Monday, January 9, 2017

The first thing on the agenda this morning was to have Breakfast.  I thought we should have it at the Cottage Too, so we took off for the restaurant later this morning.  The place was quite busy this morning at 10:30 when we got there.  I thought by going a little late most of the people would have been in and out already.  We had our usual Breakfast and it was very good indeed.

On the way home we stopped at O’Reillys to pick up a couple of items to remove the broken license plate bolts on the motorhome.  I couldn’t find what I needed and apparently they weren’t interested in finding it for me, so I left empty-handed.

By the time we got back home the wind was pretty much going to spoil a trip to the pool this afternoon.  Sharon won’t go if the wind is blowing too hard.  Actually its not nice to go in the pool if the wind is blowing too much.  Besides we were actually waiting for the guy with the propane today.  They’re supposed to come in on Monday, but as luck would have it, they never showed up at all.  We’re running on vapors so I hope they come in tomorrow.

Sharon took off for the Gallery to work on the jigsaw puzzle that she was working on yesterday.  She came back home with a smirk on her face saying she had finished it.  She didn’t want anyone else to finish it for her, and she knew if she came home somebody would jump in there and finish it.

We had a DiGiorno’s pizza for Supper tonight.  By the time Sharon came home from the Gallery she really didn’t have any time to cook anything else.  It wasn’t a problem since both of us love the DiGiornos.  We usually only eat about half of it for a meal anyway.  The rest always goes in the fridge for a lunch over the next few days.  After Supper Sharon went out and got the “grill” table and brought it inside.  I’ve seen this before and it’s usually followed by the appearance of her own puzzle.  And true to form, out came the puzzle.  In some things she’s quite predictable.

So she worked on her puzzle tonight while I sat and watched a movie, “The Dallas Buyers Club.” She was glancing up and watching the movie also while she worked on the puzzle.

Since the wind was blowing pretty hard tonight we couldn’t watch TV on the satellite.  But as long as we’ve got taped movies on the DVR we’ve got something to entertain us for the night.  We made it to 10:30 without any trouble.

Tuesday, January 10, 2017

The wind was blowing this morning from the time we got up.  It does not look like it will get any better either.

Phil and Joyce Bach came into the park this morning and had the same argument we did with the management.  Because their motorhome was 36 feet they were over the limit of 33 feet for the Lower Campground.  They also managed to get them to relent and they parked near us.

After they got settled they stopped over and we discussed the parking situation among other things.  Phil and Joyce from Northern California near San Francisco, are our oldest friends in the park having joined the ranks of the members the same year.  We joined somewhere around 17-18 years ago.  So were both a part of all the changes that are going on here.

For the most part today we sat around watching the cable because of the wind and waiting for the guy with the propane to show up.  He was supposed to be here on Monday and never showed.  Sharon called the office and asked about who the company was, so she could call them.  The office assured us that they would be here before 2 this afternoon.  We waited at home hoping that they would show as promised............they didn’t.  So we wasted a day just sitting around and waiting for them.

We were on the cable all day today because of the wind.  There was no letup at all today.  Although it did settle down a bit tonight and we caught a couple of shows on satellite.  We prefer to watch TV on satellite because we’ve got a built in TV guide on the dish.

By the time 10:30 rolled around we had seen all our taped stuff and the wind had picked up again.  After we went to bed Sharon got up and put our bedroom slide back in.  The wind was making tremendous noise on the flapping awning.  After that, it quieted down somewhat.

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

We got up this morning to a call from the office saying that the propane truck has broken equipment and won’t be in today.  That’s just peachy.  I don’t know if we can make it to Friday when we leave here.  I guess we have no choice now.

Today is Taco Wednesday which is a regular stop on our schedule to the VFW today.  Phil decided that he would be driving today so we walked over the two sites to his car since it was facing in the wrong direction.  We would be meeting Henry and Arlene at the club this morning at noon.  They were already there when we showed up, and had already ordered two pitchers of beer.

The place was full today and we were lucky to get seats.  As usual, it was quite noisy in there. Nobody had left yet cause they were only having one 50/50 drawing these days.  I think the amount of the drawing today was $97.

By the time we finished up at the VFW we were almost the last people in the place again.  Not surprising, since were usually the last people in the place.

We came back home and I went directly to my recliner.  Since the wind was still blowing, we only had cable to watch again for the day.  Cable TV with no TV Guide really sucks, but it’s better than no TV at all.  The TV didn’t keep me awake however, as I sipped into the state of slumber.  And as long as I was sleeping Sharon decided she’d take a little nap also.  Besides it was too windy to go to the pool anyway.

We both scraped up some leftovers for Supper tonight.  I had the leftover Tamales from Sunday, and Sharon dove into the mountain of Rigatoni that she had made Tuesday night.  We both had a nice Dinner for ourselves, even if they were just leftovers.

It took until about 8 o’clock tonight before the wind died down enough to watch the satellite.  Lucky for us the programs that we had set to record, recorded normally and we could watch them.  It took us nicely up to 10 o’clock when I folded my tent.  Sharon stayed up for a while before she finally caved.  I was actually sleeping by the time she got there.  But I usually go unconscious the minute I hit the bed.  Tonight was no different.

Thursday, January 12, 2017

We were off this morning to one of my favorite places.  With Phil and Joyce arriving yesterday, we were on our way to the Cottage Too for Breakfast this AM.  We would meet Henry and Arlene there since we would be picking up Phil and Joyce because they were parked two sites away from us here at Catalina.

The restaurant was relatively busy again this morning but we found a couple of tables we could pull together.  We sat down to a lovely Breakfast for all of us.

After we got home, Sharon and I took off looking for a campground in the area to go to after we come back from Yuma in a couple of weeks.  Our campground here at Catalina Spa and RV Resort is going through a bunch of changes and we don’t want to get caught without a place to stay when we return at the end of January.

We stopped at all the campgrounds in the area that we were interested in and checked their rates and availability at the end of January.  Without exception they were all booked for February except two.  Since a couple of places had spaces available now because of the empty sites, they will be full when we come back.  One of the managers sent us to Vista Grande RV Resort which is just behind Catalina and he had space available when we need it.  We walked around and checked out the clubhouse and the pool, hot tubs and bathrooms, and everything looked very nice.  They also had a handicapped site right next to the pool that he was willing to give us.  We don’t usually take handicap sites because they mostly don’t work out for us.  But this one was right next to the clubhouse.  We jumped at the site and took it for February and March.  The price was also very reasonable at $440 per month, plus Electric.

We stopped at Phil and Joyce’s when we got back and talked about the reservation at Vista Grande.  We also wanted to check with them about going to Card Bingo tonight. I told them that I’d be taking the car up and they were welcome to come with us.

We left for the Upper Clubhouse about 6:15 for the Card Bingo game tonight.  And as luck would have it, we won 5 games tonight but never won a candy bar.  We walked out of there with $16 to the good.  So we’re still $8 ahead because it cost us $4 each week to play, and last week we didn’t get diddly.

After coming back home we sat and watched a couple of our favorite shows before going to bed.  Today was the first day here we had no wind at all and our shows recorded normally.  We’ve recorded before today but the results were sporadic.

Friday, January 13, 2017

It was raining this morning when we got up.  It figured, since this was a moving day for us.  We weren’t in any hurry since we were moving less than a mile down the road.  Eventually we got tired of waiting for the rain to subside and put on our rain suits  and went out and disconnected our utilities.  It was still raining, and about 10 AM, by the time we left the campground.  It felt very strange since this may be the last time our motorhome will leave this park. It has been our homepark here in California for the last 20 years, but the changes that are being considered are not to our liking.  And in fact we may not be to the park’s liking, as well.  In any event, we pulled out without any fanfare and it was sad to think we may not be back.

Our first stop after we exited the park was up on the corner for LP Gas.  We had been out for the last two days.  The propane truck was supposed to be in on Monday but never showed up all week.  We were surprised to find at the amount of room behind the building at the propane place.  From the street it looks like it’s very tight for motorhome but there’s lots of room to get in and out.  I think a motorhome could actually get in there with a car attached.

Up the road another block or so, was our destination at Caliente Springs RV Resort.  It was still raining when we arrived so we settled on a quick electrical hookup for the day.

Sharon set up the dish and then took off with the laundry after we got settled.  She was gone for a couple of hours and when she got back it was still raining.

We sat in front of the tube until it was time for Supper tonight.  We wanted fish and we’ve been going to Carl’s Jr. For cod sandwiches on Fridays but when we were there in Quartzsite they stopped serving their fish sandwich.  But we left, headed in the direction of McD’s and In-n-Out Burger.  As luck would have it, when we stopped at McDonald’s they were still serving their Fish Sandwich.  So we had a couple of those with Fries. 

We came back home and settled in for the night.  It was still raining so the utilities will have to wait until tomorrow.  It isn’t a problem, its just that you like to get everything done right away.  There’s plenty of time to get it done later.

We had regular shows on tonight that we watched right up until we headed out for bed.  Sharon stayed up for awhile again tonight and that seems to work out for her.  Sometimes she just lays in bed wide awake for hours, which she tries to prevent.

Saturday, January 14, 2017

We actually awoke to a windless sunshiny day today.  We hadn’t had one of these in quite some time.  One reason why we haven’t been in the pool in the last week.

Sharon was off to rummage sales around the various parks and while she was gone I decided to cook myself a very nice Breakfast of Bacon, Eggs, Hash Browns, Toast, Juice and Coffee.  I cooked it while she was gone cause I knew that she wouldn’t want it even if she was here.  It turned out very good indeed.

I stayed home from the rummage sale odyssey because one of the parks she was going to, doesn’t allow anyone to drive around with a car.  I can’t walk the parks anymore, and I had to leave my scooter at home this year because the motor was not working right.

By the time Sharon came back home it was time for me to go out and connect our utilities.  And as sometimes happens, it was trouble from the start.  The Sewer worked just fine but the water connection was sabotaged from the beginning.  The hookup was so bad that I ruined a hose just trying to get it connected.  It was a good thing I had a second hose.  I finally just filled the water tank and decided to run off the pump for the week.  It’s nice to have other options when you have a problem.

Without the dastardly wind we had the benefit of satellite TV all day today which was nice since we have no more cable TV here.  We could have purchased it but why bother if we have our own signal?  Besides I’ve been recording movies from HBO, Starz, Cinemax and Showtime for when the wind blows we have something to watch.

Sharon made a delicious Cauliflower, Broccoli and Chicken Casserole for Supper tonight.  She mad it a little different than she usually does and it was fabulous.  We also had some Garlic Mashed Potatoes that she had frozen from Thanksgiving which accented the casserole nicely, and provided gravy for the potatoes.

The “welcome” lady stopped by the motorhome this afternoon and presented us with some information and a cloth bag with Caliente Springs printed on it.  It was quite a nice gesture.  I think it was meant for first-time visitors and we’ve been here a couple of other times in the past.  We like to spend our outweeks here.

We camped out in front of the TV for the night and even though it was Saturday we found enough to watch to get us through the night.  We called it quits and folded up our tents at 10:30.

Sunday, January 15, 2017

Sharon was up and off to church this morning and I settled in to watch my Sunday morning political shows.  Sharon was going shopping on her way home from church this morning.  She thought she might go to Walgreens and K-Mart, but she also stopped to see the “orange guy” selling his wares alongside the road.  She picked up a bag with 41 oranges in it.  She said that the oranges were a little small this year.

I went out and dumped our holding tank while she was gone.  I had a couple of arrangements that had to be made because we weren’t hooked up to water because of the bad faucet at the utilities.

By the time Sharon got home it was almost time for the game.  Green Bay would be playing Dallas for a chance to go into the Championship Game next week.  It was a helluva game and the Packers won it in the last seconds of the game after blowing an 18 point lead.  Aaron Rodgers completed a spectacular pass to Jared Cook, who made an unbelievable catch on the sidelines, right at the end of the game, and Mason Crosby kicked a Field Goal which won the game.  I had to call my brother in Maryland who I’d been texting all through the game.  They were screaming and yelling while I listened on the phone.  It was a happy day for all of us Packer fans.  Now we’re on to the Conference Championship next week.

We had an interesting “experiment” for Supper tonight.  Sharon showed me a book that had 100 secret recipes in it.  She asked me if I wanted a Big Mac or an In-n-Out Burger for Supper tonight.  I chose the Big Mac and that’s what we had.  Having eaten many Big Macs I knew what they tasted like and this burger was definitely “Big Mac” tasting for sure.

We had a very nice day today with no wind and sunshine all day.  We didn’t go to the pool today because of the game that was on TV.  Given a choice between the pool and the Packer game, the Packers win every time.

We settled in front of the tube for the night starting with 60 Minutes. When I found out the entire hour was devoted to Obama, I deleted the recording, and moved on to another recording.  He’s been lying for 8 years and I don’t need to listen to it anymore.

We managed to find enough to watch to take us to the bewitching hour of 10:30 and joyfully into bed.