You Scream ... I Scream!!!!!

We all scream for ICE CREAM!!   The day of dessert finally arrived, as the Golden Spike group gathered in their Sunday finest to distribute 1800 ice cream bars to the masses.  Believe me, it's a BIG deal around here.  FREE ice cream!!  We warned all the newcomers to our group to be extra cautious ... NEVER get between an RV'er and their free ice cream bar.

Miller Insurance sponsors this event two days in a row, so the ladies donned the required aprons .... not that anyone reads the name .... and handed out vanilla ice cream bars covered in chocolate.  The men became runners, transporting boxes between the yellow Schwan's truck and the four tables.

You have to be a pretty smart cookie to work this line because of the stories told just to get a second or even third ice cream.  One guy came through the line on a scooter, went around to the other side and came through the line again, then made one MORE trip back to the first line ... YUP ... THREE ice cream bars.  Much as we try not to let that happen, there is always one or two who want more than their share!!

With that behind our belt, I made arrangements with Larry the driver, to return with the next day's treats .... sundae cups with those little wooden spoons.  SURPRISE Nancy ... they don't make those little spoons any more since someone's kid swallowed one.  YIKES!!  How do we eat the ice cream?

Nancy had to make a quick trip to Costco to buy spoons!  That would have been a disaster of MAJOR proportions!!  Can you imagine giving out ice cream to this crowd and they can't eat it??   I would have been immediately strung up to the nearest tree!! 

Finally it was time for our postponed (due to rain) pot luck.  The men set up their barbecues and begin cooking pork loin and salmon on a slab (cedar I think).  

Talk about some GOOD food!!  While our Golden Spike meeting was held, the pork and salmon were cooked to perfection under the golden sun of Indio.

About 40 of us sat around waiting for the food to be served so we could scarf it down and head for the evening's entertainment.  This is such a GREAT group of people.  There's no sitting around playing cards or doing puzzles ... this group likes to be active!!  Riding trains, visiting museums, hiking .... there's no moss under these boots!!

Around 6:15 we took off for the Fullenwider building for some country swing.  This is New West, singing a few oldies, but mostly country songs of their own making.  

In between, they tell a few stories and Dave here even threw in a little Cowboy Poetry, written by a guy from Merced California ... Pat Richardson.  Pat's an old stove up bronc rider turned artist, turned truck driver, turned Cowboy Poet who was my neighbor for about 30 years.  He drove a sand and gravel truck and trailer for our construction company until he couldn't get in and out of the truck any more.  I'm glad to see his funny poetry is so well known!!

Finally back in my rig, I spent my last hour counting out spoons and putting them in baggies, in numbers to match the deliveries we will make today.  I don't care how much people like these sundae cups .. there WON'T be any next year.  What a pain in the you-know-what!!

Time for me to get going ... and a little more organized!  My rig looks like six kids played in here yesterday and I can already hear the screaming for ice scream!!!

Just A Bunch Of Wild Animals!!

It began as a nice quiet SUNNY day ... chilly if I do say so myself ... downright cold in fact.  Aren't we in the desert?  You know, the place the Snow Birds go to get warm?  Well not much WARM was going on, but I was able to capture some of the animals on the loose in the afternoon.

Patty, Dan and I made a run on the Commercial Exhibits in the morning.  I needed a new sewer hose and some shirt sparkles and Patty found some great shoes.   I'm always trying to improve my cooking skills, so I picked up some pomegranate balsamic vinegar.  I don't know what to do with it, but it tasted good!!  There's everything from shoes to nuts, guaranteed to make your life easier!

Back at the rig for lunch, I had just fixed some turkey, cheese and crackers, when RV Glass Solutions stopped by to check out my cracked windshield.  It was an easy fix he said, taking less than 30 minutes.  Unfortunately for me, that was just long enough for Jessie to climb up on the table and eat my lunch!!  As it happens, jalapeño cheese seems to agree with her!!

After a quick run to the bank to refill my wallet, Dan hauled our chairs over to our viewing station for the Call Of The Wild Parade.  I'm pretty sure lots of people stayed inside due to the cold, but they missed out on a big bunch of wild animals!!

This baby didn't look too wild .......

Until another puppy got a little too close!  Those ears went straight up in the air!!!

It began with the Honor Guard ... always love seeing these guys!!

If you can hang some stuff on a golf cart ... you TOO can be in the parade!!  Here's Dick Gibbs, our WMHA President looking like Tarzan ... or maybe it was Fred Flintstone!!

He was followed closely by wild animals, including the Cowardly Lion .... wait ... that was the Wizard of Oz, wasn't it??  Oh well ... an animal is an animal!!

The Frustrated Maestros played along the entire route ... they even had an accordion!!

This year however instead of the GIRLS wearing the grass skirts, the JEEP shimmied it's way down the street, carrying a steam spouting volcano!!

The California Coasters group was on safari, taking pictures of all US animals!!

At any rate, a good time was had by all, even if the parade only lasted 20 minutes.  After dragging our chairs back home, the men ran off to Ciro's Pizza to pick up enough to feed 40 people for our pizza party.  If you're in the area, stop in and mention the volunteer groups at WHMA.  Ciro's likes volunteers ... so much so they gave us two huge salads to go along with our pizza, which we got at two-for-one prices!!  You can't beat that ... and their pizza is EXCELLENT!!

Now stuffed and miserable, it was time to hit the entertainment for the evening .... the Alley Cats Doo Wop group .... singing oldies but goodies, just like us.  

There were lots of Old Folk jokes that we all laughed at .... and boy can these guys sing!!

It was all a-capella ... no instruments ... but none were needed.  Being mostly 50's and 60's songs, we all knew the words and sang along.  

They said we were the younger crowd since they are used to singing for Heavens Waiting Room ... the cruise ship lines!!  At any rate, we all had a great time being entertained ... and the best part ... we were probably all in bed by 9:30!!!

Today is the first work day for us ... the ice cream social begins at noon, so we will all don our yellow shirts for a group picture, then proceed to hand out the goodies for about an hour.  Tonight is our BBQ/business meeting before we all head back for MORE entertainment ... Country and Western this time!!  Hope to see you there!!!

Shake, Rattle and Roll!!

Okay, I really hate to blame all our bad weather on ONE person, but it does provide me with a little teasing enjoyment!  At this point however, I take it all back Nick Russell and I apologize for pointing fingers.  After hours of rain resulting in snow all around Palm Springs .... yes, SNOW .... the earthquake you shook us with yesterday morning after my comments, made me a true believer that I better keep quiet!!

Rain, snow, earthquake ... I have no doubt that the locust plaque is soon to follow!!  Somewhere in the neighborhood of 4.5 coming from the Banning area, an earthquake rocked and rolled my rig early in the morning.  I thought I was just having a dizzy spell, but no ... it was the real thing.

The weather cleared up and it was sunny all morning until the next weather front came in.  It didn't rain too hard until about midnight, then it woke me up time and again as the water pounded my roof.

As much as our crew didn't want to park on the gravel, it's been rather a blessing.  At least the water has a place to go, finally disappearing into the sand.  Indio lake on the other side of our rigs had to be pumped out yesterday, only to refill last night.

At noon, we gathered our supplies and went over to the Chapter Fair.  The Newcomers introduction happens just before, then they can peruse the different clubs, maybe joining one or two.  The main objective however, is to see who has the best candy.  He who has snickers and peanut butter cups usually wins!!

With the Call Of The Wild being the theme this year, elephants, lions and tigers line the walls, all painted by the local Paint Crew group!  

Maybe 15 chapters presented their information, from trips to Mexico and Thousand Trails Camping to the Elks Group and of course US ... we ride steam trains all around the country.  Some of us are even lucky enough to be Engineer of the train!!

Here's some adventurous explorers for you, along with their captured giraffe.  There's plenty of groups to join and lots of nice people to meet, although I'm not sure I want to go to dinner with a giraffe!!  Uncle Sam maybe ...... he was here too!

After a quick dinner at Souplantation with the Chances, the puppies and I crashed on the couch while the rain lulled us to sleep.  Better rain than the loud humming of the generator at the end of our block!!

Our BBQ and business meeting scheduled for last night were cancelled and rescheduled for Friday.  Tonight is Pizza night .... if it rains too much, we will caravan to the pizza parlor and party there.  Today the commercial exhibits open, so I'm sure there will be an afternoon shopping foray.  

Pray for SUN and no more earthquakes .... pretty please Nick???

NICK, Where Are You??

I really hate to blame just one person for such bad weather, but Nick Russell of Gypsy Journal fame (not to mention renowned author) MUST be in the neighborhood!!  For about the last three years, everywhere Nick goes, so goes the rain and wind.  Yes friends, it's a sad but true fact.  It rained pretty much all day yesterday.  In the afternoon, it rained so hard, I got a flood warning on my phone for the Indio, La Quinta area.  The Call of the Wild apparently brought the jungle weather along with it.

Patty Chance and I took off early in the morning on a quilt fabric run.  I was SURE I knew the way, but of course got us lost in a construction zone of major proportions.  Between our two phones, we finally arrived .... or at least thought we did.  Another block walking and we found it!!  Monica's Quilt and Bead has lots of great fabric and millions of beads.

With a nice purchase and a couple of patterns in our bags, we returned just in time for more rain.

It wouldn't have been so bad had we all been on the asphalt, but those on the gravel lot were in need of rubber boots.  Ed Price knocked on my door about 3:00 saying his power was out, so I called upon Mr. Chance, who immediately figured out what the problem was.  With a little extra power cord extended, Ed was plugged in to another outlet and YAY ... Power!!!

We had another happy hour planned prior to the Volunteer free dinner, but with rain coming down hard, we cancelled.  There was so much noise on my roof, I had to turn the television volume almost all the way up.  I love the sound of rain, but really, there is NOT enough room on my lap for two dogs.

Patty and Dan drove over to pick me up for dinner.  When I tried to step over the big puddle in the bottom left corner of this picture, I sunk about three inches!!  Watch out for that first step!!

The streets of Indio were flooded as we drove over to The Fisherman for some of the best seafood we've had short of Oregon.  On the way back, it was even worse, with torrents running down the middle of the road ... flooding everywhere!!  

Lucky for us, Dan's Jeep is 4-wheel drive (and he's a great driver) as we plowed through a foot of water at the driveway to the fairgrounds and slogged through the mess to our rigs.  This morning by 5:00 however, most of the water had disappeared.  Thank heavens the Golden Spike crew didn't float away.  

I've no idea what it will be like the rest of the week.  Some weather forecasters say rain, some say sun, so who knows!!  I'm definitely campaigning for sun when it comes to the ice cream social!!  The sad news is that the attendance is WAY down for the Western Motorhome Association rally.  Come on folks ... a little rain never hurt anyone ... come on out and enjoy the animals the Call Of The Wild brought in!!

Asphalt or Dirt!!

That was the question yesterday as we all contemplated where we might end up parked at this rally.  There is a lot to be said for arriving early, but being so close to New Years, many didn't want to travel the crowded highways, and you certainly can't blame them for that.

As usual, I was up early, knowing I had to move my rig from the vendors lot to our Brown Lot destination.  In this case, it was a VERY good thing, because the parking crew decided to move Kurt and I first .... at 7:00 am!!  Lucky for me, I had my rig buttoned up, but Kurt got a rude awakening when I knocked on his door!!  At least we moved to an amazingly beautiful morning sky.

So the plan was for everyone to arrive at the old Sam's Club parking lot in Indio, where we line up before heading to the fairgrounds.  We even number our rigs in the order we prefer to be parked.  What can I say ... sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't!!  I drove over in my car to lead the group and make sure no one made a wrong turn ... that part worked swimmingly.

When we arrived at the fairgrounds staging area, it all went wrong.  The parking crew took us in OUT of order, and made it worse by parking us even further OUT of order!!

To make matters worse, our rig signs said 1 of 18, 2 of 18 ..... well some people didn't show up, so we actually only had 15 rigs.  Wouldn't you know, two strange rigs showed up right behind us and got parked with our group.  Funny they didn't say anything to the parking officials ... they just plowed right in!!  In the end, about seven of us ended up on pavement, with the rest of our 17 rigs parked across a wide fire lane on hard gravel/dirt.  We even got the parking crew to hold three spaces for our latecomers ..... if they remember that is!!

The bad news is the generator just 50 yards East of us that runs day and night.  That puts a loud HUM on the party, so we all have to talk a little louder!!  Our first Happy Hour get together took place at 4:00, and as you can see, we were all bundled up.  There is rain in our future as the forecasters explained yesterday ... possibly every afternoon.  That will put a real damper on our happy hours!!

Here's the crew so far!!  When we heard this rally was the Call Of The Wild, we all showed up!  This group consists of some of the nicest people you will ever meet in the RV world!!

And so the rally begins!!  The especially good news is that when I contacted the ice cream company yesterday, they said the order was in and the driver ready to roll.  Music to my ears!!!

It's Moving Day!!

There's not much of a blog this Monday, since it's moving day for the Golden Spike Group.  There are 15 rigs parked in the Old Sam's Club parking lot, hopefully ready to roll around 8:00 am.

I'm off in my Jeep to meet them and lead the group through numerous stop lights to the fairgrounds entrance where they will stage to be parked.  I've heard it described as trying to herd cats but I have infinite trust in this group to get it done.   The word of the day is RUN that yellow light!!  Once there, I will leave the group and go get my rig ready to slide into line as they come by.

We all have our fingers crossed that we end up on pavement, but at this point, it doesn't look good.  Next year if we want pavement parking, we will have to come in a day or two earlier ... there's just no way around it.

I'll catch up tomorrow morning and let you know how it goes.

Everybody Needs A GripStick!!!

I was up bright and early with the puppies yesterday, looking forward to a day of rest and relaxation.  It didn't quite turn out that way, so for today's agenda, I'm going to try it again!!

Kurt Simon and his lovely wife Betty, members of the Golden Spike Group, came in the day after me and parked next door.  Kurt will be the new Treasurer, so he is not only here with our group, he will shadow the present Treasurer to learn her job.  While he was away figuring out what to do with twenty folders of contracts, Betty and I attended the College of the Desert Fair in Indian Wells.

If you haven't been to this one, it's a great place to pick up all those things you just can't live without. Like THE GRIPSTICK!  How did I go so far in life without these amazing sticks to keep my food fresh??  They attach to the top of the potato chip bag so you don't have to use those large clumsy chip clips.  As per the demonstration, you can even take your breakfast to work ... just put milk in the bottom of a baggie, add a clip, then add your cereal with a clip on top.  I just KNEW I couldn't live without them!!

There was quite a bit more jewelry here than I expected, most much more fancy than I am.  Beautiful stuff, but it's not something I would wear ... until I saw this ring.  Honestly, the picture doesn't do it any justice at all.  Made by a jeweler who stays here in the winter with family, then stays in Sedona at his shop in the summer, it's a nice piece to add to my turquoise collection.

I would love to have taken a few more pictures, but as you know, artists are funny about you stealing their designs!!  There were racks and racks of hats, purses and clothing, one of which fit Betty's fancy perfectly.  There was even a car lot selling what else ... cars ... and patio tables with fire pits in the middle.

With cups of hot chocolate and mocha coffee, we wandered around admiring the crowd.  Well, not exactly admiring ... we came to the conclusion that leggings are meant to be worn with a LONG top over them.  Ladies, if you are over 21 years old, or over 121 pounds, PLEASE don't wear just leggings with your cute short jacket.  Enough said!!

On the way home, I stopped in at Canton Bistro to make reservations for our group of about 25 who would dine there this evening.  Last year they asked we call in advance for such a large group.  The reception I got was very friendly until I made my request, at which time they said they would NOT seat that many people.   I didn't know what to say ... I was kind of shocked that they would turn down such a large money-making group.  My first thought was that we should just all show up anyway.  The food is really good .... but I guess they don't need our money.

Back at the rig, we got ready for another happy hour.  Let me tell you about happy hour with older folks .... when food is involved, you better be there ON TIME!!  We arrived at 6:05 and were announced as late-comers ... put your food on the table NOW ... as she called table numbers and people clamored to fill their plates.  YIKES!!  Better stand back!!

As soon as the food was gone, we headed over to another building to celebrate this gentleman's birthday.  Rally leader and Vice President, Lon Cross is a great guy and this was well-deserved.

They even had a DJ playing 60's and 70's rocking out music.  As you can imagine, there were only two couples who hit the dance floor.  Finally they played a couple slow songs and everyone jumped up to trip the light fantastic ... or something like that.

The floodgates will be opened today as RV's start arriving by the dozens.  Our Golden Spike Group meets at Walmart and parks illegally overnight, then convoys in to the fairgrounds.  It's going to be interesting to see if I can get my rig in line as parking begins.  

In the meantime, I'm resting and relaxing!!

Football and Friends ... New Year's Day!!

Although I tried to sleep in yesterday, the dogs as usual, had other ideas.  I lounged around in my pjs as long as possible before getting up and cleaning the rig.  That bowl of dog food that fell off the shelf and went under the slide made a big mess, but the floors are now spotless and the dogs got a morning snack.

I took the puppies for a couple of walks between football games.  With scores of 38-3, the games weren't all that interesting.  Just outside my door I ran into this guy making a New Year's morning flight.  In fact, there were two balloons.

They landed right across the parking lot.  Applebees was apparently out for some early morning advertisement.  By the way, bring your wool socks, because the warm Southern California nights have been 30 degrees and below EVERY night.  Days are up to 58-60 ... very tolerable, but NOT warm.  An umbrella is also a good idea, as they are expecting rain on Wednesday and Thursday!!

A few rigs came in here and there and the parking crew set up street signs, but for the most part, it was just a lazy day.  

I watched the Rose Parade from beginning to end, mostly to check out the floats that came from the barn I worked in ... and the horses of course!!

Remember last year when I landed in the ER just before driving to Pasadena?  I had the chance to work in one of the float barns glueing everything from flowers to vegetables on these monsters, covering every square inch.  It was great fun, freezing cold and I probably cut myself ten times, but I'd do it again in a flash.  If anyone is interested, let me know and I'll hook you up with Gretchen!!

I didn't have to wait long for a nice sunset.  The sun goes behind the mountains about 4:30 pm, making for some nice contrails in the sky.

Just as I was meandering over to the Kurt and Betty Simon's rig around 5:00, we even got a little color.  They are here early too, since Kurt is the new Treasurer for WMHA and is shadowing the current gal, trying to learn everything the position requires, which turns out is a lot more work than he originally thought.

We had a small happy hour that lasted about 2-1/2 hours as we traded stories and talked about Portland, Auburn and China!!

It was a quiet night with only a few trains, but I spent a large part of it going over every second of my escape plan should there be a fire in my rig.  I have no idea where that came from, but it kept me occupied for a couple of hours before falling into a fitful sleep.  Oh well ... there's always another night .... hopefully!!!

Betty and I are heading out this morning to the College of the Desert Street Fair that we missed last year.  There's nothing like shopping to get your blood moving!!  After that, it's time to get organized, as the Golden Spike group will start arriving at the Walmart parking lot tomorrow.

It's getting close to RALLY TIME!!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

WE SURVIVED 2015!!  YAY!!!!  I hope this blog finds you lounging around the house in your pj's with a big cup of coffee to combat the party last night!!  Be sure and check out the Rose Parade on television and view the handy work of a great group of volunteers.

Here at Indio, this group of volunteers doing all the setup for the rally had a nice dinner at 6:00, with many bringing their party hats and horns.  I have to say it was one of the tastiest pot luck dinners I've ever been to.  Everyone brought their A game with the food!!

BBQ'd ribs and garlic bread were the main stays ... yummy fall off the bone delicious ... followed by an entire table of desserts.  It was seriously nice to meet so many of the people I work with here.

By 7:30 the building was practically empty.  I thought maybe they just weren't the party animal type, but on second thought, I figured they all had to be up early today to keep the rally setup going.

I spent the rest of the evening (WAY too full) on the couch with the puppies, who didn't even make it to 8:00 pm.  It was just Jonathan and I as we watched the latest and craziest celebrations around the world.

By midnight I had one eye open and the other shut!  I took this picture just to prove I stayed awake.  All a big fat lie though ... I went to bed at 10:30.  I picked up a heated mattress pad yesterday so I would finally be warm at night and get some sleep.  No electric blankets around this area ... which I much prefer ... but I wasn't going to be picky.  

This was the 9:00 New Year in New York City!!  I WAS however, rudely awakened at 1:59 AM by someone sending me a Happy New Year text message.  So in my book, that counts as being up!!

Welcome 2016!!  I hope you bring all my friends, both RV and Facebook, the best year yet, filled with lots of love, joy, good health and good times!!