Monday, February 6, 2006
As soon as she was ready this morning, Sharon took off for the Post Office to pick up our mail that we hope is waiting there. I finished up the dishes that were there and then got out my vacuum cleaner and started cleaning the compartment where we had hauled the wood for Quartzsite. It was a little late, but better late than never. I had already swept it out at "Q" but I wanted it vacuumed and cleaned completely. By the time I finished Sharon was back with the mail and I started on the trunk of the car. It had already been swept also, but needed a vacuum to clean it up completely. By the time I finished it was lunchtime and we both ate and waited for a call from Clay and Jerie Nye about what time to meet for our trip to Mexico today.
We had planned to go late today and then eat Supper there at Pueblo Viejo Restaurant. The restaurant is just over the border within a stone's throw from the Border Crossing. Apparently noone was interested in browsing or shopping except for the usual stop for liquor, so we just went right to the restaurant. We remembered as we entered that we had eaten at this restaurant before with Walt and Kathy Werden from home. They were out here that year and when we went to Algodones we ate at this restaurant. The food was excellent and the beer and Margaritas tasted very good on such a lovely day.
We picked up a couple bottles of Cherry Cordial that tastes great with Diet Coke. We also managed to pick up some more chocolates. Chocolate covered Malibu (coconut) Rum, and White Chocolate covered Cointreau. (orange) These are two new flavors that are just out this year.
By the time we left the restaurant we could see the line to go back into the U.S. and it was non-existent. I thought this would be a quick re-entry back to the states. Yeah right ! By the time we actually picked up our liquor and got to the border the line had now increased the wait for the crossing by about twenty minutes. In the parking lot some poor schlub was asking people if they had jumper cables. Of course I had a set in the trunk so I guess I was elected to help him out. That Good Samaritan act took about 10 minutes and then we were on our way again.
We had stop at Clay and Jerie's on our way home to drop them off and we went in to break out the chocolates and Clay offered us a little of his Brandy Alexander that he brought back. It was very good and so were the Chocolates. But time was running out on us and it was quickly approaching the time for "24" to be showing on the TV.
We left Clay and Jerie's and headed home to make sure we would catch our show on TV. And as luck would have it we made it with about 2 minutes to spare. Had we missed the early showing we could also have watched it at 9 on the west network. That's the beauty of DirecTV and the East/West Networks. The show was a slow-mover tonight with not much happening, but it's always exciting.
We got a call from Jess tonight saying that they were in their new house. They had a horrendous weekend moving with the snow and all and not having anyone to help them. I guess she just didn't feel like asking anyone. But it's the kind of job that people just don't offer to help.
Sharon was already in bed tonight by the time I got there. In fact she was already sawing logs with a dull blade in her saw.
Tuesday, February 7, 2006
We had absolutely nothing planned today and it certainly showed. And although I didn't expect it to be a totally "do nothing" day apparently Sharon had different ideas. She read and napped, and then ate lunch and napped again and soon it was time for Dinner.
We had Spaghetti and Meatballs, Salad and Garlic Bread. The meatballs were made with half ground beef and half Italian Sausage mixed together. The meatballs were a new experiment for Sharon after I suggested it the other day. After the meatballs turned out, I suggested that we try the same thing with meatloaf. She was game so I guess our next meatloaf will be half and half.
We settled in for more TV and reading tonight and by 10 there was nothing left but a good night's sleep. It had truly been a "do nothing" day for sure. I'm hoping tomorrow will turn up something to do or experience. We can't handle many of these days. I called Len and Rose tonight to apologize for not saying good-bye last night. As we came out of Mexico there was a guy waiting and asking if anyone had jumper cables and I did and walked off not realizing we would be going separate ways.
Wednesday, February 8, 2006
Our scheduled date to have our carpet cleaned arrived today. We spent most of the morning vacuuming and cleaning up so that we'd have an spotless hacienda when we were done. The carpet cleaners weren't due here until sometime after 2 and before 5.
We spent the whole afternoon just waiting for them to arrive. At 5 Sharon called them and suggested rescheduling in the morning. We didn't hear back from them until they arrived at 6, wanting to know if we wanted to reschedule. We had already put back all the furniture and things that were on the floor like electric cords, mats, throw rugs, etc. But it wouldn't be that much trouble to pick them up again.
We had eaten our Dinner before they arrived. Sharon made a Tuna Salad and Patty Melts and a side dish of Baked Beans. All was very good and a nice change of pace from our usual Dinners.
Since they were already here and we figured they'd just tie up another day, we decided to go ahead and have it done. Besides there was nothing on TV tonight and we had already eaten our supper. So we picked everything up and they commenced cleaning. It took them about a half hour and $30 and I thing that was about as much as the job was worth. It definitely looked better than it was before, but not really impressive.
When got back to the TV we watched a couple of shows that we hadn't seen before but at 9:30 there was nothing on. We broke out the movie that Norm St. Pierre had given to us at Quartzsite. We had never seen "Escanaba in da Moonlight" before, and we plugged it in and watched it. Escanaba is located 50 miles from our home, Iron Mountain. The movie was a little strange but we watched it to the end.
We were ready for the sack after the movie at 11. We raised the lights and lowered the curtain and applauded the last act. Nite, Nite.
Thursday, February 9, 2006
Our first job this morning was to mail out the Birthday present for our Grandson Brady back home. We took off about 10 toward the Post Office. It's about 7-8 miles back into town, but we figured that we'd do a little grocery shopping while we're there.
It didn't take long at the Post Office and we were quickly at the Grocery store which was only a couple more blocks up the street. We only had a few things to pick up including a pizza for lunch, so we were back on our way home in a very short period of time.
The weather today was partly cloudy and when the clouds covered up the sun it was a bit cooler than it was when the sun was out and shining. I was intending to dry-wash the motorhome today but it was just too warm with the sun shining. So I hemmed and hawwed about doing it all day. I actually took myself a nap after lunch, until it even got too warm for that. So I came up with the brilliant idea to go to the pool for awhile. It obviously was a brilliant idea cause there weren't many people there today. And the sun stayed out pretty much all the time we were at the pool. While we walked back to the motorhome we realized why we went to the pool in the first place. It was now about 4 o'clock and still very warm. I decided to watch TV for about an hour while the sun was headed down in the west.
While it was still light but cooler, I went outside and started on the front of the motorhome. Sharon started grilling the Pork Chops while I finished cleaning up the front cap. We both managed to finish at about the same time. I had worked myself into a sweat so I turned on the Air Conditioning to eat supper.
We had thick Pork Chops and Fried Potatoes, Green Beans and a salad for Dinner tonight. Sharon also decided that it would be a Whisky Old Fashioned night also. She can always get me to dip my beak with Old Fashioneds.
After Dinner we propped ourselves in front of the boob tube, ready to be entertained for the night. Thursdays are always one of our favorite nights for TV, and this Thursday would be no exception. But after Seinfeld at 9 o'clock there was nothing that interested us from then on. Sharon had already logged on to the Internet, read her paper and checked and written her e-mails. As far as we both were concerned, our day was over and we sauntered to the sheets for the night.
Friday, February 10, 2006
Another day with nothing planned but we did come up with an idea after a fashion. About 10 we took off for the Yuma Park and Shop. The Park and Shop used to be the main Flea Market in Yuma but the entire thing is dying because of the Arizona Marketplace. There were places closing down as we walked through. It is now considerably smaller than it was a few years ago. It seems a shame but the Arizona Marketplace has really taken over the snowbird shopping. We were only there for a couple of hours and that included eating lunch. Even some of the eating places were closed today. That may only be the result of the crowd that attended.
On the way home Sharon decided that today would be laundry day. And I had been procrastinating about wiping down the motorhome, and today would be a very good day for that. I had one side that would be sitting in the shade all afternoon, and since I had already done the front the other day, today would be a good day for the job.
I finished up before Sharon did, and was sitting inside in the Air Conditioning when she returned. Apparently she had to wait for machines while she was doing the laundry. That's always the drawback when you're trying to get laundry done in the park.
By the time she got back she started right in on Supper. We would be having Crab Cakes with Hollandaise Sauce, Tuna Salad and a Lettuce salad. It all would be very good. After we finished up the dishes it was time for the Opening Ceremonies of the Olympics in Turin, Italy. We watched that until 10 but it was very unusual to say the least. We didn't see one thing that anything to do with ice or snow. Usually they have skiers and skaters in the program and the only thing that resembled that was some inline rollerbladers. It was a very nice presentation just very unusual in that regard.
By 10 we had all our business taken care of. I had logged on to the Internet, Updated our virus software, Sharon had read the newspaper and checked e-mail. We had everything done and it was time to hit the hay, dive into the hay, or pile the hay, or whatever.
Saturday, February 11, 2006
Arising this morning we were confronted with the wind. Although the prospect of wiping down the rest of the motorhome in the wind didn't phase me a bit. It would only be a little cooler today to do my job. But when the temperature is in the 80's "a little cooler" is welcome respite for doing the job. Besides I had to get out there in the morning or else the side of the motorhome I had left would be in the sun. Sharon decided that she would come out and help me finish it off.
It only took about an hour and a half to get it completely done and it looked beautiful when we were finished. By this time the Olympics were already being played on the USA and CNBC Channels. We started by watching women's hockey in which the US was playing Switzerland and handily won. We watched the games on and off all afternoon. Because USA and CNBC are broadcasting the games we also get to see some of the more obscure sports that NBC won't be playing. By the time this week gets warmed up, the games will be in full tilt, and I'll be double-teaming the TV.
We had Rigatoni for supper tonight, but the chef got a little creative. Since she only had a little bit of the sauce leftover from the other night, she coated the noodles with Olive oil, Butter and grated Parmesan Cheese, then we spooned the remaining Sauce onto he noodles. Yum, Yum. We also had Garlic Bread and a lettuce salad to finish off a wonderful Supper, and of course the vino.
After we finished up the dishes we settled in front of the TV again to watch the NBC version of the games. There was mostly Pairs Figure Skating, which I also enjoy, but they showed none of the women's hockey and very little of the Nordic Combined of which I favor the Ski Jumping, mostly because of my interest and heritage with ski jumping.
We both hung in there until 10 when Sharon took the road to Sleepville and I watched a repeat of CSI that I hadn't seen before. But by eleven I was ready for the journey to the horizontal position also.
Sunday, February 12, 2006
I was up this morning and watching my Sunday morning shows when Sharon got up. It didn't take long before I switched over to Olympics, though. The politics were just not making it for me this morning.
Of course watching the Canadian women slaughter the Italians in hockey wasn't really that exciting either.
By 11 we were all ready to go to the Rodeo that we had planned to attend earlier in the week with Clay and Jerie and a few of their friends. We would take our own car and meet them at the Fairgrounds. It was only a few miles from our campground and it took us about 20 minutes to get there. It seemed like it took forever to finally walk in to the arena. Clay was waiting for us when we got to the arena, and everyone else was up in the stands sitting in the sun. Actually I thought it would be quite warm in the sun but I was mistaken. The wind was blowing somewhat and it was quite comfortable.
The rodeo itself was a great time. It started off with a jump by the Golden Knights Army Parachute Team. From there they went to the events accompanied by an announcer with a very annoying style and voice. But the show was a very enjoyable experience and we all had a really good time.
After the rodeo eight of us went to Burgers and Beer to eat Supper. We had a fabulous time eating burger and drinking beer. The other three couples were very friendly and fun to be with. We must have been at B&B for at least two hours by the time we finished up the last pitcher and made our way to the parking lot. We said our good-byes and left with Clay and Jerie to go back to their motorhome.
We stayed at Clay and Jerie's for a couple of hours before we had to leave to pick up some groceries. Sharon needed a few items to make pasties tomorrow. We've invited Clay and Jerie and Bob ad Bonnie Barr over for Dinner Tomorrow night.
It didn't take us long at the grocery store and we were back home again to relax and watch some TV. We had missed the early versions of Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy so we watched the Olympics until 10 when we could watch the later version of our two shows. Sharon tried but didn't make it. I managed to make it through both shows and finally went to bed at 12. But I was plenty tired by the time I finally made it.
