Driving Around Newport

Terri and I drove around today to check out some possibilities for us to stay in the area when we come in September. The first place we stopped at did not accept pets, so we went on to the next, a mobile home park with several RV sites called Meadowlark. It's very close to Terri and Blake's house. The lady was very nice, and it would work, but the sites are very narrow.

We went on to check out Melville Pond Campground. It looked promising, but does not open until tomorrow noon, so we'll have to go back to look at the sites. Finally we drove across the Verrazano Bridge to Jamestown to check out Fort Getty Municipal Park. The RV sites have wonderful views of Narragansett Bay, and they are wide enough, but they're in an open grass field and not very level.

We also stopped by a thrift store and a used book store, where I picked up a copy of the Divine Secrets of the Ya Ya Sisterhood to read on the plane. I was on the verge of finishing the book Julie had given me, Eddie's Bastard by William Kowalski, a wonderful coming of age novel, which I passed on to Terri.
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Meadowlark MH and RV Park

Fort Getty Campground

Ken drove into Long Beach today to get his third epidural injection in his back. We are hoping that this series will help him feel better for a long time. He also stopped by the Garden Grove Elks Lodge to check out the RV site there. We are hoping to camp there next Sunday and Monday nights.

For supper tonight we had Terri's famous Mt. Ranier White Chili with salsa, sour cream, and Monterrey Jack cheese toppings. Molly had Miso soup, since she is now a vegetarian. We had mango and strawberry green salad.

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Newport

Boston was cold and very rainy this morning, so we drove around Boston Commons and checked out the Cheers Bar and Trinity Church, then headed to Terri and Blake's home in Newport.

Cheers Bar.

Trinity Church.

Along the way we stopped at the Fall River Outlet District, which turned out to be a disappointment. The outlets are located in various old mills, which are interesting, but many of the stores were closed or offered things like building materials that we didn't care about.

We stopped at a local brewpub for lunch and then went to the Navy commisary before heading home. Home is half of a duplex in a nice section of Newport. The house was built in 1865 and subdivided in 1920, so it has the grace and charm of an older home with high ceilings and parquet floors(along with some of the inconveniences, like few electrical outlets).

Only one of the original fireplaces remains a working fireplace, and Blake and Molly built a cheery fire to take some of the chill off the house.
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Terri and Blake roasting marshmallows.

Molly stays warm on the couch.

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Boston

This was the final morning of my visit to Flower Mound. Ed cooked a delicious breakfast of sausage and cheese and mushroom omelets, and I had one last chance to hug everyone and say goodbye at the airport.

Air travel is always tiring, and today was especially so. I left Dallas at 10:35 a.m. for Ronald Reagan Airport in DC, where I was scheduled for a 4-hour layover. That turned into more like a 5-hour layover, since there was dense fog in Boston, but it was a real delight to see Terri and Blake and Molly after nearly two years. We are staying at a hotel near the airport and plan to go into Boston for a bit of sightseeing in the morning before heading to their home in Newport, RI.

Ken got together with Rebecca and Cathy, but their time together was shorter than planned because Cathy had a sore throat and wasn't feeling well. After 10 minutes of Karate class the Sensei suggested that Cathy might want to come back when she was feeling better.

We stopped at Wendy's for supper. I had a grilled chicken sandwich and a side salad and a bite of Molly's chocolate shake. It all hit the spot.

Kelley had her two bottom wisdom teeth removed today. Ed and Julie took her some soup to help in her recovery.
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Play Day

Today was a bit of a lazy day. In the morning Julie and Sam and I went for a four-mile walk through the park with the dogs. (Well, actually, Sam rode, and toward the end, fell asleep). We read books and played games and sang silly songs. Kelley came over to hang out for a while, but then she had to go work on her project for school.

Ken went to Coastline Cover Company in Rancho Cucamonga today and ordered a bicycle bag to protect our Electras from the elements. We hope it will fit, since the Electras have a longer than normal wheelbase, but the company seems confident it will. We'll find out when it's ready next week.

For dinner Edward fixed red beans and rice with spicy andouille sausage and shrimp. It was delicious, but the sausage was a bit too spicy for some.

Tomorrow I'll be heading for Boston, but along the way I have a four-hour layover at Reagan International Airport. Terri and Blake and Molly are coming to Boston to pick me up, and we'll be staying in a hotel overnight and sightseeing on Sunday. Terri's bringing along a winter coat for me to wear.
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The Main Event

Kelley came down from Denton to have supper with us tonight. Ed grilled apple chicken sausages and made Yukon Gold mashed potatoes and broccoli. I made a salad to round out the meal. Afterwards we all went to the Main Event, an entertainment venue somewhat similar to Dave and Busters. We all bowled, including Cate (when it was her turn, side rails popped up to block the gutters). Kelley was the high scorer, not surprising since she has taken college bowling classes and bowls regularly. Then we played some of the arcade games with the kids.

Cate bowls

Julie and Sam

Ed with Cate and Sam

Julie and Kelley

Earlier we played outside and Cate rode her bike. She needs a larger one, which she assures me she'll get when she is 5 (her birthday is coming up April 15). She and a friend, Anika, played hopscotch and drew pictures with sidewalk chalk, while Kelley and Sam blew bubbles.

Ken did the laundry today and located the heated swimming pool. He said that Sweetie is still having problems with her back legs.
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Circus Mouse and Space Faces

Today Cate taught me how to play Circus Mouse. The goal is to collect treat cards like peanuts and candy apples by navigating around a board with a square grid using a "mousehole" (a rectangular cardboard mask several squares wide with a hole in the center). As long as you can see cheese or treats through the mouse hole, you're safe and can continue, but if a cat appears, your turn ends. Fortunately I guess you run away from the cat and survive to move again your next turn.

We also played Space Faces, an ingenious game that requires finding an alien in a crowd that has the specified color of face, eyes, nose, and mouth. The colors are determined by shaking up a plastic container and letting colored balls fall into the marked holes. It's surprisingly difficult to find the alien with the purple face, green eyes, red nose, and purple mouth among the crowd of aliens! The idea is to find and "rescue" the specified alien and then place a plastic alien in your spaceship.

It was rodeo day at school, so Cate dressed up like a cowgirl.


I also got to watch Sam, who is in perpetual motion, as he played with his toys and with the puppies.

Meanwhile, in California, Ken called RV repair shops to arrange for the repair of our awning. A part will need to be ordered, so we'll be delayed at least a day in leaving for our trip north along the coast. He also went by Coastline Covers in Rancho Cucamonga to buy a bicycle bag. He had to order one, since they didn't have one in stock. He reported that the sun had come out and the wind had calmed, so he was enjoying sunny 80 degree weather (his favorite kind).

Chris called during the day to report that their purchase of the duplex had fallen through because of problems with the financing and another offer being made the same time theirs was. So they are back to looking.

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Travel to Dallas

Today was finally the day for my flight to DFW to see Edward and Julie and Cate and Sam, and my older granddaughter, Kelley. I flew out in the afternoon, and the flight was uneventful. As Ed says, that's a good thing... We were delayed by half an hour, but that's pretty much par for the course. I got to hug Cate and Sam and watch Cate jump through her hula hoop before they went off to bed.

The wind was still blowing this morning, so we were glad to have the stabilizer jacks down. The weather is supposed to improve in Victorville. The Dallas area is cooler, but still okay (except for some forecast rain). But when I fly to Boston, on Saturday, it looks like I'll be shivering and holding my umbrella!.

This morning we worked on clearing our black tank valve. The Excel service manager, Jack Yenne, suggested that we try flushing it with lots of clean water, in the hope that if the valve was obstructed, that would wash the problem away. We are hopeful that the plan worked, but meanwhile, as usual, we had some complications. First, the joint between the two sewer hoses came apart (yuck!). It took us a while to get the clamp on properly and tight enough to hold. Then when we went inside we heard a funny humming noise in the bedroom, which we tracked to the pipes under the sink. It turned out that the Y to which we had attached our flushing hose had not completely closed it off, so water was continuing to flow into the black tank. We drained that again and made sure the shutoff was complete, so now we are hoping not to have any more problems on that score.

We still have to contact A&E (Dometic) about getting a warranty repair on the awning. Always something.....
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Tehachapi Travel

This morning we all packed up to leave the Kern County Fairgrounds and return home (or in our case, to move our home to the Victorville area). We traveled across California Highway 58 through the Tehachapi Mountains and into the Mojave Desert. The scenery was varied and beautiful, from snow covered peaks and green slopes to Joshua Trees and sand.

When we set up camp, we experienced the dreaded sewer leakage--evidently the shutoff valve on our black tank is stuck open, so that's another warranty issue to take up with Excel. Hopefully it will be relatively easy to fix, but it was certainly a mess to clean up. High winds have been buffeting Venture, but we hope the weather will turn calmer and warmer.

Tomorrow I will fly from Ontario Airport to DFW to visit my son Edward and his family and my granddaughter Kelley who is a junior at North Texas in Denton. I haven't seen Cate and Sam since last October, so I'm sure they've grown a lot.

Ken set up the VuQube, and so far is happy with the ease of setup and the performance. We're concerned about security--it would be so easy for someone to walk off with it (even though it would do them no good without the unique remote control).
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Die-Hard Dancers

The last dancing of the Fiesta found a smaller crowd of die-hard dancers in the Advanced hall enjoying the calling of Bob Baier. We danced with Dennis and Cheryl, John and Margie, Ed and Marlyn, Wes and Jenske, John and Peggy, and Jim and Pat, among others. For half the tips, Ken sat out and rested his back and I found other partners, including Pat (since Wally wasn't up to dancing).

Wally had a VuQube that he wanted to sell, and Ken had been looking at them at Camping World. We struck a deal, so now Ken has an alternative to our DirecTV tripod and dish. We hope it will be easier to deploy.

We had the rest of the day to regroup and visit with the remaining campers in our group. Dennis and Cheryl decided to stay over until Monday, since the Tejon Pass was experiencing high winds, which are dangerous for high-profile vehicles. They invited us over to play games, and we played their new Diamond Edition Scrabble game, which has some very nifty features.

After the Scrabble game, we played Rummikub, and then went home to cook dinner.

We all got together for dinner, with everyone bringing their own dishes to Evans' fifth wheel so we could share some camaraderie, and later a game of Farkel.

Chris called during the game to tell me about a new house in Portland he is thinking of buying.

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Bakersfield Fiesta

We are attending the 43rd annual Bakersfield Fiesta, a regional square dance festival, which we have attended for several years, since 1998 (although not in 2008). Dancing began at 9:00 this morning, with A-2 called by Darryl Lipscomb. We've been dancing to Darryl's calling in the Rio Grande Valley, so we were glad to see him here. In the afternoon we danced to Bob Baier and Mike Seastrom. The "Valley people" were there (Laurie and Barry and Myra and Marshall), from the San Fernando Valley. They are Romney's Stars dancers--Romney calls all over Southern California, it seems.

This evening we joined over 65 Rogues club and class members for dinner at the Cactus Valley Mexican Restaurant, beloved of Rogues because they reserve the banquet room for us . . . and make excellent margaritas. We had Scampi ala Mexico City. The shrimp were good, but the sauce was not quite what we expected.

The staff kept us well supplied with chips and salsa while the group assembled.

The Ramblin' Rogues filled the room.

The evening's festivities began with a grand march in the main hall, and the first tip was mainstream so that everyone could join in. We danced in the mainstream hall with the class members for a tip, and then we went to the plus hall, where we danced an all-boy, all-girl square before dancing with some of last year's Rogues class. We finished the evening in the A-2 hall with Darryl Lipscomb. One of the couples we danced with was Les and Carol Heims from San Diego. We meet them only at festivals and weekends, and they are one of our favorites, but they spend most of their time in the challenge hall.

For breakfast we had French toast with fresh strawberries and whipped cream, with turkey smoked sausage. Someone anonymously donated some home grown grapefruits, dropped in a bag on our picnic table, so we had some for breakfast, along with cantaloupe and orange. We had lunch on the "patio" with our friends and shared some of Wes and Jenske's delicious Slightly Seasoned 8 Grain Crisps, which they get at Costco.

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Dancing Begins

We joined several of the Rogues for a visit to Rosemary's Creamery this afternoon. Ken and I shared a large hot fudge banana split (yummy ice cream and whipped cream, but the fudge was not very fudgy or warm). On the way home we stopped at Camping World, as did Wes and Jenske and their passengers Dennis and Marlyn. We got a propane gauge, so now Ken can keep track of how full (or empty) the propane tanks are.

Rosemary's has delicious ice cream and serving sizes that are more than large enough

At Rosemary's the RVing Rogues ran into the rest of the Rogues in town for the Fiesta

Larry and Livia Caruana arrived in their Coachman van conversion, rounding off the Rogues camping group at six rigs.

Some of the Rogues went to the Hungry Hunter, but we decided to eat at home. We had smoked tuna quesadillas with homemade tomato broccoli soup. Then we got ready for the evening square dance. Bob Baier was calling in the A-2 hall. We spent some time in the Mainstream hall with Ken Bower calling. The Rogues have 20 students here, and the club members turned out in force to support them on their first square dance weekend.

Afterwards we went to the Hampton Inn for the traditional Rogues afterparty. Someone down the hall complained about the noise, so we had to try to keep it to a dull roar.

By the time we got to bed it was after 1 a.m.--definitely after our bedtime!
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The Rogues Arrive

Four other Rogues couples arrived and set up camp across from us this afternoon. We were able to get a temporary utility panel set up so they could all plug in. We put some picnic tables together to form a patio for the group and proceeded to socialize. Tom and Judy Kalen are in their Winnebago Sightseer motorhome, Dennis and Cheryl Johnson are in their Winnebago Brave motorhome, and Wes and Jenske Johnson are in their Sea Breeze Limited motorhome. We were glad to see Ed and Marlyn Evans arrive in their Alpenlite fifth wheel so that Venture has some company. The group also has three dogs: Sweetie, Peaches, and Bear. Bear is a big high-spirited golden retriever who at 11 months old still has puppy energy and playfulness.

The other Rogues RVs lined up across the walk/road from our Excel.

The Johnson, Johnson, and Evans RVs.

This morning we did our laundry at a nice little laundromat south of the fairgrounds.
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On to Bakersfield

We moved to the Kern County Fairgrounds in Bakersfield today, to be ready for the 2009 Bakersfield Fiesta square dance weekend that starts Friday. When we arrived we found our friend Ron George who helped us locate Venture near him and several other friends, including Bill and Ruth, Dale and Norma, Tom and Barbara, Jim and Pat, and Wally and Pat. Bill climbed on the roof to trim away some branches, using his custom made tree saw.

Friends helped us park Venture safely under the trees

The RVs are positioned a lot like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle

Then we located some hookups in the area across the walkway, which we taped off to save for our Ramblin' Rogues friends who will arrive tomorrow.

For supper we had cabbage slaw and leftovers from Marino's (yum).
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A Great Lunch

We picked a small family owned Italian restaurant, Marino's on Bellflower, for a lunch date with my former colleagues at Paramount Petroleum Corporation. Roger Graves (my former boss), Marty Duran (my replacement), Hilda Medina and Tony Paglaniwan (both from the Training department where I started at PPC) joined Ken and me for a wonderful reunion with old friends. Unfortunately some of the PPC folks were unable to make it, and we missed them. The lunch was delicious, and we had a chance to catch up on what's happened in everyone's lives in the last year. Roger is looking to buy a fifth wheel for family vacations, so we shared some of the things we've learned about selecting a good trailer. Hilda's kids are still growing and doing well, and Tony is looking forward to retirement in a couple of years.

Ken and I shared an order of cannelloni and one of spaghettini with sausage. The salad came with a house creamy Italian dressing and included several varieties of beans.

After lunch Ken went on to his appointment for a second steroid injection in his back, and I had my regular screening mammogram (almost as much fun as a dentist visit). Then we went to Trader Joe's, one of our favorite stores, and one that is not found in most of the US. In the parking lot we were accosted and asked for a donation, so we felt right at home in LA. Then we got on the freeway to return to our camp site. Several miles of the 91 were stop and go, but we made it home before 5 p.m.
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Quiet Day

Today was a pretty quiet day--we slept in and went for a bike ride around the park. Ken also decided to try to fix the bathroom fan, which has been getting noisier and noisier. We are not naturally terribly handy about these things, but it was driving us crazy. When we took the cover off, it was apparent that the plastic frame had broken in two places. After we finally figured out how to get it down from the ceiling, Ken glued it and I taped it. We were quite pleased at our handiwork, but we also took photos of the problem to send to our manufacturer to get the fan replaced under warranty, since we know our fix will be temporary.

Tonight we went to Romney's workshop and danced with our friends Wes and Jenske, John and Sandy, Jack and Jill, John and Margie, Jesse and JoAnn, and lots more.

For lunch we had leftover red beans and sausage on rice, and for supper Black and Gold Rice and Beans.
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Family Time

Rebecca, Cathy, and Jerry Jr. came over and spent the afternoon with us. After a lunch of grilled burgers, the kids had fun with their kite and some rubber-band powered airplane models. We joined them in playing catch with their Nerf football.

Food fought with model planes for space on the table.

Rebecca and Cathy getting the kite ready to fly.

Shadow kept an eye on everything.

Holding the kite off the groud helped it catch the wind.

Cathy has a good throwing arm!

Lee had her share of the fun.

Cathy finished the afternoon with a ride on Ken's bike before going home.

Ken grilled burgers, and we had strawberry shortcake for dessert.
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Planning

Terri wanted to know more exactly when we plan to be in Rhode Island this fall, so we sat down with our calendars and maps and did some research on the web so we could put some dates on our arrival and departure from New England. We also took a stab at penciling in some destinations on the way to Portland. This is an ongoing effort. At one point we thought we would just wander as free spirits, but it's turned out that we have chosen to make plans to visit family and friends and to travel with friends, which has meant that we do have some target dates constraining our wanderings.

Ken has DeLorme Street Atlas on his laptop, and he's been working to add custom data to the maps and to plan and save routes. I mainly use Google maps, and today I installed Google Earth and figured out how to export a KML file from Google maps and open it in Google Earth, for a more complete view of a proposed route.

I also spent some time backing up my files and creating a backup image of my entire computer.
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Traveland

We got up this morning, showered, dressed, and Wes prepared breakfast: fried eggs, bacon, toast, and cantaloupe. The eggs were beautifully done, with a bit of steaming at the end to cook the white without hardening the yolks. After breakfast we took Peaches and Sweetie for a walk to the park and around the neighborhood.

The Adventurers campout is this weekend in Barstow, so Wes and Jenske had their Sea Breeze motorhome parked in front of the house and ready to go. Ed and Marlyn came by with their Alpenlite fifth wheel, and they caravaned to Barstow. We headed out with Sweetie, and on the way decided to stop at Traveland to look at RVs (we're always up for looking at RVs....). We saw a couple of Montego Bay fifth wheels (made by K-Z) that had some features we really liked--especially the Carefree power awning with automatic wind and rain sensor.

Tonight we had pizza for supper, with salad and tapioca pudding with pineapple. The pizza crust was a bit thinner and crispier than I usually make, but we both enjoyed it a lot.
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Ramblin' Rogues Class

Wes and Jenske invited us to come down to Mission Viejo early and have dinner with them before going to the Rogues class tonight (so we could avoid the rush hour traffic jams). We made the trip at 2 p.m. in about 45 minutes, and it could easily have taken twice that if we'd tried to arrive at 7 p.m. Wes was going to grill some salmon, but the barbecue grill didn't cooperate. Unfazed, he baked the salmon in the oven with lemon juice and herbs, and it turned out great. Jenske fixed fresh green beans, and Ken made the salad. We had a piece of the banana bread Lee had made, so the meal was prepared by committee, and everything was delicious.

Since it's near St. Patrick's day, Jenske had called to remind us to wear green to the class, so we got in the spirit of the season. Many of the dancers must have had a touch of the Irish--lots of green could be seen.

We saw friends we hadn't seen in a year, and met some new club members and students.

Lee showed signs of having a good time.

After the class, we adjourned to the pizza parlor for the afterparty--and to celebrate Ed Evans' birthday. It turned out to be near Ken and Barbara Rohdes' birthdays too, so we got to sing twice (both times in the "key of 'ell" as Ed remarked). Ken and Barbara had been in an A-1 class with us and the Evans in 1998, and we remembered some good old times. They are now Rogues club members.

We spent the night with Wes and Jenske, too, so we wouldn't have to drive home late (or worry about having a glass of beer). We also got a couple of loads of laundry done. We are so blessed with good friends.
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Long Beach and Back Again

This morning we both had 9 a.m. appointments in Long Beach, so we again braved the commuter traffic on the freeways. Fortunately we qualified for use of the carpool lane for at least part of the journey, and traffic was relatively light, so we actually arrived early. We got home in time for lunch, which was much better for Sweetie.

We are planning to purchase a solar system for Venture from AM Solar while we are in Oregon. They're located near Eugene, south of Portland, so we made an appointment for May 19-20, just before we are due to arrive in Chris's area. We talked with Deb Holder, one of the owners of AM Solar, today. One problem we'll face is relocating our battery bank, since the current battery compartment will hold only two batteries, and we'll need at least four. We feel confident that Deb and Greg will help us design a system that will fit our needs.

For supper tonight we had fish tacos made with Tilapia filets, with lime mayo sauce. I made tapioca pudding, which we had with fresh pineapple for dessert. Tapioca pudding was one of my favorites when I was a kid, and I was always happy when my mom made it Later we played a couple of games of Farkel. Read more!

Busy Day

This morning we got up early, packed our breakfast and lunch, and set out for some doctor and dentist appointments. First we both saw Dr. Pepitone, our internist, for our annual checkups. Then Lee visited a former dentist to see about getting a broken crown replaced, and in the afternoon, Ken spent three hours getting prepped for a new bridge. By the time we got home it was late and we were very tired of sitting in traffic--and Sweetie was very glad to see us.

For dinner we had leftover meatloaf and baked potatoes, fortunately an easy prep. I had done a lot of shopping during Ken's appointment, so it took a while to find places for everything.
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Wonderful Mission Viejo Park

This morning Wes and Jenske took us to the Murray Center in Mission Viejo, where the Rogues hold their classes, to show us the new addition and remodeling. The center is quite impressive, and the park surrounding it is very inviting. We walked around and enjoyed the landscaping--and played on the playground.

Wes watches as Jenske and Ken play at the park.

After lunch we said goodbye to Wes and Jenske and Peaches (temporarily) and moved Venture back to Prado Regional Park to stay for the next 9 days.

We also went to the Mission Viejo Elks Lodge to talk with the secretary about getting our newsletter sent to our Texas address, and we ended up changing to only the electronic bulletin.

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A Published Photographer

We're published! Our forwarded mail arrived today from the Escapees RV Club. With it was the latest edition of their member magazine, and a surprise. The cover picture is one of Ken's pictures from last summer. They sent us some copies of the cover, a nice check, and a nice credit in the magazine:



Nothing says spring better than a beautiful field of flowers. The cover photograph was taken by Kenneth Marks #99570 at Overlook Park on Somerville Lake, north of Brenham, Texas, which is not far from Escapees headquarters in Livingston. A visit to both areas in spring, or any time of the year, is worth the trip.
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Practice and Pizza (and Wine)

This morning we went to visit Ed and Marlyn for a lovely brunch, and we had a chance to catch up with them and talk about plans for the Experimental Aircraft Show in Oshkosh in August.

Then we all went to John and Sandy Hill's house for Practice and Pizza. Class and club members gather to go over calls that have been learned recently. The bonus is that after all that hard work, everyone shares pizza and beverages. John and Sandy's home is perfect for the gathering, since they have a finished floor in the garage that will hold three squares, and they set up a shade canopy on the driveway to accommodate another square. Their patio is perfect for partying with friends.

Dancers being put through their paces by John and Dan

Rogues class and club members relax after practice

Ken and Lee enjoy the pizza

Gail and Dan Clairmont, class committee members

Sandy and Heidi

Wine and smiles

It's been really wonderful being back with our old friends in Orange County. It almost feels like we just left--everyone's lives are so full. We're glad of a chance to meet and dance with the new class members and the graduates from last year's class that we had not yet met. John and Sandy's re-do of their home is dramatic, quite a change from their earlier more pastel color scheme. They've done a great job.
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Rogues Anniversary Dance

Today we packed up our rig and moved to Wes and Jenske's house in Mission Viejo. They had generously invited us to stay with them for the weekend. We parked Venture on Artemia in front of the Johnsons' house, and Wes ran an extension cord out for us to hook up and run our refrigerator.

We are lucky enough to be in town for the Rogues 43rd anniversary dance, so we had a chance to visit with lots of our Rogues friends and get updated on some of the news. Jerry Haines introduced us to his fiance, Margaret.

Jenske baked some delicious chicken breasts for dinner, and we saved the leftover juices for Sweetie, who loves them on her dog food.
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Indoor Day

Most of the day was overcast and chilly, so we devoted ourselves to working on our financial planning (dull but it has to be done). We walked outside for a few minutes when the sun came out, but it was too cool in the shade on our patio for comfort (we're spoiled), so we went back inside.

Our friend Marlyn Evans called. They've just returned from a trip to Africa which she said was wonderful. We're looking forward to getting together with them and with our other friends and just catching up. Tomorrow we're going to the Rogues dance, and Wes and Jenske are planning a party on Saturday, so we'll get to see lots of our friends this weekend. It will be good to reconnect after a year's absence, though we have such busy lives that as Marlyn said, it hardly seems like a whole year since we started on our journey.

We signed up for a free online storage site called IDrive to backup our Quicken data. We're happy to have some completely offsite storage, but it took 20 minutes to upload the data, since our satellite link has a very slow upload speed.

For supper we had turkey kielbasa sliced and sauteed with onions and peppers and potatoes.
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Taxes

Today we filed our final California income tax return as part year residents for 2008. The best part is that we're getting a refund. I also filed my mom's trust final federal return showing the sale of her condo last year. After talking with three different IRS tax law representatives, I am thoroughly confused, but trust that this filing will really be final. It shows no taxes due, since the condo lost value after Mom's death.

It's been overcast most of the day and sprinkled on an off, but we got in a bike ride this afternoon. We just explored the campground and the park. Even on a weekday afternoon, there were people fishing along the banks of the little lake. It's stocked with rainbow trout every week now. We also saw horses calmly standing around the equestrian center, apparently not confined.



One man chose a peculiar place to fish.









This evening we watched the movie Patton again, inspired by our visit to the Patton museum.

For lunch I made some delicious soup, using some veggie broth I had frozen earlier, tomatoes, garbanzos, green beans, a bit of adobo chili and sauce, and some leftover veggie chili and some spaghetti noodles. It came out flavorful and filling, and we had fresh pineapple with yogurt and fresh lemonade.

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Healthcare

We started out the day by getting up early and hurrying to Long Beach for Ken's appointment with his dentist to have his bridge checked. It turns out that it will need to be replaced and extended, so we're facing more dental appointments for that. Then we hurried over to another doctor's office to get Ken's back injection.

We've spent more time racing around freeways since we arrived in the LA area than we have for a year. We're struck by the frenetic pace and congestion, in contrast with the lower key lifestyle of the fulltime RVer.

This afternoon Ken was ready to take it easy for a bit, and we sat on our patio watching the ground squirrels with our binoculars. There's a large open area in front of our campsite that seems to be home to an impressive number of squirrels.

For breakfast we had a new cold cereal for us, from Costco: pecan and cranberry. For lunch we ate leftover spaghetti and green beans. For supper we had meatloaf made with Italian seasoned ground turkey, baked potato and sweet potato, and broccoli, with salad.
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Romney's Stars

Tonight we went to Romney's Monday night A-2 workshop at Mel's Place. It felt like coming home with all our old friends welcoming us and dancing with them to Romney's calling. We've missed both the friends and the Romney dancing over the last year, so it was a real delight to have this chance to reconnect.

We were glad to have a low-key day after the stressful travel day yesterday. Ken was unsure earlier in the day if he'd be able to dance, but some rest and ibuprofen helped, and he only sat out one tip, which I danced with Joy.
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Quartzsite to Chino

We had a 220 mile drive from our campsite at Quartzsite to Prado Regional Park in Chino, CA. That's a bit more than we usually prefer to travel, and we estimated it would take us about 6 hours. On the way we made a rest stop at Chiriaco Summit, CA, where we found the General Patton Memorial Museum. What first caught our eye was the large array of old tanks, and then the more than lifesize statue of General Patton. We decided that the museum looked interesting, and we ended up spending more time there than we anticipated.

Patton Museum

Then it took us a while to find a grocery store and stock up, so it was after 4 p.m. local time (8 hours after our departure from Quartzsite)that we finally arrived at Prado. We were both ready to be there much earlier!

The park is quite attractive, and the campsites are large, with large concrete patios, concrete fire pits, and nice aluminum picnic tables. After a long, stressful day, we watched a Tom Selleck movie on TV, but neither one of us actually saw the whole thing, since we kept drifting off!

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