Sunday 31 March 2013

Easter Sunday

The time has come, the walrus said, to think of many things.......  For us this is essentially family and the journey home.
  What a nice hot day, I saw 89F/31C at one point on the car temp gauge.  It was hot anyway and not a cloud in the sky.
  We spent the day getting ready to move.  Marg on the inside, me on the outside.  It's interesting how all the stuff we bring fits into the available space.  I don't think very many things go back in the same location or position as the last time we travelled, but we got it all back in.  There are many tasks and all of them to be done before we leave the rv park.
  We went out for lunch to Mickey D's and used one of the remaining coupons in our book.  It was a good lunch.  Then we went to the big Mesa market and looked around.  Marg looked at a few things, well I guess I did too, but we came away empty handed.  I was starting to get interested in an Australian golf hat & Marg was looking at rug runners for inside the coach, but I guess we couldn't convince ourselves we needed either.
  For supper we went out to the Yogurt Kingdom where we had burgers and desert.  There was a big ham supper for Easter in the park, but we didn't sign up for it.  All of our friends here were after us to get our name down and then when we didn't they wanted us to just come anyway.  When it started out we thought we would be too busy to go.  Then when the day came, we just decided to spend some time alone for a quiet meal.
  After we got back we went to Larry & Nancy's for happy hour.  Said our good byes there.  Then went over to Kenny & Doris's for pie with another group.  Said our good byes there.  Then we went over to Ron & Sue's to say good bye.  There were other people wandering around saying good bye all day.  We are all old enough that it isn't an emotional day, well not for the guys anyway, but we had a lot of laughs, a lot of fun this winter; so we are all a little melancholy.
  Time for the snowbirds to head north.

Saturday 30 March 2013

March 30th

A cloudy day, but surprisingly very hot.  Not as hot as the last couple of days, but still what we would call a hot summer day at home.
  I got up early and went for breakfast.  Bacon, eggs, pancakes, a good start to the day.  It was a much smaller crowd than usual, but I think they still had over 50 for breakfast.  The usual group of our friends were there and I sat with them.  All the talk is about who is leaving when and a few questions about whether we are going to the Easter dinner.  Answer hasn't changed, we are still not going, LOL.
  When I got back Marg was on a cleaning kick and has most of the inside of the motorhome washed, dusted, etc.  I finished washing the windows using my ladder and micro fiber cloth.  I carry a step ladder in one of the outside storage bins.  Lots of guys carry them strapped to the ladder on the rear of their units, but that's where I have the bicycle and the bin is long enough across the width to accommodate it.  Also washed some of the other outside stuff and put away the solar lights.  Tomorrow will be the main packing day, so we can get on the road early Monday.  There are so many people leaving on Monday that a bunch will be leaving on Sunday.  Little do they realize, there are so many thousands of snowbirds, that it won't make any difference as lots of them have the same idea.  From experience, it seems that later is better than earlier.
  We went out just before noon to Trader Joes, that is a really neat grocery store where Marg gets things she hasn't found anywhere else.  The place was packed with all the yuppy crowd doing the same thing.  They are very environmentally responsible with their products as well.  In fact they don't even handle the plastic grocery bags, all theirs are the old brown paper bags with handles all of recycled material.  It's quite a ways from here, so when we were passing the big mall, we stopped at one of the strip malls around it, where she got a few things.  She needed to make up a gift for Ma and one for the park managers, Curt & Aggie.  Although they stopped in for a few drinks last night, Marg always leaves them a gift to thank them.
  When we got back Marg had run into Elmer who wanted to play pool  He is usually one of our regulars, but he had some electrodes put in his head about 10 days ago, so hasn't been coming.  They are to stop the tremors in his arm, he has them very bad.  Anyway he has been convalescing, so not playing and wanted to see if he can still play 8 ball.  Even thought the unit is not programmed, his tremors are greatly reduced.  Jim was around, so the 2 of us went and played pool with Elmer, he's a really neat older fellow, so we were glad to do it.  He played so well that I told him I was worried that when he gets the unit programmed, he will be too good for us.  While I was doing this Marg went and delivered her gifts and I guess they were both well received.  She also did her laundry up as the hamper was getting pretty full.
  We went for happy hour and it was well attended.  I think Kenny & Doris are leaving fairly early next week, but most of the rest will be a week or two before they leave.  That would work for us as well, but we want to be within striking distance of the border so we can react very quickly to the weather.  Currently it looks like about 4 days of poor weather in Montana, but that can change from day to day.
  BBQ for supper.  Some really nice steaks, she had marinated all day long.  That probably had lots to do with how tasty and tender they were.  After supper Marg defrosted the fridge in record time.  It has been so hot here that the cooling fins at the back of the fridge were all frosted over.  Took the hair dryer and her about 10 or 15 minutes, record time anyway.

Friday 29 March 2013

Friday

Holy Friday at home, not even a holiday here, quite a difference in the way the day is observed, I guess.  It was a hot day, the last I saw it was in the high 80's and sunny.
  I thought it was Saturday when I got up and went to go to the breakfast, only to discover my internal calendar was out by a day.  I guess that's why they sell the day of the week wall clock here.  My charming wife made me bacon & eggs this morning, so I still got my big breakfast, just a little later, LOL.  Spent much of the morning attaching the bike carrier to the ladder on the back of the motorhome.  Washed some of the windows, including the front one.  It is amazing how streaked it gets just sitting here.  Marg and some of her posse went to water aerobics, the last one of the season.  I could hear the recording as I worked away, directing them to leap and thrash about in the pool.  A good day for it, refreshing I am certain.
  In the afternoon I played 8 ball with a couple of guys in the park.  Funny there were only a handful of guys playing, usually all 3 tables are going strong in the afternoon.  Another sign of the time of year, lots of people with other commitments in preparation to leave.  There are people leaving every day now.  In my minds eye, I have a vision of the line ups at the border, not the best way to spend a few hours.  There are a lot of rv'ers moving about these days.  It seems everyday there are large numbers leaving and arriving.  The park here is still as full as ever, but mainly with a lot of short-stay travelers.  Some just for overnight, others for a week or so.
  In the late afternoon we went out for dinner with Kenny & Doris and Jerry & Patty.  They had never been, so we took them to the German restaurant we enjoy so much in Mesa.  As usual the food was very good and the beer refreshing.  It was happy hour, so we enjoyed tall ones.  It was funny, as after the waitress asked Doris what she would have, all 3 of us guys said we would have the same as Doris.  Marg & Patty of course had non-alcohol beverages.  There was an accordion player belting out lots of German tunes that made you want to drink beer or dance.  LOL
  When we got back to the rv park, we had a drink and the park managers, Curt & Aggie joined us for a beverage.  A nice visit wound up the day.

Thursday 28 March 2013

Thursday

The last Thursday of this winter trip to the sunny desert of Az started off with heat and sun.  It was also the last coffee & donuts morning, so we both went and sure enough the old jinx returned and our table was last to be drawn.  All I can say is it's a good thing this is the last as my presence for the donut draw is like a --- well black cloud comes to mind.  At the meeting they asked how many were leaving in the next few days and all but a 4 or 5 raised their hands.  The moderator then said to Wayne, better buy less donuts for next week, LOL.
   Hey I almost forgot to mention that I bought a new hat for golf.  Decided I needed a cooler hat than the ball caps, as they are not ventilated and really seem hot when the temp gets up.  The hat I bought is straw, or something like that and is similar to what all the Mexican field hands wear.  Being very sensitive, my friends at happy hour call it my lettuce picker hat.  What do they know anyway, it was nice and cool out on the golf course yesterday.
  Went out for my last visit to the dentists office and then over for a haircut.  It was seniors day, so there was a line-up of 4 guys in front of me.  Well it was $10 for a cut, you can't blame them.  LOL  Marg went to water aerobics with her posse and did their best to mix the water in the swimming pool.
  I got back just about when she was done, just in time for a sandwich and then off to the 8 ball tournament.  It was Eastgate at our park & we really don't look forward to playing them, well at least some of them.  They are the team with the most talent in our league & they certainly showed it today.  Mike & I drew the top 2 players on their team and got thrashed badly, we not only lost all 3 games, but never got more than 2 or 3 balls down in any game.  We were short of players, so we had to play twice.  Our second match was against 2 players more in keeping with our skill level and we managed to win 2 of our 3 games.  Overall team Carefree got taken to the woodshed, oh well, it's just a game -- right??
  Rose & Len Krupka are just about ready to go home and we got together for a few cocktails with them.  They came to the park and then we took them to the Chinese buffet on Signal Butte.  We owed them a dinner from last year and we had a great visit with them, nice to see old friends again.  And that was then end of another gorgeous day in the valley.

Wednesday 27 March 2013

Wednesday

A nice day, the wind blew a bit and that was good as it kept the day from getting too hot. 
  Went and got an oil change this AM.  It seemed every place was full with many of them being snowbirds doing exactly what I was, getting ready for the road.  There are so many oil change specials here, most around $20 or $30 and they often throw in a tire rotation or like mine they vacuum the car.  Marg dusted the blinds in the motorhome and cleaned house today.
  Went to Phoenix to golf with Gerry Canuel at 1PM.  It was a warm day to that, but we had fun.  We went to Maryvale, it was our first time at this course.  The course was in nice shape, the fairways had lush grass, fairway bunkers were ample and there was lots of water and very mature trees.  It was quite challenging and neither of us scored real well, but I'm OK with that.  The new putter was not working well today at all.  The course played fairly quick, we were done in under 4 hours for 18.  It was pretty funny, Gerry got a birdie & a bogie on the 18th hole.  He hit a towering drive that hit a bird mid-air.  All you could see was a big puff of feathers, but it kept flying, so didn't appear to be hurt and his score was one over par.  I lost the last of the Nike balls Bill & Patti brought me back from the DR, I will miss them. 
  After golf I drove Gerry back to the condo and then back on the freeway to the RV park.  It was the middle of rush hour and traffic was very heavy.  The announcer on the radio said the traffic was clearing up on the route I was on thanks to the local fire dept.  Apparently they had a jumper on an overpass with a rope tied around him, prepared to jump off into traffic and just before the police shut down the freeway, a firefighter talked him out of it.  Now that was something I would never have thought about as being the source of a traffic jam.  Some people!
  When I got back to the RV, Marg had supper on the table.  Apparently some of the guys had been around trying to get her to convince me to go into the desert tomorrow.  I don't think it will happen as I have too much to do to get ready.
  Poker night, but I was late by the time I ate.  We had the usual crowd and it was good for a few laughs.  A bonus was that my bag was full when I finished and it wasn't when I got there, so believe I made out OK.

Tuesday

Another good one, the temp hit 89F at the warmest part of the day.  There was a bit of a breeze, so it was just one of those very pleasant days.
   Went with the guys to the desert today, perfect day for it.  We started out for an old mine, but he road was closed off, so we took a new trail.  Had to cross a stream about 5 or 6 times.  It was a marked trail, but it wasn't in our book.  The guys have a book that provides descriptions and maps for the better marked trails here.
 A helicopter was hovering around for quite a while just to the north of us.  Not sure, but sometimes these are search or rescue missions.
 The view when we got near the top were spectacular.  We saw a herd of 14 mule deer, a cardinal, some lizards, etc.  No snakes, we were kind of hoping with the warmer weather we might see one.  We ran along a razor back or hog back for quite a few miles.  Just enough width to get by and pretty steep sides.  A couple of times our climb was so steep we couldn't seen any road when we got to the top, just went forward on faith.
 There were only 8 of us today, so the Tracker, a jeep and a Polaris side x side ATV.
 The cactus is getting ready to bloom and the desert is very green at this time of year.  Lots of unique scenery.





The river was clear and fast flowing.  The bottom was a nice sand, but it was almost too loose for driving through, even in 4WD low range.
  One of the guys asked if I knew the name of the creek.  I said it must be shit creek and we were up it without a paddle.  LOL
 
The day ended early because we had to double back.  The track became too rough to get all the way through.  We got lots of Arizona pinstripes on the vehicles today.  That's what they call the scratches you get out on the desert. 

Marg went out for lunch with the girls [mostly wives of the desert rats] to Midwest Meats.  A great deli and restaurant.  They all agreed to go early so she could make her hair appt.  That seems to have worked out well, but never really certain, the jury is usually out the first day or two on any hair cut with Marg.  We went to happy hour tonight.  The desert trips always end with enough time to get back for this 4 o'clock event.  Supper was Mexican at Filberto's tonight as we had to be back for bingo.  Gerry & Deb and his two sisters came to the park for bingo.  I won a shared pot, so half a prize, nothing to write home about, but a win is a win. 

Monday 25 March 2013

Monday

Our last Monday in Carefree manor rv park, as we are planning to leave next Monday.  The price of gasoline has decreased about 10 cents a gallon in the last 10 days, here's hoping that trend continues until Monday, when we put about 80 litres in the tank.
It was a nice hot day, in the 80's I believe.  Needed the a/c in the car anyway, so it was pretty warm.
  I went for a bike ride this AM, made about 6 or 7 miles, I believe.  It was very good conditions first thing in the morning as the heat hadn't started to build yet.  Left the rv just a little before 8AM and there were lots of walkers and bikers out and about, doing much the same as me.  Lots of kids waiting for the bus so spring break must not be this week in AJ.  Some people in the park have kids around, so it must be in some areas.  Kind of confusing, like the time change.  Arizona being one of 3 states that don't do daylight saving time, it never changes here.  Until Alberta changed it was the same time here, but now all our tv programs on the satellite system are an hour out from what we are familiar with. 
  Went in to Scottsdale in the old town area for lunch.  Dave & Kathy Trout drove in from Green Valley [south of Tucson] and Vern & Rene Culbertson were here for a few days.  It was good seeing some of the kids again.  Kids, hah, everyone is drawing old age security, LOL.  Had a nice visit, compared ailments and then back to the rv park.  I really fall down in that category as I really don't have enough medical issues to even get in the competition.
  Got back in time for happy hour.  The guys are going to the desert tomorrow and the gals out for lunch, see we also get information at happy hour.  BBQ for supper and that was about it for the day.

Sunday 24 March 2013

Sunday

Another gorgeous day in the valley of the sun.  It was cool last  night, but I think we saw 85F today around mid-day.  It cooled off a bit in the late afternoon, just a very pleasant day to sit out.
  We drove into Phoenix and picked Gerry Canuel up to take with us to the big Arizona Fish & Game show.  It's a huge expo with lots for the outdoorsman.  Started out with lots of birds of prey, this one, a golden eagle was very impressive. 
 Moved on to the mounted shooting contest.  They had both men & women.  They ride around the arena and shoot out 10 balloons with a timer running.  The winners were very fast, something around 13 seconds with all 10 balloons shot out.  They shoot real pistols, but load them with black powder, so it is the sparks that actually burst the balloons.  They ride the horses pretty close to flat out, is pretty impressive.
 Lots of firearms manufacturers set up booths.  They display all their shooting hardware, both long guns and pistols.  Interested people can fire them from the back of the booths for a charge per shot.  It was uncomfortable just walking past at times when someone was firing a magnum.
 They had a great snake display, all of which were venomous except for this big boa constrictor.  There was no front on the cage and this guy was as big round as most peoples upper leg.  It had a big head and just kept watch as people reached in to touch it.  One huge snake.  They had cobras, rattlers, even had a black mamba, one of the deadliest snakes in the world. 
 They also had gila's and iguana's, just sitting out on a table.  They could have easily just ran around.





  After on the way back we stopped at some shops.  Marg went in to Saks Fifth avenue store in the Biltmore fashion center.  My first time in one of these, but she was looking at some Prada sandals that were $750.  They also had a lot of exclusive handbags each set out in their own display area.  I think Marg was afraid if she bought one, she wouldn't have any money to put in it.  LOL  She was also in a Nordstorm Rack, which is their clearance store.  They had jeans for only $115 a pair, in fact they had Diesel jeans for only $99, would have taken Bill there had we known what a good deal they had, LOL.

Saturday 23 March 2013

March 23rd

A nice day in AJ, I think the temp was about 80F.
  Went for a good bike ride this AM.  The wind was blowing pretty good, so I was riding into it for about half the distance.  Went all the way to Idaho, back to Meridian and then back to the rv park.  Considering the wind and all, that was enough to work up a sweat on this guy.
   We had to get organized early to go with a large group from the rv park to lunch at the Mining Camp restaurant.  It's an attempt to recreate what the dining experience would be like in a mining camp back in the day.  The meal is pretty good, with roast beef and roast chicken with lots of fixin's.  LOL  The McNasty brothers perform after lunch and it's a bit of a comedy routine around music.  The one fellow plays an overturned wash tub with a pole and string attached.
   The entertainers were pretty good, they really try to put on the act as if they were almost saddle tramps from the turn of the century.  There were quite a few old mining pieces on the way in to create the atmosphere, so lots of photo ops in the area.  The new tenants association organized the trip & about 40 people went.  We have been past the place, but never stopped in, so were curious to see what it is about.
   Put in the stove pic for you Charlene.
    The whole thing is just below Superstition mountain, a very picturesque setting.  We rode with Kenny & Doris as did Ron & Mary.
  After lunch I played some pool and Marg did laundry.  While I was playing an ambulance came into the park and took a lady to the hospital.  Not sure what happened, but that was the 3rd one we have seen this winter.  It's a small park with only 140 stalls, so this kind of thing is always concerning.
  We went to happy hour for just before supper and Marg took some photo albums she had, to show her friends.  One she had from Vanessa for Christmas & the other from Charlene for her birthday.  All the gals were oooh'ing and aaah'ing, so I guess they enjoyed seeing them.  LOL

Friday 22 March 2013

March 22nd

An interesting day.  The weather cooled down a bit, so just a very nice day.  We went out to a Mexican grocery store [Carniceria] as Marg loves the bakery items they offer.  It's called Pros Ranch Market, they have a pretty good web site.  There was a big party tonight partly to celebrate 5 birthdays in the happy hour people we hang with down here and partly I think it is a wind up celebration.  Anyway it was my first time there and it's a bit of an eye opener.  The meat counter is the most unusual - how unusual can it be you ask?  Well for starters a cows head with the skin peeled off, complete with teeth, tongue, etc. for just $49.  So I'm asking myself - what the bleep would you do with it once you bought it anyway?  All the signage, the instructions, in store announcements, is in Spanish, there is even a huge dine in area and deli type set up. 
  I played some pool with the guys this afternoon.  It was a small group today, everyone seems to be doing getting busy with the last minute things they still want to do.
   Happy hour today was a bit of a pot luck affair organized by the ladies.  The 5 of us who had birthdays got cards and balloons.  The food was great, all kinds of variety.  At the end we had the cakes that Marg bought at the Carniceria.  One white, the other chocolate milk cake and they were both a big hit.  Lots of laughs tonight.
  Stay warm my fellow Albertans, we will be returning with the sun soon.



 

Thursday 21 March 2013

March 21st

A great day in the sun, I think it got up to 85F today.
  We both went to coffee and donuts this AM.  Our table was the second one drawn, so now my jinx of being last seems to be broken.  The meeting was well attended, but there were quite a few who will be leaving this coming week and next.  It will be pretty much like an exodus for a while as all the snowbirds start out for home.  Many go straight home, but equally as many make side trips along the way.
  After Marg wanted to go to a farm type market.  I drove around a bit, then dug out the gps, finding that I was further from the market than when I left our park.  It was in one of the rv parks over on Southern.  Marg had been in prior years, but it was my first time.  All she bought was fresh vegetables and a bag of oranges, but they had almost everything the big Mesa market has in terms of vendors.  It's a huge rv park, probably 1,500 stalls, but with the hundreds of shoppers, the parking with the market was in short supply.
  After lunch I went with the pool team on a road trip to Mountainview, where we played their team in 1/15 8 ball.  I don't think team Carefree did all that well, my partner and I lost all 3 of our games.  I knew one of the guys from the other park having played him previously and he is the one you hope you don't draw, a very good player; even if he is from Saskatchewan, LOL.
  We had a visitor that I had a beer with after pool & then went to happy hour at Larry & Nancy's place where I had a couple more.  At happy hour, Marg and couple other ladies made supper plans that didn't involve cooking.  I wasn't comfortable driving after the wobbly pops, but fortunately Kenny was able to drive, so we went to Chili's with 2 other couples.  Dinner was very good, the food there usually is.

Wednesday 20 March 2013

March 20th

  Early start to the morning, Gerry C came over and we went golfing with the group in the rv park.  The day was perfect, started off a little cooler and by the time we finished was well on it's way to becoming hot.  Golf went pretty well, some good stuff mixed with some not so good.  The burner was working well, hit some amazing drives, but the pitching not so much.  Did manage to hit an 8 iron off the 9th tee to within 5 feet of the pin and drain the put for a bird.  The kind of shot that keeps you going back.
  When I got back, Marg was in the pool with the water aerobics group.  Her buddies and her have made this a pretty regular part of their week.  The exercise is quite strenuous, but the know how to pace themselves by now.  Perfect day for it.  The weather sure has become a lot more seasonal and much better for outdoor activities.
  After a bit of time in the sun, we went to Hanner's for cocktails this afternoon.  They had a bunch of people over as it was the end of their time here for a couple of them.  I'm not saying we stayed long, but we barely made it back in time to have a bite to eat  This picture is pretty much Marg telling me not to take it.  LOL
  It was poker night and we had 7 players.  Started off doing pretty well, but it was a bit like my golf game, the wheels fell off and I am about break even for the night.  That's fine with me, although I don't play to do that, it is better than losing and it is after all entertainment.
 

Tuesday 19 March 2013

March 19th

Happy birthday Marg, I hope your day was a good one, you deserve the best.  On & off today she was getting lots of calls with birthday wishes, so if she missed yours, I hope you understand.  The weather certainly co-operated, I think I saw 88F on the car read out.
  I got up and went for an early dentist appointment.  Nothing too serious, mostly a check to make certain the healing process is going according to plan and an adjustment to the teeth.  They are great to deal with at the office.
  When I got back we went out to the Arizona Mills outlet mall.  It is the big one that we usually take visitors to, but usually Marg is too busy to shop for herself when we go like that.  Her wish for the day was to do some shopping there.  We had a nice lunch at the Rainforest Café.  After she got some really neat shoes as did I.  She also bought some stuff at Sax's 5th Ave, including 2 shirts for me.  I know, it was her birthday and I did have that conversation with her.  If I tried to explain, I would only mess it up, you just have to know Marg to understand.  I managed to read about 1/2 a pocket book while she beat the bushes for good deals.  It was a good day and by the time we got out of there it was around 3 or 3:30, just in time to beat the rush hour traffic.
  We stopped at Costco for gas & then Fry's for some baking treats.  We were expecting the Canuel's for bingo and they usually stay for coffee after.  When we got back to the rv park, a group of gals stopped by to sing happy birthday to Marg, pretty cute.  Then it was happy hour and when we got there again the gals there sang happy birthday to her.
  A quick bite to eat [sushi] and Gerry & Deb were here with Gerry's sisters: Joanne & Debbie.  They are here for a couple of weeks and they all came to play bingo.  The super ball prize is getting large, so the bingo's are well attended now.  Anyway there were winners at our table, but none in our group.  At the start of the bingo, the caller announced a pause to recognize a special birthday, but never singled Marg out until everyone was clamoring for him to tell them who.  She got a nice round of applause there and had to stand to be recognized.  It seems she is the more popular member of this marriage.  LOL
  After the Canuel's came to the rv where we had a lunch snack and then cheese cake and apple pie with coffee.  It was a hit with everyone, no surprise that Marg's entertaining was a hit, now is it?

Monday 18 March 2013

March 18th

Another Gourlay birthday to celebrate today, a milestone birthday for Jim.  Hope you had a good day.
  What a nice day, sunny but not too hot.  I think it got to about 85F/30C today.  Ordinarily I would think that was hot, but must be getting accustomed to this weather.
  It was an early start for Marg today.  The gamblin' gals were a tad early and were out front of the motorhome blowing the horn while she was still getting dressed.  It was a trip to the Fort for them where they play bingo and some slots.  I guess she was close, but that only counts in horseshoes and nuclear war.  Anyway they had lots of laughs starting with her not being dressed and all through the day.  I think there were 4 of them today and they met up with a couple of others from the park.  The jinx must be on the Carefree crowd, as no one required an armored car to bring their winnings home.  LOL
  I did some running around this AM after breakfast.  Then I went and watched Jerry Binger with his squirrel problem.  Seems they had a strong odor in the park model with the very hot weather, so pulled some of the skirting off.  It appears one died under his unit and as Proulx's can testify, anything dead leaves a bit of an aroma.  It doesn't take much to be the talk of the rv park, so that was today's hot topic.
  I went golfing with Gerry Canuel at Encanto today.  We had a tee time for 2:08, but went early because Monday is rarely busy.  The rates change at 2PM and are reduced by about $12 per player, so we book then and show up early.  The guy sent us right out, so we were on the first tee at 1:05 and played as a twosome.  The course played fast today and we were done at 4:25, 3 hours 20 minutes for 18 is about as quick as I have ever seen.  Had a great front 9, I scored 42 with 3 pars.  As usual the wheels fell off on the back 9 and I was 52; so 94, a very good total for yours truly.  I think Gerry was 92, 44/48.  Pretty funny on #3, a couple of ganders were hissing at us and trying to chase us away.  Then on #6, all the turtles were lined up waving, it seems they were really pleased with the quality of ball I hit in their pond last week and were looking for another.  Sure felt bad to disappoint them - NOT!  I'm not saying it was hot, but I did drink 4 bottles of water on the course today.  The only bad news was on the return trip, I was in the midst of rush hour most of the way back.  In fact I was stopped dead on the #51 twice and then 10 mph around Tempe where the #101 connects with the 202 loop, but the rest was 60 - 70 mph, so it only took about 45 minutes.
  When I got back Marg was already on the patio having a cool drink.  Then it was supper time, some of the left over corned beef & cabbage & a cold beer waiting for me.  It was still good the second day; mind you I would say that about a meal like that any day of the week.  One of may fav's.
  Some people in the park had their children in for a visit and invited a bunch over to hear one of their guests who was quite a musician.  Kenny played rhythm on his guitar with the guy and about 15 or 20 sat around to take in the entertainment.  A nice way to end the day.
  Will be spending quality time with Marg tomorrow as it is a big birthday for her; one that will mark the start of a new monthly pay cheque.
 

Sunday 17 March 2013

St Patricks day

A nice warm sunny day in AJ.  Happy St Patrick's day to all the Irish and those who would be.  It is often referred to as the day when the world is Irish.
  The day got off to a good start, thanks to the wonderful french toast provided by my wonderful wife.



First thing after french toast, Marg was off to the kitchen crew.  They had a bunch of peeling and chopping to do and then cook all the: corned beef, cabbage, potatoes & vegetables for the evening meal.  This has become a regular event provided by the tenants association and is free to park residents.  Yes, just the 5 gals did it.
  In the meantime I spent most of the day visiting and on the telephone.  Thanks for all the kind wishes.  Bud & Jerry stopped in and we had a few Miller's.

    By then it was time for supper so we could enjoy the efforts of our kitchen crew.  The food was good and it was plentiful.  Marg's corned beef hash is one of my fav's anyway and so this is a meal that I really enjoy and look forward to.  It's a lot of work, but appreciated by everyone who attends.  At the end of the meal, the dessert is always the same - ice cream and crème de menthe.  A nice touch to the green theme and a great way to finish the meal.

 

Saturday 16 March 2013

March 16th

A gorgeous day in AJ,  think it got up to about 90F and a bit of a gentle breeze, so very nice.
  Early start to the day.  It was our breakfast teams turn to cook.  Coffee, eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, biscuits & gravy, coffee, OJ; we have it all.  By now we have a routine & I cook pancakes while Marg does the scrambled eggs.  We use the Costco pancake mix, but I add sugar and vanilla to it.  This morning I made the entire bag of mix.  My pancakes are legendary, well maybe not quite that, but they are pretty good.  Had some difficulty with the grill heat, but eventually got it sorted after a couple made it to the waste bin, LOL.  Most people on other teams have problems with their eggs turning green from sitting too long, but Marg paces her cooking to meet the need with nice fluffy scrambled ones.  In fact she has people grilling her on how she does it.  Get the pun, LOL, I crack myself up.  Oh geez, another pun.  It was a small crowd for breakfast, somewhere between 60-70 people, but everything went well.  Clean up is the worst, especially the grill.  As I am the only one using it, I get that job and it's a bit of a handful.  All the cooks really paced themselves, so our left overs were pretty small today.  There are always people who are willing to take them home.
  After we went to the big Mesa market place.  Marg got a new jacket and we also picked up a few other things, like the back scratcher she really needed.  We ate such a large breakfast that we never even had lunch.  We forgot about it really.  After we got back I played pool for a while.  It seems Marg never heard me say I was going & ran around the park looking for me.  A group of her friends, including some of the gamblin' gals, were preparing the stuff for the St Paddy's day dinner tomorrow, so she agreed to help them.  They peeled 50 lbs of potatoes, 30 lbs of carrots, 20 lbs of onions, 40 lbs of cabbage and 80 lbs of corned beef.  Oh yeh, then they found the recipe and needed another 20 lb of carrots, 30 lb of cabbage to deal with tomorrow morning; because they were short today.  It was pretty funny -- 5 of them running around on the golf cart to hunt down Wayne to get this stuff to fill the recipe.  That made 5 hours in the kitchen for Marg today.
  A stop at happy hour for wobbly pops, where we swapped important information.  A bunch left early to go to the stock car races.  The idea appealed to me, but never got it in gear to go.  Ahhh; man another pun, the kid is hot tonight.  BBQ for supper and then sat around in the nice weather as the heat of the day dissipated into a very pleasant evening.  A few people were walking around & we went for a short walk with 4 of them until we got back to our RV.  Stopped to finish our coffee and ended up with company, so we sat and exchanged very valuable information with them.  Actually, we mostly sat and bragged about our grandchildren.  It's like the grandma Olympics in the land of the snowbirds.

Friday 15 March 2013

Friday

The Ides of March.  Happy Red Nose day to everyone in the UK.  What a gorgeous day. Buy the time we were up and about it was plenty warm this morning and the temp climbed until mid afternoon.
  Marg did laundry before water aerobics this AM.  Actually I think she messed with it for quite a bit of the afternoon, getting it folded, steamed, etc.  Picked a hot day to steam laundry, but then again the hamper was pretty full.  She might be starting to be a morning person - NOT!  She got back from aerobics just in time for lunch and then I took off for Encanto to play a round.
  As luck would have it they did the prep work for our team [to make breakfast in the morning]  in the middle of the afternoon when I was probably on #7, LOL.  Anyway I dodged bullet on that one, but Marg helped get things set up.  This will be our last breakfast.
  Played with Gerry Canuel with a tee time of 2:30.  By that time it was pretty well in the heat of the day, 91 or 92, I believe.  I had a couple of water bottles that I froze and they kept ice all day long.  Lost one of my good Nike balls that Bill & Patti gave me from the Dominican Republic in the turtle pond.  I did not have my happy face on at that point, but it was my second lost ball today.  The first one was in the lake with all the Canada Geese, the first hole no doubt.  Beware the Ides of March, do you think that is what they meant, a warning to golfers?  You would think one of them would have retrieved it for a fellow Canadian.  We were paired with a father/son and had a good day.  Score was OK, not my best round, but far from my worst.  I don't know if it was the heat or the physical demands, but the second nine was 6 strokes over the front.  Got off the course about 7 PM.  We really have to quit doing this on Fridays, the course is much more open on Mondays.
  Traffic was light on the way back, so made pretty good time.  I think it was around a half hour travel time.  Got back in time for the 4th race in the animal races.  Everyone is getting pretty rowdy at this thing.  There are a handful who do the happy dance now.  This was the last animal races for this winter.  It has been a big success, except for Marg, who picked a lot more winners than me.  Bet that doggone elephant every race, to no avail.  Linda, a friend of Marg's even went to get peanuts to put on the finish line, but alas, that pachyderm never appeared in the winners circle.  Cost me a lot of dimes!
  After we came back to the rv and had supper.  Good planning on Marg's part, she had chicken and vegetables in the slow cooker.

Thursday 14 March 2013

Thursday

Well it is officially hot.  It was warm out by the time we got up and about and by mid afternoon was 93F/34C in the sun.  It was pretty nice in the shade, but there wasn't much of that.
  Went for coffee and rolls this AM in the hall & Marg came along.  Third week in a row for her, so they don't think she is new to the park any longer.  The park owner was there and gave an update on how expensive it is to run the place and his efforts to keep the rents low in comparison to other parks in the area.  Turns out 2/3rds of the stalls in the park are annual rentals, so that explains why it is tough to get space for shorter terms.  He also talked about the problems with the wifi & basically told us they don't have sufficient band width.  What a revelation that was, wait a minute we forgot to ask what he is doing about it, LOL.
  When we finished Marg went to water aerobics.  With the nice weather they had quite a large group and they all jumped and thrashed about in the water for the usual 1 hour.  The water was perfect temperature and they had a good workout.  While this was going on I went and helped Jerry put down pavers, you know, paving blocks to walk on.  He stopped by to tell me he was doing it and knowing he has such a bad back, I suspect he was looking for assistance.  Anyway we got them all laid, but ran out before the job was complete.
  Went for lunch with Kenny & Doris and Ron & Mary to a golf club restaurant called Kokopelli's.  The food is very good and you have the option of sitting on the patio overlooking the course.  It's a pretty nice course with all the amenities, green fees are $199, so it is not in the budget saver range.  The beer was good & cold and best of all we had a coupon for it.  LOL  We took our time over lunch, I don't think we left there until around 3PM, but then again we weren't in any hurry.
 
  We got back just in time for a pool party.  The gals in water aerobics arranged for a party at 4 today.  There were probably 2 or 3 dozen of us.  It was a perfect day for it with the heat and the pool temp was perfect.  I managed to get the trunks on and made it into the pool.  First time this year for me in the pool, so the pressure is off.  I generally only get in there once over the course of the winter.  Marg on the other hand stayed in until her fingers were wrinkled.  They had all kinds of finger food and it was byob, so we had a couple of wobbly pops on the pool deck.
  After Kenny & Doris stopped in for coffee & Bailey's.  All in all a pretty good day for the snowbirds in the valley of the sun.

Wednesday 13 March 2013

March 13th

Pretty nice day.  I think the highest I saw was 82F, but Marg said she saw 92F on the vehicle thermometer on their way back today.  It was hot, hot, hot, but nothing yet according those who know.
  Got up early and Marg went with the gamblin' gals to play bingo and slots.  Gerry came and we went out to play at Apache Sun.  We were both 44, so a good round for me.  I was hitting the Burner well off the tee and had lots of chances for par putts.  Didn't make them all, but just getting the chances means I was playing a decent game today.
  When I got back to the rv park, I made my own lunch.  This usually works better when Marg is here, but got by on some peanut butter sandwiches & yogurt, or something like that anyway.  After lunch I went and played some pool.  Got in with a tough bunch today, but was on the winning side a few times.  It was one of those days when it seemed everyone but me was having a great game.  No I'm not paranoid, sometimes I just don't play well, although I did sink a couple of 8 balls, that were not out of turn, LOL.
  Went to happy hour as the gals were not back yet and the husbands of the other 3 were there.  Nice day for a cold one.  When the gals got back, they went to the hall and brought back burgers.  That way we get to enjoy a burger and beer, without getting off our butts.  It was a burger night in the park, so Gary & his crew cook up a bunch as well as chili.  Pretty darn good burgers.
  By that time it was the poker hour.  We had a good turnout and lots of laughs.  It seems they had my number tonight, I kind of took it on the chin.  I probably lost 3 or 4 dollars, an unfamiliar place for me.  Oh well, they have to win every so often. 

Tuesday 12 March 2013

Tuesday

We are into another week and a sunny one.  It was a beautiful day and the highest temp I saw was 82F, pretty warm in the sun.
  Caught up to Jerry B and we went for a bike ride.  Went for a pretty good tour, he doesn't stop much, so it was a good workout.  By the time we got back the heat was starting to build.  When I got back Marg was already in the swimming pool with the aerobics group.  I think she said there were 14 gals in there this morning.  It's a pretty good workout, it lasts an hour and they are moving the whole time.
  We had lunch in the motorhome and then headed out for a car wash.  Stopped on the way and got a box of beer for $12.99, mind you that was only 18 cans.  After the rains and mud, the first couple we went to were packed with cars.  Had to go all the way up to Power road before we got to one that wasn't lined up.  They did a nice job, inside and out.  Mind you for $25 I guess they should.  By the time we got that done our time was getting tight.
  We went out for supper with Deb & Gerry Canuel.  We had agreed to meet them at the Golden Corral.  They weren't there when we arrived, so I paid for all 4 of us.  There was an early bird special for seniors, so by paying I got all 4 at the discount rate.  I think it was their first seniors discount, LOL.  The next one will have to wait for quite a few years, especially for Deb.  Food was pretty good, but we were all over-stuffed.  That's the only bad thing about buffet, eat too much.
  Got back in time for a visit and then we all went to bingo in the hall at our rv park.  Close but no winners, although Kenny & Nancy at our table won.  Had a few laughs and a nice visit with them.  Early to bed [well 11:30 anyway] as Marg is off with the gamblin' gals and Gerry is coming to golf with me in the park group tomorrow AM.  Should be a warm one, so it is good we have an early start.

Monday 11 March 2013

Monday

What a gorgeous day.  Now this is why we come here, for weather like this.
  The day started off with a bike ride.  Took a little different route today, but put in a pretty good ride.  When I was coming back just off of Superstition I came across a big old coyote.  He looked to be in pretty good shape, bushy tail and all.  He was only about 150 feet away and he wasn't bothered by me at all, too bold if you ask me.  Anyway I shouted at him and that didn't even startle him.  They are a real problem when they get that bold.  Probably been living in the city for a while eating household pets and they rabbits that seem to be everywhere here.  After I rode another block or so, I saw a city truck with lights flashing stop down around where I last saw it, hopefully the dog catcher.
  When I got back Marg was in the pool doing water aerobics.  I guess the pool was a little on the cool side, but that will change in a day or two.  They get quite a group in for that and I can hear the instructional tape playing from here -- now jump and thrash around, etc, etc.  Patty & Doris also go,  they are like a posse, all the things they do together.  I went and helped Jerry put some pictures on his laptop.  He has never stored any on it before, so I made a file with all the ones I had and copied it to his machine.  This is how computer challenged folks are down here, me [the techno-peasant] giving computer advice, but we got it done.
  After lunch I played pool for a while.  Another Jerry was there and it was his last day, they are driving back to Iowa tomorrow.  He told me, you know what IOWA is short for -- Idiots Out Wandering Around.  Pretty funny!  There are more Jerry's & Patty's in this park than you can shake a stick at.  When I finished Char called and she had been speaking with grandma.  As soon as the call ended I called mom and lo & behold I got her on the phone.  Had a nice conversation with her.  She's been keeping up to date and told me about the stuff she is doing in her new place.
  Went to happy hour.  The girls seem to spend time planning and the guys, well we're just trying to solve the world peace thing, LOL.  It seems there are so many March birthdays in the group that we are having a group dinner/birthday party on Saturday.  Marg also came away with lunch plans for Thursday, so no pool tournament I guess.
  Len & Rose Krupka called, they are back in Mesa.  Rose & Marg chatted and tried to line up a date we can get together for dinner.  This will tell you how busy we are, it will be March 28th.  In fact we are too busy here.  Every year we have big plans about making trips and doing things here, but we get caught up in this busy lifestyle and the winter is over before we realize it.
  It was our last ice cream social tonight.  It's usually on Sunday, but this being the last one, Kenny had arranged for Brent Lee to entertain.  The last time he was here was a year ago and Bill & Patti were down for the weekend.  Anyway he was a big hit with the crowd.  The ice cream and cake were free as well, everyone could have what they purchased last week, kind of a 2 for 1 deal, I guess.  This way we know how many banana splits and root beer floats to provide for.  It all being free the hall was packed.  He is a great act and he had everyone singing along and dancing.  It was a great time.
 

Sunday 10 March 2013

Sunny Sunday

Woke up to a nice sunny day.  What a difference a day makes in the way a snowbird feels. 
  Went out to the large flea market on Apache Trail.  There is a guy I needed to see there about a 3 wood that matches Gerry's driver.  Managed to strike a bargain on it and with my keen negotiating powers, he threw in a sand wedge.  Gerry never had one of those either, a fact that only became evident last week when he was "on the beach" a half dozen times.  He never usually hits the traps, but sure made up for it last week.
  After we went to the big market in Mesa, where Marg looked for things.  Not certain what things, but she appears to have found most of them.  I got a piece for the golf cart that I told Pat at the lake that I would bring him.  It wasn't as busy as I would have thought.  With poor weather on Friday/Saturday, I thought every snowbird in the area would be looking for an outdoor day and the market would sure fit the bill.
  Went for lunch to Long John Silvers again.  We really enjoyed the cod last time, so went back for another feed of it.  Marg also had shrimp and hush puppies with hers.  The hush puppies are a deep fried ball of something like a corn fritter.  They are pretty good anyway.
  On the way back we stopped at the water outlet and filled up 3 gallon bottles with drinking water so that we have a bit of back up.  Marg figures she gets about 3 pots of coffee per gallon.  When we got back I trimmed up a big piece of sun screen material Jerry B gave me.  It hangs from the awning and creates a sun free porch effect.  Some of our company have a problem with too much sun, so it will be nice to be able to put it up when we have them over.  There are a few folks who have serious skin problems with too much sun.  Anyway the screen was much too large, but had a couple of holes in it, so when trimmed up, it was just the right size.  I also have a back up piece that must be 30 or 40 feet long.
  Went for cocktails to Larry & Nancy's place.  Had another scotch, marking my official falling off the wagon day.  Solved a few of the worlds problems, but still working on world peace.  Supper was bbq tonight.

Saturday 9 March 2013

Saturday, Mar 9th

Got up and went to breakfast in the hall: sausage, eggs &; pancakes.  Jerry was making the pancakes, so had to go and check him out.  Sat with a bunch of bachelors, LOL, guys who like me have a wife that don't do breakfast.  It was a good way to start the day, most important meal of the day!  It seems Jerry was splashed by a passing car so bad he had to go in to shower and change.  We had lots of fun with kidding him about it.  Funny for everyone else, I guess. 
  After we went out for lunch to the 5 &; Diner.  I think I described it before, but it as road-side diner with décor out of the 60's and they play old rock & roll on the juke box.  The waitresses wear poodle skirts and period clothes.  Food is good too, especially the milkshakes & the service is usually great.   Although we never had a shake, I think they have over 100 flavors.
  Stopped and got some water.  We are buying water for coffee now.  It's 15 cents a gallon, so no big deal, but the water here doesn't make good coffee.  There are water stations all over the place here, you just pull up and its all self serve.  The tap water is fine for most other things, but we are fussy on how our coffee tastes.  Also picked up some propane cylinder for the bbq, they were half the price I paid last week.  All this at KMart where we went for the first time, in Mesa.
  Supper was a shrimp stir fry in the motorhome. Had a couple of drinks of scotch tonight as the prescription is finished.  Almost forgot how good that stuff tastes.  LOL
  Kind of a cool day, so we didn't do much other than that bit of running around.
 

Friday 8 March 2013

Friday

Well today was not one to brag about the weather.  The rain started in the night and it pretty much rained off and on most of the day.  It was a much cooler day, but hopefully will not be like this for long.  I guess they need rain in the desert as much as any place, but it's a little inconvenient for us snowbirds.  Funny thing is the water ponds very badly and there is no proper storm sewer system here, rather they deal with storm water as surface water, so it gets pretty wet.
  
   It was the annual ladies tea today. As you may recall there were new organizers this year and they asked me to do the hot water again.  I told them it required 2 people, so one of the organizers volunteered her husband.  Jim and I boiled 9 gallons of water and dispensed it to the ladies in carafes.  They had lots of finger food and there was a special prize for the hat of the day.  Sorry about the pic quality, steam from the boiling water I think.
   Marg sat with some of her friends, Doris & Linda.  She doesn't do hats, so wore a fascinator.  Some of the ladies know what that is, but I don't believe all did until today.  I think there was one or two other ladies with something like that as well.  It is quite an event, they usually have music & poetry or jokes.
  I think they were looking for Chippendale outfits for the guys for next year, LOL.  Anyway I told Jim he really needed to know how it goes as I was not planning on doing this again next year.

  It went on for about an hour and a half, after which I helped them clean up. 
  I played some pool after that, but not too many games as it was getting on in the afternoon by that time.  For supper it was Ihop, yes one of my fav's.


  In the evening it was the animal races.  It was funny because there were some folks in the area who came to see what all the whooping & hollering was about.  They stayed and won a few races.  I won 6 of the 8 races tonight, much better than last week when it was pretty much the reverse.  The race card on the right shows my picks & when you win Sue puts an X on the winner. 

Thursday 7 March 2013

March 7th

Another wonderful day in the valley of the sun.
  We both, yes both got up and went to coffee & donuts this AM.  This was a first, our table was drawn as the first group to go for donuts.  Just as a joke, I did my happy dance when we got up, well it did get a few laughs anyway.  It was the first meeting conducted by the new executive, so lots of people were there to see how they made out, it was fine & so were the donuts.
  After Jim & I went to get water for the ladies tea on Friday.  Apparently they didn't like using tap water last year, so we went to the water outlet and bought 9 gallons.  It was only 15 cents a gal, so no big deal.  Jim's wife is one of the organizers, but me, well just too easy to rope in for these things.  Actually I thought with 2 new ladies taking it over, when they asked if I would help I would do it for one year.  Jim is the new guy & will be taking over next year, he just doesn't know it yet, LOL!
   When we got back, I went to help Gary and his group.  He was installing a canopy over his driveway.  They bought a new park model [static caravan for those of you in the UK] and is just getting everything set up.  Gary is a good guy and helps everyone out lots, so there were 5 of us helping out.  I was mostly on holding things and supervision, pretty easy stuff.  Marg went for water aerobics this AM.  I guess there were fewer people this AM, probably worked them too hard yesterday.  The other thing was, she said the pool was almost too warm, just like a bath tub.
  Just got finished in time to gulp down a sandwich and then Bob & I went off to join the pool [no 8 ball, not swimming] team.  Our group played at Eldorado today, so big road trip.  I had not played with Bob as a partner this year, but we told them we would play as long as we could play in the last group, so we could finish up.  We usually draw for partners, but because it was unique circumstances we got an exception.  That is one of the parks we usually have a difficult time with & that was true to form today.  We had tough competition and they played us very cautiously & we did the same.  As it turns out our team was losing 7 to 8 when it was our turn to play.  Everyone gave up and left while we were still playing our second game because it took so long.  Anyway we won all 3 of our games and team Carefree took home a win.  Partner Bob played well, me, well I've played better, but managed to keep out of serious trouble.
  For supper we were invited by Kenny & Doris to a BBQ as a wind up to the ice cream social crew.  Kenny is giving up managing he ice cream socials this year, so wanted to have a BBQ to thank all of us.  Well it was free to all but Marg & I, as I did the grilling [as they call it here] and Marg the dishes.  Lots of laughs with this group.  Good food and the desert was outstanding.  Doris is famous for her pies and she made two of them to choose from and that was really popular.
 
  We're not sure what is happening with the socials next year.  One of our group was going to take it over & if she does, we all said we would stay on to support her.  There have been some subsequent events that may change this.  Most of us wouldn't mind someone else getting involved as well; as we would like to have a few Sunday's off to do other things, but time will tell.

Wednesday 6 March 2013

March 6th

This gorgeous weather is getting routine. 
  Got up and went with the group to Apache Sun for golf this AM.  Gerry C came in and joined the group.  A little better performance by yours truly today.  Scored reasonably well, hit the ball well, but every so often the wheels came off and kept me from a very low score.  I have played with the same ball now for 3 rounds, that must be some kind of record for me.  The new putter seems to have a flaw, it works off and on, LOL.
  When we got back Deb was waiting and Marg was in water aerobics.  Apparently they had a good work out again this AM and she was ready for a rest at the end.  We had a nice visit and all went to Hackers for lunch.  This was my first time there, this yr, although Marg has been there with the girls already.  Pretty good food.
  Played some pool this afternoon.  It's been a while since I played and had some good games.  Was lucky enough to play with Luther & Dick, who like to play like I do and we had some really challenging games and laughs.  Played with different Dick, Mike & Gino as well.  The style they play is a lot friendlier, but not one most of us advocate when playing other parks.  In those out of park tournaments, most of us play a take no prisoners style.  We never used to do that as much and were always on the losing end, but not so much any more though, we hold our own now.  Marg went out to find a wind up gift for Kenny  &Doris.  They will be doing their last ice cream social on Monday night and are having us all to a bbq tomorrow night, so she came up with the idea of making a bit of a present to them for running the socials and making them successful.
  Went to happy hour.  It almost drug out too long and we had to hustle to get supper made and eaten.  BBQ chicken and baked potatoes.  After supper Marg did laundry while I played poker.  I think I came out a bit ahead.  For Marg's part, I guess she is way ahead now too.

Tuesday 5 March 2013

Maarch 5th

Happy birthday Brennan, glad we were able to give you our birthday wishes by telephone.  I am having a tough time accepting that you are a young adult & no longer a boy.
  Went for a bike ride with Jerry B this AM.  We made about 5 miles and were able to get out before the heat of the day set in.  Only one stop for a breather and a drink, almost an endurance run for this old guy. I usually have one other stop enroute. 
  After lunch went out to a dentist appt.  Got the stitches out and it was encouraging to hear the doc's comments on how well everything is healing up.  Had a bone chip irritating the gum that he yanked out, so all is good now.  Asked him if I could quit the horse pills [penicillin] he prescribed, but no such luck, he is concerned about the sinus cavity perforation and potential for infection.  Oh well only 2 more days of them left so will finish them.  I told him he should have removed the heart monitor pads when I was still under the anesthetic, hairy chest & those pads are a nasty combination.
  Happy hour again.  Oh what the heck, I had a beer.  Everyone assured me one beer would help rather than hurt and they look almost like doctors.  LOL
  Went to bingo with Marg, I just go for the ice cream during the intermission.  She was close all night, but I ended up being the winner.  I suppose tomorrow I will have to endure the comments around here. You would think it is a life changing amount, but alas $37 will not put us in a higher  bracket.

Monday 4 March 2013

March 4th

A special day, happy birthday Paige; happy birthday Haylee.  It hardly seems 14 years have come and gone this quickly since our twins were born.  We sure miss out on a lot of birthdays in February & March, one of the negative things about snowbirding.
  It was a gorgeous day in AJ, I think the temp got up to 78F/26C, a very nice warm one or what would pass for a warm summer day in GP.  Believe it or not, this is a bit cooler than we have been accustomed to at this time of year.  I think next week is supposed to be in the 80's every day, but we may not see 100 this year before we leave.  That is increasingly a topic of conversation, when are you leaving?  We haven't really been anywhere this year, the west side of Phoenix & Tortilla Flats is about it. 
  Marg got up early and went with the gamblin' gals to Fort MacDowell.  She came back in a great mood, seems she was close at bingo and won at the slots, to come out ahead overall.  It seems she really did break the jinx at bingo last week and is back to her regular form.  They left the park about 8:30 and got back just after 4, a full day.
  I visited around the park a bit and did some maintenance stuff.  Talking with the guys, they went out to get permits for a new route to take into the desert next Tuesday, so that is likely the plan for next week.
  Went golfing to Encanto today with Gerry C.  This course is right in the heart of Phoenix.  Traffic going was busy, but not bad.  Just a great day to be out on the course.  We were booked for a 2 o'clock T time to get the discount rate, but when we showed up early, the course was so empty that they sent us out 45 min early.  The only negative of this course is they flood it every night and if you take divots like I do, you get a lot of muddy clubs & need to wash the towel after every round.

 This is the lake on the course we call turtle lake.  You can see all the turtles sitting along the shore on the left side of the picture.  They look like painted turtles to me, but as soon as you get close they jump in the water.  They are pretty good size, I would estimate the size of an 8 or 10 inch plate.
  On the next pic, if you could zoom, you would see our balls sitting in the trap, or on the beach as we say.


  Gerry played well today, me not so much, something close to my old average.  It seemed I was striking the ball well most of the time, had some good holes, but not consistently.  My last round here was much more satisfying, when I posted the pic of the scorecard, so the absence of any such pic here should be telling you something.
  When I got back, there had been a block party and everyone was asking why I didn't go.  My excuse was I had to work, explaining that golf is work when you don't do it well.  LOL  I found Marg over at Nancy & Larry's where about 10 of them had gone for happy hour and snacks instead of the block party.  It seems they all got their stuff ready to head over to the block party, but never got there.  Pretty funny really.

Sunday 3 March 2013

March 3rd

A nice day, but overcast today.  When it's this nice, it doesn't even get that cold at night.  This is great.
  Bike ride this AM, perfect day for it.  Went all the way to Idaho up to Foothills then back to Meridian and back on Tepee.  Pretty good work out and I am finding the rest stops somewhat less frequent, not like when I started.
  Went out for some groceries and water.  We go through so much water here, it is incredible.  Can hardly wait to get off that stuff.  In fact today Jerry offered to join my lets get blasted when the prescription is done club, LOL.   It was funny, I had been reading a book and set it on the trunk before leaving.  Forgot it, so when I got back the book was just outside the gate on the road.  It looks like it had been run over once, but was still readable.
  Heard back from Lucie, her and Norm were doing stuff with the 2 other units they are travelling with.  They were going to organ stop pizza and asked if we wanted to join them, but we had the ice cream social commitment, so had to pass.  She said something about finding their friends in Yuma so busy, in the same way.  Well I guess that's what us snowbirds do, we join in on things that are going on in the rv parks.  Too bad really, we had offered to drive over and pick them up to spend the day with them, but that didn't work for them.  I believe they are leaving on Tuesday to go over towards Las Vegas for a while & then home.
  I spent the afternoon boiling my teeth and then breaking them apart to separate the gold.  Then I put them in a bottle of regular coke.  We'll see if that works, stay tuned.
  Ice cream social tonight had pretty good attendance.  We made lots of banana splits and root beer floats tonight.  Only one more to go.

Saturday 2 March 2013

March 2nd

The nicest day of the winter to date, it was about 82F at the daytime high.  Everyone you met said the same thing - this is the reason we came here.  Found out my watch was on the wrong date, when you retire it's hard to keep track of details like what day or date it is.  I can't explain it, you have to experience it.
  Went for a bike ride early in the morning to avoid the mid-day heat we knew was coming.  Out in a good shift and worked up a good thirst.  Too bad I am still taking the penicillin or I could have put away a few cold ones.  It's like wasting a good thirst, but this too shall pass.  I told the guys that when I got done with this I was going to get blasted and a couple of them said to count them in.  Knowing Bud, he'll be up for it too, LOL.
  Marg went for water aerobics this morning.  It has been a few days since she went, so she said it was almost like the first time with the stiffness and such.  They work out for an hour and it's pretty steady and vigorous.  They have tapes they play that give out the routine and they are all jumping and twirling about in the pool.  No guys though, just gals it seems.  Still too early for me to enter the pool for my annual dip, LOL.
  Went out shopping for the afternoon.  Marg needs shoes to match the wedding dresses.  Well maybe need is not the right term, perhaps wants is more like it.  She was successful with shoes and some matching hand purse thing, so was happy.  Me well as usual I sat in the car and read a western [duster or oater].  I was lucky enough to find a shady spot, so was happy as a clam.  The other good news was we only had to go as far as Superstition shopping area.  On the way back we stopped at Source for Sports and got some golf balls.  I tend to pound a few of them into wet or bushy places never to be seen again, although I haven't lost one for a few games now.  Shouldn't have even talked about it, may have jinxed myself.  While we were in the parking lot Marg got a call from Lucie & Norm, they are in Peoria, the other side of Phoenix, so we may see them tomorrow, they are just working out their plans.
  When we got back we went for happy hour.  By now they have quit giving me a hard time about drinking water.  One of the couples [from Georgia] have booked their flights and cruise to Sweden and then London in July/August.  That reminds me, we need to do some of that for this summer to be with Anna & Craig when they tie the knot.
  Sometime during the cocktail hour, Marg & Doris made plans to go out for dinner, so we went with Kenny & Doris to the Golden Corral.  It's a western food buffet and is pretty darn good.  The place was really packed, I guess Saturday nights everywhere are the same. Both the food and the company were good.