March 26 through 27 2012

Monday 26~~~~~We arrived at the Casino mid afternoon and it was getting quite warm. We set up the trailer and we walked over to the casino where it was cool. We played the slot machines and we gave back the $35 we won from them last week. We ate dinner there before heading back to our camper to watch television. We ran our generators until we went to bed, there were others doing the same thing and no one minded. We have to be at the dentist office at8:00 in the morning. It is only about one mile to Mexico from the casino. Tuesday 27~~~~~~It was so nice to not have to get up early to get to the dentist on time. My visit to the dentist went real good. He removed some crowns another dentist had done a poor job on and he is replacing them for me. He is the dentist our friends we work with at Fisherman's Bend near Salem, Floyd and Opal. They have gone to Dr. Beltram for years and Kent used him last year for 3 crowns, so I feel good about using him. It cost me over $6000 to have 4 teeth worked on in Salem in August, so I can't afford to do that again. We had lunch at our favorite place in Mexico, shrimp tacos, three each!!!! Then we headed back to the states, each carrying a bottle of booze. We picked up the trailer and went back to our RV Park we stay at in Yuma. I am glad today is over, I don't like going to the dentist!!!! Our Friends Cyndi and Howie were waiting to see us when we arrived at the park, we have a lot of fun together.

March 20 through 25, 2012

Tuesday 20~~~ Our friends John and Linda followed us in the long line, so we could get parking side by side. Getting into the rally and getting set up with about 3000 camping rigs attending took a few hours. The rally was held at the Phoenix Speed way Parkway where they have all the Nascar races, so it is very large. By Thursday there were 7000 people there, so today was a long busy day getting settled and registered. They had six shuttles running, but not enough for the amount of people who like us checked in 2 days early on Tuesday. By Thursday they had 14 shuttles running and it still was a wait at times to get one. They had a lot of drawings for prizes and there was a schedule of the events for every day through Sunday with various classes you can attend in the different tents. I attended a class on convection cooking, cleaning with micro fiber and a few more. Kent really learns a lot in the men's classes on things to keep your rig in good running condition and up keep. There were classes scheduled ever hour and a half in many tents that each held 100 to 300 people. The entertainment in the evenings were Bowzer's Rock and Roll Party, he had men and women come on stage and he had a hula hoop contest for 3 women and 3 men. I should have gone on stage for that one, as they only had one lady who could kind of keep her hoop going. They asked for lady volunteers to come and jitterbug with Bowzer's band members in a contest. That was really funny watching them do the old dances. A 60 year old lady won the prize and she was darn good. Martina McBride sang on Sunday night, but we left early, as the grandstands were full and catching a shuttle back to our trailers would take forever. We played cards almost every night (hand and foot) with John and Linda. There were so many prizes they gave away, a lot (150) of $100 and (25) $500 free gas cards to be used at Flying J or Pilot stations, one person got $5000 free gas credit card. Another person at the big drawing won a generator and a $500 gas card for it. Three or four people who had older RV's were called up and given great deals on a new one. The one man was given $10,000 off the invoice and he also was offered a $25000 trade in on a new motor home he had previously looked at with an offer of $8,000 trade in. He was a very happy camper!!! There were some people who's names were called and they weren't interested in trading in their camper for a new one, they said they liked it and were happy with it!!! We weren't that lucky, Kent won $50, and Sharon won a tee shirt!!!! John got nothing and Linda got a tee shirt!!! LOL We are heading home in the morning, back to Yuma!!!! The rally ended on Sunday and they had good buys on camping products in the big tent so the vendors didn't have to haul it back home. We each bought a banquet table that fold us small for $10 from a vendor who bought it new for the rally and had to get rid of it as he was flying home. We said our good byes and John and Linda headed back to Casa Grande where they stay for the winter and us to Yuma. We are going to boon dock at the Quechin Casino because I have an 8:30 dentist appointment Tuesday morning in Algodonas, Mexico and that will save us driving from our park to Mexico.

March 19 & 20 2012

Monday 19~~~~~Kent and I went over to my cousins park where Kent helped their neighbor haul a big BBQ grill they had bought at Lowe's that didn't work, back to the store. They really appreciated him for doing it as they had no way to haul it back all assembled. Today was bridge day for the park gals. They asked me to play, but I haven't played bridge since about 1968, so I declined playing, I said I would love to watch. As it turned out, there were only 3 players, so I played and I had so much fun. They couldn't believe how I remembered the game after all these years. They sure do a lot of fun things in that park, you could be busy every day if you chose to. Kent picked up a pizza while he was out to Costco and he brought it back to Linda and Mel's for us and their their neighbors across the street to eat for dinner. The six of us played a real fun card game that you start playing with $2 and you pay a quarter every hand( except the winner) and one with the most quarters at the end wins the pot. We had a great week with everyone here in Apache Junction, but tonight it is time to say our good byes until next year. It is time to head to Phoenix in the morning where we are meeting some other friends (John and Linda) and we will attend a "Good Sam" Rally together.

March 16, 17 & 18, 2012

Friday 16~~~~We drove Mel and Linda to Costco where we ate lunch before doing our shopping. They like Costco, as it is a lot bigger than Sam's Club that they belong to and we needed several thing ourselves. From there we drove over to the park next to their park and we went to another Jan Session. Some of the guitar players were at the one we went to yesterday, and there was a whole bunch of new ones. They played a lot of the old songs I used to sing with my sister Jan in high school and with my kids when I used to play my guitar. My son Billy and Kim both called today, I always enjoy their calls. Saturday 17~~~~ Today is St. Patrick's day and we are invited to go over to Mel and Linda's park and attend a breakfast their neighbors are putting on. Everyone had on green and they served potato pancakes and regular pancakes, eggs and sausage. I really enjoyed the potato pancakes made from shredded potatoes. We barely got done eating and cleaning up all the tables and chairs when it was time to walk down to the club house for the corn beef, potatoes and cabbage dinner they were serving for $5 a person. The club members also brought a table full of desserts and more good things to eat. We were very full of good food when we headed home. Sunday 18~~~~We didn't go to Mass last night, so I rode to Mass with Linda and her neighbors leaving Kent and Mel home to fix breakfast for all of us to eat before we all go to another Jam session at a different club house at 1:00 PM. I think this was almost too much for poor Kent to go to, but he said he enjoyed the music and he knew I really did and don't get to see and do this very often. We sat in the front row by the band and the music was country gospel. We sure had fun singing with the band today. The weather was 80 and 85 all week and today when we went to our car to go home, there was about 5 inches high (not deep) on the wind shield where it had slid down the windshield. It was very cold, no shorts today!!!!! We [played a new card game with them when we got back to their park before heading home to watch our TV shows on Sunday night. Another fun filled day!

March 15, 2012

Thursday 15~~~~~We got up early to pick up John and Linda and drive to Scottsdale to ride the Segways. We bought our tickets on the computer on "Group On" last summer. We rode them last year when we were in Phoenix, Arizona, We had so much fun, we knew we wanted to do it again the day we rode them in Phoenix last year. The guide we had let us have a lot of time to ourselves to play around this large parking lot this year and the drive he took us on was a lot more fun, he also stopped for a "Star Bucks" break half way through it. One of the riders was forced off the path by a rude walker and could have been hurt but wasn't. She didn't loose control, she rode it out. Our friend Linda took a tumble getting off of her Segway the first time during practice and one of the older men rode off the edge of the sidewalk and flipped his segway over and got bloodied up pretty good. That was at the end of our tour, so that was a good thing. You do have to be careful, it is easy to get carried away and go too fast on corners and such, so we try to not get to carried away riding them. Kent rides behind me and he says I am a natural at riding them, I love to do figure 8's and zig zag all over the sidewalk like the instructor does. The ride usually costs $90 but when you buy them off "Group On" it costs $39 and less. You get to ride for 90 minutes plus all the practice time they give you for the beginners to learn how to ride. After our ride, we went out for lunch and we took Linda and John to the "Mystery Castle" there in Phoenix, it is a must to see if you haven't seen it yet!!!!! It was a fun filled day for all of us.

March 12, 13 & 14, 2012

Monday 12~~~~Today we left for Apache Junction, AZ. , we drove as far as the Casino near Gilbaert AZ. near Phoenix where we met our friends John and Linda. We haven't seen them for several months, so we had a lot of catching up to do, we made our plans for the Good Sam Rally we are going to in Phoenix next week with them. It is a week long rally and we will go to a lot of classes, exhibits and play a lot of cards. We walked over to the Casino where we had a light dinner and then we played the slots together. Linda and I played a new machine together; we each put in $5.00 and we played for a couple of hours on our money. We were up over $20 most of the time and then we started playing machines that took more money and we soon lost our money. We had so much fun and all we lost was our $5.
John and Kent didn't play much, as they never won any money to play with, they had fun checking in on us girls and visiting. Tuesday 13~~~~We went out for breakfast at "Cracker Barrel" this morning with John and Linda before heading to Apache Junction to spend a week with my cousin Mel and Linda who have a park model home and live there. We went out for dinner tonight and called it a day. ~Wednesday 14~~~We went over to see my cousin this morning and I gave the two of them haircuts, they both love the way I cut their hair and I like doing it. We walked down to their club house and we listened to a group of men and women who are very gifted with their music abilities. They play the old country music I love so much and I quietly sing along with them. If I lived here for the winter, I would be joining the band, it is so much fun. They serve a great lunch at break time, sandwiches, salads and dessert all for one dollar. Then the band plays for another hour or more before calling it a day. Linda's neighbor across the street liked her haircut so much, she paid me to cut her hair after the jam session. So of course I did and everyone loved her haircut. If I was here longer, I could have quite a clientele. Tomorrow morning we are going to Scottsdale to ride "Segways" again like we did last year.

March 4, 2012

Sunday 4~~~~We drove over to Algodonas, Mexico for lunch today, Kent was so hungry for shrimp tacos, he couldn't wait until Wednesday when we go for my dental appointment. Of course I didn't argue no with him, as I like them also and Sunday is a good day to go as the line come back from Mexico isn't long, about 1/2 block. During the week, it is about 2 blocks long and with the hot sun, it gets warm standing thee. I usually stand there and read a book, the time goes real fast. There are always lots of Mexicans going up and down the line with neat things to entice you to buy. The prices are real good to if you buy. I try and take a lot of quarters and I give them to the little ones who are so cute selling gum. They train them early there to be salespeople. I give them the quarter and let them keep the gum. Today there was the cutest little girl selling cloth flowers, I took her picture, they like that and I do too. When we got home from there, Kent took a short nap and we walked over to Cyndi and Howie's for corn beef and cabbage, carrots and red potatoes for dinner. They had about six or seven couples over and it sure was good!! After dinner Sunday night ice cream was served at the club house, we went home and ate our cobbler instead. Kent watched a movie he had taped and I went back to the club house and played the card game 31 with 8 other people. It was fun, but it lasted quite a long time. I came home and called the kids and watched TV with Kent.

March 1, 2, 3, 2012

Thursday 1~~~~What a busy day, I started cleaning and trimming all that produce as soon as I showered and dressed. I bagged it all real nice and we gave it to our neighbors, they really appreciated it. The lady across the street was cleaning out their storage shed and she sent me home with some of the neatest dishes, all white like my dishes, a serving bowl , divided casserole dish and 6 plates, they go with my dishes no nice. The huge radishes we picked they slice and eat in sandwiches. Kent spent the morning paying bills and after lunch he went into town and picked up the grocery items they don't sell at Costco. When he got home, we watched a movie and I fixed us dinner. Of course we had a wonderful salad almost as good as the one they served us at the farm tour with chicken and steamed asparagus. We talked to the kids on the phone and they said the weather was really something else back in Oregon, real cold weather and some snow with the rain. Kim said Mike was going snow mobiling this weekend, as Willamette received 2 feet of new snow and Hoo Doo received 3 feet. The skiers and snow mobilers love that. Friday 2~~~ The wind blew so hard here this morning I thought it was going to bend our flag pole and it didn't even have a flag on it. Kent and I made a big batch of spaghetti sauce in the crock pot. We didn't have a recipe, so we winged it on our own. It didn't turn out the greatest, so do any of you readers have a recipe you can send us!!!!! We drove into the casino last night after dinner about 7:30 to be there for the nine PM drawing for and old TBird. We only had 6 tickets, but it only takes one they say. Well we didn't win and that is good, as it goes on until March 17th for the final drawing and you have to be here and we won't. LOL We will be in Apache Junction or Phoenix. We lost $25 last night, but had fun doing it!!!! Saturday 3~~~~I packaged up the spaghetti sauce this morning for the freezer and I made a real yummy rhubarb cobbler from Grandma Enright's apple-pan-dowdy recipe. I fixed me a white radish sandwich in a buttered flour tortilla for lunch, it was pretty good!!!! It is a beautiful day here, no wind. Tress, Cory and the kids are at the beach house having a great time. Bodie found one of those Japanese bottles like the one Cindy and Erik found, in the rocks, we think it is coming from the tsunami. It will be fun for show and tell at school. We went to Mass and I offered my Mass for my God child in South Dakota who is very sick with cancer. I am asking all of you who read our blog to pray for Pam and her family, she is very sick. After Mass, we went to a Chinese buffet for dinner. It was pretty good food, but they charged us for our tea, we have never heard of such a thing before. I guess times are getting hard for them too. LOL

February 29, 2012

Wednesday 29~~~~The farm tour is this morning about 60 miles from here near El Centro, Calif. in the Imperial Valley. I fixed us a big breakfast of scrambled eggs with bacon, peppers, onion and cheese with biscuits. It was sure good, but it almost made us late for the farm tour we are going on. It is located in the southern low desert of California at 60 feet below sea level. It is the University of California Desert Research and Extension Center. The Desert Research and Extension Center is a large and complex research center that provides professional management, land, labor and facilities for agriculture and environmental studies. The Imperial Valley enjoys a year-round climate suitable for farming. The sun shines more in the Imperial Valley than it does any where else in the United States. It also averages more than 8 hours a day including the months of November and December. The average rainfall is three inches a year. November through March is considered the "rainy" season. The only reported snowfall occurred on December 13, 1932. Up to four inches of snow was reported. Imperial County has been one of the top ten agricultural counties in the Nation for the last fifty years. Due to the lack of rain fall, the valley is entirely dependent on the Colorado River for irrigation. The water from the river brings so much salt to the soil, it is a constant battle for the farmer to rid the soil of the salt. It is quite a process and I won't try to explain it. The number one crop is alfalfa, one third of the crops raised are alfalfa and most of it is shipped to Japan. This year round crop produces 9-11 cuttings per year, two ton per acre per cutting and the price this year is $265 per ton. Vegetables rank second. There are also more beekeepers per capita in the Imperial Valley than worldwide. This farm tour is open for anyone to go to, it costs $15 per person They give you a brief summary about where they will be taking you and what you can do. Everyone is given a bottle of water, a small plastic bag for fragile produce and a very large well constructed bag that would hold at least 20 # of potatoes. They have you ride in trailers with bales of alfalfa to sit on pulled by tractors. They take about 40 people per trip and the other 40 people go to a class on agriculture in this valley, the planting, irrigating, harvesting and every step they do in the processing of all the produce they grow and ship elsewhere. We were on the first wagon trip and they stopped along the way and told us what was growing in the fields and the different types of studies that are going on in each field. They raise Holstein cattle on this farm and they do real good because Holstein cattle can handle the heat of 105 to 125 degrees in the summer than any other breed of cattle and the change of temperature when Fall comes, that was one of the studies they learned.
The trailers stopped at the fields of cabbage, lettuce, white radishes (huge) the size if my wrist and over 12 inches long, they are real good in sandwiches they say. They have a study on Carrots in which they are growing them in different colors like White, Blue and a deep carrot color. You can pick as much as you want to of anything. We really like cabbage, so we picked a lot of it. We picked 6 heads of lettuce and a large bunch of butter lettuce, red lettuce and the green leaf. I filled my one gallon bag with Broccoli and Kent pulled up some nice small beets in his. They said to take all you want, as they have one more day of tours and it will go to waste. They took us back to the house (Yard) where they had lunch all ready for us. They fed us salad with every vegetable they grew in it I think. It was so good, they added to our salads as we walked through the line `1/2 cup of chopped ham, beets, black olives, chick peas and crunchy noodles. They make their own onion dressing and it was definitely the favorite of everyone. They gave us a pamphlet on the care of produce the recipes and other things. They had the best country music for entertainment while we ate. The other group went to the fields while we went to watch the movie of the farms operations and they gave away several prizes. I won a tee shirt!! When the second group came back, we all again met at the house (yard) where they had ice cream with all the toppings for us and more prizes. The farm workers brought in a pickup load of heads of lettuce and we were begged to take some home as they had to get rid of it. We took 3 more heads of lettuce to give away in the park. We were tired when we got home. so we picked up pizza to bring home. After we ate, I worked for along time cleaning all the produce we brought home. We gave away 3 heads of lettuce to our neighbors right away, they loved it! I cleaned and washed the loose leaf lettuce and bagged up some of the cabbage. We had so much fun, we would do it again. We learned so much about how they grow and harvest the food we buy in the stores every week.
The turn around time of produce from the field to the shipping truck averaged 4 hours. The pickers dress in white clothes with a hair net and face mask. Most of the produce is picked, prepared and boxed in the field ready for the trucks to take it to market.