Change of Plans & Weather

We had planned on moving out on Wednesday morning but a few events have come up and we have modified our plans.  Wednesday weather forecast didn't look that great with winds in the 25-30mph range and I really don't like to drive in weather like that.  All you need is a stronger gust to hit us broadside and the motor home acts like a sail on a boat.  The closer to the next campsite, the worse the weather forecast was.  Since we don't have a time schedule, we decided to wait until Friday to leave the park.  As they say, RVers schedules are written in jello.

This afternoon we went from a sunny sky with puffy clouds floating by to small rain showers.  It looked worse than it was but it cooled down and we got some nice photos.  They don't do justice to what it really looked like, but I thought I'd share them with you.

It was raining on the Rincon Mts in the background and it looked like it was coming down in force.  I love the smell of rain on the hot roads and soil with all the ozone particles in the air.  Life is good.

Grant called us today to tell us that his short story on Gettysburg was selected from his school to be included in a book of stories.  His school is part of an international system with schools in 14 countries around the world.  After reading his story it isn't a surprise that it made it to the finals.  You can read the story in a previous blog of mine if you are interested.

Short-Story-By-Grandson Grant  

His proud mother wrote this on her Facebook page.

4,000 submissions from
35 schools spanning
14 countries and only
30 winning short stories....and
Grant is one of those winners!
SO happy for him, and so very proud!

I see where Ron & Dee C. are spending the night in Santa Rosa, NM after driving most of the day.  It is a 500+ mile drive to Santa Rosa and it looks like they are in a hurry to get back to the cold weather in Illinois.  Hey, slow down and see some sights out there you guys.  Plus, now I have to actually go out and buy the newspaper if I want to read it.  You would have thought they had planned ahead and this burden wouldn't have been dropped on me.  Some people!  Have a safe trip you two.


That was our day, how was yours?

Leaving Post Countdown

We've been here in Tucson since early December and are preparing to hit the road again on Wednesday for Buckskin Mountain State Park.  We hope to stay a week or so.  It all depends on how many days we can get a campsite there since it is a popular campground.

Leaving the park is a lot like leaving a Post when we were in the U.S. Foreign Service.  The last month or so you avoid meeting new people as they arrive at post since you will be telling them goodbye in a short time.   The other big similarity is the goodbye dinners and parties.  Foreign Service Officers don't have to have a good reason for a party and arrange them at a drop of the hat.  Always lots of good food and adult drinks consumed with the goodbyes.  Then there are the dinner dates at favorite restaurants that you want to experience for the last time.

We are in that mode and went out to dinners with Kathy &amp Martha at the Eclectic Cafe on Tanque Verde Rd.  Kathy's mother joined us and we had a very nice time chatting with them over dinner.

 Ron & Dee C joined us at the Guadalajara Original Grill on Prince Rd and as usual we had a great time.  All of us were in the mood for Mexican and having salsa prepared at the table was a nice touch.  Gerry brought along her water bottle filled with her special sauce that was added to the margaritas.  The contents add to the flavor of the drink.

We went to Montgomery's on Friday night with Ron K and enjoyed the meal a great deal.  After dinner Ron & Gerry insisted we stop by the DQ so they could redeem some coupons for free ice cream.  I was out voted so we had to stop and fill up on the great dessert.

 Monday will be another dinner with Katy S at Olive Garden.  I think with all that food we are definitely going to be overweight in the motor home.  

Saturday night we went up to the Rec Center for root beer floats and enjoyed them.  Later, we stopped by Ron & Dee's place and sat outside on their nice porch and had a drink with them.  They are leaving a day before us, heading for their home in Illinois.

Today we began putting all the "stuff" that was being used back in the proper storage bins in the motor home.  We always accumulate stuff and then have to haul it around until we can get home.  The most difficult articles to store were the recent pottery pieces we picked up for our children.  Gerry managed to squirrel them away in the motor home someplace.  Now the trick is to remember where they are when we see the children.

It is strange to see all the empty spaces in the RV park when just two weeks ago the majority of them were filled with units.  It seems Easter and tax time makes everyone hurry back home.  We do our taxes in the motor home and file them with E-file.  I hate to work on the taxes, but we finished ours on Friday and are done for another year.  That is, assuming Turbo-Tax made all the proper calculations and we don't get pulled for an audit.  In that case, it won't be a problem since we only qualify for the standard deduction.  Now we just have to wait for the refund check to be deposited in the bank.

Birthday Girl

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

BARBARA

Even back then Barbara was dreaming of her own backyard pool.  Hint hint Henry!!

We hope you have a great day and an even better year.
  
Love, 
Mom & Dad

Easter & Pots

We went to the children's Mass yesterday and enjoyed it as usual.  The priest calls all the young children up to the altar and then quizzes them on what Easter is all about.  In the past the children were quick to answer him, but this group didn't seem to know their lessons that well.  Actually, many of the children were quite young and most likely haven't started catechism yet so they had an excuse.  The children sat from one end of the altar to the other.

We drove by this very large "asparagus bush" on Sunday and it grew about a foot overnight.  Yes, I know it isn't an asparagus bush, but it does look like one.

The ocotillo bush is in full bloom and is almost 15ft tall.  It is one of the prettiest ocotillo that I've seen out here.

 A few of the ladies in the park had organized an impromptu Easter dinner and we joined about 30 other happy campers.  We each chipped in a $1.00 to buy a couple nice hams.  Everyone brought a side dish and there was more than enough food for everyone to have seconds if they wanted them.  We enjoyed ourselves but also  managed to say goodbyes to some people who plan to leave on Monday.  

Gerry had a couple coupons for DQ and we stopped by there to pick up a few blizzards, but the DQ was closed for Easter Sunday.  We went to plan B after that and drove over to Coldstone Creamery for some very good ice cream.  Gerry had given up ice cream for Lent and she was really looking forward to finally having a DQ blizzard or a cup of Coldstone ice cream.  It was a beautiful evening so we sat outside and enjoyed the treat.

 We had some errands to run in Green Valley today and decided to go to Tubac afterward to pick up some pottery for the kids.  The pottery store was closed but they allow people to use the honor system, pick out what they want and then leave a check or cash for the total amount + tax.  I hope the kids enjoy the selections.  Now we have to figure out how to pack them for the return trip and where to store them in the motor home. 

Since we had to return via Green Valley, we stopped at Manuel's Restaurant for an early dinner.  I tried the green chili pork and thought it was one of the better meals I've had lately.  Gerry had a beef enchilada  and enjoyed it, too.  They served salsa & chips before the meal and we had our usual mild & hot salsa dishes.  Gerry likes the hot salsa but my system can't handle it, hence two different ones.  Gerry's salsa was so hot she couldn't eat it so we mixed in some mild salsa to arrive at one she could handle.

I watched a little of the Duke-Wisconsin basketball game and couldn't really get interested.  Once my teams are out of the tournament I lose interest in the other games.  It did look like a good game, but there was a really bad call at the end.  The ball went out of bounds off a Duke player, but the refs called it the other way.  I guess that is part of the game.

That was our last couple days.  Quiet, but nice.  How was yours?   

Xantrex Inverter/Converter

Well, we are now the proud owners of a new Xantrex power management system.  The old Xantrex RS-3000 unit failed a while back and it wasn't repairable according to the technician.  He tried, but it kept failing even after he repaired the fan motor.

The new unit came in earlier this week and the tech spent over 3 hours installing and testing the new one.  Since the remote panel with the old unit wasn't compatible with the new one, we had to purchase it also.  The extended warranty company put $2500 in the pot and we paid our deductible and for the remote.  Our share wasn't too bad considering what the total cost was.  Not that we got off cheaply, but it could have been worse.  At least this Xantrex unit is repairable if it fails in the future.

Everything is working fine now and we can also monitor our batteries from the remote.  It gives us a lot of information and now I have to figure out what it all means.  May have to go back to electrical school to fully understand it all.  I am glad that I didn't have to take out and install the new Xantrex since it was in a very difficult place to access.  It was worth the money to not have to fool around with it.

We are in the "getting ready to hit the road" mode and trying to find space to store all the new "stuff" we picked up the last 4 months.  Some stuff will have to be left behind so the rest fits in the bins.   It's amazing how fast every little nook and cranny is filled up if you aren't careful.  Of course all that "stuff" weighs a lot and we will be traversing the Rocky Mountains on our way back East.

Our plans are to leave Tucson around April 13-15 and head for Buckskin Mountain State Park on the Colorado river just south of Havasu City, AZ.  Then it will be on to Las Vegas, Reno, Napa, Oregon, Washington and then take the northern route back to Pennsylvania.  Nothing is definite of where we are going and how long we will stay there.  Winging it is more fun for us and when we get to an intersection we will figure out which way to go.

Time to ride off into the sunset.

The weather here in Tucson has turned hot with temps in the 90s everyday, however the nights are still cool and we have great sleeping weather.  It won't be long before the nights will be hot and hopefully we will be out of here by then.  As usual, the last week or so is taken up with dinner dates, doctor appointments, and service for the motor home and car.  Nothing major, but time consuming.

 Maybe with the change of scenery the blog will be updated more often and hopefully not so boring.  Then again, maybe not.  I read a number of blogs and it seems that every day another blogger is hanging it up and will no longer be maintaining their blog.  It becomes a chore for many people and they don't like the pressure put on them.  In most cases the pressure is put on by themselves.

I still like to blog when something is more or less interesting.  One problem I do have with blogging is that everyone knows what we are doing, but it is mostly a one way street.  It is nice to hear from people and hear how they are doing and what's happening in their lives.  Facebook fills in some of the gaps and that works for me.

Gerry and I wish all of you a very Happy Easter.