Where did the week go

Well, here we are the end of another week. It was a very busy one. Eric spent a little bit of time catching up with some friends on Facebook this week. Things have been really busy at Volcano Telephone working on the Cable TV billing project. It has been recently determined that the first customers should be converted onto the Cable TV billing system that I have architected and developed. This project has been in the works for probably close to 5 years, though the actual development has been done in earnest during the last 2 years. This project integrates software that I have written which will do things like turn customers converter boxes on and off, with software Volcano Communications bought from Telesphere in Montana.

Happy camping! - Eric -

Another great week

Well, we are watching the Olympics this afternoon. We've been switching back and fourth between Curling and Hockey. We've found this very exciting to watch over the last week. How about those whales in the opening ceremony's??? That was some pretty cool stuff. On Friday, we missed the Olympics for the most part. Carol went out to dinner with Scott and Cheryl while I was helping Brandee and Kevin with some computer issues they are having. Brandee is in the process of selling the 'Beauty Emporium'. In part, this is a sad time 'cause so much work went into getting the store up and going in the first place. But, no one put more work into it than Brandee and her husband Kevin. Brandee's new direction as a hair stylist should be a great new one for her.

Saturday morning we went and had breakfast with Brandee's mom, Sandy and her husband Bill. We were joining by Carols brothers Billy and Calvin also were able to join us at Sandy and Bills for breakfast. It was a great gathering up-country. Though this weekend has been filled with a little rain and wind on occasion, we can see that spring is definitely on the way. The daffodils are coming out and the pasture land behind our rig is turning nice and green these days.

With springs arrival, also means the start of tax season. I've got our documentation ready for sending to our accountant to find out just how things are going to turn out this year. I'm going to close my eyes and cross my fingers. Ughhh.

Well, we are going to settle down and watch the US vs Canada Hockey game now. Have a great rest of your weekend. Happy camping! - Eric and Carol Anderson -

A multi-occasion weekend.

We got to enjoy a wonderful multi-occasion weekend. We got together with Karen and Mike in Redding. On Saturday morning we went to see the Turtle Bay Museum and the Sundial bridge. We then went to Outback Steakhouse for dinner on Saturday night to celebrate my 48th Birthday. Sunday, which was Valentines day, we took a road trip to the small town of Whiskytown which is west of Redding. Whiskytown is so small you can literally sneeze and drive past it. All that remains of Whiskytown is the General Store which has been closed for some time.

We were un-daunted however, so we continued west along California Route 299 towards the town of Weaverville. Weaverville is about 40 miles from Redding. There really wasn't that much going on in Weaverville, but the local firefighters were collecting money for local burn victims, so we donated some cash to them and then went to the local market for a Starbucks to warm us up. It was pretty rainy on Sunday, but our spirits were not dampened. We headed back to Redding and stopped by the Whiskytown lake which is a large body of water where the salmon spawn. We then stopped at the city of Shasta, another ghost town more or less, but there is a functional museum in the old court house. We loved checking out this old town.

The campground we stayed at in Redding, The Redding RV Park, was an older park. It is fairly clean, but a lot of water logged sites. The asphalt part wasn't bad, but they were only about 10 feet wide, so with a 8 foot wide rig, we were pretty much relegated to walk on the soaked and muddy lawn area. Most rigs as they entered and exited the park were tearing up the lawn portions of the sites. I guess I would rate this park a 6 out of 10 in the Winter. It would probably get a 7 in the summer time.

On Presidents day, we found our selves heading home to Plymouth, to do take on the exciting activity of doing laundry. None the less, we had a great time. We would like to thank Karen and Mike for a wonderful weekend in Redding. Have a great day all and Happy Camping! - Eric and Carol

I'm so proud of my wife

Hi there everyone,

Well, Carol has passed a major mile-stone in her quest to become a Medical transcriptionist for the Prison system. She passed her typing test yesterday. She needed to have a typing speed of 45 words per minute. She passed it with a speed of 46 words per minute.

She has been working towards this job since early last year. She first learned about the position in March of 2009 when she was attending a Transcriptionists conference in Sacramento. She graduated from the Transcriptionists course in June of 2009. Then she just needed to focus on getting her accuracy and overall typing speed up. It's been a long battle, but she has made steady progress.

It will take some time for Carol to get her background check completed, but that will come with time. I just want her to know that I am so proud of her. This weekend we head off to Redding for a long 4 day weekend. So, we'll keep you posted on how our adventures there go.

Have a great day! - Eric -

Happy 60th Birthday to a great Veterinarian

On Friday, February 5th, 2009, we helped Jerry Reed, Carol's former boss celebrate his retirement and 60th birthday with a gathering at "Poor Red's" tavern in El Dorado California. There was a gathering of over 30 folks that came to help Jerry celebrate this monumental event. Carol worked for Jerry for over 24 years, from the humble beginnings in a small garage off of Ridge Road in Amador County.

The wonderful gathering started in the Bar where the Gold Cadillac which is the signature drink that is served at this bar and restaurant. In fact, the Gold Cadillac is made of Galliano. This bar, which is out in the middle of no-where, utilizes more of this liquor than any other establishment in the world.

It was a wonderful event where Jerry got to see so many of his friends and family including his brother Kirby who drove in from Truckee for the event. Jerry's wife Mary and daughters Sarah and Jenni really out did them selves as far as this wonderful evening. Everyone seemed to have a great time and the food was wonderful. Sadly, Jenni didn't make it to the event because of an illness.

This county will sorely miss Dr. Jerry Reed as one of the best veterinarians to serve it's residents. Happy birthday Jerry and we hope you enjoy your well deserved retirement.

Eric and Carol

Life is good!

Hi there everyone,

Well, the last couple of weeks have seen Carol and I both down with a cold. It took it's hold much firmer on Carol than it did myself. However, we both got through it. Of course it had to happen when I was off on a week of vacation when we had planned a trip to Quartzsite Arizona for the big RV swap meet. But, the other big event was a series of storms that moved through California and Arizona that made everything really wet. Carol and I were able to sit in the trailer and watch it just rain and rain. We had 10 straight days of measurable rain in the region. We know that being on a dry lake bed in Arizona in the rain with three dogs and two cats would have been a mucky adventure. And if we were also fighting colds it would have probably been down right miserable, even though we would have tried to put our best face on in the process. :-)

But this last weekend was absolutely glorious. We were able to sit in our recliners outside and soak up some much needed sunshine. We've been able to get a couple of great walks in around the park with the doggiez this weekend as well. We love living here in Plymouth. It's funny how we have commented that 10 years ago, neither of us could have seen us living the way we are, but today, we just could not be happier with our living situation. Ok, maybe we would be better if we had a moho, our ultimate dream, but we know we will get there sometime.

Carol continues to prepare for taking her typing test for a Medical transcription job. She has worked so hard and for a long time, we are both thrilled to see that she is almost there! I think she'll pass anytime now! :-)

I continue to work for Volcano Telephone on my project of managing the cable operation through the software written by our Telephone billing software.

The dogs, Roxy, Lilly and Tyson are all doing good. Tyson has some tumors right under his skin that needed to be removed, but he came through it just like a trooper.

So, all in all, life is very good!

Happy camping! - Eric and Carol -