Less windy, warmer, day of chores....

Our Location: Joshua Tree National Park BLM, South entrance, California


Sleeping on the sofa reminds me again why we need new seating/sleeping furniture in the living room. Riley took over my bedroom and I spent the night in the living room. The winds where extremely strong, gusting at 30 mph with steady winds in the 20 mph range. Many of the folks in the area had their slides in this morning when I went out for the sunrise. Many were also packing up before 7 am and heading out quickly. Not the norm for here even if they are just over nighters.

This morning's sun showing on the mountains across the Coachella Valley....

I will admit the Igloo did less dancing around with the big slides in, it was less noisy as well. However it was still very easy to hear the winds howl relentlessly through the night. I didn’t settle down to sleep until after midnight and awake at 5:30 am to the sounds of more wind, although not as loud and we weren’t shaking it any longer. 

The work day has begun, can you see the tiny big of sunshine that is showing over the mountain? The first rays are just barely there...

Outside for the sunrise it was cool but not cold, although the wind whistling up my jammies leg gave me the shivers. I didn’t walk around much, staying close to the Igloo and out of the wind. It was at this point I noticed everyone had slides in and many were hooking up or packing up. It didn’t take long for them to start their exits once daylight actual broke.

Octollio, also known as the Devil's Walking Stick. Reminds me of a very spikey dragon....

 
Back inside Miss Riley was awake and we debated about what to do. I checked the wind forecast and it was calling for much less wind, higher temperatures and blue skies. The wind was in fact dying down as we spoke. We opted to stay for at least one more night and decided to go ahead with the chores we had planned. 

A different Octollio tree but I love the brilliant red on that branch.

We put the slides back out and immediately noticed the rock and roll dancing was gone. Yeah!!! Put things back together and cleared off the table, which is where we piled everything that comes off the walls and usually goes on my bed or the sofa. 

The Octollio has some new jewelry....

Cleaned up, dressed, and enjoying our hot drinks while reading before starting the day. Reading while enjoying the windless sounds of the great outdoors was soothing this morning. Afterward we sorted laundry, dumped garbages, loaded the truck and headed out for a fun day of chores, chores, chores. 

Another day is almost done.....

First a spot to dump the trash, check. Next find a laundromat. Hmmmmm it’s not where it’s supposed to be, so on to the next one in the list. Way across Coachella to Indio’s Monroe Street. Laundromat found, check. Laundry washed, dried, folded, loaded back into the Dogsled, check. Filled with big dogs drinking bowl with some diesel priced at $3.59 per gallon. Not the best prices but the best I’ve seen here in California though. Filled tank, check. Now groceries. Of course we like Walmart for groceries. Prices are consistent and very reasonable. We needed a few other things as well though. Some we couldn’t find, no women’s shorts out on the racks yet, nor any capri’s either. However we did manage to find a calander as well as a small clip board and note pad, check, check. Groceries, check to the dance of over $150 USD. That’s a lot of groceries folks. 

Sunset as seen through some desert foliage.

We came straight home to the Igloo as it was already pushing 2 pm and we hadn’t had lunch yet. We opted to have a ‘fend for yourself’ day. I of course opted for a big green salad, and Riley opted for the chicken from Walmart. She can make a complete meal on just that chicken. She’ll snack on it all day and there will be nothing left tomorrow.

Sunset as seen through a desert bush....

After lunch we both read for the rest of the afternoon. I headed outside around 4:45 pm to catch the sunset. I did and it was a beauty. I wandered in various places while taking pictures. A number of rigs came in over the 45 minutes I was outside. I also called daughter Bradey to chat with her for a while.  We managed to get caught up on all the happenings in her life. We chatted for about 45 minutes and then I headed inside.

Old rusty barbed wire twirling in the sunset's rays....

Once inside I edited pictures, and started my post. So as you can see nothing exciting but we did accomplish a number of necessary chores today. So in that sense it was a very good day. The wind has pretty much stopped, the temperatures have warmed up significantly and we’re enjoying our last few days here at Joshua Tree National Park. 

Sunset through a Teddy Bear Cactus

Thanks for stopping by and visiting our little neighbourhood. I hope you enjoyed your visit. Feel free to leave a comment, I enjoy reading them very much. I hope you’ve had an excellent day doing whatever it was that got you through the day. 

Sunset through the spines of the same Teddy Bear Cactus..

A deep thoughtful sky tonight...

Until the next time…. take care, be safe,

Good night from Joshua Tree National Park.....

Deb