More camping stuff

In looking over my photos I see that every picture I took of the Steller's Jay turned out to be blurry.  I thought I chose the least blurred, but they still aren't all that good.

I had such an enjoyable time that I'm anxious to go out again for a couple of days at a time.   In that regard I've been poring over National Forest websites within 100 or miles but if I'm looking then so are a bunch of other Californians.  I'm not sure where I can go that I'm not crammed into a crowd.

I have been moaning and groaning and complaining about my Big Agnes tent and the bad zippers for at least the past two years.  Several people have recommended that I write to Big Agnes, but I hesitated because I didn't think the warranty was still in effect, and I could not find the receipt.  Finally I wrote to Big Agnes and received a reply that they would cover the repair, and to send them the defective piece of equipment.  Now to find a box to hold it.  I need to make a trip to the post office to see what they have - I have an assortment of priority mail boxes but they are all to small for the tent.

So the next time I camp I will be using my new backpacking tent which is actually spacious enough for me, although it would be claustrophobic if it rained for any length of time.  I doubt if it would rain outside of the high Sierra, but even if it did I would welcome the moisture and hopefully the reduction of fire hazards.

I mentioned that I stopped to buy non-GMO corn on the way home and enjoyed what I've eaten of it so far.  The person who waited on me at Harris Ranch told me he was giving me an extra ear of yellow corn, but when I opened the bags I discovered I actually had 4 extra ears.  I needed to do something with it so I spent over two hours freezing it, which included shucking the corn, blanching it, cooling it down in ice water, cutting it off the cob, and then putting it in freezer bags.  I put the corn from two ears into each bag, and ended up with 4 bags of yellow and 3 of white corn.

Sorry for the big white spot - must have been a reflection of the flash.

Cleanup was the most time consuming I think.  I had corn silks and kernels everywhere in the kitchen, and it took a long time to get it all, if I even got it all.  But I will be rewarded with fresh tasting corn now and then that was grown, harvested and sold within 5 miles of where I live, and processed by me!  My back sure hurt for a while but it's all fine now.

Gotta get to the post office to see about a suitable box.  And after I carefully folded up and pressed the air out of the tent I received mailing instructions from Big Agnes.  I have to tape the defective area with masking tape (no duct tape).  That means I will have to unroll it and go through the process all over again.  It will be worth it though - I love the tent for its spaciousness and height, and the fact that the top is mesh which allows me to see the stars at night, providing I don't have to cover everything up with the rain fly!