Thursday, Jan 18th

Another gorgeous day in Apache Junction on the edge of the Tonto forest in the shadow of Superstition Mountain and the legend of the Lost Dutchman gold mine.
  Marg got up and out early to join up with the gamblin' gals for the weekly pilgrimage to the Fort.  Another day of close, but not bingo and making out fairly well on the slots to help offset the cost of bingo.  They don't go on the free dishes or pots day anymore as it is Saturday and the place is too crowded.  I met them at the gate to the park so Marg could ride back as I was concerned her hip might be a problem after all that sitting.  She and Lynette rode so I walked back, well part way until we got to Lynette's place.
  For my part I went to the coffee klatch, which is part of the routine on Thursday.  It was a good day as our table got to pick donuts first because one couple bought them today.  They were celebrating the end of her medical treatments.  After coffee I went stopped in to visit with Kenny & Doris, sometimes its nice to just sit and go over events and talk.  Then I went out for a bit of retail therapy.  I needed fuel as well as some black metal paint and some tonic water.  Vanessa suggested tonic water for Janice as it helps avoid mouth sores from treatments, but it's hard to find here.  On my third try I was successful at Safeway.
  When I got back home I had a bite of lunch and then sanded down the railing on our front step.  It had previously been painted a flat black, but I changed it to a gloss black with Rust-Oleum paint, the local equivalent of Tremclad at home.  It was a messy process, the sanding dust from black is nasty.  When I finished it looked pretty good and Marg seemed pleased with the result.  It wasn't much after finishing that I had to take the cart to the gate to wait for her.  While I waited, I parked behind Smitty's place and he gave me one of the Tangaloes from his trees.  Could have fooled me, I thought they were oranges.
  For supper we went out to the Village Inn.  The food was pretty good, the service excellent and best of all I had the strawberry/rhubarb pie heated and al a mode.  We ate out not just because Marg wasn't home to prepare the meal, but we have animal races on Thursday and we missed last week.  It started great but then started looking pretty bleak until we won on the final race.  Go Bimbo.  Funny, but we both had doubled up our bet on the elephant for the last race, so each got $1.10 and that gave us enough dimes to come back next week.