It Just Ain't the Same Anymore........

Years and years ago, going to a concert was pretty much the highlite of that given time period. I can say that now, it's more......take it or leave it. Tonight was my final, don't hold me to it, concert. Judas Priest at Vivint Arena was something I really looked forward to, but it just didn't do it for me. Why, you ask? Lets go over the pros and cons. First and foremost is the arena. The acoustics there really truly suck giant aardvark balls. The 2 opening acts put their amps to 11 and thought all the noise was cool. It wasn't. It all sounded like a blur.....you know, like when you throw a bunch of shit into a blender and it mixes it and removes any recognizable individual unit. The opening acts sounded just like that. The Priest on the other hand were not at 11 and you could hear every element in their set. Only issue was the voice. The sound of his voice was having the turn it to 11 issue. To me, the tone of it was set at a flat setting. I know this is hard to explain but it just didn't work. Next in the cons is 60 year old head bangers head banging. There was one guy who was banging away and the dumb shit had to hold onto the railing so he didn't fall over. I was waiting for him to go over, but he disappointed me and stayed upright. Another con, band members. Judas Priest is known for their dual lead guitars, K K Downing and Glen Tipton. So, K K retired, and was replaced by Richie Faulkner. No complaints here, he is an extremely talented guitarist. Just before this tour, Glen announced he would't be touring due to advanced Parkinson's disease. They replaced him with Andy Sneap. Needless to say, when you are missing your top guns, your sound isn't going to be the same. Glen and Richie made a good team. Tonight, it was basically Richie doing maybe 90% of all the lead work. It really sounded good, but it was missing Glen. Last but not least, I'm thinking that I am too damn old. In my younger years, concerts were a huge party. I don't party anymore, and to be honest, I couldn't afford to if I still did. I mean, who in the hell pays $11.00 for a single beer? Really???? I watched the people around me come and go with beer. Whoever owns the beer stands is making big time bucks. I am one who cannot justify $11 for a drink. It's crazy! So, I am certain that I will not attend anymore concerts at an arena. As for the pros.... I really can't think of any. Tonight was fun for the most part, but lets face it... I am not 18 anymore. But, I could be tempted to head over to Wendover for a show there. It's not that big and the sound has always been great. So I guess I can't say never...... On a different note, I did order my new ball joints for my Jeep. They are coming out of Denver so hopefully within the next 2 weeks Old Yellow will be up and running again. Lord knows I need to get out and explore. Jeep on my friends!

We Made It !!!!!

Way back in the good old days, November of 2008 to be exact, I began writing this blog for reasons I don't even remember. It has damn near been 10 years and I finally made it to the 10,000 visitor mark yesterday. I know that really isn't a lot of visits, but to me, it's kinda cool! So, I just wanna say thanks to all of you who read this. I am hoping for more entries this summer and will start writing again when the Just Empty Every Pocket (jeep) gets repaired.  Stay tuned and Jeep on my friends!

What the Hell is Going On?

 Welcome to April 2018. I have not even enjoyed a day out in the Jeep yet. Why you ask? Well, due to a funding shortfall, the Jeep sat thru January, February and most of March. Well, that and the damn battery took a dump. So, funding returned, it got a new battery, and then the shit really hit the fan. Old Yellow has had a wee bit of death wobble for the past few years. Twas never much, just a tiny bit of shaking between 42-50 MPH. So, to my surprise on the first trip out on a, for lack of a better phrase, test drive, I was shocked when it felt as if the steering wheel was going to come off in my hands. I took it in to Jim and Dave's and we discovered that the cheap-ass ball joints that have plastic in them had gone south for time and all eternity. In their infinite wisdom, Jeep ball joints have gone from all metal to metal/plastic ball joints. Lovely! So now, I have to purchase new ones and have them installed. The bad thing about it is that unless you buy a decent aftermarket brand, you will get another filled with plastic. The choices start at $199 and go up to $250 for the set of 4. To add insult to injury, while we had it in the air, I noticed that the mighty p.o.s. 3.8 mini-van motor was leaking like sieve. I thought no big deal, I have the lifetime power train warranty so it will be fixed for free. It just so happens that the 5 year inspection was due so I took it to the dealership. They noticed the leaks too and went to order all the parts and Jeep sent back a note saying it was not under warranty due to the fact I had not done the first 5 year inspection. Wrong! I had done it and had all the paperwork to prove it. Long story short, after the back and forth calls between me and Jeep, I faxed in my copies and supposedly, the warranty was reinstated. We shall see. This past week has been so busy with crap I haven't had time to go back and find out for sure that it was reinstated. Since we all know that bad things come in 3's, it shouldn't be a surprise that we found number 3 while on the hoist. My 14 month old radiator took a shit and was leaking again from the same spot the last replacement was leaking. Knowing the procedure, I took the fotos and sent in all the paperwork. I will say that Mishimoto is quick and helpful but it seems that they have had quite a few of the Wrangler radiators fail in the same spot. Their return letter was yes, my return was approved but I would have to wait on the new re-designed Jeep model. Again, long story short, I do have the new version sitting in my front room waiting to be installed. What pisses me off the most about this Jeep is the fact that while it will go anywhere I point it, it seems to have a lot of shitty parts that are prone to fail. I put 125,000 on my 95 wrangler and the only bad part I had with it was a jumped timing chain that cost me $600 to fix. Hell, even the brakes were still good after all those miles..........

 My next hope was/is above in the foto. I inherited 80 1884 O Morgan silver dollars from my grandfather. They are uncirculated and quite pretty. He was given these when he retired from his job the 2nd time. According to my mother, the Las Vegas office brought these to his retirement party. If you walk in to a coin shop, you can get on the average $32 per coin. But, if you have them graded, the value can go thru the roof. These coins are not from the preferred mints of Carson City or San Francisco, ours came out of the mint in New Orleans. We sent 8 in to be graded and ended up getting 1 ungraded due to surface contamination, 1 ms63, 4 ms64 and 2 ms65. On today's market, we took $256 worth of coins and made them worth $700. You are probably thinking that was awesome. It really wasn't. The fees to grade the coins totaled approximately $300 so actual profit is $400, or basically $50 a coin. It really is a gamble on grading. You have to more than double the value of your coin to make any money. Why you ask? Let me show you. If you have a $32 street value coin, and it costs you $35 to get it graded, you are in the hole $3 dollars. The coin would have to be graded to an amount over $67 to break even. The ms63 coin I have is worth only $65 so I lost $2 on the deal. lucky for me, I only had one of them. I did fairly well on the other 6 coins, but not enough to send in more coins. I am thinking of selling them in groups of 7 or 8 for $55 a coin and let someone else gamble on their value. Who knows? I only know I need to unload them so the Yellow Jeep will run again. One word to you, if you ever get a rare coin, DO NOT try to clean or polish it. That will destroy any value in the coin. Like I said, I had one end up in that category. I have no idea what they found on it. The only thing I can think of is that when my grandfather was showing them to his friends that night, someone had something on their hands when they touched it. Since that night, they have been in the coin wraps until I took them out to inspect them for grading. Who knows? If you are interested in buying some, hit me up and we'll talk. Jeep on my friends! 

Mindless Meanderings

So, here it is, 2018 and February and this is my first entry. I can explain. The truth is that I ain't done nothing exciting. Well, let me rephrase that. As par for the course, I have already been in the Emergency Room. Shocking, isn't it? It appears, tho I did fail the test, that I was nailed by this years flu bug. I had gone in to see what the hell was going on and the Dr put me on an antibiotic and all was supposed to go well. It didn't. Went back in 2 days later and I was sent over to the hospital because my blood oxygen level was like 80. Its either ironically funny or extremely sad when the nurse there knows your name. OK so the foto above is my first Ford.

She escorted me to my usual room there, its a cardiac room and the diagnosis began. They ask you a million questions and begin to insert various objects into your body. For example, she stuck in a butterfly needle into my left hand in preparation for an IV. Then, instead of taking blood work thru that hole already in my body, the phlebotomist proceeded to poke another hole in my right arm. My right arm also had the blood pressure cup on it as well as the oximeter. So, with all this going on, my ability to entertain myself with games on my phone became impossible. I will admit this tho, they have done some upgrades over there and the tv actually had a bunch of channels and a clear picture. Than heavens for that. Above we have my 74 Ford, which was my favorite!

The Dr finally made his way into the room and proceeded to tell me that as sick as I was, I would most likely be spending the night. I was thinking he was right. I have never coughed so much or so hard even when I had pneumonia. And of course with my sternum still in 2 pieces, it hurt like hell. It was early afternoon and I hadn't eaten lunch yet so I asked aloud if it was possible to eat. The guy in my room at this time was taking a chest xray and he said he would ask. The xray was taken and he left. Not 5 minutes later, he came back in carrying a lunch tray with a diet Dr Pepper. This guy is my hero. I know a lot of you out there are thinking OMG he had to eat hospital food. Little secret.... our hospitals food is awesome. People actually go to lunch and dinner there. It really is that good, and inexpensive too. Above we have my 2004 Ranger. 

So, as time is passing and tests are being done, I am sitting in my room eating lunch and watching tv. The Dr keeps sticking his head in saying they are working on getting me a room for the night. His biggest concern which he told me at the end of my visit was that something was going on with my heart. He discussed the results with my insurance company and they both agreed that my heart was fine and that there really was no reason to spend the night. But, I was to be sent home on oxygen. I was ok with this decision. I have spent the night there before and I was glad it wasn't going to happen. Trying to sleep in a hospital bed sucks, at least for me. I was glad I didn't have to do it. So, I get sent home with an oxygen tank that is good for 3 hours. The company affiliated with the tank is a genuine piece of shit and we will leave it with that. They brought me a machine and for the next week it and me were best friends. Its now been 3 weeks and I am finally feeling better. Everyone said this years flu was nasty and deadly and I have to agree with them. As I said, I've had pneumonia a few times but this flu.... It is nasty! Last but not least is my 2005 F-150. Sweet riding vehicle.  Jeep on my friends!  

Things you read at 5am........

 Good morning to you..... I wish!  I woke up at 5 this morning and was kinda hungry. I made myself a dinner salad with Ranch and enjoyed it immensely. My cardiologist was not happy with my diet so I have to start being more "picky?" on what I eat. I will also tell you that my blood sugar was right on target this morning so it appears I am headed in the right direction. It is extremely difficult to find food that is acceptable to my problems. Diabetes demands low carbs and heart disease prohibits my favorite proteins. That basically leaves me salads, chicken, seafood and vegetables. I will admit I would love to eat more seafood but its too damn expensive for my budget. Right now in the situation I am in Top Ramen is about all I can afford. Oh well, I'll just have to be careful. The foto above is an old one. That is me in the foto and I am guessing it is over 40 years old.  

 Back then, I really didn't like all the trips to the National Parks and places like that. I wanted to be entertained and Disneyland and places like that were what I wanted to do. I hated going to my grandparents house. Though, I must admit, they did live in California and we did hit Disneyland a few times, so it wasn't all bad. Now, fast forward to today and what do I do? I take the trips I used to hate, to the extreme. These fotos of Monument Valley are luring me to return. In a Jeep. With it being winter, I have returned to my bad habit of watching Moab Jeep videos on YouTube. I really need to figure out a way to return someday. The red rock canyons and plateaus make Moab a giant outdoor art gallery. And, besides the art work, there are the infamous Jeep trails you drive to see the all of the wonderful sights. Southern Utah is probably the best place in the world to have both extreme trails and sights. But, I now toss you Ouray Colorado. The high mountain vistas are spectacular too. I guess if I had to choose I would choose both. What is really nice is the fact that they are like 4 hours apart. In theory, you could run Black Bear Pass in the morning and Hell's Revenge in the evening. Now there's an idea for you! 

So, as for today's title, I read some interesting things this morning. There are blogs out there that pull in over $1,000,000 a MONTH. Huffington Post is like the highest money making blog today. They do a measly $5,000,000 each month. How would it be? I can see that it would require a ton of work to come up with a topic that millions of people want to read each day. I have no type of expertise in anything so I don't think it will ever happen to me. I've done this for years and I still haven't reached 10,000 visits. My web site on the other hand has started to take off. I have an average of 60 visitors each and every day. Not to shabby I think. Its too bad I can't come up with something that would allow me to use my blog and website to make money. I can't think of a better way to work than doing stuff you love to do. Oh well, life goes on. Jeep on my friends.   

I am Really bored

 The title says it all. This being unemployed is a pain in the ass. I thought I had landed the perfect job; said he would call me the next morning to tell when I would start. It didn't happen. Yah, I'm kinda depressed about it. I have an idea why, but I wont mention it out loud. If it is true, I hope Karma strikes with a vengeance. I did do all the qualifying work to become a substitute teacher, but it is slow. There was one day I could have and it was that next day mentioned above. Needless to say, there hasn't been anything else. I have about a dozen applications out at the moment so I am playing the waiting game. I check the job boards every morning and then I don't do a lot. Sux to be me!  I went through my fotos and picked out 3 random shots so this wouldn't be as boring. This yellow rose was perfect. Full bloom and smelled divine. I have had 2 rose bushes, no wait, 3 in my life. I ripped the one out of my Terrace home cuz it took over the porch. My Garland house had one I ignored and it eventually gave up and died. And here in Tree-town we have one out back. It was wildly out of control so I trimmed it down to nothing. Damn thing keeps growing.  

 This is a foto of the most expensive car, sticker wise I have ever bought. It was a 96 Bronco and they were closing them out. They dropped the line in favor of the Expedition. It listed at like almost 29k and I got it for 21k. Too bad it had to be sold to move to Colorado. It was an accident magnet anyway. People like to run into it. This foto was taken on a trip to Colorado. It was a sweet ride. Kinda wish I still had it. It had a 351 Windsor in it and they would run forever. Oh, the good old days. It really wasn't that good off road but it was a dream to drive. Just to show how loaded it was, my 08 Wrangler listed for 22k. Oh well. 

I believe this is a foto of the road going out of Silverton towards Animas Forks. I have no idea when it was taken but it got chosen so look and enjoy. Please? LOL. I have been trying to think of a way to make money using my website. The damn thing is finally taking off. The first year I had 3900 visitors and transferred 7.83 GB. The second year I totaled 9300 new visitors and transferred almost 29 GB. That's great but.... this year so far I have had 8400 new visitors, but..... my transferred rate is at 79.5 GB. This means that people are actually spending more time reading what is there and going through pages. I used to get like .05% that stayed on for and hour. The rate now is up to almost 15%. That is a huge increase. The object now is how to make money on it. I tried using Amazon featuring the gear we use as well as books and other stuff. Didn't get a single click. So I am trying to figure out a way to make money. Any suggestions will be accepted. I did add a new page today as well as new fotos to Gold Hill. I went through my foto album and scanned them into my laptop. As I have said before, digital cameras are awesome. The biggest problem when I started all this was film price and developing costs. I had to be selective on my shots back then and make each one count. Now, I don't give a shit and shoot like there is no tomorrow. But, I am still a firm believer that film takes better fotos! I also don't believe in Photoshop. I admit to using the foto program on here to crop and do minor adjustments like taking a crooked foto and making it strait, but I don't go in and change colors or stuff like that. So, are you bored yet? As I looked through my site today I realized that I have been to a lot of places. Funny thing is that most of them are here in Utah, followed by Colorado and then Nevada, California and Arizona. Oh, and Idaho. I would love to revisit a few of these places with the digital camera and build my library of fotos. Old Frisco would be a place to return to as well as my my new page today on Sulphurdale. Hopefully one day I will be able to go back before it is too late and the cool stuff is gone. Jeep on my friends! 

I was wrong, but what else is Gnu?

Good evening all,
A few posts back I guessed that the swelling of my leg would be back to normal by now. As you can see, it aint even close. There is still almost 2 inches of swelling in the bad leg. This is crazy. I thought I would be footloose and fancy free by now. The non swelling measured out at 20 while the hurt one came in at just over 22. I really want it to be over. My best guess at this point will be Christmas day. We will now play the waiting game.  I do have a suspicion that it will be into next year before it is back to 100%. As of today, I am now a qualified substitute for Cache Valley and Logan school districts. I could start as early as tomorrow morning, but I really don't want to. My sleep number bed died and I got an air mattress. It kicks total ass. My back doesn't hurt like it used to and thats worth it. Sad thing is...... it comes apart at the seams. I've got 6 patches on this one now. I really need tonites to seal. I need a good night of sleep. So, I guess this is it for today. Enjoy your days people. Jeep on my friends.