"Spring Break for Seniors"

... is the way that Quartzite, AZ in January has been described. And, I guess it would be an apt description! We arrived a week ago and since then we have enjoyed time with friends and drank and ate way too much and sat around the campfire telling stories - it does sound like spring break... except for the fact that we were in bed every night by 9!

On Wednesday, we had a totally new experience. Mike had been having problems with a tooth and we were given the name of a good dentist so we drove ... to MEXICO for a dental appt.! Yep, an appointment was made online and we ventured into Algodones where Mike received excellent care and the tooth was pulled. And it was at a fraction of the cost we would have paid in the states! He will be returning for additional care in March and I plan to get a cleaning at the same time. While we were there, we picked up some meds for friends and prilosec for mom - hope I can convince her to take them since the label is different - the cost was $4.50 for 120 tablets and in the states you pay over $20 for 42 tablets - same exact thing... something is not right with the way the U.S. does things...


Another new experience was making omelets by boiling the ingredients in plastic bags. On Friday, we decided to have a group breakfast (there were 17 of us) and Bonnie and Sue had decided on omelets. Everyone contributed something that goes in an omelet - eggs, sausage, bacon, ham, onions, mushrooms, tomatoes, cheese, peppers - well, you get the idea.




Then, Dan gave instructions on how to label your bag with your name and how to put eggs, preferably without the egg shells, in the bag and squish them. After that you just add the ingredients you want and seal the bag, trying to get as much air out as possible.

Since the water was already boiling in two big pots, all we did was put them in and wait 15 minutes. Seems this is another use for our outdoor stove ... and of course, it works better when watched by the guys!

And Serve! They are very good and oh so easy for so many; Craig and Rosann, our former Hickory Farms bosses, enjoyed them. Can't wait to make them again - sounds like a good idea for Rich and Anita's family gathering this summer.


And now, all the others have gone home or to their next destination and Mike and I are on our own in the desert for a day or two. It will surprize no one that we went off in search of unique rocks and cool pictures this afternoon - we found both.

We Got Our "Snow Fix" This Week

As we sit in our lawn chairs in the Desert Hot Springs area, we have a wonderful view of the mountains... and atop those mountains, in the San Bernardino National Forest, is white stuff. So, one day this week, we decided to take a drive into the snow - just to see what it was like, you know.


We visited Bear Mountain and the ski resort there. A strange, but true, fact is that we have visited three major ski areas in the last 4 months - Big Sky in Montana, Mammoth in northern California and now Big Bear. One would almost think we skied...


Anyway, it was a beautiful drive and it was fun to see snow and to stand in it in short sleeves and sandals; it was 45 the day we were there. It was equally as fun to leave the snow behind and head back to the desert warmth (although the temps have only been in the high 60s the last couple of days). The day did give me an opportunity to take a few pictures.

Catchin' Up

Sometimes, people will ask what it is I (or we) do with all of our time. And most of the time, I can't really tell you the answer... but I can tell you that every day isn't a "high flying adventure" like a balloon festival... some days are just regular days. This is what our last week has been about.

One day, I did laundry while Mike wiped down the outside of the MH and after supper we went to play "hand and foot" at the clubhouse.

Another day, we got ahold of the "shade man" and he came and replaced the cord in the day/night shade in the bedroom. Later we went to a local casino for dinner and an hour of entertainment.

Almost every day, we either go for a walk or a bike ride and one day we discovered a grapefruit tree on public property (by the courthouse) so we helped ourselves to a few of these sweet white fruits.

Several nights a week, I go to the hottub and soak - it is quiet, peaceful, and beautiful at night with the starry sky.

On Sunday when we went to breakfast at the clubhouse, a lady told us about a fellow in the park that does an excellent job of cleaning RV carpets and so latter that day, we rode past his place, stopped and booked him for next week.

On another day, we went to Anna's Linens, a wonderful bed and bath place and bought new pillows to change the color in the living room - $3 a piece, can't beat that. The very next day, our Christmas present (a great wooden arrangement) from Chris, Sara, and Kaci arrrived and it now looks like a new place and next week, it will be shampooed... typical January nesting and cleaning.

For at least an hour or two a day, you will find us in these chairs reading the local newspaper or a novel or the newly arrived mail - last of the Christmas cards arrived this past week. Anyway, as you can see, life is not always exciting, we have many days when we do very ordinary things.

And then some days, there are cool things to do.

The last couple of days, we have been attending the Western Area FMCA Rally. 1200 coaches gather at the Fair Grounds - a unique fair grounds with this stucture as a focal point. The rally gives attendees a chance to attend sessions, look for tips on traveling and bargains on necessary "stuff". I attended a session on cooking with a convection oven and left early as it was not really anything new. But I stayed the whole time at a session on the member benefits of FMCA and Mike acquired a few tips at a session put on by Workhorse Chassis. I went to a craft class and made this cool welcome sign.We played bingo one night and Mike won a couple of bucks. Tonight we went to see a group from the 50's - The Diamonds - very good entertainment. We also had an opportunity to spend some time with Dan and Sue and Russ and Barb. As reps for Workhorse, they manned the booth and answered questions. So, that sums up the last week. Now to "relax" for a week before Quartzite!!!

"The Miss Daisy Team"

Wow, what an experience I had yesterday. Mike had a cold and decided he needed some down time so off I went to the Fantasy Springs Hot Air Balloon Festival; it's held each year in Indio and benefits the military families in the area. So, I get to the gate and within minutes of making my entry fee donation, I am recruited for "The Miss Daisy Team". I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself in for, but what the heck, I had never been at a Hot Air Balloon Festival and thought this might be a way to understand just what was happening. Let me tell you the story.

This is the trailer that houses Miss Daisy and all the stuff needed to get her airborn. Dan and Susie from Oklahoma own this balloon, which was designed and constructed in Sioux Falls, SD. After quick introductions, we were told that they needed three hours of our time and that we would learn about ballooning, but wouldn't necessarily get a ride. They also warned us that it could be very hard work. Amazing as it seems, I decided to stay and see what was going to happen.
We were also told some facts about this particular hot air balloon. Miss Daisy weighs 1000 pounds and your average balloon, like the one we rode in years ago, weighs about 300 pounds. To inflate this creature takes about 25 minutes and other balloons take about 7-10 minutes. Miss Daisy was the biggest balloon on the field - there were 17 other special design balloons.

Our first task was to spread the tarps on which Miss Daisy would lay when she was uncrated. There were two of these massive tarps, and yes, they were patched with duck tape! The tarps are important because Miss Daisy is an FAA approved "aircraft" and when she goes in to have a rip sewed up, the repair has to be inspected by the FAA - sounded like it could be a long process. Once the tarps were laid, we (there were about 12 of us - all volunteers except the owners and all 'first timers') helped to uncrate Miss Daisy and lined her up to maximize the wind. As Dan directed our actions, Susie was constantly checking wind direction and speed; it seems that the speed cannot be over 8 or 9 MPH. As the picture shows many around us were close to fully inflated by that time.
As the big blue dragoon was inflated, our Miss Daisy still layed on the tarp and we were checking to be sure that over 20 "flaps", each about 3 feet long, were properly sealed with velcro. I was beginning to wonder just how long this process would take.
The Mayflower balloon was launched and carried the American Flag; as with all events The Star Spangled Banner played and as the final notes sounded, many of the small balloons launched; it made for quite a site.


The decision was finally made to "take her up" and the fans were fired up - they use two industrial sized fans to inflate it before the heat is added. That is me holding up the opening. One of the volunteers said I looked like I was having so much fun, she took my camera and shot some pics for me. It was fun - those of you who know me to usually have my hair in place would not have believed it...
Finally, after about 20 minutes of the fans, it was time to add the heat - two 70 pound propane tanks are used.




As enough heat gets in, she slowly begins to "stand up" and the basket needs to be held in place.Miss Daisy is up and beautiful. Since we all needed to stay close to man the ropes which held her down to the ground, it was impossible to get a picture of the whole balloon. This gives an idea of her size.




She was only up for about 30 minutes because of the wind gusts - there was one time when the Energizer Bunny started to list, Susie the owner got very nervous and told us to "pull it in".
This is one of the "flaps" we didn't manage to get closed - no wonder it took so long to fill it with air.This is what it looked like from the basket.
And this was one our neighbors.
When Miss Daisy comes down, we take off our shoes and "walk out" the air. The 2 kids who were with us really enjoyed this part.
After all the air is out, it is wrapped up again, and put back in the crate. A group of Marines came by just at the right time to help "stuff".
The tarps are folded and stuffed back in the bag and it is time to say good buy to our team members. As I leave the field, two balloons are still up and one is doing a "burn" for the public - a beautiful site. As soon as I got home, I modeled my new favorite T-shirt.
What an adventure.