December 21 to 27, 2014

Sunday ; Thin cloud cover, mild.

This morning Joanne went off by herself to do some grocery shopping. I did Bo-gility with ... Bo, of course ! I wrapped Christmas gifts. I hate wrapping Christmas gifts. And it always makes me feel a bit melancholy. It reminds me that I used to dump this undesirable ( from my perspective ) job on my mother-in-law. It reminds me that I miss her.

This afternoon we did some minor maintenance on Elsie the truck camper. Then we went for a very early dinner at the ( motor ) home of our friends Bill and Lynne. After dinner we all went together to the clubhouse for the regular Sunday evening ice cream social, then back to our Arizona room for more visiting and trip planning.

Monday ; Sunny and warm. Finally ... a Sun Oven day ! Joanne cooked a beef pot roast in the Sun Oven for dinner, and invited her friend Eilene to join us for dinner.

This morning I transplanted a bunch of cacti cuttings from a neighbour into my cactus gardens in the dog park behind our rear fence. I spent the afternoon reviewing and rearranging everything on the shelves in our shed. In the evening I did financial work, including paying this month's MasterCard bill ... YIKES !

Mid-afternoon our friends George and Betty brought over one of their Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, Rocky, to ask us if we had an idea what might be ailing him. WOW ... what a sick little dog. With an intermittent type of illness. He goes from healthy to sick to healthy in an hour. Joanne and I both think he is likely suffering from a malfunctioning internal organ ailment such as pancreatitis.

Tuesday ; Sunny and warm ... again. Another Sun Oven day. Joanne cooked a chicken and dumplings meal in the Sun Oven today.

We received a phone call from this RV park's office this morning. A visitor to the park was looking for some pet care assistance. Joanne went over to see the lady, and made arrangements for us to "baby sit" the lady's cat and dog for four days next week while she drives to Utah and back to ... pick up her horse ! HUH ? Well ... I guess there's more than one way to be a full time RV'er, n'est-ce pas ? HA HA HA !

This afternoon we went to the Humane Society for our regular Tuesday afternoon shift as dog walker and cat cuddler. As we were getting out of our truck upon our return home we were greeted by our RV park's roaming band of Christmas carollers.

This evening we had a farewell visit by Bill and Lynne, and Windsor the Pomeranian. They are leaving tomorrow morning to meet their daughter, son-in-law, and three grandchildren from Colorado in Casa Grande for Christmas.

Wednesday ; Christmas Eve

Thin cloud cover, mild.

We had a bit of a lazy day. I picked up a refilled propane tank and reinstalled it.
I worked on the truck's spare tire, which has been very slowly leaking air for the last three months ! I think I finally found the problem. I took the tire to a local Mexican tire repair shop ... Angel's ( ANNHELLS ) ... and had the tire removed from the rim so that
I could properly tighten the screw in valve stem, which I had been suspecting may have been the problem. When the tire was removed from the rim I discovered that the rubber O ring on the valve stem that seals it to the rim was seriously eroded and crumbling. That must be the problem causing the slow leak ! Angel did not have a replacement screw in valve stem ( for large trucks ) so I will have to go to another tire shop after Christmas to buy a new valve stem and have the tire remounted on the rim. While working with Angel on the removal of the valve stem, I injured a finger. OW ! ! !

Joanne and I squabbled over lunch. That left me in a foul mood that I had difficulty shaking. I've been suffering depression a lot lately, and have been having difficulty "managing" my negativity. And on that note ... today I remember the death of my father nineteen years ago on Christmas Eve.

We walked Bo around the dog park earlier than usual so that we could attend the regular Wednesday late afternoon Social Hour & Potluck. Joanne prepared a wonderful potato nachos dish to contribute. So ... she broke a lifetime long family tradition of cooking tourtière ( French Canadian meat pie ) for dinner on Christmas Eve. She'll defer the tourtière until Boxing Day.

After potluck dinner and chatting, we returned home and Eilene came over to our place so that I could repair her bicycle light. Then Joanne and I walked up and down each road in the RV park admiring the Christmas lights, and the pleasant, mild weather, and the peace and quiet of Christmas Eve.

Thursday ; Merry Christmas / Joyeux Noel / Feliz Navidad

Sunny, mild, a bit windy.

Again this morning we broke with life long family tradition, and deferred our Christmas morning waffle breakfast until tomorrow morning. After a light breakfast we went into the Arizona room to open gifts. WOO-HOO ... Bo's eleventh Christmas of opening all the gifts ; his and ours. Bo LOOOOOVES opening gifts. HA HA HA ! By the end of opening gifts he seemed to be close to adrenaline overload !

Joanne left at 2 PM to head to the clubhouse for her duties as Christmas Dinner "greeter". I headed to the clubhouse at 2:30 PM for my job as "server". Christmas Dinner was served at 3 PM ( which I personally think is a really stupid time for Christmas Dinner ! ), and ... as is usual for this park, and many others filled with old Americans ... most people left about 4 PM. I hate that "eat & run" mentality ! ! ! We sat around with a bunch of Canadians and chatted for a couple of hours.

Shortly after we returned to our trailer my sister phoned and we had a wonderful, hour long chat. Just a minute or two after our chat, Joanne's sister phoned and Joanne had a nice chat with her sister.

Friday ; Boxing Day ( in Canada )

Sunny but cool.

This morning we made waffles for brunch, our traditional Christmas morning brunch deferred one day. This evening Joanne made tourtière for supper, our traditional Christmas Eve dinner deferred a couple of days.

Late this morning we headed out to find what I needed to repair the truck's spare tire ;
a two inch long, metal, screw in valve stem. I wasted half a day going to eight tire or auto supply shops until I finally found one that had what I needed ! I bought a spare one ! ! ! After having the valve stem installed and the tire remounted on the rim and balanced, we ran all over town ( again ! ) running the rest of our errands. I picked up my Rolex watch at Watch Hospital. This is the third time I have had my Rolex watch serviced at Watch Hospital over the last ten years. It's not easy to find places that can service fine mechanical watches. Watch makers are a dying breed, for sure ! I don't know why ... they make good money ! "Servicing" a Rolex watch ... cleaning and adjusting ... now costs over $500 ! We went shopping for guy stuff at Harbor Freight. Mid-afternoon we stopped at McDonald's to buy a hamburger and drink to share. We went to PetsMart to buy dog food. WOO-HOO ! Bo LOOOOOVES shopping at PetsMart. HA HA HA ! Finally ... < sigh > ... we went Wal-Martin'.

We returned home just in time for the 5 PM pack walk around the dog park. Today Bo was joined by Domino the Boston Terrier and Sammy the Australian Shepherd. It was Domino's first pack walk this year, but she has been here in previous years. It was Sammy's first pack walk. He's the dog we will be "baby sitting" next week.

Saturday ; Sunny and chilly.

This morning we went to a potluck brunch at the clubhouse. I did some maintenance work on the truck, including reinstalling the spare tire underneath.

This afternoon Marilu brought over Sammy the Australian Shepherd for a play date with Bo. I put away the Christmas gifts I received. I worked on some new magic I received as a Christmas gift. Joanne suggests that I have some new "table magic" prepared for New Year's Eve.

We went on our daily pack walk. I polished and repaired shoes. I went bicycling. BRRRRR ... chilly !

DSK

December 14 to 20, 2014

Sunday ; Sunny and warm during the day, chilly in the evening. Winter has arrived. HA HA HA !

This afternoon we went to the Yuma Community Theater's first of three winter season productions. Today's play was entitled "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever". The cast was comprised of just a few adults, and about two dozen children. For a play almost entirely comprised of children, it was okay. < shrug > Twasn't Shakespeare !

After the play we went grocery shopping at Food City, at one of the three Food City locations in and around Yuma, and one that I had not been to before, although Joanne had. WOO-HOO ... pan dulce ! Yes, yes dear, I know that the Christmas cookie exchange at Kofa Ko-op is tomorrow, but ... one can never have too much pan dulce.

After returning home we took Bo for two laps around the dog park, then went to the regular Sunday late afternoon / early evening ice cream social. We chatted with friends for awhile, then returned to our trailer for a late supper and for Joanne to bake four dozen cookies.

Monday ; Cloudy and cool. BRRRRRR ... winter has arrived. I've had to start wearing long pants and long sleeved shirts. HA HA HA !

This morning Joanne finished baking cookies for the cookie exchange. I did some yard chores including some gardening. We loaded up all our recycling and headed off to the local recycling center. After returning and having lunch Joanne headed to the clubhouse for the annual Christmas cookie exchange. She returned with ... WOO-HOO ... four dozen assorted cookies baked by other women.

Mid-afternoon our friends Bill and Lynne came over for a cookie party. Afterwards Bo and I went on our daily pack walk. Just after dark I went cycling.

Tuesday ; Partially sunny, cool.

This morning I did some annual preventive maintenance on the truck camper, now that we have owned it for ( a little more than ) a year.

This afternoon we went to the Humane Society of Yuma, for our regular Tuesday afternoon shift as a dog walker and a cat cuddler. There was a lot less dog shit around the place than there was a week ago, so obviously my "meeting" with the Volunteer Manager had some effect. BUT ... while there was a lot less, there was still some. And even some is too much ! While I walked the first two dogs of today I also cleaned up a lot of dog shit ! One hour of work by one person, and it was eliminated ! Maybe I'll somehow find a way to make that point with the "powers that be" at HSOY. When we returned home from the Humane Society we went on the daily pack walk around the Kofa Ko-op dog park.

Wednesday ; Los Algodones, Baja California, Mexico

Today started out cloudy and chilly, ended up sunny and warm.

This morning we went to Los Algodones with our friends Bill and Lynne. Once we were in Mexico we headed across / through Los Algodones to Farmacia Veterinaria Safari to buy pet medications for ourselves and friends and neighbours, both here in Yuma and back home in Keremeos. We walked back through town, Joanne and I went to our dentists while Bill and Lynne went to Los Algodones Optical to get a new pair of glasses for Bill. Joanne had a dental cleaning and examination by Dr. Manuel Camacho ( the dentist / father ) and I had a cleaning and periodontal examination by Dra. Lilia Camacho ( the periodontist / daughter ). Dra. Elizabeth Camacho ( the pediatric dentist / mother ) wasn't in today. Although Dr. Fernando Medina ( the prosthodontist / son-in-law ) was in. HA HA HA !

While I was paying our dental bill ( $45 each for dental cleaning and examination ) Bill and Lynne returned, having finished at the opticians. Great timing ! We went for a late lunch to a restaurant none of us had been to before. It was pretty darn good. Especially the free Margaritas we had coupons for ! After lunch we went medication shopping, then while Joanne went for a haircut I took Bill and Lynne to a Mexican grocery store to browse. We returned to meet Joanne after her haircut, then went back to the optician to pick up Bill's new glasses. We wandered around areas of town that Bill and Lynne had not seen before, then returned to the border crossing about 4 PM. WOO-HOO ... once again, absolutely no line-up. Before returning to Yuma we took Bill and Lynne out into the desert near the border to show them the pet cemetery we learned about recently. We arrived back home about 5:30 PM.

Tonight Joanne and I watched the three hour finale of Survivor.

Thursday ; Sunny and warm.

This morning we headed off to Arizona Market Place, the nearby large flea market. Joanne's friend Eilene came along with us. While I shopped for "guy stuff" Joanne and Eilene went off to do "girl shopping". From Arizona Market Place we headed across town where I dropped off Joanne and Eilene at Walgreen's while I went to Watch Hospital and O'Reilly's Auto Parts. I picked up Joanne and Eilene and we returned home for a late lunch.

After lunch I went to nap with the animals while Joanne went Christmas shopping by herself. After napping I installed a headlight and taillight ... both purchased today ... on Eilene's tricycle. I took Bo on the daily pack walk. Laszlo and DeeOJee the Pit Bull visited with us for awhile in our Arizona room. Just after it got dark I went bicycling and Joanne returned home from shopping.

This evening I attempted to send electronic Christmas cards. I ran into some "technical difficulty". So ... I either failed to send the electronic Christmas cards, or ... sent them about fifteen times to each recipient ! ! ! Time will tell !

Friday ; Sunny and warm.

This morning Joanne went out with her friend Eilene and they spent the entire day shopping ! I spent the morning visiting with friends and neighbours. Our friend George came over with Rocky the sick Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. We took Rocky and Bo for a walk around the dog park, and I "diagnosed" Rocky and gave George a "treatment plan". Then Bo and I walked around the dog park with DeeOJee the Pit Bull and her people.

I had lunch, napped with Sully and Bo, then went to the storage area and washed the truck camper. Joanne returned home just in time for us to leave for a Humane Society of Yuma "Mobile Adoption" event at Z Fun Factory. Joanne was assigned a female Chihuahua named Larissa and I was assigned a male Chihuahua named Benjamin. We walked around Z Fun Factory's Christmas Village for two hours, "featuring" our dogs in an attempt to get them adopted. In addition to our two Chihuahuas, the Mobile Adoption program co-ordinator was also there, presenting Angus the Pit Bull. How representative of the Humane Society of Yuma's population ; two Chihuahuas and a Pit Bull !

I was the only one to find an adopter for my dog. BUT ... after I "sold" the dog to a family, a Humane Society adoptions counsellor took over, and ... the adoption fell apart ! I'm disappointed !

When the event was over we drove to the far southeast end of The Foothills to view the Christmas decorations on 55th Street. By some manner of consensus, all residents of 55th Street in The Foothills have agreed to decorate their homes and yards extremely elaborately each year. We enjoyed the drive along 55th Street, then we went to KFC in the Fry’s mall and had an all you can eat / ETYS buffet dinner. We returned home thinking that we were arriving home ten minutes before the start of the season finale of Amazing Race. We were wrong ! We arrived home just in time to see the last ten minutes of the episode. DARN !

Saturday ; Mostly sunny and warm. For the past week or so there has been a thin cloud cover that has prevented us from using our Sun Oven. HMPH !

This morning while I did some routine chores Joanne set up the new Christmas tree she bought yesterday. Now that we have an Arizona room it was time to retire the teensy little Christmas tree that has served us well while we were full time RV'ers living in a fifth wheel trailer, and replace it with a slightly larger tree. This afternoon after the daily pack walk Laszlo and DeeOJee visited with us in our Arizona room. During the pack walk DeeOJee startled a dog and owner that were walking around the dog park, but not as part of our "pack walk". DeeOJee is a friendly Put Bull, but she approaches very quickly ... at a full run ! Both the owner and dog thought they were about to be attacked by a Pit Bull.

DSK

December 7 to 13, 2014

Sunday ; Sunny and warm.

After thirty-six hours of illness due to flu or food poisoning Joanne awoke today feeling fine. This morning she went grocery shopping by herself to Albertson's.

This afternoon Joanne cooked a Mexican chicken with rice / pollo con arroz recipe in the Sun Oven. She also baked a cake for tonight's ice cream social. I set up Bo's agility equipment in the dog park behind our rear yard fence. And then we did a Bo-gility session. And then we did another one with Molly and Rocky, the Cavalier King Charles Spaniels that belong to neighbours / friends. I did some maintenance work on the trailer. I napped with Sully. We walked around the dog park with Laszlo from Kamloops, B.C., and his female Pit Bull named DeeOJee ... ( D ... O ... G ). We've "pack walked" with Laszlo and DeeOJee quite a few times in the past two weeks.

At 6 PM we went to the regular Sunday evening ice cream social at the clubhouse. We stayed quite awhile after most had left, chatting with friends. Back at home we had a late supper and watched Downton Abbey.

 

Monday ; Overcast and warm.

Well ... how odd and inexplicable. After about thirty-six hours of illness, followed by about twenty-four hours of feeling fine and healthy ... Joanne is very ill again. Same illness recurring ? Different illness ?

I tended to my ill wife. I watered all my cactus plants and gardens. I washed the truck.
I washed and refurbished Bupkis Barbecue II. I took Bo on our daily pack walk around the dog park. I went bicycling. I made a light supper and "encouraged" Joanne to eat a bit. She's like an eight year old when she's sick ! I downloaded and reconciled monthly investment statements.

Tuesday ; Sunny and very warm.

Joanne was less ill today, improving throughout the day.

I finished cleaning and refurbishing Bupkis Barbecue II. This afternoon I went to the Humane Society for my first shift this season as a "dog walker". Joanne was not feeling well enough to come with me to do her "cat cuddling" shift. I was not there very long.
I was so appalled at how much dog shit there was everywhere ... particularly in the smaller of the two fenced dog parks on their grounds ... that I threw a hissy fit, tore a strip off the new Volunteer Manager for the poor job she's doing of getting out the "picking up dog shit is not optional" message to the dog walkers, then stormed out and came home. What a disgusting mess ! The new Volunteer Manager and the Executive Director both should be ashamed of themselves for tolerating such a mess !

Back at home we took Bo for the daily pack walk. Joanne was feeling healthy enough for one lap around the dog park. Afterwards DeeOJee the Pit Bull came into our Arizona room for a visit and play session with Bo. We started but didn't quite finish Christmas decorating. Joanne did most of the work. Just before we prepared supper Joanne's sister phoned and they had a half hour chat.

Wednesday ; Sunny and warm. Joanne was feeling better today, but still quite a way from healthy. Bo and I went on a morning pack walk with Molly and Rocky, the Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.

While dumping the black tank this morning I discovered ... < sigh > ... a third leak in the pass through storage compartment ! Spending the summer in storage here in Yuma's 120 degree summer temperatures seems to have wreaked havoc on Harvey's plumbing, most of which is plastic. We went out late this morning and spent most of the day running shopping errands ; Yuma Nursery Supply, Lowe's, Pep Boys, and Albertson's.

Late in the afternoon, back at home, we finished our Christmas decorating started yesterday. Joanne planted lettuce in "container gardens". We went on another pack walk, our regular 5 PM two laps around the dog park perimeter. We were joined by Spanky and DeeOJee. I went bicycling at dusk, as I do most days. Yuma has great desert sunsets. We had a late light supper and watched Survivor.

Thursday ; Sunny and warm.

Just before noon Joanne left for her Christmas Mystery Bus Trip with her friend Eilene. All that's known is ... the bus is heading west ... they're not going to Mexico ... they're not going to a casino ... and the bus will return to Yuma around midnight. Hope they have a fun day !

Before Joanne left we trimmed Bo's and Sully's claws. I located leak #3 in the trailer's pass through storage compartment. Water was coming down the pipe leading up through the floor to the back of the toilet. I leaned over the toilet, tightened the coupling nut connecting the water pipe to the rear of the toilet, and ... CRACK ! Aw, shit ! The summer temperatures have baked plastic parts to the point where they have become brittle. Fortunately I had enough spare parts to repair the problem without having to go shopping. Hopefully, that was the last leak !

Our friends Bill and Lynne, along with their little dog Windsor, came over this afternoon for a visit in our Arizona room. We planned some outings over the next couple of weeks, and I helped them plan their summer trip to Alaska via British Columbia. I went to our RV park's storage yard, climbed up on the roof of the camper, and removed the shroud off the air conditioner. It's cracked, needs to be replaced, and I found an ad for a ( very slightly ) used one in The Foothills. I want to have our camper's air conditioning shroud in our truck when I go to The Foothills to see the used one, to ensure that they're identical. I did a teensy bit of gardening work. Bo and I went on our daily pack walk. I went bicycling. And, as always, I spent too much of the day chatting with friends and neighbours. HEY ... I'm retired ! I have no clock to punch ! Life is good out here in the desert !

Friday ; Ugly clouds, windy, chilly, a few drops of rain in the evening.

This morning Joanne went off by herself to run some errands. I did pet ear care. Both animals' ears were clean, dry, and healthy. I sharpened the knives in the trailer, then went to the camper and sharpened the knives in there. When Joanne returned home she helped me change one of the truck's hood lift struts. I need to change both of them, but Pep Boys only had one in stock when I was there recently.

This afternoon we drove to the far end of The Foothills to buy a very slightly used air conditioner shroud cover for the truck camper. When I phoned him the seller’s claim was that he had lost an air conditioner shroud off his rig near Las Vegas on their way down recently. He bought a replacement in Bullhead City, but the RV shop there only had it in white. He wanted a black one, so as soon as he arrived here in Yuma he ordered a black one. Now he was selling the two month old white one, and it's the correct one to fit our truck camper. I was skeptical of his claim that he had only purchased it a couple of months ago in Bullhead City, and was now selling it for close to half price, just so he could install a black one instead. Well ... when we arrived at his home in The Foothills, sitting in his driveway was ... < sputter > ... a Prevost motorhome that costs more than a million dollars. With three ... count 'em, three ... air conditioners on the roof, each with a black shroud. Oookkkaaayyy ! ! !

On the way back from The Foothills I refilled the truck with diesel, and purchased fuel for the generator, at Fry’s Fuel Bar and ... < sigh > ... we went Wal-Martin’. When we got home we had just enough time before it got dark to walk with Bo around the dog park. Joanne did a lot of laundry while I made supper. GEEEE ... I make great omelettes ! We watched Amazing Race, first episode we’ve seen since leaving ( summer ) home on November 1.

OH ... I almost forgot about Joanne’s Christmas Mystery Bus Trip. They went to Palm Springs. She arrived back home at 2 AM. The “mystery” agenda was supposed to be ... a self guided walking tour of some of Palm Springs’ “boutique” inns. Joanne and Eilene, and their two new friends they made on the bus trip up to Palm Springs walked to a few of the inns before deciding ... what’s the point ? Joanne suggested that they ditch the walking tour of inns, and head to Sherman’s Deli for supper followed by an evening of wandering around VillageFest, the weekly downtown arts / crafts / produce / entertainment market place. That’s what they did, and everybody was happy !

Saturday ; Sunny and warm.

Another busy day ! This morning I replaced the shroud covering the air conditioner on the roof of the truck camper. Then we went shopping for clothes at the 50% off everything sale at the Salvation Army Thrift Shop. I bought eight t-shirts. At a buck a pop ... they're disposable. I don't even have to let Joanne see a shirt after I've splashed battery acid on it or somehow else ruined it. Just toss it away. No, dear ... I don't know where that nice blue t-shirt of mine is < blink blink >.

This afternoon we went to the Humane Society for "mobile adoptions" training. Twice a month the Humane Society of Yuma will be having in-store adoption events at Tractor Supply in Yuma. We would like to be involved.

This evening we invited our friends Bill and Lynne to join us at the Living Christmas Tree Concert at Community Christian Church out on Hwy. 95 a bit north of the city. First time we've attended a Living Christmas Tree Concert. Bill and Lynne have been to one before, in Florida. A Living Christmas Tree Concert is a church choir set up in a large Christmas tree shaped structure, with a lot of flashing Christmas lights, singing Christmas hymns, outdoors. Afterwards we went to Wienerschnitzel for a late junk food dinner.

WHAT ? ! ? We've lost HOW MANY tens of thousands of dollars in the stock market so far this month ? ? ? ! ! ! ? ? ?

DSK

November 30 to December 6, 2014 ; Yuma, Arizona

Sunday ; Sunny and very warm.

It felt like we finally made some progress today on our "arrival" process / chores. We removed the vinyl snap on walls of the Arizona room. And we took the camper off the truck. Joanne finished cleaning in the Arizona room. I had an extremely frustrating late afternoon and evening trying to get our Shaw Direct satellite TV service restored.

What's the point of telling Shaw Direct the "start" and "end" dates of a "vacation service suspension" if they don't automatically turn the service back on on the vacation end date ? ! ? We are in an area of extremely poor phone service and extremely poor Wi-Fi service. I wasted much of my afternoon and evening trying to contact Shaw Direct Technical Support, and waiting for "call backs" only to have the call back "dropped" THREE TIMES before they understood that the reason for my call to Technical Support was to have my service restored ! ! ! AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH ! ! ! ! ! BECAUSE MY "VACATION END DATE" WAS TODAY ! ! ! ! ! AND THEY ALREADY KNEW THAT ! ! ! ! ! AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH ! ! ! ! !

Take a deep breath, Dan ! It's 11 PM ... take Bo for a walk.

Monday ; Thin cloud cover, very warm.

Joanne was up early this morning, and left at 8:15 AM to drive her 93 year old friend Eilene to a medical procedure appointment. She expected to be home by noon, but due to a misunderstanding / confusion by Eilene about her appointment time, they didn't get home until 4 PM. Eilene's memory / attention to detail isn't what it used to be.

I prepared my bicycle for use. I watered my various cactus gardens. I did a repair on the Arizona room. I gave Bo a haircut. His hair certainly does grow a lot in a six month period ! Next haircut ... June 1. We took Bo on the daily pack walk in the dog park, although while Joanne and I make two laps around the perimeter of the dog park, Bo refuses to follow us on the second lap. After the first lap he jumps over the fence into our back yard and waits for us to return.

For supper I cooked our last fillet of Sockeye Salmon, acquired ( alive ) at Farwell Canyon on our way to Bella Coola, British Columbia last September. I cooked it in the remaining Crema Salvadoreña we had purchased at Vallarta Supermarket in Tulare, California a week and a half ago. MMMMM ... B.C. Sockeye Salmon and Idaho potatoes in Salvadoran cream. Not exactly the 100 Mile Diet ! HA HA HA ! Good thing neither of us has a cholesterol problem. HA HA HA !

I spent the evening reconciling bank statements and updating investment files.

Tuesday ; Cloudy and warm.

OUCH ! I spent the afternoon gardening. Which here ... is painful ! HA HA HA ! I did quite a bit of garden cleaning, plant removal, and transplanting ... all cacti ! I paid some bills. I chatted with friends. We walked with Bo around the dog park. I went bicycling. Tough life, eh ?

Wednesday ; Los Algodones, Baja California, Mexico

Cloudy, warm, occasional light rain.

Long day ! This morning we headed out to Yuma Fairgrounds to attend the annual Winter Visitor Bash. We wandered by all the vendors' displays fairly quickly, and were out of there in about an hour or so. We headed out of Yuma westbound on Interstate 8 across the Colorado River into California, and then south to the Mexican border. We parked and walked across the border to run errands in Los Algodones.

First we stopped at our dentists' office and made appointments for two weeks from today for a dental cleaning and examination for Joanne, a dental cleaning and periodontal examination for me. Then we walked all the way across and out of town to Farmacia Veterinaria Safari. We wanted to buy seven packages of heartworm medication, two for Bo and the rest for friends and neighbours, including Zona here at Kofa Ko-op who needs a dosage now. < sigh > They were out of stock of the heartworm medication for small dogs. I ordered seven packages to be picked up in two weeks when we return for dental appointments. I guess Zona is going to have to wait. We also bought some other pet medications we needed, for ourselves and others.

As we walked back into town we stopped at a brand new, not even fully stocked yet, small grocery store and bought some Zuko drink mixes. Next stop was our favourite restaurant to have lunch. We shared a plato de pollo asado con ensalada, arroz y frijoles, y dos tacos, una machaca y una carne asada. MMMMM ! ! ! After lunch we went to TK Beauty Shop where I had a haircut ( $3 ) and Joanne had a pedicure ( $10 ).

Finally we wandered around from farmacia to farmacia shopping for some medications
I needed. When I finally got everything I needed we headed back towards the border. On the way, we bought a package of Mini-Nugs, a package of Mini-CocoNugs, and a large tub of Creminos. HEY ... no line up at the border ... four people in front of us, two border agents, our wait time was about thirty seconds. Quickest border crossing we've ever had from Los Algodones. Maybe it pays to go on a "bad weather day". HA HA HA ... it's amazing what passes for a "bad weather day" here !

As soon as we pulled out of the large parking lot on the American side of the border we headed "off road" into the desert behind the RV park just beside the large border parking lot, to look for a pet cemetery that we had recently been told about. It was a bit difficult to find, but we eventually found it. We parked and got out to walk around. It was a very serene place, and an emotionally touching pet cemetery. We decided that this is the place where we will lay Sully to rest when he dies, which will almost certainly be sometime this winter season, although not necessarily immediately. His upper respiratory infection seems to have diminished quite a bit. Hang in there, Sully ! Now my goal is for him to make it to another Christmas. Only three more weeks to go, my sweet little kitty.

We drove back to Yuma and went shopping at PetsMart in Yuma Palms Shopping Center, then drove to Food City, the Mexican supermarket in Yuma. WOO-HOO ... pan dulce ! AND ... I discovered that they carry Crema Salvadoreñ a, although I didn't buy any today. < whispering > I did, however, buy some Crema Mexicana. HA HA HA !

Back at home, we had supper then watched a two hour episode of Survivor.

Thursday ; Partially cloudy, becoming sunny late in the afternoon, a bit humid, rather unusual for here.

Another long day.

Late this morning we headed for Z Fun Factory, a local "food and fun" establishment, for the SKP Roadrunners Chapter 7 annual Christmas luncheon. After a slightly mundane meal and some socializing Joanne and I ran a couple of errands on the way home. We bought some fresh peanut butter at Peanut Patch, a local peanut farm business. We did some Wal-Martin'.

Back at home I walked Bo around the dog park then we left for the Humane Society to attend their Volunteer Appreciation Potluck / Turkey Dinner. Interesting meal, interesting people, very poor attendance. Some interesting new ideas and programs this year at the Humane Society of Yuma !

Friday ; Sunny and warm.

This morning we picked up Joanne's friend Eilene and we headed to The Foothills, to Gila Mountain United Methodist Church, to shop at their semi-annual Helping Hands Yard Sale. I bought a couple of items. Joanne bought a Christmas table decoration. Eilene bought nothing. Smart lady ! I guess 93 years of living brings some wisdom. HA HA HA !

We drove to Pioneer Shopping Center where I dropped Joanne and Eilene at the 99¢ Only Store and I went to Al's RV Service & Supply. Today was Al's monthly 15% Off Customer Appreciation Day. I bought a few items for myself, and a few for neighbours back home in Canada. I picked up Joanne and Eilene and we returned home for a very late lunch.

On this afternoon's pack walk we were joined by Zona and Spanky. Judy and Terry ( with Spanky ) from B.C. arrived here at Kofa Ko-op this afternoon.

I spent a frustrating evening trying to get our satellite TV service to work. Something is wrong / broken. Technical Support was unable to resolve the problem. < sigh > I'm tired of ( petty technical / technological ) problems !

By the way ... Sully's upper respiratory infection seems to be over.

Saturday ; Mostly sunny and warm.

Joanne was very ill overnight and all day today, with a stomach flu or food poisoning.
I suspect the latter more than the former. About 4:30 AM she vomited ... a lot ! She went to bed last night about 9:30 PM and, except for trips to the bathroom, didn't get up until about 7 PM tonight.

I spent the day working on problem solving. So what else is new ? ! ? As I said yesterday ... I'm getting tired of how much of my time is taken up with solving maintenance / technical / technological problems. Today I located and hopefully solved the plumbing leak in the trailer's pass through storage compartment. Water has been persistently leaking somewhere in there since our arrival a week and a half ago. This is the second plumbing leak that I have located and fixed. And I identified and rectified our satellite dish problem. It was a cabling problem. I am typing this at 7:30 PM as I wait "on hold" for ... < sigh > ... fifteen to twenty-five minutes for Technical Support to answer my phone call. Last night I had our service "technical problem / non-pay" suspended and now I need to have our service restored.

DSK

November 23 to 29, 2014 ; Palm Springs, California to Yuma, Arizona

Sunday ; Palm Springs, California to Quartzsite, Arizona

AHHHHH ... Palm Springs ! Temperature in the upper 70's ! Rich old people ! HA HA HA !

Sunny and warm. This morning as we climbed out of the camper to get into the truck to leave the parking lot of the Morongo Casino we got sidetracked. The couple in the Class A motorhome parked behind us were from Thunder Bay, Ontario. They are full time RV'ing newbies. We chatted with them for quite awhile ... too long. We didn't leave until about noon.

We pulled over to the Morongo Casino's Travel Center where we refilled with diesel and freshwater. We drove 20 km. / 13 miles back to Palm Springs where we went to the Palm Springs Dog Park beside City Hall, behind the Palm Springs Airport. Bo loves all dog parks, but especially the Palm Springs Dog Park which is two parks in one. The smaller side is for small dogs and the bigger side is for large dogs. Bo visits both sides, always starting on the small dog side, then finishing on the big dog side. Today ... about twenty minutes in each side.

We drove to downtown Palm Springs to have a very late lunch at Sherman's Deli. MMM ... MMM ... MMM ... MMM ... MMM ! ! ! Once per year Bo gets to visit the Palm Springs Dog Park and we get to eat lunch at Sherman's Deli. Very authentic New York style Jewish deli. I had cold borscht and a hot pastrami sandwich ... of course ! Joanne had sweet & sour beef & cabbage soup and a barbecued meatloaf sandwich. What an amateur ! HA HA HA HA HA ! We finished by sharing a slice of key lime pie.

It was 3 PM by the time we hit the road, eastbound on Interstate 10. It was dark before we even reached Blythe, California. At Ehrenberg we crossed over the Colorado River into Arizona and we arrived at Quartzsite about 6 PM. We drove north on Hwy 95 about seven miles from town to the BLM administered Hi Jolly camping area out in the desert. We found a spot to park for the night and I lit a campfire, our motivation for coming here for a night instead of heading directly to Yuma from Palm Springs. The evening was chilly, but there was no wind and the clear night time sky was filled with stars. We sat around the campfire for a couple of hours before going inside for a late, light supper.

Monday ; Quartzsite to Yuma, Arizona

AHHHHH ... home ! Sunny and warm.

This morning before leaving our campsite in the desert we took Sully outside for some fresh air, then took Bo for a short desert hike. Sully is exhibiting signs of an upper respiratory infection. That's what ended Teddy's life at age seventeen, so I'm very worried about Sully.

We drove south on Hwy. 95 into Quartzsite and drove around the large flea market areas that are just beginning to fill up with vendors. Nothing inspired us enough today to stop and shop. We'll return late in January at Quartzsite's annual peak season. We continued south on Hwy. 95 towards Yuma.

Just before reaching Yuma we stopped to have lunch in the parking lot of From The Farm, a farm gate produce business. Lunch included ... WOO-HOO, WOO-HOO, WOO-HOO ... our first date shake of the season ! Bo was VERY happy about that ! HA HA HA !

When we reached Yuma we went to Fry's in The Foothills for milk and diesel. We arrived "home" at Kofa Ko-op shortly after 4 PM. Before it got dark we got set up in our site and Joanne began weeding our yard. After it became dark we went to the clubhouse where I got online to retrieve e-mail and MasterCard statements.

I cooked supper tonight, creating a variation of Huevos Ranchero, frying the eggs in Crema Salvadoreña. My Aunt Lena would have been proud of me. It was forty-six years ago that she taught me everything I needed to know about frying in cream. HA HA HA ! I still hope my doctor isn't reading this !

Tuesday ; AHHHHH ... sunny and warm. HELLOOOOO Yuma !

There seems to be so much work to do upon our arrival here that we’re feeling a bit overwhelmed, especially by conflicting priorities. I had hoped to move the fifth wheel trailer from storage to our lot tomorrow, but the neighbour / friend that I asked today to move it for us wasn’t able to do it tomorrow, so ... we did it today. Thank you very much, Tom.

Joanne did quite a bit of work on cleaning our yard which had / has quite a bit of weeds that grew over the summer. And I have posted “no weed spraying” on our lot so that the park maintenance staff don’t use herbicides on our lot. We choose to weed by hand instead of by chemicals, mostly because of Bo and Sully.

Sully definitely has an upper respiratory infection, although it seemed a bit less severe today than yesterday. We have been administering antibiotic eye drops, and a dog & cat cold medication, both purchased in Mexico a couple of years ago.

One of the cacti ... a Cow’s Tongue Prickly Pear ... I planted only three short years ago has grown so large that a few days ago it fell over, roots pulling partially out of the ground. Today I cut off each of its four large arms, and replanted the stubby remains in its original location. After I let the cuts dry for a few days I will replant each of the four arms in my cactus gardens in the dog park behind our rear yard fence.

After supper we went grocery shopping to Albertsons. How wonderful to be back in the land of cheap groceries. Four cases of soft drinks for $8.88 ! A turkey for $8.17 !

Well ... how unusual. Sully and Bo are snoozing on the sofa ( at 10:30 PM ) and Sully is using Bo’s butt as a pillow.

Wednesday ; Sunny and warm.

WOO-HOO ... WOO-HOO ... WOO-HOO ! ! ! ! ! I have just verified that my very first Canada Pension Plan payment has been deposited to our bank account ! I'm now "officially" retired. HA HA HA !

We both worked long and hard today on "arrival" chores ; truck camper, trailer, yard, shed, Arizona room. With lots of distractions visiting friends and neighbours. We walked Bo around the dog park. We went to the late afternoon Social Hour / appetizer potluck ; visited with old friends and made new friends.

Thursday ; American Thanksgiving

Sunny and very warm ! That's why we're here !

We didn't get much done today because the park's communal Thanksgiving Dinner was mid-afternoon. I had to be at the clubhouse at 2:30 PM to prepare for my job as a server. Thanksgiving Dinner was very good, as usual. We spent quite awhile afterwards chatting with new friends, from Kamloops, B.C.

Friday ; "BLACK FRIDAY"

Sunny and very warm, temperature 83° F / 28° C, very low humidity, very nice !

Today we fondly remember Toby, our first cat, who died ten years ago on this date while we were WorkCamping at YMCA Of The Ozarks Trout Lodge in Missouri. My goodness, it doesn't seem that long ago !

And on that note ... Sully's upper respiratory infection seems to be getting no worse ... nor any better. After four days of administering "jarabe para las molestias respiratorias" / syrup for respiratory discomfort we have now begun to administer Ciprofloxacin, an antibiotic. AND ... < sigh > ... while giving him the "syrup" a few days ago, which he strongly resists, I think he may have aspirated some into his lungs < big sigh >. So ... while trying to cure him / keep him alive, I may have inadvertently "caused" pneumonia. Time will tell. At this point in his life ... 18 years and 2 months ...
I think any little ailment can / will prove to be fatal.

Today did not go as planned. We had planned to go Black Friday shopping as soon as possible this morning. But our morning routines did not go smoothly, and before we could even shower, brush teeth, etc. we had unexpected visitors. Who stayed until about noon < sigh >. We had a quick lunch and headed out. I dropped Joanne off at the "99¢ Only Store" ( that's its name ) and continued around the corner to Harbor Freight and Staples. WOO-HOO ... I scored the little generator I wanted ... for $88.88 ... as well as a small air compressor, two cordless drills, and a five pack of work gloves. I bought a couple of printer ink cartridges and a label maker tape at Staples, then returned to the "99¢ Only Store" to pick up Joanne.

At home we discovered that she made a slight error as she picked up two cans of a product. She looked closely at one can as she picked up two cans. One of the cans ... was spicy jalapeño frijoles refritos / refried beans. With lard ! Really ? ! ? Did you think Mr. Colon and his ulcerative colitis were going to be pleased with spicy jalapeño refried beans ? ! ? With lard ? ! ? Hope the food bank appreciates them ! HA HA HA !

Back at home we took Bo for a walk around the dog park, and did some more "arrival" chores. At dusk some neighbours / friends came by and asked if we wanted to join them on an ATV outing in the desert. Joanne said "no" ... I said "yes". Off we went ! Tearing around in the desert towards the Mexican border and back for about an hour, at dusk and in darkness on a big ATV. Very dusty ... very noisy ... very smelly. How "Merkin" ! HA HA HA ! My friend / neighbour wants to go out again in daylight so he can take his pistol and do some target practice. < shrug > God bless America !

In the evening I worked online. Paid our November MasterCard billing. YIKES !

Saturday ; Sunny and very warm. Well ... DUH ... it's Yuma !

Got up early this morning to prepare for Kofa Ko-op's park wide "yard sale". I priced and displayed on a table in front of our lot the dozen or so items that we no longer require. Some of them we never did require ! Why do we have them ? Sold one item for five bucks. We walked around the park viewing all the junk everybody else was selling. Spent $5.25 ! Net proceeds for the day ... minus twenty-five cents. Story of my life ! ! ! Late in the day put remaining items ( HMPH ... that's all except one sold ! ) on bargain table in clubhouse. Good riddance !

Picked up a filthy barbecue for free ! Works just fine ! Needs to be cleaned. Will name it Bupkis Barbecue II . Bupkis Barbecue I is in Keremeos. HA HA HA !

Spent the day working on arrival chores ... still ! Camper, trailer, Arizona room, yard and gardens. Examined and diagnosed a dog injury for a neighbour / friend. Napped with Sully, who seems improved today. Let's be hopeful ! Walked around seven acre dog park perimeter twice. Bo completed first lap ... then jumped over fence and went home. Refused to walk around dog park second time. Guess he's getting old, maybe arthritic already ?

DSK

November 16 to 22, 2014 ; Coarsegold to Palm Springs, California

Sunday ; SKP Park Of The Sierras

Sunny and mild. A lazy day.

We slept late. I did a fun Bo-gility session. I puttered around with truck preventive maintenance. I did a glue repair on my shoes. DARN ... got two drips of MAX 1 glue on my pant leg. Another pair of pants ruined ! Oh, well ... I guess that's why they're called work pants. HA HA HA !

In mid-afternoon we headed to the clubhouse for the regular weekly Sunday afternoon ice cream social. We chatted with old friends and new until it was time to get Bo and head for the daily dog party in the dog park, where we spent the remainder of the afternoon.

In the evening I worked online and we watched TV. The last few days we've been watching some American reality shows that are new to us like Airplane Repo and Sex Sent Me To The ER. HA HA HA ! ! !

Monday ; Sunny and mild again. Another lazy day.

I puttered around with camper maintenance chores. We unhooked the utilities from the camper and drove over to the propane refill station to pick up our refilled tank, then over to the pole barn to dump out a six month old tank of generator fuel.

After lunch I napped briefly with Sully. We took Bo to the dog park for the daily dog party. I did some online research, planning our travel from here to Yuma. We spent the evening watching episode after episode of "90 Day Fiancé".

Tuesday ; Cloudy and mild. A lazier than lazy day !

This afternoon I used a headlight restoration kit on the truck. It's chemicals and abrasive pads to remove oxidation and whatever else makes headlights dull and obscured. It made an improvement in the clarity of the headlights, but not as much as I had hoped for. We went to the dog park earlier today, and spent longer there than usual.

Wednesday ; Oakhurst, California

We had a slow start this morning then headed to Oakhurst. We refilled with diesel then headed over to the rehabilitation hospital where our friend Diane is. She already had a visitor so we left to go run some errands. We did some shopping at Dollar Tree then returned to the hospital.

When we visited Diane last Saturday we promised her that we would return for another visit before leaving the area. She asked us to bring Bo to see her. So today ... we all visited with Diane for an hour ; me, Joanne, Bo ... and Sully ! Bo was thrilled. Sully less so. HA HA HA ... he's so anti-social.

After visiting Diane we ran errands in Oakhurst. We had a very late lunch at Subway, refilled a water jug, went into Vons to get the three items lost / left behind last Saturday, and bought some groceries at Raley's. By the time we got back to SKP Park Of The Sierras it was after 4 PM, and there was nobody left in the dog park, but we went in anyway and goofed around with Bo for awhile.

At 5:30 PM we went into the clubhouse for the weekly movie night. Tonight's movie was Jersey Boys, the story of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. Very interesting. After the movie we returned to our site, hooked everything up again ( electricity, sewer, cable TV ), had a late, light supper, and watched Survivor.

Thursday ; Cloudy and mild. While Joanne did laundry I worked online in the clubhouse. We visited with friends in the clubhouse and in the dog park.

Friday ; SKP Park Of The Sierras, Coarsegold to Interstate 5 Rest Area near Lebec, California

Sunny and mild this morning at SKP Park Of The Sierras, but becoming cloudy even before we reached Fresno.

This morning we prepared for departure after a week at SKP Park Of The Sierras and headed south on Hwy. 41 to Fresno where we got onto Hwy. 99 heading south towards Bakersfield and Los Angeles. At Tulare we exited for what is for me one of the highlights of our year. < insert drum roll here > Our annual lunch and grocery shopping at Vallarta Supermarket. It is the best Mexican supermarket we have been to, including the ones we've been to in Mexico, and ranks as one of the best two supermarkets we've been to in any of the three countries in which we regularly shop for groceries.

We entered the store and I headed for the panaderia ( bakery ) where I selected eight pan dulce ( Mexican pastries ) for breakfasts and bedtime snacks. GAWD ... I love pan dulce ! I'm still looking for a bumper sticker that says "I brake for panaderias". HA HA HA ! We browsed the dry food aisles, picking a lot of Mexican products that just aren't available elsewhere before heading to the in store "lunch bar". Joanne had a couple of freshly made tamales. I had a chicken platter with rice and beans / platilla de pollo con arroz y frijoles. GEEEZZZ ... how do Mexicans make chicken so tasty ? ? ?

After lunch we headed for the butcher counter, stretching about 100 feet across the rear of the store. No meat on styrofoam trays covered in plastic wrap here. We bought marinated chicken legs, beef liver, marinated and seasoned beef taco meat / carne asada de res para tacos, smoked pork chops ( for Joanne ), fresh Oaxaca cheese ( a "stringy" cheese from Oaxaca, Mexico, of course ... pronounced "wha haca" ), fresh ceviche de jaiba ( crab "salad" / ceviche ), crema de Salvadoreña, a thick El Salvadoran style of cream for cooking ( I hope my doctor isn't reading this ), and queso fresco ( fresh cheese ). We spent $66 on groceries, none of it on our grocery shopping list. All impulse purchases, like shopping at Trader Joe's, but Mexican foods. Vallarta Supermarket should be renamed Trader José's. HA HA HA !

We got back onto Hwy. 99 continuing south. At Bakersfield we exited and headed for Camping World where I bought the correct replacement switch for the water pump in the camper. I bought the last one they had in stock, so wasn't able to buy a spare. It was almost dark by the time I got out of Camping World, and by the time we drove to Wal-Mart it was dark. While Joanne went into Wal-Mart to buy a couple of items I went into the camper and replaced the water pump switch in the range hood monitor and switch panel, removing the temporary one I bought at Radio Shack in Oakhurst and installing the correct one I just got at Camping World. We drove back across Bakersfield in the dark, still rush hour traffic, heading for the freeway again. I refilled with diesel just before returning to the freeway, continuing south on Hwy. 99 for twenty miles until it merged with Interstate 5 heading into Los Angeles.

We stopped for the night at a rest area near Lebec, at a high elevation ( read that "cold" ) at the summit of the Tejon Pass, in the area known as "The Grapevine".

Saturday ; Tejon Pass Rest Area to Palm Springs / Cabazon, California

Sunny and warm, temperature finally reaching up into the 70's once we reached the Mojave Desert.

This morning as we were getting our day started, there was a very loud, very hard pounding on our camper door. HEY ... ASSHOLE ... NO NEED TO BREAK THE DOOR DOWN ! Of course, it was a cop ! Do these jerks not know how to knock on a door in a civilized fashion ? ! ? He ordered us to leave the rest area immediately. It was being evacuated. A tanker truck parked nearby that had spent the night at the rest area was leaking some manner of HAZMAT ... hazardous material. Great ! Now we've probably been exposed to some carcinogenic toxin and are going to start growing third limbs !

We drove about a mile south, took the exit, turned around, and returned on the freeway northbound, stopping at the rest area across the road from where we had been. We finished our morning routines then used the sani-dump station to dump our grey tank and refill our freshwater. We drove about a mile northbound then took another exit to get turned around and back onto Interstate 5 southbound. When we passed the southbound rest area where we had spent the night the entrance was closed, there were two HAZMAT fire trucks and seven police cruisers at the entrance with many policemen and firemen standing around in a cluster**** looking like they were awaiting some manner of guidance. Or a sign from the great beyond ?

I suppose you can tell that that pounding on my door really pissed me off, eh ?

We drove south on Interstate 5 for awhile then turned east to avoid getting too close to Los Angeles. We spent the day on a series of secondary roads, driving east and south around Los Angeles until finally reaching Palm Springs at 4:30 PM. We turned west ... the "wrong" direction ... on Interstate 10 and headed 20 km. / 13 miles to the Morongo Casino at Cabazon where we boondocked overnight, arriving just as it got dark. Good timing !

While Joanne prepared supper I went into the casino and found a quiet place to sit ( in an elevator lobby ), plug in my computer to recharge the battery, and use Wi-Fi.

DSK

November 9 to 15, 2014 ; Grand Ronde, Oregon to Coarsegold, California

Sunday ; Grand Ronde to Cabin Creek Rest Area, Interstate 5 Mile Marker 142, Oregon

Cold and windy, especially along the coast, intermittent rain.

This morning as we were dumping our waste holding tanks and refilling our freshwater tank prior to leaving Spirit Mountain Casino we were debating whether to drive west to Hwy. 101 and follow the Oregon Pacific coastline or drive east and return to
Interstate 5.  I wanted to explore the coast if the weather was good, return to I-5 if the weather was bad. In the short duration of dumping and refilling ... perhaps ten minutes or so ... it was both !   I decided that since we were this close to the coast, it would be a shame not to explore. So ... we headed west. And regretted it soon thereafter !

We drove southwest on Hwy. 18 to the Pacific coast at Lincoln City, then drove south along the coast on Hwy. 101, stopping frequently to view the rugged coastline. BUT ... it was cold, it was very windy, and it was raining. Not all that enjoyable ! We detoured briefly to view Chinook Winds Casino. We refilled our five gallon water jug in Lincoln City. We had a lunch break in one of the many Oregon State Park roadside picnic / rest areas along the coast.

By Newport I had had enough of the coastal weather and we turned inland / east on Hwy. 20 to Corvallis where we refilled with diesel, then continued southeast on Hwy. 34 until it reached Interstate 5. The rest of the day driving south on I-5 was in much better weather, still cloudy and intermittently raining lightly, but warmer temperature and no more wind. Shortly after it became dark at 5 PM we stopped to boondock overnight at a freeway rest area just 10 miles or so north of the SKP park where we want to be tomorrow.

Monday ; Cabin Creek Rest Area to Timber Valley SKP RV Park, Sutherlin, Oregon

Cold, cloudy, gloomy in the morning, sky clearing in the afternoon.

This morning when Joanne walked the dog she saw at least three different types of mushrooms in the woods. So ... before we left the rest area we went mushroom hunting with the Mushroom Hunter guide book she bought me as a birthday gift. None of the three types of mushrooms we found were edible, but ... it was certainly an interesting exercise to identify them, and determine that they were not edible.

We drove only about ten miles south on Interstate 5 before reaching the small city of Sutherlin. At Napa Auto Parts I bought the hardware ( nuts, bolts, washers ) I needed to reinstall the truck batteries' hold down clamps. We found our way to Timber Valley SKP Park and checked in. Dumped our grey tank, refilled our freshwater tank, and found a nice site in their unserviced ( boondock ) area. While Joanne prepared lunch
I reinstalled the truck batteries' hold down clamps ... correctly ! I should have known better than to lift the hood of the truck in an SKP park. Within seconds an old man ... and his dog ... were beside me, wanting to peer over my shoulder ( the old man ) and become my new best friend ( both old man and dog ).

After lunch we went to the clubhouse where Joanne did laundry and I worked online, posting my weekly blog entry, checking e-mail, recharging my laptop's battery, recharging the cell phone's battery, downloading recent photos from the camera to the laptop and processing them.

Late in the afternoon, just before it got dark, we were just getting ready to do a fun obedience training session with Bo when ... WAIT ! What the hell is that ? ? ? A half dozen or so ... wild turkeys ? ? ? Roaming through the RV park ? ? ?

Tuesday ; Remembrance Day in Canada, Veteran's Day in U.S.

LEST WE FORGET !

Sutherlin, Oregon to Welcome Center Rest Area on California side of Oregon / California border

Sunny and cool, becoming mild.

This morning we prepared for departure, dumped our waste holding tanks, refilled our freshwater holding tank, then observed Remembrance Day with a minute of silence on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, followed by Joanne's recitation of the poem In Flanders Fields. We were standing at the base of a grassy, treed hill near the entrance to Timber Valley SKP RV Park, facing the sun ... remembering those who served and sacrificed.

We drove south on Interstate 5 to the small city of Winchester where we stopped to view the glass walled viewing area of the fish ladder of the dam on the North Umpqua River. We didn't see any fish using the ladder to migrate upstream today, but what an interesting concept.

We continued south on I-5 to Grants Pass where we stopped to buy some groceries at a Fred Meyer, then had lunch in the grocery store's parking lot, then refilled with diesel at their fuel bar. HMPH ... must have lost my truck work gloves the last time I refilled with diesel. We went shopping at DollarTree at a nearby mall to complete our Oregon tax free shopping list.

We continued south on I-5. We saw a Harbor Freight in Medford, so I took the next exit and went to Harbor Freight to replace the work gloves I keep in the truck to wear when I'm refilling with diesel. More south on I-5 until we reached the Oregon / California border at 5 PM as it became dark. We stopped to boondock overnight at the California Welcome Center Rest Area. I think we've boondocked overnight here at least twice before.

Wednesday ; California Welcome Center Rest Area to Dunnigan, California

Sunny and cool this morning, becoming mild in the afternoon.

We had gone to sleep early last night, so we woke earlier than usual this morning. So we were on the road earlier than usual. So we drove more miles today than usual. I'm tired of cold weather. We know from previous experience that we usually find warmer weather as soon as we are over the Shasta Mountains, and reach Redding, California. And so it was today.

Because we got up early, and started driving early, I took a brief nap after lunch. We stopped for fuel at Pilot near Dunnigan, just a bit north of Sacramento, at 5 PM as it got dark. We decided to boondock overnight at Pilot.

Thursday ; Dunnigan to Coarsegold, California

Cloudy, mild, occasional light drizzle. Today was a very long, tiring, frustrating day of having everything that could have gone wrong ... did so ! Nothing serious, just frustration and annoyance, one thing after another, all day long ! Is it just me ? Or are Southern Californians getting even more obnoxious and stupid ? ! ?

We left Pilot this morning and continued heading south on Interstate 5. As we entered the suburbs of Sacramento from the north ... endless shopping malls ... we got off the freeway to shop at Wal-Mart and Dollar Tree. On the south side of Sacramento, at Manteca, we crossed from Interstate 5 to Hwy. 99 using Hwy. 120. Continuing south on Hwy. 99 we stopped in Stockton to buy some dog food at PetsMart. WOO-HOO ... Bo's first shopping trip in over six months. Bo LOOOOOVES shopping at PetsMart.

At Madera we left the freeway to head east on Hwy. 143, then north on Hwy. 41 up into the Sierra Nevada Mountains near Yosemite National Park. Our plan was ... if we arrived before the office was closed, we would check into SKP Park Of The Sierras near Coarsegold. If we were late, and the office was closed, we would continue a mile further and boondock overnight at Chukchansi Casino. About an hour before it got dark it was obvious that we would not arrive at SKP Park Of The Sierras before their office was closed. Joanne decided that it would save us some time tomorrow if we drove past the casino and another ten miles to Oakhurst to do some grocery shopping tonight.

As we drove past the Chukchansi Casino ... HUH ? ? ? Temporarily closed ? ! ? We drove into Oakhurst, did some grocery shopping at Vons, then drove back towards the casino and SKP park near Coarsegold. We verified that the casino was indeed closed, then parked outside the SKP park's gate to boondock overnight. They have a boondock parking spot outside their security gate for late arrivals.

Friday ; SKP Park Of The Sierras

Sunny and mild. This morning we checked into SKP Park Of The Sierras for a week and got set up in our assigned site. What a beautiful RV park. If we were Americans,
I would choose this place as our summer home.

This afternoon I did more work on our two new truck batteries. I removed, adjusted, and reinstalled a couple of the battery terminal clamps that I was dissatisfied with. I spray cleaned the battery terminal clamps, and ... short circuited the truck's alarm system. The horn began honking and the lights began flashing. And I couldn't get them to stop. Neighbours from all around began to show up, as vehicle alarms in SKP RV parks are usually considered to be emergency calls for help. Starting the truck did not stop the alarm. I had to finally open the fuse panel and remove the horn's fuse to stop the honking. < sigh >

I drove over to this park's "pole barn", the vehicle service garage and woodworking / tools / maintenance shop. I changed the truck's fuel filter, and sprayed protectant coating on the adjusted and newly cleaned battery terminal clamps. I dropped off an empty propane tank at the park's propane refill station. Big RV park, lots of amenities and services within ! We drove over to the clubhouse, parked and ... WOO-HOO, WOO-HOO, WOO-HOO ... thought Bo .... went to the daily "dog party" in the dog park. Bo LOOOOOVES being here because of the daily "dog parties". We ... and Bo ... renewed old friendships and made new ones. We were saddened to learn that one of our friends here has suffered a stroke recently and is in the hospital. We will go to visit her tomorrow.

After the dog party we went into the clubhouse for the weekly Friday afternoon social hour and appetizer potluck dinner. MMMMM ! ! ! We spent quite awhile visiting then returned to our site and hooked up the camper to the cable TV outlet on our site and watched TV for the remainder of the evening. Other than testing the TV to ensure functionality this is the first time we've watched the camper's TV in the eleven months that we've owned the camper.

Saturday ; Oakhurst, California

Sunny and mild.

This morning we went with our Yuma neighbours Joe and Ailene ... who also own a lot here ... to Oakhurst to visit with Diane, another friend who resides here, and is currently in a rehabilitation hospital in Oakhurst. She recently suffered a stroke ( at age 85 ). Diane's recovery is progressing, but she has a very long way to go. I'm doubtful that she will be able to return to living here independently. Our friendship with Diane began, and has continued over the years, at the daily dog parties here at SKP Park Of The Sierras. She obviously misses her two dogs who are currently being "foster" cared for by a neighbour. We promised to visit Diane again before we leave here, and to bring Bo along to visit with her.

Joe and Ailene treated us to lunch at a pizza buffet restaurant in Oakland. We ate lunch and chatted for a couple of hours before returning to SKP Park Of The Sierras. Thank you for lunch, Joe and Ailene, and for taking us to visit with Diane.

In the middle of the night I got up to use the bathroom. When I turned on the camper's water pump switch ... it broke ! So ... there I was at 4 AM, trying to disassemble the monitor and switch panel in the range hood, and "hot wire" the water pump switch, using a kitchen knife as a tool. I succeeded, but not before Joanne woke up, wondering what the hell was I doing ? ! ? Before we returned with Joe and Ailene from Oakhurst
I went to O-Reilly's Auto Parts and Radio Shack looking for a replacement 12 volt rocker switch. I did not find the exact right switch, but did buy a larger switch at Radio Shack to use temporarily. Because the switch I bought is physically larger than the original, it will not snap into the hole in the range hood, so it is hanging by its wires in front of the range hood switch hole. Like a Mexican repair job ! HA HA HA !

After returning from Oakhurst I puttered around briefly with some maintenance work on the camper then we went to the daily dog party. What a lot of fun for all concerned, dogs and people alike. We spent about an hour and a half in the dog park chatting with friends, playing with dogs and "loving up" dogs. And breaking up one dog fight, which Bo wisely chose not to get involved in. Good dog, Bo. In the evening I worked on the computer while Joanne lay in bed watching TV, cuddled with Sully and Bo ... under Sully's "heater blankie".

DSK

November 2 to 8, 2014 ; Omak, Washington to Grand Ronde, Oregon

Sunday ; Omak to Marysville, Washington

Sunny and cool on the east side of the Cascade Mountains, raining and cold on the west side.

This morning we left the parking lot of the Wal-Mart in Omak and drove across the street to Exxon where we refilled with diesel, then dumped our grey waste holding tank and refilled our freshwater tank, the use of the sani-dump facility being free with a fuel fill up. We drove about five miles south on Hwy. 97 to Okanogan then turned west on Hwy. 20.

I had decided a few days ago that I wanted to drive from Hwy. 97 west on Hwy. 20 over the Cascade Mountains, through North Cascades National Park to Interstate 5 at Burlington, about an hour north of Seattle. So ... that's what we did today. It's a route we have not travelled before. It's a high mountain pass with a lot of snow, so the road is closed from late November until late April. Early November was our only chance to drive this route.

We stopped a number of times today to enjoy the lovely scenery. including going on a short hike to the Washington Pass Summit overlook at an elevation of 5477 feet ASL. BRRRRR ... cold at 34 degrees F. / 1 degree C. with snow on the ground. After our short, cold hike we had lunch in the camper in the trailhead parking lot.

From Omak to the Washington Pass Summit it was uphill and sunny. From Washington Pass to Interstate 5 it was downhill, cloudy and raining all the way. We know from previous experience ... and from where we chose to live in the summer ... that the east side of the Cascades at this time of year is still sunny and dry, while the west side is ... wet !

We arrived at Interstate 5 at 5 PM, just as it turned dark. We turned south on I-5 and drove about another half hour to Tulalip Casino near Marysville. The objective was to boondock there overnight, have a nice dinner in their buffet restaurant, and enjoy tonight's free Beatles tribute band show in their cabaret. Well ... two out of three ain't bad ! HA HA HA !

Tulalip Casino is huge and glitzy, rivalling many of the Las Vegas casinos. Their buffet restaurant was very good, although not cheap. After dinner we went into the cabaret lounge to see the Beatles tribute band. Before we even found seats we decided not to stay. I spent the next couple of hours seated comfortably in an overstuffed chair in the hallway of their banquet room area, using the casino's free Wi-Fi to get some online work done, but mostly to be plugged into electricity to recharge my computer and cell phone.

Monday ; Marysville to I-5 Mile Marker 11 Rest Area, Washington

Chilly and raining all day.

We left the Tulalip Casino this morning and before we even got back to the nearby Interstate 5 we found a Bank of America. WOO-HOO ! We were both eager to get rid of the large amount of U.S.$ cash that Joanne has been carrying around in her purse since we left home. We deposited the cash and got back onto I-5 continuing south. About fourteen miles south of the casino we stopped at a freeway rest area to dump our waste holding tanks and refill our freshwater tank. The size limitations of the truck camper's holding tanks make it desirable to dump our grey tank and refill our freshwater tank on a daily basis. And many of the rest areas in Washington have excellent
sani-dump stations ; spacious entry and exit, sewer inlets and water spigots in good condition, sometimes multiple lanes so no waiting.

After dumping and refilling we continued south on I-5 to and through Seattle and Tacoma. < sigh > Very stressful driving. The freeway passes right through downtown Seattle. And as is usually the case with freeways in urban areas, the city drivers lack courtesy and freeway driving skills. And now ... I'm seeing more and more drivers texting on their cell phones while driving at freeway speeds ! Without a doubt, the most dangerous thing we do in our lives is drive on American freeways in urban areas.

We stopped for lunch at another rest area. We refilled with diesel at a Pilot Travel Center near Tumwater. Really ? Tumwater ? They should just rename it "Middle Of Nowhere". We decided to stop for the night just a few minutes before it got dark at 5 PM, at Gee Creek Rest Area eleven miles north of the Washington / Oregon border and the city of Portland. Joanne did not want to arrive in Portland, in the dark, at the end of rush hour traffic.

Tuesday ; I-5 Mile Marker 11 Rest Area, Washington to McMinnville, Oregon

Cold and raining in the morning, slowly clearing by late afternoon.

Today was a long, tiring, frustrating day, most of it spent shopping in Portland, Oregon.

The morning started with Sully puking all over the bed and Joanne and himself. < sigh > Before leaving the Interstate rest area we dumped the grey tank and refilled the freshwater tank ... working in the cold rain. You know how much I hate that ! We continued south on I-5 until reaching Interstate 205, somewhat the "perimeter highway" / "ring road" around Portland. We travelled east and south on I-205 crossing over the Columbia River from Vancouver, Washington to Portland, Oregon. We turned east on Interstate 84 heading for Trader Joe's, Harbor Freight, and Camping World in the northeast section of Portland.

When I was online searching for Trader Joe's in Portland a few weeks ago, the online map did not reveal that the Trader Joe's location was in an older neighbourhood of Portland, with narrow streets, and a small, congested store parking lot. Manoeuvering around and parking with a 9 foot wide, 24 foot long truck and camper was extremely difficult. We spent $87 at Trader Joe's, buying nothing essential. HA HA HA ... we LOOOOOVE indulging ourselves at Trader Joe's, buying exotic / gourmet / unusual foods, including snack food items and pet foods and treats. Like Trader Joe's cat food. Ingredient list ; tuna ! Hope Sully lives long enough to eat all the cans I bought today !

From Trader Joe's we found our way to Harbor Freight, to buy a small generator, to replace the one that died last spring. Unfortunately, the generator was not on sale today at the price that I wanted to pay, but ... I got a flyer that indicated it would be the price that I want, on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. So ... we're not going to have a generator for this trip south, but ... life goes on !

We stopped at a Safeway to have lunch in the camper in the parking lot, then refill with diesel at their fuel bar. From there we found our way to Camping World, a location where we have been before, so it was easy to find ... unlike Trader Joe's and Harbor Freight. I needed four items at Camping World. I got one ! HMPH !

By the time we were finished at Camping World it was after 4 PM. Less than an hour until dark, but no further errands to do in Portland, so ... we hit the road. Rush hour traffic ! ! ! We headed west into Portland on Interstate 84, then southwest through Portland on Hwy. 99W. It was dark by 5 PM, as expected. We made it out of Portland and to McMinnville where we stopped at 5:30 PM to spend the night in a Wal-Mart parking lot.

Wednesday ; McMinnville, Oregon

HMPH ! Spent half the day waiting for a ****ing tow truck ! Haven't had to do that for years ! Not since we bought this Dodge truck 8½ years ago ! Awfully good thing
I renewed my Good Sam Roadside Assistance membership yesterday at Camping World in Portland !

After a slightly slow start to the morning we went into the Wal-Mart and did a bit of tax free shopping. After shopping we did an obedience session with Bo at the far end of the Wal-Mart parking lot where we had boondocked overnight, and which was mostly empty. Shopping and obedience finished, it was time to go. I turned the key in the truck, and ... nothing ! < sigh >

I walked over to the Meineke Car Care Centre next door and persuaded the manager to allow one of his service technicians to come over with his pickup truck and attempt a jump start. Didn't work ! I walked over to a tractor trailer unit parked in the Wal-Mart parking lot, driver eating lunch, and persuaded the driver to come over with his big rig and attempt a jump start. Dodge trucks with Cummins diesel engines with two batteries are hard to jump start, and need a real powerful booster vehicle. I thought a tractor trailer unit would suffice. It didn't ! < sigh >

I phoned Good Sam Roadside Assistance. They arranged for a tow truck. It didn't arrive until two hours later. While we were waiting I had walked over to Meineke Car Care and discussed the situation with them, and decided that there wasn't a snowball's chance in hell that the truck problem would be identified and rectified today, SO ... < sigh > ...
I decided that the smartest thing to do would be to remove the camper from the truck before the tow truck's arrival.

Joanne and I detached the camper and raised it up high enough to allow the truck to be pulled out from underneath it. AND ... we squabbled and sniped at each other a lot. Stress ! ! ! The tow truck finally arrived, and after discussing the situation with the tow truck driver, we decided to attempt another jump start. I was not yet convinced that the problem was with the starter or alternator or solenoid or something other than the batteries. We connected the tow truck's powerful booster cables and ... VROOOOOM ! The truck started ... no problem !

You would think that would almost be the end of the story. NOOOOO ! ! !    I drove the truck out from underneath the camper and drove the 200 feet or so over to Meineke Car Care. By the time they were able to begin testing the batteries a few minutes later ...
I had not shut off the engine ... the batteries and engine were warm AND ... < sigh > ... the batteries tested as "okay". As did the starter and the alternator and solenoid. Their diagnostics indicated "no problem".

Well, fellas ... obviously there is a problem ... you just haven't found it yet. I told them there was no sense in me taking the truck away, putting the camper back on, and ...
not being able to start the truck again tomorrow morning. They agreed to keep the truck overnight and test everything again first thing tomorrow morning when it's cold.

Given how quickly the tow truck boost was able to start the truck, I'm convinced that the problem is the two batteries in the truck. They are 44 months old, guaranteed for 85 months, so should not yet be "dead". BUT ... < shrug > ! ! ! They are Interstate brand batteries. Meinieke is an Interstate battery dealer. But they won't / can't process a warranty claim on my two batteries if their testing indicates they are okay.

Stay tuned !

I spent another hour at Meineke Car Care, until they closed, sitting in their customer waiting area, working on my computer plugged into their electricity, recharging my computer battery. I certainly miss having a small generator with us. Joanne and I went walking around the neighbourhood which was wall to wall shopping malls. I browsed at O'Reilly Auto Parts, planning to return there tomorrow for some items I want to buy tax free in Oregon, and ... maybe two new batteries for the truck ! We went into Safeway and bought a few grocery items. We went into Wal-Mart ( again ) to buy a pack of AAA batteries. Late in the evening we wandered over to KFC to have supper.

Thursday ; McMinnville to Grand Ronde, Oregon

Well ... as travel problems go, this truck dead batteries crisis could have been a lot worse, all things considered.

Chilly and raining for most of the day.

After a fitful night I was up by 7:30 AM and by 8:15 AM I was walking across the street from the Wal-Mart parking lot to the Meineke Car Care Center. They had already tested the truck's two batteries. Yup ... deader than doorknobs when cold in the morning. They had already phoned the local Interstate battery factory representative and he was on his way down. He arrived by 8:30 AM, and when he reviewed Meineke's test results, he authorized a warranty claim on the truck's two batteries. They were purchased 44 months ago, and were guaranteed for 85 months, so I had to pay 44/85 of the cost of two new batteries. Fair enough !

While the new batteries were being installed I was in the customer waiting area working online using Meinieke's free Wi-Fi. After checking e-mail I went to the Spirit Mountain Casino website to check on Penn & Teller tickets. For the entire month of October I had been checking the website daily to see if any tickets became available for this Saturday's long ago sold out show. And ... lo and behold ... a week ago I got a ticket. Just one ! Since I had some time to kill, and Wi-Fi access, I checked again this morning.

HOLY SHIT ! TWO SEATS TOGETHER JUST BECAME AVAILABLE ! ! !

I phoned the casino's box office as quickly as I could. Not that quick, given my ineptitude with my new cell phone ! I couldn't just buy the two tickets online because
I wanted to exchange the one ticket I had already bought. It was a lengthy ( and subsequently rather expensive ... we use a pay by the minute cell phone ) phone call, and a complicated process of exchanging one ticket for another, and buying another, but ... WOO-HOO, WOO-HOO, WOO-HOO ...not only am I going to see Penn & Teller on Saturday night, but ... Joanne will be sitting right beside me ! ! !

When the two truck batteries were replaced and I was leaving Meineke Car Care Center, the rain mercifully and briefly stopped. Just long enough for me to drive quickly from Meineke to Wal-Mart ... a few hundred feet ... and position the truck underneath the camper with the bed of the truck still dry. I had been very concerned about replacing the camper into the truck with the bed of the truck wet from the rain.

We got the camper reinstalled ... it was already raining again by the time we were finished ... and we finally left the McMinnville Wal-Mart parking lot. As we drove through McMinnville we made a few stops to continue our Oregon tax free shopping. First stop was O'Reilly Auto Parts where I bought a few items. Joanne noticed a propane supply business as we drove through town so we pulled in to refill. One of our tanks ran out the first night after we left home. The truck camper's old, horizontal mount, horizontal fill propane tanks need to be refilled by an actual propane supply business. The high school kids typically employed by service stations and convenience stores and other places where propane tanks can typically be refilled do not understand the peculiarities of the camper's propane tanks. So by now, the second tank was already half empty.
I refilled both tanks. AND ... we refilled our freshwater tank from the water spigot on the rear of the propane supply building. Last stop in McMinnville was Walgreens to buy some AA and AAA batteries which are always on sale at Walgreens the first week of November.

We left McMinnville heading southwest on Hwy. 99W, and continued ( in pouring rain ) southwest on Hwy. 18 to Grand Ronde, only about 30 miles / 50 km. or so from McMinnville. We arrived at Spirit Mountain Casino in time to have a late lunch in their RV parking area.

Spirit Mountain Casino has a wonderful "RV park" with many large pull through, unserviced ( boondocking ) sites, and an easy access, well maintained sani-dump station and adjacent freshwater refill station. One could live here ( for free ) quite comfortably ! While I showered Joanne went into the casino to join the player's club, enabling us to stay in the RV park ( and use the sani-dump station ) for three nights for free. After she returned we dumped the waste holding tanks ( overdue ! ) and refilled the freshwater tank again. I had taken a needed and deserved, long, hot shower !

I did a minor repair on the truck camper, and spent time on the computer updating truck maintenance records and credit card accounting. We took Bo for a brief walk while it wasn't raining. While Joanne prepared dinner I went into the casino to work on the computer, plugged into electricity to recharge the battery. < sigh > Surely do miss having that small generator !

Friday ; day trip to Tillamook, Oregon

Sunny and mild. Finally ... a pleasant weather day !

Well ... HMPH ! So much for "professional installation" ! What atrocious workmanship at Meineke Car Care Center in McMinnville, Oregon ! ! ! This morning when I was doing routine preventive maintenance and fluid checks on the truck I discovered ... three of the four battery terminal clamps were tightened appropriately, and one of the four was left completely loose. As if the service technician got distracted and forgot to do the last clamp. AND ... one of the battery's hold down clamps was installed ever so slightly misaligned, while the other battery's hold down clamp was installed ...
< sputter > ... upside down ... AND ... with no nut underneath the bolt ! ! ! ! !

I absolutely hate paying auto repair shop labour rates for work done that carelessly and indifferently ! ! ! ! !

This morning we were thrilled to see sunlight as we were planning a day of exploring. We dumped the waste holding tanks, refilled the freshwater tank, and headed out to explore back roads and Tillamook. We drove northwest on Hwy. 22 towards Oregon's Pacific coast, about 30 miles / 50 km. or so from Spirit Mountain Casino. Hwy. 22 was a scenic winding road through forest. When we came upon a fish hatchery at Cedar Creek we stopped to look around and / or have a tour. There was only one employee today at the salmon and trout hatchery operated by the State of Oregon, and she was too busy to give us a tour, but invited us to wander around by ourselves. While we were doing that, she came over and gave us a large bucket of fish food to feed to the Rainbow Trout in one of the concrete ponds. HA HA HA ... it was fun feeding the trout. And by watching them feed, I was able to learn something about their feeding habits that may help me with my fly fishing next summer.

We continued on Hwy. 22 until reaching Hwy. 101, the road that follows the Pacific coastline. We turned north and drove about another 30 miles / 50 km. or so to Tillamook. Spent a week near Tillamook in 2005 getting the transmission replaced on our previous truck. First stop today was Tillamook Cheese Factory. Our late lunch consisted of sampling cheeses and sharing a five scoop sampler bowl of ice creams. We bought some cheese curds, salad dressing, and a couple of small tubs of yoghurt.

Next stop was Blue Heron French Cheese Company, makers of Brie cheese. We sampled cheeses, dips, jams, salad dressings, barbecue sauces, and ... wines. We bought some smoked Brie cheese and another salad dressing.

I stopped at O'Reilly's Auto Parts to buy some automatic transmission fluid. We bought some groceries at Fred Meyer's. By then it was getting dark. GEEEEEZ ... where did the day go ? ! ? We left Tillamook and drove south on Hwy 101 past the turnoff to Hwy. 22 and continued south to Hwy. 18, a route that we hoped would be easier to drive in the dark than the narrow, twisty Hwy. 22. It was ! We returned to Spirit Mountain Casino for a second night of boondocking. While Joanne prepared supper I went into the casino to use my computer plugged into electricity to keep the battery charged.

What a nice day we had !

Saturday ; Spirit Mountain Casino

Sunny and mild again. How nice !

We slept late this morning. After morning chores we drove over to the sani-dump station to dump and refill. We squabbled viciously. Smartly, we kept it relatively brief. We went to the casino for a very late lunch / very early dinner in the buffet restaurant. Very nice ! We wandered through the Saturday "Marketplace", a weekly Native arts and crafts fair at the casino. I bought a lip balm stick made of beeswax and lavender. I also bought a small package of dried sage with a small seashell in which to burn the sage, a "travelling sage smudge" kit. We walked over to the resort hotel attached to the casino and I used a computer and printer in their Business Center to print my new Penn & Teller tickets for tonight's show. That had been suggested to me by the ticket agent on the telephone the other day, saving me a bit of time tonight and the $2 per ticket box office pick up fee. Thank you, Nicole. I returned to the Business Center late in the afternoon to work on my computer, plugged into electricity, and using Wi-Fi. I uploaded my weekly journal up until yesterday to my blog, needing to add only today ... tomorrow.

I have somewhat mixed emotions about the Penn & Teller show. I expected ... "bigger" ... more "glitzy". More ... WOW !   Perhaps their Vegas show, in their own theater at the Rio, would be "bigger" ... more "glitzy" ? On the other hand, I have great admiration for the "purity" of their magic, the "simplicity" of their magic. No smoke, no mirrors, no laser lights, no loud music, no scantily clad assistants. Just Raymond Teller's superb sleight of hand skills. And Penn Jillette's showmanship. And most impressive in this day and age of magic ... no mirror box routines. I dislike how much contemporary magicians employ mirror box routines.

And as an amateur magician, it gives me great consolation to realize that even at their astounding level of magic show ... a "muffed" routine or two is going to happen. Just "step over it" and keep going !

DSK