African Violet Show

Kathy, a friend of ours, raises African Violets and shows them in competition.  She invited us to attend the SAHBA (Southern Arizona Home Builders Association) Home and Patio show at the Tucson Convention Center today.  The flowers were judged yesterday and were on display at the show today.  Gerry has raised African Violets in the past but they are very difficult to take care of in the motor home so she gave that up a few years ago.

Kathy won various places in the show including a Best Of Show for one very pretty flower.  She also had other flowers getting first and second places in the competition. 
 

Gerry and Kathy were checking out some more of the flowers and there were some very special ones on the tables.  

After checking out the flowers we went into the convention center to see what was there.  Since most of the exhibits were centered around homes, there wasn't that much there of interest to us.  Gerry did spend a lot of time talking to a lady from Cathy's Vac & Sew.   The lady was demonstrating a Baby Lock machine.  With a price tag of $13,000 Gerry won't be rearranging the motor home to find space for it.  I found a chair where I could watch the Arizona-Wisconsin basketball game.

One exhibit did interest us and when/if we buy another home it would be nice to have one of these water fountains in the rec room.  

Later on we went out to dinner with Kathy and two of her fellow African Violet growers.  The El Minuto Cafe was right across the street and I was very thirsty by this time.  We sat outside in the shade and had a nice conversation and meal.  Kathy and her friends had to return to the show to finish up their day there.  We decided to head back home and bid them a fond farewell.

It has been hot here in Tucson the past couple days and today was no exception.   Of course it was a "dry heat" so that explains it all.  Dry or not, it was very hot in the direct sunlight.  We sat outside under our awning this morning and finished up our coffee.  It was a comfortable early morning with a breeze and lots of shade.  It reminded us of being outside in the Florida Keys when we spent so much time down there.

Gerry's sister and bil surprised us with a phone call today.  We chatted with them for over an hour and caught up on their lives.  They have a new puppy and had it spayed on Thursday.  Poor thing!  Since it was so cold and windy in Annapolis, they decided to hang around home and watch some movies.  Sounds like they had a relaxing day after a busy work week.

All the teams I was interested in have lost in the NCAA mens basketball tournament so I won't be watching any more games except the final game.  The Univ. of Maryland finally had one blue chipper commit to their basketball program.  I don't remember when they had a highly regarded player commit, so maybe we can get a couple more and be more competitive in the future.  

It's hard to build a program with so many one and done players entering college now and leaving for the pros a year later.  I would like to see the NCAA make the schools give each scholarship for 4 years and if the player left early for the pros, then they couldn't use the scholarship until the 4 years expire.  It would make for more competitive teams and maybe some of the "student athletes" could actually go to class and learn something.  Fat chance of this happening since there is so much money involved in college sports now.  For example, the ACC (Atlantic Coast Conference) will be paid $28 million this year for their part in the tournament.  That goes a long way to pay for their uniforms and basketballs.

So much for my little rant and I'm sure most people who read my blog don't care one way or the other about college sports.  

That was our day, how was yours?

Mama's Kitchen

We made plans to have lunch with Katy, one of Gerry's sorority sisters, and drove over to her home in Green Valley to pick her up.  She lived in Maryland but last year sold her home there and moved to Green Valley to be nearer her daughter and granddaughter.  She moved in with the granddaughter and recently bought another larger house in the area.  They are having it remodeled and hope to move in a couple months.  We weren't able to see the home since they had a 5 ft deep ditch around the side and front of the house.  Maybe next time we can see it better.

Katy didn't have any preference where we ate as long as it wasn't Mexican food.  She doesn't care for it at all so that ruled out one of our favorites, Manuel's Restaurant.  So it was on to plan B.  When my brother and Sue were out here last year he found a local restaurant called Mama's Kitchen and ate there for breakfast or lunch every day.  They only serve breakfast and lunch and have limited seating.  They were almost full when we got there after 1:00 PM.  We managed to snag a booth that was built for people much smaller than me, but it worked out fine.

We enjoyed our meals and managed to stay there after their 2:00 PM closing time.  I think Katy has found a new place to eat there in Green Valley.  

Gerry wanted to check out a RV park in the area and it was on the way back to Katy's so we took her with us.  I was pleasantly surprised to see the park and the nice camping sites there.  They had some openings for next season and we added it to our possible places to stay if we come back out here in the fall.  It's always nice to have a choice and change is good sometimes.

After dropping Katy off we were headed for Costco to fill up the gas tank.  It was necessary to drive by the Desert Diamond Casino and since Gerry loves the slots, we stopped and donated some money to the Indians who own the casino.  Gerry's player's card didn't work so she thought getting a new one would get some of the casino's money to play with.  Nope, they had her on record and gave her a new card, but no freebies.  We did take advantage of the 1/2 price dinner buffet before we left.  It was ok, but had a very limited selection.  Definitely not in the same class as "M" in Las Vegas, but was a cheap meal for us.

On to Costco and filling the tank and then back to our RV park.  Nothing exciting to report but we did have nice day and seeing Katy added to that.

How was your day?

Fun Day On The Town

It was an early day for us since Gerry had to fast before getting some blood work done.  All part of her recent visit to the doctor and nothing serious.  

Just as we arrived at the Dr. office where she was having the blood work, we received a call from the RVMD who is working on the RS-3000 Inverter stating that it was truly dead and had to be replaced.  They needed the exact mileage on the motor home so I dropped Gerry off and went back to get the reading on the odometer.

As a reward for her ordeal she wanted to have breakfast at IHOP and enjoy some of their delicious crepes with strawberries and whipped cream.  I had the Colorado omelette stuffed with different meats and it was great.  They were busy and it took a while for the food to arrive but there was an endless supply of coffee.

Since we were so close to Michaels, it was our next stop.  Gerry wanted to pick up some card making supplies for Easter cards.  I chose to stay in the car and guard it from thieves and let her shop to her hearts content, or it seemed like it.  After sitting in the car for a while a car alarm started going off about 100 ft from where I was parked.  It would blare for while, shut off and then start all over again.  This went on for 20 minutes or so and it was a loud alarm.  Nobody checked on the car so I wonder how much good the alarms are.

We decided to check out a campground on the northwest side of town.  It is called the South Forty RV Ranch and is near the Costco over there.  The park is about the same size as the one we are in but is landscaped very nicely and is very neat looking.  The sites seem to be a little closer there than our park, but they angle park everyone and that makes for more privacy.  All in all, it was nicer than I expected and is in a nice area of town.  Gives us something to think about if we decide to come back to Tucson next winter.

Cactus flowers in bloom.

 
All that driving made me thirsty and we took the opportunity to check out the Thunder Canyon brewery near the park.  It is in a nice shopping mall and has outside seating.  We got the last table available at lunch.  They had some good lightning lunch specials and we ordered a fish and chips and a hamburger plus a couple of their special brews.  The food was good and the beer even better.  I think this is a place we will come back to in the future.

We finally decided it was time for the 25 mile drive back to our park and jumped on I-10 and made it back in good time after a short stop at the local Fry's Grocery for a few things.  It was a long day.  When we got back I watched the end of the Maryland-Valpairiso basketball game that MD won by three points.  A little too close for comfort but MD has been winning games like this all year.  Hopefully that can continue to win and make it to the final four.

The rest of the evening was spent resting and taking it easy.  Just another exciting day out here in the warm Southwest.

Chirp Chirp At 4:30 AM

This past Sunday morning at 4:30am Gerry heard a sound coming from the middle of the motor home.  She woke me up so I could help trace down the sound.  Now I don't function very well that early in the morning and my hearing isn't that great so I wasn't optimistic we could find the source of the sounds.

At first I thought it might be the water heater and somehow the cutoff valve malfunctioned and the burner was heating the water too hot.  I turned off the water heater and drained the hot water.  That didn't have any effect on the noise so we were back to square one.

I went outside to try and track down the noise and found it was coming from one of the bins.  How could that be?  I opened the bin door and the noise became louder.  That was when I noticed the Xantrex RS-3000 inverter attached to the top of the bin.  It was making the chirping noise.  Oh Oh!!  We still had 12V and 120V power so that was good but the noise wasn't a good sign.  I couldn't do anything about the problem and by this time it was 7:00am.

Now what?  No sense in going back to bed so we put on a pot of coffee and stayed up. Around 9:00am I called a certified Xantrex dealer/repair shop and left a message.  They called us back later and set up a service call for Monday.  

Monday was a busy day for us with a lot of paperwork to fill out for change of address and such.  Then we had to have all the paperwork verified by a Notary Public and get back before the service man arrived.  Of course the Notary had to read the forms about 5 times and couldn't figure out where to place her seal and sign the papers.  Gerry used to be a Notary and tried to help the lady out but wasn't getting anywhere with her.  Finally, she decided to place the seal where we had told her and got that finished.  What should have been a 5 minute task took almost 30 minutes.  We managed to get the paperwork in the mail and then hurried back to the park.

By this time the repairman had arrived and was waiting in front of the motorhome.  Once he found out it was a Xantrex RS-3000 he said it wasn't repairable if that was the problem.  It seems Xantrex made the unit so it couldn't be repaired.  Great!   He took out the unit and said it was a fan inside the center and almost impossible to get to and they couldn't get another fan.  He wired the motorhome so we have power and hooked up a trickle charger for the batteries and said he would be back in 3-4 days with a new inverter that can be repaired.   I always heard good things about Xantrex but they sure didn't live up to the hype with this unit.

In addition, the remote box on the wall that looks exactly like it's replacement will not work with the new inverter.  Then to make matters worse, our Extended Warranty on the motorhome says the remote is an upgrade and won't cover the cost of it.  They do cover the rest of the repair so it could have been worse.  For those who don't know much about inverters, ours is a very large one that supplies all the electrical power to our all-electric motorhome and costs anywhere from $1500 to $2500 plus installation.  

So, now we wait for the new Xantrex unit to come in and have it installed.  I am very happy that we included the extended warranty when we bought the coach and with all the repairs so far we have almost broken even.  As they say, it is the cost of doing business.  Meanwhile, as long as we stay hooked up to shore power everything is fine.  Hopefully, we won't have to find a huge extension cord when we are ready to leave.

Just another day on the road.

 

Short Story By Grandson - Gettysburg

If you have followed my blog for any length

of time you know that our grandson Grant has spent time with us in the motor home and also at the cabin.  He is a very bright  boy and a joy to be around.  His knowledge of military history is far beyond what most 13 year olds know and we took him on a trip 2 years ago and visited many Civil War battlefields.  Our son Larry Jr sent us an email about a school competition where Grant had to write a 500 word essay.

I thought his essay was so well written that I am including it on my blog.  What do you think?  First, a little background.

Grant's school is made up of multiple schools around the world under the Nord Anglia umbrella. Nord Anglia has a yearly writing competition from all schools with five stories from each school being submitted for the competition. Every student in his local school was given the assignment to write a story to submit for the competition with the top three from each class being the contenders for the final top five from the Charlotte school for the world competition.   NOTE:  Grant made the top 5 for his school.

Grant's story follows.  Maybe I should let him write my blog.

"Gettysburg

Long rows of white, ongoing and as far as the eye can see. They mark the graves of the men who died here. The trees sway sadly, like you see after a large storm has ravaged the land. They brush silently, keeping beat with the wind. The fields blossom with wildflowers, fertilized by the blood of thousands of men. The wind blows as I wander through the forgotten fields. The cold air surges through me silently. The grass is green, hiding the bodies of men who perished. The sun is setting over the fields, its violent orange rays plummeting into the horizon.

It’s dark now. The sun has gone from the valley. The cannons stand guard soundlessly over the meadow. The battle has long ended but its scars have been left behind. An old oak tree sits on the field. There are holes scattered around the tree trunk. Bullets have ripped her to shreds, only a lifeless trunk sits here today. The bright wildflowers shimmer in the moon light, their orange leafs blow eerily in the light wind as the last light of day slips away from the land. There are holes in the ground, created when shells ripped apart men and earth. The trenches have vanished long under the plow; all that is here today is a white line showing where the long thin trench once sat, and marking the spot where many men expired.

It’s silent now. Not peacefully but eerily. Suddenly I hear the gunfire, the screams of many men, wounded from the fight. The deafening noise grows louder. My ears writhe in pain as the noise grows louder. Then silence again. Around me is a sea of blue and gray, moving slowly across the green meadows their boots float over the wet ground as they float slowly through the field. They do not talk, their faces hidden by a shroud of darkness. Drifting as lightly as the wind over the battlefield, their rifles fixed to their shoulders as they march. A replay of their deaths, they stop, facing each other. The fear skulks over me as their guns rise to face each other. They fire. Screams of pain shriek through my ears. I scream as I watch the men fall in front of me.

Blood splatters the field. Bullets rip through soldiers but they keep firing. They run at each other. Bayonets fixed they stab and rip at one another. Then silence, the survivors drift back into the gray mist now covering the forest. I am left in the dark. I collapse on the wet, green earth. I wonder if it is blood or just dew. The beautiful fall trees slowly drift away, their bright colors disappearing behind the mist. The flowers blow in the light wind as the moon slips behind a wall of clouds. I see the graves, white and peaceful, disappear behind the fog. The air stirs around me as I slowly glide away into the darkness, pondering what I saw, remembering the names of the men who died and what they had to live for. Then darkness covers me as I, too, drift away into the mist.

Visiting Gettysburg does that to people. Ghosts are stirred in the imagination…and sometimes in reality."


I think he did a great job and hope he gets the recognition in the contest that he deserves.  

Last Couple Days Happenings

Last week during the Escapade Rally in Tucson I decided to join the Elks.  Then it was time to join the Escapees.  The Elks had a special going during the rally and it was too good of a deal to pass up.  Our friend Sharon of the Gypsy and Mariners blog sponsored me and after paying the application fee it was time to wait for the initiation ceremony.

The initiation was held on Monday night and I joined 52 other new Elks members.  Gerry and I were both surprised that there were so many new members and I am sure the Willcox, AZ Elks Lodge was pleased to see so many new members join at the same time.  It was a 66 mile drive to Willcox and we made it in great time since the speed limit in the area is 75mph.  We made the drive there in the car since we will be here at the park until mid April.

I also was surprised to see how many new members were female.  I hadn't known that females were allowed in the Elks, however the rule allowing females was changed a number of years ago.   

Today was St. Patrick's day and it started off great for us since we won the lucky buck drawing at coffee this morning with $61.00 being our share of the pot.  Luck of the Irish for sure.

They also had the drawing for the quilts and we came up short again and didn't win a quilt.  Gerry had her eye on one quilt but it wasn't destined to be hers.  The raffle brought in a lot of money so the group can continue to make Linus quilts for children in the local hospitals.  It's a great cause and the quilters and children both made out in the deal.

A few of the quilters.

Large wall hanging"Sarah's Hand" spirit horse

We had doctor appointments today and they went well.   We have to come back next year for the next appointment.  We only had a short wait to see the doctor and we were out on the road again very quickly.  That isn't the usual scenario when we visit this doctor, but it was a pleasant surprise.

Waitress all decked out.

We were meeting a couple friends for the St. Patrick's Day celebration and headed over to the Canyon's Crown restaurant for corned beef and cabbage.  It was early when we arrived at the restaurant and were seated quickly.  

They had signs all over stating they would only seat people when everyone in the group was there.  Our friends hadn't finished their work for the day and arrived later but we managed to keep the table until they arrived.  We had a great time visiting with them and celebrating  the day.  Later on the daughter of one friend showed up and we hung around for another hour or so.

Kilted man at the bar

Our friends.  Yes, adult beverages were served.

It was a long day and we finally got back to the park and are ready to crash for the night.  It was a great couple days and now we have to catch up on our sleep.

Good night all.

3 Down, 1 To Go

We arrived here in Tucson on December 6 and our time up will be up on April 6.  Once again there are new managers at the park (7th in charge) and each one has instituted new policies.  For the past 9 years we could always extend our stay at the monthly rate per day rather than the off the road charge which is double.  A few people have tried to extend, but the park charged them a more expensive weekly rate or the daily rate.  We had planned on spending 7-10 days after the 6th but have decided to move on rather than pay the much higher rate.  

If the park goes with this change, then there will a big turnover next winter.  We've talked to a number of couples who are looking to checking out other campgrounds.  

We have been taking it easy the past week or so.  Last week we met good friends Pat & Steve for a nice dinner at the Guadalajara Original Grill.  We wound up spending 3 1/2 hours at the restaurant and only left when there was a group waiting to be seated since the restaurant was full.  

Steve & Pat

Pat & Steve are full timers and volunteer at different state & national parks as work campers.  They just finished a three month stint at the Lost Dutchman State Park east of Mesa, AZ.  This summer they plan on volunteering at a campground in Montana that is located on a big lake southwest of Billings.  

Yesterday I thought I saw a black cloud moving toward us and it was very small.  As it got closer it evolved into the Directv dirigible and it flew right over the campground.  You never know what is going to fly over with us being in the flight path of the local air force base, but this was a new one.

There are a number of Canadians in the park and each year they sponsor a breakfast feast just before all the snowbirds leave.  They decorate the rec hall with all things Canadian and provide pancakes, sausages & scrambled eggs free of charge.  In addition, they have bags of Canadian themed items that they auction off.  They sell tickets for a nominal fee and if you really are interested in one bag or the other you put all your tickets into one bag.  I placed our 10 tickets in different bags and didn't win a thing.  The two couples seated next to us wound up with each winning three bags.  So close, but so far!  Our next door neighbor was one of the winners.   Last year we won, but were blanked this time.

Gerry's niece Erin was recently transferred from Los Angeles to Washington, DC and she stopped by last night on her way there.  She went about 75 miles out of her way to spend the night and the next morning with us.  We had non stop conversations catching up what each other have been doing since we last saw her last February.  She wound up leaving for the next leg of her trip around 2pm and was looking at a 526 mile drive to Santa Rosa, NM.  She called and said she finally got there around 10pm and was going straight to bed.  It was great seeing her again and hopefully we will see her and the whole family again this summer and fall. 

The US went on daylight savings time except for Arizona.  Now we have the same time as Pacific Time and are three hours behind the East coast.  So, don't be calling us early in the morning if you are on the East coast, or we will return the call late in the evening out here.  Fair enough?

That was a summary of our exciting life out here in the desert.  How did your week go?