface at this time of year, but a couple of weeks ago we had some rainfall and snow in the mountains which is, apparently, still melting off.

Shortly after the rainstorms, this part of the river was full bank to bank with whitecaps and rapids. The water flow is diminished now and will eventually dry up until the summer monsoon season.

Click on the panoramic image to view full size.

March 25, 2017 by Climate Panoramas Photography

Avalon 1998

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