Hippy Hooray its Friday!

I am looking forward to a very nice day! I had the pleasure of taking miss KayCee for a walk at 4:30 this morning.
Usually her Daddy does that part, and that would be one reason that I'm looking forward to his return! The wind has blown 4-0 the last two days straight. I did notice it wasn't blowing a bit at 4:30. Now the breezes are starting up again. At least the sun is nice and bright. We're going up close to 80 today. Yesterday I spent the most part of the day shopping at the Palms mall. I like this place more and more all the time! This afternoon I will go for a massage at the Lotus Day Spa. When that is finished I am going to go to Best Buy and look at Cameras. I have done a little research and will start the looking process now. I plan on getting a new camera before we leave here and go to the Grand Canyon in a couple of weeks. I want to get it and do some practicing with things around here to get used to it. DH is on his second leg of the Baja 1000 Rally in Mexico. I haven't heard a word from him so we just can hope everything is going well. I will look on the NORRA site today for standings.
I am fascinated by the construction companies working here in the park on putting up and finishing all sizes of buildings from small Casitas (large storage room) on RV Sites, Park Models and small double wide houses. They are roofing a small casita this morning with tile roofing, and it goes very fast.

And Away they Went!

It was 99 degrees in the shade yesterday at noon when I took DH to meet up with his Baja team in Calexico California. We had about a 45 minute wait for them to catch up to us, so we went and had a Rally Burger. They are really good. As good as In and Out Burgers I think!
I think the guys are really going to have a good time. they are taking a van pulling the trailer with the VW and a Pick Up Pulling the Sand Buggy.
Some of the team will catch up to them today in Mexicali. They leave the starting line tomorrow morning at 7 a.m.
This is a first for him. I'm a widow for a week. I got through my first night alone with no major problems. I haven't been without him for a long time and it's really different.
Yesterday on the way to Calexico we were stopped at a Border Patrol Checkpoint, and the agent asked us if we were U.S. Citizens. Grandma and Grandpa in a big red Suburban with South Dakota plates. He looked into the back windows of the Suburban. OK, keeping us safe and doing his job. The only problem with that is - he didn't speak very good english! I had to say "Excuse Me?" twice! What's wrong with that picture? I am fully behind the new Arizona Law that makes being here "Illegal" and gives the police the right to stop "Suspected" criminals.Click on this picture and make it bigger. That's the border patrol out there, and that dark fence is the border. That's how close we are. They have a parascope camera thing that they watch with. Most of the time I'm sure it's a boring job.
After being here and witnessing some of the activity, I am in Total Support of this new law. Everyone that is up in an outcry needs to spend time here before they judge. I am at the point if you don't speak Engligh than ya better use sign language! I'm tired of listening to it! If you are living here full time and working here legally (which I don't have a problem), Learn this Language! This is OUR Country and if we don't stand up pretty soon, it's not going to be our country! We're going to lose it! This new law is just a small tool to help us hold on to what is ours, and fight this drug cartel business. This is Boondocking out at the BLM land West of Yuma.
We see lots of folks out there and I don't know if it's the $40.00 permit land or "Free". It's on the south side of the Interstate.
Coming back into town yesterday I got a picture of the Q casino and the Yuma sign. I feel much more comfortable spending time here.
The wind is going to blow today, we have a front passing through again that is cooling things off a bit the next few days.Most times when it starts to blow, I don't know whether it's wind or an aftershock. They're still having lots of shakin' over by Calexico and Mexicali across the border. Not long now and the heat will be on!

Pretending this is Vacation!

For the past few days, we have been disregarding responsibility and having fun. I am getting the hang of playing again, not sure if that's good or not! We took advantage of the quiet in the clubhouse, went into California about five miles from here to the big new Quechan Casino and went to a Merle Haggard show. He's 73, has lost part of a lung to lung cancer, has a wife of about 30 and his grandson plays guitar in his band. There were 13 people on stage, his voice isn't very strong anymore, but everybody had a good time. Before the show, we signed up to get their player's card and was playing the free $10.00 they give ya to get ya hooked when DH stepped into the aisle and I heard a familiar voice say, "Well Danny Brown, what are you doing here?" It was Stan Luke from our town in Ne. He and his wife own a house and spend the winters here. Their son was with him so we had a little visit. Went to their place the next afternoon and she was sick so we left. Will try to see them again before we leave. We made our donation to the Quechan and won't be making a habit of going out there!
I decided we needed to explore all the amenities here since they are included and so I went and bought tennis racquets and balls! Yep. We tried out the tennis courts! That's only the second time DH has played in his life and it's been so long for me, I couldn't remember how to keep score. It was pretty pathetic and I wouldn't have called it a game, but pretty good exercise and today I can tell I used different muscles.
We went from there and played in the splash pool and sat in the hot tub.
That may have saved the muscles a little bit.
It really felt good. We had fun with KayCee yesterday.It was her 5th birthday and she was spoiled with treats and presents all day!
Today we sat outside and watched the jets and Chinook group go out to the desert for maneuvers and come back in overhead.They are just awesome to watch. Some people are irritated with the noise and I count my lucky stars they are doin' the drills to learn and keep us safe!
We have been getting things around for DH to go to Mexico.This will be his "ride" for the 1000 mile Rally. The story about the Baja Race is at the NORRA website. www.norra.com. The only thing we haven't really got figured out is the phone thing. He doesn't want to use his cell phone from here, but I called Verizon and they said he could. I don't think they'll have reception all the way down to LaPaz anyway, so it could be interesting. We about have all his stuff ready to go, and then some. I have plenty here to keep me entertained while he is away. The weather is warming up again after a windy cool time. It was almost 80 today and full sun. We just about have all the toys now! Tennis Racquets and swimming goggles! Oh Boy! We went swimming this afternoon and soaked up them Arizona Rays. I'm glad we are waiting to go to the Grand Canyon for a while longer. They had snow up there this week. Thunderstorms and tornadoes are making their presence known in the center and eastern part of our nation. I'm not ready for that either! I talked to two ladies that worked at the golf course at Rio Bend, over where we were after the big earthquake. They left on Tuesday after the quake becuase she was really spooked about not being able to get out of there, and sinking on the golf course. We swapped some stories about the place and I don't feel one bit bad for getting out of there when we did! I can hear the coyotes barking and howling just beyond the fence in the desert tonight. That's a lot different than the non-stop noise of I-10 south of Casa Grande. We are truly in our oasis in the desert! We made the daily trip to Wal Mart today and the UPS store to mail some packages for some Grand babies turning 1 year old. The news came today that they are closing the post offices and there will be no mail delivery service on Saturday. More people with their jobs shortened, but in this day and age of the internet, it was bound to happen. It's nice to have the service if you need it but one less day won't affect me one way or the other. It means one needs to be organized and plan ahead a little bit.

Recovering and Getting Acquainted

It looks like we're all gonna live after all! DH is up and out. Walked down the way and watched a plaster company stucco a park model this morning.
We don't have that kinda construction techniques much where we come from and its fascinating for him to see someone actually work! These guys were good and fast and somewhat artistic in decorating the stucco! We had to take KayCee back to the Vet Clinic yesterday for different medicine for her ear. Every day we're getting more acquainted with this area and established with business neccessities. We have a clinic right down the street and I think I'll try them next time instead of a Critical Care Clinic. It was pretty pricey but very good if ya need something in a hurry. All the shopping is available that we would need, a good WalMart right down the street about a half mile. I don't know how to act not having to drive 10-50 miles to just go to Wally World. DH is working on a signal problem this morning. I told him that was on his "To-Do" list before he leaves to go to Mexico. Hope he figures it out. He just came in and I got the thumbs up sign, so that's a good thing. We are now on a 7 day countdown to Baja time. KayCee is going to turn 5 years old on Friday. Just can't believe it's been 5 years! She's still the light of our lives. Time is really going. We will celebrate her birthday with a trip to Pet Smart! I love that place. There's another pet boutique down the street that I discovered last night along with a really fun Frozen Yogurt shop and a small "No Frills" Fresh Fish Cafe. We had supper there last night. It was recommended by a Chiropractor that DH went to last week. I had grilled Halibut and Cole Slaw and he had Grilled Swordfish. The fish was very good. Then we topped that off with the fix your own Yogurt cup at Tikihut down the street.
Our new friends, John and Kim left yesterday morning, headed for the Grand Canyon and points on north to their home in Montana. We will enjoy getting to know them. It's really quiet here outside of the Chinook helicopters running missions above and the occasional plane coming in. We're straight east of the Airport and Marine Corp Air Station. The wind is forcast to blow this afternoon and it's not gonna be warm. I don't have an agenda for today, think we may go up to the clubhouse and play shuffleboard inside or pool. All this play time isn't a bad thing!

Sun Luis and the Foothills

We have been swatting and battling some wonderful little fruit flies the last couple of days and I got tired of it. They must be here because of all the citrus orchards in this area. Went to Lowe's and picked up some bug bombs and spray. We put everything important away and set those babies off, and left. Not being able to return for a few hours gave us an opportunity to goof off and get a little more acquainted with the area. We drove east to the area they call the Foothills.
There are many new houses and lots that have been purchased by folks with motorhomes. Sometimes they just keep their home on wheels and sometimes they build permanent houses and store their motorhomes there too. The desert is close at hand for sand buggy recreation, or hiking and biking. Most of the area is maintained by the Marine Corp Air Base here in Yuma.
I had packed a lunch and we went to the Quartermaster's Visitors Center across town. We would have walked around the grounds, but a sign said "No Dogs" so we ate our lunch in the parking lot and I went in to pick up another phone book, since they have pretty good maps of the city. The lady there told me of a drive on a new highway south out of Yuma to the town of San Luis. We stopped and got some gas and started out down that way. It is a brand new four lane highway. On the way down there, it got me thinkin' about the critical state we're in trying to keep the illegal immigrants out.
Why then do we build more super nice roads leading right down to the border? While in the town of San Luis we noticed that the town itself was incorporated in 1979, so it is a new development. The school there looked very new and nice. We drove down the main highway where the actual border crossing was, and noticed all the huge parking areas where you can park and walk across. I turned back then and headed back north where we noticed a big brown iron fence. It is part of the Symbolic "Border Fence" that they talk about. We first noticed it on the way to El Centro the first time. It is out by the Imperial Sand Dunes west of here. It runs along on south of the railroad tracks, looming up from the dunes and the fields reminding us that our country stops there. On the edge of San Luis, we stopped to get this picture and there were a couple of Border Patrol vehicles parked there at the end of the fence watching for runners.
We continued on up Hwy 95 and stopped along side the road to look at the fields of Onions and wheat. The onions really permeated the air with their fragrance.
By the time we got back to Yuma, enough time had passed that we were able to come home and get back in the house. I wiped things down and we had some grilled Carne Asada Tacos for supper. DH is still pretty sickly and I am just barely regaining my energy. KayCee has ear infection in her left ear. We are a real fun bunch. My kitchen counter looks like a pharmacy!The best thing about the day....no more fruit flies!

Life Bustles On

As low key as life is here at The Palms,things have a way of bustling on. We spent the morning at the Acute Care Clinic so DH could get some meds. Amazingly enough, he was diagnosed with bronchitis too! Is it any wonder? For him who calls me a "hypochondriac", now he knows how a hypochondriac feels! She who kept on going day to day, and he who is as we speak spending the afternoon in bed! I have not felt as good today however Hope this gets kicked in the butt soon. I'm seriously missing out on a bunch of stuff to do before we leave. Tried to ignore it and went walking around at the big Arizona Marketplace "swap meet" grounds just down the street yesterday. Bought some rolled window insulation and new sunglasses.
It's the last weekend for that until next winter. I'm sure we'll enjoy it more then when there's more vendors. Lots of booths with tools, gadgets and trinkets...all kinds of stuff to make RVing more fun. Neighbors got back from San Diego this morning. They went to a Spring Baseball game. We are supposed to meet them for "Happy Hour" this afternoon, but none to happy here, so doubt if we go today. Hard to believe it's another weekend already.
It won't be long before our little girl dog will need to go play in the dog park. It is a beautiful day, and hopefully it will be nice again this evening to sit out on the patio. It was so nice when the sun went down. I sat outside and took pictures of the lots by us. It is a nice night. No wind. Too bad I have a sick man and a sick dog. Oh well, hope all is better tomorrow.
I ordered the rest of our shocks for the coach and they arrived today. One more "to do" out of the way. Now will stop in Liberal, KS and get them put on. Another excuse to spend the night at the park 5 miles west of there.

Western Arizona

It's a different world out here! We are taking care of a lot of boring details before DH goes to the Baja Rally.
Last night we spent time at the hot tub with a couple of our neighbors from the Bozeman area in Montana. Hopefully we will get the chance to stop in and see them this summer while we are completing our tour of that state. We have already visited the southern part of Montana, and this summer we will complete the tour of the Northern half. It's always nice to visit with someone from the area and get pointers on the best things to see and do, a local opinion usually produces good tips for great experiences.
Mundane tasks today, oil change and tires rotated on suburban and lunch at a recommended mexican cafe. Asada lunch plate was awesome. That's one of those "locals" recommendations from the guys down the street at Midas that were doing the work on the car. I've decided to save all the exploration of the area, and touring for next winter. I'm still not feeling quite to par.
Went to clinic and got medicine yesterday. I have had sinus headaches and bronchitis for about 2 weeks and finally got tired enough to deal with it. Now I'm just wishing the meds would kick in and make me feel better!
I made a salad last night and put the knife in the dish water, which I never do (hardly ever) and when I went to do the dishes I found the knife! Tried to cut my ring finger to the bone!
There are advantages to that...now I can't do dishes~! I will share some more of the pictures that I took around here yesterday of the facilities.
They're great!

Whole Lotta Shakin' Pictures

It's been a long 4 days! We have traveled a long ways and made a retreat backwards in the end! We are now in Yuma at The Palms RV Resort.
I have found my "Oasis" in the desert after a hard winter! Finally. Our experience at the Rio Bend Resort and El Centro California wasn't the best. They boast a "State of the Art" Fitness Center. Well, it's gonna stay "State ofthe Art" because they won't let anybody use it! Very limited hours and the time has to be supervised! I've never heard of such hogwash! Their winter price
for the ammenities is way too high. Especially for that area. Nice country area, close to Mexico and the stench of the sewers permiated the area when the wind was from the south. DH said the price was too high for the 9 hole course.This road is right in front of the Rio Bend.
Lots of Earthquake damage all around the park and inside.
The road damage, if worsened could have isolated the park and with only one way in and one way out, I decided I wasn't ready to risk not being able to get the coach out of there!
I really wanted to be there close to where the Baja Rally Teams stages for take off in Mexicali, but after a couple of days, decided I wouldn't be comfortable to stay there alone. Lots of businesses in nearby El Centro were damaged and not open. Everyone talked about the aftershocks being bad and Sat. morning we woke up at 2:13 from a sound sleep and it was....no....not aftershocks, but another earth quake...this time a 5.3! The blinds in the bathroom were banging against the window, we were really rockin and rollin!A lot more than the one Easter Sunday. It was really close to us! That was the icing on the cake, so I looked up Resorts this morning in Yuma, it's about an hour and a half from Mexicali...it's close enough, and I feel secure here. Mission accomplished. I never went back to sleep and got up at 5:30 and drove up past the Los Angeles to the San Gabriel Mountains to the Mile High Ranch for a Baja Rally Party and get together. It was an opportunity to meet the other members of the team and find out more about the actual trip.
It is going to be a real experience for Danny.They had a course set up and had some strategy runs.We had a wonderful BBQ. All with a Mexican Theme. Awesome guacamole/fresh salsa, Carne asada and marinated chicken, veggies tortillas and home made beans.
A converted VW Bug/pick up bed can be used for more than hauling parts, it can double as a bar. The dogs had a very good day and KayCee got to romp with some friends. This next week we will spend getting aquainted with this area. I plan to be here for a month.
The next move will be to the Grand Canyon Area and beyond.