Clean air.......

8:17 am - Sunday - February 24th - Wittmann, AZ - 35º F, 76% humidity, wind 3 mph out of the north by northwest......partly cloudy/sunny with a forecast high of 62º F.  We leave for Flagstaff in a few hours.......we'll spend tonight at a hotel so we can be at the hospital at 6:30 am....two hours in advance of my surgery........wish me well!

When we first got up Saturday morning it was below freezing, and it apparently had been for long enough that our fresh water hose came close to freezing.  When I first turned on the kitchen faucet the water was coming out at a dribble, but over a few minutes the flow increased back to normal.  That is an indication that ice was beginning to form somewhere along the 60 plus feet of our hose.  Since we have to run our hose so far to the water connection my heated hose is of no use as it is only 20-25' long.

As soon as the outside temps warmed sufficiently I went outside to remove the old air cleaner which was last replaced 2/5/2015.....

The 4 year old filter has done its job, and now sits forlornly by the trailer awaiting its ultimate fate

.....removing the air filer is not very difficult.  The hard part is installing the replacement.....the task makes one wish he had an extra arm, if only for a few minutes.....

......there are three metal straps which must be loosened and/or removed to remove the filter, but before that you must loosen two clamps from the rubber ducting through which the air travels from the air cleaner to the turbo.....this entire rubber assembly must be removed before the air filter can be removed.  As I said, removing it is easy......getting the new one back in is another matter entirely......

......it probably took me close to an hour to get the new air cleaner installed and secured as one bolt on one of the straps had some bad threads and would not screw into the fixed nut, so I had to find a replacement....fortunately my friend Tom (our host) had a brand new one with pristine threads just a tad longer than the old one that did the trick.

Tom and Darlene had tickets to a free concert being held at the Del E. Webb Center for the Performing Arts in Wickenburg for Saturday.  They were unable to use them so we became the beneficiaries of their generosity.  The performance was at 3 pm so we left a little after 2 pm for the 25 minute drive into Wickenburg getting parked about 2:40 pm, and in our seats by 2:50 pm.  The band performing was the USAF Band of the Golden West, The Commanders Jazz Ensemble.  The jazz ensemble represents the Air Mobility Command at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, CA, and travel about 3 months a year giving free concerts around the country.  Of course one never knows what to expect for 'free', but I have to say what we witnessed so far exceeded any expectations we had that we found ourselves, along with the entire audience giving two standing ovations over the course of their 90 minute performance.....

They performed 16 or more songs over the 90 minutes finishing with a stirring rendition of 'Battle Hymn of the Republic, and then Stars and Stripes.  We were so impressed with their professionalism, and the quality of the presentation.  Our seats were perfect.......Row B (2nd row) right smack dab in the middle......up close and personal.  If you every have the chance to see them, or any of the various military branch orchestras, do it.....you will not be disappointed!

We were home a little after 5 pm in time to see another subtle, but beautiful sunset.......

.....as I grilled two filet mignons for our dinner I watched the sun slip below the western horizon once again.  Life is good.....in fact, it is better than good!

Thanks for stopping by!

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