Sunday, January 24th, 2010

It is only 35F at 7:00 am. Still lots of moisture in the air from the storm. I misinformed you of the viscousness of our storm on Thursday. There was a tornado touched down in Blyth, California just 20 miles from here and Truda said they heard on the news that a tornado touched down in Tyson Wells which is just a mile from here. The wind gusts were up to 80 mph. There was extensive damage, the big tent was shut down around 10:00 am because of fear that it may collapse, one of the walls of the repair tent (set up a motorhome repair tent by the Big Tent) collapsed. We heard that Friday morning at the Pow Wow vendors were just gathering up what was salvageable and leaving the twisted metal and mangled tarps and going home. The Pow Wow is held at the QIA, both inside the building and all over the parking lot. It took us 5 hours with just a few minutes for a hot dog to cover the vendors on the parking lot. We didn't go back to see the damage. Vendors all over town would have felt the destruction of the wind.

Our neighbors, Ron & Jerilyn lost their tent in the last storm and had replaced it with another only to have it torn to bits on Thursday. They tried to get it down, but the winds were so strong and the rain was pelting down so hard, they just gave up. None of the long term "visitors" to this part of Arizona has seen weather like we are having this year.

Friday we were going to go to Blyth for groceries, but the traffic snarl was at least a mile long and because we had to make a left hand turn into it, and there was little hope that that could be accomplished, we drove straight across the highway to LaPosa North and went to visit Glen and April. By 1:30 pm the traffic was a bit lighter, and we were making a right hand turn into it, so finally got into Quartzsite and headed to the bank. Friday must have been a "right hand turn only" day for Gordon, because coming out of the bank he turned right. We ended up visiting with Tom and Lucille. I mentioned to Lucille I needed more cut off my hair, and as the lady that cut my hair lives just to the back and over one from Lucille she said, "come on, I'll go with you" so I got a hair cut while Gordon and Tom had coke and cookies. When we got back home Bonnie and Kathy were just returning from Lake Havasu where Kathy had rotator cuff surgery this morning. She gave the medical staff a scare, as they couldn't wake her up in the recovery room. There were eight nurses working over her to get her to come back to us.

We went to JR's to the jam tonight. Our Okie (Larry & Yvonne, George & Pat from Oklahoma) and Colie (Lloyd & Pat) neighbors went also. It was a good jam. Went to bed around 10:00 and was up from midnight to 3:30 sick sick sick!

Saturday morning we got up at 7:15 and left to do the laundry at 8:00. Gord came so he could get a shower. For $5.00 you get all the hot water for as long as you want, and they provide towel, face cloth and mat. Can't beat it every once in a while, as the RV showers are certainly not lengthy ones. When you have to pump water into the RV and they haul it out, water conservation is a top priority. When we got home with the laundry Jeanne went to bed and Gord took care of the laundry. Kathy stuck her head out the door and said she had been in a great deal of pain until midnight, but things settled down and she spent a better rest of the night. Jeanne didn't go too near because the last thing Kathy needs is the stomach flu. Gordon had a quiet day as well, he read a bit, visited a bit, and had an afternoon nap. Jeanne was in bed all day, except sat up long enough to watch a movie, and just about didn't make the end before rushing back to bed, where she stayed until 6:40 am Sunday.

Pictures are of some of the rocks we saw at Pow Wow. The first two are a sandstone formation. They looked as if they had been painted, but we were assured that they hadn't been altered in any way. I would have liked to have one as they are very unique. The next three are just interesting colors or formations. Next one is a slab of jade, and the next is a slab of petrified wood. The last one is of our quad trailer and our neighbor's motorhome. Some fellow parked his motorhome in that space. He was no more than 5' from the neighbor and desert rules - 15' minimum. Neighbor came out and told him he would have to move. That is why we park the quads and trailer where we do, or we would come home and wouldn't be able to get to the door of the RV.

Thursday, January 21, 2010

Big Storm. Wow what winds. Thought we were going to be blown over. Yesterday Pow Wow began (the largest rock & gem show in the world) John wants a slab of red petrified wood to inlay in a table, so we have been looking around. We spend five hours there and found some beautiful rocks and slabs of petrified wood, but it is very expensive!

It began raining last evening and poured all night. Thank goodness we didn't have strong winds with the rains during the night. We had a bit of a "river of water" in the little wash behind us. These two pictures are taken from the back window of the 5th wheel this morning. Note the fog on the mountains, and the river rushing around Gordon's garden box. It poured all day. However, the real storm hit this afternoon when the winds came up, gusting t0 60 mph. Can you imagine what the 5th wheel felt like when those gusts hit it broadside? Around 6:00 the wind settled down and the rain let up, but by 7:30 it was back in full force.

Last night one of the Okies, and the Colorado folks moved to higher ground because the forecast was for heavy flooding for most of Arizona. So are we are okay - we haven't floated away down our river of water. We spent the day inside the 5th wheel. Gordon got some reading done, and we played a game of UPWORDS. Had hamburger soup and biscuits for supper.

Keep safe all.

Tuesday, January 19th, 2010

The desert neighbors are getting closer and closer every day. We have spread the truck and the quads out so no one will move into our back pocket! Today I spent working on my quilt, and Gord went visiting and filled the water. The Okies and Colorado folks invited us for supper. Had a great time. We took a pineapple dump cake and ice cream. Got home around 8:30 pm.

Monday, January 18th, 2010

We were asked to ride with Bert & LuCille today, but it was raining and we didn't feel like riding in the rain. Cold, dreary day.

Sunday, January 17th, 2010

I went to Church at 8:20 am and was about 30 minutes too late to get a good seat. Today is the first of the double meetings, one at 9:00 am and one at 1:00 pm. By the looks of tis morning, there would be no one in the afternoon meetings.

Gord had an afternoon nap then Glen dropped in to see if he wanted to go for a little ride. He stopped at Glen & April's for a short visit after the ride, then stopped by Ken & Edna's for a short visit.

Saturday, January 16th, 2010

The RV Show opened today in the Big Tent. There are way more people here this year than last year at this time. Today we had our Pop Can Party and it was ribs. Had a great time and as usual the food was good.

After dinner there was no card playing as a football game was on, and it was a "must see" for a couple of people, so around 3:00 pm Gord and I hopped on the quad and rode to the Big Event. It was surprisingly empty for first day. From opening until after noon it was a zoo, with so many people there one couldn't see much of anything.

The desert is filling up!

Friday, January 15th, 2010

Off for our walk before 8:00. This morning we were both very slow. Gordon's hip and knees were sore and my left ankle gives me grief now and then and this morning was the "NOW". Usually we can walk out our aches and pains but this morning wasn't the usual. Maria dropped in while we were eating breakfast. It is nice to sit out in the sun for breakfast. It is warmer out than in the RV if we don't turn the heat on when we first get up.

Gordon wanted to do very little today, maybe walk the vendors. We had forgotten to get drinking water the day before, so headed for RV Pit Stop for 5 gallons. Coming back towards the vendors the traffic was a snarl, so we thought we would come home and take the quad over. However, we didn't make it to the vendors. After a light lunch Gordon went off visiting, Jeanne did some quilting. One of the new neighbours is Lloyd. Lloyd had knee surgery a couple of years ago and it has been painful ever since. He is about ready to have them cut it off. We are truly blessed with the surgeon Gordon had. Lloyd doesn't go with the rest of them, and often is alone, and Gordon enjoys his company. The sun was shining but the wind was quite strong and cool. I went to get my hair cut at 4:00 pm. I still can't get over a hairdresser who would let a client leave without a complete hair do. However, came home, put a bunch of guck in my hair and pulled and poked at it then we went to the jam at JR's RV Park. There were too many musicians, with too many "wanabees". The music is getting so loud we can hardly hear the singers. In some cases that is good, but for the good performers it isn't. Glen and April arrived back from Yuma yesterday and dropped in while I was at the hairdresser.

Thursday, January 14th, 2010

Here are a couple of pictures of the rocks we saw yesterday. The Elk is made of scrap metal and his belly is a scale. Quite interesting.

Walked, breakfasted then went back over to Tyson vendors to pick up the blouse for Joyce. She wasn't open so we hung around and looked down another couple of rows of vendors, she still wasn't open so we came home. I called her and she had been open since 9:30. We were on the wrong isle. Must have been one further south than we were. However, she had sold the blouse so Joyce got to get the color of her choice as it will be made especially for her. It really was a blessing as I didn't think the blue showed off the embellishments like the pink one did.

Gloria and Glen were going to put up their tent today, but it was so terribly windy they postponed for another day. However, she had prepared wings for her helpers, and as Gordon was helping we were invited. There was wings, coleslaw, celery and carrot sticks with cornmeal muffins. I had just put a pan of brownies in the oven when the invitation arrived, so we took brownies. We didn't stay for cards.

Tonight Gordon and I played a couple of games of Scrabble.

Wednesday, January 13th, 2010

Up early and off for our walk by 7:50 am. The new neighbours wanted to walk with us. They are a bit slower so we all just go at our own speed which is nice for all. As soon as we got back from our walk Gordon filled the water tank. Having that barrel is sure handy as we don't have to pack up and move the 5th wheel, and it is quick to run up to Love's to fill for free.

About 10:30 we drove over and walked around the Tyson vendors. There were still lots of them just coming in and setting up, so we will have to go again to see it all. The show officially begins Friday the 15th. There is so much that we consider JUNK that it makes me wonder if they make enough in sales to pay for hauling it to Q. We are looking for some red petrified wood for John. He wants to use it in a table. Saw some really nice pieces of Australian Opal - very expensive. A slice about 1/2" thick and 2" x 3" was $85.00. It would have made some beautiful jewellery. There is money in ROCKS!

Found the booth where I had purchased my blouse with the sewing embellishments, and as Joyce wanted me to get her one we stopped to look. There was only one in the right size and it was a blue and white striped, so came home and in the evening called Joyce for the okay to purchase.

Gordon went to a jam tonight and I watched a couple of movies. More and more people are moving in. They come just for the shows and they want to get as close as possible, so they will park anywhere there is half a space. It doesn't matter if they are hanging over the road or if they block you from getting in and out. Thank goodness we have a rock garden in front of us, so they don't, at least so far they haven't, park there.

Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

Jeanne worked on her quilting all day at the RV and Gordon went off to visit the new neighbors. He arranged for this young newlywed couple, James and Amanda (they are part of the Balyeat Family who travel around the country singing and sharing their faith in God at fairs, festivals, churches and clubs) to come and entertain us around the campfire. There were 16 people sitting around the fire tonight.

Amanda plays the fiddle, banjo and mandolin. James plays guitar and base guitar. It was a really fun evening. James said they would stay and play as long as there was cookies and rootbeer.

Monday, January 11th, 2010

Today was the Canada Pot Luck. Both of us were helping. Gordon's job was to place the food on the tables and Jeanne took the donations - $2.00 per person to cover the cost of the roast beef. There was only one couple who didn't bring anything. They came in just before dinner was served, didn't bring anything because they just found out about it and had no time to prepare. She was relying heavily on a cane - would it be alright if they came. I suggested that they put in a larger donation. "Well, I have a delicate stomach, would it be okay if I have a look at the food" The food was okay and they gave me $4.00 then she limped in. She didn't need the use of her cane to fill out several draws for the door prizes (all the rest of us had one) and our friends sat across the table from them and they both ate heavily of the main course, and she put 14 desserts on a plate, which the two of them devoured. She won one of the door prizes and there was no cane in sight when she ran to get it. I shall remember them for next year. Thank goodness they were NOT Western Canadians.

When we got back to the RV after the pot luck we put our dishes away then went to the Vendors for an hour. When we got back home there were two new units to the south of us and two units on the north side of Bonnie & Kathy. We can no longer see our RV from the road.

At 6:00 pm we were out the Plamosa road playing "Hand & Foot" with Bert, LuCille, Glade & Kathy. We got home around 9:30pm

Sunday, January 10th, 2010

Jeanne went to church then came home and helped Gordon prepare a potato salad for tomorrow.

LuCille & Bert and Glade & Kathy dropped in in the late afternoon for a short visit. They invited us to play cards tomorrow night. Tomorrow is going to be a BIG day!

Saturday, January 9th, 2010

We were up early and left J & R's by 8:15 am. Stopped at Safeway to get the groceries we needed which we had stopped in Wickenburg yesterday for. We did stop in Wickenburg to get gas, wash the truck and go to a quilt store which was right beside the gas station.

This picture taken from their patio with the view of the 5th green in the background. Spectacular view both directions.

We were tired when we got home and got the groceries put away.

Friday, January 8th, 2010

Had a busy day with J & R. We were served a nice breakfast of hashbrowns, sausages and eggs. We then went to the clubhouse in their complex to a travelling quilt show raising funds for Alzheimers. The quilts were made by family or friends of Alzheimers patients and the stories were very heart wrenching. From there we went to the Apple store so my last pictures from last winter could be found! Walla! Took the young man all of 30 seconds to locate them and put them back where I could find them. Oh, it helps to know things.

We left the Apple store $200 poorer as we purchased a external hard drive and the new software to enable us to back up automatically.

Costco was the next stop on our list then we headed back to J & R's. We left there around 3:15 for Quartzsite. When we arrived in Wickenburg, about 60 miles from Q I discovered I had left my purse at Joyce's front door. Gordon very impatiently counted to 10, and turned around and headed back to Phoenix. When we arrived Richard invited us to spent another night with them which we thankfully accepted. The boys fixed spaghetti for supper then we played "Aggravation Rummy until 11:35 pm.

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Left early morning and drove to Phoenix area to visit with Joyce and Richard. What a lovely home they have, and of course they are the perfect host & hostess. We went to the Paradise deli and had a delicious lunch then drove to the outlet mall and wandered the shops. It was nice not to have to leave Gordon sitting on some bench because his knees were sore and he couldn't walk.

They fixed a lovely supper for us then we played cards until around 10:00 pm then I got to soak in the bath. Actually, I needed to soak my foot. About a week ago the hot iron fell off the table and hit the floor then rolled onto my foot, and the walking today aggravated it. It was very swollen. Thought for a minute or two that my shoe would have to be cut off.

Had a very nice soak and a great sleep and it was wonderful to be able to throw off the covers during the night. It gets quite cold in the RV at night so this was a welcome change.

Sunday, January 3rd, 2010

+34F at 7:30 am with the sun coming up over the mountains. What a lovely Sabbath day. Jeanne went to church and Gordon built a garden box. He wants to grow lettuce, so he built a raised bed out of pallets.

Ron & Jerilyn came over and visited this afternoon for a couple of hours. Supper was easy - spagetti. Around 6:00 we went to Bonnie & Kathy's for a couple of games of UPWORDS.

It is ow 9:05 and +46F outside.

Saturday, January 2nd, 2010

Can you believe it is 2010 already! Wow!

Today was laundry day and it was a big one. I met Santa at the laundromat and we had a short visit. It is fun having Santa so close.

While Jeanne was doing laundry Gordon was assisting Ron & Jerilyn in putting up and securing their new tent. They wanted to take us out for lunch for his helping, but the clothes were still on the line and I didn't want to go and leave them. Sitting out in the sun in the afternoon was almost too hot. It is about time we put up the screen.

Tonight we watched "Crossfire Trail" with Tom Selleck. It was good.

January 1, 2010

Happy New Year! And what a great beginning to a new year. After dancing until 11:30 last evening we had a good rest until morning. We actually stayed awake until after midnight.

Went for a walk and then we ate breakfast outside in the sunshine. Had toast and tomatoes. It was still cool but was warmer out in the sunshine than in the RV.

Here is Gordon feeding and watering the birds. We have doves, quail and some other little birdies that scratch in the dirt for food. Gord puts out food and a pan of water for them each morning.

New Year's dinner was a weiner roast at Wates and Foster's firepit. You can see just how close Bonnie and Kathy are to us, with the firepit between. Gord erected the windbreak and it makes it very nice to sit in the shelter.

I didn't get many pictures of the afternoon, but there were 14 gathered to enjoy the food and the company. What a great day it has been.

We wish each and every one of you a very Happy New Year!