What places you’ve visited recently seem to be impacted by tourist overcrowding?  

“I would rather sit on a pumpkin and have it to myself than be crowded on a velvet cushion.” (Henry David Thoreau)

I need to be completely honest about Sedona, Arizona in this blog. Our latest road trip visit last Saturday to this land of mystical red rock landforms noticeably disappointed me. Quite simply, I’ve observed that  this beautiful but pricy locale now struggles with a tourist overpopulation crisis. Know then upon viewing some evidence of this congestion problem, I’m not convinced that enough free spirited hikers will adapt well to a rigid departure/return schedule of a new shuttle bus option that now runs on busy weekends. Nor do I reason that limited parking lot space and those restrictive safety regulations on trail sites about hiker movement will adequately satisfy those pure vortex seeking enthusiasts who expect total silence and energized inner peace during daytime hours on any given day. As we’ve normally chosen to find more inexpensive lodging and other amenities in nearby Oak Creek on previous hiking endeavors to this region, that strategy no longer seems to work. For there’s too many visitors lingering around at restaurant/shopping sites along with a gentrified lodging crisis of escalating redevelopment costs further impairing touristic satisfaction there as well. 

I still believe that it’s worthwhile to visit Sedona if you’re willing to wait and thus exercise patience in enduring the company of others.  But on this unintended “drive in – drive out day” at Sedona, I felt compelled to share a few photos to better illustrate this town’s sightseeing problem. 

Where do you often search for a better future of humankind? 

“I don’t believe that anyone can see the Grand Canyon area for themselves and not know that we have to do everything we can to protect it for future generations.” (Nolan Gould).   

I would like to take a different point of view in this road trip blog from past visits to the Grand Canyon. Instead of “oooing and ahhing” on this most recent visit in the immediate moment at each overlook,  I will instead share some relics of its existence to  improve the quality of life for myself and generations in the future. Being quite selective in this effort, I’ve chosen to walk along a mile or so of the vast South Rim edge to photograph such inspiring icons of its surviving ecosystem existing there on a smaller scale. I also utilized a plant identification app in my efforts to better understand how certain tree species adapt to this harsh arid environment. 

PRESERVE NATURAL PLACES FROM HUMAN CONTACT 

SOME ROCKS TELL US TO SLOW DOWN AND JUST RELAX

CRITTERS MAKE GOOD COMPANY FOR ANIMAL CARING HUMANS

INDIAN MARKINGS ON THIS LAND CARRY THE SPIRIT OF UNITY 

PINE/OAKTREE PRESERVATION PROVIDES A GOOD HABITAT FOR ANIMALS 

SAGEBRUSH STABILIZES  SOIL CONDITIONS AND PREVENTS DAMAGING EROSION

FEEL THE PSYCHIC ENERGY POTENTIAL OF THAT COLLECTOR ROCK

WATCH BUT DO NOT WITH INTERFERE WITH ANIMAL BEHAVIOR IN THE WILD 

In what ways have you gone “retro” in daily living?

“ I think, food, culture, people, and landscape are absolutely inseparable.” ( Anthony Bourdain)

Do you sometimes tire of looking at endless fast  food restaurants sprawling around your town? Do you also tend to lose your patience waiting in those long takeout lines to order food from your vehicle? So imagine a different America when Burger  King, McDonalds, Wendy’s…chains did not usually exist in your town in the mid 20th century. You might then have chosen then to enter a hometown looking diner to order your  favorite foods with a pleasant hostess while chatting with surrounding customers as desired. 

Consider then how uplifting it felt for me to turn back the clock and cruise along intact sections of Route 66 on our west bound road trip last weekend. In particular, I took some time during our stays in Tucumcari, New Mexico and Williams, Arizona to hone in on that old fashioned spirit both outside and inside those surviving dining vestiges of that 1950s time.

So imagine ordering along “The Mother Road” that juicy hamburger, a carb filled basket of fries, and a thick chocolate milkshake as I present some iconic photos taken during that leg of our journey. 

What places you’ve visited most remind you about the tragic impact of war?

“Walk through the mud in life if you ever want to get to the higher ground.”(Greg Plitt)

This past weekend, I enjoyed the Civil War portion of our spring road trip with visits to  Kennesaw National Battlefield in north central Georgia  and Vicksburg National Battlefield in west central  Mississippi. In doing so, I imagined the tumultuous time when a widespread Civil War in its latter stages continued on throughout the southern states with catastrophic consequences. At this time,  thousands of soldiers on both sides had already sacrificed their lives in major battles across the Shenandoah and Mississippi valleys. So what interested me most about each of these pivotal battle scenes I witnessed today were those determined efforts by the Union soldiers to advance their troops in seemingly unsurmountable conditions. For the naval assault below the cliffs lining the river at Vicksburg  as well as the fortified Confederate defenses smartly amassed atop Kennesaw presented formidable “high ground” challenges.              

Thus realizing my limited  time available to sightsee, I prioritized stopping at the respective Visitor Centers to watch the introductory movies and converse with park rangers about related issues of Civil War interest. In doing so, I discovered new facts about the status of southern slavery and high ranking military leaders at the time. We also enjoyed walking along the east bank of the Mississippi River and taking a leisurely drive to the 1,300 foot summit of Kennesaw Mountain that day. Our next stop on our road trip will be McKinney, Texas to spend time with my wife’s cousin. Enjoy the photos.

Battle Source Information:

https://www.nps.gov/vick/index.htm

https://www.nps.gov/kemo/planyourvisit/basicinfo.htm

Where would you most likely look to find a rare treasure? 

“Treasure comes in many forms.” (S.A. Rodriguez)

I reason that some of you would picture a treasure hunt as a clue driven strategy to locate a collection of valuable objects or riches for some eager explorer to find. But as the “St. Mary’s” ferry landed on remote Cumberland Island, Georgia at the beginning of our latest road trip, a different kind of treasure captured our interest. For we’d be hiking  for over five hours on our own across its southerly portion in search of rare wild horses that still populated the island. Understand that these treasured feral animals living there today can be genetically traced back to the original horse herds that were brought to the island during Spanish and British exploration of this land in the mid 18th century. 

So I point out for you with accompanying photos some key clues to follow before, during, and after this treasure hunt. For like us, you might celebrate at the end of this arduous effort being witness to close up horse encounters by sitting on the beach for them to come.

Start your day by purchasing a round trip ferry ticket at the St. Mary’s Visitor Center for an early departure and return on days of cooler weather. Mosquito repellent would also be recommended.

When you get off the boat at the first dock landing, check out your map of the island layout. Then notice where the crowds are heading. Let them pass and then make your way straight on from the arrival area. 

Take the right fork ahead lined with oak trees on both sides of your path. You’ll come to the Dungeness Mansion ruins site built in the late 19th century. Walk around its front side for some interesting photo opportunities. 

To the back of the mansion, you’ll get a nice view of the St. Mary’s River. If you walk to the shoreline you’ll notice hordes of tiny spider looking crabs scurrying around the mushy soil. Be careful you don’t slip on these muddy conditions. 

Head back toward  the mansion and you’ll see a sign pointing you to turn  right toward the beach heading slightly uphill on a sandy trail. Notice some lush  green meadows whereby horses  might be grazing in the distance. 

A wood plank boardwalk appears on your right. Take it to cross over some swampland conditions. You begin to hear the sounds of the ocean waves at this point of your hike.

Almost there! Vast sand dunes overlook the beach which you must cross.

As you descend to the beach, your treasure awaits you. A herd of wild ponies might graze on sea grass below the dunes.  They appear seemingly unafraid of humans. I recommend you act quietly as I did and just plop down on the sand within 10-20 feet to watch them. 

When done, head back to the boat by backtracking the same route you earlier had taken. But don’t be late or you might risk being stranded on the island!

Source:

https://exploregeorgia.org/city/cumberland-island

What’s your current status as to allotting time to travel?  

“Stop worrying about the potholes in the road and enjoy the journey.” (Babs Hoffman)

Getting away for travel can be a monumental task when unresolved issues linger on at home. So consider my mother’s recent transition to “Assisted Living”. It seemed logical at first that we’d stay on a predictable time schedule similar to what we had done with our own condo transition last December. For Ruth and I had worked smoothly as a team then in handling such tasks as moving our possession efficiently and setting up a usable method to finance such an effort.

Yet what ultimately proved however to “bog me down” on mother’s move centered around those unforeseen events of costly time delays each day that tested my patience to the “max”. Take for example that I’d failed to realize the considerable number of address changes I needed to make for mother’s active accounts. Compounding that issue, I’d also underestimated the time difficulty I would need to complete each of them online.

One glaring example of this problem happened when I attempted to secure my mother’s “VA” pension information from my late father’s military past. Notably, why did I need to elaborate on the phone verbatim to the agent specific details about his war service in World War II to make a simple clerical alteration? For what reason did I also need to confirm the first day he entered the military for instance? I can similarly report how a nightmarish waste of time I faced to contact Social Security directly lingered on for days until at the last moment I discovered by googling that there existed a simple form to fill out for mailing the required  information. 

An equally puzzling task happened when private company security protocols required me to recall exact answers to security questions like the first four letters of my mother’s favorite elementary teacher or a similar recall of what label she called  her first childhood pet. If the wrong answers were given, the agent would not talk to me about my mother’s accounts. So when such access was denied, I decided to mail each company a copy of my “power of attorney” form, which further delayed me for up to two weeks in gaining access to her official records.

Along a similar vein, what I would describe as communicative “mumble jumbo” slowed me down daily with such seemingly routine matters as (1) obtaining my mother’s ID status and/or her current login information, 2) transferring her health records efficiently and (3) mediating disagreements between family/friends concerning what personal items of hers to keep, box, or send to “Goodwill”. Thus feeling overwhelmed by these tasks, it seemed that I bounced around playing the simulated role of lawyer, doctor, and family counselor each day. In turn, my sleep schedule also suffered.

Don’t get me wrong! I’ve certainly realized that these official actions I’ve described above were necessary. But certainly a more time friendly approach for me as a family caregiver should have been respected. Perhaps then the best way to look at my arduous effort for several months in humanistic terms can justify that she’s now happily settled into her new apartment routine in more caring and economical living conditions.        

So the timing’s finally right for Ruth and me to take off on our delayed California bound road trip. Our clockwise route in April through early May thus hopefully will bring calmer spring weather conditions than if we’d left months ago as planned. So stay tuned in as I report as usual my curious minded array of travel blogs from various regions around this country in the upcoming weeks.Take a look at the our itinerary covering twenty one stopover sites in the cover photo above. 

How do you know when it’s time to “downsize” your physical possessions? 

“The less you own, the less that owns you.”  (Nicole Snow)

I’ve been trying lately to follow my wife Ruth’s recommendation that we get serious about “downsizing “ our newly purchased condo. Aside from practical space concerns, we’ve agreed to minimalize our home look in anticipation of a more mobile lifestyle involving long term travel. This major life decision boils down to spending less on frivolous wants (ie. extra tables, storage racks and light fixtures…) as well as eliminating unnecessary clutter from our nostalgic past.        

Fortunately we’re seeing results already. Our current living room for instance now obtains a more relaxed look with more open floor/wall space as well as wider furniture gaps similar to the example shown in my cover photo above. We’ve also managed to store away into our utility room, plenty of labeled boxes containing primarily paintings, travel/sports/family memorabilia, old CDs and various kinds of gadgetry. Eventually, most of these items will need to be either “tossed” or donated to “Goodwill.”      

So does “minimalism”work for you to relieve your life clutter? What tough decisions will you have to make in this regard? Perhaps the following poem I wrote about my own “packrat”track record will help you decide.

THE ART OF LESS

Once again you’ve consumed too much 

With space factors looming as such

Notice your want instincts quite well      

Which deepens stuff’s magical spell                                                     

With so many excuses you try

There’s no time for this darkening lie

True value flows from keen memory’s mind

Not hoarding more treasures you find.

So heed my words from one who’s wise.

Allow me to help others decide to downsize 

How do you best handle failure? 

“A step backward after making a wrong turn is a step in the right direction.” (Kurt Vonnegut)

My grandfather used to spend much of his spare time tinkering with objects to make them work better. When I visited him for long stretches at a time in Tampa, Florida in my early teens, he might for instance be trying out a new tv antenna, restringing his fishing reel or even carving out chess pieces to make them look more real. When something he did failed to work, I noticed he’d  patiently just go back and try it again. 

Know then that our recent road trip visit to the former winter home of Thomas Edison in Fort Myers, Florida along the Calloosahatchee River felt very much the same as these memories of my grandfather. For from a historic perspective, I note that Mr. Edison also knew very well the bitterness of failure that often accompanied his trial and error attempts to build and market such revolutionary inventions as the incandescent electric light, Edison storage battery and listening phonograph player. Yet with so much world fame already secured from such hard earned efforts,  a question arises as to why he needed to reside on  this land parcel in a relatively rural region of Florida during the “golden years” of his life?

So taking a deeper look at Mr. Edison’s longtime winter residency in this subtropical coast city from 1885 to the time of his death in 1931, it’s clear to me  that he did not move here to just “rest on his previous laurels.” Take for instance my curious glance at the thick strand of trees lining the estate entrance to begin my tour. For Edison began there in the 1920s a period of laborious botanical experimentation here, to pioneer one of the first attempts to grow rubber successfully on American soil. Next following an easy to read app guide, we made our way on the ground to such well preserved locations as the original Edison main house and restored laboratory study. At the time, I noticed  Edison’s flair for making good use of the latest inventions of this era in these important interior environments as well as providing detailed use of space in arranging comfortable furniture and various other objects so he could either work or relax successfully. 

Upon also concentrating my attention on the outdoor environs of Mr. Edison’s property for much of this day, I observed Mr. Edison’s great love for building “state of the art” additions to relax according to his favorite hobbies in this mild climate. There’d be plenty of opportunity for him to thus cast off his rod and reel on the river from a private fishing pier spanning a 1500 foot long. When lavish entertainment of guests “struck his fancy”, he undoubtedly mingled with his esteemed family or guests around his lavishly designed swimming pool which also contained a changing area and private showers and tea room When he desired a place to just quietly or read, write, his tropically manicured “Moonlight Garden” must have fulfilled these leisurely needs as well.

I must confess my intense interest in applying Thomas Edison’s “never quit” method to my travels. For I need to sustain more functional solutions to times when home life crises restricts my time allotted to travel. My trial and error goal thus over the next year or two would be to test out a few suitable oases we can visit as Mr. Edison did in Fort Myers to best fulfill our hobbies and social interests during future long term stays. At this point in time, I envision either Northern California, Central Arizona, or the Rocky Mountain region of Colorado as definitely desirable. Enjoy the photo tour of the Edison winter home.

Source Material (Click links below)

https://www.edisonfordwinterestates.org/

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/innovation/7-epic-fails-brought-to-you-by-the-genius-mind-of-thomas-edison-180947786/

How does the struggle for Civil Rights in America  impact your life? 

“Music has the power to break barriers, uplift communities, and inspire change.”(Count Basie)

I’ve noticed lately a distinct change lately in the concerts I’ve attended. The crowds predictably are older and the set lists are longer for sure as bands usually play their entire repertoire of compositions popularized during my teen and college years era. To further lengthen these concerts, I’m observing  the artist typically takes time to reflect about personal events that impacted their musical careers.       

Accordingly, I witnessed last week on our recent mini road trip the addition of a storytelling nostalgia component to go along with the celebrated return of the great Count Basie “Big Band” in St. Petersburg, Florida. Know then that a major highlight of this Black History event at a local college happened to be a pre-concert panel discussion of local cultural leaders discussing the historic relevance of that Monday evening concert.  

In this regard, the legendary jazz orchestra last performed in this city over sixty three years ago. While Basie often seemed uninterested  in showcasing his own star status, his band’s historic appearance that day must also be placed in the context of their united “stand” against such inferior racial  treatment they often faced on the road at that time period.  Click on the following video to obtain greater  knowledge of the late Count Basie the person and performer. 
https://youtu.be/_j_ne0FTRcI?si=MEv6l6tVVkpZO8v2

How inspiring to realize then that Count Basie’s music represents an African American equality success story. For his “Big Band” carries on into its ninetieth year of world wide tour play amid escalating white supremacist dangers in America today.  Looking back then at my own past as a former rock and jazz  musician, I also exhibited  strong energy to perform competently on my trombone, hoping to  potentially help change the world for the better.  Listening to my music today, I still feel this way today! Enjoy the photos.

Source Material:

https://ilovetheburg.com/count-basie-orchestra-wada/

How do you best manage the enduring wrath of wintertime?

“Keep your face to the sun and you will never see the shadows” (Helen Keller)

The St. Petersburg city region along the west coast of Florida provided  a relaxing road trip “getaway” for Ruth and me Iast week. While it gets crowded there in springtime from the annual “snowbird” invasion, we felt savvy enough to find a quiet spot to relax on the beach from this tourist frenzy. So we immediately thought of  Fort DeSoto Beach, located at the southern tip of this peninsula as the  best site to  just sit or stroll.  So I enthusiastically wrote the following poem as we lingered around these tranquil bay waters the  day after a severe  wind and rain storm event shut down our outdoor activities in this area. Enjoy the photos.      

SUN COAST SKYWARD

Warm rays settle softly upon my skin

A soothing tan let the healing begin

Morning mood lifted, a heartfelt  high

Who cares if there’s no hookup to “wifi”

Dark skies vanish in golden glow

Freeing all life with chance to grow.

Florida solar beams so pure and free

Plenty of sunshine for Ruth and me!”