December 9 to 15, 2018

Sunday ; Sunny and warm. How lovely !

This afternoon we went to a theater performance by Yuma Community Theater. Usually I am fairly satisfied with Yuma Community Theater’s plays, and the value for money paid. But today … well … not quite so much. Today’s play was A Charlie Brown Christmas, with an all child cast. And while the play was fairly well done … paying forty ( American ) dollars ( for a pair of tickets ) to see a group of children perform a forty-five minute, one act play, didn’t seem to be money particularly well spent. Oh, well … it was supposed to evoke Christmas spirit in the audience members, and I suppose it did that.

After the play we ran some shopping errands until it was time to go for dinner. Joanne wanted to have a bit of a celebratory dinner, to celebrate our arrival / return to Yuma. We went to Olive Garden. Good meal. Very good service ! After we returned home Joanne used my old laptop to buy some dog food online. We spent way too much time this afternoon at PetsMart trying to select an appropriate new dog food for Ozzie, since we were unable to find his “Canadian” product. But … we’re dinosaurs ! Taking the advice of the PetsMart store manager, Joanne found that it was available online at Chewy.com, shipped to our door for much less money than we pay for it in Penticton. HMPH … go figure !

Monday ; Los Algodones, Baja California, Mexico

Cloudy and cool.

This morning we left home at 11 AM heading for dental appointments in Mexico at noon. Through Yuma to Interstate 8, west on I-8 over the Colorado River into California, then a mile south on Algodones Road to the Andrade / Los Algodones border crossing. We parked, walked into Mexico, and arrived at our dentist’s office about 11:45 AM. My dental cleaning started forty minutes late, Joanne’s started seventy minutes late. My periodontist was “too busy” to conduct a periodontal examination, despite me having made an appointment, so a young “general” dentist conducted my post cleaning dental exam. In the ten years or so that we have been going to this clinic, there has been a slow but steady deterioration in customer service as a second generation of the Camacho family takes over. With about a hundred and fifty dentists in a six square block area of this town … maybe it’s time to move on to a different dentist ?

When we were finished at the dentist’s we went for a late lunch at our favourite restaurant in town, Tacos Molca. MMMMMM … best shredded goat meat taco ever ! After lunch we went to Tere’s Beauty & Barber Shop. I got a haircut and beard trim, Joanne got a pedicure. 

I was finished before Joanne, so I walked over to the veterinary pharmacy and bought some heartworm prevention medication for Ozzie. On the way back to the beauty salon I discovered a small new panaderia in town. WOO-HOO … mucho pan dulce por grande gringo !

Joanne shopped for a new backpack purse. Found one she liked. Vendor asked for U.S.$48. Joanne offered twenty bucks ! A few minutes of haggling, and … she bought it for twenty bucks. Well done, my dear. My mother would be proud of you. HA HA HA ! I bought some medication that our friend / neighbour Jeanine back home in Keremeos asked for.

The line-up to cross back into the U.S. was seventy minutes long. Just more games playing by the assholes at CBP ! It was a slow day in Los Algodones, not that many gringos to cross back into the U.S. I was amused by the thousands and thousands of feet of new razor wire now strung along the top of the “fence” around the border crossing. Got to keep the “homeland secure” from all them old white folks with fixed teeth trying to cross the border ! HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA !

On the way back home we stopped at Smart & Final to buy some advertised grocery items ( like “twelve packs” of soft drinks for three bucks ! ) and at O’Reilly’s to pick up a tailgate strut I ordered yesterday. We were back home at 7 PM.

Tuesday ; Sunny and warm.

This morning I installed a new lift strut on the car’s tailgate and a new lift strut on the car’s liftgate ( tailgate window ). And chatted with the new neighbour from two doors down, a woman from Victoria, BC. This afternoon a crew from Sam’s Mobile RV Washing arrived, and washed the fifth wheel trailer, the car, the truck, and the camper. Two young Mexican guys, two hours, done ! A hundred bucks well spent ! Would have taken Joanne and me at least two days to do all that work !

As soon as the car was washed Joanne went shopping. I spent the rest of the afternoon on … < sigh > … the ongoing cell phone drama. My U.S. cell phone is still not reactivated. The new SIM card that was supposed to be sent on November 30 still has not arrived. Finally … after WAY too much time spent talking to way too many “HELP” agents … ( somewhat of an oxymoron there ! ) … I pitched a hissy fit, told them to cancel my account, and refund my money ! Which started a whole new chapter of drama !

I spent the evening shopping online for a new cell phone service. And spinning my wheels trying ( and failing ) to migrate my very old calendar function from my old laptop to my new laptop.

Wednesday ; Sunny and warm.

This morning I set up the Sun Oven to be used for the first time this winter season, and Joanne baked a Saskatoon coffee cake using frozen Saskatoons picked at home six months ago. I did some maintenance work on the trailer. After lunch we headed to the Humane Society of Yuma for our first dog walking / cat cuddling session in a year and a half. I have missed my volunteer work at HSOY, and have been looking forward to our return. Nevertheless … the lack of interest and absence of a “welcome back” by the new volunteer department staff was a bit disheartening and discouraging. The Humane Society of Yuma seems to have devolved into an organization comprised of staff that exist to serve themselves. Volunteers … and even potential adopters … seem to be of little interest to them. My dampened spirits were lifted when a regular volunteer from past years pulled into the parking lot as I was walking a dog. Penny jumped out of her truck and very enthusiastically welcomed me back. It took another volunteer to make me feel welcome and valued. I walked dogs for two hours while Joanne worked in the cat adoption wing.

In the evening we watched Survivor. And I continued to work on “migrating” from my old laptop to my new one.

Thursday ; Sunny and warm.

The roof repair contractor that I hired was here twice today to complete two of the three steps involved in cleaning, repairing, and recoating the trailer’s roof. In the morning he cleaned the roof. He returned a few hours later, after allowing the roof to dry completely, to repair damaged areas. His work looks good so far. I finally finished setting up the fifth wheel trailer on our lot. I installed the king pin bipod stabilizer, lowered the rear stabilizer jacks, chocked the wheels on both sides, and set up and connected the solar panels.

I continued setting up my new laptop. I loaded the software for the printer here in Yuma. The software for the printer in Keremeos would not load. Guess I’ll be buying a new printer next spring ! While 
I barbecued supper I watched a crop duster spray the orchards adjacent to our RV park. I am absolutely fascinated by watching a high powered aircraft work about fifteen feet above ground … in the dark ! It’s done at night because there is no wind to disperse the chemical being sprayed. Nevertheless … the air was pungent with the smell of the chemicals. 
I’ll probably end up with mesothelioma or something from indulging my fascination with watching the process of night time “crop dusting”.

Friday ; Cloudy, windy, cool.

My roofing contractor did not return until almost noon today. It was too cold in the morning for the application of the roofing recoat material. He completed the application of the first of two coats, but does not want to apply the second and final coat until a warm and sunny day. While he worked on the trailer roof I worked on a repair on the trailer’s side wall. A repair that I had done about thirteen or fourteen years ago, shortly after we bought the trailer, needed to be redone. I had used fiberglass reinforced tape to repair a couple of cracks in the gel coat. The sun “ate” the old repair over the last two summers. Today I did the repair again, this time using Eternabond tape.

Late in the afternoon I removed the trailer’s very dead “house” battery and we headed to Wal-Mart to buy a replacement battery. On the way we stopped at the Habitat For Humanity Re-Store and bought a cellular blind for the trailer’s bedroom window. At Wal-Mart I bought a new battery in the automotive department then joined Joanne in the store who was grocery shopping. When we were finished with our Wal-Martin’ we headed to Lowe’s to buy some mounting brackets for the cellular blind we had purchased at HFH Re-Store.

As we returned to our car in the Lowe’s parking lot we found Ozzie just finishing up eating two packages of luncheon meats ! HEY ! BAD DOG ! As we were leaving Wal-Mart Joanne wondered if she should put the perishable groceries in the fridge in the car. I said “don’t bother … we’ll just be in Lowe’s for a few minutes, and home soon thereafter”. We both neglected to account for Ozzie being alone in the car … with food ! HMPH ! Lesson learned ! I wonder how a very old dog with only six teeth can tear open packages like that ? ! ?

For supper I barbecued a large fillet piece of Coho Salmon caught by me in the Atnarko River near Bella Coola in September. In the evening 
I helped Joanne with a computer chore she has been dreading doing. 
I placed an online order for her Christmas gift to me. HA HA HA ! Merry Christmas, Daniel !

Saturday ; Mostly sunny and mild, a bit windy. Joanne cooked a chicken and rice recipe in the Sun Oven today.

We finally got around to doing our Christmas decorating today. Joanne cleaned the cellular blind that we bought at Habitat For Humanity 

Re-Store yesterday. I figured out how to mount it in the bedroom and what hardware to use to mount it. I mounted our Christmas projector light on our side yard brick fence, casting red and green dancing lights on the trailer, the car, the patio and Arizona room, and … some of our front yard cactus garden. HA HA HA … kewl ! I replenished toiletries in the camper. We arranged the trailer’s desk area to eliminate my old laptop and its peripherals, and get my new laptop ( and old printer ) into place.

DSK

December 2 to 8, 2018 ; Yuma, Arizona

Sunday ; Sunny and warm.

I spent the day getting Obie, our "winter beater" SUV functional after it has been sitting unused for nineteen months, including two Yuma summers ! Easier said than done ! Joanne spent the day continuing to clean the Arizona room and shed, then moving stuff from the camper into the shed, most of it to be moved into 

( Harvey ) the fifth wheel trailer when we bring it from the storage yard to our lot 52 on Tuesday.

I spent the evening processing photos from our trip to here, posting my weekly journal to my blog, and buying insurance for Obie.

The brand new auto cover that we installed over Obie nineteen months ago did not survive the nineteen months / two Yuma summers. It was just a pile of torn cloth lying on and around the car. AND ... that's also what became of the cloth shopping bags left in the car ; just piles of torn cloth ! I wonder what the temperature is inside the car when it's sunny and 120 degrees outside ? ! ?

Monday ; Sunny and warm.

This afternoon we drove ( in the truck and camper ) to the Department of Motor Vehicles ( DMV ) to renew the registration of Obie. They would not renew the registration today because …AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH ... I had purchased the insurance policy to be effective tomorrow !

Our new next door neighbour Rita gave us a crocheted mouse filled with catnip as a gift for Emma. < blink blink > WOW ... Emma LOOOOOVES it !

Tuesday ; Cloudy, windy, mild.

We spent the morning preparing to move from the camper to the trailer. After lunch our neighbour / friend Richard moved our trailer from the storage yard to our lot 52 using his truck. Thank you very much, Richard. We spent the rest of the afternoon getting the trailer ready for occupancy. The trailer seems old and ... worn out.

In the evening my priority was to get online and "attach" the car insurance to the car registration, so that tomorrow we can return to the DMV and get the license plate sticker. When I tried to sign on to Wi-Fi ... AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH ... the Kofa Ko-op network was "down", and remained non-functional for the rest of the evening. AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH ! ! ! ! !

< taking deep breath >

Emma remembered the trailer and was pleased to be back “home”. This was her first home with us. Ozzie is very adaptable, so he thinks the trailer is just fine. He is obsessively licking one of his front feet. We can’t find what the problem is. Probably a piece of sharp desert grass or a cactus quill embedded into / under his skin. I guess it will just have to fester its way out, like a sliver. Poor Ozzie !

Wednesday ; Sunny, warm, windy.

This morning I was able to get online, and "attached" the car insurance to the car registration. Then we drove to the Department of Motor Vehicles and obtained the license plate sticker. OK ... car insurance and registration drama complete !

This afternoon Joanne took the car and went grocery shopping. I stayed home and made phone calls to get estimates and hire trades people to wash the fifth wheel trailer, the truck, the camper, and the car. And to recoat the trailer's rubber roof. I walked Ozzie. I put air in my bicycle's tires. WOO-HOO ... they didn't explode, which they often do after sitting in Yuma's brutally hot summer. And this year, they had been sitting in Yuma's brutally hot summer for two summers without use ! I expected they would explode when inflated. I got the satellite dish connected to the trailer.

In the evening we watched Survivor. And I bought Sunday matinee tickets to a live performance of "A Charlie Brown Christmas" presented by Yuma Community Theater.

The car is running extremely rough. It has a full tank of gas that has been sitting ... like the bicycle’s tires ... through nineteen months / two summers.

Thursday ; Cloudy, cold, raining ... rather unusual for Yuma.

Today we ( mostly Joanne ) finished "moving" from the camper to the trailer. I did some minor preventive maintenance on the camper, then parked the truck and camper in one of our two spots in the storage yard. I repaired a leak under the trailer's kitchen sink. I cooked supper ; poached eggs in Crema Oaxaqueña on toasted English muffins. I spent the evening setting up my new laptop computer, purchased two weeks ago on Black Friday.

Friday ; Sunny and cool.

We had a couple of roof leaks overnight, one in the kitchen and one in the bedroom. This morning I climbed up on the roof of the trailer to inspect it. HOLY SHIT ! It's in pretty bad shape after two summers in Yuma's sun, with no maintenance.

Joanne went shopping by herself today. I made phone calls to contractors, and met with contractors, regarding trailer roof repairs and recoating. After talking to six contractors by phone, and meeting with four of them who came to give me estimates, I made a decision, and hired an older Mexican fellow who has been repairing and recoating roofs for twenty-nine years. So ... he should know what he's doing ! Although ... he's difficult to communicate with. He speaks little English.

In the evening I worked on my new computer. I have begun to load the software for the old programs that I still use ... like MS Money 2004. HEY ... if it ain't broke, don't fix it !

And ... the trailer roof is broke ! ! !

Saturday ; Sunny and mild.

Today we took the truck and camper to the storage yard, removed the camper off the truck, and installed the fifth wheel hitch into the bed of the truck. We returned to our lot 52, prepared the trailer for transport, hitched the truck to the trailer, and repositioned it slightly. < sigh > Much easier said than done ! The fifth wheel hitch head that I have here in Yuma is slightly different than the one I have in Keremeos, and the hitch here gave me difficulties today.

I spent the evening “migrating” from my old laptop to my new one. As I expected, it did not go smoothly. But … I am making progress, and this daily journal entry is the first one done on the new computer.

DSK

November 25 to December 1, 2018 ; Corning, California to Yuma, Arizona

Sunday ;  Rolling Hills Casino, Corning to Tachi Palace Casino, Lemoore, California

Sunny and mild.  How nice !

This morning we left the casino's RV parking lot ... thank you very much, Rolling Hills Casino ... at 10:30 AM and drove one exit back / north on Interstate 5 to a truck service area with many service stations and repair facilities, etc.  We refilled with diesel at a Mobil station.  We refilled one of the camper's propane tanks at a Love's station.  We drove to three different truck wash businesses, to get the truck and camper washed, but ... two of them were too expensive, and the third one had a line-up.  We were heading south on I-5 by noon.

We stopped at the Willows rest area to dump our waste holding tanks and refill our freshwater tank at their sani-dump station.  We passed just to the west of the Camp Fire area, and the burned out towns of Magalia and Paradise.  During the balance of our time on I-5 today we were regularly passed by firefighter vehicles returning south towards the Los Angeles area.  The Camp Fire was declared "contained" today, so maybe less firefighter help is needed ?  Or ... the firefighters are so fatigued they need a few days off to rest ?  We stopped at the Williams rest area and had a late lunch.

The weather was so nice, and I felt so good, that I was inspired to drive past today's planned destination and drive all the way to tomorrow's planned destination.  Two easy days of driving combined into one long day.  After passing through Sacramento in
mid-afternoon, the traffic heading south towards Los Angeles became heavier and heavier as the afternoon wore on.  Everybody was returning home after Thanksgiving at Gramma's.  By the time it became dark at 5 PM it was bumper to bumper, but travelling well at 70 MPH ( 112 km./hr. ) ... in the slow lane !  Around 6 PM we turned west on Hwy. 198 heading to a casino in the middle of nowhere between I-5 and Hwy. 99, the other main highway heading south in California.

We arrived at Tachi Palace Casino at 7:10 PM.  Despite being in the middle of nowhere, it is a huge casino, with a huge fuel bar adjacent, with long line-ups at each of the eight fuel pump islands, to buy cheap "rez" gas ( no taxes on it, I guess ).  We parked in their RV parking lot, and Joanne made supper.  After we had supper the lines at the fuel pumps had diminished, so we drove over and refilled the truck with diesel.  Second hundred dollar fill today !

We went into the casino to see if it was interesting enough to entice us to spend tomorrow here.  It wasn't !  Despite being huge, it didn't have all that much going for it.  Buffet restaurant was nice, but that wasn't enough to keep us here tomorrow.  There was a live band playing.  WAAAAAYYYYY too loud !  A Mexican cowboy band, not exactly our cup of tea.  There is a naval air station nearby, so the casino was filled with testosterone laden "Top Gun" types.  And Mexican cowboy types.  And lots and lots of local "Indigenous" people.  Not surprising, since this is an "Indian" casino, on reservation land.

We returned to the camper and did trip planning for the next few days.  Because of today, we are now one day ahead of schedule.  We'll probably spend an extra day in Palm Springs.

Monday ;  Tachi Palace Casino, Lemoore, to Barstow, California

Sunny and mild, chilly in the evening in the Mojave Desert.

This morning we left the casino's RV parking lot at 11 AM.  Thank you very much, Tachi Palace Casino.  Our plan was to drive a short distance east to Hwy. 99, then a short distance south to the city of Tulare, to buy groceries and have lunch at Vallarta, my favourite supermarket in all of North America !  Using our road map atlas we calculated the distance to be almost forty miles, on major highways.  When we plugged Vallarta's address into our GPS, it showed a distance of just over twenty miles, all of it on country back roads.  We decided to put our faith in the GPS, and follow its routing.  It was a very pleasant drive through farmland, giving us a view of local agriculture.

We first found Vallarta on its second day of business, about seven or eight years ago, when we pulled off Hwy. 99 into Tulare to find a fuel station so that we could refill with diesel.  It was the Mexican supermarket's Grand Opening weekend.  WOW !  We were so impressed that every time we drive south on Interstate 5 and / or California Hwy. 99, we stop there to buy groceries and have lunch.  First stop in the store is always the large panaderia.  Today I bought ten pieces of pan dulce ( Mexican pastries ) for breakfasts.  Well ... and maybe bedtime snacks as well.  HA HA HA !  While I picked out pan dulce Joanne was selecting a large piece of tres leches ( three milks ) cake.  We selected fresh produce ( key limes for Diet Cokes, avocado and cilantro for making guacamole, some Mandarinas / Satsumas ), then went to the fresh cheese counter, like a butcher or deli counter, with all the cheeses in a long display case, and a counter clerk who cuts or scoops it into containers, to your order.  MMMMM ... Joanne bought some Queso Fresco ( translates as "Fresh Cheese", a type of fresh cheese similar to Feta, but softer and moister ).  I was going to buy some fresh Crema Salvadoreña ( a type of sour cream, from El Salvador ), but ... the store had a special advertised price on Crema Oaxaqueña ( a type of sour cream from the Oaxaca region of Mexico ).  We had never had Crema Oaxaqueña before.  The cheese counter lady gave us a sample to try, scooped onto a tortilla chip.  WOO-HOO ... one container full please.  Joanne is eager to try it on the small, multi-coloured potatoes she bought at Trader Joe's.  At the fresh fish counter I was going to buy some ceviche ( like salsa / pico de gallo with diced shrimp or raw fish ) , but decided on ensalata de jaiba ( crab salad ).

We went up and down the store's aisles, stocking up on our favourite Mexican grocery products.  And then ... finished our shopping at the butcher counter, a display case, perhaps fifty feet long, filled with fresh cuts of meat, Mexican style.  We bought some fresh liver, smoked pork chops for Joanne, chicken legs and thighs "butterfly" sliced in half on a band saw, Mexican style, some carne asada por tacos ( seasoned diced beef in a salsa type marinade, intended to be cooked for tacos ) and some pollo al pastor
( seasoned diced chicken in a salsa type marinade ).

When we went to pay, my Bank of America card was declined, as it was last night when I tried to use it to purchase diesel fuel.  Joanne's Bank of America card had stopped working days ago.  UH-OH ... both our bank cards not working must spell trouble !

While Joanne put away the groceries in the camper, I took our five gallon water jug to a refill machine in the shopping mall and refilled it.  Then we returned into Vallarta to have lunch at their wonderful "La Cocina" ( The Kitchen ), their prepared Mexican "fast food" lunch restaurant inside the store.  Joanne had carnitas salsa verde con arroz y frijoles
( a pork in green salsa stew served with rice and refried beans ), and I had birria de cabra con arroz y frijoles ( a goat ribs stew served with rice and refried beans ).  We had dos aguas fresca ( two freshly made fruit punches ) to drink, mine was strawberry and banana, Joanne's was watermelon and mint leaves.  While eating lunch we noticed that we seemed to be the only two gringos ( white people ) in the store.  HA HA HA !  No problemo ... I can eat goat with the best of them !  HA HA HA < SNORT > HA HA !

After lunch we drove to a nearby Bank of America where it took over an hour to get our card drama sorted out.  Joanne's card had been cancelled because it hadn't been used in a year and a half.  Mine was cancelled yesterday because of "suspicious activity".  Fair enough !  I applaud banks for having good security procedures.  A very helpful clerk ( a Hispanic woman by the name of Lourdes ) issued temporary new cards, and is having permanent cards sent to our Yuma address.  We activated our new cards in the ATM, withdrew cash, and were on our way shortly after 3 PM.

We drove south on Hwy. 99 to Bakersfield, then turned east on Hwy. 58 for the long uphill climb through the Tehachapi Pass to the town of Tehachapi at the summit ( over 4000 feet elevation ).  We arrived in Tehachapi at 5 PM as it became dark.  We refilled our freshwater tank at Love's then continued eastbound on Hwy. 58 ... descending down into the dark and cold Mojave Desert.

AHHHHH ... the Mojave Desert !  Feels like coming home !  We drove past the Edwards Air Force Base, past the town of Boron, all the way to the city of Barstow.  Home of Snoopy's older brother Spike.  HA HA HA !  We boondocked overnight at Flying J, after spending the last five nights boondocking at casinos.

Tuesday ;  Barstow to Palm Springs, California

Sunny and warm, temperature 72° F / 22° C.  Well !  Of course it's warm !  It's Palm Springs ! ! !

Before leaving Flying J this morning ( at 11 AM ) we refilled the truck with diesel and the camper with freshwater.  Thank you very much Flying J.  We drove a few miles north and east on Interstate 15, then turned south then east then south on Hwy. 247 to Yucca Valley where we turned west then south on Hwy. 62 to Palm Springs.  We prefer this lonely stretch of desolate two lane highway through the Mojave Desert to the more popular route south on Interstate 15 to Los Angeles then east on Interstate 10 to Palm Springs.  We stopped on the outskirts of Palm Springs at 2 PM to have lunch parked on the side of the road, within view of Guide Dogs of the Desert where we did our last WorkCamping job thirteen years ago.

Since we were still on the north side of Interstate 10, after lunch we drove into Desert Hot Springs before crossing the freeway into Palm Springs.  While I had a brief nap Joanne went thrift store browsing.  At 3:30 PM we drove from Desert Hot Springs across Interstate 10 into Palm Springs and to the Palm Springs Dog Park behind City Hall.  This was Bo's favourite dog park of the many dog parks that we visited in Canada, United States and Mexico.  Well ... Mexico doesn't really have dog parks.  Mexico is one big dog park.  But ... I digress !  We were planning to leave half of Bo's ashes sprinkled around the Palm Springs Dog Park.  But ... it was closed today.  It will be closed for a month or so for some maintenance.  Too bad !

We went thrift store shopping to Revivals, our favourite thrift store, and Angel View.
I bought a pair of pants at Revivals and a couple of shirts at Angel View.  And, of course, this being Palm Springs, the items I bought were all brand new, probably last year's styles donated by retailers.  At Revivals, Joanne found a dress on the "evening gown" rack that was made with some manner of glittery metallic thread.  The gown was very heavy, and it looked like the kind of thing that a celebrity ( like Madonna ! ) would wear to an awards event.  I suggested to Joanne that she buy it ( it was twenty
bucks ! ), but she felt that it was not really a mastectomy kind of garment.  HA HA HA !

We did some shopping at Wal-Mart, then drove to Spotlight 29 Casino, our home for the next few days, arriving about 8 PM.  We went into the casino to have dinner in their buffet restaurant.

Wednesday ;  Palm Springs

Sunny and warm.

This morning we left the Spotlight 29 Casino RV parking lot around 11 AM.  We drove a couple of miles to a nearby municipal sewage treatment plant and used their RV
sani-dump station to dump our waste holding tanks.  BUT ... there was no potable freshwater spigot so we drove to a nearby Love's station to refill our freshwater tank.

We drove to Desert Hot Springs and spent much of the day searching for park models available for monthly rental in RV & mobile home parks.  My first choice would be to rent a park model in Caliente Springs, an RV & mobile home community we have stayed at a few times over the last fourteen years.  We want to rent a park model home in / near Palm Springs next December ( a year from now ).  We would likely not be able to afford to rent in Palm Springs, so will probably rent something across the freeway in Desert Hot Springs.  Which actually has nicer "hot springs" than Palm Springs.

Late in the afternoon we crossed the freeway into Palm Springs and went to the "temporary substitute" Palm Springs Dog Park.  It was only for big dogs, so ... we walked a long distance around an adjacent large city park.  Ozzie enjoyed a long walk on lush grass.  He hasn't been getting enough long walks / exercise while we've been on the road.

As it turned dark at 5 PM we drove to "downtown" Palm Springs to have an early dinner at Sherman's Deli, our favourite place to eat in Palm Springs.  I found an excellent place to park, then we walked around downtown for awhile with Ozzie before putting him into the camper with Emma, and we went for an "early bird" dinner at 6 PM.

MMMMM !  Joanne had split pea soup and the meatloaf platter with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables.  I had cold borscht ( with additional diced cucumber and a dollop of sour cream ) and the roasted beef brisket platter with mashed potatoes and mixed vegetables.  Enough meat left over on both of our plates to feed us lunch tomorrow.  And maybe even the day after !  The excellent food was accompanied by superbly good service.  But ... that's par for the course at Sherman's.  As is a hefty bill.
< shrug >  You get what you pay for ... which can't be said for some ( many ? ) expensive restaurants.

We left the restaurant around 7 PM and were back at Spotlight 29 Casino about an hour later.

Thursday ;  Palm Springs

Cloudy, very windy, heavy rain in the afternoon in downtown ... but we weren't there at that time.

We left Spotlight 29 Casino's RV parking lot this morning at 11 AM, and drove to the nearby Love's station to refill our freshwater tank.  Then we drove to Rancho Casa Blanca, a nearby RV & MH community to browse for park model rentals.  When we were finished there we drove to a nearby Wal-Mart so that I could exchange an item purchased in Oregon.  I was really pissed off that I was exchanging a clothing item, one size for another, and I was required to pay the California sales tax.  We had lunch while parked at Wal-Mart.  From there we drove to a mall where Joanne's favourite bathing suit store had relocated from Desert Hot Springs.  While she went shopping for a bathing suit I napped with Ozzie.  I think this is the only store where Joanne has purchased bathing suits in the last fourteen years.  She buys one or two per year here.  They have a great selection of mastectomy suits.  And the chlorine in the swimming pools she uses regularly, at both our summer home and our winter home, "eats" bathing suits.

Leaving the mall where the bathing suit store was located the wind was extremely strong.  And we could see as we headed towards downtown that heavy rain was falling there.  Ugly, dark clouds were trapped there by Mount San Jacinto.  We stopped at a Vons store to buy a loaf of bread, then headed downtown, arriving about 5 PM.  I found a good place to park, then we busied ourselves in the camper for an hour, waiting for Village Fest to begin.

The principal reason why we were here in Palm Springs for three days was to attend Village Fest on Thursday evening.  A ten block section of Palm Canyon Drive closes to vehicle traffic every Thursday from 6 PM to 10 PM and it becomes a "pop-up" pedestrian shopping mall, filled with arts and crafts and farmers' markets and food concessions and street musicians and specialty products of every sort and ... !  It is particularly interesting as Christmas approaches.  And tonight ... < sputter > ... it was cancelled !  Because this afternoon, when the "go / no go" decision had to be made, it was raining heavily downtown !

How disappointing !  We walked a couple of blocks back to where the truck and camper were parked.  We had taken Ozzie with us to Village Fest.  He wondered what was the point of walking a couple of blocks to crowded downtown, and then walking a couple of blocks back to where we were parked.  We drove to a restaurant Joanne wanted to try, but ... I couldn't find a parking spot in their parking lot that I could squeeze our truck and camper into.  < sigh >  We drove to a nearby fuel station, refilled with diesel, got onto Interstate 10, and headed east to Aqua Caliente Casino, our planned "home" for the night.  When we got there ... < sputter > .. they no longer allowed overnight parking of RV's.  Boy ... this night just kept getting better and better !

We continued driving east on I-10, back to Spotlight 29 Casino, for a third night of boondocking there.  Joanne prepared a simple but excellent supper.

Friday ;  Palm Springs, California to Yuma, Arizona

Sunny and warm, temperature in Yuma when we arrived at 3 PM / 4 PM was 74°F / 23ºC.

We left the RV parking lot of Spotlight 29 Casino at 11 AM.  Thank you very much Spotlight 29 Casino for three days of quiet, safe, overnight boondocking.
I certainly am glad that your Indian Band bought out its development partner Donald Trump after your casino was built.

We headed south on Hwy. 86, following the shoreline of the Salton Sea, then followed a series of back roads south and east until reaching Holtville where we stopped to have lunch.  MMMMM ... burritos from Holtville Taco Shop.  Best burritos in America OR Mexico !  "Burritos" is an oxymoron here, so to speak.  The "ito" suffix in Spanish makes the noun "little".  Therefore, a "burrito" as thick as your forearm, is not a burrito, but a burro !  In any case ... they were excellent !  I had a carne asada burrito.  Joanne had a Californian, which is a carne asada burrito that includes french fries inside of it.  HA HA HA !  You go, girl !

After lunch we headed east on Interstate 8 until crossing the Colorado River from California into Yuma, Arizona.  We arrived at our winter home, Kofa Ko-op RV Park shortly after 3 PM, not remembering until later that as soon as we crossed the Colorado River we passed from the Pacific time zone into the Mountain time zone, so it was actually an hour later.

Emma instantly remembered our lot 52, and was eager to go into "her" Arizona room.  We took Ozzie for a lap around the dog park.  He was as comfortable in the dog park as if he had been walking there his whole life.  AND ... he effortlessly scaled our back yard fence into and out of the dog park with the assistance of the mobile home steps we have on each side of the fence.  BUT ... < sniffle > ... being here for the first time without Bo makes us remember and miss him.

While I got the utilities hooked up to the camper Joanne did some weeding in our back yard.  The yard was in pretty clean shape.  The Arizona room was pretty dirty inside with desert dust.  Emma was disgusted !  HA HA HA !  While we worked we were greeted by neighbours and friends who noticed our return.

After it became dark and we went inside the camper I worked online.  My priority was to contact TracFone and resolve our TracFone reactivation drama.  Well ... ! ! !  Their solution was to send me ANOTHER new SIM card which will take a week to arrive here.  HMPH !  Ten days on the road without phone service, and now another week without phone service waiting for the arrival of another new SIM card !

HA HA HA HA HA !  Joanne just finished a sewing repair, using a new / never before used sewing kit in the camper that I picked up at an upscale hotel when I was travelling for work with Canada Post, so it’s ... at least twenty-eight years old !

Home to here was a bit more than 3200 km. / 2000 miles.

Saturday ;  Yuma, Arizona

Sunny and warm.  AHHHHH !

We were busy today with arrival chores.  Joanne spent much of today cleaning the Arizona room and getting it ready for occupancy ; outdoor furniture to the outdoors, indoor furniture uncovered and cleaned, etc.  We removed about two thirds of the vinyl walls.  I took my bicycle out of the shed and washed it.  I connected the satellite dish to the TV in the camper.  We took Ozzie for a couple of walks in the dog park.  He doesn't like it.  Too much prickly stuff for his tender feet.  Our final walk with him today was around the streets of the RV park.  He enjoyed that much more.  Many neighbours / friends came by to visit today.

OH !  And ... I almost forgot !  Joanne cleaned the remains of the dead roadrunner off our patio !

DSK

November 18 to 24, 2018 ; home to California

Sunday ;  Sunny and cold.

We did a lot of pre-departure preparations today.  Joanne did more than me.  She has more of the "last minute" packing and loading responsibilities.  She also did laundry.  And had a long phone chat with her sister while I napped this afternoon.

Inspired by her telephone conversation with her sister, I researched ... and bought ... tickets to see the Canadian play "Come From Away".  In Las Vegas in late February.
It was very surprising to me that the tickets to this play ... showing in Las Vegas for only six days next February ... were almost sold out already.  The pickings were very slim, indeed !

We went to the swimming pool at supper time for an exercise session, our final one here, for this year.  I did my weekly analysis of our investment values, and posted my weekly journal to my blog.

WOO-HOO !  Perogies for supper.  BUT ... < sniffle > ... no more perogies until our return late next April.

Monday ;  Sunny and cold.  < sigh >  So cold that I was unable to de-winterize the camper, and refill the freshwater tank and water heater today as planned.  I was hoping for above freezing temperatures overnight tonight, but ... that is not to be !

Joanne worked hard today, moving kitchen contents to the camper.  I "winterized" the minivan.  We checked and treated Ozzie's ears, and checked Emma's ears.
I reactivated our U.S. cell phone.  And ... < sigh > ... as always ... I encountered a considerable amount of cell phone reactivation drama.  That's why I absolutely detest the annual chore of reactivating the U.S. cell phone !

Tuesday ;  home to Abbotsford, BC

Sunny and cold, below freezing at home, above freezing at Abbotsford.

Well !  We're finally on our way, three weeks late !  No thanks to MEDIPAC !  We left home at 1:20 PM, and arrived at the Trans-Canada Hwy. 1 mile marker 99 rest area at Abbotsford at 5:15 PM.

This morning's preparations for departure, winterizing our home, and de-winterizing the camper, did not go particularly well.  They could have gone a lot worse, but ... they also could have gone a lot better.  At least I didn't have to do all that outdoor work in cold rain or snow.  The exterior water spigot on the side of the house was frozen.  Not surprising, I suppose, given that the temperatures have been below freezing every night for about the last week.  That forced me to have to drive the truck and camper to our park's sani-dump station to de-winterize, and refill the freshwater tank and water heater tank.  And when I was partially underneath our home, disconnecting and draining plumbing lines, a new ( expensive ) valve that I had installed last summer was frozen, and I couldn't get it disconnected.  So ... I applied heat using a propane torch, and ... damaged it.  < sigh >  Story of my life !  So ... immediately upon our return next spring
I will have at least one, maybe two, plumbing problems to resolve.  It's possible, maybe probable, that the frozen water spigot will also result in a frozen, cracked, water supply pipe.  I tried, and mostly failed, to not obsess about those plumbing problems while driving this afternoon.

Ozzie was very upset as we prepared for departure this morning.  Our activities seemed reminiscent to him of the activities of Marcie and her son when they were packing up to move Marcie to the Lower Mainland a few days after Gord's death thirteen months ago.  Those activities resulted, in Ozzie's mind, in the loss of Gord, the loss of Marcie, three days alone in their house for Ozzie, and then the loss of the house as well, when he came to live with us.  He was extremely anxious as we finished our preparations this morning, and then immensely relieved when we departed, and he was coming along with us !  Poor Ozzie !  Thought he was going to be abandoned once again.

We headed west on Crowsnest Hwy. 3, stopping in Princeton for a late lunch.  From Princeton to Hope, through Manning Provincial Park. it was very cold and there was a dusting of snow everywhere.  We arrived at Hope at dusk, at 4:30 PM.  Crowsnest Hwy. 3 ended and we continued west on Trans-Canada Hwy. 1, into the lower elevation and therefore warmer Fraser Valley, reaching Chilliwack at 5 PM.  It was completely dark by then.  We arrived at the rest area near Abbotsford about 5:15 PM.  We were disappointed to find that the recently installed power pedestals at the pull through RV parking spots did not have electricity, as they did the last few times we were here, in September and October.

While Joanne prepared a simple supper, I used the rest area's free Wi-Fi to look for Bank of America locations along our route tomorrow.  We need to deposit some U.S. cash.

Wednesday ;  Abbotsford, BC, Canada to Ilani Casino, Ridgefield, Washington, U.S.A

Cool, but temperatures above freezing, raining on and off all day, foggy in the evening.

Today was a very long, very tiring, very difficult, very stressful day, for everybody.  I felt like I was drowning in my own negativity for much of the day.

We were awake by 8 AM and ready to leave the parking lot of the rest area by 10 AM.  We pulled over to the rest area's sani-dump station, dumped our waste holding tanks, refilled the freshwater tank, and pulled out of the rest area at 10:20 AM.  A short distance west on Trans-Canada Hwy.1, then a short distance south on Hwy. 11, and we were at the Sumas border crossing by 11 AM.  I had a lot of anxiety about crossing at Sumas.  We had crossed at Sumas only once before, and it was the most aggravating border crossing experience we've ever had.  And it took over two hours ! ! !  There was a brief line-up of vehicles today, then we were processed by a Customs and Border Patrol agent who was not quite as much of an asshole as his colleagues were five years ago, but still ... !  After about ten minutes of questioning ... he admitted us into the United States.  I've never understood why some Border Patrol agents require ten minutes of asking questions, when others require about thirty seconds of questioning to ascertain that we are no threat to their "homeland security".

Once across the border we stopped to refill with diesel at Nooksack.  And ... par for the course ... my U.S. cell phone failed to activate when turned on.  All the online reactivation steps had been completed successfully a couple of days ago, but ... < deep sigh > ... the final activation failed when the phone was turned on today.  < deep sigh >  We stopped at a Post Office in Everson to buy a stamp.  We stopped at a Bank of America in Bellingham to deposit some cash.  And then ... we got onto Interstate 5 heading south.

At  Burlington we got off the Interstate to shop for some grocery items for lunch.  We found a wonderful grocery store named Haggen.  What was supposed to be a stop to buy some deli meats and a loaf of bread or some buns turned into an impulse purchase of more than eighty dollars worth of groceries !  While Joanne put away the groceries in the camper, and made lunch, I took Ozzie for a walk.

We finished lunch and continued southbound on I-5.  Within minutes ... < sniff sniff > .... the truck began to smell of dog shit.  HUH ? ! ?  Joanne retrieved Ozzie from the back seat and discovered ... when I walked him through the field next to the grocery store's parking lot, he had stepped on a pile of soggy wet dog shit hiding in the long, wet
grass !  Joanne tried to clean his foot with towellettes from the glove box, but it soon became apparent  that the problem was bigger than towellettes could solve.  < deep sigh >  I took the next exit off the freeway and found a spot to stop.  We washed Ozzie's foot, cut off as much of the soiled hair on his foot as we could, washed his foot again ... and so on and so on ! ! !  Before we got him cleaned up he had pulled his leg and foot into the "sleeve" of the sweater he had been wearing, so there was shit smeared inside the sweater as well.  And periodically throughout the rest of the day, we could detect the faint odour of dog shit inside the truck.  Despite having searched and cleaned in the truck.  So ... tomorrow we're going to have to search and clean in the truck ... again !

We reached the north edge of Seattle around 3 PM, just as rush hour was starting.  It took us more than three hours of rush hour gridlock to get through Seattle and Tacoma.   What kind of a moron civil engineer routes an Interstate Highway through large cities ? ! ?  And how ( and why ) do people endure that kind of rush hour gridlock day after day ?  As we struggled through the agony of this ... in the rain, in the dark, in the fog, bumper to bumper, either at a standstill or at 70 MPH ... Joanne suggested that I no longer bitch about having to drive through Kelowna occasionally !  < deep sigh >

About 7 PM we stopped at a rest area to stretch our legs, walk Ozzie, and feed the animals.  We contemplated having supper at the rest area, and maybe even staying overnight but ... the place was like a zoo !  Everybody and their dogs were driving to Gramma's house for Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow !  After Joanne and I visited the restrooms, I walked Ozzie ... he and I both paranoid about walking on wet grass in the dark ... Joanne got both animals fed, and ... we left.

We reached our destination objective for tonight at 9:15 PM ; Ilani Casino about 16 miles north of Portland, Oregon.  Supper was pretty late tonight, n'est-ce pas ? !

Thursday ;  American Thanksgiving ;  Ilani Casino, Ridgefield, Washington to Seven Feathers Casino, Canyonville, Oregon

Cool, but temperatures above freezing, raining on and off all day, sometimes very heavily, very windy in the afternoon, calm and clearing in the evening.

Today was a much better day than yesterday.  We drove less distance.  From the time we started driving at 10 AM until we stopped driving at 5:30 PM. the traffic diminished.  Traffic was very heavy in the morning, but ... everybody needed to be at Gramma's house for dinner, so ... by about 4 PM there was hardly anyone on the road.

We pulled out of the casino's parking lot … thank you very much Ilani Casino ... at 10 AM, drove to the other side of the freeway and refilled with diesel at a Shell station.  We continued southbound on Interstate 5 ... which we will do all the way to Los Angeles, California ... stopping after just a few miles at a rest area to dump our waste holding tanks and refill our freshwater tank, working in heavy rain.  YUCK !  Just a few more miles southbound and we were crossing the Columbia River from Washington to Portland, Oregon.  Traffic through Portland was heavy, but nowhere near as bad as Seattle / Tacoma yesterday.

By lunch time I came to the realization that we would be arriving in Eugene by
mid-afternoon, much too early for my planned computer buying trip to Best Buy, which was to open at 5 PM ... on Thanksgiving Day, for Black Friday shopping !  < rolling my eyes >  Go figure !  Joanne and I had a discussion, and decided to skip lunch, skip the computer shopping in Eugene, and just drive all the way through to Seven Feathers Casino, to have Thanksgiving Dinner in their buffet restaurant.

We stopped at a rest area to feed the animals, and we each had a bit of yoghurt as a lunch substitute.  HEY ... if you're going to have Thanksgiving Dinner at a casino buffet, you might as well be damn good and hungry !  HA HA HA !  A couple of hours later we stopped at another rest area and I napped for half an hour.  When we arrived at the casino we first went to their Travel Center and refilled with diesel to save time tomorrow morning.  We got parked in their RV parking lot, walked Ozzie, fed Ozzie and Emma, then went into the casino at 5:45 PM to have Thanksgiving dinner.

HMPH !  Three hour wait time for Thanksgiving Dinner at the buffet restaurant.
Oh, well !  We returned to the camper, shared a cookie, and I tried to figure out what needs to be done to get our U.S. cell phone functional.  I failed.  Obviously I am going to have to contact TracFone by telephone ... ( can you spell "Catch - 22" ? ) ... to get assistance.

We returned to the casino at 8 PM and were paged to our table at 8:30 PM.  Thanksgiving Dinner was good, not great, we both rated the casino buffet restaurant a seven out of ten.  I "smuggled" a slice of turkey in a napkin in my pocket as a treat for Ozzie and Emma.  HA HA HA ... Emma indulged her inner carnivore and attacked the piece of turkey, tearing at it with her teeth like a wildcat.

Friday ;  Black Friday ;  Seven Feathers Casino, Canyonville to Medford, Oregon to Rain Rock Casino, California

Cloudy, cool, intermittent light rain.  I was ill today with a colitis flare-up, probably due to unwise food choices last night.

We pulled out of the casino's parking lot ... thank you very much Seven Feathers Casino ... at 10:30 AM and drove a very short distance to a rest area where we refilled our freshwater tank.  We were back on Interstate 5 by 11 AM and arrived in Medford about 12:30 PM.  We spent the day Black Friday shopping in Medford, leaving about 5:45 PM.  We arrived at Yreka, California about 7 PM and found our way ... with a  bit of difficulty ... to Rain Rock Casino in Yreka, our overnight boondocking location for tonight.

We wouldn't have had any difficulty finding the casino if we had had the address.  We would simply have loaded the address into our GPS.  WOW ... the GPS was very impressive today while shopping in Medford.  We had the addresses of all the shopping locations we wanted to go to.  We loaded them into the GPS and it flawlessly and easily took us from store to store, mall to mall.  Should have bought a GPS years ago !

Traffic congestion around the large shopping malls and in their parking lots today was horrendous !  First stop today in Medford was Best Buy.  My Black Friday priority was a new laptop.  WOO-HOO ... got the one I wanted !  Also got a hundred foot coaxial cable for our satellite dish in Yuma, and printer ink cartridges.  Drove to Medford's largest mall, to buy a pair of SAS shoes.  Found a parking spot ... not easy with our truck and camper ... found the shoe store ... not easy ... they did not have what I wanted ! ! !  What a colossal waste of time and effort.  BUT ... we noticed that a nearby mall had a Trader Joe's, so ... we went there and spent a hundred and fifteen bucks buying completely unnecessary specialty and gourmet food items.  HA HA HA !  Screw the shoes ... we got food !

We found our way to a specialty pet food store to buy a bag of Ozzie's food.  They didn't have it, despite the manufacturer's website showing that this store carried their product.  HMPH !  By this time ( after 4 PM ), it was almost dark.  We found our way to a large Wal-Mart and did the rest of our Oregon tax free shopping before continuing south on Interstate 5 to California.

Saturday ;  Rain Rock Casino, Yreka to Rolling Hills Casino, Corning, California

Mostly clear skies, mild temperatures.  Winter ended at Redding as it always does when we travel the Interstate 5 route.

We left the casino parking lot ... thank you very much, Rain Rock Casino ... about 10:30 AM and continued south on Interstate 5.  Around noon, and before we reached Redding, we reached the northern end of the recent Northern California wildfire areas.  The hillsides on both sides of the freeway were burned.  There were no workers today, but lots of heavy equipment on the sides of the road, and lots of evidence of the burned trees on the steep hills beside the road being chopped down and stripped out to reduce the risk of mudslides onto the freeway if / when the heavy rains come.

We climbed up and over and down the Shasta Mountains and ... winter was over !  Hello, Redding, California !  We stopped at a shopping mall in Redding to have lunch and then while I napped briefly Joanne went shopping at Dollar Tree.  From there we drove one exit over on the freeway to a Safeway store.  While Joanne went into the store to buy some buns I dumped the camper's waste holding tanks and refilled the freshwater tank at the sani-dump station at the Safeway Fuel Bar.

We were back on the road before 4 PM and before it got dark around 5 PM we had arrived at our destination for tonight, Rolling Hills Casino at Corning.  We parked in their RV parking lot beside a motorhome from Vancouver Island.  We chatted briefly with the couple from the motorhome while Ozzie visited with their dog Angel.  We took Ozzie for a long walk and chatted with an elderly man walking a dog similar looking to Ozzie.  He was in a trailer in the casino's full service RV park, which was full.  Because ... it was filled with victims of the local wildfires at Magalia and Paradise.  Including the man we chatted with, who lives in Magalia and works in Paradise.  He is eight months from retirement, has lost his home to the wildfires, and is contemplating becoming a full time RV'er.

After supper I went into the casino's "clubhouse", a truckers' travel center providing
Wi-Fi, showers, and a laundromat.  While working on Wi-Fi ( and watching the casino make a fortune selling $10 showers to truckers ) I overheard the front desk clerks repeatedly telling phone callers that the casino's hotel rooms are all sold out, all rooms occupied by wildfire refugees.

DSK

November 11 to 17, 2018

Sunday ;  Penticton ;  Remembrance Day

LEST WE FORGET !

Sunny and cold.

We left home this morning at 10:30 AM and drove into Keremeos to attend the Remembrance Day ceremony in Memorial Park.  After the ceremony ended around 11:30 AM we headed for Penticton.  First errand in Penticton was to refill the truck with diesel fuel.  Next errand was to wash the truck.  When those tasks were done we went to The Cannery to attend the Many Hats Theatre production of "On A First Name Basis".  It was a very good play !

After the play ended around 4:30 PM we went grocery shopping at Superstore.  Our initial plan was to then go to La Casa Ouzeria for dinner, but ... we changed our minds at the last minute.  When the grocery shopping was finished, it was still too early for dinner, so ... we headed for home.  We left Penticton at 5:30 PM and were back home at 6:30 PM.

Too bad we changed our minds about having dinner at La Casa Ouzeria !  The pizza that we had for supper at home was ... not great !

Monday ;  Sunny and cold.  But ... sunny !  I can handle the cold.  What I can't handle is "gloomy" !

Today's priority was to install the camper onto the truck.  Did that !  Then I visited with the new owners / residents of our original lot 89.  Yesterday he had asked to meet with me to discuss my trailer towing "business".  He needs more income than his current business is providing.  And he has a near new ( gorgeous ) Dodge one ton diesel dually that is doing nothing to "earn its keep".

At supper time we went to the pool and did an exercise session.  After supper I went online to pre-order a Black Friday advertised laptop computer.  WHAT ? ! ?  It's no longer available ? ? ? ! ! !  F*** ! ! !  It was available yesterday !  And the day before
that !  And the day before that ! ! ! ! !

Tuesday ;  Sunny and cold.

Today was a pretty lazy day for me.  I did a very small amount of preventive maintenance on the truck, then spent the rest of the day indoors, reading, napping, and planning our American Thanksgiving / Black Friday travel and shopping itinerary.  Two versions ; plan A ( Eugene, Oregon ) and plan B ( Medford, Oregon ).

Before doing laundry Joanne went into town to exchange a roll of coinage at the credit union.  Last week she bought a roll of Loonies ( 25 x $1 coins ) to use in the laundromat.  The roll, labelled as Loonies, was actually a roll of mislabelled Twonies
( 25 x $2 coins ).  The credit union appreciated her honesty.  Well done, my dear !  You obviously have more ethics than me.  < whispering >  I would have taken the $25 windfall !

Wednesday ;  Penticton 

Cloudy and cold.

We spent the day in Penticton, running errands.  Our last trip to Penticton this year.  On the way to Penticton we stopped in Keremeos.  While Joanne refilled our five gallon water jug I had a brief meeting with my mechanic about the ( second ) new starter in the truck.

We returned home around 4:30 PM.  It was almost dark.  After supper we watched Survivor.

Thursday ;  Sunny and cold.

Another somewhat lazy day for me.  I'm just killing time until we depart next Tuesday.
I did some trip planning.  We went to the pool for an exercise session around supper time.  I filled out GIS forms to determine our eligibility.  It appears as if Joanne will be eligible for a GIS of less than $100 per month for the nine months between her 65th birthday and mine.

Friday ;  Mix of sun and clouds, cool.

We both worked slowly on pre-departure preparations today.  I did more filling out of OAS and GIS forms today.  HMPH ... lots of "jumping through hoops" to get our pensions.  We trimmed Emma's and Ozzie's claws.  I paid some bills online.
I downloaded and reconciled our Bank of America account statement.

Saturday ;  Sunny and cool.

We're getting so close to departure I can taste it !  Can you tell how eager I am to leave here ? ! ?

DSK

November 4 to 10, 2018

Sunday ;  Sunny and cool, a fairly nice, late fall day.  I've been missing sunny days.

This afternoon I winterized the water system in the camper.  AND ... the valves that are the main parts of the water heater bypass kit that I installed during the summer ... did not work as they should.  HMPH !  Did I install something incorrectly ?  Backwards / upside down ?  The answer to those questions won't be known until next summer, when I dismantle and check the water heater bypass kit components.

Monday ;  Cloudy and cool.

Fall pre-departure preparations continue.  I finished sorting out my medications ; how much to put into the camper, how much to leave at home.  More complicated than it sounds !  I did some 2019 budgeting work.  Think I got that sorted out, as well.  Did some research on U.S. auto insurance, for our Oldsmobile Bravada in Yuma.  HMPH !  The insurance company I used last year ... ( Progressive ) ... applies a surcharge for "foreign" drivers.  Did I not notice that last year, or is that new this year.  I had repeated phone calls with my auto mechanic regarding the new, misbehaving starter in the truck.  He has diagnosed it, and agrees with me that it is not functioning properly.  We have decided to replace it with a better ... and of course, more expensive ... starter from a different supplier.

Around supper time we went to the pool to do a cardiac exercise session.  BUT ... maintenance had been done on the swimming pool and the water was cold.  So we skipped the exercising and went for a short soak in the hot tub.  Or, more realistically ... the tepid tub !

Tuesday ;  Penticton

Low ceiling overcast, gloomy, cold, raining all day.  YUCK !

Today was another long day of running errands in Penticton.

After arriving back home around 6 PM we had supper and spent the evening watching the U.S. mid-term election results.  What a disappointment !  After two years of Trump, there is still that much support for the Republicans ? ! ?  It suggests to us that we really have little to no common values with our "friends" and neighbours in our winter home community in Yuma, Arizona.  Who ... like us ... are all old, white, and affluent.

Wednesday ;  Sunny and cold, first below freezing temperatures of the season.  Which is why I had to winterize the camper a few days ago !

I finished converting all of the lighting in our home to LED bulbs.  Expensive initially, but cheaper in the long run.  I converted all the lighting in our fifth wheel trailer to LED more than five years ago.  And I converted all the lighting in the camper to LED when we purchased it almost five years ago.

I set up appointments with our dentist and periodontist in Mexico.  I prepared / obtained  automobile insurance online quotes for our car in Yuma.  Last year I insured with Progressive, and it seems as if I will be doing the same this year.  I prepared / obtained more travel medical insurance online quotes, looking for an alternative to MEDIPAC for next year.  I retrieved and reconciled October's investment statements.

For the second night in a row, I prepared supper, and ... botched it !  Zero for two ! ! !  Tried something new with perogies yesterday.  Botched it !  Tried something new with Rainbow Trout tonight.  Botched it !  Think I'll lick my wounds and stay out of the kitchen for awhile !  Maybe forever !  HA HA HA !

HEY ... it worked with laundry !  I f***ed up doing the laundry so many times more than forty years ago I haven't had to / been allowed to do it ever since.  HA HA HA !

Thursday ;  Sunny and cold.  Had to retrieve my toque and gloves from the camper.

At Ozzie's noon time walk we took him to the dog park.  While Joanne stayed in the dog park with him, I returned a book to the library.  When I came back and opened the dog park gate to enter ... ZOOOOOM !  Ozzie decided it was time for lunch, and ... he headed for home !  HEY !  BAD DOG, OZZIE !  My "recall" efforts were to no avail.  Ozzie's deaf !  HA HA HA !  He ran quickly, all the way home, then waited impatiently at the door, barking to be let in and fed lunch.  I wonder who he thought was going to open the door, let him in, and feed him lunch ?  Emma ? ? ?   HA HA HA ... dog logic !

Friday ;  Low clouds, chilly, snowing heavily in the morning.  < sigh >  Winter is here !

We visited with our neighbour / friend Jeanine.  Twice today !  In the morning, and again around supper time.  The second time we went over to her place, at supper time, it was to remount a window valance, at her request.  In between those two visits with Jeanine, we went into town / Keremeos.  We refilled our five gallon water jug, then while Joanne went to the grocery store to buy an item, I went to Total Performance Automotive to pick up the truck, now with a new starter ... again.  Let's hope this new starter is better than the first one !

Joanne complained last night at bed time that she was out of supper ideas.  So ...
I offered to decide what to make for tonight's supper, and ... to make tonight's supper.  Am I a good husband or what ? ! ?  HA HA HA !

< whispering >  PSSST ... my "creation" wasn't anywhere near as good as I thought it would be !  HA HA HA !

Saturday ;  Mix of sun and cloud, cool temperature.

I did some minor maintenance on the truck this morning, then Joanne helped me remove the fifth wheel hitch from the bed of the truck, and store it in our shed.  In the afternoon I did quite a bit of "Black Friday" online shopping for a new laptop.  And
I made a decision about what I want, and where to get it.  I also downloaded, printed, and filled out my Old Age Security pension application forms.  I can't submit them until December 1, but ... they're ready to go !  We'll likely arrive in Yuma on November 30, and I'll mail them the next day.  At supper time we went to the pool for an exercise session.  After a late supper we ended the day by watching Saturday Night Live.

DSK

October 28 to November 3, 2018

Sunday ;  cloudy and cool, a bit of light rain around lunch time.

I changed many of the light bulbs in our home today, converting from compact fluorescent bulbs to LED bulbs, to conserve energy, and improve the lighting quality.
I did some work inside the camper today, including getting ready for departure tomorrow on a two day trip to the Lower Mainland / Vancouver area and back.  In the evening I did some Interstate 5 trip planning.

I watched the supper time news on an American network tonight, the day after the synagogue shootings in Pittsburgh.  What a ****ing ugly society the U.S. has become in the last two years !

Monday ;  home to Abbotsford

Cloudy and mild at home, raining heavily around Hope, overcast and cool at Abbotsford.

We left home around noon, heading west on Crowsnest Hwy. 3, through Princeton and into Manning Provincial Park where we stopped for a late lunch and a nap ( for me ).
At Hope, Crowsnest Hwy. 3 ended and we continued west on Trans-Canada Hwy. 1 through Chilliwack to Abbotsford, arriving at the mile marker 99 rest area at 6 PM.

Tuesday ;  Abbotsford to Surrey to Abbotsford to home

Cloudy, cool, intermittent light rain at Abbotsford and Surrey, partially sunny and cool at home.

This morning we left the mile marker 99 rest area in Abbotsford at 10 AM and headed west on Trans-Canada Hwy. 1 then south on Hwy. 15 to Royal City Bedding in Surrey, arriving at 11 AM.  We picked up our new, custom made, RV mattress and were on our way out of there by 11:30 PM.  We were back at the Abbotsford rest area by 12:30 PM.  We packaged our old mattress into a plastic mattress bag ( HMPH ... eight bucks ! ), marked "FREE" on the bag, and left it leaning up against a pole in the rest area.  There seems to be quite a few homeless people living there at the rest area in decrepit old RV's, and even some in cars.  We are certain that our very good condition, three year old, fairly expensive, foam RV mattress will be put to good use.  It's just too soft for us.

Driving from Surrey back to the rest area at Abbotsford, in congested traffic, I failed to adequately check my "blind spot" little convex rear view mirror on the driver's side, and changed lanes while a little car was right beside me, in the blind spot !  **** ! ! !  Close call.  I don't often make mistakes like that.  I'm NOT very pleased with myself !

We headed east on Trans-Canada Hwy. 1 to Hope where we had a quick lunch and refilled with diesel at Flying J.  Then east on Crowsnest Hwy. 3, where we stopped at Princeton to refill with diesel again.  We were back at home around 5 PM.

Wednesday ;  Hallowe’en

Cloudy and cool.

First priority for today was to remove the camper off the truck, and get the fifth wheel hitch reinstalled into the truck.  We had that done by lunch time.  In the afternoon I did some minor truck maintenance and minor camper maintenance.  Around supper time we went to the swimming pool to do an aquatic exercise session.  In the evening
I retrieved month end bank statements and investment files.  And assisted Joanne with cooking Rainbow Trout ( that I caught in the Similkameen River ) for supper.

Thursday ;  home to Oliver to home

Low ceiling overcast, raining, chilly.

This morning as we were departing for a trailer towing job in Oliver, the truck's new starter "misbehaved" for the second time.  The first time was a few days ago in Abbotsford.  We left home at 10:30 AM, drove east on Crowsnest Hwy. 3 to Osoyoos, then north on Hwy. 97 to Oliver, arriving at the client's rural property on time at noon.  We got hitched up and began the short drive to the RV park where the trailer was going.

As I began to descend the very tight curve, steep driveway ... < sigh > ... the front corner of the fifth wheel trailer caught on the top rear corner of the truck's bed rail.
I slightly damaged the corner of the trailer, and moderately "crunch" damaged the top rear corner of the truck bed.  < huge sigh >  I obsessed about the damage to our truck for the rest of the day !  The client was so grateful to get his trailer relocated that he generously "forgave" the damage that I had caused to it.  I have been providing trailer towing service for nine summers, and in that time I have towed 147 trailers.  I suppose that it was inevitable that sooner or later I would damage my truck and / or a client's trailer.

We transported the trailer to Apple Beach RV Park in Oliver where the client will live in his trailer for the winter.  We got the trailer delivered and set up, and were leaving Oliver about 1:30 PM.  We drove north on Hwy. 97 from Oliver, through Okanagan Falls to Kaleden where we turned south on Hwy. 3A back to Keremeos, then west on Crowsnest Hwy. 3 to home at Riverside RV Park Resort.  When we arrived home around 3 PM our electricity was off.  There was a power failure from 1:30 PM to about 4:30 PM.

We had a very late and very quick lunch then drove both vehicles back into Keremeos.  All day long I had not turned off the truck's engine, afraid that it would not start again.
I left the truck at Total Performance Auto Repair for a diagnosis of why the recently replaced starter has "misbehaved" twice this week.  On the way back home we stopped at Sanderson Farms to buy produce.

For the remainder of the day I have been trying ... and mostly failing ... to focus more on the important things in life, like my good health, and less on the trivial, like some minor damage to a thirteen year old truck.  < exhaling deeply >

Friday ;  Mostly cloudy, cool, windy.

We did some work in the camper today, including removing the new mattress from the plastic bag it was sealed in.  We gave Ozzie a bath.  Around ( everybody else's ) supper time we went to the swimming pool for a cardiac rehab exercise session.  And some hot tub soaking time !  I spent a lot of time this afternoon and evening working on financial planning.  Joanne's 65th birthday is in less than three months.  Mine is in eleven months.  Over the next fourteen months we will have government pensions start, as well as private annuities.  Our income will increase substantially over the next fourteen months.  All my financial / investment hard work of the past fourteen and a half years of "unemployment" / self-financed "early retirement" will finally pay off handsomely.

Well done, Daniel !

Saturday ;  Cloudy, chilly, raining until after lunch time.

Well ! ! !  Our investment losses for the month of October were well over $37,000 ! ! !  HMPH ! ! !  How wonderful is that ? ! ?  < scowl >

While Joanne did a lot of laundry this afternoon, I worked on the camper.  I drained the freshwater tank, in anticipation of below freezing temperatures in a few days.  Tomorrow I will drain the hot water tank, then winterize the camper's entire water system.  < sigh >  I was hoping that would not be necessary before our departure in eighteen days, but ... that was just wishful thinking.  I also changed all the accessory batteries in the camper.  You know ... smoke alarm, alarm clock, wall clock, etc.

In the evening I worked on reconciling monthly bank statements and ... < ahem > ... updating investment files ... < cough cough >.

DSK