Saturday 31 March 2012

Saturday, March 31st

An early start to the day to get over to the hall and have breakfast of pancakes, bacon, eggs. The last one for the year. Sat with Kenny & Doris, who left right after breakfast for home in Kansas. Safe trip home friends. The number of well wishers probably delayed their departure by half an hour. After breakfast we went around the park wishing several others a safe trip home. I think there are something like a dozen leaving this weekend and another dozen through the week to follow. After lunch I went to play pool and only Don was there to play. A new person in the park came along with his cue and we introduced him to 1/15 8 ball. Turned out he was a pretty good player and the 3 of us had some good games. He was also a good humoured type and would fit in here just fine if all the other players were here. Turns out they have been full-time rv'ers for 3 years and plan to continue for at least another 3 before going back to their home in Colorado. Got new neighbours in the space Kenny vacated. They came up from Yuma and he said it was terribly dusty there with the winds all winter. Nothing new there, that place has that reputation, as well as - can't drink the water. Went for a swim this PM. Marg was there and was already starting to shrivell up from soaking for so long. It was very hot, 95F, so it was nice to cool down in the pool, the water was only 82F. Spent some time talking with a couple of guys I know about all kinds of things. Well now I can say I was in the pool, Hah! After we went to Larry & Nancy's for cocktails. She is the lady that organizes the ladies trips to Globe that Marg goes with. They have a regular cocktail gathering almost every day at 4PM. Bud & Lynette always go there and they are leaving tomorrow. She works on our ice cream social team, very nice lady. Bud's the character who buys all the cars & scooters every year. Spent lots of time kidding him about using a big rock for cruise control on his Zephyr as he really honks on it. Its about 9 yrs old, but even then had a 450hp Cummins. The replacement cost on the coach is about $560K. When he found out Pat & I just set our cruise at 65mph, he said us Canucks were the old guys he passes on the road. This will be their last year bringing the motorhome as they bought a park model. At the end of cocktail hour, a bunch more farewells. As much as we don't like all the farewells, we sure are looking forward to going home. Went out after for supper to the Old Country Buffet. I want to record the name of this place so that we don't ever make the mistake of going there again. Doesn't happen very often, but every so often you find a dud. Tomorrow is supposed to cool off and it will be nice for a change.

Friday 30 March 2012

Friday, March 30th

OMG, it is almost the end of March. Hot one today, I think it must have been around 85F. We got up early and went to the Mesa market with Bingers. Picked up a few things we didn't know we needed until we got there, but were happy to bring home. LOL Marg got an outdoor mat with some southwestern design on it. I got a new chipper. I bought one last year and it doesn't work so I bought a new one this year. We picked up a few other things as well. The vendors are dealing now, they know if they don't get your buck today they may not get another chance. I played a bit of pool this afternoon. After we had cocktails with just the Blanke's & Binger's and then went out for dinner with them to the Native New Yorker. I think 5 of us had the haddock & chips special. It was very good and we got to use another coupon from our book. Laugh if you will, but the savings on our bill alone almost paid for the book. Marg & I ate there in a prior year, but for some reason had not been back til now. Blanke's are leaving for home tomorrow, we will miss them & look forward to seeing them next year. There are a bunch leaving this weekend, so will try and get around to say our good byes to all. The poker guys are starting to feel the end is in sight, so we had an unscheduled game tonight. I think they are trying to empty my money bag. I use a crown royal bag & it is pretty heavy with dimes & nickels. Lots of fun anyway and we are still scheduled for next Wednesday. Knowing these guys, they will probably want to ride in the motorhome for the first 50 miles when we leave so we can play one last game. LOL

Thursday, Mar 29

Another hot day, I think it got up to the mid 80's around noon. Went to coffee & donuts this AM. There was a much smaller group there and next week will be the last one. The announcements were few, with the only real news being the Easter ham dinner. Some of our friends were asking us to sign up for their table, however we are planning on leaving on the Saturday, so will not be here. That's right we have made a decision and will be pulling out on Saturday morning. Not much for plans beyond that, but we will figure it out as we go along. After the Bingers were going to Sam's Club & I had never been so we went along with them. It's a lot like Costco, but I didn't think the deals or the selection were as good. Marg picked up a couple of things & they got quite a few things. Stopped in at Trader Joes on the way back, one of Marg's favourite grocery stores. She got a lot more things there. It's a pretty cool store actually and they carry some unique stuff. We had lunch at Appleby's after and it was good. That is the place with the all you can eat soup/salad for $7 at lunch. In an earlier blog posting I had scanned the menu, but there are a half dozen salad selections and 3 soups. By the time we got back it was around 3, so never played pool & Marg never went to the pool. Too bad to as it was a perfect day for lounging in the pool. The neighbours have been giving us a hard time about happy hour, so went over to Larry & Nancy's for cocktails. They have cocktails every day at 4 and usually attract quite a crowd. Bud had brought a gps unit he found in the car he bought and brought it. The unit had been programmed to German & he couldn't reset it, so asked me to have a look at it. Get this; these people are so techy challenged that I am consulted. Now that's a laugh, normally I am the one seeking help. Anyway I got the thing changed over to English, in spite of all the instructions being in German. It's actually quite a neat little unit. Bud seems to buy a car every year. He bought the big Ford Crown Vic for $200 last yr and drove it home. This yr he has bought a Subaru for $100 that was included with the park model they purchased & among other things found this in it. He also bought a couple of twist & go scooters this yr. But I digress, so we had cocktails with the 10 or 12 people they had over. They are leaving next week sometime, one couple is leaving tomorrow morning & quite a few others will be going within the next week as well. After supper Marg went with a group of girls to the park just east of us, several of whom are the ladies she goes to Globe with. The park was having their last bingo of the winter tonight. There was no repeat of her Marg's win from Tuesday, so that's probably it for bingo this winter. It's a little like the Lewis Carroll poem - The time has come the walrus said, to think of many things... Well this end of the winter season is like that - with everything coming to an end & our looking forward to the return to GP & our family.

Wednesday 28 March 2012

Wednesday, March 28th

What a gorgeous day, the sun shone and it was very warm.
Started off with golf in the AM. Gerry Canuel came to play, as usual, and we took Steve with us today. He played with us last week and we had offered him a ride if he was going this week. He is here visiting his sister, Christine. She is from Tofield and her & Frank stay in the park. Anyway Steve and his wife are visiting from Leeds in Yorkshire. He is a very good golfer and pleasant company and really enjoyed the course last week. He won the closest to the pin on hole #7 today. My game was the best I have played this winter. Nothwithstanding some missed easy shots, I came in at 44. This may well be one of the best games I have ever played, it just doesn't work out this well.
Back in time for noon and Marg made a tasty lunch, then played some pool . This too is winding down and there were fewer players today. When I got back, Marg had webbed feet as she spent over 2 hours in the pool. It was a perfect day for that, but alas I have not been in the ole swimmin' hole this year.
After we went to Bob & Karens for dinner. Bob is quite a cook and he was determined to have fried bologna sandwiches, so had a small group over to try it. Apparently this is very popular in the part of Ohio they come from. He deep fries seasoned bologna and they had a nice potatoe soup with it. Everyone brought a dish, Marg made up a veggie tray. Lots laughs with this group as well. Gary's brother Mel was there and they are leaving tomorrow. Mel had golfed with Gerry & me earlier. Seems all the non-golfers have relations who like to play & play well, so they set them up with us to take out. Kind of funny, or it would be if I were a better hacker. But I digress, the bologna sandwiches were pretty good. Marg thinks we may just have been very hungry, LOL.
Had to leave early as it was poker night and our numbers were down. We had 6 tonight and I think I may have come out with more than I started with. Played some new games this week and that is good as it keeps us from getting in a rut.
Thats all folks!

Tuesday 27 March 2012

Tuesday, Mar 27

What a nice day, almost get tired of saying that - NOT, LOL. We had a busy day as we had some maintenance issues with our counter tops & table in the coach. The sides of the laminate finish were separating from the wood base & we were worried about them getting ripped off. When I took off a piece in the bedroom it had the manufacturers stamp on it, so I googled and found them in Iowa. Telephoned and they put me in touch with a technical guy who told us how to glue it as well as what to use. He then asked where we got their name & then what kind of coach we had & who built it as he was not familiar with this use of their product. Must have made for some interesting conversation around the coffee room. Anyway after a visit to the hardware store, we did as instructed and the counter tops are as good as new. Thanks to the power of the internet. Gerry & Deb C came over after supper, he to play pool, her bingo. Jerry B got conned in to playing bingo tonight so came and brow beat us guys into playing. I think the girls sent him. It was the last bingo of the season & the crowd was small, so we probably should have gone anyway. I would have got my butt kicked at pool, so no biggee. Well we were the lucky table. Gerry won the first game, Deb won the second and then Marg won twice. Let me tell you, I was the brunt of a lot of harrassement after that. Lots of laughs, and we came away with more than we started with. Nancy also won at our table, so it was a lucky table tonight. At intermission a few of us had ice cream, but it was also the end of season sale, so no drumsticks, just fudgesicles. Everywhere you turn it is the last something going on. The manager, Curtis, stopped to ask when we plan ot depart. It's starting to look like April 9th. If only it would quit winter back home.

Monday 26 March 2012

Monday, March 26

The day was nice and we got off to a good start. Went out to Walmart and I got a haircut there. Not something I would normally do, but it was the best haircut I have had down here, LOL. We needed a few groceries anyway and were there for that, so took a chance. After we stopped in at Patriot to make an appointment for oil changes for the car & motorhomefor next Wednesday. The car will be $17.95 for oil & filter. For the motorhome he quoted me $35, which compares favourably with the $160 I would pay in GP. Mainly they do it with bulk oil, which saves quite a bit. Lunch today was back at the park. After I went and played pool for a while. Even pool has really slowed down, there were only 7 players today. We had lots of laughs, as usual. The mail this afternoon contained a surprise, the 3rd package on my birthday trilogy from the Smiths. It was a map of Canada/Alaska made in June, 1947, the year I was born. Pretty cool, I think Char got it on the internet and it was shipped to here from South Carolina. Pretty neat to see what the world around us was like at that date. Thank you all. The Blanke's returned from the rally and had asked Kenny's brother over for cocktails. Marg had been making noises about margaritas, so we packed the blender & stuff to blend over to their park model. Pretty funny as he had 2 bottles of Molson Canadian for himself and me. Marg blended drinks for everyone else and even a couple who were just passing by. On the way back to the rv carrying our blender and what ingredients were left; got waved in by another reprobate & poured some of the margarita mix in his glass to stop the - hey Dave stuff. LOL At the end of happy hour Marg informed me that I was the designated driver as she was in no condition to drive. Wait - what's wrong with this picture? Fortunately Jerry B was and we all 4 couples went to the Grand buffet, the Chinese buffet on the trail. A short walk around the park in the evening and that was our day.

Sunday 25 March 2012

Sunday, March 25th

A nice day today, although a little windy. It was not quite as hot as yesterday, but a warm one none the less. For some reason we were up and about by 7:30AM, not sure what was going on with that. Anyway we went out to Gilbert as Marg wanted to check out the Nordstroms rack store. It's quite a way from here, probably around 20 miles. This is about the only way we can afford to shop at a Nordstrom store. Stopped on the way back at a Ross's, which is now one of Marg's fav's, even if there are stores in almost every area of the city. She got some good stuff and was well pleased with the day. Supper was bbq and was very good, as usual. Had to finish up quick as Marg went to play cards - 31, at the hall. There is a group that usually plays after the ice cream social, however the socials have ended now, so they played earlier. She never brought home the cash, but she had a good time. A funny thing happened. One of the guys playing had been by earlier and declined the offer of a beer, which came up during conversation. Marg advised him the offer was still open and he should go to the rv & approach me, which he did as he was knocked out of the game at the time. It was kind of confusing for me, so I just said will a couple do and sent him away with 2. I knew one of the other players would almost certainly have one. In the end I guess it was good for a chuckle. This was Margs first time playing, going out while I stayed back, but it doesn't sound like it will be her last. After cards, Bingers pulled a surprise stopping by and we all went to DQ. I guess we were all suffering from ice cream withdrawal with the end of the socials, so went to make it up this way. When we got there they had a special on blizzards, so we all had them. Marg had a Hawaiian one & I had a banana split one, both were very good. Gave us a chance to look our competition over, Hah!

Saturday 24 March 2012

March 24th

Went to breakfast in the park this AM, this was the group that does french toast, so couldn't miss out on that. Went through the usual - where's Marg questions as she was doing the yogurt thing this AM. A much smaller crowd this AM, just another indication that the season is winding down. After breakfast we went to one of Marg's favourite shopping places on Val Vista. It's all boutiquish type stores so she had a ball & I sat in the car and read my book. Its a pretty good one - Timbal Gulch Trail. Made for a good morning for both of us. For lunch we went to Long John Silvers. You are probably thinking seafood & you would be right. Got to use another coupon from the book we got at the chamber. This was such a good value, but we are getting to the remnants of the coupons we will use in it. After lunch I played some pool. Everyone was talking about leaving and their plans for next year. I said we were moving & they were shocked, so I said just to the next lot for next year. After we had Bingers over for a few wobbly pops. It was a hot day so cold beer or slush was what fit the bill today. Out for supper and a stop at Walmart for beer & water & that was the day.

Friday 23 March 2012

Expensive Iron

We really enjoyed the Tiffin class A motorhomes, they made & sold 3,000 last year, about 1/4 of all the ones sold in the USA. Their most expensive model is the Zephyr at $561K which was on sale at the show for $450K. They only make it on a custom order and it has everything but most impressive was the 500hp Cummins. There were some more expensive ones like the Fleetwood American in the picture, list price $832K but a show special of $707K - what a deal, over $100K savings! It has unbelievable features and while there are a few more expensive coaches, you would really have to look hard to find them. Ours isn't on order anytime soon, LOL!

RV's galore

There were about 3,500 rv's at the Good Sam Rally in PIR today. That's a lot of iron. There was every kind you can think of all jammed together. It would be interesting to see what departure day looks like - LOL.

March 23rd

Nice sunny day, the highest temp I saw today was 90F.
We left early and went to the Good Sam Rally at Phoenix Intl Raceway in Avondale. Bingers went with us as they had never been before either. It is a fair hike from here but we left just after the morning rush & the wrecks [as they call them] had been cleared up. The last traffic report I heard had 8 or 10 crash sites identified between here and there. Got to the raceway right before 10 AM, so made good time, right around an hour. It was something to see. It's a NASCAR racing site and the stands are huge around a banked track. The main part of the show was in the pit area & to get to it you had to go through a tunnel under the track. Travel was mainly on passenger cars, the same as you see in Disney or other major theme parks. There were all description of RV's there as well as every kind of supplier related to the trade. I think there were in excess of 250 booths in the show, most under one huge tent. The tent had to be 500 ft long, it was impressive.
We saw expensive iron and some really good deals. The new ideas/innovation in the industry was really interesting to see. It would be easy to get enticed into a new coach, like we almost did last year. When you start talking about driver passenger seats with full electronics including vibrating or corian counter tops & fireplaces. The display booths were interesting as well. Again some great ideas and the handouts were pretty great. Both Pat & Marg had many new bags, all were filled with brochures and knick knacks. I talked to the manufacturer of our tow bar and got some good ideas about maintaining it. Marg talked to some people that do interior replacements, including the chairs & sofa as well as some others that have products to make rv'ing better. The big pole in the picture reports the positions of the cars on the race track during events.
We had lunch at a booth and then met up with Kenny & Doris at the Tiffin booth. Kenny is sure well known there. His coach is a Tiffin, Allegro Bus and his brother worked for them. He introduced us to his brother and the owner, Bob Tiffin. They sure make nice coaches and a big display of them. At the time of our visit they had 8 of them sold & their entry level is about $121K. After we went out to Blanke's motorhome for a beer in the shade of their awning. Did I mention it was very hot!
Got out of there just before 4 PM in time to hit the rush hour in downtown Phoenix. We went right through the heart of the city and where the I-10 becomes the I-60 or continues on to Tucson the traffic was bumper to bumper, six lanes across. In fact it was stopped at times. Did I mention a few accidents or wrecks as they call them thrown in for interest. We took on the worst they could throw at us and were victorious, LOL!
Stopped at IHop for supper with our company and that made for a great reward for navigating the freeway at rush hour.

Thursday 22 March 2012

March 22nd

Another frustrating day with our wifi connection. Hey it's up, no it's not, wait maybe - arghhh. The weather on the other hand was fabulous, about 80F today. It was pretty warm this morning, so I got out on the bike early. Made a few miles today & it's proving easier since I added the water bottle. We sure go through a lot of water here. The tap water is OK, so we use it when ever we can. After lunch I played in the inter-park pool tournament. It's the last one for the winter season. After this week anyone interested plays and as the numbers dwindle, they get all the 6 parks together and draw for partners. Just another example of how the season is drawing to a close. After pool Gerry's wife [Thanh] dropped off a package of cookies. She always stops in during the poker game and if he is losing before, it always turns his luck around. A few weeks back, as a joke, one of the other players said she couldn't come unless she was bringing cookies. Anyway she made these delicious oatmeal raisin cookies and gave each player a small bag of 3. Marg went out to pick up a few things over around the big shopping area on Signal Butte. Those of us from Alberta & parts of BC seem to be the only ones with poor weather at home. The people in the east are already in very nice weather and some seem to be leaving early. Got a nice surprise in the mail, a nice picture book & card from the Smith family for my birthday. This is my second package in the mail, from them. It's really funny some stuff arrives very quickly while other things seem to be on a slow boat via China. Anyway Charlene put together a very nice photo book, thanks darling. BBQ steaks for supper with vegetables on the bbq as well. It's too hot to cook inside and Marg always does these up nice. After supper we took a walk around the park with the Bingers and stopped to look at the owls, but it was too dark by then to seem them. The great horned owls had 2 chicks again this winter. I think that has happened every year. They nest in the palm trees. Not sure where the days go, but time is sure passing quickly down here.

Wednesday 21 March 2012

March 21st

Back to sunny skies and warm days. Thought we were back in good old Alberta there for a couple days, LOL. For you followers, there was no post yesterday. The internet service here is sporadic and yesterday it was terrible, so we gave up fighting with it. Arghh. Lots of times we can go to MacDonalds or IHop and their free service is better than the one we pay for here. Yesterday we mostly hung around the park and the Canuels came over after supper to play bingo. The whole bunch of us went and while everyone was close, Dave was the only winner. Big win of $30 split 6 ways, oh well, a win is a win. Coffee & snacks after in the RV pretty much rounded out the day. The weather was much better, but still warming up from the weekend. Wednesday today so Wayne & Gerry Canuel came over and we played golf this AM. Started off very rocky, but settled down and got a half decent score - for me that is. Some people from Alberta had family come down and her brother-in-law wanted to play, so we took him in our foursome. Wayne had a chance at closest to the pin money, but his drive didn't stand up after the other groups played the hole. The course is really starting to dry out and the greens were fast before, so are almost like putting on a parking lot. Said goodbye to Wayne & Martha as they fly back to Edmonton in the evening. It was nice having them, we had lots of laughs. Still have not figured out how to make it happen for them next year. After lunch played some pool. Spoke to the park manager, Curtis, about coming back next year and he said they would have a spot for us. Kenny & Doris will not be bringing their rv back next year, so asked him about moving & I think we will have #58 next year. Funny because Marg asked him about it a bit later & he said it was already spoken for. Then when she looked disappointed, he let her know it was me who spoke for it. Kenny & Doris went to the Good Sam rally, so their spot was open & he has rented it while they are away. This is a small park [150 stalls], but there are seldom vacancies from Jan thru March and only a few in December. Played poker in the evening. One of the guys had picked up some Cdn change, so I bought it off him. They can't always spend it here, so I seem to be in charge of re-patriating it. I don't really count my change before or after, but the bag is getting pretty heavy. Marg said I need to cash it in to improve our gas mileage on the return trip. Some new people in the park as people are returning home already. It's kind of the opening topic with everyone - when are you leaving? We were going to leave at the end of the first week of April, but will likely leave Monday following Easter Sunday. That will mean lots of stuff to do before leaving, Marg has already started a list so we don't miss anything. It has been a good winter, but we are starting to really miss home & family.

Monday 19 March 2012

March 19th

Happy birthday Marg! Thank you for all the kind messages on facebook, cards & telephone calls. Bit of a chilly day, they are still getting poor weather in the high country north of here. It was reported that they had 2 ft of the white stuff - snow I think they call it, up in Flagstaff/Payson. We had some rain here, but it was warmer than yesterday & tomorrow holds promise of further warming. We were going to go to Globe, but elected to go to Ft McDowell instead because of the weather. We met the Canuels up there and spent the day at the casino. The day started off with the 5 of them having the breakfast special - New York steak & eggs for $3.99 which included: coffee, toast & hash browns. It must have been the first time Marg had steak for breakfast, LOL. Me, well I had pancakes, as usual; somehow I can't eat steak for breakfast. The food was good & the line-ups for it pretty long. We all played bingo, but no luck. A few had close calls [not me], but nothing that put cash in our pockets. As a result dividing up the proceeds was not a problem. Some time in the casino after and each of the 3 couples had one person who did well. With us it was Marg who made enough to pay for the day [including my losses] producing a net a profit of $12. Life is good! On the way home, we stopped at the Golden Corral for supper & had the buffet. It's pretty good and they offer a deal for seniors, which is about half the house. Tried to focus on the salad bar and was reasonably successful although I had a small steak & later some bread pudding. Now this is the meal to eat steak at, LOL. Add in a few laughs and it was a fun day.

Sunday 18 March 2012

March 18th

What a difference a day makes. Yesterday hot, today, not so hot. I think the high was only about 60F and rain today, in fact it rained all through the night. We also had some hail, thunder, lightening today. This means snow at higher elevations and the top of Superstition mountain was white today, first time this year. Water was running everywhere, especially in all the low spots on the roads. They don't have a storm sewer system as this only happens a few times a year, so they just leave the natural terrain and let the run off flood the roads & they are like fords - not the trucks silly. There was a bit of a river running by and a young girl was floating her rubber duck in it, pretty cute.
We were in no rush today, so slept in a bit. Went and ran some errands today. We had to get a few things and we had to get the bird house/feeder ready. We bought this and put the Blanke's name on it and presented it to them at the ice cream social tonight. They always do a presentation to the team, so this year we surprised them. We put their name and location on it & when we presented it to them made a big deal of it being their first house together. Anyway it was good for a laugh.
The last ice cream social tonight & it was all free: cake, sundaes, root beer floats or banana splits. You would not believe how much ice cream and cake some of these old gals can eat. Marg had about half of my b'day cake left over, so put it in the social. There were the equivalent of about 4 cakes given away. We were very generous with the scoops & then at the end offered anyone seconds. Some of them had 2 pieces of cake & 2 soup bowls of ice cream. I couldn't handle that on my best or is that worst day. LOL Anyway we had a packed house and a good time was had by all.
Happy 59th birthday Jim, hope your day was a good one.

Birthday

Had some friends for snacks, drinks & cake today.

Saturday 17 March 2012

St Patricks day 2012

What a nice day. A little windy, then progressed to get a lot windy. Marg had volunteered us to work at the St Patricks day dinner. Every year in the park they have a corned beef & cabbage dinner and fill the hall with eager diners. We went over to the kitchen early and Marg & the others peeled 100 pounds of potatoes and a couple of sacks of carrots. I helped chop up cabbage heads, we did a very large box of cabbage. Then I sliced corned beef and Marg trimmed it. All in all we had enough to feed a room full of hungry would-be Irish, about 120 I think. Then about 4Pm we went back to get ready for the big event. The food was great and there was cake & ice cream for dessert. Same as last year we had Creme de Menthe to top the ice cream, why - because it's green - LOL! There was so much food that anyone who wanted could take a bowl of it home. The cost, well it was free! During the day we went to the Mesa market and I sold some books and bought 3 more. The place was a zoo, very busy. On the way Marg stopped in at a jewelery store and sold some scrap gold, she got $94, which was more than I would have thought. Stopped at IHop on the way back for lunch, my fav. After supper we got together with a nice group of people for drinks, snacks and cake.

Friday 16 March 2012

Flowers in the RV park

Marg took a few pics.

March 16th

Another hot one today, I saw 85F on the car thermometer & it seemed warmer than yesterday.
Had a bunch of running around to do, so chased around at Costco, then Basha's & a bunch of other stores. It was very busy at costco, does that place ever have a slow day, LOL. Marg was buying all kinds of stuff for the party tomorrow. At last count I think she has 22 people coming around after the corned beef & cabbage dinner. It will be kind of frantic as we are working in preparing the dinner, then have lots to do to get organized. Also got a water bottle holder for my bike, got to pack your own water in the desert.
Played some pool today. A few games with some new people in the park. The team made out well yesterday, they won 13, lost 5. It's usually the opposite when I play, so just as well that we were busy & I couldn't play.
The dealership called & said they almost had the vibration out of the car, but needed to balance the wheels, so I consented. Around 5PM they called to say it was ready & vibration free. When we got there, they were great, they even drive the car up front for you to get in, just like valet parking. They replaced both front axles, one motor mount, one transmission mount and then found some small electrical thing with the motor that they fixed. The best part is when I went to pay they said everything except the wheel balance was warranty, so my total cost for 3 days in the shop was $65. Oh that also included the rental of the truck we drove for the last 3 days. The best part is - warranty in Canada 3 yrs/60K; warranty in USA 5 yrs 100K miles. They treated it under the US warranty terms. At home my warranty ended in 2009 when I hit 60K. Don't anyone tell me about bad service down here; it's great! Did I mention that the car runs like new, it's perfect.
The desert is starting to bloom, some of the cactus in the park are covered in blooms. It makes you wonder how anything as nasty as a cactus can be so beautiful. I guess that's how they lure people and other things in so they can stick into them, Hah!

Thursday 15 March 2012

The IDES of March

What a gorgeous day, I think I saw 85F on the car thermometer today. Well not the car, the truck as the car is still at the dealership. They said they are replacing the left front axle and have been waiting for the part. It arrived late in the afternoon and he expects the car to be ready tomorrow. It's pretty neat, the dealership is huge and they have a service consultant that is like your personal contact. We are really enjoying the truck, lots of room. This morning we went to coffee & donuts where the park owner spoke to the group. Nothing too serious, although he did tell us about all the internet/wifi improvements. After I went up to him and said the wifi was either good or terrible, so they still seem to be having problems with managing the allocation of resources. He speculated that it is netflix that is causing their problem, seems to me that should be an easy fix - don't give that much bandwith to the users. Went out to Total Wine, that's the mega booze store. Kenny & Doris went with us and had never been before. They just went to have a look, but ended up needing a shopping cart. The prices are really good. For a laugh Kenny bought 2 bottles of Molson Canadian. $5 for a six pack, that's less than they sell for at home & we are 3,500 km's for delivery. Go figure. When we got back we went to a patio party at Almyra's. She is leaving next week and wanted to cook everything in the freezer, so had a BBQ. The only problem is - she doesn't bbq, so Kenny & I got volunteered to do it. Oh yeh, Kenny doesn't bbq either, so yours truly was the grill meister. There were half a dozen couples and everyone brought a dish, a nice supper & fun event. We had a few wobbly pops, can't bbq without a beer in hand. A fun in the sun day. We are just so busy, looking forward to going home for a rest. We have lots of company down here and are having trouble getting our schedule aligned with Krupka's to see them again. Missed poker last night, missed pool this afternoon - oh well, that's the price of popularity - LOL.

Wednesday 14 March 2012

Wednesday, Marcg 14th

Early morning start & went golfing with Wayne, Gerry & Pat from the park here road with us. Took the truck, lots of room for 4 adults and their clubs. Pretty cool truck, it has the new 5 cylinder motor and has lots of jam. Have not heard about the car & am getting a little anxious. Oh yeh, the golf report. Well had great weather and lots of laughs. For all you Albertans in the midst of a spring snow storm, I saw a snowman here. It was on my scorecard after the 3rd hole, argghhh! Wayne won the long putt today & was very happy with that. I had an average game, for me that is like someone playing for the first time, LOL. Came back to the rv park and found out that our neighbour Bud got his jeep back. Turns out it was a broken wire on the alternator & Val, an accountant in the park located and fixed it after it had been in the shop for a week and a half. When he told me that I said, forget them mechanics, all you need is a good accountant. Hah! That story made it's way around the park in record time. We don't need a newspaper here, just tell someone & everyone will know within an hour. For lunch we went to the new restaraunt Marg found the other day with the pedicure ladies. As it turned out, it's call Hackers, oddly enough fitting for the way my morning went, LOL. The food was great, our guests loved it and even want to go back. Not sure if I want to go back to hacking, LOL. I had a rueben, it was good and Marg had a shrimp basket. Some unique stuff & ways of doing things. When you leave they give you a new drink; whatever you had only to go. In the afternoon we played some cards with the Canuels. Golf, again, are they rubbing this in now - I didn't play any better than the morning golf game? Played kings down as well, I think I was last in one & 2nd last in the other. The only good thing was we weren't playing for money. Good thing none of the Smith's were here to see me go down to defeat in Kdown. Supper was in the rec hall, hamburger night and the Canuels came with us. They really do a good job on these burgers and our guests were impressed. I think Wayne & Martha are eager to get into this park for a month or so next winter. Sat with Kenny & Doris & Kenny gave me a hard time about driving a truck now & whether I was going farming. Geez even after I gave him & Doris a beer at supper, so I told him I was going out to Kansas to check it out, that's where they are from. Dorothy you're not in Kansas anymore - must figure out a way to work that line on him. No poker tonight [I'll miss the $$], went over to Gerry & Deb's condo in Phoenix. They wanted to get their dishwasher out as they are getting a new one tomorrow. I fiddled with it a bit, someone did an awful job installing it. After a few minutes it was running & they were discussing whether to try and cancel the new one or what the options were. It was really funny because the girls drove in Debs car and us guys went in the truck a bit later. When they were hand washing the dishes, Marg said something like - you never know, Dave might just fix it. Everyone got a laugh out of it, I should have repeated the line about - all you need is a good accountant. I crack myself up, LOL. Well that's it for today, stay tuned - Ides of March tomorrow!

Tuesday 13 March 2012

Tuesday, March 13th

What a great day, the sun shone and it was hot, 85F was the highest I saw on the thermometer.
Got up early and took the car in for a service. I have a vibration on acceleration and am a bit concerned so took it to the Chevrolet dealer. Down here the GM & Chev dealers are distinctly different. Anyway they had it all day and at the end called to say they needed to keep it over until tomorrow. The service was very good so far: the dealer is by the big mall in Mesa and they drove me home, then when they called to say they were keeping it, they sent the driver to pick me up. I had told the rep that I would need my golf clubs, so he had them and the golf sandals in his office when we pulled up. He also had a voucher to the car rental and the driver took me over where I got a truck to use, Chevy Cheyenne.
Marg went to a pedicure and then lunch with a couple other ladies. Neither had ever had a pedicure before and they had a ball. Lunch was a place we had not been before and she said it was great. I was going to put a picture of her manicured toes on but, didn't want to risk getting slapped. Hah!
When we got back from the dealership, we stopped for supper and then some bottled water. Surprise, surprise - when we got back to the rv, the Canuels were here. Gerry & Debby were supposed to come over: she for bingo, he to play pool & that was expected. What was not was that Wayne & Martha had flown back after a brief stay at home and are here for another 10 days. They enjoyed themselves so much when they were here that they wanted to come back for a few days and be here on our birthdays. God bless them! We were going to be busy this week, but I think we just got a lot busier. LOL Marg had coffee and some delicious cake to wrap up the evening.
Must get to bed early as I have to go for turf inspection tomorrow bright & early.

Monday 12 March 2012

Monday

The start of another week. A bright sunny day reaching about 80F again. Sounds like the weather at home is improving pretty quickly and it is becoming more like spring. We are pretty optimistic about the prospects of warm Alberta weather for our return, but it is still only March. Looking at the weather along our return route, it is pretty nice there as well. After Saturday's breakfast, Marg had kept some of the pancake batter, so she cooked them this AM. They were very good, can never have pancakes too often, LOL. We got birthday cards in the mail for Brennan, Paige & Haylee from great grandma, but they will have to go home with us. We finally seem to be getting our forwarded mail OK, so it must be time to go home, LOL! Had some stuff to clear up with our affairs at home today as we are getting too many loose ends being this far away. We are still looking for confirmation of the Old Age Security benefit, so spent a bunch of time on hold with Service Canada & Patti did some running around in GP to see if it was there. Thanks for that, you are a mensch. Finally got through and they confirmed that I will be receiving $540/month starting the end of April. Yippy, faster cars, older whiskey - here we go! In accord with all the advice I got on it, I have stopped concerning myself with getting OAS & focused on the financial side of it. Still have some things to sort out on Alberta seniors benefits and Service Cda are sending me what I need to finish that up. Marg's status with OAS is still a loose end, but it appears it will have to wait until we get home. Played a bit of pool, played badly today. It's more fun when I'm winning, but a good bunch of guys anyway. Marg went to the pool and said it was fun today. There were some new people from BC I think and lots of old ones. BBQ & roast potatoes/veggies for supper. Dessert was fresh fruit, we do that quite a bit as the fruit is so much better here. Surprising the different a couple of weeks in the refrigerated truck make to it. Had a little excitement in the park after supper, a fire truck came through. It turns out 3 young guys were going through here pretty fast into the setting sun & one couldn't turn at the fence, causing quite a stir. Doesn't take much to create a stir around here. LOL

Sunday 11 March 2012

Sunday

A really nice day in the valley of the sun, I think it was about 80F. We slept in a bit and then I went for a bike ride before the sun got too intense. The temp is supposed to be in the 80 area for the coming week. Marg ran a few errands then we went out for a while. Stopped at Fry's for petrol and got 20 cents a gallon off on Marg's loyalty card. Gas was $3.83, but $3.63 after the discount. I think it has gone up the better part of a buck since we got here. Still holding off on fueling the motorhome, I want to wait until it peaks. Arghhhh! I guess I'll just have to make it up some other way, like cheap beer, LOL. Went for a drive out to Gold Canyon to see a golf course & restaraunt, nice place. The tee times there are priced by the time of day and demand. They range from $189 down to $66 & can run from one end to the other within 20 minutes. There was an old movie studio just up the road from the course, but it mainly burned to the ground. Some old b&w shows were shot there, the most well known was probably the Rifleman TV series with Chuck Connors. A couple of John Wayne movies were shot in this area as well. Gold Canyon was having an arts festival and we stopped in to have a look. We've been thinking that it might be nice to have some southwestern art. There have been lots of people leave the park and new ones come in. The aren't any vacancies in the park, but lots of people have made travel plans for the end of winter. There have been quite a few people spending their first winter down here and they are moving around to other areas, much like we did in our first year. Hard to believe we have been doing this for 4 years now. Ice cream social tonight, the last one will be next Sunday. Just another example of the end of the winter season. Anyway we offered the usual: sundaes, banana splits, root beer floats & cake & had a pretty good turnout, about 70 I believe. Next week it will be free to all the residents, something we do every year.

Saturday 10 March 2012

Saturday

An early morning as it was the team of Juva & the Canadians making breakfast. Juva is our honorary canuck. We made bacon, ham, eggs, pancakes, biscuits & gravy for 80 or 90 & have a little fun in the process. It went very well & so it should as this was our 3rd breakfast this winter. Marg made the scrambled eggs & comments were, these were the best eggs ever. I made pancakes and got some good comments as well. They have an established way of doing things in the kitchen, but our team flaunts convention. Marg cooks eggs the same way as she does at home. Alan adds a bunch of extra coffee grounds making it taste more like real coffee. At the end when we eat, Alan asked how big I could make a pancake, so I made him a big one but said he could only have one - LOL. For a laugh Pat & I used the kitchen hats & put "Eh!" on them [Marg's suggestion]. The Yanks all kid around about how much we say that. Almost all of us have stories about getting identified as Canucks because of it.
That took most of our morning, after which we went out to just sit on the patio in the sun, for a while anyway. Jerry B stopped in for a chat, then Kenny & Doris dropped over, followed by Almyra [who brought me some grapefruit from her tree], then Harold & Fay. It was Marg's fault as she brought out a tray of fresh pineapple & stawberries, then slush & beers. Something like don't feed the bears. Well that was the afternoon, which sometimes is what life is like down here. After everyone left we went to Los Gringos Loco with Kenny & Doris for supper so that we could challenge our GRD's while using another coupon from Marg's book, LOL.
Thats about it, I think I'll go get some shut eye.

Friday 9 March 2012

Friday

The only one who got all his work done by Friday was Robinson Crusoe as well as a few of us retired folks, LOL! Nice day, a bit windy but we can handle that. It's warming up at night now and the days are back in the 70's. Got in a bike ride this AM before it got warm, so it was easy going. After I got back just in time to go for a long walk with Marg. A couple of people leaving tomorrow or early next week & 2 new arrivals of people we know from prior yrs, so hard to get more than a few yards without chatting. After lunch we worked in the kitchen to get things ready for tomorrow morning breakfast. That's right it is Juva & the Canadians - that's our team name. She is an American, but we made her an honorary Cdn on the team. There is quite a bit to do so we are ready for the morning: make coffee, put bacon/ham on trays, fill the steam trays, thaw the freezer stuff, etc. We know more about running a commercial kitchen than I ever thought we would need to know. When I make pancakes tomorrow, I start with the big bag of pancake mix from Costco, then make more. They had 90 for breakfast last week, but you never know how many to expect. After I played a few games of pool, Marg went to the Superstition farmers market with Lynette. They still haven't got their jeep back, so she is kind of stranded and was happy to be able to get out for some groceries. After pool I participated in the education sessions at Bob's. His patio is kind of a gathering spot where the problems of the world are all solved. Super tonight Marg had the slow cooker going with a chicken dish that was very tasty. Early to bed tonight as 6:30 comes early tomorrow.

Thursday 8 March 2012

Thursday - March 8th

Chilly night last night. I think it got down to 34F, I think GP was warmer at mid-day than that. Fortunately it warmed up here by mid-day as well and got up to around 70F, so a nice day after all. While Marg showered and had her yogurt, I went to coffee & donuts. They did a survey of how many would still be here on the 31st & it was about 3/4, but some are leaving this week. It is kind of a sad time when some leave, but all good things come to an end. Those returning home are certainly not from our part of the world where everyone still seems to be caught in the throes of winter. The good news is our table was drawn first for donuts. Some suggestions from last nights poker players about me buying donuts - not going to happen, LOL. Chased around with an electrical problem on Jerry's motorhome. It turned out to be a common problem among motorhomes, left something on and drained the vehicle battery. Simple solution, charge it. It was kind of funny because he didn't realize his coach has auxilary start. It's a button on the dash that allows you to boost the vehicle from the coach batteries. After lunch left to go visit Krupka's, long time friends who are down here for a month. They rented a very nice condo in Mesa, not too far from here. Had lots of laughs with them and caught up on old times. Rose said - we don't drive 5 hrs to see each other, but do drive 5 days to do it. LOL She made dinner, which was very nice and Len tried his best to get one of us under the influence, but I resisted. Shared some info on the genealogy work we have been doing and they were keen to find out more about the pioneer recognition re: their ancestors who homesteaded in the same area as Marg's. Not only did they live very close to Marg's maternal grandparents, but some of them came from the same area as her paternal grandparents; small world! We made plans to get together again before they leave. Brennan, thanks for the email, but we aren't going to bed by 8:30, never left the Krupka's until after 9, LOL!

Wednesday 7 March 2012

Wednesday - Mar 7th

A chillier day today, I think it only got up to about 64F & a cool wind blew. The wind died down from last night when it was very strong. It is supposed to be cool until Thursday, then warm up again. You really have to experience how cold it gets at night in the desert, I think it was only about plus 10c tonight. An early start to the day with golf for me and a road trip to Globe for Marg. I took a new guy from Ohio to golf, his brother-in-law here is the one I trade western pocket books with. It was cool and windy, so no shorts today. Must be my Canadian roots, but I played my best game since I got here. I drained the long putt on #5 with one that was about 18ft. It was luck, because on the next hole I missed a 6 or 7 footer for par. Go figure! Mel, the guy I took won the closest to the pin on #7 with a real nice tee shot, so he was very happy. For my part I got $18 that was in the pool for longest putt. Marg went with 6 other ladies in a van to the casino in Globe. This is becoming a regular thing with them and they have a ball, lots of laughs. She didn't bring back a big sack of money, but did come pretty close to even, so a good day. It's quite a hike from here, about an hour & a half on the highway. After golf I had to make lunch as there was no one here to do it, then only played pool for about an hour as I had too many other things to do. One of the markers from golf was broken, so I repaired it and took it back to the organizer. I vaccumed, washed some dishes, emptied sewers, got mail, etc. Nothing major but all time consuming. For supper Bob & Gary cooked fish. They wanted to do a fish fry for all the pool players, aerobics people and spouses. I think there were about 60 or so. Really did a nice job on the fish and everyone brought a dish, like pot luck. Poker tonight and I had a lucky streak again. My little sack of coins is pretty heavy tonight. Life is good!

Tuesday 6 March 2012

Tuesday, March 6th

Nice day, it was hot and got up to about 80F in the sun. The wind was forecast to blow in the mid to late afternoon and it did not disappoint us. It blew pretty good & is bringing in cooler weather for the next couple of days. The wind blows up lots of dust and causes people with allergies lots of problems. I washed windows in the rv and had a bike ride in the morning - don't laugh people here think I keep very busy. ;>)) It was ham dinner today. They used to have an Easter dinner, but so many of the residents were gone by then that they moved it up and just call it a ham dinner. The association supplies the ham and groups of 12 lay claim to tables and supply everything else. At our table Marg made scalloped potatoes, giving her an opportunity to use the oven in the motorhome. Earlier I mentioned the weather, so not an ideal day to have the oven going. The original plan was to use the top shelf of the bbq, but the pan she made them in was way too big. It was a great meal with lots of variety and enjoyed by all. Doris had supplied dessert as she is well known for her pies. At the end of the meal the park was full of people; who like me, napped on their zero gravity chairs. LOL Bingo in the park tonight. I went with Marg and there was no joy at our table, except when we had an ice cream at the break. Our ice cream social boss, Kenny, came over and asked if we felt guilty having other ice cream. My answer was no - because I had taken sugar free, so it wasn't like real ice cream. Said some good-byes today, there will be lots of them over the next 2-3 weeks. The weather is always a topic now with people watching it closely while making their travel plans. It certainly doesn't look good in Alberta this week, so lots of time to clear off before we travel. Although our thoughts are turning more to our family & home, we probably have a month yet before we leave here.

Monday 5 March 2012

Monday - March 5th

Happy Birthday Brennan, hard to believe he is 17. Where have the years gone? Got the day off to a good start with a bike ride. It was warm by the time I got out there. A couple of pics of where I turn around to head back to the rv park. The lady riding in the first one was on a long eared horse or a short eared mule, are there white mules? This ended up being the nicest day of the winter so far. The temp was about 70F when I went out for a ride and then around noon it showed 90F on the window thermometer we have. Did some research for Bud as his jeep is still not running and they are having a difficult time identifying the problem. There are a lot of posts on Q&A for why a jeep won't start, made me glad I don't own one. Anyway I printed a bunch of it off and gave it to him & he was going to take it over to the mechanic to see if it helps. Marg & I went for a walk through the park and only got half way by noon. It's such a friendly place that it is almost impossible to walk through it. I imagine it would look really funny if you were to look down on it from on high for the first time. It's not very far around the park, but we must have made 6 or 8 stops as well as many passing greetings. A quick lunch and then off to play pool. I have been playing well these last 2 days & I think I only lost one game today. Marg went to the pool and spent some time with a group of Canucks from Manitoba who will be leaving next week. They had lots of laughs and it was very refreshing when the heat of the day peaked. Later in the afternoon we packed up some snacks & drinks and went to the hall for a jam session. It was pretty neat with some music and singing. The group was small but a fun bunch. After we went to the Village Inn for supper with Kenny & Doris. It wasn't free pie night, so there was no line up and the food came promptly. When we got back to the rv, we strolled through the park and stopped again for a couple of visits. Gary doesn't play, but his brother-in-law likes golf so I offered to take him with me on Wednesday. They are just here for a month from Ohio and are trying to get a feel for the snowbird lifestyle.

Sunday 4 March 2012

Sunday - March 4th

Happy birthday Paige & Haylee. Our 2 newest teenagers Slower day today, got up and rode the bike down to Idaho and back. A bit of a breeze blowing and a nice time to cycle. I will have to get a picture tomorrow of the area where I turn around. There are stables there and quite a few horses & it's right in the city. Sat around in the sun a bit & washed the patio. Funny thing but it dries almost as soon as you wash it in this heat. Neither of us went to the pool as it was pretty much full. After lunch Luther was looking to play & no one else was in the hall, so I played for about an hour or so. A neighbour stopped by and Marg was telling her how well the steamer worked, so she ended up steaming a skirt & blouse for her. She left saying she was buying one. Marg should be selling these things on commission, I think she had convinced several dozen people to buy them rather than iron. One of the guys just up the road bought another car. Bud bought one last year for $200 & took it back home to sell. This one is better and needs just as much work as the last one. I hope he didn't pay much for it. It needs a brake job, so there is Marg - Dave has done lots of brake jobs, he can fix that. Earlier in the day Ron Hanner told us he found his surge protector and now needs to install it, except he isn't confident he can do it. So Marg says Dave just did one in our motorhome & voila, I think I have another job, sheesh don't these people know I was an accountant, not a mechanic when I worked. LOL Alhtough the mob in the prohibition era were supposed to have called their bookkeepers mechanics. After supper it was ice cream social again. We had live music again and the place was packed. We offered: banana splits, root beer floats or sundaes. We sold almost all the ice cream we had, and Kenny will have to buy lots for next week, we were very busy. I think there are only about 2 or 3 more of ice cream socials before the end of the season. There was a bit of a kerfuffle about who should be booking entertainment from the association, so the executive booked this one. The group played old time country music as well as some of their own songs. Well it is not my kind of music & it was all I could do to keep awake & that was before intermission, even Marg found it a bit slow. Chamber music would have woke everyone up - LOL. At intermission Kenny asked them to pick up the tempo. I wasn't there, but Marg said the singer cried. Oh my gawd - I sure hope they don't get booked again. It was particularly hard to take as the group last weekend were so good.

Saturday 3 March 2012

Saturday - here in the park

A nice day, sun was out and the wind was down. I got up early and went for bacon, eggs, pancakes in the rec hall this AM. A great way to start the day and only $3. Got a bit of a hard time from some of the kitchen staff, guys that I play pool with. Next week will be our turn & an even earlier start to the day. Oh well, it will be our last one for this winter. After we went out to Trader Joe's. It's a food market and they have a lot of unique things. I had not been there before and we actually had to use the gps unit to find it. Marg picked us a few things, some of which will be going home with us. Lots of organic stuff, they even pack in the old brown paper bags, no plastic bags. After that we went to AJ's the other boutiquish grocery store. We actually went to get one of their meat pies, but they were sold out. They also have a lot of unique [for here] stuff from other countries. Just some examples are: haggis in a can, HP sauce, clotted cream from Cornwall. There are lots of Italian things including a great selection of pasta. The deli is loaded with great dishes and the bakery is almost an art work. The liquor section has a huge wine area & they have a half dozen Irish whiskey selections as well as a pretty good selection of scotch. There are no deals on scotch here, I think Glenmorangie is about $70/bottle and Laphroaig is about that as well. It's definitely not the cheap place to shop, but the quality more than makes up for it. In the seafood section they had halibut [$29/pound], salmon, tuna, etc. We got back for lunch and then I played some pool. Marg went to the pool where she said the water was gorgeous. I still have not made it in to the swimming pool this winter, must put that on my to-do list. The park had in a musical pair to audition & we went to hear them. They were pretty good, but real old time country music. Sounds like they will be playing at the ice cream social tomorrow night. It will be a lot like the group we had when Bill & Patti were here. Had cocktails at Hanner's tonight. They are leaving on Wednesday for California. They are taking a cruise from there and then on home to Branson, Mi. Talking to them it seems the tornado struck about 2 or 3 blocks from their home, but they don't believe they had damage from it. Lots of people here from the areas struck by the tornados this week: Illinois, Ohio, Kansas, but they did not seem to have anyone among those hurt or killed. BBQ for supper and that was about it. Krupka's have arrived in Mesa as we got a call from Rose this evening and will be getting together with them on Thursday. Should be fun.

Friday 2 March 2012

Friday, March 2nd

Well the end of another week. Where does the time go?
Took a ride on the bike this AM, been a while since I was out on it & it showed in how winded I was when I got through. It was a bit chilly even in the sun with the wind this AM. When it gets blowing down here there can be some serious wind.
It was the ladies tea today, so we got busy just before lunch. Marg & I went over and helped them set the tables & chairs up. As in the past, they made a big U shaped configuration so they could feel like one big group and chat with each other. Kenny & I put water in huge pots, then on the stove and set them to boil. The big pot is probably 3 gallons & the other not much smaller. Everyone brings something to share, either appetizer like or pastry. Marg made her famous deviled eggs and a dish with tortilla chips/salsa. She put the two types of salsa in clear glasses, they looked pretty neat, especially the mango salsa. When they arrive, Kenny & I put thermous pitchers of hot water on every table and then the ladies pass the food around. They have quite a program: Juva plays the piano, some ladies recite things and then they share a memorable moment from an influential woman in their lives. There was a prize for the oldest & the youngest, the youngest was pre-school, Aggies granddaughter. Each person got a container of bubbles and at some point they all blew bubbles. Some ladies wore hats, one wore a fascinator. Everyone was jealous when Marg told them she had a date to go to Buckingham palace in August. A fun day for the ladies.
After we went out looking for a window. We are trying to find one for the cabin. We want it small & it has to open. We are thinking it would help for ventilation in the summer. No luck yet.
This evening we went to Chili's for supper with Kenny & Doris. Shared some laughs and the food was very good. I had fajita's & marg had quesadilla's. The beer was blue moon, a nice wheat beer.
Interesting factoid today. Some guys were saying the road runners down here are a problem with pets, expecially small dogs. I guess they are vicious and will even take after a rattlesnake and kill it to eat. Not like the ones in the cartoons, LOL.

Thursday 1 March 2012

St David's Day

A bank holiday in the UK; St David's day, to celebrate the patron saint of Wales. Now there is a saint I could get to like - LOL. For users of Google, you no doubt noticed their logo in the shape of a dragon today. Another nice day & we got up early & went to coffee & donuts. Sat with the Ohio bunch & our neighbours from BC. As luck would have it the table was drawn 2nd or 3rd out, so our - We're not last status - is still holding. Lots of people there this AM. They do birthdays & anniversaries for the month so Marg got up and announced that we were both having birthdays. One of our friends commented that it was a big one for me - you got that right; it's the one where I start to receive OLD AGE PENSION from the Canadian govt. When I told mother this was kind of a mixed blessing, she had a good laugh. They have a time when you can announce anything for the good of all at coffee. Harold from Nebraska got up to announce that he got a parking ticket - eh and tore it up eh. He is a retired highway patrolman, so went on to say he had narrowed the investigation down, eh! All the time looking right at me. Last week he was parked cross-wise, so I had hand written: "Parking Violation, penalty to be assessed" and put it under his wiper. Not sure how he worked out the guilty party, but it got a laugh. There were a few new people and some leaving today. There was quite a bit of turn-over this month, probably a dozen or better. They took a poll to see who was leaving at the end of March & about half the people there raised their hands. The end is in sight. After we went out and got money from the bank to pay the rent & power for March. After that we went over to the carwash and got my free wash. It's a big car wash just up on Signal Butte and I wanted to use it up as I get another free one on my birthday. The car was all dusty from the rain the other night. Played pool in the inter-park league today & we won 1 of our 3. Considering the team only lost 4 games today and I was on the pair that lost 2 of them, I think I may be something like the handicap. In fairness, the other guys were pretty good. I played with Mike, our team captain/organizer and didn't get kicked off - yet - LOL. Went to Kenny & Doris' park model where they had cocktails at 4. This is where Bill & Patti stayed when they were here. They had quite a crowd, about a dozen, I think. Marg took deviled eggs, they are always a hit. Jerry B had brought some sausage he made, called it German sausage & it was very good. He said it was his grandfather's recipe - so I asked if it was grandpa wurst. You know - the German word for sausage. Well they thought it was funny. By the time we finished snacking neither of us were very hungry, so just had a light supper. Some friends here from Alberta had to go to the hospital, Frank hurt his back. They x-rayed it, gave him a shot & painkillers. The bill was $2,000. It would have cost less to fly home to Calgary and get it looked at. Spend any time down here and you won't knock our medical system.