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