We Are Not In Santee.....

I just turned the iPad on to do this entry and apparently last night's post did not publish until just now.  Sorry.  So, go back and read the previous post before you read this one.

We are in Jean, NV - 30 miles south of Las Vegas tonight.  Jean has two gas statiions, one casino/hotel and a state prison.  Nothing else.  We are comfortable in the casino/hotel for the night and will continue our journey tomorrow.  We are fine, the RV is fine, the truck is fine.   No worries.

As mentioned in previous post we did not take into consideration the possiblility of traffic between LV and Santee until we thought about it yesterday.  Well, traffic wasn't/isn't horrendous - it is mind boggling.  We left Nellis, which is north of LV, at 0830.  At 0930 we were about 20 miles south  of LV when the traffic became bumber to bumper and 10 miles an hour.  Three lanes!  Stop and go.  Only tail lights in our vew through the windshield.  The truck wasn't happy, Roger wasn't happy, I'm feeling crummy and Maggie can't figure out why we are poking along and she can't get out.  At 1030 we reached an exit for Jean.  Off to the right is a Shell station with traffic backed up to I-15.  Across from it is a graded pull out for big rigs.  We pulled off to take a break and decide what to do.

We ate our lunch in the RV.  It was cold and windy outside.  We could see the highway, all the cars trying to merge back on and we just decided we wouldn't make Santee before dark and we really didn't want to sit in the traffic.   We called them and told them we would be in tomorrow.  Our first thought was just to dry camp, but we have a minimal amount of water in the fresh water tank - just enough to flush the toilet when we make a pit stop.  Rog hasn't sanitized it yet this year, either.  We don't carry a generator and we knew it was going to be quite cold during the night and we have no idea how long our batteries would last with the furnace fan running and us using lights in the evening.  

Across the interstate from where we were is the Gold Strike Casino and Hotel.  Aha - warm room, showers, TV, etc.  We pulled into the parking lot next to some semi trucks.  Rog asked one guy if he knew how long and far the traffic mess was.  He had heard it was all the way to Barstow which is 125 miles.    So, we checked into a room about 1100.  Since it is a casino, the room is bare minimum and well used.  No fridge or micro and the tv is not very sharp because they want you downstairs and not in your room!  But, hey, we are ok with that.  We spent the afternoon dozing, reading, watching football, doing crosswords and taking the Maggs out for pee breaks.  We went out to the RV and made dinner -  spaghetti and green beans - and packed up our over night stuff.  At about 5pm we took a walk around the parking lots with Maggie and the traffic on the interstate was still at a snail's pace and the line to get out of the parking lot and onto the on ramp was probably a 20 minute wait.  As I said, the whole thing is just mind boggling.   

All these people from LA and San Diego went to LV for Thanksgiving?  Maybe some went to Grandma's house but I'm guessing that 95% didn't - just a long weekend in Vegas.  So, that brings up a question Roger has - surely these people have done this before on long holiday weekends.  Surely they know about the issue of returning home and having to go to work the next day.  If they have done this before, why, for goodness sakes would they opt to do it again?  You would think they would have learned their lesson.   We, being newbies at this, have no excuse but ignorance.  You can bet next year we won't be trying it again - we learned our lesson!

Maggie freaks out on elevators!!  We are on the 3rd floor.  She doesn't like the stairs either as they are cement with no risers and she can see between the treads.  She was a little spooked out by the whole thing.  We brought her bed in, but she wants to be on the big bed next to us.  Sounds from the next room and the hall have her on alert.  She has relaxed somewhat as the afternoon has progressed to evening, but every time a door slams her eyes fly open.  

Hopefully we will get some sleep tonight - last night wasn't one of our best sleeping nights.  My stuffy nose and full bladder made for an up and down night and every time it woke Roger up.  So, being tired today to start helped make our decision to call it a day at 1030.  I found some NyQuil in the gift shop, we got two beds, and we will be warm so we should have a better night and be ready to start again early tomorrow.  

I'm on the iPad, so have trouble figuring out to caption photos so here they are: 1) the line of traffic as far as the eye can see, 2) the line from the interstate to the gas station, 3) Maggs not getting far from Roger, 4) Maggs not getting far from me, and 5) Maggs able to relax and not be on top of us.  

On the Move Tomorrow

Our two weeks in Las Vegas is up!  It went by fast despite the fact we didn't do anything here except that one day to the Valley of Fire. 

We did spend a dull and boring day yesterday hiding in the RV Park not knowing how awful Black Friday is here and not really wanting to go out and find out.  Today I had to get out for a while and I needed a couple things from Target (our clif bars mostly).  We found a nice sandwich shop and split a sub sandwich. Then it was home and doing prep work for getting on the road.  While I sat in the laundry room, Roger put away all the outside stuff leaving only water and power hooked up.  We plan an early getaway tomorrow as it is about a five and a half hour drive through the greater LA area.

I made our reservations for Santee Lakes  for tomorrow as it is Sunday and since we have to drive all the way through Las Vegas, then once we hit Riverside, it is five lane freeway with lots of traffic.  So, Sunday is a good day, right? Normally, yes.   Well, it never occurred to me when I made the reservations that tomorrow is the last day of a four day weekend and the Las Vegas to Southern California traffic just may be horrendous.  That's another reason for leaving early - in case we get jammed up somewhere.  Sunset is about 4:30 and we don't want to have to set up in the dark. 

I have a cold!  This is newsworthy because I never get colds.  Well, almost never.  I had one two years ago when our granddaughters came for the holidays with runny noses.  Before that it had been six years and I caught one on a cruise.  So, what the heck happened?  Rog thinks I probably picked it up at the dessert extravaganza the other day, either from the food or someone there, but who knows. Maybe that's why yesterday was such a blah day for me.   It's so weird, is all.  Not used to feeling "under the weather."

An Absolutely Do Nothing Day

Walks with Maggie under clear blue skies and time spent planning our departure on Sunday was the most we could muster today.  

Happy Thanksgiving, Everyone1

We are most thankful for all of you in our lives.  We hope you had a good day with lots of good food!

We ended up making a veggie pie for dinner - lots of root vegetables, and some green beans and peas thrown in to get our greens in for the day!  It turned out OK - some of the veggies were a bit crunchy, but overall not a bad way to get your vegetables down!!!  We had our left over chocolate pie for our mid-afternoon snack, so no dessert tonight.  

No sun to speak of today, but when I took Maggs out after dinner there was a gorgeous sunset southwest of us with the crescent moon shining brightly a little further east.  Very nice ending to a pretty blaah day weather-wise.

It was a quiet day for us - seemed even more quiet than usual.  We made a couple of trips with Maggie around the RV park, Roger sat outside with his iPod most of the afternoon, and I finished a Christmas present I've been working on while listening to my audio book.   

We stopped at the doggie park to let Maggie run and we encountered two tiny chihuahuas.  We have seen them before and Maggie has run and played with them in the past.  They are so small it's hard to believe they are dogs.  The male is active and full of energy while the female just kind of hangs around.  Roger found himself a chair to sit and watch the dogs play and Maggie tried to get the little ones interested in a game of tag.  Then the male got pushy and Maggie turned tail and ran and jumped in Roger's lap and wouldn't get down.  What a wuss.  The little guy was about the size of her head, but had her totally buffaloed.  It was so funny to watch, especially knowing that she intimidates larger dogs and not only stands her ground with them during an encounter, but usually initiates the bad behaviour.    I asked her if she was ready to go home and she jumped down from Roger's lap and ran to the gate looking back at me as if to say, "Hurry, let me out, he's coming after me."  We were laughing so hard.  She was being a total scaredy-cat

Again,  Happy Thanksgiving!  

A Dessert Extravaganza

This afternoon we indulged.   Yes, we did!  Desserts were lined up on the serving counter at the "Pavillion."   Cakes, cookies, pie, ice cream, donuts, brownies, and a few things I didn't recognize.  There was pumpkin bread, pumpkin cake, pumpkin cookies, several pumpkin pies.  We were impressed that one lady listed the ingredients of her cookies and put a sign next to it for those people that have food allergies. I'm going to have to remember that.  I talked with her and she said she started doing it after she landed in the hospital after getting a piece of pie that had ground nuts in the pie crust.  Scary.  

The crowd was pretty good sized.  The sign up sheet didn't have all that many people listed on Monday when I signed up.  More couples came than signed up and I only saw one young family who showed up with no contribution.  We met folks from all over including two guys from Alaska who are here for the winter.  Lots of retired Air Force pilots in the group.  Some newly retired (and others who probably retired after WWII.)   There were some pretty old geezers there!  Some were new to the lifestyle, some were full timers, but mostly the crowd consisted of "snowbirds."  We actually participated in conversations instead of going and grabbing food and leaving.  Rog forgot his hearing aids but managed OK - he just let the old dude across from him at the table rattle on and on while he ate and nodded at the appropriate times.  

I made a chocolate pie but only three pieces were taken, so we brought the rest home.  I had intended on baking a pumpkin pie tomorrow for us but now I think it will wait.  We don't need to have it in the house!  

We plan a quiet day tomorrow - not any different from any other day for us - especially now that pumpking pie is not on the menu! 

A Couple of "duh" moments

Maggie is the queen of the couch but also likes to sit in our laps when we have an afghan over us.  Last night, she was on Roger's lap, he had to get up to use the facilities, and when he came back Maggs had taken over his chair.  He was relegated to the couch for the evening!  

I sometimes feel like we live the Seinfeld series - a story about nothing.  Well, that's the last few days in a nutshell.  I'm always willing to write something - I do love to prattle on - but I'm not sure anyone else cares, so sometimes I just don't put anything down. So, some random items for tonight.   Sorry, Pam.  I'll try and do better :-)  

Today is, as is the 25th of November every year, a day of contemplation on age.  Our three children and three of our four grandchildren, as well as Roger and I,  have birthdays in October and November.  The last of them was today - our youngest son, Andy's day.  I never (well, almost never) really feel my age until our "baby"  has his birthday.  I can't possibly be old enough to have children in their forties and a grandchild in her 20s.  Where has the time gone?  

When we travel in the RV the parks we stay in are filled with vehicles from all over the country!  It's fun to check out the license plates and see where people are from.  When we go shopping we are always on the lookout for Nevada plates.  When we travel our mindset is we aren't home, right?   Herein lies the "duh" moment.  Yesterday at the commissary (never go the few days before a holiday that involves massive amounts of food) Roger saw a car backing out and noted it was a Nevada plate.  I mentioned that there sure were a lot of them in the parking lot........    Where are we?   Las Vegas.  Duh.

Roger's been having an issue with his blood pressure for the last few months and, although, it is now stabilized, we have drastically reduced our salt intake.  What this means for me is that I'm having to learn to cook and not fall back on processed foods as I have been doing more and more over the years.  So, in my quest to become somewhat proficient in the kitchen and make sure we get enough protein, not too much salt or calories, enough fruits and vegetables and go easy on the tiny seeds found in multigrain stuff, I've had to resort to finding recipes and actually following them.  This is hard for me.  Tonight I made a new quinoa dish that called for pistachios, orange slices, and pomegranate seeds.  Sounded as if it would be good - and easy.  It worked for both criteria.  We've never had pomegranates before.  I've read wonderful things about the benefits of indulging in the fruit and that the little seeds are plump and juicy and will keep you healthy.  Well, they also have little seeds in the "seeds".....Duh, who would have thought?   Oh, well, Rog ate around the seeds. 

As I mentioned in an earlier post, the RV sites here are large and fairly private from the neighbors.  We like that - we aren't on display.   It also means none of the neighbors are visible to us so we can't see what is going on and who is doing crazy things.  It's a bit boring.  Roger sits out in his chair listening to his audio book, soaking up the sun and watches nothing.   This park is particularly dull.  The place is pretty full and has a mixture of motor homes and 5th wheels.   Most are of average size and affordability but there are a few of the very expensive ones.  There is one site that has a Prevost (the kind you see on TV that the stars and rich people have) and it has a trailer behind it almost the size of our RV that hauls their little car and motorcycles.  A few sites down from the Prevost is a pop-up pull-behind trailer.  An equal opportunity RV park!  Most of the folks that a we have seen are geezers like us, but there are a few active duty folks here with kids and the only time we hear any noise other than the airplanes and the speed demons down at the speedway is when the kids get home from school and ride their bikes around the circle we live in.  Our neighbor on the patio side has come over and visited with Roger and told him his life story as an Air Force pilot (he retired as a colonel so we really don't have much in common but he likes to talk non stop - Rog just sat there and politely listened. )  Now when Rog sees his feet coming down the stairs of his RV, he hurries into the house and hides!!  We see a few people walking their dogs and occasionally we glimpse someone taking their trash out, but other than that there seems to be little to no activity here.  We have been trying to figure out what these folks do all winter.  

Speaking of chairs - since we have been here Roger has had the seat of the two camping chairs we have give out on him as he was sitting in them - watching nothing.  Fortunately, there were no injuries in either incident.  The "recliners" are still packed in the back of the truck buried under some heavy stuff and won't come out until we reach Santee.  So, today our entertainment was going to Wal-Mart and buying two new chairs for outside.  

Tomorrow afternoon we're going to a dessert pot luck at the park clubhouse.   We figure we will get all our dessert tasting and calories tomorrow afternoon instead of Thursday.  Heck, what's a few calories!  Our Thanksgiving plans are the usual - just the two of us enjoying vegetable pasties (a Cornish dish usually made with pork and beef but vegetarian in our case) and a pumpkin pie.  Let's hope my little toaster oven is up to the task! 

Well, let's see. . . .  guess that's all I can come up with tonight.  

A Day of Chores

That's all we did today - as we planned. Couldn't find any excuses to talk ourselves out of cleaning house and doing laundry.  Hopefully we'll come up with something to do that's more exciting for tomorrow. 

My Camera is Like My Brain

I brought my good camera with me that has a view finder since I have trouble seeing what I'm taking pictures of using those screens on the new ones and on my phone.  When I got it out yesterday to check the batteries before we left for our hike, I discovered it had no memory card in it.  I put the one from my little point and shoot in it and all I got was a message "Unable to Read Memory Card"   Hmmm.   So, yesterday I used the small camera and my phone for those pictures we took.  Today we went to the base exchange and bought a 16GB memory card (the smallest I could find).  Figured that ought to cover me for a long time!  Well, I put it in and got that same message.  I tried everything - reformatting, cursing, and getting my  neck muscles all in a knot trying to figure out what to do.   I gave up and put it back in it's package.  After a half-hour walk with Maggie to decompress I started doing some "Google" searching for the camera model and compatible discs.  Well, it seems that my camera is old enough (like my brain) that it will only hold so much memory, and it will only work with a 2GB memory card.  I was feeling a kinship with it after I found that out - just so much data one can expect to retain in one's old age - be it camera or brain!!  

About the same time as I was wrestling with that problem I tried to help Roger by  deleting stuff from his old iPod.  It's old enough that it hasn't been able to upgrade the operating system for the last four times an update has been available.  His battery life is dwindling faster all the time  (I mean the iPod's) and I thought, being fairly proficient with Apple products, I could remove apps, do some cleaning up of the memory and help him get more battery life.  He only wants to use it to listen to his audiobooks and music, so I went crazy deleting everything in sight!  It wanted to upgrade his Audible app, so I did.  He came in from working on replacing the door handle and turned the iPod on - oops.  No Audible.  Just kept crashing.   That's about the time I took the walk.  While I was gone, he took the app off the iPod and reloaded it through the iTunes store.  It works now, thank goodness!  So much for knowing what I am doing. 

As much as I walk most days, I was so surprised today to wake up with sore calf muscles from the hike in the deep sand yesterday!  Wow, it was more of a workout than I thought.  Roger says he felt some discomfort, too.  Maggie was a bit lazier today than usual so we must have tired her out as well.  I had to dump more red sand out of my shoes this morning for our walk.  Not sure where it had been hiding as I dumped a ton before we headed home.  I made the mistake of wearing a pair of hikers yesterday that have a mesh top (my feet get hot).  Yeah, well, that didn't work all that well in deep fine, silty, sand.  

We are about five miles down the road from the Las Vegas Speedway.  It's  huge and apparently one of the major NASCAR tracks in the country.   Well, last night and today it was quite obvious it was open for business.  Those cars racing around and around and around that track are almost as noisy as the airplanes from the base (which we expect living on an Air Force base). 

Tomorrow we will be here one week.  It has gone pretty fast.  We will celebrate by dusting, vacuuming and doing laundry!  It is supposed to be cooler and very windy, so it will be a good day to stay at home and get it done.  

Maggie the Mountain Goat

We took a drive out to the Valley of Fire State Park  today for a picnic and a hike.  It's about an hour northeast from where we are staying.  Miss Maggie thought she could climb the rocks like a mountain goat.  She certainly did have a good time on our hike.

The scenery was phenomenal and we ate lunch in a picnic area surrounded by red sandstone mountains.  At the Atlatl Rock area there were petroglyphs we could view at the top of a very long staircase built to reach them.  We then drove further into the park, stopping at the visitor center, and then further to Mouse Trap Canyon for a hike.  It was a bit like hiking in sand dunes on the beach only redder!  It wasn't a long trail - about 3/4 of a mile round trip -  but it was a workout because of the soft sand in the the canyon.  I've chosen a few of the many pictures we took to upload to the journal to share with you.  I'm hoping to put the rest in a "cloud" somewhere so that if you want to see them you can.  I'll let you know the website when/if I get it set up.  Roger took some really incredible shots (as usual) and I did get a few good ones as well.   The weather was perfect for hiking in the desert - sunshine and mid 60s.  We had a fun day!

Atlatl Rock with stairs leading to rock art

Prehistoric rock art

Can't describe the beauty.

  

Do you think maybe they get
wind here?  This is the Ranger's office
roof being held down by the chains.  

Plants pop up at the barest  places.

Rog getting ready to capture the petroglyphs
high up on the wall.  You can see them if you look closely.

Rawhide!!!  Where are the beeves?  

Back lighting for effect.

Off into the wilds of the desert!

Canyon walls.

A lone prehistoric warrior.

Two Days of Quiet

We spent yesterday and today just hanging out with Maggie.  We kept busy with lots of walks, some reading, some knitting, some naps and watching airplanes.  We saw the Thunderbirds today doing some practice landings and we almost felt as if we were back in Pensacola watching the Blue Angels only there's no lush vegetarion about.  

Tomorrow we plan on packing a picnic and going out to the Valley of Fire State Park which is northwest of here and about an hour's drive.  Will take the camera and hope to get some good pictures to share.

A Very Nice Birthday!

It's always nice to hear from family and friends on my birthday.  Thank you all for the loving good wishes.  It made my day!

I celebrated with blueberry pancakes for breakfast (cooked by Roger), by not counting calories all day, and splurging on a piece of chocolate cake.  The sun was shining and the wind wasn't blowing!  All of that, a couple of walks with Maggie, and a good haircut made for a great day.  

We did take a tour of North Las Vegas looking for an RV parts place to find a new door handle.  What a depressing area of town.  We found the store but they didn't have the part so we came home and ordered it on line hoping to get it before we leave here.  

Nothing else new to add.  We have no agenda for tomorrow. Who knows what we will end up doing - if anything.  Might just be a good day to sit and read or knit or nap between walks with the Maggs.  

A Pretty Normal Day for Us

We participated in some pretty mind blowing activities today!   Grocery shopping, walking the dog, lunch in the fast food court at the Base Exchange, and sitting in the sun (not necessarily in that order!  

I'm a happy camper!!!

The Dish tech showed up early this morning - after spending 40 minutes going through security - and basically did nothing but make a phone call to tell them to turn our service on for local channels.  He did, however, clue us in as to how to avoid this hassle next time we re-activate after putting the service on hold while we are home.  We felt sorry for the poor guy having wasted so much time, but he was very pleasant  and helpful.  

As for my maroon vest that I was upset about leaving at home - well, it seems I doubled up my many vests on the hangers and it was under another one.  Yay!   And, lo and behold, guess what was in the pocket... yep, my Costco and American Express cards!  Double Yay!!!  All that being upset yesterday for nothing.  We did not, however, find any tubes of toothpaste hiding anywhere. 

Our site is huge with trees on both sides
separating us from our neighbors and with
parking off to the side. 

The Nellis Fam Camp is across from the main part of the base with the hospital on one side and a fuel farm on the other side.  Not a prime location, but once inside the park is it very comfortable.  The Air Force always has nice facilities for the troops and retirees.  Lots of airplane noise during the day but that is what they do here.  (While we were having lunch we saw pilots from Canada and the UK here for training.)  


There is a walking trail behind us and along the fence that you see behind the RV.  The loop around the park is .75 miles with doggie stations and people benches along the way.  It's nothing but gravel, and the only thing to look at is the other RVs, but it provides a nice walk for Maggie.   There is a large dog park for her, as well.   

Several years ago when we stopped here on our way home one of the women staying in the park was building a cactus garden.  It's a bit overgrown right now but is a nice part of the walking trail.  

Woodhenge?  

Tomorrow's excitement will include a haircut!   Roger is making me some blueberry pancakes for breakfast and we bought little baby chocolate cakes for my birthday dinner!  The sun is supposed to shine and the temperatures are supposed to be in the low 60s.  Happy B'day to me - life is good.  

All Set Up for Two Weeks in Sin City!

Well, we are here and glad of it despite the fact that we have freeze warning for tonight!  That doesn't happen often, but figures that it would our first night here!

Last night the wind started howling at gale strength about 8pm and didn't let up.  It was still going strong when we left at 9:30 this morning.  You know how I hate the wind if you paid any attention at all to last winter's blog. Not only did it blow continuously, but it was strong with some pretty powerful gusts.  There was a tree next to the bed slide out.  One of the branches beat against the wall behind our heads ALL night.  That was pretty annoying.

The temperature was as cold as predicted early this morning and with the wind blowing Maggie's ears backward when we went out for her to do her morning business, she even hurried back to the RV.  

After ruminating on it most of the night, Roger figured out what went wrong when he de-winterized and why we still had antifreeze in the hot water tank.  So, first thing this morning, in the cold and wind, he went outside and drained it, fixed the issue and we now have clean water for dishes and showers.  It's a good thing, 'cause we are starting to get a little disreputable.  Thank goodness for paper plates and bottled water!

It was a short drive from Beatty to north Las Vegas where Nellis AFB is.  Nothing to take pictures of for you, I'm afraid, as the drive is about as interesting as watching cabbages grow  Just brown desert with mountain backdrops and the long lonely road in front of the truck.  

I will take some photos tomorrow of our site and the RV park.  We have a huge site with trees between us and our neighbors.  No one behind us or directly in front.  It's a very nice layout here.  We are at the opposite end from the laundry, though.  There's a very  nice dog park available for Maggie and this afternoon she had a great time just running like a mad woman from one end to the next.  She was glad to get out of the RV!  

When we arrive at a site, Roger puts the RV on the pad where we think it will go best, I go inside and use a level to see if we have to put some leveling blocks (aka legos to me) under the tires on one side or another.  Today, I opened the outside door, reached up for the handle on the screen door, pushed it down and it broke off.  Plastic handle - not surprising with all the wear it gets.  The issue, though, was that the door was effectively locked shut and I had no way to get inside.  Roger had to shut off the truck, find a screwdriver (he carries a very large toolbox with us) and he had to take off the casing that the handle mechanism resides in.  At least he didn't have to take off the door like he did when Maggie destroyed the screen last year.   We eventually got the RV leveled and in its spot for the next two weeks.  He's super-glued the handle back together but I have a feeling we will be searching for an RV parts place tomorrow.   That would be after the Dish Network tech shows up.

Last year in Santee we purchased a "Tailgater" satellite dish.  The deal is supposed to be that we can turn it on and off when we want and we can call them to set the locatiaon every place we stop and want it hooked up.   Last  year - not a problem.  Roger would set it up, call the 800 number and give the person on the other end our zip code and we would be all set.  So, you are rightly guessing, it didn't work that way today.  We got a woman on the phone whose kids were screaming in the background, Roger couldn't understand a word she was saying, and it was a struggle to get her to understand what we needed.  I finally got on the phone and we made a little more  progress but she couldn't explain why we needed a technician other than her computer said we did.  She charged the credit card a very strange amount but couldn't tell us why - only that there was no charge for the tech and she couldn't start the service without it.   We waited about an hour and called back and I got someone on the line who told me the strange charge was because we had credit from when we stopped service in May and that the tech needed to do some upgrade thing because we were in Las Vegas.  Easy, peasy.  All I wanted was an explanation.  Geez, is that so hard?

We are starting to find things we meant to bring but left behind.  I think my Costco card and accompanying American Express card are in the jacket pocket that I wore last week when we went. We forgot toothpaste (had to replace that right away), a favorite maroon vest I wear all the time on cool days over long sleeve shirts, and our breakfast cereal.  I also believe I left a tomato sitting in the kitchen window.  (I've already texted Mike and asked him to retrieve that before it becomes a biology experiment!)

So, tomorrow, after the tech is finished, we go get groceries, get a long walk, and stettle in for the next two weeks.  The temperatures are supposed to be in the mid sixities with sunshine.  That's about normal for Sin City and our reason for being here.  

No one was harmed in today's activities!

We finally got on the road today!  No turning back now!   Warmer weather, here we come!

The long, lonesome highway
called US95 south!

We had sunshine, no wind, little traffic, and some awesome clouds today.  Temps were mostly in the 50s as we headed south but when we got to Beatty it was a balmy 63 degrees.  

 

The Eastern Slope of the Sierra Nevada with lenticular clouds.  On the western side of this section of mountains is Yosemite National Park

The wind was apparently blowing way up there in the atmosphere as we saw hundreds of lenticular clouds.  At one point Roger saw one over the Nevada Test Site (and Area 51) that looked appropriately like a flying saucer!  It was on his side so I couldn't get a picture :-(

The warmth didn't last long, though, as we arrived in Beatty at about the time the sun set behind the mountain (shortly after 4pm) and the dark and cold came on fast.  Roger barely got us hooked up to shore power and sewer and leveled and stabilized, and Maggs and I got back from her walk-about, before it was very dark.  (There's no lighting in the RV park.)  We left Sparks at 9am, but when you are driving between 55 and 60 miles per hour, 350 miles is a very, very long time!

As we started out this morning going east along the Truckee River we glimpsed a fisherman standing in a large pool of water fly fishing.  I wouldn't have noticed him but for the sun shining on the wet fishing line.  As the line flicked back and forth when he cast, the sunlight  glistened on the line  and it caught my eye.  

The cottonwoods along the very, very low water of the Truckee were brilliant gold, the sky was blue and it was beautiful!   Along a dirt road following the river there was a small herd of mustangs - a stallion and five mares - just trotting along.   It was quite a positive start to the day. 

Surprisingly enough for the first night in the RV we both fell right to sleep. We were so exhausted from the work yesterday.  Unfortunately, we both woke around 4am and it was a while before we got back to sleep.   Getting used to the bed, the different lights, etc. always makes for a rough first night.  The cold didn't help any, either.  Getting the furnace set to the right temperature and piling on the right amount of covers is always a challenge at first.  

Even Maggie got a bit disoriented last night.  She woke me up once and I coaxed her back to bed and we both went back to sleep.  But then about 4am I kept hearing her license plates (dog tags) on her necklace (collar) rattling when she would shake.  She still had her harness on and that drives her crazy.  She sounded far away so I couldn't figure out what was going on and then I heard her whining.  She rarely whines so I figured she was at the door trying to get outside.  I got up and she wasn't there.  She wasn't in the living room but I could hear her whining. There's just so many places in this little house on wheels for her to be and I found her in the bathroom.  She had pushed her way in (we leave the door slightly ajar for middle of the night trips),  but then she couldn't get out.  She was closed in and didn't like it.  I opened the door and, after I took her harness off, she ran for her bed and buried her head under her covers.  We didn't hear her again until 7am.  We have no idea how long she had been in there, poor thing.  

It's only 150 miles or so into Nellis AFB tomorrow, so we will be in no hurry to get up and get on the road.  The temperature is supposed to dip down into the high 20s in the wee hours of the morning, so we will be staying tucked in the nice warm bed or at least sitting in front of the "fire" (our electric space heater that looks like a fire place) with a hot cup of tea in the morning and let it get warm.  This morning we had low 30s as we were preparing the RV for the road.  It was BRRR!!!  We will wait for it to get a bit warmer tomorrow!!  

Rog managed to escape injury today. He says he feels better but is still fatigued from the last few days. We're both looking forward to two weeks of recuperation in Las Vegas before facing the southern California traffic to get to Santee.  

A close call this afternoon

Every year this packing up and getting the RV ready for our winter season seems to get harder.  Rog thinks we have double our usual stuff this time, but the cupbords and closets and fridge don't seem more stuffed than usual.  Maybe it's because I packed everything in tote bags, grocery bags (paper and plastic), and small boxes so there was an abundance of items to haul out of the house, pack in the car or truck, and then haul into the RV and unpack.  It was easier on our backs, though, instead of trying to haul the storage containers filled with things.  It certainly seemed like a lot more, though!!   We have closed up the house, put the car in the garage on a trickle charger, and waved good bye to the neighborhood.  We are in the RV tonight with the "fireplace" on and almost all of our things put away.  

While unloading from the truck this afternoon, Roger somehow triggered the alarm.  Stupid truck started honking and honking and wouldn't give up.  We tried pushing all the buttons, turning the ignition on and off, locking and unlocking the doors, pusing the panic button and nothing was working. The whole thing had us flailing around trying to stop the noise.  We looked like the Keystone Kops running around trying to make it stop.  As a last resort, Roger decided to open the hood and unplug the fuse to the horn.   He pushed the hood up and climbed up on the bumber to reach into the fuse box.  A gust of wind whipped up and the hood came crashing down on his head.  I was watching, screamed, but couldn't do anything.  We got the hood back up and he was OK - just a small divit on his scalp.  So, he tried again.  Same thing happened, only this time the force of the hood closing on his head caused him to lose his footing on the bumper and he went head over teakettle onto the ground with another divit in his scalp.  In the meantime the truck is still honking at him.   They say the third time is the charm, and this time I held onto the hood while he climbed in.  He found the fuse and just as he was set to unplug it, the honking stopped.  He unplugged it anyway.  No more alarms.  Needless to say he did not check his blood pressure this afternoon!!  The whole episode got me worked up as I kept seeing that hood fall on him and kept thinking what a close call he had.  

We had comfort food for dinner - spaghetti and a salad, and Roger did the clean up as he does most nights so normalcy is returning to our life.  

After a very confusing and discombobulated day for her, Maggie, is currently curled up in her "day" bed on the sofa catching some ZZZs.   

We are parked next to a rig just like ours and it looks as though the owners are doing what we are today.  They have Nevada plates and we are guessing they are on their way south soon, too. 

Tomorrow we are up and out of here early as we have a long day on a two lane road.  We will stop in Beatty (the gateway to Death Valley) for the night.  The weather forecast for here (Sparks) for tomorrow night is snow, so it looks as if we are leaving just in time.  

I'm doing this entry on the iPad and can't seem to be able to get the text to wrap the photos.  sorry.  

Only one small hiccup today

I had my last exercise class for the year at the gym this morning.  Won't be back until the first of April.  I will miss all the ladies that attend that class.  We have a great time, lots of laughs, and they are all so very nice.  Amber is an awesome leader and makes the class fun to go to.  I've promised to do the exercises by myself on Tuesday and Thursdays while I'm gone so when I return I will be able to keep up.  I always start out with great intentions.....

After loading the back seat of the truck with mostly stuff Roger needs for getting the RV ready, we went to the storage facility and hooked up the RV  - stopping for Thai food for lunch on the way.  It was a few minutes once we got there before we got the routine down for hooking up but it did come back to us and there were no issues.  

We parked at the Sparks Marina RV park and Roger went to work draining the antifreeze, hooking up the batteries, propane, water, fridge, stove, furnace, etc., while I put some of the linens away that had been washed and folded when we got home in May.  One thing about moving into the RV is that I get to put my organizational skills to use, but it seems I always pack things away the same as the last time.   It's a small space and things only fit a certain way.  We will be living in 342 square feet for the next four months.  

Somehow we managed to get antifreeze into the water heater so Roger had to do some extra work getting that cleaned out and ready to use.  If that is the only problem we have getting ready we are doing super!  

We went back to the house for a second load and brought Maggie back with us to the RV.  She went nuts!  She was so excited she did her crazy running routine from one end of the place to the other with leaps onto the sofa.  She kept at it for about 15 minutes.  She certainly recognized the place and was so happy to be there!  

We did not over do it today as we have all day tomorrow to finish schlepping stuff from the house to the RV.  Roger's sciatica is acting up a bit so we are taking it slow and easy.  I think I like this way of doing things better than the way we have hurried before.  We always tried to cram everything into a few hours and it about killed us.  We will feel better and be in much better moods when we leave.  

Will load the rest tomorrow and spend tomorrow night in the RV.  Kinda looking forward to it.  

Getting Ready to Head South for the Winter

It's that time of year again!  We are getting ready to pack up the 5th Wheel and do our  "snowbird" thing.   This summer has gone by very fast and it seems as if we just got home from the last trip.  

We've had a busy summer mostly working on things around the house, doing some home improvement items and getting the truck ready for this year's adventure.  We both have been busy making Christmas gifts for our family - Roger in his workshop and me in my easy chair!  I've had my last meetings at my two book clubs and tomorrow will be the last day at the exercise class at the gym.  We have visited all the doctors, dentists, etc., for check ups and we are cleared to go.  

Neither of us have been feeling the usual excitement about packing up and going this time.  We think it has to do with the fact that we are still having wonderful weather and it doesn't feel as if we need to.  Then, today, when we took Maggie to the park for her afternoon walk, it was cloudy, cold, and blustery.  We are ready now!  The really cold weather is due to come in on Saturday as we leave, but southern Nevada weather forecasts look good!

We will be taking the RV out of storage tomorrow and putting it in the Sparks Marina RV park so that Friday we can load it with food and clothes and "stuff" that we will need while we are gone.   

Today we spent cleaning the house as we don't like leaving it unless it is in order.  I've been putting off doing it the last week or so as I didn't want to do it twice and it took both of  us all day to do both upstairs and downstairs.  I normally do only one level a day otherwise it's too much like work!  

Roger spent some time cleaning up the truck and making sure my windows were clean so if I have to take pictures through them I will get, hopefully, some good ones that don't show the dirty window!  He likes to keep me happy - yes, a happy wife means a happy life!!!

Maggie is starting to wonder what all the fuss is about and why things are piled up everywhere.  I'm not sure she is ready to get on the road but I've got her drugs handy!

I plan on writing in the journal often and hope you all will check on us when you think of us.