November 28 to 30, 2011; Desert Hot Springs with Marcel and Aud

NOV  28, Monday, Desert Hot Spring
Val went for her exercises first thing this morning.  We then went for grocery shopping and a few other items, came home, put everything away and relaxed for a while.  Audrey and Marcel arrived in Desert Pools under an invite from us; now they have to listen to the sale pitch but they get 5 days/4 nights FREE!  In the afternoon, they went to pick up Curt and Carol then came back here and we proceeded to have a happy hour that lasted until 11 pm.  We munched on some finger food and left-over turkey.  Lots of laughs!

NOV  29, Tuesday, DHS
Yesterday, I bought a new Tracfone and transferred our number (520-220-2856) and contacts on the new one.  This one has “Bluetooth” and connects with my hand-free device in the truck.  Val did laundry after her exercises and Aud & Marcel went for a swim.  We went to their place around 3 pm and Curt and Carol showed up about a half hour later.  We went to “Burger & Beer” restaurant for dinner, a nice place and very good burgers then we drove to “The Nest” where Val lost her earring and they had found it so kept it for her.  We had a drink then came home.  M&A took C&C back to their hotel in Palm Springs.

NOV  30, Wednesday, DHS
A very quiet day at home.  Val did her exercises and then we read.  M&A took Carol and Curt to the airport as they were flying back home today.  They heard from their son that 8 inches of snow was waiting for them!!!
In the afternoon, Val and Aud went shopping and Val bought a nice swimsuit.  We had Happy Hour with Marcel and Audrey.  Survivor was on in the evening so we watched it.

Novemebr 23 to 27, 2011; Casa Grande to Desert Hot Springs, CA

NOV  23, Wednesday, sunny
A quiet day in Casa Grande.  I got some internet time from the office so that I could register our new Kindle Fire.  Val did a load of laundry and then we went to Best Buy to find a pouch to hold for the Kindle Fire but it was closed to power outage so we went to Office Depot and found something to suit the Reader.  We came home, had a drink then it was dinner and news watch.

NOV  24, Thursday, Last day in Casa Grande
A quiet day at home, it is cloudy and much cooler today; temperature only got up to 19*C!  We went to Fry’s for a few groceries.  I loaded up the kayaks, packed all the toys, BBQ, chairs, Val packed all the trinkets inside and we are ready to leave.
We went to Cracker Barrel restaurant for a Thanks-Giving dinner since the Park we are staying has no cook, came home watched the tube for a while then bedtime.  We had been invited at Bud and Judy (Val’s uncle) for dinner in Chandler but I didn’t feel like driving all that way and also because we were leaving tomorrow, so we sadly turned down the invitation.

NOV  25, Friday, to Desert Hot Spring, California
We left Casa Grande around 9:30 am and headed north then west on I-10.  Traffic through Phoenix was light so it was a pleasant drive.  We stopped for a break at a rest stop around 11 am then again in Quartsite where we fuelled at $3.85/gallon.  An hour later, after having lunch, we crossed into California and arrived at Desert Pool RV Park in Desert Hot Spring at 4:45 pm (3:45 local time).  Yes we gained an hour and are now on the same time as home.  Paid $42 for 7 nights and set up in site 201. 
Just as I sitting and relaxing, in came Marcel, Audrey, Carol and Curt whom we had met a few years back in Olds Alta.  Out came the chairs and the booze and a few stories were told, most were lies but some truthful!  (SMILE)
We made arrangements to meet tomorrow and after they left, we had dinner, washed the dishes, watch the tube for a while then went to bed.

N  33*  55.442’

W 116* 26.053
Alt: 1016 feet
We drove 317 miles (514 Km) in 5.5 hrs @ an average 57MPH

NOV  26, Saturday, DHS
At 10 am, we went over to Marcel & Audrey and Curt & Carol met there too and we all went to the “College of the Desert” swap meet.  We walked around for about an hour and half then went to the “River Walk Shopping Centre” and found a restaurant/bar where we had a snack and beer.  They went back to Curt’s motel and we drove home to care for poor Tucker who’s been alone all day.  We took him for a walk and visited with our neighbours from BC.
At 6:30 pm, we drove to a club named “The Nest” where there was live entertainment.  We met Aud & Marcel and Curt & Carol there.  The music was very loud and great and the place packed solid; so much so that all you had to do is stand up and dance where you stood.  Val had a great time and danced the night away.  So did I for that matter.  We left around 11 pm and came home.  It WAS a fun evening!

NOV  27, Sunday, Grey Cup football and BC WON!!!
We went shopping for some groceries, came home and put everything away.  I set up the dish but didn’t have much success so I hooked up to our neighbours who are also from BC.  We watched the Canadian Football game between BC and Winnipeg and we jumped with joy when BC won!  FINALLY!!!!!! We have the Grey Cup.  GO BC!
I tried calling Kevin and Rochelle but had a really bad reception so I sent an e-mail.

November 18 to 22, 2011; Birthdays and visit with TIm & Kim

NOV  18, Friday, sunny, warm
A quiet day!  We went out to find the last two caches from yesterday, picked the antibiotics for Val then came home and read.  I had a snooze in the afternoon.  It was another very warm day, it reached 84*F (26*C)

NOV  19, Saturday
There was a craft sale in the club house and so we attended.  There wasn’t much but I did find a pegs and joker board and phoned Terry & Glenda to find out if they were interested!?  The price was a bit steep, $45, so they turned it down.  Don’t blame them; I wouldn’t have paid that much either.  Val went for her dance lessons and I read my book.  After lunch, Val decided to make some muffins.  Everything was quiet then someone banged on the outside wall.  Val looked out and to our surprise, there stood Al and Brenda from BC.  We had a very nice visit with them and had them over for dinner.  They are staying down the road, about 25 miles from here.  They left around 7 pm as their dog was still at their motorhome and were worry about her.  She is a big golden lab, gentle as could be.  We watched the tube for a while then it was bedtime.

NOV  20, Sunday, sunny and warm
We were supposed to go visit Tim and Kim today but Kim called saying that Tim had the flue so we postponed our visit to Tuesday.  We called T&G right away to let them know so that they could make alternate plans for today if they wanted to.
We went geo-caching (no, really!!!!) and found 10 more to log.  We were home by 3:30 pm, had a drink then dinner.  I watched Sunday night football and Val went to work on a puzzle at the club house.

NOV  21, Monday,
A bit cooler today but still sunny!  We went to find more caches that we didn’t do yesterday.  We even got to meet the owners of a cache; he came out as we were searching for it.  We also got Val’s “Kindle Fire” through the mail today so now we really need a WIFI connection so that we can register it and work on it.  We had supper then watched the tube.  We also received our package from the drugstore at home; what happened is that every time I went to check for the mail I would say my last name and of course nothing was there until Val went over and said her last name and...voila...the package had been sitting there for the past two weeks!!!  How silly!

NOV  22, Tuesday, visit with Tim  & Kim
We went into town in search for a MIFI connection.  First we stopped at BESTBUY where we didn’t find what we were looking for then at a VERIZON dealer.  We had better success there but it is a matter of deciding if it’s worth the expense especially since we will be out of the USA in about 3 weeks!??? 
We drove to Mesa where we picked up Terry and Glenda then the four of us went to Scottsdale for a visit with Tim and Kim.  We had a marvellous visit and a delicious dinner, nothing fancy but still delicious!  We left there around 7:30 pm and drove back to Val Vista where we had a nightcap with T&G then said our goodbyes and were home by 10:30pm.  It was a great day!

November 14 to 17, 2011; Finances & Val's mishap

NOV  14, Monday, Sunny, Happy Birthday Vanessa
Val went for her exercises in the morning and after showering I walked Tucker. We went to “Total Wine” in Phoenix to get more bourbon, wine and beer.  Val saw a BIG LOT store so we went over and found our lamp and bought it.  We stopped at Camping World for a part on the screen door but no success there and we actually left without buying anything!?  AMAZING!!!!  We came home, had a drink outside, talked to a couple of neighbours then it was time for dinner.
I went to bed early after talking with grand-daughter Vanessa and wishing her Happy Birthday...20 y.o, and no longer a teenager.  Val stayed up to finish watching a program on TV then came to bed too.

NOV  15, Tuesday, Happy birthday grand-daughter McKinley, 1 y.o.
McKinley, Val’s grand-daughter is a year old today; they grow so fast, don’t they?
After Val exercises and me picking up our mail, we went Geo-Caching.  By the way, I can’t remember if I mentioned this before but we also got two new folding chairs that I had ordered on line.  Same as Terry and Glenda!  We found all the caches we had missed previously then came home and had a drink before dinner.  I sorted our mail and brought our accounts to date.

NOV  16, Wednesday, sunny and warm, Happy birthday Tucker, 13 y.o.
We called our financial adviser and moved money around to safeguard it.  We lost a substantial amount in the past 4 months and it doesn’t look like it will rebound in the near future!?  After drying our tears, we went geo caching and found another dozen.  We stopped at “The Place”, a local pub and had a beer and snack then came home.  I also returned our “Virgin MIFI” as I found it too slow and frustrating.  It took 20 minutes to download a 12 MB file.  A bit ridiculous, wouldn’t you think?

NOV  17, Thursday, sunny and warm
No exercises, no dancing this morning, we went geo caching and looking back, I wish we had stayed home, well....maybe!  We had 6 caches to find and on the third one, Val had a mishap.  She went to climb around a pile of rocks, slipped and cut her shin wide open on a granite rock.  There was lots of blood and after squeezing the wound shut,, I ran to the truck and got our first-aid kit and got that bandaged in no time.  We drove to the clinic where they cleaned it, gave tetanus shot, stitched it together and gave us the bill...$722 US.  We were both in shock as we were expecting maybe $300 at the most.  Anyway, Val is OK and that is the main thing.  We came home and spent a quiet evening at home.

November 10 to 13, 2011; Aud & Marcel visit

NOV  10, Thursday, visitors leave
We were all up early and after a light breakfast and hugs and goodbyes, Marcel and Audrey left for California.  They are hoping that their motorhome will be ready this week; it has already been in there for 2 1/2 weeks.
We went to Big Lots to check on the lamp but no luck so we went grocery shopping then home to put everything away.  A very nice day with winds keeping things at the right temperature.  I made WHR) and Pilot Knob in Winter Haven, CA (Dec 2 to 16, AOR) near Yuma, AZ.  We had a great dinner then it was watch the tube and to bed early

NOV  11, Friday, Veteran’s Day!
After Val’s exercises, we went geo-caching for a couple hours then came home.  It is cloudy today but no rain and it is warm.  We came home after successful finds, had dinner and watched the tube.  Being the 11^th, the “Longest day” was playing so we watched that until bedtime.

NOV  12, Saturday, another cloudy day
But warm!  Val went to Line Dancing lessons; I gave up as it is too confusing and frustrating and I thought better to stay away then get frustrated!  Afterwards, we went geo-caching and even that frustrated as we didn’t seem to get too lucky in finding them.  We came home around 4 pm and one of our neighbours came over to introduce himself and have a drink with us.
Val cooked a great dinner then it was relax time at home

NOV  13, Sunday, a rainy day!
It rained most of the morning but the sun did come out in the afternoon.  Val went for her exercises then we went to the grocery store to get some items.  After returning home and putting everything away, we spent the rest of the day reading our books.  We had a bit of excitement in that a fire truck and ambulance showed up in the park to attend to an emergency about 4 rigs down from us.  He was taken to hospital for check-up but otherwise, appeared OK.  Val made a delicious chilli for dinner then we watched Sunday Night Football.

November 5 to 9, 2011; Casa Grande and visit from Aud & Marcel

NOV  5, Saturday, Casa Grande
It was windy most of the night and rained heavily at times, it woke me up!  This morning, we have a beautiful sunshine with a few clouds but quite cool; only 8*C (46*F) at 8 am.
I spent the day setting up our camp, putting up the dish for satellite which was very frustrating as we never got it going.  Actually not quite true, I had the signal for a while then lost it and never got it back so gave up before becoming frustrated.  There was a craft show in the hall and Val bought a small shoulder purse.  We spent about a half hour in there then Val went to the library and I came home.

NOV  6, Sunday
A cold night, 6*C but the sun is shining this morning and already 10*C at 8 am.  A quiet day at home, temperature went as high as 18*C (67*F); we read, Val went to the puzzle room for a while and I finally got our Star Choice satellite set up,  thanks to a neighbour from Alberta.  A quiet day at home!

NOV  7, Monday, “the Beast” is back
It rained and blew quite hard over night!  Once again we had to get up in the middle of the night to bring the awning in.  Now, 8 am, everything is wet but the sky is clearing some so maybe we will have sunshine later.  I got a call from the garage that the wrong part was sent so they had to re-order it and should be here early afternoon.
Val is at her “walk the pounds away” exercise class.  At 10:30 am, we both went for line dancing lessons!  YES!  You read that right!  It was for an hour and a half and was quite fun and interesting.  The Ford dealer finally called me at 4 pm that the truck was ready.  They picked me up and I paid the bill then came home to pick up Val.  The problem was the PSI hose from the power steering pump to the hydroboost.  Val and I went to FRY’s to get some milk, beer and wine (necessity of life) then we came home, cooked dinner and watched the tube.  It is quite windy here now.

NOV  8, Tuesday,
A beautiful but cool morning.  The sun is shining and it is a balmy 7*C outside (44*F) in the shade at 8:30 am.  The forecast is for 65*F today.  Val is gone to her exercises.
We went into town to the mall on Florence and shopped at Best Buy (oh! Oh!) , then to a couple of shoe stores for Val and Target looking for plastic wine glasses.  Val found her sandals at the Outlet.  We came home via Walmart then it was dinner time.  After dinner, I set up my new Virgin Mifi and called Marcel and Audrey.  We made arrangements to meet them on Thursday in Palm Springs.  Their motorhome is still in the garage.

NOV  9, Wednesday, surprised visit
Up early again today, Val took a break from the exercises and did a load of laundry instead.  I researched cost for insurance for Mexico.  I went into town and had the truck washed then to Big Lots to see about my lamp exchange but they were still unpacking so I will return tomorrow.  I stopped at the Post Office and mailed a b’day cards for McKinley.
Audrey and Marcel showed up here from San Diego; a last minute decision and it’s great seeing them again...it’s been a year since last we got together.  After catching up with news, we went to a local pub, “The Place”, and had dinner and lots of laughs.  We didn’t get to bed until midnight.  They slept on the couch which turns into a bed.

November 1 to 4, 2011; Val Vista, Mesa to Casa Grande, AZ

NOV  1, Tuesday, Val Vista Resort, Mesa AZ
Another hot one but it’s supposed to cool right down to 69*F by the week-end; kind of looking forward to that!
Val did a load of laundry in the morning and in the afternoon; we went to the pool as they had live music and selling beer for a dollar!  T&G and others that we met were there too.
For dinner, it was pork chops and potatoes with greens then we watched the tube and went to bed early.  I don’t know why but my eyes were red and burning all day!?


NOV  2, Wednesday,
We had a windy night, I had to bring the awning in but right now, it has calmed down and it is very nice out there.
Val went for Tai-Chi class then the four of us went shopping at Camping World then Costco where I bought a sound bar for the TV, Wal-Mart where we didn’t find what we were looking for then came home as we had a party to go to.  From 3 to 6 pm, there was a pool party and everyone brought a “happys” and your own booze or buy at the bar.  We had a good time and everyone got wet whether you were with or without a swim suit.  Ever seen children with water gun?  That will give you an idea what it was like!  We came home around 6 pm

NOV  3, Thursday, last day in Val Vista

I washed “BEAR” in the morning and Val helped me drying it then I washed the windows and dumped the tanks.  In the afternoon, we went shopping at BIG LOTS and K-MART where I bought a lamp for my corner then headed to Costco where I returned a sound system I had bought but found too big for the rig.  We came home and walked over to Terry & Glenda for Happy Hour.  Dennis and his wife Gloria whom had come by earlier to say their goodbyes were also there and so was Mike.  A while later, another couple came by that had just arrived from BC and left after a drink as they had a dinner date.  Moe and his wife, Trish, who had just flown in today, arrived and the six of us had dinner together thanks to Glenda generosity and good cooking.  We had pork roast, sweet potatoes, salad, buns and wine.  Needless to say that everything was absolutely delicious and we had a wonderful last evening together.  Then it was time to call it a night and we came home after saying our goodbyes to Moe and Trish and goodnight to T&G.

NOV  4, Friday, to Casa Grande

The forecast is for a wind storm between 11 am and 8 pm so we didn’t waste any time and left by 10 am after saying goodbye to Terry.  Silly me, last night when we said good night, I forgot that Glenda was leaving early for a golf game so we didn’t see her this morning.  I guess I owe her two hugs now!
We drove south on Val Vista, west on Hwy 60, south on 101, west on 202 and finally south on I-10.  We arrived at Desert Shadows, a WHR park, an hour later and after setting up on site 605, the wind began picking up and we were enveloped in a sandstorm within the hour.  Just in time, huh!!!
We had lunch then it was relax time.  The park is almost empty, very few people here and the organized activities don’t start until the 15 of this month.  They don’t even have a cook yet so we may not get a Thanksgiving dinner!?
We went into town to Big Lots and Walmart then returned home.  As I was driving, the steering began making a funny whiny noise so I stopped at the Ford Dealership only to find out a main oil line to the steering was leaking badly and it was suggested we leave the truck there which we did.  They drove us home which means no wheels for the week-end.  Why does it always happen on a Friday????

N  32* 55.269’
W 111* 45.273’
ALT: 1372 feet

We drove 51 miles (84 Km) in one hour at an average 51 mph.