Friday 9-25-26 70th Birthday & Having Fun

 

Happy Birthday

It was a hot day here in Bozeman. The morning temperature was 52 degrees and the high was 85 degrees. 

Today was my 70th Birthday. We celebrated it by going to lunch at Applebee's. We walked over to Applebee's, which was a half mile from the fairgrounds. We haven't been to Applebee in a very long time. We shared a Quesadilla Burger and fries. When it arrived they had split the order on two plates, which was very nice. The burger was very tasty. The waitress wasn't that great. Larry had to ask for the check and the food wasn't hot when we got it. It was like she disappeared. 

Applebee's

  

Quesadilla Burger (it's like a melt)

After lunch we walked to Access Fitness to take a shower. We had no problem getting one. We only brought one bag, that way one of us could look after keys, phone and wallet while the other showered. The owners dog came out to welcome us. She was a cute terrier. The showers are great at Access Fitness.

Access Fitness

After taking a shower we continued our walk. We walked to a different ice cream shop, it was called Michoacan A Pedir De Boca Ice Cream Shop. The menu was in both English and Spanish. I ordered two scoops of ice cream, which were key line pie and cotton candy with chocolate on top. She got confused and dished out one scoop of chocolate and one scoop cotton candy. I told her I had ordered key line pie and cotton candy with chocolate. She was still confused she gave me two scoops of key lime pie with chocolate. That was ok. We liked the ice cream better at Genuine Ice Cream. The service was good and she was friendly.

Michoacan A Pedir De Boca Ice Cream Shop

Key Lime Pie ice cream with chocolate on it

After eating the ice cream we walked back to the fairgrounds. We spent the rest of the day relaxing.

We relaxed with a book. Larry started another book and I continued reading Cire by Madeline Miller.

Relaxing with a good book

I played games. I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Medium Mayhem of 27 games. It took me 1 hour, 11 minutes and 12 seconds to complete, which put me in 4th place in my group.

In the evening I walked to Walmart to do a little shopping. Walmart is .8 mile from the fairgrounds so round trip was 1.6 miles. I wanted some steps and this was a way to do so. By the end of the night I had done 9,000 steps.

I had a great 70th Birthday. I'm ready for another 70 years, just kidding. Have fun.

 

Thursday 9-24-26 Window Installed, Walking & Having Fun

 

Bozeman Montana 

We had another gorgeous day in Bozeman. The morning temperature was 48 degrees and the high temperature was 84 degrees. I am not sure but that is probably near a record high, is should be in the high 60's.

We spent most of the day waiting to hear from Andy's Glass Inc to call about our our overhead window. 

While waiting we read. Larry finished reading a book and started another one and finished it. I continued reading Circe by Madeline Miller. It's a great book about gods, goddesses and mortals. It talks about the most powerful gods and gods with no power.

Relaxing with a book

I played games. I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 10 games (5 Free Cell and 5 Pyramid). It took me 37 minutes and 48 seconds to complete, which put me in 11th place in my group of 50.

For breakfast we had mini waffles. For lunch we shared a sandwich and chips. About 3:00 we got a call from Andy's Glass saying the window came in and they had installed the window in the frame. We could come over and they would install the window. We put everything away and secured. 

Off to Andy's Glass we went. Andy's Glass is 12 miles away in Belgrade, Montana. We arrived and they had Larry drive the Minnie in the bay. Larry asked to look at window. They said not a problem. He just wanted to see how the window fit the frame and how the frame was going to be installed. It took them about an hour to do the work. We thanked them and we were on the road again.

 

Andy's Glass Inc. building

Where the old glass goes

The finished window installation

We weren't too impressed by the whole glass situation, there was lack of communication between Debbie, April and Brooklyn (the office women). When Larry would call to check on the status of the glass they didn't even remember who he was. When we arrived today Debbie told us to drive the Minnie in the bay. Once we were in the bay she was rushing us out of the vehicle and into the waiting room. Brooklyn checked us out and she was very nice and friendly. She told us not to power wash the overhead for 24 hours because the sealant had to setup. The workmanship was poor, they didn't clean the frame before installing the window. There was old sealant left in the frame. We'll stay around a day or two to ensure the sealant sets up. Hopefully we will not have any leaks.

On the way back to the fairgrounds we stopped at Exxon and filled the Minnie with gas. Then we went back to Gallatin County Fairgrounds.

We spent the rest of the day reading. I went for a 40 minute walk around the block for 2 miles. It was a very nice walk with a breeze.

The corrals for the livestock at the fairgrounds

Storage for the agility course for dogs at the fairgrounds

Bozeman's first fire engine

By the end of the day I had done 5,000 steps.

       

Wednesday 9-23-26 Errands, Having Fun & Walking to Story Mill Community Park

 

Gallatin County Fairgrounds

We're still in Bozeman at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds. It's really not a bad place to stay because we have power and we can walk around the neighborhood in the evening.

We had a front come through last night about 9:30 pm and stayed around until early morning. When I got up at 7:30 am it was still wet outside. But by noon it was dry because the sun came out. There were a few high clouds, that rolled in and out all day. The morning temperature was a cool 50 degrees with a breeze. The high was 72 degrees.

Rainy night and early morning

We hung around the Minnie all morning reading. I played games. I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Spider Adventure of 20 games. It took me 1 hour, 52 minutes and 37 seconds to complete the games, which put me in 11th place in my group.

We had cinnamon rolls for breakfast and shared a shake. For lunch we had a sandwich and chips. 

Cinnamon rolls for breakfast

After lunch we did a few errands to get the Minnie ready to get back on the road. First stop was at the office to fill the water tank with fresh water. Larry went into the office and paid $5.00 for the water. The lady in the office had to come out and unlock the box so we could use the water. When we finished we went into the office and told her we were finished. She was surprised and thanked us. I guess most people just leave. Next stop was down the street at the U-Haul to fill the Minnie with propane. Final stop was Walmart to go grocery shopping. We didn't need too much but we wanted to make sure we were stocked up. We're weren't to sure when we would see a Walmart after leaving here. After shopping we went back to the fairgrounds. Then we loaded the motorcycle on it's carrier and strapped it down. The motorcycle and the Minnie are ready to go.

Running Errands

Larry gave Andy's Glass a call at 4:00 to see if our window had come in on the truck. Brooklyn wasn't sure so she checked on the order. They told her that the truck would be there at 4:30 so they weren't sure. She said she would call us by 10:00 am tomorrow. So were in limbo until tomorrow. 

Bozeman isn't a bad place to be. They have paved walking trails around town. After dinner we walked for 3.1 miles. We took the paved trail to the railroad tracks. Then we crossed over the tracks and picked the paved trail back up. We walked through a pedestrian tunnel to get across the highway. Then we walked a dirt road to Story Mill Community Park. As we walked the road we saw a few horses in their backyards. The entrance to Story Mill Community Park was a nice archway. It had a nice sign welcoming you to the park and a map on where things were. We walked a half mile loop around the park. This loop no dogs are allowed but they have a very nice dog park for them. The trail took us in between two rivers (East Gallatin River and Bozeman Creek). It was a nice walk through the park. They had a couple of nice bridges that looked over the East Gallatin River. We took the same trail back to the fairgrounds except when we got to the railroad tracks. Instead of going straight we went to the right, which pointed us to the fairgrounds. As we walked we saw a lot of families and friends riding bicycles, a few joggers and walkers like us. It was a nice walk.

Pedestrian Tunnel

 

Story Mill Community Park welcome sign

East Gallatin River

Here's a fun fact. The section of the road we walked was the Northern/Pacific Burlington Northern Story Mill Spur. On July 2, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln signed legislation that established the Northern Pacific Railroad Company and financed the construction of a railroad and telegraph line from Lake Superior to Puget Sound. At this time the Northern Pacific impacted virtually every place it had contacted, which included Bozeman, Montana. On January 9, 1882, the Northern Pacific purchased a large tract of land northeast of Bozeman and started construction of the first transcontinental rail yard. They did this because of Gallatin Valley's reputation as "the granary of Montana" together with its proximity to Bozeman Pass and the large coal reserves of the neighboring Trail Creek Area. At the same time Nelson Story was building a large flour milling complex near the mouth of Bridger Canyon, where Rocky Creek, Bozeman Creek and Bridger Creek merge to form East Gallatin River. Story made arrangements to connect his milling operation and the proposed Northern Pacific mainline via a 100 foot wide rail spur right a way. Story Mill Spur, approximately 4400 rail line remains as the Gallatin Valley's largest an most heavily used industrial spur until the mill decline in the 1960's.              

When we got home we relaxed with a book. By the end of the day I had done 9,000 steps. 

For dessert we had a limited edition Nestle Toll House Soccer Ball Mossels Chocolate Chip cookies. They were chocolate chips cookies with white soccer ball shape mossels on them.

Toll House Chocolate Chip with Soccer Mossels Cookies

    

   

Tuesday 9-22-26 Movie, Motorcycle Ride, Games & Evening Walk

 

Gorgeous Day

We had a gorgeous day. It was a little breezy, which kept the temperature cool. The morning temperature of 43 degrees and the high temperature of 72 degrees.

I woke up at 7:15 and got dressed. Then I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. We shared a shake.

We hung around the Minnie reading. I played games. 

Larry finished reading the book he started yesterday. Then he started another book. I finished reading The Summer Guest by Justin Cronin. Justin can really write and it was a great story. Then Larry picked another book for me called Circe by Madeline Miller. It about the daughter (Circe) of the sun and mightiest of the Titans. 

I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Easy Street Mini of 15 games. It took me 33 minutes and 9 seconds to complete, which put me in 18th place in my group.

For lunch we shared a can of soup. 

After lunch we rode the motorcycle to the theater to see, The Odyssey. It was a great movie. It was quite complicated and there was a lot to take in. Fortunately not long before leaving Belton we watched a movie called, The Return, it was also based on the book The Odyssey, watching The Return really helped to understand what was happening with the new movie. The Return was shorter and easier to follow. 

Gallatin Valley Cinema

By the time we got home from the movies it was 3:30. We relaxed a little before dinner. 

After dinner we walked around the neighborhood. Tonight we went the opposite direction, which took us by the Bozeman Public Safety Center. Bozeman Public Safety Center had Bozeman's first fire truck in the building, I couldn't get a good picture because there was too much glass. They also had Bozeman's first fire bell, it was used from 1890 to 1941. It was fun walking around the grounds and getting a little history. We walked for 2 miles. Then we relaxed for the rest of the night.

Fire Bell used from 1890 to 1941

Today I did 5,000 steps. We had a relaxing day.  

  

 

Monday 9-21-26 Disappointment, Bozeman Sculpture Park, Walking & More

 

Beautiful Day

We had a beautiful day. The morning temperature was 42 degrees and the high temperature was 73 degrees. We had a lot of sunshine.

I woke up at 7:15 am and got dressed. Then I made cinnamon rolls for breakfast. I also made them yesterday. Then we hung around the Minnie hoping for a phone call from Andy's Glass Inc. 

Cinnamon Rolls

While hanging around the Minnie we read. Larry started a book and finished it. Then he started another book. I continued reading The Summer Guest.

Reading is fun and relaxing

I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Solitaire World Tour of 30 games. It took me 2 hours, 45 minutes and 2 seconds to complete, which put me in 8th place in my group.

For lunch we shared a salad. After lunch we went for a motorcycle ride. Larry had read that Bozeman had a sculpture park. It was about three miles from the fairgrounds and located behind the public library and in the downtown area. When we got there the parking lot was almost full. But we found a spot to park the motorcycle. Bozeman Sculpture Park is a half mile paved trail. It doesn't have a lot of sculptures but the trail was very nice. The trail takes you up a hill to where it joins with the Gallagator Trail. The trail goes by Lindley Park and Burke Park. The parks are very well maintain and people were enjoying them with their dogs and reading. While walking the trail we said hi to people and met a few dogs. Part of the trail dogs are allowed off leash. It was a nice little park. Below are some of the sculpture.

Library Sculpture

 

Wind Totem (Wind blows the glass balls around)

Egghead

Re Balance

Eagle

After visiting the Bozeman Sculpture Park we went back to the fairgrounds. Larry called Andy's Glass Inc. and asked them if our window came in. They said it didn't make it but should be in Wednesday. They said, that they had to make a pattern to cut the glass. They had to get it cut in Portland Oregon, it was now being shipped to Yakama, Washington and should arrive here Wednesday. They will install it on Thursday. All they have to do is pop the window in the frame and then put it in the hole. It shouldn't take too long. They said they would call us. This was disappointing but what can we do. Larry walked over to the office and told them were going to be here another two nights. 

Disappointed

After dinner we went for a walk to the BMX Bike Park and around the neighborhood. When we got back I baked cookies. When we went to Walmart the other day they had Pillsbury Apple Pie Cookie Dough for $.96 so picked up a couple packs. For dessert yesterday and today I baked Apple Pie cookies. Each pack had 12 big cookies. Each day I cooked six cookies but I cut each cookie in half so it made 12 cookies. They were very good.

Apple Pie Cookies

By the end of the day I done 7,000 steps. LIFE IS GOOD!!!! Just having fun.

 

  

   

Sunday 9-20-26 Moving Site, Reading, Games & Showers

 

Still in Montana

We still hanging out at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds in Bozeman, Montana. Our window should be in tomorrow. It's not bad hanging out at the fairgrounds because we have power.

The morning temperature was 49 degrees and the high temperature was 67 degrees. The sun came out to dry up all the rain.

We hung around the fairgrounds all day. Today we moved back to site #A13 but we had to wait until the occupants of the site was gone. We walked around about 9:00 to see if they were getting ready to go but they weren't. Check-out and Check-in were both at noon. They weren't getting ready to go so we walked back to Minnie. 

We decided to go to the Access Fitness Bozeman to take a shower while we waited. The local gym lets people take a shower for $5.00. This is cheap. The gym is close enough you can walk. The lady, who took care of us is originally from Houston. She was friendly and showed us where the showers were. The showers were small but you had your own shower stall. There were cramped together two on each side of a square area. Each shower had one hook and a curtain to give you a little privacy. The showers were very good. The gym opens on Sunday at 8:00 am and closes at 5:00 pm. 

Access Fitness

When we walking back to the Minnie we noticed the people in site #A13 we still there and weren't even starting to get ready to go. We got back at 11:00 and we shared a salad for lunch. At 12:00 we went for a little walk to see if we could move. The occupants of the site was getting ready to leave. Larry asked the gentleman if he was leaving and he said yes. Larry said we were assigned the site but there was no hurry. The gentleman said they would be gone in a few minutes. We walked back to the Minnie and put things down for the move. Larry rode the motorcycle down to the site and parked it. The occupants were starting to pull out. When Larry got back we moved into our site.

Our neighbor, who is a long term camper here said, you're back. We said we had to move down to a site with sewer because this site was reserved for the weekend. We will be there a couple more nights. We were waiting for our overhead window and it should be in Monday. He asked where we were headed. Larry told him we had planned to be in Montana for a month. We really don't have a plan. He wished us luck on the window. We thanked him.

While hanging around the Minnie we read. Larry started and finished a book. I continued reading The Summer Guest. It's a good book about a rich man, that visited a fishing camp in Maine every summer for thirty years. He was dying and wanted to feel his final wish. 

I played the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Two Game Tango Mini of 6 games (3 Spider and 3 Pyramid). It took me 15 minutes and 35 seconds to complete, which put me in 19th place in my group.

It was a very laid back day. I ended up doing 5,000 steps.

Relaxing with Larry

   

       

Saturday 9-19-26 Rainy Day & Having Fun

 

Playing in the rain

The rain came in last night about 6:15. It sprinkled all night. At times the rain was coming down steady but not hard. It was very deary and nasty. The morning temperature was 51 degrees. The high was 54 degrees. The rain went away about 1:00 but the clouds stayed around. 

We spent the day keeping dry. 

I played games. I played the Daily Challenges of  Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: Tri Peaks Adventure of 20 games. It took me 1 hour, 7 minutes and 55 seconds to complete, which put me in 12th place in my group.

Larry started a new book and finished it. I finished reading This Time Tomorrow by Emma Straub. It was good book about a father (Leonard) and daughter (Alice Stern), who traveled back in time. After finishing This Time Tomorrow I asked Larry to choose another book. The book he choose was The Summer Guest by Justin Cronin. 

Relaxing with a book

 

The rain went away so about 5:00 we went for walk. We needed a few things at Walmart. We walked to Walmart and bought some groceries. Then we walked back to the fairgrounds. By the end of the day I had done 5,500 steps, which was 2.5 miles. 

Grocery shopping

    

Friday 9-18-26 New Site, Movie & Having Fun

 

It's Friday do the happy dance

We had a relaxing day. The morning temperature was 49 degrees and the high was 71 degrees. We're on flood watch in the area because we're suppose to have rain. 

I woke up about 7:20 to a cool 49 degrees. Then I got dressed and made breakfast (bagel and shake). Today we're changing sites. The site we have been staying in was reserved for the weekend so we had to move to a sewer site #04B. 

About 9:00 we walked down to the new site to see if anyone was there. It was empty. Then we walked to the office to see if it was still going to be our site for the weekend. The lady in the office it was. Then we told her, that we wanted to stay Sunday and Monday night also. Larry told her he tried to make a reservation but the system wouldn't let him. The lady in the office next to the front desk came over and showed the other lady how to get to the correct screen. The lady, who was helping us was ne, she had just started Monday. The lady, who was helping said on weekends you can't make reservations online. Their system is very weird, during the week you can't make a same day reservation after 2:00 pm, you have to go to the office to get a spot, for weekend reservations you have to make your online reservations Mon-Thur,, on Friday you have to walk in the office. They don't have any coverage on the weekend and the office closes at 4:00 pm. We also told the ladies in the office, that they need to notify maintenance that the electrical box needed attention because it was coming apart.

Gallatin Valley Fairgrounds office

Then we moved the Minnie to it's new home for a couple of days. For lunch we had a sandwich with chips. After lunch we went back to Regal Gallatin Valley Cinema. Today we went to see Spider-Man Brand New Day. It cost a little more, which was $22.08 instead of $20.38 for the two of us. The movie was very good. After the movie we went back to the Minnie.

Gallatin Valley Cinema

For dinner we had a baked potato. I can't remember the last time we had a baked potato. We topped the potato with butter, pepper jack cheese, sour cream and bacon bits. 

After dinner we walked to the BMX Bike Track. They had an event going on. People were practicing on the jump track and BMX track. They had a few vendors there. We walked around and watched the bicyclists practice. Some of them were very good. One guy did back flips off the jumps and got big air. It was a nice way to kill some time before the rain came in. Then we walked around the fairgrounds. 

Starting gate of the jump track

Jumping the jumps

Finishing a back flip

Here at the fairgrounds they have a big event this weekend called, The Last Best Place Body Art Festival. It brings together tattooing, piercing, live art, music and culture under one roof. We walked around to see what's going on. It was taking place in Exhibit Halls 1 & 2. We didn't go inside the buildings because it cost $22.00 each. We kept walking around to see the other buildings. When we got to the ice rink there was a special event going on. We had a great walk. We made it back just before the rain came. The rain was scheduled to be in between 6:00 and 7:00. It came in at 6:15.

Gallatin County Fairgrounds Exhibit #2

Gallatin County Fairgrounds Exhibit #1

I did the Daily Challenges of Solitaire and Mahjong. The daily event was Event: World Tour Mini of 10 games. It took me 46 minutes and 53 seconds to complete, which put me in 19th place in my group. 

Larry started a book and finished it. I continued reading This Time Tomorrow by Emma Staub.  

Relaxing with a good book

By the end of the day I had done 6,000 steps. 

We still having fun. LIFE IS GOOD!!!!