Baby, It's Hot Out There

 This past week has been unusually  hot and not a lot of wind.  The past number of days it has been +30C weather.  Occasionally, there was a whisper of rain but that was all it was - a whisper of 10 drops or so.  Mind you, this is why we consider ourselves so fortunate to enjoy these temps as many are not able to do so.

One day we were out for  walk and came across a group of seniors (55+) playing slow pitch and heard there was their championship game in a couple of days so we went to watch.   They played some really good ball and I had to marvel at their athleticism.  It sure was an enjoyable morning.

Back at our camp, one of the fellows was having a mural painted on the side of his travel trailer.  His theme for the project was Spam.  I am sure that many may have either not heard of Spam or had forgot all about it.   Spam is a brand of canned luncheon meat and has been sold since 1937.  There are numerous flavours of Spam products.  Why Spam - the owner of the trailer apparently loves this product and eats tons of it.  This photo show the progress of this mural.  This gal has been painting all week, in the hot sun, all day most days!!

In addition, he has created little flower pots from empty cans and hangs them on the side of his trailer with magnets.

Today we moved a bit further north again.  We found a spot, near a highway that hasn't a lot of traffic and particularly at night, and a fair bit of space.   It was nice while it lasted until 5 fifth wheel trailers pulled in.  They did make a circle, but the circle can not be very small when a couple of them are over 40 feet and the other three, slightly shorter, and all are towed by either a big truck, or bigger truck. 

They are very pleasant and unfortunately, one of them had a real stroke of bad luck.  They are all tow haulers, and when one of them went to remove his toy, the ramp malfunctioned. 

 Even if we no longer have a lot of space, we do have a great view.

I will close off this week with a spectacular sunset that was on display last night.

Until next week, take care everyone!!

If you would like to view any of these photos a bit better, just click on them and they will enlarge.

We are still at Lake Havasu City and looking forward to some nice warm weather.  This past week was rather cool, windy, cloudy, and even a bit of rain.  I know, I need not complain about cold weather because many of you would love to have been able to enjoy these temperatures.  But remember, that the weather is the one thing we all can complain about - too hot, too cold, too wet, too dry, too windy, and so on.  This week looks very promising for us.

The fireworks festival is over and once again there was quite a show.  We were able to just drive up one of the hills near us and we had a terrific view.  I will share a few photos that I took - the better ones I hope.  It is quite challenging to get a good photo at night with a phone camera - particularly if the phone is neither new nor has a great camera.

We took a drive over the Parker Dam (it is the deepest dam in the world) and along the west side of the Colorado river.  It's a pretty drive

and we were fortunate to see some wildlife.

As I have mentioned in the past, we often see interesting, and sometimes odd things.  On a recent walk, we came across a bowling ball hanging on a pin on a large concrete block. 

Down from us is a fellow with an old converted highway bus.  I did say it was old, and converted, but I did not way it was pretty!   One day he was up on the roof cleaning his solar panels.  Gerry casually wondered how he got up there as he did not see a ladder anywhere.  Well, he didn't need a ladder.

There are thousands of trails in the hills and mountains behind us.  With that, the area is teeming with 4x4 and/or off-road vehicles of all sizes, and shapes, and kinds.  Many are licensed and are used as transportation.  As we were driving down the highway, a couple of them passed us.

Whenever there is an ad for free food, Gerry likes to go and see what the business has to offer (plus free lunch).  Today our friend sent us a note that the local Jeep dealer was having a promotion.  Off we go although I am a bit apprehensive because the last time we went to one at an auto dealership, we came home with a Jeep.     Today was not such a day but Gerry did have an amazing hot dog - Chicago style.

This week SpaceX shot another rocket up, and since we don't follow it's schedule, it is always quite a surprise when it comes over the mountains.

We had a great week and I hope each and every one of you also had a great week.  Until next week, take care!!!

More Sun to Enjoy

 This week we spent another couple of hours driving to our new stop - Lake Havasu City, AZ.  It's been several years since we have spent much time here so decided it was time.

Early in the week, with fabulous weather, we decided that it would be a great day for a boat ride.  There is a casino across the lake and there is a ferry that shuttles folks back and forth.  There is our transportation for a boat ride.  We normally do not go into casinos as we feel that is much like tossing our coins away; however, they did offer $15 if you registered.  That we did and bonus - with our free $30, we had lunch, paid for our ride over, and even had a couple of dollars left over for a tip for the ferry crew.

  As we were waiting for the ferry, there was a coyote on the other side of the marina, watching us!

One thing about Lake Havasu City is their events - there is always something going on.  This week there were a couple of shows so we attended one - a tribute to Toby Keith.  The crowd definitely was not a younger crowd but they still had a lot of energy.  It was a good evening of entertainment.  Many women came in ready to commemorate this signature song - Red Solo Cup".

As always, I love the way people make changes and/or adjustments to work for them.  Sometimes it's for the comfort of their pets,

Love the doggie door out the slide

This cat can go and enjoy the ourdoors.

and sometimes it's for the convenience for themselves.

One way to get a good view without leaving home!

 This weekend is the big annual pyrotechnics show which showcases fireworks of all kinds and calibre and is certainly quite spectacular.  Last night started with a drone show that showcased the USA 250 years.  Some of the displays are amazing.

This show is on all weekend so there will be more to come!  That means we will spend the evening sitting up on hilltops for the best views.  Until next week, I hope you all take care!!!

North, South, and More

 This past week we went from north to south and turned around again.  Each year we fly home for a week when we visit our family, do some personal things, and then head back south.  We repeated that process this past week flying back to Palm Springs this past Wednesday.  Although the trip seems to be tiring, this past trip was likely one of the best, and less stressful, than most.  Our times were good, flights were mostly on time, and everything worked out great.  Since our grand daughter was able to drive us before school, we got to the airport in plenty of time.  We found an interesting aviation display made entirely of lego.

Since we got back to Palm Springs around supper time, the first thing we did was find something to eat.  And as per usual it was the usual "what do you want to eat", " I don't care, what would you like", and so on.  We decided on In N Out Burger for no specific reason.  The burgers were fine, the cost reasonable, but never have we seen such a crowd at a fast food restaurant.  The drive through  has about 12 cars in line, inside there was another line-up with 2 cashiers, and the kitchen was full of workers.  The parking lot was absolutely full whereas the other similar places nearby had 3 or 4 cars in the lot.   

People often ask us how long we are down fore.  Many, many years ago when we were young, we went on a trip with friends.  Our plan was to drive south until either half our time, or half our money was gone.  That is much the same again this year and we are at that point so it is time to start heading north.  We sadly said good-bye to our friends and headed out of town.  Unfortunately, Gene couldn't be in the picture but someone had to be behind the camera!

It's been a while since we have visited Quartzsite, AZ so we decided to see what has changed.  Well, not much but as usual, one comes across some interesting things.

There were quite a few people around but some vendors had already left, and a number of them were packing up to leave shortly.  It is after the RV show but there sure aren't many that are sticking around.  But there was no traffic on the roads either.  There is a new Terrible's service station in town.  In behind it is a Tesla charging station which is huge - it has 82 chargers.  That is in addition to the 33 chargers across and down the street.

The weather back home has moderated which makes everyone feel that perhaps spring is around the corner.  I hope everyone has a great week, and I'll be back next week!