We Made Our First Trip to the Kansas City RV Show on Saturday to Look Around... Thinking About Future and Camping

Explore 2024 NB20.3

Carrie and I have been tent camping for a few years now. We really enjoy the experience of tent camping although having a travel trailer would help us to be able to camp earlier and later in the season. We do have long-term plans to get a travel trailer, so this weekend we made a trip to the Kansas City RV Show to look around. 

We had a fun time walking around looking at the different options from small dome options to full motorhomes. It is truly amazing how much can be fit into the various options. Still, we are pulled to the direction of a travel trailer because we can hitch it to our Pilot, get to most any location, and leave the trailer while we site see or go to hiking locations.

Explore 2024 NB20.3 Floorplan

The travel trailer that we reviewing is the Explore 2024 NB20.3. We are a few years out from doing anything about this new adventure, but it is fun to review and look at options. Some things we need to figure out include towing capacity of our Honda Pilot. I see it has a 5,000 lbs towing capacity, but the NB20.3 lists figures over the 5,000 lbs. Futher research is needed to understand if our Honda Pilot could haul this device not to mention also need to get a hitch for our Pilot.

It is exciting to review and think about getting a travel trailer. We are still a few years out before we do get one though. So, who knows, maybe at a future future Kansas City RV Show we will get a trailer once we have figured out hitch, storage, and exactly what we are wanting to buy.

As we look to camping for the spring, summer, and fall, we already have one spot reserved and talking about getting other dates selected for other camping adventures throughout the summer. We only went twice last year, so hoping to double, or triple, the amount of camping adventures this year. One day, we will have a travel trailer and be able to camp earlier and later into the season which will be a lot of fun.

Have a great week and if you are using a travel trailer, I would love to connect and discuss what you selected and why.

Cold, Snow, Ice, Sweaters, and Spring Right Around the Corner

Oliver Sweater

Cold, snowy, and short days the past few weeks but days are getting longer. I did notice this past week when driving home from work that the sun was setting and it was almost 5:30. I had left work late and driving home noticing there was still light in the sky and pink in the western sky. It was beautiful! No, I did not get a picture taken, but I did enjoy the fact that it does mean the days are gradually getting longer.

A few times when letting Oliver out to do his business, he would stand to lift one paw and then the other. He immediately started shivering as it was sub-zero temperatures. Poor guy! Carrie would carry him out to the middle of the yard a few times just to help his little paws. He was a sweater puppy when it is cold and seems to like wearing the sweaters. We did have one day where it got up in the twenties or so and Oliver wanted to spend time outside enjoying the sun. Crazy guy!

It has been below zero multiple days and snow on the ground multiple days which is longer than I recall in the past few years. As a kid, I recall having snow on the ground for days, or weeks, but the past couple of years it seems like it will snow and be gone after a few days. Not with the latest snow falls we have had lately. The temperatures hovering around zero allow the grassy areas, and even some streets/pavement, to keep a covering of snow. 

Last weekend, the Kansas City Chiefs played in one of the coldest games in NFL history. I was glad to watch the game from the comfort of a home and my beer not freezing. It was not a game I wished I was at while watching on television. I spoke to friends who did attend and it sounded miserable although they did say how they can say they were there and stuck it out to the end... well, almost the end. They left partway through the fourth quarter. Stories to tell though of frozen beers, ice for feet, and noses freezing. Good times!

Rest assured that the days are getting longer and it will soon be spring here in Kansas. The warm weather will be here before we know it and Oliver cannot wait!

Stay warm and I will talk to you next week...

My Flickr Year 2023 in Review and Background on My Flickr Account Through the Years

The majority of pictures posted on my site come from my Flickr page where I upload all of my pictures. I have been a paid member of Flickr since 2007. I have almost 10,000 photos on my Flickr account and trying to take more and more pictures each year. I often go back and look at past years through Flickr to remember what we did during a specific period of time. Of course I also often go back in my blog to review a trip or what we did during a specific week. 

For 2023, my most viewed picture was from a sunset I took one morning from Washburn University campus as I was walking into work. I entered the picture in a Your Best Shot 2023 group to try and win. I did not win, but it was fun having visitors view and comment on the picture. In the Flickr group, there were over 11,400 members with over 9,000 photos ranging from a variety of photographs. It was the second year I had joined a group for "Your Best Shot" and had fun reviewing all of the member posts with their "Best Shot" for the year.

The picture of the sunset had over 775 views since it was posted on November 3, 2023. The majority of the views coming from being part of the Your Best Shot 2023 group. Overall, I had almost 12,000 views for all of my pictures.

My goal for 2024 is to not only post more pictures to Flickr, but be more active on interacting in groups, other members pictures, and the big one which I have found helps to get views is to include tags on photos. A tag is similar to a hashtag on a tweet but does not necessarily need the typical "#" for a hashtag. Those do show up, but most of my tags are simply "Sunset", "Dog", "basketball", etc. Gives another way for others to search and possibly have whatever was posted show up in their search. I also try to put a title and description on all pictures that I upload. Again, I find that this helps when looking through stats to see how people found a picture.

Brief background into the site that stores pictures I post to this blog that I wanted to share. Hopefully in 2024 I will post more pictures and have more interactions with visitors to my Flickr photos.

My Reading Journey from 2023 with a Goal of 25 Books and I Read 25 Books in 2023... Some of my Favorites in this Update

Goal was 25 and Made 25

I met my reading goal for 2023. The goal was 25 books and I read my last book on New Years Eve. On November 5, 2023, I was at 17 of 25 books (see post), so I had to pick up the pace and read every chance I could get. Even reading every chance I could get, it was close as I was juggling multiple books.

I had a fun time reading this year. The majority of the 25 books I read with my Kindle. Some of the books, I did listen to which I know is debated as whether they count or not in some social media circles. I did find that listening to novels does not work well for me unless I am in the car driving and can focus on the audio book. I decided that audio books I listen to in 2024 will be memoirs or autobiographies as they are easier to follow when around the house and doing other things. I did manage to fit in a few autobiographies this year, so that was fun. 

My 25 Books for 2023

 To the right are the 25 books I read during 2023. Here, I will highlight some of my favorites. Starting at the top which are the earliest books I read in 2023, I enjoyed Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of Women of Pan AM by Julia Cooke. This book entered my queue from a bookclub I belong and I found this an interesting read. I was a good book to start my 2023 reading journey and I really enjoyed the history from the book with facts I had not heard previously.

My next favorite book was Devotion: An Epic Story of Heroism, Friendship, and Sacrifice by Adam Makos. My Uncle Charlie had told me about the movie that he saw and that it was good, but it also included a sequence in the movie that was exactly what my Dad went through when he served in the Navy. I really enjoyed the book and could feel what my Dad went through in that scary moment while reading the section of the book. I was able to watch the movie this past week and it went along exactly how I remember the book portrayed the story.

My first audio book of 2023 was The Storyteller: Tales of Life and Music by Dave Grohl. This book was recommended to me by Carrie. Dave Grohl being the drummer from Nirvana and Foo Fighters. I loved this book! It was even better because I heard the book read by Dave Grohl. It was really good and highly recommend that if you want to read this book that you do the audio book so you can hear Dave Grohl tell his story. Excellent!

A few books later and I was reading another biography The Woman All Spies Fear: Code Breaker Elizabeth Smith Friedman and Her Hidden Life by Amy Butler Greenfield. Once again, an interesting book about the code breakers, women, of WWI and WWII that I found so interesting. This was one of the books I read during 2023 that I found hard to put down. Interesting facts throughout that I had not heard about before. I believe this was another book from the book club I belong, but I do not recall for sure. It was good nonetheless.

I went back and picked up two books by C.J. Box as I continue to enjoy reading the series. I read Out of Range and In Plain Sight. The story continues with about 25 books in the series of game warden Joe Pickett. I will probably read a few more from this series during 2024. Easy reads that move quickly and hard to put down.

Finally after many years and multiple friends colleagues telling me I should read the book, I finally read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. Nope! It did not disappoint. I could not put it down and read it fairly quickly for my reading routine. I am so glad that I finally checked it out from the library (e-book of course), waited for it to arrive as there was a wait, and read it thoroughly enjoying the book.

Carrie recommended I listen to the audio book of The Woman in Me by Britney Spears. Once again, hearing the book read by the author was a good way to "read" the book. Once again, I recommend if you want to read this book that you do the audio book to hear Britney Spears tell her story. Worth it!

My final book of the year which also happened to be an audio book was Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing by Matthew Perry. Hearing Matthew Perry read after passing away not long ago (October 28, 2023) was a bit eerie but again it was good to hear it in the authors voice. To start out the book, Matthew Perry says "Hi, my name is Matthew Perry, although you may know me by another name. My friends call me Matty. And I should be dead." Eerie feeling as I listened to Matthew Perry speak this on the audiobook. If you have the chance and can get on the waiting list, be sure to listen to the audiobook of Matthew Perry.

Those are the highlights of my books from 2023. I barely made my goal of 25 books for the year. For 2024, I did another goal of 25 books although I hope to be closer to 30 books on the year as it comes to a close a year from now. I make it a point to read every day and so far I have been able to keep that streak going for two years straight. Even on days where I listen to an audio book, I still make sure to open my Kindle and read a page or two from one of my many books on my shelf.

If you have a recommendation for a book based on those I read or referenced above that I said I enjoyed, I would be interested to hear from you in the comments of those post. Of course you can also reach out via social media to share with me too.

Enjoy your reading journey and if we have not connected on GoodReads, please follow me on GoodReads. 

Washburn Basketball, Movies, Weather, and NFL in this Update to Start the 2024 Year

Carrie and John at Washburn Game

Carrie and I attended our third game of the season. We have missed a number of early games in the season, but hope to make the remaining games of the season. With traveling, holidays, etc., we were unable to make games earlier in the season. We had a great time on Saturday. Washburn came away with the win. We attended the Washburn game on Thursday too and we won that game too.

While we were at the game, we decided we are going to attend one of the home track meets Washburn plays through January. I have never been to a track meet although I have watched them online, so I am looking forward to attending our first track meet at our very own Indoor Athletic Facility on the Washburn University campus.

Friday night, we stayed home and enjoyed watching movies. During the holiday break, we watched a movie, or two, every night. There were a few we did not get to, so we watched on Friday night. We were able to watch The Holdovers and it was fantastic! We watched The Holdovers on Peacock, but I know it is playing at Liberty Hall in Lawrence, KS. Worth checking out as the whole cast did a great job. From the same director who did Sideways (2004), Alexander Payne put together a good story that was heartwarming and brought tears to my eyes. After watching The Holdovers, we decided we would watch Sideways as it had been a long time since we had seen Sideways. Fun low key Friday night for us.

Trees and Lights in the Snow

Friday also brought our second snow to Topeka. It was not supposed to amount to much, but it did snow all day long and left the trees and shrubs looking pretty. A wet snow that covered trees, so Carrie snapped a picture of our trees and lit up snowman in front of our house as it was pretty. The forecast is for significant snow fall Monday through Tuesday, so we will see what happens. 

This is the last weekend of the regular season for the NFL. Many teams are playing backup players to save their starters for the playoffs which includes the Kansas City Chiefs who are not starting Mahomes and others to keep them fresh for the postseason. So I am looking forward to watching football all afternoon although Carrie is not thrilled as she will be happy when the season is over and no more football. 

A wondering ramble of topics for this week. Short week last week with New Years Day on Monday, but it was back to work. It was a good productive work week. I hope your year started out well and I will talk to you soon.

Happy New Year 2024 and a Look Back at Past Haverty NYE Celebrations

Carrie and I in NYE 2001

As we look toward 2024, I think back to past New Years Eve celebrations. The picture to the right is from 2001 with Shayne and Autumn. Carrie and I were dating at the time and went to celebrate the end of 2001 and the start of 2002 with Shayne and Autumn. I recall that Carrie was sick that night with a fever and not feeling well at all. She went to bed early leaving Autumn, Shayne, and I to ring in the New Year. Carrie reminds me that I kept going into the room we were staying and letting her know we were having fun, could smell some type of spirit on my breath, and then finally I went into let her know that the upstairs toilet would no longer work. I will leave it at that and note that Shayne and I had to go out and get a plunger to start the New Year of 2002. Good times!

While we lived in Lawrence, we had some epic New Years Eve celebrations where we had people sleeping on the floor in various rooms where ever they could find a spot to sleep. Unfortunately, we do not have a lot of pictures, if any, from those celebrations. A lot of good memories though from various parties one including Brenda taking around "shots" that was beer and laughing while she offered "shots" to the party goers. So much fun and good memories of those parties.

New Years Eve 2007

On New Years Eve 2007, I have good memories of spending the end of 2007 with my family in Lawrence. We grilled steaks, drank a lot of wine, and even made Irish Coffee at some point during the evening. The picture to the left is Dad, Jerry, and I outside cooking, telling stories, and drinking wine while we cooked. 

Our game of choice was Rook which I had introduced Carrie to playing when we were dating. The whole family played and we have many good memories of staying late on work nights to finish up a game before heading home. 

Dad Trying CPAP NYE 2007

Carrie and I had recently moved to Topeka, so we made a trip into Lawrence to spend with Mom, Dad, and family to ring in the new year. I had recently been fitted with a CPAP machine and for some reason, we broke it out on New Years Eve 2007 for my Dad and Mom to try out. I recall my Dad was still questioning how it worked and how I would sleep with it on my head. Eventually, Dad would get one himself but never liked it and I am not sure really ever gave it a chance. Still, we all tried it on before we started playing games and drinking wine through the evening.

The next morning, as we do almost every year on New Years Day, we would have Hoppin' John that my Mom had told me about when I was little. We have had Hoppin' John just about every year Carrie and I have been together on New Years Day. The short of the meaning behind Hoppin' John is that it brings luck for the next year and then greens along with Hoppin' John can bring wealth for the upcoming year. A little hot sauce and it was excellent to eat on New Years Day and a few days after as it is always suggested to make a lot so you have leftovers.

NYE 2011

In 2011, we had a small party at our home with friends. Scott, Robin, Brenda, Carrie and I celebrated the end of 2011 and the new year of 2012. We watched movies in the living room, played games, and a few drinks to end the year and celebrate the new year of 2012.

Some of our New Years Eve celebrations have been Carrie and I spending a quiet evening at home, grilling, drinking wine, and hanging out with Oliver. We have had NYE celebrations where we are with small groups and large groups. I do not believe we have ever been out on the town for a big New Years Eve celebration with large groups of people. I prefer to be home or at a home to bring in the New Year. I am not sure why, but prefer to bring with a large group at some event space.

NYE 2019

New Years Eve 2019 we threw a big party at our home with family and friends. Little did we know it would be the last time we could all be together as COVID 2020 hit early in 2020. We had a good time celebrating the end of 2019 and 2020 starting the next day. It seems like so long ago as I look back and reflect on our fun that night. Games were played, drinks were had, and a lot of fun by all.

Last year, Carrie and I were in Houston, TX to ring in the New Year. We stayed a few days with Corrie and rang in the New Year at her home. I recall all the fireworks that went off in her neighborhood. It was impressive as I recall walking outside after midnight to smell gun powder in the air.

We look to 2023 coming to an end on Sunday, December 31, 2023. For 2024, I look forward to doing a whole lot more camping this year. I did a fair amount of traveling in 2023 which was good and I hope we can keep the traveling in 2024 at a high level too.

Happy New Year to you and your family.

Trip to Palm Springs, CA November 30 - December 4 Update... Note, we had a great time!

Mountains and Palm Trees

I did not have a chance to write up our trip to Palm Springs, California after we got back. We went to Palm Springs, CA November 30 - December 4. We met Javier and Corrie in Palm Springs. We got together a few weeks ahead of our trip to pick a place to go. We wanted to go some place that none of us had been before. This took a few messages back and forth and discussions before we finally landed on Palm Springs, California. Palm Springs did not disappoint! We had a great time! It was beautiful and we ate at some good places as well as had drinks at some good spots too.

Breakfast at Farm in Palm Springs

For breakfast the first day, we went to Farm in Palm Springs. A breakfast spot that was amazing. The set up of Farm was cool with indoor and outdoor sitting. The drinks were amazing! The Bloody Mary here was so good, I could have had a few of those. Breakfast was simple and delicious with some really good fried potatoes.

We wanted to get an early start to the day as we had plans to visit Joshua Tree National Park, do some bar hopping, and then have dinner at a fancy place that night. A lot planned for our first full day in Palm Springs, California.

Tree Behind Joshua Tree

During the day, we drove out to Joshua Tree National Park to look around. Beautiful to see it and yes it was a bit chilly. We saw people climbing the rocks and on top of the high cliffs which was cool, but mainly, we enjoyed looking at the mountains against the sky with Joshua Trees mixed in and around the area. I am so glad that we decided to go out this day instead of waiting until the weekend to get out to see the sights.

Early evening found us at The Parker Palm Springs for drinks. We took an Uber to start our evening with drinks before heading to dinner. It was a cool spot where we later learned that movie stars would frequent for an after party for an event that takes place each year in Palm Springs. We only had drinks here and a lot of laughs. It was a fun spot and glad we were able to make it there before our evening of dinner.

Group Picture at Bar Cecil

That night, we had reservations at Bar Cecil that Carrie had found and got up early a month earlier to get reservations. As I mentioned, Carrie had to get up early a month prior to get reservations. She had read some place that reservations were hard to get and they opened a month in advance, so she got up early one morning in October to get our reservations. I am so glad she did! We had a great time!

Palm Springs reminded me a lot of Albuquerque, NM that we have visited a number of times for vacation. The mountains, look of the homes in the area, and the weather made me think of Albuquerque. In the evening, it would get rather chilly and we especially felt the cold when we traveled up the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway which took us to the top of a mountain to overlook Palm Springs. We had drinks at the top of the mountain while looking at the views before heading out to see the rest of Palm Springs.

To see all pictures from our trip, please use the viewer below to browser our pictures. Note, there a lot of selfies and silly pictures as we had a blast! The full album can be viewed on Flickr at https://flic.kr/s/aHBqjB5Zwg

As you can see from our pictures and description, we had an excellent time. As I mentioned in the first paragraph, we plan to do this on an annual basis where we pick a location where none of us have been. We recognize this will become a tough task as it took us a while to land on Palm Springs that none of us had been to before, but it is a good challenge and I look forward to see where we go next year when we make the trip to the unknown.

Until next time, I hope you have wonderful travels and are able to visit some place new each year.