Monday, April 6, 2009

Of .course we both slept late this morning and were still in the bed at 8:45.  I think we both got enough sleep last night.  Maybe we're getting too old to stay out past 10 o'clock.  It looked to be a nice day today even though the wind was still here.  It was planning on gusting to around 20-30 MPH today.

My legs were too sore to go for a walk today and I don't know why.  I didn't do anything yesterday that would merit the aches and pains I had today.

By noon we were ready to have some kind of pleasant experience today.  We decided that it was going to be a trip to Mimi's Café to have lunch.  But first we would deliver the Newsletter to Jerry and Mary Milan since it was on the way.  We had heard about Mimi's from friends back at Catalina Spa and never got a chance to go there to eat.  We didn't have anything else to do today so why not go for lunch.  I had the Pasta Jambalaya and Sharon had the Crispy Chicken Cacciatore.  We ordered from the "Just Enough" menu and the amount was plenty and just enough.  The food was excellent and they gave us a warm roll and a slice of spice cake before we ate.

After we left Mimi's we drove over to Jayce's to drop off another Newsletter.  She wasn't home but her door was open so we thought she might be at the pool.  We decided not to bother her over there.

We headed toward home and when we got there we sat outside in the sun/shade.  It was warm but it felt very good with the gentle breeze that was blowing.  I decided to scooter over to the office and check and see if they had bolt cutters in maintenance.  I needed to cut a lock off my tow cables so I could replace them.  I already bought the new cables and have been carrying them around since we came through Tucson in December.  I really haven't felt like changing them up until now.      Darryl from Maintenance came by about 15 minutes later and snip, snip the lock was gone.  Now I can change the cables whenever I feel like it.  I had put two locks on the cables a couple of years ago and managed to cut one off with a hacksaw but the other was too ornery.  I went through 3 blades and it was still there.

The rest of the afternoon we sat and waited to hear from Bill and Jan Dieckman who were planning to come here and spend a couple of days before we leave here.  We didn't hear a thing from them, however, so I guess it won't be today that they'll be arriving.

I settled in front of the tube tonight waiting for "24" to come on.  The Michigan/North Carolina game was also going to be on at the same time, so I need to surf during the commercials.  And as luck would have it, the Tarheels to it to them in the first half and the Spartans never made it back.

The rest of the night of programming was screwed up because of the game, so it became necessary to surf for the rest of the night.  We stayed up until 10 but couldn't wait to go to bed tonight.  I even made it there before Sharon turned out the light after doing her puzzles.  This was the first time all year.  And I actually drifted right off to NaNa Land.

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

We were off this morning to go to Golden Corral for their Buffet Breakfast.  We've got the price figured out for us.  If you don't have coffee, and drink their 4 flavors of juice or white or Chocolate Milk, the price is 4 dollars cheaper.  I like the price of that.  Their Breakfast is also very good with many choices of food.

After we got done with Breakfast Sharon wanted to browse around a couple of stores and I was more than willing to let her.  Our first stop was Michaels across the highway in the new mall that they've opened there.  After about a half hour in Michael's we were on the road again.  I knew she also wanted to browse around through K-Mart while she was here so that would be our next stop.  By the time she finished up in K-Mart it was already starting to get "hot" outside.  It was going to be in the 90's today, without a doubt.

We arrived at home and Sharon had already turned on the Air Conditioner before we left and it was a good thing.  Just in the hour or so that she was shopping around, the temperature shot up almost immediately.  By the time we got home it was comfortable to just sit inside and wait.  Sharon checked the pool the other day and it seemed a little cool to her.  So even though the temp is a real scorcher I don't think we'll be headed to the pool anytime soon.

We decided that we needed some stuff from Fry's Grocery Store, so we got back in the car and headed over there.  By this time it was almost hard to breathe it was so hot.  It was very nice inside Fry's , however, but that would be short lived.  I had turned on the second air conditioner before we left the motorhome and that will get it a little cooler inside.  And by the time we got back, the temp inside the motorhome was more comfortable indeed.

We didn't budge the rest of the day.  We were both content to just sit and watch TV.  Sharon was a little bored cause she was finished with her book and the magazines that she had on hand.

Neither of us was hungry for supper so Sharon through together a few snacks to eat instead.  Some Cheese and crackers and Venison Sausage and Celery with Artichoke and Garlic dip in them.  It was all quite good, and hit the spot, without having a meal.  Besides as long as I ate something it was okay to have a doughnut that we picked up at Fry's when we were there.

The rest of the night we settled in front of the TV and Sharon turned off the Air when she got too cold.  Of course she turned it back on again when she got warm.  It's nice when you have an "automatic environment controller."  The "controller" went to bed about 9:30 and I stayed up til about 10:30.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

We were up and the both of us had taken our walks this morning and we got some visitors.  The first one was from the park and she was asking us about the coupon that we had for Bill and Jan Dieckman, our friends from Iron Mountain.  They would be coming in today for a couple of days and the woman was just trying to straighten out the information that was on her sheet.  It took a few minutes to clear things up, but she was satisfied when she left.

Our next visitor was Dennis Massey, who had been reading our Journal on the web.  He is a retired Policeman from Iowa who just wanted to stop by and say hello.  We were tickled to have him visit.  This visit was much like how we met Corky and Deb Zimmermann from West Bend, Wisconsin.

Bill and Jan rolled in about 1 o'clock right after lunch.  We gave them a chance to get set up and then we stopped over to visit.  We sat and talked for a couple of hours   We also let them know that we were going to the Elks Club tonight for burgers and they were invited.  When we left we told them that we would pick them up at 5:15 for the ride to the Elks.

It was still a couple of hours before we left for supper so I raced Sharon back to the motorhome.  I don't think she was really racing but I beat her anyway.  I was on my scooter, but I went around the long way.

We sat and watched TV for a while before it was time to go for supper.

I had fully expected the cable to arrive for my chair today.  I keep forgetting to call Mobility RV to get the tracking number for it.  I'm sure it'll be here before the week is out, but I wish it would come while I'm home.

We picked up the Dieckmans at Supper time and managed to get to the Elks Club before Jerry and Mary went inside.  We parked right behind them in the lot.

We had a hard time getting our food tonight even though Sharon ordered at the same time as everybody else.  There were 10 people at our table and we were the ones who didn't get our food on time.  Go figure!  We had come out tonight with Jerry and Mary Milan and 4 of their friends.  It was a fun group.

After we got done at the Elks we took Bill and Jan on the scenic tour of Casa Grande.  We took them down Florence Boulevard and across the Interstate just to show them all the building that's gone on in the past few years.  It only took us about a half hour to get the tour over with and we were back home by 7:30.

We sat and savored the Telly for the rest of the night.  There wasn't too much that was exciting on tonight except for CSI:NY.  We had to stay up until 11 tonight to catch all the shows since we missed them on the early network tonight.  Not a problem, since I just napped through the boring parts anyway.  I was told about my lapses of consciousness when we went to bed.  It didn't seem to affect my sleep however, as I drifted off just like I always do.

Thursday, April 9, 2009

We got a leisurely start this morning even though we had a plan for the day.  We picked up Bill and Jan and headed over to Skydive University.  It's a place near the Eloy Airport where people come from all over the world to skydive.  We've been here before with other friends, and Jerry and Mary Milan introduced us to this place.  We've taken all our friends who've ended up out here for a visit.  The Skydivers jump all day from dawn to dusk and you just sit on lawn chairs and watch them.

We arrived about 11 o'clock and sure enough they were falling out of the sky already.  It didn't take more than about 10 minutes before another group came floating down.  And like everything else it takes all kinds in skydiving also.  Some of them come ripping into the ground about 35-40 miles per hour and some just float down and plop standing up.  The ones coming down fast manage to curb their speed before they actually land.  It's a real hoot watching them and it makes for a very enjoyable day.  It never ceases to amaze us and we've been here several times.

At lunchtime we had a Cheeseburger and a beer at the Bent Prop Restaurant.  We also noticed that there were tons of new buildings that had been built on the property.  Built to accommodate the numbers of Skydivers that come here, There seemed to be any number of buildings in support of the sport.

There is also a new addition since the last time we were here.  It's called "The Wind Tunnel."  It's a vertical wind machine that allows the skydiver to practice his "in flight" positions while still being on the ground.  It's really kind of High Tech to say the least.

After the Wind Tunnel we headed home and finished up the Casa Grande Tour from Trekkel west to Pinal down Florence Boulevard and then home.  We were pooped by the time we got home.  Me and the Mrs. took a little nap when we got home and recharged our batteries.

By suppertime neither of us was hungry to eat anything after the huge burger at the Bent Prop.  At about 7 Bill and Jan stopped over and stayed for a couple of hours.  If they can find a place to stay for a couple of days we may be traveling home together.  At least part way until we split up.  But they need to pick up a few days at another campground for it to happen.  They will have had their sales pitch and they need to leave by Saturday.

They left about 10 and we settled in for a little TV at that time.  It didn't take long for the heaviness of the eyelids to take over, however.  We managed about an hour of TV and then we headed for the horizontal feather bag.  Tomorrow will be another day.

Friday, April 10, 2009

We got a leisurely start this morning and headed out about 9:30 to pick up Jerry and Mary and go up to the Marketplace at Mesa.  It takes about an hour to get there and we rolled in about 10:30.  I got my scooter out of the trunk and we went inside.  We had planned on shopping for awhile before we settled down for lunch.  So we managed to get through the first section before we figured it was time for lunch.  We did find the lamp we were looking for and purchased it.  We all met back at the food court of the second section and had a sandwich and a beer.  I was relieved that we had found the lamp I broke last summer.  Now if we can just get it home in one piece I'll be happy.

Jerry and I shopped until we dropped and then found each other back at the beer depot.  Mary and Sharon showed up shortly afterward and we all had a beer before we jumped back in the car and headed home.  In another hour we were rolling into Casa Verdes to drop Jerry and Mary off, and then we turned toward home.

When we got back to the park we went over to Bill and Jan's to find out how they made out with the sales pitch.  The were sitting through the sales pitch here while we were gone today.  Apparently there was no "high pressure" according to Bill, and the experience was pleasant enough.  We had decided yesterday that if all of us were hungry tonight when we got home we'd go out to eat together.  We finally decided on going to Golden Corral and have their Seafood Special tonight.

Sharon and I went home to get ourselves ready and they would pick us up in time to go and eat.

We had seen the commercial on TV about GC's Seafood Special and it didn't live up to the hype. I wanted the Coconut Shrimp and the Crab Cakes and neither lived up to the expectation that I had.  They were good but nothing special.  The Cocoanut Shrimp hardly tasted like coconut and the Crab Cakes were overcooked on one side.  But we all managed to have enough to eat before we left to come back home.

We settled in for some TV before we went to bed.  One of us napped in his recliner for most of the night and didn't see much TV.  I guess the drive today took a little out of me.  I took myself out of the game at the same time Sharon went to bed tonight.  There was no point in trying to watch TV and sleeping in my chair for the rest of the night.

Saturday, April 11, 2009

I was up early this morning but we weren't going anywhere.  Jan and Bill stopped over this morning to discuss how we would meet up on Wednesday.  They'll need to pull up on to the freeway as we're passing.  The traffic will probably be quite busy at the time that we'll arrive down there.  It should take us a little over an hour to make it.

As soon as Bill and Jan left Sharon was off with the laundry. I had a couple of things to do with the motorhome before we leave on Wednesday.  I started out by checking the oil and then moving on to changing my tow cables on the hitch.  They're starting to fray on one side and I've had the cables for a couple of months but now it's time to tow the car so they need to be changed.

By the time lunch rolled around Sharon was back with the laundry and suggested that I check the mail room in the clubhouse for my recliner cable.  I've been waiting for it for the last 10 days and it's supposed to be coming UPS.  Usually UPS is not that bad about shipping stuff.

We had Tortilla Soup for lunch and I made myself a Toasted Cheese Sandwich to go with it, and it was very good.  By the time we got done with lunch it was time to go to the Clubhouse and check the mail room for my cable.  As luck would have it, the cable was there. If Sharon hadn't suggested it, I would have left the cable in Desert Shadows mail room.  Mobility RV told me when they shipped it that it would be delivered directly to my site when it arrived.  It came on the 9th of April.

Later we made room under the bed for the lamp that we picked up at the Mesa Marketplace.  It was in the trunk of the car but I think under the bed will be a softer ride for the trip home.

Sharon baked up some chicken with a new recipe for Supper tonight.  The Chicken pieces were dipped in egg and then battered with canned fried onion rings.  We also had a salad and Fried Potatoes.  It was all quite good indeed.

We settled in for our usual Saturday night entertainment tonight.  That being, surf like crazy until you find something worth watching.  It was quite a chore tonight since anything worth watching was a repeat anyway.  We caved at 10 and headed south.

Sunday, April 12, 2009HAPPY EASTER

Sharon was off to church this morning as soon as she got up.  I still had a couple of things to do on the motorhome before we could leave on Wednesday.  I got to it as soon as she left.

My first order of business was to check the air pressures in the tires.  I found that they were about 10 lbs. Over pressured so I released some air from them.  Having lost the use of my compressor when we were at home, I had a local tire dealer air them up for me.  Not realizing how full they filled them, we've been driving around overpressured since we left home.

Since I found my cable the other day in the park mail room, I needed to fix my recliner before we leave also.  I got the cable in and was waiting for Sharon to return to help me lift the chair back onto the pedestal.  It only took a few minutes and we did it after we ate our McD's Breakfast that she picked up on her way.

We were ready to go to Tucson to have Easter Dinner with my Cousin Tom McKenna and his wife Dawn and the rest of their family.  It would take us about an hour to get there and we left right at 1 PM.  By the time we got there almost everybody was there already.  After a couple of cocktails and Hors d'oeuvre we sat down to a lovely Dinner of Ham and Lamb, Potatoes, Corn on the Cob and one of the best salads I've ever eaten.  Every thing was very good, even the lamb, that we had never had before.  We sat around talking after Dinner for a couple of hours and then decided we should get on our way back home so we wouldn't have to travel after dark.  It was going to be another 60 minute drive to get back home.

It was actually a pleasure to get back home tonight and into my recliner.  With the back fixed again watching TV tonight was really comfortable again.  We actually stayed up until 11 tonight trying to catch all the shows we normally watch.  Actually only one of us stayed up until 11.  I turned around and looked after about an hour and I was by myself.  Oh well, there are some shows that she just won't watch, and The Unit is one of them.  At 11 I also gave up the ghost and went to bed.