Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Matilda

 

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There she is with her friends, living her new life.  Set her free and she didn’t come back, but can tell she is so happy with her new family.  Happy Easter everyone.

Monday, March 25, 2013

Spring time, love’n it

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The yucca’s are in bloom, wild flowers are popping up all over.  Makes you love southern California.  Great to be back and I have gotten the green thumb urge.  Bought a lot of flowers, aka rabbit food at Jojoba Hills.  But heck some people have gotten lucky and they have beautiful blooms.

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And so far mine are still here.  Also put some out some in pots, that should help, those little bunnies are not too good at climbing.. 

We have been very busy the past week, I started back to water aerobics, work with a few volunteer projects, and just getting settled.  St. Patty’s outing with the “Mad Hatters”, we went to an Irish pub.  Probably scared the men that were hanging out there.  There something wild and crazy when a bunch of women get together. 

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Plus we all par took of there stout brews.  Taxes out of the way, trip to Costco, all the every day stuff.  We are going to Borrego Springs April 1st with a group from here.  But also are meeting  Bob/Chuck and Barb there.  They had planned to stop here for a few days, and it was one of the places we wanted to show them, so it will be nice to spend more than trying to do it all in a day trip.  Will be sure and take lots of pictures, as there are 100 or more iron sculptures placed in that area. Looking forward to the trip.

  • Worth the read.
    No matter what our kids and the new generation think about us, WE ARE AWESOME !!!
    OUR Lives are LIVING PROOF !!!
    To Those of Us Born
    1925 - 1970 :
    At the end of this email is a quote of the month by Jay Leno. If you don't read anything else, please
    read what he said.
    Very well stated, Mr. Leno.
    ~~~~~~~~~
    TO ALL THE KIDS WHO SURVIVED THE
    1930s, '40s, '50s, '60s and '70s!!
    First, we survived being born to mothers who may have smoked and/or drank
    while they were pregnant.
    They took aspirin, ate blue cheese dressing, tuna from a can, and didn't get tested for diabetes.
    Then, after that trauma, we were
    put to sleep on our tummies
    in baby cribs covered
    with bright coloured lead-based paints.
    We had no childproof lids on medicine bottles, locks on doors or cabinets,
    and, when we rode our bikes,
    we had baseball caps,
    not helmets, on our heads.
    As infants and children, we would ride in cars with no car seats, no booster seats, no seat belts, no air bags, bald tires and sometimes no brakes..
    Riding in the back of a pick- up truck on a warm day was always a special treat.
    We drank water from the garden hose and not from a bottle.
    We shared one soft drink with four friends, from one bottle, and no one actually died from this.
    We ate cupcakes, white bread, real butter, and bacon. We drank Kool-Aid made with real white sugar. And we weren't overweight.
    WHY?
    Because we were always outside playing...that's why!
    We would leave home in the morning and play all day, as long as we were back when the streetlights came on.
    No one was able to reach us all day.
    --And, we were OKAY.
    We would spend hours building
    our go-carts out of scraps
    and then ride them down the hill,
    only to find out we forgot the brakes.. After running into the bushes a few times, we learned to solve the problem..
    We did not have Play Stations, Nintendos and X-boxes. There were
    no video games, no 150 channels on cable,
    no video movies or DVDs,
    no surround-sound or CDs,
    no cell phones,
    no personal computers,
    no Internet and no chat rooms.
    WE HAD FRIENDS
    and we went outside and found them!
    We fell out of trees, got cut,
    broke bones and teeth,
    and there were no lawsuits
    from those accidents.
    We would get spankings with wooden spoons, switches, ping-pong paddles, or just a bare hand, and no one would call child services to report abuse.
    We ate worms, and mud pies
    made from dirt, and
    the worms did not live in us forever.
    We were given BB guns for our 10th birthdays, made up games with sticks and tennis balls, and
    -although we were told it would happen- we did not put out very many eyes.
    We rode bikes or walked to a friend's house and knocked on the door or rang the bell, or just walked in and talked to them.
    Little League had tryouts
    and not everyone made the team.
    Those who didn't had to learn
    to deal with disappointment.
    Imagine that!!
    The idea of a parent bailing us out if we broke the law was unheard of. They actually sided with the law!
    These generations have produced some of the best risk-takers,
    problem solvers, and inventors ever.
    The past 50 to 85 years have seen an explosion of innovation and new ideas..
    We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility, and we learned how to deal with it all.
    If YOU are one of those born
    between 1925-1970, CONGRATULATIONS!
    You might want to share this with others who have had the luck to grow up as kids before the lawyers and the government regulated so much of our lives for our own good.
    While you are at it, forward it to your kids, so they will know how brave and lucky their parents were.
    Kind of makes you want to run through the house with scissors, doesn't it ?
    ~~~~~~~
    The quote of the month
    by
    Jay Leno:
    "With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?"
    For those that prefer to think that God is not watching over us...go ahead and delete this.
    For the rest of us.....pass this on.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

SHOPPING DONE

 

The main purpose of our stopping in Yuma was to hit the flea market and a quick trip across the border, done and done.  Last year when we were here I bought  some rubber sandals called Dawgs, love, love em.  Very hard to find them, ordered some on line, Canadian company,  but never received them, and when I checked as to why, they stated they were out of them.  But they did have some here, although colors were limited.  Then a fast trip to Mexico,

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lunch, margaritas, the best guacamole ever,

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or maybe it was the best margarita….

 

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Or both.

Anyway the line back in  to the US was only about 15 minutes, at times it can be a couple of hours,  so we were happy.

The last few days we have stayed at the Escapees park in Yuma.  Looking forward to being back in Jojoba, just 190 miles to go.

Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Tucson

 

Today we took a ride into the Saguaro National Park.  Had the camera smoking, every where you looked there was a special beauty.

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Tucson is also the bone yard for the military’s airplanes, pictures can not do this justice,  planes of all sizes, from every branch of the service.  Miles of them!

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We have decided that we will move on to Yuma tomorrow.  Want to make the trip into Mexico, and Algodones is so nice, just the long wait to get back in the US.  But maybe we will hit it lucky, one can hope.

The weather has certainly turned to summer, have the air on, what a quick change. 

Monday, March 11, 2013

GETTING OUT OF TEXAS


After spending a few great days visiting Mike and Leslie, in Kerrville, we were once again listening to Willie Nelson’s “On the Road Again”.  The weather was wonderful, except for the head wind that stayed with us all the way.  At times it felt like we were on a stationary bike, the only thing moving was our gas gauge. There is not much to break the monotony in west Texas.  Thankfully we had a good audio book that kept our attention and the miles past quickly.  Stopped for the night in El Paso at the military camp ground.  The GPS took us to a gate that was shut, but we spotted the RV park in the distance and made our way to it.  We were back on the road in the morning, GPS set for Benson, Arizona, where Bob/Chuck & Barb
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are work camping.  We got set up in the site next to them, and we had a nice dinner that Barb had prepared for us.  And a fabulous dessert of brownies, made me realize just how bad the ones that I took to Mike & Leslie's were.  I had made them in a cast iron pan in my new oven and the combination resulted in our having to scoop the editable part out and making a brownie sundae. 
We spent the next 3 days enjoying their company, eating and having a good time.
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Tombstone
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The wind seemed to start up around 11 or so and then continued for the rest of the daylight hours.  Being as they do not change the clocks here, we are now on California time……I think.  We have some non RVing friends that live in Sierra Vista, and popped down there for a few days,  friends that go back to when Chuck was in the service.  Did a little sightseeing, Fort Huachuca, and took a drive out Bisbee.  At one time it  was a huge cooper strip mining operation, but after two years of them striking for higher wages, the owners decided they no longer needed to have a mine.  Now they are left with a big empty hole in the ground.
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Amazing hole that it is.  The small town that is left has become a tourist attraction in a way, more so in the summer, with little shops and all. Very hilly, very hippy, artsy and all that goes with it.

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Rain happened off and on all day.
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We have now settled into the camp ground at Davis Monthan AFB.  Today was a laid back day, Chuck took advantage of the beautiful weather and went golfing.  I’m downloading pictures and doing the blog.  Not sure if we are going to Yuma or just head back to Jojoba Hills.  Time will tell.  Had hoped to catch up with Bob & Molly there, but they left today for a month of grandbaby time back in Virginia.  Time will tell. 

Saturday, March 2, 2013

RETREIVING TRAVEL TRAILER MISSION

Left California bright and early with a feeling of anticipation, the day had finally arrived, we were on the road to start a new adventure. We took the road over the “mountain” into Indio, aka the heart attack ridge. With out the RV it wasn’t too bad, but still not a piece of cake. Once there the storm clouds disappeared and it was blue sky and smooth sailing. We found out later that we manage to stay just hours ahead of a giant snow storm. Almost unheard of in this region. We basically drove, stopping only to gas up, and potty stops. I know….TMI…..shut down for the night in El Paso. The next afternoon we were picking up the little guy, having not officially given the travel trailer a name. Thought of Little Bit, but too much like 2 Bits, and still miss our cat, so that will not work. There was a small campground just down the road from the RV dealer so we decided to spend a few nights there, check things out. We were totally surprised at the space and amount of storage we had available.   vegas trailer pickup 056 vegas trailer pickup 055
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Love the bathroom.  It is actually roomy, with  a wardrobe closet and towel, ect. closet.  So much room, very happy with every thing so far. 

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Had only seen the inside at a dealer in California, but because of the Murphy bed, knew that it was the kind we wanted. Which meant our choices were very limited, and because of the scarcity, price was mostly non-negotional. Thus the main reason for the trek to Texas, price. Also wanted to register our car in Texas. Well that did not work out in Dublin, so it meant a trip to Livingston. We arrived at the Escapees park in early afternoon, ran back into town, with in minutes had the car registered. Had tried for two months to do it by mail and then time ran out and had to renew it in California. Seems it is not legal to drive a vehicle with plates different than your license. Even if you are in the witness protection program. We didn’t think there was a problem as we hadn’t planned to have it travel with us, when we are on the road.

Spent a few nights in Livingston and decided that we would move to the Elks at Huntsville where our friend Mac &Netters Mac and Nette's Road to Retirement are working at gate guarding near there. One thing led to another and before we knew it we had a plan to “swarm” them at the site they were at. People coming from all directions, Arlene, Roaming When We Can, John & Bridgett, travelsofjohnandbridget.blogspot.com , Roger & Barb, and even Rod &Deb, KEEPING UP WITH THE KENDALLS .
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vegas trailer pickup 100Rod & Deb
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Arlene Great Picture!
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John & Bridgett,Mac &Netters,Roger & Barb, and Deb of Rob &Deb.  Sorry Rod…should have used the wide lens.
It was wonderful, we knew everyone, but several of the people had never met, yet everyone knew each other. Blogs and Facebook, connecting the world. We laughed,and ate, and laughed some more, and yes, ate some more, and then, before we knew it, it was getting dark, time to try to find our way home. For some reason our GPS wouldn’t work, luckily my phone did the job, as we were leading the pack, or we might be still wondering around in the woods. Roger, Barb and Arlene came back to see our rig before heading out.  Next morning we were on the road, making our way to Buckhorn Resort, in Kerrville, Texas, where Mike and Leslie Kennedy are spending the winter months again. They didn’t know that we were coming, Mike was out and about when we knocked on their door, so when he came in thought he was going to have another heart attack. The last few days we have spent running around to some of our favorite spots here. Mamacitas Mexican restaurant, which was just as good as we remembered. Yesterday, laundry in the morning, and then we were off to Fredericksburg. Opa's sausage store, Chucks first stop, then lunch, perfect day, having lunch in the sunshine, with good friends, priceless. vegas trailer pickup 114 Spent an hour or so roaming a marvelous kitchen store, then off to Luckenbach. Took them to up town Luckenbach, which they did not know about. So look for it if you come this way. After sitting a bit at downtown Luckenbach,
vegas trailer pickup 119 we made the trip back to the park. That brings us up to now. Tomorrow we will be back on the road, destination Benson, AZ.  We are thinking another day to get out of Texas, (once you are in Texas, hard getting out)so will be Tuesday.  Looking forward to seeing Barb and BobChuck.