We nailed ourselves down…

 

Our Location:

Road Runner BLM, Quartzsite, Az

If the blog looks blurry it’s due to the wind shaking the Igloo. The winds have been relentless for 24 hours and we are looking at another 10 hours at least. The winds are coolish, out of the north, and make it uncomfortable to be outside. It has been partially sunny with temps hovering around 70-72 F/21-22 C during the day, around 50 F/ 10 C over night. 

Three views of this beaten up Saguaro.

On Saturday while we were continuing our resting from the day before, I noticed a very big, shiny black truck pulling into our yard, our friends from Ontario came to visit. Bill, Patsy and Mr. Gibbs all climbed out and visiting commenced. Time slipped by so quickly as it does with friends, we have no idea where the couple of hours went. Soon our guests were climbing  back into BB and heading off. We will visit some more before we leave the area.

Not the best photo but you get to see their happy faces!

Sunday morning we were up and headed off to Parker for groceries and took only cash as we have had so much trouble with the card machines in Walmart there. In fact the couple ahead of us were having trouble trying  to use their card, she held the card with two hands while  he punched in the pin, it was the only way it would work. Cash payment had no issue! 

It is easy to see two of them are related.

Deb D, I looked down and found this ancient being at my feet.

I’ve been in touch with folks back home, Dad, sister, SIL Barb. All is well, rain is in the forecast for a number of days. Jason and Leah’s house is moving right along, it sounds as if a move in date is coming closer. We are excited for them!

Can you see the sleeping Indian?

1- forehead
2- nose
3- chin

The road to Parker is vastly improved with a new surface most of the way. Kuen Street here in Q is also vastly improved but Bill informed me it was fixed last spring, which we didn’t know.

The road to Parker.

We always like to this RR car!

As I typed this I thought I could see a dog running loose but I think it may have been coyote, a black tipped tail was visible and no one was visible in the area.

Taken from inside the Igloo, he is definitely a coyote.

Thanks for stopping by.

Until next time…

Take car, stay safe,

Deb

Neighbours, errands.....

Our Location: AZ 95, near Palm Canyon, AZ

A busy day yesterday as we had errands we wanted to run and of course we didn't listen to our own good advice and the advice of others that commented on the blog a number of days ago. We had to make a run to the transfer station north of Q to get rid of our accumulated trash and so we continued on to Parker. Yes, yes, I can see you all shaking your heads and going tsk, tsk, you silly women. Okay, you are all correct, it was a mistake but oh well we accomplished our goals.  I also managed to chat with my dad for a few minutes to assure him all is fine and that we have company with us for a few days.

Yep, we arrived home yesterday to see the Stinger Bee sitting comfortably in the yard. 

 The sun this morning over the Kofa Mountains.

The stores were busy and the shelves pretty much picked over but we still managed to get most of things we wanted and it was an interesting shop. I managed to chat with a woman named Rhonda, a bartender in Salome who was a treat to chatter with for a few minutes. She explained how it's soon time for the locals to take over again, the 'visitors' should be getting ready to pack up and head off in another direction. Or at least that is going to be the opinion in a few weeks, when those still here get cranky due to heat and being in one area too long. 

 This road runs not far behind us, goes north to south. 

I walked way back toward those small black hills on the right today. 

 I got closer and closer but was stopped by a deep wash with lots of signage and so I turned around and came back home.

We managed to grab a pizza at Dominos for lunch as it was Riley's request. Riley is one of the easiest people to get along with about many things. You see yesterday was Riley's 28th birthday and it was her request for lunch. She didn't want anything else, just some good pizza for lunch. She was happy, which made me happy. She's such a treat to have along with me and I've very fortunate to have her with me. Happy Birthday to my youngest daughter. 

Lots of saguaros back there but that bright line of green was as far as I went. The wash is very deep.

I think he's waving, don't you? 

Very green out here south of Q.

Back home we turned up the road to the Igloo and noticed that our new neighbours had indeed arrived and set up. The Stinger Bee was parked as pretty as you please and those wonderful folks known to write the blog Celebrating the Dance were sitting out enjoying the sunshine and the warmth.  Yep, Deb and Tom were expected and had arrived. We enjoyed the afternoon sitting in the sun with wonderful company. 

I was intrigued by the look of this saguaro. 

 

Being Canadian my first thought would have been beaver but we all know that's not so.

This small growth will some day be an arm.

 

Riley and I both started the morning with a walk. In opposite directions. Mine was to the west and the mountains we see out the window and Riley's was east toward AZ 95. I walked along enjoying the views and finding that not far from the rigs all signals completely disappears. It's very odd that we have internet on the phones that works, text messaging works but the phone will not call out. Oh well, we are still able to connect with the rest of the world and that is what matters. 

 I could see this guy far off in the distance.

Definitely a bird making a very large nest in that saguaro. 

 

 I just could not get there.

The winds picked up and we pulled in the big slide for a while this afternoon. Riley opted out of Happy Hour today,  the rest of us enjoyed the partial sun but around 6 pm we all headed in doors. Too cool with the sun behind the horizon. 

We all need a little help from our friends. 

 

 It fell or grew right between the two arms of the saguaro.

 As you can see, it's definitely not helping the saguaros either.

So there you have it folks, another wonderful couple of days here in the desert. Thanks for stopping by, I hope you all had a fantastic day. 

 He has a number of arms but none on that one side, however plenty on all the other sides.

 It is such a beautiful view. 

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

Deb

 

Long day, new chairs, funny signs....

Our Location: Saddle Mountain BLM, Tonopah, AZ

 

 

I was awake around 6 am this morning, but I didn't feel like getting up, but I couldn't go back to sleep either, instead I just read blogs, commented and basically caught up with the folks that I consider to be friends and their 'doings' yesterday. 

 

This is the first sign of the sun I caught this morning as I stepped out....

 

Shortly after 7:25 am I was out of bed, camera in hand and outside trying to catch the sunrise. Not much of a show but it was coolish outside and oh so very quiet. Very little noise, not even birds chirping. I knew we had a busy day and so didn't linger overly long snapping pictures. 

 

I love the trail on the left of the picture...it must be from an airplane....

 

Back inside we had our hot drinks, gathered the garbage, and empty water jugs and all the things we needed for our trip to Parker. Outside, first we removed the hitch, piled the pieces of the old loveseat into the box, used a cargo net, bungees and a rope to ensure it wouldn't go anywhere and headed off toward the roadway. 

The sun was just starting to peek over....can you see the ray as it's starting to show over the bottom middle part?

We headed west on W Courthouse Road, and wound our way to Salome Road/Hwy, further on we connected to US 60 and finally on to Hwy 72. Ironically Hwy 72 splits and one (which is also called Plamosa Road) goes to Bouse, the other to the lights at the junction of AZ 95 and Hwy 72. This upper road is much closer to Parker. This route is also much less like a roller coaster and just as scenic. 

 

This is the old sofa in pieces outside...

 

All along the country side I've seen signs and road painted signs that say watch for cows, or watch for cattle, there are numerous cattle guards around the area and still today as we're driving along we witnessed a dead cow on the roadside. It looked like it had been rolled over out of the way as stones littered the top side of this poor dead beast. As we drove along we noticed the carcasses of at least 2 more pulled off and left rot along the road side. I imagine this black cow was hit at night but if notified right away I'm sure it could have been butchered and not such a huge waste. One was bad enough but that was 3 carcasses that we could see, left for the carrion at the roadside which of course causes it's own issues. I just think it's a shame that something couldn't have been done to offer this meat to a less fortunate family that I'm sure would have been happy to come and take it. It's what often happens in Ontario with deer that are fresh kills. Anyway, the point is....be careful out there folks, those cows are around and they make a very big dent in your vehicle when you hit 'em!!!

We left the back cushions overnight for HRH Miss Kitty to sleep on as she often sleeps on the sofa...

We arrived in Parker around the noon hour but had a few stops to make before we picked up our new chairs. I felt much better leaving the old sofa in pieces in the back of the Dogsled while we did our business than I would about leaving two new boxed chairs. We needed a few little things and some groceries at Walmart. That completed we headed out for water and fuel. The water was 5 gallons for $1. You just can't beat that price. Fuel was $2.95 per gallon and I was happy with that. From there it was on to the RV Marine Store for a drop off of the old sofa and pick up of the new chairs. 

Just after we witnessed the Passmore Gas sign, we came to this one.....

Inside we were happy to find no issues with leaving the old sofa parts in the dumpster or in the back of the store if the dumpster was full. So first things first, we dumped the parts and pieces. Moved the  Dogsled to the back of the store and proceeded to load these two big boxes. We had them both in the truck box but they needed some juggling around to get the gate closed. I have a big box in the back and it had to be moved to allow the gate to close. As we're in the middle of doing that someone came out to help load the chairs. We smiled, sweated and thanked them but continued to remodel the back of the Dogsled. Once we had the boxes all cargo netted, bungee corded and roped in we were good to go. Just to the edge of town and I realized they hadn't given me my receipt. Back we went to the store and the nice fella there gave us the receipt and when I questioned if they were in fact the right chairs, as it stated 'recliner' on both the chair and the receipt instead of swivel rocker recliner, he pulled out the book, checked the parts number on the both boxes and receipt and we were good to go. 

Cute little chapel...

Back on the road we simply pointed the big dog's nose eastward and off we went. I noticed a  couple of things on this road when we traveled it while towing and we managed to get a picture of one of them but not the other. One of the things I wanted a picture of was the sign for a gas company....Passmore Gas. It caused me to choke on my drink when we passed it the first time and today still made me chuckle. The second sign was at the little town of Hope. This one Riley managed to snap a picture of, as you leave town it reads," You are now beyond Hope". I just think that is too funny. 

From the doorway....

We also found a small chapel on the roadside that was eye catching so we stopped to have a peek. It is a cute little building with 6 stain glass windows, a spire and not much else outside. Inside there is a pulpit, ONE padded pew, a guest book, and a donation box. It is very cute, very clean and amazingly sweet. I noticed on the way out the door stopper they had used. I'll include a picture here but it looks to me as though it's an empty spool that once held thread. It is a very inventive idea. 

 

Nice padded pew....

 

From there we slipped on home and pulled in around 3:30 pm. I carried the groceries to the door and Riley put them away while I readied the boxes for extraction of the contents. Very simple, three pieces in each box. One back, one seat and one small package with remote control, cables and plug in for the heaters in the chairs. The backs of course went inside easily as they are light and easily managed. The seat was a bit of a different issue. Not much though but we had to remove the base (swivel piece) from both chairs to get them to fit in through our 24" door opening. It was only 4 bolts on each chair and so it wasn't a huge job, just time consuming. However the seat of the chair fit through very easily then and before long we had all pieces inside. We reattached the base, slipped on the backrest and bingo our chairs are ready for use. Oh we love 'em and we just got them. We didn't use the cables or remote's leaving them in the package as won't use those features anyway. A small stand between the chairs allows us some extra storage and a place to rest our cups and glasses. They take up a bit more space than we anticipated since they can't sit right beside the small stand as they swivel easily and we would be knocking and spilling things if they are too close. However we are very happy with them and already have spent a few hours in them since arriving home. 

 

Taken from beside the pulpit....

 

HRH Miss Kitty wasn't impressed with the new chairs as they swivel very easily and I don't think she's comfortable trying to jump on the back of the chair. She did jump into the seat of my chair and walked on the arm until it swiveled which sent her off in a scurry to the floor. So she ignored us both for the rest of the evening as she's royally ticked off. I'm sure she'll get over it but it was pretty funny. 

 

I think this was once a spool of thread...now a doorstop at the little chapel.

 

We snacked in the Dogsled and therefore wasn't too hungry when we arrived home and so after setting up the chairs we scrounged around finding something to eat. I of course opted for a salad and Riley had some chicken along with some shrimp. Can you tell which of us is the meat eater and which isn't?

 

Beautiful work.....

Sorry for my reflection...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I was too stiff and achy to head out cross country for sunset pictures today. So there aren't any to show off tonight. I'll work extra hard tomorrow night to get some for you. 

The small frames need some attention...

This one has a red rose inside at the cross as well...

 I was much smarter today and used a knee brace during the drive to and from Parker which certainly helped my knee a great deal. In fact I've been wearing it for a number of days now and have had no troubles of any kind with my knee. I should have brought my other ones along as I've used them off and on for a few years due to arthritis but I just didn't, and so I bought a couple to give me a bit of support. I'll use them both for strenuous days and that should ensure I have no issues with either knee.

 

Love the detail.....

Hope they paint the wood soon...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There you have it, our rather long and tiring day. Thanks for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed your visit. I hope you've had an excellent day filled with good things and wonderful people. Please feel free to leave a comment behind, I enjoy hearing from you. 

I love these shaggy palms...

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

Our new chairs in place....

 

Deb

A nice busy day.....

Our Location: Saddle Mountain BLM, Tonopah, AZ

 

Late getting to bed it was after midnight when I finally settled in to get some sleep. So therefore it was just about 6:30 am when my little blue peepers opened this morning.  I was up and outside long before I needed to be because the sun was going to be rising behind some cloud cover. Not the dark black menacing kind, but the brighter, deep, heavy whitish blue kind of clouds. That have no rain or moisture to them, just the kind that linger long enough to cover the sunrise. 

 

Good morning from Saddle Mountain BLM.....

 

I managed to get some okay pictures but even though it was after 8 am when I finally went inside the sun still hadn't really made a true appearance. As you can see from the pictures, it was bits and pieces but never the whole break through kind of performance. 

 

Working hard but not going to have a break through.....

 

Back inside Riley and I enjoyed a hot drink while chattering about what our plans might be today. Due to the dog issue I think we'll be moving locations in the next day or two. It's too difficult to walk for sunset pictures as I have to go cross country or take the Dogsled down the way and park.

 

Oh maybe a little spot will show here and there....

 

We decided we'd go look at a spot I found yesterday and see if Riley liked it and after that who knows what we might do. So off we went with our walking sticks firmly in hand and enjoyed the nice leisurely walk. We both really like the spot, it's far enough away from people that we'll both feel comfortable walking, it's a perfect location for sunsets and it'll be good for the morning side of things as well. The views are fantastic and it's just a really nice location. The only draw back is one wash we have to cross to get to the spot. I'm pretty certain we can make it with no issues but I'm still kind of debating in my mind. So we walked cross country back to the Igloo still thinking about it for now and decided we'd do something different lunch. 

 

I love this, it's all part of the same tree but it doesn't look like it....

 

We've been having difficulty getting motivated to cook which of course means there's something that we don't like. I think it's the same old, same old that's getting to us. So Riley decided to make some Pasta Salad with Tuna. I of course, had my green salad and a bit of Pasta Salad to finish off my lunch. It was excellent, Riley did an amazing job!! Thank you Riley. After that it was time to clean up and do some dishes. It never takes long and I never used to mind doing the dishes but again, I think it's a funk or something because I'm just finding it such a chore. Oh well, it'll pass and all will be right with the world again soon. 

 

This appears to be two trees, one growing inside the other but it's ONE tree...

 

So while Riley was off doing whatever it is she does in that room I finished my book. It was a good book, Brad Thor is an excellent writer, he has a character named Scot Harvath that keeps things interesting. Anyway, I didn't want to start a new book right away and I have been putting off a couple of projects. Since it was nice out this afternoon I decided I'd start at least one and see how it went. 

 

Same thing, one tree but it looks like two....see the heart?

 

I managed to complete a few chores, one of  which was to run a cord INSIDE the Igloo instead of outside each time we move, so that we can use the small inverter we have in the front cubbie. It's the perfect size for us at 850 watts and we're happy we didn't have a bigger one installed when we had the solar panels and accessories installed. That chore completed I moved on to the next one.

 

It's a limb growing out of the truck but it looks like an arm cradling something....see the face?

 

One battery cable in the front is corroded and I wanted to clean it up. Took a little bit of time but soon I had it all sparkly and ready to go back to work.  I'll do the others on another day, as they all look fine with no issues. 

 

Must have had some recent water running down this wash, see how everything is bent in the same direction?

 

From there I also had to rehang a cabinet door that was giving us issues. Somehow it popped open during our last travel day and the slide had already managed to get tangled up with it before Riley noticed it. We managed to get the slide out with the door out of the way so we could set up. Today I simply realigned the bottom hinge. It may need to be adjusted a bit more if the door swells at all but I'll worry about that if and when it happens. 

 

This looks mountain always looks to me like a marble bunt cake with a slice out.....

 

So after that I was ready for a sit down, take it easy for an hour but looking at the clock told me the sun would setting soon and I needed to head out cross country if I wanted to catch it. So fleece sweater on and zipped as the air was cooling off quickly, I headed out on the exact same walk as Riley and I had done this morning across a couple of deep washes toward the spot I want to move into so I could check out the sunset from that location. It's a keeper, we'll be heading over there in the next couple of days. 

 

It's almost time for the sun to get off work......

 

The walk is pretty long, at least 25 minutes each way, some pretty rugged spots to walk with some fairly large rocks to twist ankles and such but I made it with a bit of time to spare. I chatted with my dad while waiting for the sunset to begin and even for a bit of time into the sunset. They are in for a warming trend for a next week or so which will probably mean more snow but not always. It's a wait and see game. 

 

Working extra hard....

 

The sunset did not disappoint in any way. I doubt anyone could find fault with such a spectacular show. The painter's palette was alive, vivid, and well stocked. Truly one of nature's amazing works. 

 

Ripples in the sky....

 

Walking back home was a bit more difficult as it was darker but I still managed to stumble my way along and not break anything body part wise. Fortunate I would say. 

 

This was taken from the spot I want to move to...

 

Before leaving the Igloo I had placed a phone call to a place in Parker that I spoke with yesterday to order some new leather chairs for the Igloo. Sure enough the chairs are in and we can pick them up tomorrow. So that means that we need to dismantle the loveseat and remove it from the Igloo. They will dispose of it for us. I'll bet you already know what we did after I got back from sunset picture taking. You're right, we dismantled and removed the loveseat. In the morning I'll remove the hitch and load up the pieces, secure them and we'll be off to Parker to pick up our new chairs. We are both pretty excited about the idea!!!

 

And over to the east the sky looked like this....

 

Even with exchange and taxes here we are saving a substantial amount of money buying the chairs here. I'm happy to keep the little over $400 in my pocket. We are slowly getting around the things in the Igloo that we want to fix, change or replace and hope to soon be able to say we're finished. 

 

Back in the west it was doing some pretty dramatic stuff....

 

So after that I edited pictures, wrote this post and between yawns will eventually get it posted. That was our day, a fairly busy one and tomorrow will be as well but that's okay, it keeps us out of trouble. 

 

It's winding down now....

 

Thanks for stopping by, feel free to leave a comment. I enjoy reading them and hearing what you have to say!!

 

 

Amazing how much colour is in the sky ......

 

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

 

Good night from Saddle Mountain BLM.....

 

 

Deb