Sunday, Again.....

With only one more Sunday to go before we head home.

The week went by really fast.  Rog got the outside of the RV washed and a good coat of wax on the front end cap.  I haven’t done a whole lot but sit and knit and walk the dog.  I did get a haircut and we did make that trip to Costco on Wednesday, but that’s been about it.  

Although a family member contacted us and we started talking about Geneology and descendants, etc., so that got me started.  I am so addicted.  I will be turning on my websites when I get back.  I spent a couple hours updating the family tree software, downloading the latest version of the tree from Ancestry, and thinking about what my next step is.  I left an unfinished project at home so I have to work on that.  

Today I was contacted by someone in Germany who is looking for info - or has some - I’m not sure which.  The email came through one of the websites that I can’t get into at the moment, but his email was there, so I’m thinking while I sit here watching the clothes tumble in the dryer I’ll write to him and get more info.  Could be something interesting.

Rog and I signed up for the Nevada Health Initiative - a study being done by the local medical group, Renown, in association with the Desert Research Institute (part of the University of Nevada).  When we get home we will fill out some questionnaires and give a saliva sample for DNA processing.  They will be looking at all kinds of health things but the bonus is that at the end they will give you, not only your DNA data, but the ancestor information as well - such as what ethnic group and where your ancestors came from.  We are looking forward to participating.

We are watching the weather forecast carefully and preparing ourselves for the trip home.  We will take three days.  First night to Kingman, AZ, then Beatty, NV, then Hawthorne, NV and then home on the 7th.  I talked with my neighbor yesterday and she will turn the heat up for us!!!  

The Cheapest Costco Run Ever!

We've just been hanging out not doing much of anything but enjoying being warm.  Today, though, it's a bit too warm and windy and we are inside with the AC on.  Normal temps to return tomorrow, thank goodness.  The AC noise is awful.   I know - the rest of the country is having horrible weather and we are grateful we are here. 

We are both getting "going home itis" despite the fact we will be returning to cool, unsettled weather and will have to winterize the RV.  We have two weeks before we leave - maybe Spring just might show up at home in that time???    Rog has started waxing the RV (it's a multi day project), he hung the bike up in the shop, and cleaned out the shop getting it ready to pack up with lawn furniture and yard art when we leave.  I'm at the stage where I look at something in the fridge or pantry and wondering, "do we have enough to get us home?"  I'm starting to put things in cupboards that stay with the RV and things that go to the house in others.  Will wait to do a deep clean just before we leave.  Why do it twice, right?  Just keep the dog hair vacuumed up as we go :-)  

We are pestering the landscaper to get out here and put in our drip system before we leave, but according to him "everyone wants one right now."  Well, we are ok if he does it after we leave as long as he is ok with trusting us to pay him.  We just don't want to come back to dead plants.  (Hindsight is always 20/20 - should have done it when they put in the plants.  Duh!)   Actually, we were told that there were folks who stay that would water for a price and we were going to hire someone, but that doesn't seem to be the case this year.  Some of the neighbors are going to try and hire a landscape company to water and split the cost.  They don't seem to be making much headway on that deal - so, we will continue to hope we get it done in the next two weeks.  Rog and I took pictures of each plant with a tape measure next to it so we can compare growth or not over the summer.

The RV park is now completely sold out.  No lots left of the original construction.  There are a few, though, for sale by the owners - mostly park models.  It's a community of older folks here, so it's not surprising when one comes up for sale.  Mostly, though, people who have bought here are staying.  There is one disgruntled neighbor who won't abide by the rules of keeping his RV and patio extension (it's a toy hauler) within the property lines.  He won't move it up five feet to keep in the line, so he's been given some hassle by the management.  He decided he'd sell instead of having to follow the rules like everyone else.  Oh, well.  So, back to the park being sold out - we are hoping now that our investment will pay off if we decide to or have to sell.  The outside lots are premium.  Hopefully, that won't be for many more years.  

We bought a power washer last month.  I insisted that Rog get it for doing the RV.  He then read that you aren't supposed to use power washers on RVs or motor homes because it takes off the gel coats and decals.   Hmmm.... probably one of the reasons our last one looked so bad - we hired out detailers to do it and they used power washers.  Anyway, we took it back to Costco yesterday.  We had very little to buy - some salmon and some bagels.  We walked out of there with a credit of $130 instead of a debit of $130.  It was weird.  Fastest in and out and cheapest Costco visit we've ever made!  

Maggie has decided if she's not hooked up when the door is open it's time to go running out in the desert.  She takes off like a shot, runs around the berm area onto the path, sticking her nose in holes as she goes.  Then, even when we call her, when she decides it time to come home, she does. She runs full speed for about 10 minutes and then starts heading back.  She's gonna get us in trouble one of these days - speaking of following the rules. 

Hopefully we will find something to do to write about!

Photos

Watching for squirrels is tiring!

These were all in one pot when I bought them just before Christmas.  All the little buds fell off two days after I got them.  I've been babying them and voilà - Easter Cactus!








A beautiful sky for this evening's walk.  The air was crisp and clean.  After that last rain the desert is turning green and buds are starting on the different cactus. 

Oops - Five Days Since We Posted Anything

Oh dear, where has the time gone and what did we do?  I don't believe it has been anything exciting or I would have noted it.

Roger finished his project - well, it's about 98% done.  He's waiting for one piece of hardware and the rest he will finish at home.  This leaves a huge void in his day and the last two days he's been a bit at loose ends.  He's thinking about "what to do next."  

I finished my crochet project and will put it in the mail to Stephanie tomorrow.  It's a poncho.  I've never made one before and it looks pretty good for a beginner.  Hope she likes it.  

We went to Casa Grande yesterday for an oil change for the truck.  That was quite exciting - not.  

We love it down here but we are seeing the negative of being so far out in the boonies.  To get anything done or do any shopping it's a minimum of a 30 mile drive round trip.  We are trying to work out how we can bring the car down here next year instead of putting the miles on the truck.  We have logged over 4K miles since we left home and it's about 850 miles to home.  Lots of driving to get anywhere. 

We are trying to get a date from the landscaper as to when he can do the drip system.  Time's running out.   

It was very warm yesterday - the warmest day so far - and the RV got quite hot inside.  We opted not to turn on the AC because of the noise, so we went out for pizza with Lona and Lert.  Pizza was horrible, the restaurant was noisy, but the place  was cool.  We won't be going back to that place again - everyone agreed.  

We've had a lovely week of 80 degree weather - until today.  It was cool and windy.  Looks like mid 70s for the next week.  We can deal with that!

Lona came over this afternoon to bring me something and Maggie greeted her like she does us when we come home,  including bringing "Bear" to her to see.  I guess the two times Lona has watched Maggie and walking with her every day (twice) has allowed Maggs to feel like Lona is part of her family.  Lona is not a dog person so it is really nice to see. 

Friday tomorrow and no plans at the moment.  

A Great Lunch and Some Horse Racing

We headed south to Tucson around 10:30 so we could find a place to eat  before we went to the racetrack.  I felt totally overwhelmed once we hit civilization with the strip malls full of food places.  I was amazing!  We've been out in the sticks too long, I'm thinking!

We found a shopping center looking for a place I googled and when we pulled in we spotted an Indian restaurant!  We headed straight there instead of to the one we had found on the google machine.  Tablecloths, cloth napkins,  a wonderful buffet filled with a half dozen vegetarian dishes, and a basket of garlic naan - it was wonderful!  Unfortunately Roger's nose was stuffed up and so his taste buds dulled, but I really enjoyed the meal.  We had rice pudding for dessert and our tummies were so happy.  

The racetrack is in the northeast foothills of Tucson.  Wow, what a beautiful area but so many subdivisions and so much traffic.  The area was unrecognizable from the last time we were there.  The racetrack itself has deteriorated and become run down despite a funding campaign to save it as a historical site.  It is the first place in the US where they raced quarter horses and it is supposedly famous.  It's pretty much a dump now, though.

Today wasn't as much fun as we remembered from before, although, if I had placed a bet on my choice for the first race I would have had enough money to pay for the day's outing!  We left after three races.  I had forgotten that they have a race every half hour and it only lasts for 30 seconds or so and the rest of the time is just waiting.  It got a bit boring.  People watching wasn't that great, but the horses were absolutely beautiful.   Rog got a few pictures.   The Mariachi band played the National Anthem as it was Hispanic Heritage Day.  

A Whiskey Barrel Harley, Tile Painting, and Spring Blooms

We saw this Harley on the way to the post office yesterday.  (sorry about the glare from the windshield) I've never seen a Harley decked out like this before - it is quite unique.  

Yesterday was a tile painting class in the activities center.  Well, I can't paint, I am not artistic in any sense, but it looked like it might be fun.  Wine and snacks to be provided and a room full of women making art.  It was fun once I relaxed and decided it didn't matter what I produced.  There were some weird ones, some ugly ones, and there were some actual works of art at the end of the afternoon.  The medium was alcohol paint on a white floor tile.  Weird stuff.  The paint is thin and runny and if you put a drop of alcohol on it, even more so.  You swirl it around and make colors.  Once you're done, then you stare at it and see if you can see any images and then you outline them with a gold or silver sharpie.  The instructor told us some people make thousands of dollars for their alcohol artwork.  Yeah, right!   It was messy, good for lots of laughs, and for meeting people.  So, here are my feeble attempts at art.  Rog thought my prickly pear was a strawberry when I brought it home.  Just now, looking at my photo of the tile, he recognized my cactus!  Even said it was "modernistic art."  

Prickly Pear in Bloom

Whatever You See - That's What It Is!

Speaking of flowers in bloom, I spotted this little cactus on my walk this evening.  Spring is coming!  

Rog had a frustrating day today - could find no where in Coolidge or Florence that can do an oil change on a diesel.  Looks like we will have to make a trip to Casa Grande next week.

Tomorrow we are off to the races!  Really - quarter horse races in Tucson.  We went years ago when we were in the area and it was lots of fun.  Bright colors on the jockeys and horses, beautiful horses, and a fun day out.  I'll take my $20 and make some $2 bets and just have a good time!  Lona is checking on Maggie so we don't have to worry about hurrying home.  

McDonalds, a Drip System, and Spring Break

It was a perfect, warm, lazy afternoon (for me - Rog was working hard in his shop) and I had a hankering for ice cream.  Rog was going into Florence to the hardware store so I tagged along because there is a small restaurant next door that serves real ice cream.  CLOSED.  Bummer.  Seems their cook has left, according to the sign.  Apparently they can't function without him, so the place closed until they find someone else.   It occurred to Roger that Mickey D's has ice cream - well, sort of ice cream - chemicals designed to taste like ice cream.  We went anyway and with hot fudge, nuts,  and strawberries on it,  we pretended.  It hit the spot, though.  We realized that it has been a VERY long time since we had been inside one of their establishments and things have changed!  You can place your order and pay at a kiosk and they bring your food to the table.  Very weird. 

After a great deal of deliberation we have decided to hire the landscaping people to come back and install an irrigation/drip system so that we don't lose our plants this summer.  Several of the neighbors are talking about getting together and hiring another landscaping crew to come and water for them.  We thought about it, but that particular crew doesn't have a reputation for reliability.  The woman who watered our tree last year is a year-round resident but she doesn't water anything but trees because that's all the time she has for.  We had to put in a formal request, with a drawing, to the architectural committee and should have it back, approved, by week end.  We are now waiting to hear from the owner of the landscape company to give us an install date.  He gave us a rough estimate over the phone this morning and we will trust him on that.  He did the patio, landscaping, and rocks and we trust him to do a good job.  In fact, when Rog handed in our request our section rep said that he was glad to see we were using this particular company.  

It must be Spring Break somewhere as we are seeing young people on the streets and the walking paths.  Grandparents, parents and grandkids together or sometimes just the "grands."

We are starting to crave food we can't get here.  We want Thai from Sawsadee, a veggie burger and fries from Great Basin Brewery, and Chinese from Chin Chin.  We haven't found a Thai place anywhere near.  There is one decent Chinese place next to the Safeway 13 miles away.  As for a veggie burger - forget it.  We can't even get Mexican locally that is remotely vegetarian.  We tried one place and it had vegetarian tacos on the menu.  When it came it was a corn tortilla with shredded lettuce, tomato and guacamole. The beans had lard and who knows what the rice was cooked in.   I imagine if we went into the big cities - Phoenix and suburbs - we could find something but it is at least an hour's drive.  A bit much for lunch or dinner unless we have other business to take us there.  Oh, well.  Our eating out food bill is small when we are here - that should count for something, I guess.