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Geogypsy
Menu
  • Home
  • About Geogypsy
    • Herstory
    • Parks where I’ve worked
  • Places I’ve been
    • United States
      • Arizona
        • Antelope Slot Canyon
        • Casa Grande Ruins National Monument
        • Colossal Cave Mountain Park
        • Flagstaff
        • Glen Canyon National Recreation Area
        • Grand Canyon National Park
          • Grand Canyon National Park North Rim
          • Grand Canyon National Park South Rim
          • Toroweap
        • Havasu Canyon
        • Horseshoe Bend
        • Jerome
        • Kaibab National Forest
        • Lee’s Ferry
        • Meteor Crater
        • Navajo Bridge
        • Oak Creek Canyon
        • Painted Desert
        • Pipe Springs National Monument
        • Prescott
        • Quartzsite
        • Saguaro National Park
        • Sedona
        • Sunset Crater Volcano National Monument
        • Vermilion Cliffs
        • Walnut Canyon National Monument
        • Wupatki National Monument
        • Yarnell
      • California
        • Anzaberrego
        • Bakersfield
        • Death Valley National Park
        • Joshua Tree National Park
        • Redwoods NP
        • Salton Sea
        • Yucca Valley
      • Colorado
        • Mesa Verde National Park
      • Florida
      • Illinois
        • IL River
        • Morton Arboretum
        • Starved Rock State Park
      • Michigan
      • Nevada
      • New Mexico
      • Oregon
        • Crater Lake NP
        • Mt Hood
        • Oregon Caves National Monument
      • Texas
        • Alpine Texas
        • Padre Island
        • Port Isabel
        • Rio Grande Valley
      • Utah
        • Brian’s Head
        • Bryce Canyon National Park
        • Buckskin Gulch
        • Cedar Breaks National Monument
        • Cedar City
        • Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park
        • Dixie National Forest
        • Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument
        • Johnson Canyon
        • Kanab
    • World Travels
      • Germany
      • Mexico
      • South Africa
  • Tours
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Category: birthday

25 March 2011

Sunrise & a new day in Texas

After buying and installing two new SOBatteries into my truck (scroll down for that adventure) the next morning I took her for a spin. The charging gauge was pulsing a bit so when I got home I Googled some possibilities and discovered many owners of my kind of Ford had experienced drained batteries from a faulty voltage regulator. I called the recommended local AutoZone and they can test the regulator, part cost $25, and maybe even get help installing if needed.

a949 Sunrise San Benito TX (1024x829)

Sunrise

So I’m up earlier than usual to get this done. Sure hope it’s the last of the electrical problems. What the hell else could there be?!

I plan to leave South Texas in three days, Monday morning, and begin the long journey back to my winter Arizona home. Then in a few weeks head back to the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park for the summer.

PS: It’s my birthday tomorrow so feel free to send lots of Happys my way.

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birthday, Rio Grande Valley, RV lifestyle, Texas, travel, truck trouble 15 Comments
26 March 2009

Happy Birthday to Me 2009

Hours old, March 26, 1954
Gail Lynn Olmsted, born to…

Ray and June Olmsted

7 months and 7 years
My older brother said he wanted a baby sister, until he got one.
In 1954:  RCA manufactured the first color TV set with a12″ screen priced at $1,000.  The Supreme Court ordered all schools to be integrated.  The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 3.27 points closing at an all-time high of 382.74 since 1929.  The average income was $4,000 per year and gas cost 29 cents per gallon.


1960 – 6 years old
I was in kindergarten happily watching plants grow from seed, finger painting, and playing jacks at recess followed by a nap.

In 1960:  John F Kennedy elected President.  Black students staged a sit-in at a lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina to protest segregated seating at the establishment.  The first studies linking cigarette smoking with heart disease were undertaken.  And the first oral contraceptives became available to the public.  The average income was $5,600 per year and gas cost 25 cents per gallon.

1965 – 11 years old
My family moved about 10 miles to a another all-white Chicago suburb during the middle of 5th grade.  I was upset, yet made new friends rapidly.  I wore the shortest mini-skirts as puberty began.

In 1965:  Hypertext introduced for linking on the Internet.  Conflict in Vietnam worsened while anti-war movements increased.  Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. lead a civil rights march in Alabama from Selma to Montgomery.  Mary Quant designed the Mini Skirt.  The Grateful Dead with lead guitarist Jerry Garcia played their first concert, in San Francisco.  The average income was $6,400 per year and gas cost 31 cents per gallon.

1970 – Sweet 16
The sweet part is debatable, just ask my parents.  It was time for me to rebel, especially against anybody over 30.  There was so much in the world to explore and I wanted to do it all at once.

In 1970:  National Guardsmen opened fire on a group of students on the campus of Kent State University.  The first Earth Day celebrated.  The World Trade Center completed.  The Beatles released “Let It Be”, their last album.  The Floppy Disc invented.  18 year-olds given the right to vote. The average income was $9,300 per year and gas cost 36 cents per gallon.

1972 – Senior picture, 18 years old
When I graduated from high school I was asked to write what I wanted to be when I grew up.  A gypsy.  I moved in with my boyfriend and went to work as a Go-Go girl.  Life was good.
In 1972:  President Richard Nixon reelected and the Watergate burglary committed.  The first E-Mail program invented.  The last United States ground units left Vietnam.  Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 1003.16 marking the first time in history to cross the 1000 mark.  Intel introduced the 8008 microchip.  Ms. magazine began publication.  The film-less electronic camera patented.  The Marine Mammal Protection Act signed into law along with the Equal Rights Amendment which provided for legal equality of the sexes.  The average income was $12,000 per year and gas cost 55 cents per gallon.


1980 – June bride
At 26 I married a man with two children and became an instant Mom.  The following year we moved to Washington and eventually settled in Tonasket for almost 10 years where I raised a family and operated a Craft Store.

In 1980:  The United States boycotted the Summer Olympics in Moscow.  John Lennon assassinated.  Ronald Regan elected President.  Mount Saint Helens erupted (I later worked there).  Bill Gates licensed MS-DOS to IBM.  WordPerfect 1.0 introduced.  Chrysler, Ford and General Motors experienced the largest losses ever sustained by any U.S. corporations.  The average income was $19,000 and gas cost $1.20 per gallon.

1992 – 38 year-old college student
After separating from my husband I decided to get serious about school so finally took the general study 101s to add to the hundreds of miscellaneous credits I’d accumulated.  Graduated with a BS in Environmental Education & Mass Communication then continued my studies working as a Park Ranger.

In 1992:  President Bush apologized for raising taxes after pledging not to.  Windows 3.1 and Microsoft Works released.  Bill Clinton elected President.  DNA Fingerprinting invented.  The Earth Summit held in Brazil where the US refused to sign The United Nation convention on Climate Change and Biological Diversity.  Space Shuttle Endeavor’s maiden voyage successful.  The average income was $30,000 and gas cost $1.05 per gallon.


2003 – Traveling gypsy

2009
Berta and I went to lunch.

Happy Birthday to Me! 

I’m still processing all this.

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Hi, I’m Gaelyn, the Geogypsy

I retired after 29 summer seasons as a Park Ranger, traveling solo for 40+ years. My passions include travel, connecting to nature, photography, and sharing stories.

I started exploring US National Parks in 1977 and 20 years later became a seasonal Park Ranger.  I’ve lived full-time in a RV for 30 years working summers and playing winters.  I’m still trying to figure out what I want to be when I grow old, other than grow up.

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