Check ... Check ... And Check

Rise and shine!!  I used to hate it when my parents said that at 4:30 in the morning as we got up early to work the cattle.  At least twice a year, every single one of the 300 head of cows and calves required vaccinations, one at a time.  You had to keep them healthy or your profits went down the tube with as little as one cow getting sick and dying.  You've probably heard of hoof and mouth disease and anthrax.

Nowadays we do the same with our puppy pals.  It was time for the dreaded trip to the Vet for shots.  This is how Cooper looked as we headed out the door.  The second they saw the truck sitting there, they put on the brakes.

Miss Jessie in particular shakes like a leaf.  It's not her favorite place due to her many surgeries.

By the time we got home, they both looked like this.  Poor Cooper was SO uncomfortable he couldn't get settled.  I finally grabbed my bedspread and we all laid on the floor until 1:30 am when he finally settled down.  I feel terrible, but at least that's one more thing checked off my list ... or rather LISTS, as I have several!!

Now for the recall information.  I have purchased a product that is impacted by the Selective Catalyst Reduction component emissions recall.  My engine is releasing air pollutants which exceed California and federal standards.  A repair is required before vehicle registration renewal in California.

Too bad, so sad ... I just put my new tags on yesterday.  I've got an entire year to find a Cummins Dealer and have them make the repair.  I'm guessing that will probably lower my fuel mileage from 10-11 mpg to something like 8.  Maybe I'll be lucky and it won't change anything.

The nearest Cummins dealer is about 60 miles south, but honestly, they don't know anything about motorhomes.  Been there, done that with a recall about the cruise control.  They dismantled my entire dash when all they needed to do was lay down and look up.  They left lots of scratches and grease in their tracks.  I'll check that one off the list when I return to Arizona later in the year.

MORE good news .... I found a company not too far away that works on motorhome satellite and receiver problems.  Yes, they are on vacation, but come Monday morning, I'll be on the phone first thing, hoping to set up an appointment to get mine repaired.  I'll be able to check that one off the list just before making up six NEW lists for my jaunt to the 150th railroad celebration in Utah.  Check!!

Found My First Snake!!

Guess what??  It's MAGIC KINGDOM time!!!  That means Kings, Knights of the Round Table, the Court Jester, Prince Charming and all those peasants come together in the dungeon.  What fun!

But first, I have to tell you about finding my first snake of the season!!  After talking to Miss Patty on the phone about the beautiful plant she gifted to me, I decided I should check to be sure it had water.  Sometimes I'm forgetful in that department.

The original of this plant is something like 36 years old.  Not sure where I got that number from, but it sounded good.  Since that time, she and Dan have raised hundreds of grandchildren from the original plant.  This one is exceedingly happy since it's already producing babies at the end of the stalk.

I reached in with my finger to check the soil and got the shock of my life!!  You've never seen me move so fast!!  Yup ... a baby rattler.  I know ..... I'm a dummy.  It's from my old cactus pot.  I thought it would be funny to have people look at the cactus and scare themselves just a little when they recognized the ceramic figure.  I just never expected to scare MYSELF!!  

So .... on with the day, which included getting more mail and a recall notice on my motorhome's Cummins engine.  I'll bring that up tomorrow.  

Off to the dungeon I trudged, ready to face the growling hoards.  Unfortunately we've lost about six people in the last few months.  It's sad I won't get to see them again, but I'm sure they are up in Heaven WINNING!!

The night started off with a note in the newsletter about what you DON'T get with your dues.  That is the right to stick your nose into the business of those running the lodge.  Yup, that's exactly what it said.  Well excuse me, but I rather think that's our JOB ... keeping track of what's going on and where the money is spent.  What a great way to start the evening.

We have two new callers, which always sets the crowd on edge.  Luckily, I'm just out of rotten-vegetable-throwing range.  When you have six winners for a $100 pot, it gets even better.

About half way through, they opened a new pull tab game.  It's usually simple.  You get a card with numbers on it, you get to play Bingo.  Cross off all the numbers and you win!  The new game called for the first winner to get part of the pot, then if someone else got the second number, they got an even bigger piece of the pie.  That didn't go over so well.  There was discontent among the masses.

In the end, the King boxed that game up and shipped it right back to the seller.  Never EVER change the games or the rules, or you will have a crowd coming at you with pitchforks and shovels!!

Lucky for me, in spite of the wind knocking out all our power and forcing a 20 minute wait while I tried to get the mini infernal machine working again, everything went swimmingly.  No one accused me of not giving them their red drawing ticket or their change.  I think that's a first!!

The night ended on a high note when one lady brought in 200 cupcakes, atop of which were bunny butts.  Yeah, that's what I thought.  What????  Sure enough, there were two back feet and a bunny butt sticking up in the air, which meant his head was stuck down in the cake.  

I passed on dessert.  That's a first, right?  I've had too many bad experiences from eating out of a stranger's kitchen.  Of course that means I've got cupcakes on the brain and may have to make some myself!!  It's that or homemade marshmallows!!  YUM!!

Sneeze, Cough, Sneeze

No, I'm not sick, but the pollen in the air is getting to me quite nicely.  Don't you just love it when you sneeze ten times in a row??

Yesterday was a good day.  I got lots of things accomplished, making me feel not quite so stressed.  I was able to mail the quilt in a huge box.  Remind me not to use the USPS for mail any more.  Good grief ... their costs are through the roof.

I also sent a small thumb drive to Cindy in Utah, so she knows it's on the way.  Both items said 2-12 days.  I'm pretty sure it will be on the twelve side.

In other interesting news, as I was scouting out ghost towns and places of interest to visit in Arizona, I ran across the name Joaquin Murrieta.  He was pretty popular when I was a kid since he spent quite some time in the foothills at a small almost ghost town named Hornitos.

Hornitos means little ovens, because of the Old Mexican tombstones in the shape of little square bake ovens.  It was the roughest little town in the Sierra gold fields, with lots of tombstones to show for it.  Domingo Ghirardelli had a chocolate store there, the walls of which are still standing.  This is where he perfected his chocolate recipes.

It seems Joaquin not only spent time in the little jail in Hornitos, but he spent some time in Arizona.  When I read about a book by Frank Latta, a local author who spent years following Joaquin's trail, I decided to purchase it.

Out of print by many years, wasn't I surprised when I opened the box to find it was a Library book from Tulare.  Good heavens ... did someone steal this book and sell it to me?  Do libraries sell their books?  At any rate, this will be a good read.

When I was a little kid we visited Hornitos many times because we ran cattle up in that country for years.  We spent lots of time on the lawn nearby having lunch.  Inside the jail (which we visited every time) was a large pickle jar on the top shelf that held Joaquin's severed head.  Interesting, yeah??  I kid you not .... there was a head in a jar on the shelf.

It seems that was needed for proof in order to get paid the bounty on his head for all the stealing and robbing.  I was fascinated with that and the grey sock monkeys sold to raise money to keep the jail open.

Was it real?  Who knows ...  I thought it was.  I remember it like it was yesterday.  Now the hunt is on for the head, actually thought to have been lost in one of the San Francisco earthquakes.

Joaquin and his family of cousins and friends gathered horses in the wilds of Alta California and Nevada, driving them to the Mexico border where the rest of the family took over and sold them to ranchers and cattlemen further south.  It was a lucrative business.  

At some point, "white" men killed his wife and children, making him become the vengeful killer he was known to be.  He robbed stagecoaches, trains, wagons, mining camps ... you name it, he stole from it.  Turns out however, there were actually FIVE Joaquins in the family, all of whom took part in the robberies.  Only THE Joaquin was credited with all of the dead bodies.

I'm hoping at some point to follow his trail around Arizona.  I'll let you know how it goes.

In other bright news, I actually decided to read my entire house insurance policy.  Wasn't I surprised to find "Farm Coverage".  What???  It adds $200 to my premium.  It appears they never took it off when I moved away from the ranch.  It's my fault, I should have been reading everything from top to bottom.  They said they would try to get at least a 3-year refund.  I'm not holding my breath.  You just have to scrutinize everything with a fine tooth comb.  No trusting anyone any more.

Spring has finally sprung here in California, and although it's been overcast, my carpet roses are starting to bloom.  It's an optical illusion.  Really, they were supposed to be carpet roses only twelve inches high.  My original landscaper seems to have a different EYE than I do!!  How big was that fish you caught????

They are such a solid pink/red color that you can hardly see one petal from another.  

Still no info on my Dish Network satellite repair, nor my motorhome insurance.  The only clean part of the rig is the front, as that project hasn't progressed at all.  I did actually make it to the store for a few groceries.  I'm STILL checking dates, since that little store isn't known for it's freshness, just it's closeness to home.

Please excuse me now while I go get my box of kleenex!!!

Double Check Those Dates

What a beautiful day it was yesterday.  The sun was shining and I think it got all the way up to 75 degrees.  Too bad I spent all of it indoors.  That was my plan, and I did pretty good at it.

Mr. Cooper and I snoozed on and off between playing with the "baby" and stitching the binding on that quilt.  He minds very well when I tell him it's time to stop, but the baby doesn't get far.  He's afraid Jessie will steal it, so it becomes his pillow.

With the quilt finished around noon, I thought I might get back to embroidery.  Thanks to Cindy Warner for all the instructions, I'm back in the groove working on a Christmas quilt.  Yeah, it's a little early in the year, but if I don't start now, I'm liable not to finish.

When lunchtime rolled around, I was determined to get rid of some of that huge turkey I cooked upon my return.  Remember the $75 box-o-turkey?  There was one left.  That's a LOT of turkey.  How about a casserole.  Super simple, a box of rice-a-roni with turkey thrown in at the end.  

It just happens I saw the date on the bottom of the box.  It was two years past the pull date.  Hmmmm I think not.  Now what can I do?  How about turkey spaghetti?  At least the spaghetti still had a few days before expiration.  I was SURE I had a bottle of sauce in the cupboard somewhere.  I was trying desperately NOT to go to the store.

AHA ... found it.  I opened the jar ... it didn't smell bad.  Lucky for me I spotted the date just before dumping it onto the turkey.  FIVE YEARS past the pull date!!!  Good grief!  No thank you ... I'm not up for a bout of ptomaine.  What to do now?  I ended up having a very sad turkey taco.  Sometimes I really have to scrounge for food around here.

Cooper kept me occupied most of the afternoon.  He takes his ball under my sewing table and puts it in the box.  Then he barks until I throw it.  At least it's within reach.  He comes back and puts it in the box again ... and again ... and again.  Silliest dog I've ever had.

Here's the first of nine reindeer to be sewn into a quilt for Christmas.  Then I'll start work on a southwest kokopeli type, or maybe State Birds.  The options are endless.

Sadly, I fell asleep on the couch and missed the Giants baseball game.  No great loss, they lost again.  Early this morning I'm off for an eye appointment to get new glasses, along with a long list of stops, including food.  That second turkey taco I had for dinner didn't go down as well as the first one.

Fewer Than The Dirty Thirty!

Finally rested up, I jumped out of bed and fed the puppies, but SHOULD have had three cups of coffee instead.  Little did I know, I was going to need it!

If you've ever belonged to a club, you know there's one small group of people who do everything.  Such is the case at the Elks Lodge.  The Dirty Thirty do everything.  Several actually get paid for their services.  Not so for me.

I pulled up in my truck just in time to get loaded up with all the supplies to make hotdogs and hamburgers for the Relay For Life Cancer Walk.  I was very excited because there would be NO pasta making this time.

Three of us hooked up the barbecue and headed off to the college track.  Lucky for us, the weather was perfect.  We had a contest throwing the charcoal bags into the bbq, to see who could make the most dust.  POOF and it erupted in a ball of fire

In no time, the burgers were on the grill, after we made an emergency call for scrapers and brushes to CLEAN the grill.  I never said we knew what we were doing!!  I ducked in the tent to set up the cafeteria line.  Upon my return to the BBQ, the men were watching flames shoot two feet high, burning the burgers to a nice golden black.  I grabbed a bottle of water and started dousing.  Burgers saved.

Put burger in bun and place in pan ..... repeat.  By then, the walkers were coming by grabbing them as fast as I could put them together.

There just wasn't enough help.  Four of us fed 260 people, not counting the four dogs that bit the dust, along with three burgers that fell down into the fire.  Like I said, we aren't pros!!  

I loaded up the excess stuff and headed back to the lodge to pick up dinner fixings.  This was a fun distraction.  The Highway Patrol brought their little helicopter out just for kicks.  What fun to see it take off just feet away.

Back at the lodge, the dinner chicken pieces went in the oven under the watchful eye of the Sheriff.  He's our number one barbecue and food specialist.  Unlike me, Verne makes GOOD FOOD.  He instantly conscripted me into onion cutting.  

No, I didn't tell him about my knife skills.  I just started cutting up onions ... 17 of them to be exact.  Want to know something funny?  I had my dark sunglasses on and breathed through my mouth the entire time.  I shed not ONE tear.  Amazing, right?  All those onions went in with the 14 cans of beans, three pounds of garlic (oooooh the garlic), chorizo and beef and some special spices.

These guys mixed and stirred until their arms fell off.  Then came the big test of my driving skills.  Two huge square super heavy pots were covered with foil and even heavier lids, then placed in the back of my truck.  I had a bet going about spillage.  There would be zero if I was careful.  

Except for two drips down the side due to the railroad tracks, I made it with not one drop in the back of my truck.  

Once settled in at the college again, we spent the next hour loading salad into baggies.  It's much easier to give out and it stays fresh, ready for the packet of dressing.  We loaded up clamshell containers with chicken, cups of beans, salad, rolls, butter and dressing and stacked them for the crowds.  

We were up to five helpers altogether and STILL couldn't keep up.  Luckily, in the end, we gave out the very last piece of chicken.  There were maybe a gallon of beans left.  We couldn't have done it better if we tried.

I limped back to the lodge, dropped off everything to those that clean (it wasn't going to be me .... I'd been on my feet all day) and headed home.  I was met by two very happy puppies.

It's a two advil morning before I crash on the couch, probably for the duration of the day.  Next time I'm hijacking at least two more people to join the Dirty Thirty.

Like A Chicken

I slept in almost an hour this morning.  It's about time I caught up on snoozing.  I've been running around like a chicken with .... well you probably know that old saying already.  I've not gotten back to washing and waxing the rig yet, so that's still on the list.

I wish I could sit around all day like the doves in the palm tree, but there's things to get done.  While I was gathering up paperwork to open a new bank account at Chase, mostly because Bank of America has now chosen to charge everyone (even us old folks) for banking services, low and behold my Credit Union came up with a phone App where I can make deposits by the airwaves.  It's about time!!  I'm still closing out B of A, but now I've got a few days in order to mark that one off the list.

Here's Miss Laila Chance riding Ely around the poles in the last gymkhana I attended.  I'm going to miss those girls!!

While doing a little more investigation into Mr. Bejarano, I found the Vail Preservation Society has lots of images in their database.  Here's one of Mr Bejarano and his son Francisco "Chico"  (riding on the back of a big pig) in front of their home, probably about the time he found the safe.  He worked in the 49 Mine until it closed down.  As with most men of the day, he did a little bit of everything to feed his family, which included five children.

I'll get back to that history later.  I made a quick run over to the quilter's house to drop off a couple more I had completed, to be greeted by these amazing blossoms.

I think this is the most fabulous tree ever.  A flowering cherry?  She came out and shook the branches, making it snow flower petals. 

Now I'm in a mad rush to hand stitch the binding on this quilt and get it mailed off.  In the meantime, the Relay for Life event is happening today.  Thank goodness there will be no pasta cooking.  This time the Elks are providing hotdogs and hamburgers for lunch, followed by barbecued chicken for dinner.  Luckily the Sheriff is Chef of the Day, meaning the food will be great.  All I have to do is set up and serve ... ALL DAY!!

And so I'm OFF again, as 10:00 comes mighty early around here.  Here's a nice Arizona sunset to help me relax before hitting the cook shack!!

I'm hoping by next Tuesday my chicken days will be over and I can relax even more.

Filled With Graves Of Men

Pantano means marsh in English.  How in the world could there be a marsh in the desert?  Originally, it was called Cienega Station after nearby Cienega Creek, better known as the secret hideout.  I have to admit, in my experience hiking around the creek, it IS very marshy.  Pantano was built by the Butterfield Overland Mail Company in 1858 over the site of a Hohokam Indian village, as a stop on their stagecoach route.

It's been known since then by several different names .. Pantano Station, Marsh Station, Tulleyville and Empire.  Hostile Apaches were a constant problem.  Today, you can get there by driving these dirt roads.  Even with 4-wheel drive, it took me two tries to finally access the property.

I passed on the first try, being afraid I might slip off the highly canted road like this guy did, requiring a tow to extricate himself.  

In 1867, a pioneer named "Shotgun" Smith and three of his buddies were attacked by Apaches.  All three of his friends were killed.  According to Walter Vail (of his namesake Vail Arizona), living at his nearby Vail Cattle Ranch, the Pantano cemetery is filled with graves of men killed by Indians.  After all, it WAS their territory.

The railroad station and actual town of Pantano was established in 1880 when the Southern Pacific railroad entered Pima County and began building along the creek.  This location attracted lots of settlers who built a blacksmith shop, a carpenter's shop and small homes, along with a couple of warehouses.  Seventy Five people lived on the South side of the creek until in 1887, severe flooding forced them to relocate the town to the Northern side of the creek where a few remnants remain today.

The largest is of course the water tower used to fill the steam engines that chugged by just behind this structure.  The trains still use the same tracks to this day.  It's probably not a good idea to take every little road like I did.  They are very much overgrown, resulting in lots of scratches in your pretty paint.  I think I need a dirt bike.

All I could find were some adobe foundations.  By 1905 the population increased to 100, with a Deputy Sheriff, a Justice of the Peace and six small businesses, including a general store and a livery stable. This building was rather large, and possibly the store.  

By 1922, it reached it's zenith, having added a bank, a schoolhouse, a telegraph office and a post office, all serving the now 500 residents.  This corral still exists for working cattle scattered over the rangeland, although I didn't see anything other than a couple of birds.  

Even the old stock water tank is out of business.  When the great depression hit, the population declined to less than 40.  By 1956, railroad operations ceased completely and the town was abandoned.  In a huge stroke of bad luck, Southern Pacific leveled all the buildings once standing.

In December of 1914, a Pima County Ranger named Jimmie Mercer and Robert Fenton, a rancher, were fired upon by a Mexican cattle rustler named J. Padilla.  The gunman escaped, leaving Mercer severely injured.  He died about a week later.  Today there is a small memorial to him near Pantano.

Local Pantano resident Felipe Bejarano happened up a safe in Pantano Wash one day.  No one knew where it came from, but guessed it was the result of one of the many train robberies back in 1887.  He called upon goat rancher and miner Ed Hilton to help him get the safe loaded up in Ed's truck and back to Felipe's ranch.  There it rested on his front porch for many years.  I wonder where it is now?

There is a cemetery hidden here, but I won't tell you where.  It took me quite some time to find it.  There's no use giving out directions so some nimrod can deface or destroy what's left.  If you want to visit, send me a message and I'll tell you where to go.

This is the only wooden "headstone" left, and even with manipulating the image, I could not get the letters to show up.  As you can see, people still come here and decorate the area with flowers, however fake they may be.

They last longer that way.  This is Philip Navaro Bejarano, born in 1969 and died in 2016.  I'm guessing he's a relative of Felipe who saved the safe.  

This is Lucia Reyes Martinez who passed in 1931.  People still come to visit her.  Many of the graves are in shambles with cactus growing everywhere.  I think on my return trip, I will spend some time here tidying things up a bit. 

And so there you have it ... from the days of cowboys and Indians, train robberies, good guys and bad guys.  It's too bad the railroad decided to level the buildings.  This would have been the perfect spot for me to rehab an adobe building and make it into a QUILT SHOP!!!!

I Promised You A Ghost Town

I'm so sorry to say that's not going to happen today.  I seem to be falling further behind.  It's my own fault ... too many hours driving that one day and lack of sleep has me dragging.  Oh to be my puppy Jessie, who can crash at the drop of a pin.

I got all set up yesterday to wash the bugs off my rig, but it was parked with too much sun on the glass.  Instead I spent three hours on the phone trying to extricate myself from the latest scam.  I admit, I'm a pushover for face products that will make you look 30 years younger.  They work, right??

Okay, maybe not,  but this just seemed reasonable.  Ha!!!  So for $4.99 shipping only, I purchased a FREE bottle.  That's when I got that FRAUD call.  What could I say ..... I had ordered it.

I have to admit, it really did work well for the first 12 days, when I received ANOTHER fraud call about a $98 charge on my card.  Well that's funny ... I can't even find their phone number.  That began the hours on the phone trying to dispute the charges.  My credit card people gave me the phone number associated with the charge, which got me nowhere.

I called the dispute number again, only to be put on hold for 45 minutes ... aloha Hawaiian Airlines MasterCard, where are you?  I got nowhere, other than ripped off for $98.  I'm currently on hold again, going on 30 minutes.  I'll let you know what happens.

After doing the normal cleaning and laundry stuff, I decided it was time to go to Bugville.  What to use ... what to use.  Water and a sponge just wasn't working.  I finally grabbed my handy dandy bottle of Windex.  

You know what?  It worked like a charm.  Who knew?  I hardly had to scrub at all ... they just slid right off.  After a really good rinsing with water, I dried it to a shiny gleam.  Please don't say I did a bad thing, but I continued on down the front and washed the bugs away using the same Windex.  The bugs stuck on there from the last three years are GONE!!

Time for a little wax.  I picked up this stuff in Indio at the rally, after seeing the demonstration on my neighbor's coach.  Soon I was exhausted climbing up and down the ladder, but I kept going.

Isn's she gorgeous??  I know you can't really tell, but this is the cleanest it's ever been since I purchased it seven years ago!!!  It took me two hours.  I'm not very excited about spending the 20 hours it's going to take to do the rest, but hopefully I won't fail in my resolve.  

It's been like juggling ten balls with one hand as I try to scratch all the jobs off my to-do list.  There is one very good piece of news .... my yard looks fabulous!  The new yard crew is doing a bang up job.  They even trimmed the overgrown trees!!  Hallelujah!!!

To make it even better, while scrounging in my office drawers, I found four CD's to leave in the rig so I don't have to listen to Alice From Nogales for 8 hours straight like I did on the way here.  I will be keeping company with Faith Hill and Lady Antebellum!

A Nice Welcome Home

It's a slow start this morning.  I'm trying to get my engine to turn over, but it's cold and the old crank shaft just doesn't want to turn.  Maybe if I contemplate my coffee long enough, I'll get moving.

I bet you forgot all about the Magic Kingdom!!  I started getting phone calls three weeks ago about when I would be back.  Then came the frantic message ..... NO ONE WILL BE HERE!  With my mind racing with all the things I have to get done in the next couple of days, I jumped in the truck and headed out to the land of the King and the Peasants.

Lucky for me, the truck started right up.  That's because I had a little forethought .. I put in a new battery and changed the oil before I left it parked in the garage.  Interestingly enough, the repair shop sent me a text message yesterday saying I was due for another oil change.  Wait ... I've driven it 6 miles since the last one!!

With most everything unloaded, I made a run to the post office.  I should have taken a MUCH larger box for the mail.  I now see why the U. S. Post Office is still in business.  I spent a total of three hours digging though all the trash ads and advertising crapola to find my 20 simple pieces of REAL mail.  What a terrible waste of paper.

That added to my stress as I discovered even MORE things that need to be taken care of.  That will wait however, as I contacted Dish Network again for a repairman.  I called the nice man to find out they don't DO repairs, or anything with Dish any more.  I tried to get them to come fix it anyway, but they declined.  Back to the drawing board.

In the meantime, I got a very nice welcome home at the Magic Kingdom.  Hugs all around, and I even had a glass of wine before facing the peasants.  In true form, the mini infernal machine went on strike right off the bat.

The night went fairly well otherwise, with most of the peasants being in a good mood.  I think it was because they lost several players ..... well actually they passed away ..... making their chances a little better.  I kid you not, it's all about the competition for the big bucks.

We did seem to be short a person or two.  Apparently someone got carried away and took a $3 cheeseburger home, after volunteering there for 14 years.  Seriously?  I've seen a lot more than that disappear from the kitchen.

In other Magic Kingdom news, for 48 months in a row, the Post Office has not delivered the newsletter to me.  I went to the powers that be and asked why for the hundredth time.  Apparently I now have to take on the Post Office ..... AGAIN.  Not that they care, since they are only worried about sending me all that junk mail.

The night ended peacefully, mostly because I was half asleep, it being WAY past my bedtime.  The infernal machine was nice to me and we balanced to a tee, even if it was an hour later than normal.

Meanwhile, once I've had another cup or two of joe, I'll get on my ghost town story I've been keeping in the background for a time when I had nothing to say .... or at least nothing to complain about.  I should have it ready by tomorrow.

It Could Only Get Better

I guess that old saying is true after all.  It can only get better ..... and it DID!

Cooper and I went for nice long walk among the orange trees, taking in the most wonderful sweet smell of orange blossoms.  I can't believe how heavily scented they were.  No wonder the bees were bountiful.

Of course they didn't help my already trashed windshield.  I didn't even bother to try and clean it.  I was too exhausted and hungry.  Next time I need to plan a little better for those 8 hour journeys.  

In spite of the full RV park, it was nice and quiet.  TOO quiet.  I really need television to keep me distracted from all the phone calls I have to make the next day.  My mind just wouldn't shut down.

I think I scared the guy next door.  I was already out with the puppies when he opened his door at 4:00 in the morning.  He grabbed a flashlight when he heard me talking and hit me straight in the eyes.  Good morning was greeted with a grunt.  We are not all early birds.

My timing was perfect on this day.  I filled up with propane, which took longer than expected.  Might as well savor a free donut while I wait.  Did I mention the Orange Grove RV Park has free donuts and coffee every morning?

It was after 9:00 when I left.  I not only missed all the morning work traffic on the freeway that will forever be under construction, but thankfully I missed the accident behind me that closed it down for a couple of hours.  Wouldn't THAT have made my day.

I cruised along at 60 mph, something I never do, with barely a slowdown or even a lane change.  In no time I was backing into my driveway.  I took a few loads out ... like ten or so ... before collapsing on the couch.  Thank GOODNESS I had TV!!!

I've got two things on tap this morning.  First, wash the windshield and get the bugs off the front before they become permanent residents.  They're not as bad as the kissing bugs in Florida, but they are definitely BAD.  Next, hitting the post office for my income tax info. 

Then I'll deal with the RV television and the fraud call.  Surprise!!  It's raining and is supposed to continue for the next four days.  So much for cleaning the white gunk off the top of the rig.  Even "I" won't climb up there when it's wet.

As for right this moment, I'm hitting the couch for some R & R snuggles with the puppies.

I Met The Most Wonderful Man!!!

April Fools!!!!  Hahaha you KNEW that was coming.  Actually, the joke's on me, since my lucky streak continued yesterday ... all day long.

I figured the six hour drive would take me seven ... it took eight.  Yup ... eight hours of driving with only a stop here and there.

The lovely day began with a fraud alert text message at 6:00 am.  Nothing better to start your day.  Seems that little free container of face cream that only cost $4.99 has now jumped to $89.00.  Sorry folks, but that's not going to happen.  Today I'll call the bank and put a stop to it.

I'm off on another adventure!  Before I even left Quartzsite, I realized what a terrible job I did washing my windshield.  Too bad, I'm hitting the road, after fueling up.  That went swimmingly except for the leaky fuel hose that dripped down my arm before I realized what was happening.  Maybe the smell of diesel wafting around my head will attract some nice gentleman.

Back on the road, I headed North on 95 to Parker, then on to Needles.  The wind was 20-25 mph the entire way, pushing me back and forth on the narrow road.  That wasn't all that bad, it was the four trucks behind me I was trying to keep ahead of.  I did love the hoop-de-doo roller coaster part of the road!

Crossing the Colorado River (what a cool spot to spend some time) my arms began to ache as I entered unchartered territory.  It's always fun to travel a new highway.  At the Agriculture Check Station, I kept going while the trucks pulled over.  Whew!!

Unfortunately, it didn't last long.  In no time they were back on my tail.  One even passed me.  By then my arms were aching from keeping the rig on the road as the wind got worse and worse.  At last I was able to pull over in Needles.  Yes!  I can relax.  But only for five minutes.  

My right front tire sensor went off.  It said it was leaking.  OH NO!!  I rushed outside and sure enough, could hear the sensor.  I unscrewed it and the noise stopped.  I think I dodged a bullet.  

I was certainly happy to hit Barstow with my arms like jelly.  We made a couple of pit stops for the puppies, but it was not enough for Jonathan.  He makes a certain squawking noise when his feet cramp up and he was squawking up a storm.  

I found all the concrete California was supposed to use for Hwy 99 and I-5.  It's outside of Barstow.  At least they got rid of that stop light and driving was smooth as could be.  

As I crossed the valley into Mohave, these two trains looked like they were going to crash.  It's very hard to see it through the bugs, which now include about ten large blobs of bright yellow.  At least they are colorful.

Almost there .... I could feel it.  The sign said 7 miles to Kramer Junction.  About a mile later, traffic came to a screeching stop.  It's a good thing I was going the speed limit, or the three trucks behind me would have crashed.  As it was, two had to run into the oncoming traffic to stop.  

Yes there was a little construction, but it turns out the problem was the stop light at Kramer Junction. That was six miles of 5mph stop and go due to Sunday traffic and the light.  It took an hour for me to get through.  By then, I was so rummy, I didn't really care!!

The very low growing flowers covered the desert floor with beautiful yellow gold.  Hardly visible in all of the pictures I took.  

Just to make things a little more exciting, traffic again slowed for SEVEN police vehicles on the opposite side of the freeway.  All the officers had their guns drawn as a guy with his hands up, backed up towards them.  They were handcuffing him as I went by, shifting their attention to the passenger in the car.  I don't know what they did, but it must have been bad.

At long last I pulled into the orange grove in Bakersfield.  The lovely trees are all in bloom, smelling like sweet orange blossoms.  I rubbed some on my hands to cover the diesel smell.

I wish I could say my television set up magically began to work again, but it did not.  I would just let it sit until I return to Tucson and hit La Mesa for repairs, but alas, I'll be heading out on another trip to Utah soon and I cannot be without television.

I think the April Fool's joke is on me!!  The only thing that doesn't hurt are my fingers.  Maybe those huge biceps I now have, along with the orange blossom-diesel cologne will attract a nice gentleman!  Ha!!!