Monday, February 11, 2008

We had some stuff to do this morning so we were up and rolling before noon.  We actually wanted to take in the Buffet Breakfast at JB's this morning to start out our day.  The restaurant here is not as good (variety) as the JB's in Casa Grande but the food is still very good.

After Breakfast we needed to stop across the street at the Post Office and pick up our mail.  It turned out to be a false alarm as the package from Family Motor Coach was not in yet.  That's not the first time that that's happened.

As we left the Post Office we headed downtown to the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge building think that it was the same as the Bureau of Land Management.  It wasn't, and the girl directed us to the BLM Office.  We wanted to find out about the BLM land around Borrego Springs, California.  We'll be there in a couple of weeks when we leave here and we don't want to pay for a campground for the overnight that we'll be there.  The "Arizona BLM" was absolutely no help for the "California BLM" land.  We'll have to go to El Centro to get that information.  We don't need it that bad.

We finally headed toward home.  The weather was turning out to be very warm today and the sky was clear.  I sat inside reading as Sharon decided she wanted to go to the Mall and check out the stores there.  She left and got back about 3 or so and sat outside to cross stitch for a while in the sun.

We had leftover Chicken and Rice for supper tonight.  It was still very good along with a salad and creamed corn.  Sharon, of course, had the rest of her Green Beans with her Chicken and Rice.

About 8:30 tonight while we were watching TV we felt the motorhome move under us.  It wasn't any violent movement but it felt like the coach was going down the road.  When it was over we looked at each other and said, "That was an earthquake."  And indeed it had been.  We listened to the news at 10 and there had been 3 quakes today in the 5.0-5.1 range.  The first two were earlier in the day and I guess we were too busy to feel them.  The epicenter was located about 15 miles southeast of Mexicali, Mexico which is just across the border from El Centro, CA.

We've only been back for a week and this is quite a 'welcome to Arizona' present.  Sharon has felt earthquakes in previous years but this was my first.  Interesting.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

We had a plan for today when we got up.  We were driving to Quartzsite to see some friends that we had been missing all winter.  We met Norma and Sue Jones several years ago at the Winnebago Factory in Iowa just after we bought our present motorhome in 2000.  Since that time we have been trying to meet up, if only for a day or two over the past 8 years.  In the first couple of years we would miss them as they are from the United Kingdom and flew back home before we would leave in the winter.  Now we leave about 6 weeks earlier and can still catch them in the states before they go.

We arrived in "Q" about 10:30 in the morning and started our annual visit.  It was cut short last year when we had to return home to take care of some family business.  About noon we decided to go into town to the Grubstake Pub and have lunch.  It's an English Pub that sells imported English beer and spirits.  Some of the stuff I had never even heard of before.  The Coconut Shrimp was absolutely delicious, however.  Sharon had a Shrimp and Crab Cake Dinner.

We had a very nice visit with the Jones's as we always do.  We left about 5:30 while it was still light out.  It takes about an hour and 15 minutes to get back to Yuma from "Q".  We got back home just as the sun was about to set during the twilight's last gleaming.  Man, THAT was quite poetic.

TV was lousy, as usual, again tonight but we watched it anyway.  What else did we have to do tonight?  We stayed up until 10 and then retreated quickly to the feathers.

It had been a trying day with the trip and all.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Sharon wanted to go into Mexico to get eyeglasses and after she got ready about 10 she announced she wanted to go today.  With what we've heard about the line coming back into the U.S. I told her to forget about today.  We'll do it early tomorrow when we can go in and get out quick with a couple of bottles of rum.  At least that's the well laid plan.

So having her trip to Mexico nixed she announced she was going grocery shopping instead.  It's about 10 miles into town so even a grocery stop is not a simple thing.  So she took off and left me sitting with the TV and the computer.  My close friends that I've had all winter.

By the time she got back it was just after noon and she was carrying a parcel from In-N-Out Burger.  What a girl!  After she put her groceries away we had a job to do.  Yesterday when we left for Quartzsite we got a lousy roll on the awning.  We lost the strap up in the roll and had to retrieve it today.  This was not like our A&E awning and didn't operate the same way, so we may have to do some Trial and Error in the process.  In checking it over, we could actually see the loop of the strap behind the roll, and Sharon hooked it with the awning rod.  It pulled right down and the fix was easier than I thought.

We sat outside and read for most of the afternoon until it was time to go in for supper.  We would be having Manwich along with Potato Salad for supper tonight.  A simple meal that throws together easily and tastes very good.

As usual, our entertainment for the night would be the Telly and not after 10.  I need to get my beauty rest for the trip to Mexico tomorrow.  Besides we'll have to be ready early to get a jump on the old people going into Algodones.  We also planned to go to the Marketplace tomorrow.  It's free admission on Thursdays and I know we'll have to take more than one day to get through it.  Gimpy won't be able to make all the way in one day.

Thursday, February 14, 2008 HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

We were up early this morning and ready to go.  We would be going to Mexico to pick up Liquor and Glasses for Sharon.  We headed out about 8 and it took about 20 minutes or so to get to Andrade which is the "town" where the border is.  Actually the only town in evidence is the RV park right near the border.

We left the car in the Quechan parking lot and started our short walk in.  We found out that they don't sell liquor until 11 Am so I was out of there.  It was only 9 and I didn't need liquor that bad to wait in the exit line for an hour to get out of Mexico.  By the time I got to the line it was only about 10 people long, and it took about 10 minutes to get out.  I went and sat in the car while Sharon went to the Best Optical for her glasses.  We each took an FRS Radio to keep in touch while she was over the border.

She was done about 10:30 and called me on the radio from the border.  She said she had about 20 people ahead of her so I knew how long it would take her to get back to the car.  I finished up reading the Tom Clancy novel that I had started just before we left on our flight home.

By the time we got back to Yuma it was just before 11 and a good time to go to the Olive Garden for their Soup and Salad lunch.  It was a good thing we went when we did because the place filled up as we sat there.  By the time we left, there were people waiting outside to get in.

We had intended to go to the Flea Market after our Mexico visit but we certainly weren't dressed for it.  The wind was howling this morning and it was quite nippy.  We went straight home and thought about changing into warmer clothes but we quickly nixed that idea for a nap.  We didn't really get up and start functioning til around 4 which was too late for the Flea Market.

Neither of us really wanted anything for supper tonight.  The soup and Breadsticks from Olive Garden were still weighing heavy on our stomachs.  We both had a second bowl of soup today which was a first.  And along with that you have to have more Breadsticks.

We snacked for supper tonight, a little later than we usually eat supper.

Tonight was the worst night for Television since we've been on the road.  There was absolutely nothing to watch tonight.  We ended up surfing the whole night, and Sharon settled in with a book to entertain her.

Friday, February 15, 2008

We were going to be on a tear this morning as we left the campground.  First off, we had to go to Mexico to pick up Sharon's glasses.  Hopefully that would be a quick trip, and for the most part, it was.  I waited in the car in the parking lot on the U.S. side of the border.  She was gone for about an hour or so and when she came back, we were off again.

We received a call from Jerie Nye as we approached the Yuma Marketplace and asked what we were doing today.  We told her our plans and told them we would stop over after we were done at the Marketplace.

We headed for the Flea Market at Yuma Marketplace, and since it was going to take me a couple of days to get through it, we decided to get started today.  As soon as we got to the gate of the parking lot we saw a sign for rental scooters.  Needless to say,  our first stop was at the scooter place.  We checked the rate and it was $10 an hour or $20 for the day.  We decided immediately that we would return tomorrow and rent it for $20.

We had a change of plans at this time and called Jerie back.  We asked them if they wanted to go out for lunch today since it was only 11 by this time.  So we drove to their campground since it was only about 3 miles from where we were.

We sat around the motorhome and discussed all of our recent problems and medical histories.  Jerie has had some trying times over the most recent past and Clay has had a knee replaced.  And bringing them up to date on my problems took at least a hour or so.  By this time, our ribs were rattling against our spines from hunger and we left to go to Burgers and Beer.  We followed them over there since it was so close to our campground.  We had a great lunch and some excellent conversation and agreed to get together next week.  Sharon and I always enjoy our time together with them.

We came home and immediately settled into our nap positions, me in the recliner, and her on the couch.  We were both happy and content with full stomachs, and we had finished off a couple of pitchers of beer to boot.  I got up just in time for Jeopardy, but Sharon snoozed til Wheel of Fortune.

Needless to say we wouldn't be having any supper tonight.  We'll have a little snack later on, but nothing very elaborate.  I couldn't decide whether TV or nap would win the war tonight.  And actually TV won the struggle but only til 10 when we raised our tents and put the camels away.

Saturday, February 16, 2008

We were ready to go by 9 this morning intending to go to the Yuma Marketplace and spend the day if necessary.  I rented a 4-wheel scooter and was prepared to do the whole market today.  This plan was much better than the original plan of trying to make it through on crutches over 2-3 days.

By 11 we stopped for lunch and had a delicious Cheeseburger with fries and a Bud Light, having had no luck finding what I was looking for.

I was looking specifically for a ceramic Fire Hydrant which would serve as a fountain in my front yard, after a few modifications.  Last year's new hydrant met it's demise on my concrete garage floor.  I'm hoping for better luck this year.  And as luck would have it, we found the hydrant in the start of the last row of the market.  I was beginning to think that a Birdbath would grace my front yard.  Yech!

I also tried to get through the Liquidation Tent with no luck.  The aisles were so narrow I just couldn't fit the scooter in between them.  Hopefully we'll come back next week just for the Liquidation Tent.  That's where most of the discount tools are located, and quite a few other really neat things.If we have time we'll come back later on in the week.

We picked up a couple of new lawn chairs for ourselves.  There really nice with 8 positions for the seat back.  We spent a lot of beer money at the market today.  We'll be on the wagon for the next month.  Yeah right!

After getting home we laid around until Sharon made Fried Chicken Sandwiches and Fries for supper.  The sandwiches were very good and were just enough after the long day.  Actually the day hadn't been that trying since it only took us about 3½ hours to get through the market.

Our usual entertainment of the Telly would finish out the night.  It seems easier now than it was before to find something to watch.  Discovery and the History Channels are doing overtime in this hacienda.  And the quality of the shows is as good as regular TV.

Sunday, February 17, 2008

Golden Corral was getting our business this morning.  They have a very good Buffet on Saturdays and Sundays and we intend to try it out this morning.  We were off about 9:30 headed toward town and Breakfast.  We figured we'd miss the Church crowd at the time we went but apparently they went to church early enough to get there the same time we did.  It was very crowded and the people didn't stop coming all the while we were there.

After Breakfast we stopped at the grocery store to pick up some Chili sauce for our ribs that we were having for supper tonight.  We needed a bottle of chili sauce to make the BBQ sauce that we put on top of the ribs before we brown them on the grill.  It was a quick stop and then we were on our way home.

Sharon took the laundry and went to the campground washers to take care of it.  She was gone an unusually long time today and apparently it was something to do with the number of people trying to use the washers.

I tried to light the oven for the ribs but I couldn't kneel on the floor very long and I never did get it lit.  Sharon came home at 2 thinking I may not get it lit.  She lit it and I prepared the ribs for their 3 hour baking.

We watched the end of the Daytona 500 while we were waiting for supper to be ready.  It was probably one of the most boring races I've ever seen.

The ribs were ready to come out at 5:15 in plenty of time to brown them on the grill and mop them with BBQ sauce.  About 20 minutes later they came off the grill and we were ready to eat.  They turned out fabulous and we had a couple of beers to chase them down.

We caught some odd shows on TV tonight.  There was crap on the regular channels so we surfed and checked out the off ones.  We hung in there til 10 and then headed off for the night.