Day 718

We got up at 8:30 today.  I woke up early and couldn't get back to sleep.  I finally did about 8.  It was pet stuff and breakfast when we did get up.  Then we went to Portland to pick up the chain for Ellen's new pendant.

We picked up the chain and had a good talk with Tom.  Then we stopped at the pet store for a treat for Lucy, and the coffee shop for a $5 cup of coffee.

We called John to see if Patty was accepting visitors.  She's too sick from yesterday's surgery, so we didn't go there.  Instead we stopped at Fisherman's Marine just to look around.  They had a great sale on sandals and Ellen bought a pair.  We also got a better case for her AR.

On the way back we stopped in Wilsonville at Freddies and Fry's just to kill time.  Of course we found some small items to buy at both.  We also had lunch at Wankers.

When we got back we went to the club to socialize.  There were no customers, probably because of the torrential rain.  Of course I couldn't patch the shed roof, so we just hung out and talked.

We went out to dinner with Dave and Vandy.  We went to a place in downtown Salem where you order small plates of food to share.  It was pretty good.

We didn't get home until 9.  The rest of the evening was surfing.

Day 717

We slept in a little bit today - there wasn't a lot we needed to do.  After pet stuff and breakfast we did a little surfing.  Then I decided to move a few more things into the small trailer.  While I was doing that Dave came by and asked me to pick up the golf cart in Woodburn.  That was fine with me, since I had to go there anyway.  There's a leak in the shed roof around the vent and I had to get stuff to patch it.

We got patch stuff, some groceries, and picked up the golf cart.  When we got back there was a corporate group at the club.  We volunteered to take out a squad apiece to get them started.  It started to rain pretty hard just as we went out.  I changed my sweatshirt for a Gortex jacket.  After we got them going we went back to the trailer and surfed some more.

I wanted to patch the shed roof, but it rained the rest of the day.

The evening was all surfing.

Day 716

We didn't get up until 8:30, it was cold and the bed was warm.  After pet stuff, breakfast, and a little surfing we left for Portland.

We stopped at Jones and Jones and picked up my necklace, new earrings, new pendant, and new ring.  The earrings and pendant came out really nice.  The ring is spectacular.  The color change garnets really make the piece.  We were going to buy a chain for the pendant, but Tom didn't have the right size/shape.  He's ordering one and it will be here tomorrow.  We'll pick it up on Saturday.

After that we went to the pet store to buy Lucy a treat and Burgerville to buy lunch.

Then we went to John and Patty's.  We talked with them for awhile and then it was time to go to the dentist.  The dentist let us bring Lucy inside.  She was great.  She just laid on the floor while I got my teeth cleaned.

We went back to John and Patty's and ordered dinner.  We went out to pick it up.  Ellen got it while I took Lucy to the pet store next door and bought her a couple of more treats.  Then it was back to John and Patty's for dinner and more talk.

We left about 8 in order to miss the paving backup.

The rest of the evening was surfing.

Day 715

We got up a little after 8 today - there was no reason to get up early.  After pet stuff, breakfast, and a little surfing we took the firearms that aren't going to Texas with us to the club and put them in the safes.  We also got out Ellen's 20 ga 391 to sell.  Dave didn't want to deal with it today, so hopefully we can get it listed before we leave.

After that we went back to the trailer.  I cleaned my 28 ga.  Ellen communed with Scooter.

After lunch we surfed for awhile until Gerry showed up about 2.  We shot the couirse with him and a couple of his friends.  It was fun, and the weather was perfect.  We went to dinner afterwards with Gerry and another of his friends.

We got back just in time for the board meeting.  They passed out a two page email written in broken English posted from a Russian ISP.  It threatened us with an anti-club social media campaign if we didn't build a high wall between us and the freeway.  At least we know the asshole that's been harassing us is a Russian that lives across the freeway.  The only other news is that the club is short of money and there are lots of expenses.

After the board meeting we both took showers and I filled up the water tank.  Then I moved a few things into the small trailer.  The remains of the evening were spent surfing.

Day 714

It was up at 8 today to do pet stuff and breakfast.  Then we went to do the wash.  After that it was up to Portland to see Mom.  She was having a good day, very sprightly.  We took her to the dog wash and she watched while we gave Lucy a bath.  Lucy had rolled in some bacon grease and smelled terrible.

After that we went to lunch at the bar place near Mom's house.  The food was good.  I had dessert so that Mom would.  Then we went to the toy store by the QFC.  They were having a sale.

Mom needed stakes for one of her plants, so we went to Freddies.  After that we took her back.

On the way home we stopped at Cabela's to get Lucy a new collar.  Her old one was cracking.

When we got back we both surfed.  I probably should have done something, but I didn't want to  After a dinner of left over Chinese food I took Lucy for a walk around the course.

The rest of the evening was surfing and TV.

Day 713

We got up at 8 today. After pet stuff and breakfast I attached the trailer to the truck and loaded ucp the Ranger.  I took it to Cycle Country and left it.  The trailer lights didn't work.  I looked at it and the light connector was hosed.  So I went to Harbor Freight to but what I needed to fix it.

When I got home I cut the connector off the trailer and put on another one.  After that the lights worked perfectly.  Then I gave the 20 ga a complete bath.  I was finished about noon, but I didn't have another gun cleaning in me.

After lunch I started packing stuff into the trailer and the truck..There were clothes, purchases over the summer, and the extra pet food.  I have more to do, but I decided that I'd done enough for today.  Dave asked me to take one of the golf carts to Woodburn for repair.  I did that and also stopped at the post office and then Bi-Mart for toothpaste and doggy treats.  On the way home Cycle Country called.  The Ranger was done, perfect timing.

We ordered food from the Chinese place as we drove to Cycle Country.  We picked up the Ranger and then the food.

The box Amazon shipped Alicia's gun case in was huge.  When I got home I cut it down to be OK for wrapping.  Then Ellen wrapped it while I ate dinner.

The players of the NFL have decided that they don't like the flag and the national anthem.  I'm boycotting them, so no football tonight.  Instead I surfed.

Day 712

Got up today at 8.  Did a really quick pet stuff and breakfast and was out on the course by 8:15.  There was a bad machine on station 12.  Dave had me move in another machine.  Then he had me get a card and check the machines on all the stations.  I changed one that was going to get shot.  He also had me change one on 5.

Oddly enough the radio for the battue, which didn't work last night, worked fine today.  Oh well, something had to go well.  We were done just in time for me to get ready to shoot.

The weather was great.  Ellen shot pretty good, a 70.  I shot OK, enough for AA3 and a punch.  I missed at least 4 easy targets.  Three would have given me AA1.

We were too tired to shoot super sporting after lunch.  Ellen worked on scoring and I went back to the trailer and put everything away.  Then i gave the Perazzi a thorough bath.  It took awhile - it was filthy.  When that was done I went back to the club and socialized for awhile.

We went to dinner at the Mexican place.  We got there at the appointed time - 6:45.  No one else showed up until almost 7:30.  Oh well.  The food was OK, but I really don't like that place.

After a stop at Safeway for milk we went home.  The rest of the evening was surfing.

Day 711

We got up at 8, did pet stuff and had a leisurely breakfast.  Then we went to the club and hung around until it was time to shoot.  It was kind of cool when we started, but warm by the time we were finished.  I shot poorly, Ellen shot worse.  I still ended up just a few birds off AA1.  After the first 5 stations we had to wait for a slow squad ahead of us, but it wasn't too bad.

After lunch I decided to shoot super sporting with Gerry.  I really stunk on two or three stations, but again I finished just a few birds out of AA1.  This time we had to follow a squad of slow assholes the entire time.  There were 6 of them, and one guy had his wife.  They all shot slow and spent a lot of time coaching the wife.  When Your squad is still shooting and there are two squads with 9 people total waiting for you you're shooting too damn slow.

When we were finished I stated helping Dave.  I helped him on about 6 stations and then set up a battue station.  The controller was screwed up and I had to take it back to the shed to fix it.  By the time I was finished, Dave had the rest done.  It was 7.

When we got back to the club I found out that we won a couple of cases of shells, a hat, and a gun case.  We helped put the club back together again.  They had moved out everything and set up a lot of tables for dinner.

We went home about 8.  I'm tired.

Day 710

We woke up about 7 today, but didn't get out of bed until 8:30.  Then it was pet stuff and breakfast.  I dumped the black tank and filled the water tank.  After that we went to to set the last target on the connex 5-stand.  That didn't take very long, but unwrapping the other machines to set the menu did.  After that there was some fine tuning of two machines.  The rabbit took quite a bit of effort.  We weren't done until 12:30.

After lunch we tackled the covered 5-stand.  The first machine I tried to set had a messed up cart that would only let it be set way over.  I adapted to that, and then set the rest of the traps.  They went well until I got to the incomer.  I had to wait until some people quit shooting skeet.  Then I spent a lot of time moving it around and setting it.  It has a really strong spring and I couldn't get it as soft as I wanted.  This 5-stand is definitely the harder one.

Then It was time to help Dave set the sub-gauge courses.  He didn't have anyone else to help him.  We got all 16 stations set.  It took until 7.

I wanted to go out to eat.  We stopped at the post office and Wally World.  We were going to eat at Red Robin, but it was packed.  So we ate at Elmer's instead.

We we got home we took early showers and then I topped off the water tank.  I really like doing it that way.  It gives me a long shower, and an "extra" day between fills.

Then it was time for bed.  We have to get up at 6:45 tomorrow.

Day 709

We started the day at the regular time with pet stuff and breakfast.  I had Ellen do a search for Christmas paper and she found some.  So I wrapped up Dan and Tony's presents.  I need boxes for the rest.  It was cold and raining, so going outside was out.  Instead I stayed inside and spent hours copying 1300 songs from my computer to the new tablet.  I had to do them all by hand because of the way they were stored on the computer.

That process took until after lunch.  By that time the rain had stopped, but it was till cold and windy.  I went out to plan how i was going to set the 5-stands.  I wrote up a plan for the first one.  When I got to the second, I decided to start setting it.  I got 4 of the 5 machines set before the rain started again.  When it did we went back to the club and socialized for awhile.

The evening was almost entirely surfing.

Day 708

We got up today a little late.  After pet stuff and breakfast we left to do the wash.  After the wash it was up to Portland to see Mom.  We were going to have Martha meet us, but she didn't respond to the texts.

Speaking of no response.  The guy who called me back about fixing the furnace didn't return my call last night.  I called him again today and he didn't return that call either.

We were going to take Mom to the restaurant across from Freddies', but it has turned into a Mexican place.  So we ended up at IHOP instead.  Mom seemed happy.  There was a pets store next door, so we tok Mom and Lucy there.  Lucy got a treat, and Mom bought some treats for her cat.

On the way home I asked Mom if she wanted a cupcake.  She said yes, so we stopped.  After that we took her home.

217 was clogged, and I5 was clogged until past Lake Oswego.  So we went down 170th and over Cooper Mountain.  We stopped at the Safeway in Sherwood and bought a bunch of food.  We really needed it and going the back way probably didn't cost any more time that driving through Woodburn.

Traffic was moving at less than 20 from the Stafford exit (where we got on) until the bridge.  I should have taken the side road, but I forgot to ask Ellen to check the traffic.

When we got home there was a break in the clouds, so we went out to shoot.  Dave had all of the machines covered except the tower.  So I uncovered the D machine there and we practiced at that station.  After that it was time for dinner.

After dinner was TV and surfing.

Day 707

We got up about the normal time today, did the pet stuff, and had breakfast.  It was cold, so I tried to turn on the furnace.  The thermostat said there was no furnace connected.  I opened up the furnace and there was a dead mouse inside.  I couldn't see any obvious damage.  I looked up a mobile repair place in Salem and gave them a call.  The guy called back and said he could fix it today.  Unfortunately we needed to go to Portland, so I told him I'd call him on Wednesday.  He said to call us late today. 

Then we did a little surfing before heading to Portland to shop with Martha.

We stopped at Hooch's house and met Martha just as she was about to leave.  She thought we were going to meet her at Columbia.  Lucy was really disappointed that Rowdy wasn't there.  After a bit of talking we went to the store.

We bought a whole lot of stuff - over $300.  That covered Christmas for John and Melissa and Tony.  We also got a "future" present for Mitchell.  We only bought slippers for ourselves.  Earlier trips to Columbia had supplied us with all the coats, shirts, and pants that we need.

After that we headed to Tigard for haircuts.  217 wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.  We ate at Jimmy John's because we didn't have time for anything else.  I had Judy take pictures of my haircut so that I can show them to the haircut ladies in Austin.  Then we headed home.  There was an accident on I5 about a mile south of Tigard, so we took a back way to an exit south of the accident.  Traffic was fine until just after 205.  The it is bumper to bumper and very slow until just before the Wilsonville exit.

When we got home it was time for dinner.  I called the furnace guy, but he didn't call back.  After dinner it was Monday night football.

Day 706

We got up at 8 today, did the pet stuff and had breakfast.  I got a text from Hoooch saying that Tony would have Mom until about 1.  So we did a little surfing and then left for Fry's.  I wanted to get a SD card for my new tablet.

Of course we found a lot more things then a SD card when we got there.  We ended up buying a small case for all of the tablets as well as a couple of wall chargers.

After that we went to the Tigard pet wash.  While Ellen washed the dog I bought all of the normal canned cat food that we will need until we get back to Texas. Then we stopped at another pet store and bought the prescription stuff.  By then it was noon, so we stopped at Burgerville for lunch.  Their stuff is really good.

Ellen wanted some Moonstruck chocolate, so we stopped there.  I got a cookie and a $5 cup of coffee.  It was cold today.

It was 1 by then and time to go to Hooch's.  We got there about 10 minutes before Tony did.  Hooch decided he wanted the rifle I won, so we'll do the transfer when he comes down this weekend.  We sat around and ate a little and watched football for most of the afternoon.  Hooch and Martha cooked a good dinner.  Mom got presents from everyone and seemed happy.

We left about 8 because I wanted to avoid the paving.  I guess that because it was raining, they cancelled it.  I hope the rain kills the gorge fire.  I84 is still closed, and we need to drive on it in three weeks.

When we got back it was surfing until bedtime.  It's a bummer that I can't order anything, some good bargains have come up.

An interesting story:

When we first got down here I drained the old Ranger's gas tank with a leaky siphon.  Gas got all over my hands and into my Citizen watch.  I clogged the crystal.  I decided to put the watch in the westward facing kitchen window to see if the heat would evaporate the gas.  It's been there all summer.  Today I checked it.  The gas is gone, and the watch seems to be working perfectly.  I'm really glad because it's irreplaceable.  Citizen no longer makes titanium watches with rotating bezels.  I guess the luck from the tournament drawing hasn't ended yet.

Day 705

We didn't get up until 9:30 today - making up for yesterday's lack of sleep.  Then it was pet stuff and breakfast.  After that I went out to the little trailer and the shed.  I packed away a lot of stuff to take to Texas.  It's the first real preparations for leaving.

Gerry wanted to shoot at 3.  So after lunch we did a little surfing to kill time.  Then we went to the club to meet Gerry.  We shot the course with him.  I used my 20 ga.  I shot really well.  I didn't miss any birds until the last station.  I shot extra birds there until I was nailing them. I hope I don't shoot that well at the tournament.  If I do I'll punch into Master class.

After we finished we went into the clubhouse and talked for about an hour.  It was a lot better than just going home.

When we got back to the trailer we had dinner.  Then it was a little bit more surfing and a lot of TV.

Day 704

We got up at 6:30 in order to get to the club by 7.  We did the pet stuff, but no time for breakfast.  When we got to the club we started setting up the prizes.  I put out the station signs.  The Robby and I did the warmups.  He did the new shooter instruction, while I pulled bird and coached the shooters.  It was more fun than I thought it would be.  It was cool to tell them a few words and get them to hit a target.

Warmups lasted for more than an hour, and I was tired when it was done.  Then it was time for all of the intro stuff and then out on the course.  My job was to cover stations 3 - 7. Again, it was more fun than I thought it would be.  A few words of advice made a lot of difference to many shooters.

Ellen texted me when we had about three stations left.  We had a quick lunch (BBQ), and then shot the flurry three times.  We did great the first two times, but the third time we were both tired and didn't do as well.  As soon as that was over I went out and picked up the signs and ammo.  I actually ran into some of the people from the second shoot while I was clearing the last few stations.

We hadn't spent a lot at the flurry, so Ellen bought some more tickets.  Then it was time for the drawing.  We made out.  We won a fishing tackle bag (for Dan), a hydro backpack (for Hooch), an orange vest (for nobody), and a .223 bolt rifle (I'm not sure for who).  We also won one of the tickets for the end of year drawing.   That's the most we've won ever, at any event.

After that it was time to pack up the truck.  I did a little, but they have a system and I would basically just be in the way.

After that we went to Walmart to buy a card for Mom.  I also got a pizza for dinner.

After dinner I went out to the shed and fitted the second light shade to the small trailer's bedroom lights.  The results work great.

Day 703

We got up about 8, did the pet stuff, and had breakfast.  The Shoot For The Cure people had come in yesterday, so after some surfing we went to the club.  The truck was just pulling up and getting parked.

We started helping unloading the truck.  Then it was fill the bags, 70 of them.  There was the usual amount of miscellaneous jobs like getting out the coolers and ammunition.

The food vendor showed up about noon and set up.  That was nice, because Mark bought us lunch.  The guy was from Texas and had great BBQ.  BBQ like it is something to look forward to when we get home.

After lunch was more work like unpacking the prizes and separating the ones for OR from the ones for CA.

Dave scheduled two shoots tomorrow.  That caused a hassle because there weren't enough chairs.  He wanted Mark to pay for extras, which I thought wasn't right.  They worked out a compromise.

We shot with the high rollers in the afternoon, too.  Ellen and I went with a guy, his wife, and his daughter.  I think they had fun and we did, too.

Dinner was at McGraff's.  I had lobster.  That turned out to be a mistake.  I woke up in the middle of the night with diarrhea and gas.  It wasn't pleasant.

Day 702

We woke up about 7:30 this morning, I don't know why.  We got up about 8, did pet stuff, and had breakfast.  Then I loaded up the car with the rifle shooting stuff and went to Tri-county.

We went to the 100 yd range.  Ellen had her rifle and I had the 10/22.  Ellen was on paper immediately, but couldn't shoot a tight enough group to dial the scope in.  I got it close, and then told her to concentrate on shooting tight groups.  Of course she ignored me.  She had no business trying to adjust the scope.  She wore her contacts and didn't bring reading glasses, so she couldn't see the turret markings and didn't know which way to turn them.  She kept fucking with them anyway.  She shot over 100 shots today and didn't accomplish anything.

I shot about 10 shots with the 10/22.  The guns worked fine, but the magazine barely worked and failed on the last shot.  So I put it away.  Then I got out the Tikka.  It shoots relly nice.  I zeroed it and put it away.  My shoulder didn't want to take anymore recoil.  Then I got up the Henry.  I couldn't get it on paper even though I'd bore sighted it.  I finally started to aim at the very bottom of the target.  That's when I learned it was shooting about 14 inches high and 7 inches to the left.  After that it was just a manner of dialing it in.

After it was dialed in I left Ellen and went to the black powder range.  I wanted to shoot silhouettes.  Unfortunately there were at least 5 shooters spread out over the range.  That meant there was mo place for me to set up on the steel.  I wouldn't have been able to reset anyway.  So I went back to the 100 yd range and shot the lever action more.

I'm not sure how long we shot, but it was probably 2 - 3 hours.  Then we went to Cabela's.  I bought another 10/22 magazine and some target pasters.  Then we went to Wankers.  The service was a lot better today.  Some guy sat down at the next table.  We got talking.  He said his dog had died yesterday and his wife had left him today.  I'm not sure that was true, but I bought him a drink anyway.

When we got back to the club we went to the clubhouse.  Valerie was talking about buying a pistol.  I got out all of ours and let her look at them.  She liked the VP9, PPQ, and R51.  After that we talked with a guy who asked our opinion on left handed guns.  Then it was home for dinner.

After dinner it was surfing and TV.

Day 701

Today was wash the clothes and Mom day.  So we got up at 8, did pet stuff, had breakfast and left.  We finished with the wash about 10:30 and drove to Portland.

The first stop was Sportsman's Warehouse to exchange the rings I bought that were too low.  Then we went to Stanford's for lunch.  The food was OK, but a little over priced.  Across the parking lot was a Verizon store.  They were having a sale on tablets that would end today.  So after we ordered dessert I went over there and bought a new tablet.  It was a really cool company store and they had me out of there by the time dessert arrived.

Then we went to Walgreen's to get Mom diapers and took her home.

It was hot when we got home.  I spent some time setting up the new tablet.  It has a little smaller screen, but it's faster and has better battery life.  Then I did some surfing until dinner time.

After dinner I mounted the scope on the Henry.  It works, but I can't use the scope cover, it's too big.  Then I took it out to the shed and bore sighted it.

Lucy wanted to walk, so we walked around the course.

I asked Ellen if she wanted to try out her new scope tomorrow.  She said yes, so I decided to upgrade her trigger.  That turned out to be a pain.  The new trigger isn't standard, so I had to remove the safety.  Then I had to have Ellen come out to help install the hammer.  That's when I discovered that the safety wouldn't go back in.  I had to take everything apart and start over again.

The whole process was made harder because the non-standard magazine and bolt releases interfered with installing the hammer pin.  The end result is a much improved trigger though.  Hopefully Ellen will shoot better with it.

The rest of the evening was surfing.

Day 700

We got up a little after 8 today.  After breakfast, pet stuff, and some surfing I went out to the shed to install the lights I'd bought.  That went fairly well, but it still took 2 hours.

It was too early for lunch, so I got out the 10/22.  I disassembled it (thanks youtube), and gave it a thorough bath.  I coated every surface with Seal.  I also blew out the trigger and oiled it.  When I put it back together I functioned checked it.  I really don't know how it could eject an empty and not reset the trigger.  Oh well.

After that I had breakfast and did a little surfing.  Then we went to the post office.  My Texas upper was there.  We also stopped at Bi-mart for some gun cleaning supplies and Safeway for some milk and cereal.

When we got home I installed the upper receiver parts in the Texas receiver.  I needed youtube to do that, too.  The rest of the afternoon was surfing.

The evening was two Monday night football games.  That's when I discovered I hadn't written any entries since last Thursday.  It took most of the third period of the second game to catch up.

Day 699

We weren't due in Portland until noon, so we didn't have to get up early.  After pet stuff, breakfast, and a little surfing we went to the club.  I took back a couple of guns that we'd taken to Tri-county and got the Tikka I bought years ago.

When I tried to zero the scope on the Tikka when I bought it I couldn't even come close.  When I looked at it today, the reason was obvious.  I had the scope mounted 90 degrees off.  That's because of some writing that they put on the bottom of the scope.  I remounted the scope and bore sighted it.  I hope I have a chance to shoot it before we leave.

I was going to mount the scope on the Henry, but they gave me the wrong scope mounts.  So we left wearly for Portland.  I stopped at Sportsman's and exchanged the mounts.  I also stopped at Home Depot.  I was going to get an electrical box for the new shed light that I bought at Costco yesterday.  I ended up buying two, along with another light.  I want it bright in the shed.

After that we went to the picnic.  Hooch had Mom there.  Martha and the kids were painting faces.  Ellen joined them.  The food vendors wouldn't let me get food because of the dog.  So I sat in the shade surfing.  After about an hour I got sick of that and went to see Hooch.  He took the dog, but by then the food vendors were closed.  So I took the dog and went to Mickey D's for lunch.  I don't like their food anymore.

I went back to the picnic and talked with Hooch for awhile.  There was a big line for face painting, so everyone else was tearing down by the time the line was done.  Hooch and I helped for awhile.  Then we went to his place.

We spent the afternoon on the deck.  Hooch tried for hours to get his internet to play with his TV, but it never did.  For dinner we went to the Mexican place on Barnes.  I had the worst taco salsd I've ever had.  It was cheese and meat melted on a couple of large tortilla chips and then covered with shredded lettuce.  Some of the things other people ordered looked good, though.

We took Mom home after that and hit the road.  It was just about 8, and traffic was already beginning to slow even though work doesn't start until 9.

Day 698

We got up a little before 8 because we had a big day planned.  After pet stuff we left for Silverton.  The first stop was breakfast.  It was really good.  I even had a $5 cup of coffee.

After breakfast we stopped at the plant store and bought air plants for the rabbit planters that we gave Patty.  Then we went to the farmer's market.  It was pretty boring and we didn't buy anything.

After that we stopped by the trailer to pick up the cake and ice cream and then went to Hooch's place.  We had a fun time there, just messing around the whole afternoon.  I did put his new trigger in his rifle and bore sighted it.  I had some trouble with the trigger.  It's the first time I put one in after the safety.  I spent a lot of time and frustration trying to fit it in until I realized I had to set the safety to fire.  Then it went in easily.

They invited us to the parish picnic tomorrow, so I guess it will be another trip up to Portland.  At least the trip back was easy, they don't pave on Saturdays.  Tomorrow will be different.

Day 697

I really let this get away from me.  I'm writing this on Monday and I don't remember much of what we did on Friday at all.

I suppose we got up at the normal time and certainly we did the pet stuff and had breakfast.  We had an appointment to change the car's oil at 9:30.  That took a little over an hour.  Then we stopped at Costco.  It wan't quite the Friday madhouse that we expected.  We bought a couple of things, including cake and ice cream for tomorrow at Hooch's place.

The last stop was Sportsman's warehouse.  I wanted to get rings for the Henry's scope.  They were having a big sale, and we bought a few other things, too.  The highlight was something I didn't buy.  They had a $450 Vortex scope on sale for $200.  I didn't buy it because I didn't have anything to put it on.

My goal for the day was finish putting the backup camera on the Ranger.  It took quite awhile to install the switch and monitor.  The wiring was the big pain in the ass.  It didn't help that I made two mistakes.  I wired the power to the camera on the wrong side of the switch and had to change it.  The second was worse.  I was all finished, and everything was working.  Then, as I was cutting the excess wire loom, I cut the video wire.  That cost me half an hour.

It's all done, though.  The test drive was a much needed garbage run.

I'm not sure, but I suspect the evening was surfing and TV.

Day 696

We got up at 8:30 today because there wasn't anything planned.  After pet stuff and breakfast I went out to work on the Ranger while it was cool.  I'm tired of the battery running down.  I planned on fixing that and finishing the rear view camera install.

Installing the switch to turn off the battery drain turned out to be a real pain.  There wasn't any place in the front area to mount the switch.  I ran through the stuff in the shed and found something that I could make into a mount.  Unfortunately it had a slot in it, so I couldn't just drill a 3/4 inch hole in it.  Instead I had to use the Dremel and a file to enlarge a portion of the slot.  That took a long time and destroyed three Dremel grinding stones.

It took until after noon to get the whole thing installed.  By that time it was getting hot and muggy.  I decided to eat lunch and call it quits for the day.

I started surfing after lunch.  I asked Ellen if she wanted to put a scope on her rifle.  She decided she did, and we both started looking for candidates.  She found a 1-4 at Cabela's for $150.  The 3-9 we saw last week was a great scope for the money, so we decided to drive up to buy one.  We took her gun so they could mount and bore sight it.

We took a look at the scope when we got there.  It was crap.  Lots of distortion and really dim.  The salesman tried to sell us a Sig 1-6, but it was $550.  I said let's see the Vortex.  It was great.  So we had them put that on along with a Vortex mount.  The whole thing cost over $400, even with a 5% discount that they gave us.  It's a really fine scope though.  It took half an hour to mount the scope, so we shopped - ammo and a fleece for Mom.

On the way up we'd noticed that a jackass cop had pulled over a semi just north of Wilsonville in the southbound lanes.  They were off the road, but the traffic was already backed up for about a mile.  So on the way back we took a back road from Tualatin to Wilsonville.  I don't know if it saved time, but it did save aggravation.

When we got home I put everything away and had dinner.  Then it was time for the first football game of the season.  Kansas City beat the New England cheaters.

I filled the tank after early showers.  That's really the way to do it.

Day 695

We got up a little after 8 did pet stuff and had breakfast.  After that I went out to clean the barrel on a rifle that I wanted to shoot.  It was incredibly dirty.  I worked on it for at least an hour running patches through and scrubbing it with a brush.  I finally got it to a clean, if not pristine, condition.

After that we went shooting.  Unfortunately the battery on the rig was dead again.  I put the charger on it.  We had to walk, which really disappointed the dog.  We practiced at the 5-stand.  It was fun.  When we were finished we talked at the club for awhile and then went back to the trailer for lunch.

After lunch and some surfing I loaded up the car for Tri-county.  We stopped at Wally World on the way up for a few grocery items.

We made great time, traveling between 75 and 80 for much of the time on I5.  The meant we were early getting to the club.  Hooch was late (surprise, surprise).  We spent the time shooting the lever action at the black powder range.  That rifle is lots of fun.

When Hooch got there we went to the 100 yd range.  He shot his .223, but had a lot of trouble sighting it in.  Alicia shot the 10/22 and late in the session shot the .223 also.  She did really well.  Ellen's sight was on paper the first shot.  She couldn't manage to shoot a small enough group to fine tune the sight.  I shot a couple of groups and got it centered for me.  Ellen spent the rest of the session trying to shoot 3 shots in less than 3 inches at 50 yds.  I'm not sure she ever did.

I shot a grand total of 5 shots with the rifle I brought.  It wouldn't feed a second shot and I didn't want to screw with it.  I strongly suspect that I'll never shoot it again.  Life's too short to mess with it.

When we were finished we went to the Sherwood McMiniman's for dinner.  There's a lot of new places we could have gone, but we didn't know which allowed doggies.

After dinner I took Alicia to the Baskin-Robbins a few door down.  Hooch said that she'll have to eat quick in order to get home in time for bed.

We drove back to I5 on the highway because Oregon street was closed for paving.  Fortunately it wasn't crowded.  We lucked out on the I5 paving.  We went through at 8:45, 15 minutes before they started.  Traffic was still moving.  I'm worried about later in the week.  They are doing the stretch by the rest area, which means traffic will be backed up before the Canby exit.  We may have to go home via Newburg.

When we got home it was TV and surfing for the rest of the evening.

Day 694

We got up a little before 8 today because it's laundry day.  We did the pet stuff, had breakfast, and left.  Hooch texted us before we left and said that there was no way to get together today, there were too many kid's activities.

After the laundry was done we stopped at the bank and then went to Mom's place.  We picked her up and took her to a McMiniman's.  I've wanted to go to one since we got up here.  When we were finished with that we stopped at the grocery store.  I asked Mom if she wanted to go in, but she didn't.  I made a short trip of it, as I really just wanted to give Mom something else to do.

I didn't ask, I just took her to the cupcake place.  She didn't argue.  After that we took her home.  I'm disappointed that we couldn't take her to Hooch's.

Traffic was OK on the way home about 3:30.  Even 217 was only slow and not completely backed up.

When we got home it was hot, smoky (from the forest fire in the Gorge), and miserable.  So we stayed in the trailer for the rest of the day watching TV and surfing.

I did take the dog for a walk around the course after dinner.  She really liked it.

Day 693

We got up at 8 this morning, but didn't really have anything planned.  We did pet stuff, had breakfast, and surfed for awhile.  That's when I realized that the state fair was going on.  We texted Hooch, but he said they couldn't come because Alicia hadn't done her homework.  So we went by ourselves.

The fair was fun.  We looked over the animals - llamas, draft horses, pigs, bunnies, and brightly colored pheasants.  We also went through the sales booths, but didn't buy anything except some emu lotion.  We also looked at the crafts stuff.  The quilts were amazing.

About 12:30 we had lunch - gyros and an elephant ear.  Then it was drive up to Hooch's place with a short stop at the trailer to pick up the dog.  We could have taken her with us, but we didn't know that.

When we got to Hooch's he was cleaning the trailer and Alicia was doing homework.  We surfed for awhile and I went out on the deck to shoot tin cans with the Sig CO2 pistol.  Eventually Hooch and Alicia were done and came out to talk.

Martha fixed dinner and we talked some more.

Today was our 41st wedding anniversary.  Hooch figured out that today was the day.  Their anniversary is tomorrow.  We plan to get together tomorrow, either for a late lunch or a late dinner depending on kid's activities.

We drove back about 9.  Traffic was wonderfully light.  When we got home it was a little surfing and bed.

Day 692

We got up at 8, did pet stuff and had breakfast.  I continued doing some little things that needed to be done.  I went to the small trailer and put away some of the things that I'd just been piling up on the bed.  I also packed some stuff in the basement.  That's when I noticed that we still had the old broken Directv receiver there.

Ellen was supposed to contact them about that months ago, but she never did.  I called them and after some time on hold got connected to someone in India.  I told the story to the lady and she looked up the receiver.  She told mel that they didn't want it back and to throw it away.  So I did.  That freed up some space in the basement and reduced some weight.

After that I ran out of things to do.  It was getting hot, so we spent most of the rest of the day surfing and watching TV (football).  About 4 we went to the club just to do something.  They were busy with a new employee, so we just surfed there, too.  Eventually we went back to the trailer for dinner.

After dinner I took the dog around the course.  By then daylight was dimming, so I got out the laser bore sight for Ellen's rifle.  It turned out that the sight was maybe a foot left and 6 feet high at 50 yds.  We had no chance of zeroing it at Tri-county.  It's now sighted in at about 30 yds, which should get it on paper.

I was going to go to Tri-county tomorrow to finish sighting it in, but that's Labor Day and it's going to be crowded.  We'll probably shoot here instead.

The rest of the evening was surfing and football.

Day 691

We got up at 8 again today because I ddin't want to get in the habit of grossly sleeping in.  We did the pet stuff and had breakfast.  Then I started on all of the little stuff that had piled up over the week.

I put away some stuff in the little trailer.  I installed the new indoor/outdoor thermometer in the bedroom.  I cleaned up the mess of stuff in the shed.  I also brought in the clothes.  I gave Ellen the old Atom machine we have to clean to give to Goodwill.  We haven't turned it on since 2011.

I installed the new valve in the toilet.  It didn't stop the leak.  I think the leak is in the hose under the toilet area.  Because of the drip pan in that area it is impossible to fix.  Crap.

I took the garbage to the dumpster.  The back of the Ranger was full.  Then I stopped at the club for awhile and talked to folks.

I came back to the trailer and helped clean the Atom.  After that it was lunch and some shopping.  I bought a replacement dog food container, a new phone protector, a tripod for the spotting scope (the od one broke yesterday), and a scope for the Henry.  That took quite awhile because I was really picky in making my selections.

The evening was TV, reading, and surfing.

Day 690

We got up at 8 again today.  We did the pet stuff and had breakfast.  Then I went out to give the 10/22 a thorough bath.  It was squeaky clean.  I also cleaned the barrel in the new Henry.  Then it was time to leave for Tri-county.

We got to the club just before Hooch.  We went to the black powder range and set up.  Martha and Sophia were impressed.  I had to come down hard on Sophia because she was screwing around.  Martha wasn't happy that I swore.

Everyone had a great time and we shot for hours.  The goddamn 10/22 still wouldn't shoot.  I shot it for awhile single shot, but that wasn't much fun.  Everyone liked the Henry.  It shoots nice.

I was really tired by the time we quit about 2:30.  We made a quick run up to Hooch's place to leave off Lucy.  Then we went to see Despicable Me 3 at the Cedar Hills theaters. They served beer and had these wonderful powered reclining seats with foot rests.  All that was great, the movie was so-so.  There was too much about the people and not enough about the Minions.

After the movie we went back to Hooch's place, with us stopping for dessert (pie and ice cream) and doggy treats on the way.  We had left overs for dessert.  The evening was mainly sitting around, talking and surfing.

The drive back was great.  There was no paving and little traffic.

Day 689

We got up at 8 again today.  We did the pet stuff and had breakfast.  Then it was surfing until it was time to leave for Tri-county.

We met Dan and Alicia at the gate and went to the 100 yd range.  Alicia's gun was OK due to yesterday's work.  I used the bore sight on Hooch's gun and he was on paper immediately.

I thought I'd bore sighted Ellen's gun.  We worked for an hour or so trying to get it even on paper.  Finally I decided to re-bore sight it.  That's when I discovered/remembered that it has an aluminum flash hider and the bore sight won't stick to it.  At that point we gave up.

I got out the 10/22.  It was really accurate, but it wouldn't shoot more than one or two shots before the trigger wouldn't reset.  It was very frustrating.  Alicia and Dan had a good time, and Ellen shot their guns a little, too.  I was pissed.

I went off to walk the dog since there was nothing for me to shoot.  We walked to the black powder range.  That's when I discovered that you could shoot rimfire there.  I walked back and waited for the others to finish.  I took them over to the balck powder range and they all thought it would be fun to shoot the silhouettes.

When we left about 3:00 Hooch took Alicia to some school meeting and told us to meet him at home at 5:30.  We went to Cabela's to buy a cartridge bore sight and a case for the .308.  The rifle case I was using was really old and falling apart. We found both items, and bought them.  Hooch called and told us Martha would be pissed if we ate that late.  We were hungry and got Wendy's sandwiches across the parking lot.

Since we had more time to kill, I decided to look for a .22 rifle to use at the black powder range.  They didn't have any good 10/22's with threaded barrels.  The only other scope ready lever/auto rifle was a Browning lever action.  It was expensive, but I decided to buy it.  The clerk said wait and let me look up on the computer.  He found a blued Henry with an octagon barrel.  It was perfect, and cost $150 less than the Browning.  We bought it using my club points.

It was 5:00 by the time that was done, so we headed north.  For some reason northbound 217 was backed up and southbound was fine.  Go figure. 

When we called to ask Hooch said I should pick up dessert. We stopped at Bales.  I met Hooch and family at the front door.  Martha and Alicia told me to buy a Rocky Road pie and ice cream.  So I did.  Ellen and I stopped at the pet store for doggy treats on the way to dinner.

Martha had fixed salmon and rice.  It was really good.  When we described the black powder range Martha and Sophia said they wanted to shoot, so we're going again tomorrow.

The drive home sucked.  We planned on turning off at the Canby exit because of the paving.  Traffic down to the Wilsonville exit was really good.  From there to the Canby exit (2 miles) it was a parking lot.  Some jack asses had piled it up just at the exit and the two right lanes were blocked.  At the bridge the paving people had put up a "left two lanes blocked" sign.  That had everyone moving to the right, just so they could move back to the left.  It took us at least half an hour to go those 2 miles.

We got home in time to go to sleep.