Last week while checking the monthly schedule I notice a "Free lunch" on Monday and you had to get your tickets ASP as there would be limited seating. When I noticed the "Free " I quit reading and rushed to get the tickets before they would be all gone because as you know a Senior's life is ruled by the word Free or Discount. As it turns out , the Free lunch is on the 25 th.
On Monday we went to the community center for lunch but not the Free one but since we were there Since we were at the community center for the "assumed" free lunch we decided to stay for the Hamburger and soap . Nothing really lost, as we sat with people we did not know so now we have new friends and they were from Hudson Bay SK.
After lunch we had to go to the Westwin RV park to pick up tickets for a music show scheduled for next Saturday. This was a Rock-a-Billy type band which was well renowned.
After picking up the tickets at Westwin I recalled that a military friend use to spend his winter s in Westwin park so I thought I would drive around park ( there over 1000 sites ) and just maybe he would have his name on his RV, MH or park model. As I drove down one street I seen the name of my friend on a house and he was sitting on the deck. I stopped and said hello and ask if he remembered me and of course at 82 and since we hadn't seen each other since 1990 he said "not at all". Once I introduced myself, of course he remembered me. We had a beer and swapped stories for 1/2 an hour then bid farewell. Always nice to me an old military buddy. Cheers
Sunday, 24 January 2016
Sunday Drive
Our friends ( Linda and Vince ) from Yorkton, SK ,who have a Park Model in this camp, dropped in around 10 AM and suggested we go for a drive around the area with no real destination. We spent the first 20 minutes discussing with each other where we might go, that we have not already seen. Finally we agreed to go to a specific date farm as Linda wanted a box ( 11 LBS ) of dates to take home. This Date company will keep the box of dates in their cooler until you are ready to leave for home.
We do not need any dates as we still have a "ton " of dates in the freezer which we purchased 2 years ago. Apparently, Carroll can't find a receipt for dates. I would have thought by now that the "Cooking Channel " would have had at least one receipt but I guess not!!!. Incidentally, did you know that dates are one of the few fruits that you can " thaw /freeze and thaw /freeze again without damaging them.
We then decided to take a drive out into the area to see how many people where Boondocking at the Bureau of Land Management ( BLM ) areas. There is many 1000's of acres of unusable Federal Land in AZ ( also NV and CA ) and for a small annual fee of 150.00 you camp dry camp on these lands. Some of these lands actuality provide a location to dump your sewage and have potable water. One area that we visited had showers however, this is not provided at most sites. These sites all have a name attached and most areas are named after a person or a landmark etc. We have visited sites like, High Joly, Dome Mountain, Hurricane Peak, Pilot Mound, Squaw Lake and Holtsville Hot springs.
There are actually 100's ( sometime 1000's ) of campers in these area in these area and if they were all to move into a camp ground in the Yuma area there would not be enough site for everyone.
By now we were feeling a little hunger and I might say "thirsty " so we knew, if we took the right trail we would find a bar at Martinana Lakes. This a Marina, camp grounds and boondocking area on the Colorado River and it never hurts to have a Bar located near a recreation area.
After munching down a large batch of Fries chased by a beer we headed home and called it a day. cheers
We do not need any dates as we still have a "ton " of dates in the freezer which we purchased 2 years ago. Apparently, Carroll can't find a receipt for dates. I would have thought by now that the "Cooking Channel " would have had at least one receipt but I guess not!!!. Incidentally, did you know that dates are one of the few fruits that you can " thaw /freeze and thaw /freeze again without damaging them.
We then decided to take a drive out into the area to see how many people where Boondocking at the Bureau of Land Management ( BLM ) areas. There is many 1000's of acres of unusable Federal Land in AZ ( also NV and CA ) and for a small annual fee of 150.00 you camp dry camp on these lands. Some of these lands actuality provide a location to dump your sewage and have potable water. One area that we visited had showers however, this is not provided at most sites. These sites all have a name attached and most areas are named after a person or a landmark etc. We have visited sites like, High Joly, Dome Mountain, Hurricane Peak, Pilot Mound, Squaw Lake and Holtsville Hot springs.
There are actually 100's ( sometime 1000's ) of campers in these area in these area and if they were all to move into a camp ground in the Yuma area there would not be enough site for everyone.
By now we were feeling a little hunger and I might say "thirsty " so we knew, if we took the right trail we would find a bar at Martinana Lakes. This a Marina, camp grounds and boondocking area on the Colorado River and it never hurts to have a Bar located near a recreation area.
After munching down a large batch of Fries chased by a beer we headed home and called it a day. cheers
Thursday, 21 January 2016
Shootout at the OK Corral
16 Jan
I don't have to tell anyone that the Americans are really into Guns but we were treated to something different. An American friend who is into the "old Muzzle Loaded" guns suggest that we might like to watch a target shooting competitions. At first I thought " not really" as it sounded as if watching the rinse cycle in the washing machine may have been more interesting. I original thought there would be a few Senior Men shooting at a target and that would be it. How wrong I was; it was very interesting especial for us Canadians who do not think or care much about guns.
I'll set the stage:
First we drove to the range area and were surprised to see that there were at least 200 vehicles, possible more, and many were RV's and Motor Homes that means they must be camping at the range area. There were venders all set up with food, guns and related equipt and " Annie Oakley" type cowgirl dress shops, etc.
Then were heard bullets bouncing off a metal target some we meandered over to one of the several ( about 5 ) shooting ranges.
The shooters form or belong to a "Posse" of about 25 shooters and it includes men and women ( mostly couples ). It is an individual sport but you are seeded to your ability. Each shooter has to shoot with 4 different weapons at four different targets. First they have to unholster a ( Wyatt Earp type ) pistol and fire 4 shots, then change to another pistol and shoot 1 shot at two different targets, then move to another "window " and fire 4 shots with a pump rifle, then move to another "window" and fire 4 more shots with a Pump shot gun. The winner did this "shoot" in 11.9 seconds which was amazing. Most shooter were between 18 and 30 seconds. The oldest lady shooting was 82 years old and she was good.
One couple realized we were Canadians so they came over to us and explain what was going to happen so we would have a better understanding. They explained that the weapons had to be of the 1879 era or replicas of those weapons. We ask the price of the 4 guns that each shooter was using and they said you don't want to know but it is in the thousands of dollars but it is their hobby and they love it. One shooter showed us his lever action rifle and he said it cost 400.00 to have it modified so he could fire it quicker that the original model.
I wish I had taken a camera because they treated their guns like a family heirloom. Every shooter has a cart to move the guns from point A to point B and they cover their guns with a protective sleeve once the shoot is over. I ask about the cost of bullets and they said if you did not reload your own shells you could not afford to be in this sport , which was a surprise to me. Incidentally, all shooters have a alias related to the era ie ( Jesse James ) .
Although this is not a spectator sport we really enjoyed watching this demonstrations as I never considered there was any such Hobby. It was well worth the time spent at the range.
In the afternoon we visited friends from Ontario that I grew with. It's always nice to catch up news from home and about the people I grew up with , even thought I left in 1962. Cheers
I don't have to tell anyone that the Americans are really into Guns but we were treated to something different. An American friend who is into the "old Muzzle Loaded" guns suggest that we might like to watch a target shooting competitions. At first I thought " not really" as it sounded as if watching the rinse cycle in the washing machine may have been more interesting. I original thought there would be a few Senior Men shooting at a target and that would be it. How wrong I was; it was very interesting especial for us Canadians who do not think or care much about guns.
I'll set the stage:
First we drove to the range area and were surprised to see that there were at least 200 vehicles, possible more, and many were RV's and Motor Homes that means they must be camping at the range area. There were venders all set up with food, guns and related equipt and " Annie Oakley" type cowgirl dress shops, etc.
Then were heard bullets bouncing off a metal target some we meandered over to one of the several ( about 5 ) shooting ranges.
The shooters form or belong to a "Posse" of about 25 shooters and it includes men and women ( mostly couples ). It is an individual sport but you are seeded to your ability. Each shooter has to shoot with 4 different weapons at four different targets. First they have to unholster a ( Wyatt Earp type ) pistol and fire 4 shots, then change to another pistol and shoot 1 shot at two different targets, then move to another "window " and fire 4 shots with a pump rifle, then move to another "window" and fire 4 more shots with a Pump shot gun. The winner did this "shoot" in 11.9 seconds which was amazing. Most shooter were between 18 and 30 seconds. The oldest lady shooting was 82 years old and she was good.
One couple realized we were Canadians so they came over to us and explain what was going to happen so we would have a better understanding. They explained that the weapons had to be of the 1879 era or replicas of those weapons. We ask the price of the 4 guns that each shooter was using and they said you don't want to know but it is in the thousands of dollars but it is their hobby and they love it. One shooter showed us his lever action rifle and he said it cost 400.00 to have it modified so he could fire it quicker that the original model.
I wish I had taken a camera because they treated their guns like a family heirloom. Every shooter has a cart to move the guns from point A to point B and they cover their guns with a protective sleeve once the shoot is over. I ask about the cost of bullets and they said if you did not reload your own shells you could not afford to be in this sport , which was a surprise to me. Incidentally, all shooters have a alias related to the era ie ( Jesse James ) .
Although this is not a spectator sport we really enjoyed watching this demonstrations as I never considered there was any such Hobby. It was well worth the time spent at the range.
In the afternoon we visited friends from Ontario that I grew with. It's always nice to catch up news from home and about the people I grew up with , even thought I left in 1962. Cheers
Tuesday, 19 January 2016
Doctor's Call
Carroll's had to visit a Doctor because of a blister on her toe.
This seems ridiculous but it all started on our way home from Puerto Plata when Carroll put on her running shoe which she hadn't worn while we were in P.P. When we arrived in Toronto Carroll noticed that her toe was hurting albeit slightly . However, we first had to clear customs and then hurray to our departure gate to catch our "already delayed " flight to Calgary. The hustle and bustle to get thru customs, then dropping off our luggage for the flight to Calgary followed by long lineup to clear security, and as a result, the pain in Carroll's toe seemed to subside. After we cleared customs we had to walk to the "last" gate in Terminal 3. It was so far I thought we were doing a "Walk for Cancer " .
After we got on the plane, Carroll removed her shoe so the toe felt OK and it is not easy to check your toe when you are on a plane. When we arrive in Calgary it was another rush to get the luggage and "try " to get a cab because it is now around 1 PM on 1 Jan and Cabs where at a premium. To get a cab at the Calgary airport was a 25 minute wait outside in the -13C temperature so Carroll's toe was not foremost on her mind. When we arrive at Todd's house at 3 PM on 1 Jan, Carroll finally removed her shoe and sox and it was then that she seen that the blister was long gone and she had a open sore slightly larger than a quarter and it did not look good. We treated it with Polysporin , hoping that it would heal quickly. The Polysporin seem to be doing the trick.
Needless to say , Carroll threw out those shoes and we bought a new pair ( 2 Jan ) the next day as we were leaving for Yuma on the 4 Jan. We continued to treat the sore with Polysporin and or Triple Antibiotic and since we were travelling she was not doing much walking. The sore was healing slowly, in fact too slow for me so on the 15 Jan we went to the local "Walk in Clinic ". Actually we tried to find a Podiatrist but there was a two week wait, hence the reason we went to the clinic. The clinic doctor gave Carroll a prescription for Antibiotic pill and said to continue with using the Triple antibiotic . Here is the Kicker: When we went to the clinic the clerk ask if we had insurance. We said no, we are paying for it so the charge was 100.00. She said if we had insurance it would cost 250.00. They even wrote on the invoice 250.00, less the doctors discount 150.00, total cost 100.00. What a scam???
All that to say Carroll's toe is healing albeit too slow for my liking. She doesn't want to go in the pool until it heals over. However, our weather is not pool weather as we have a morning temp of 52 F and a daily high of 73 F.
We had a visit in the afternoon, from friends ( Otto and Edna ) that we travelled to MX several years ago. cheers
This seems ridiculous but it all started on our way home from Puerto Plata when Carroll put on her running shoe which she hadn't worn while we were in P.P. When we arrived in Toronto Carroll noticed that her toe was hurting albeit slightly . However, we first had to clear customs and then hurray to our departure gate to catch our "already delayed " flight to Calgary. The hustle and bustle to get thru customs, then dropping off our luggage for the flight to Calgary followed by long lineup to clear security, and as a result, the pain in Carroll's toe seemed to subside. After we cleared customs we had to walk to the "last" gate in Terminal 3. It was so far I thought we were doing a "Walk for Cancer " .
After we got on the plane, Carroll removed her shoe so the toe felt OK and it is not easy to check your toe when you are on a plane. When we arrive in Calgary it was another rush to get the luggage and "try " to get a cab because it is now around 1 PM on 1 Jan and Cabs where at a premium. To get a cab at the Calgary airport was a 25 minute wait outside in the -13C temperature so Carroll's toe was not foremost on her mind. When we arrive at Todd's house at 3 PM on 1 Jan, Carroll finally removed her shoe and sox and it was then that she seen that the blister was long gone and she had a open sore slightly larger than a quarter and it did not look good. We treated it with Polysporin , hoping that it would heal quickly. The Polysporin seem to be doing the trick.
Needless to say , Carroll threw out those shoes and we bought a new pair ( 2 Jan ) the next day as we were leaving for Yuma on the 4 Jan. We continued to treat the sore with Polysporin and or Triple Antibiotic and since we were travelling she was not doing much walking. The sore was healing slowly, in fact too slow for me so on the 15 Jan we went to the local "Walk in Clinic ". Actually we tried to find a Podiatrist but there was a two week wait, hence the reason we went to the clinic. The clinic doctor gave Carroll a prescription for Antibiotic pill and said to continue with using the Triple antibiotic . Here is the Kicker: When we went to the clinic the clerk ask if we had insurance. We said no, we are paying for it so the charge was 100.00. She said if we had insurance it would cost 250.00. They even wrote on the invoice 250.00, less the doctors discount 150.00, total cost 100.00. What a scam???
All that to say Carroll's toe is healing albeit too slow for my liking. She doesn't want to go in the pool until it heals over. However, our weather is not pool weather as we have a morning temp of 52 F and a daily high of 73 F.
We had a visit in the afternoon, from friends ( Otto and Edna ) that we travelled to MX several years ago. cheers
Monday, 18 January 2016
Nothing Day
13 Jan
You may have seen the Seinfeld show where Geo tell Jerry that "This show is about Nothing" and Jerry tries to debate it but Geo insist that it is about "Nothing ". Well, this day for us was about "Nothing". I can't think of another Nothing day as I always like to do some type of maintenance , if for no other reason to say I did "something:. cheers
14 Jan iPhone Class
One of the Ladies in the park , who really understands Apple, iPhones and iPads, has volunteered to hold a class, once a month, for us near illiterate users and that includes T and C. Now if you have ever had an opportunity to be in a ( free ) class with 30 senior , do yourself a favor and stay home and watch the rinse cycle in the washing machine. These folks would shame a class of Kindergarten Kids.
First , they will not stop talking ( mostly women ) and then they must spend hours thinking up a stupid question. As an example , the instructor is walking us thru a procedure on the iPhone and says "you will see the icon in the top right corner". One lady says that I don't have that icon on my phone so the instructor goes to her table to show her. The instructor says , you have an Android phone and this is an iPhone class. The lady doesn't stop there; she follows that by saying , is there a difference.
The instructor certainly has the patience of " Jobe ". One guy was sitting about 8 feet from the instructor and speaks up to say he can't hear what she said. Another guy speaks up and says "Rudy " you are deaf which is the reason you can't hear.
Then the instructor shows us how to send a picture on the iPhone. She says "go to you pictures". Rudy says, I don't have a picture on my iPhone so she say , just snap a pic of someone in the class but Rudy says I only talk to my daughter and she wouldn't want a picture of someone here. It is hard to imagine that these people have a Vote!!.
Suffice to say most of us gain a lot of information about the iPhone and iPad but we have a lot to learn.
In the afternoon we had a couple ( Cam and Joann ) pay us a visit. They were in the Military with us and who we have not seen since 1990 when we left Comox. We had a great visit and got caught up on all the news about Family and Friends . They are camped about 30 KM away and we will pay them a return visit in the following weeks. Cheers
.
You may have seen the Seinfeld show where Geo tell Jerry that "This show is about Nothing" and Jerry tries to debate it but Geo insist that it is about "Nothing ". Well, this day for us was about "Nothing". I can't think of another Nothing day as I always like to do some type of maintenance , if for no other reason to say I did "something:. cheers
14 Jan iPhone Class
One of the Ladies in the park , who really understands Apple, iPhones and iPads, has volunteered to hold a class, once a month, for us near illiterate users and that includes T and C. Now if you have ever had an opportunity to be in a ( free ) class with 30 senior , do yourself a favor and stay home and watch the rinse cycle in the washing machine. These folks would shame a class of Kindergarten Kids.
First , they will not stop talking ( mostly women ) and then they must spend hours thinking up a stupid question. As an example , the instructor is walking us thru a procedure on the iPhone and says "you will see the icon in the top right corner". One lady says that I don't have that icon on my phone so the instructor goes to her table to show her. The instructor says , you have an Android phone and this is an iPhone class. The lady doesn't stop there; she follows that by saying , is there a difference.
The instructor certainly has the patience of " Jobe ". One guy was sitting about 8 feet from the instructor and speaks up to say he can't hear what she said. Another guy speaks up and says "Rudy " you are deaf which is the reason you can't hear.
Then the instructor shows us how to send a picture on the iPhone. She says "go to you pictures". Rudy says, I don't have a picture on my iPhone so she say , just snap a pic of someone in the class but Rudy says I only talk to my daughter and she wouldn't want a picture of someone here. It is hard to imagine that these people have a Vote!!.
Suffice to say most of us gain a lot of information about the iPhone and iPad but we have a lot to learn.
In the afternoon we had a couple ( Cam and Joann ) pay us a visit. They were in the Military with us and who we have not seen since 1990 when we left Comox. We had a great visit and got caught up on all the news about Family and Friends . They are camped about 30 KM away and we will pay them a return visit in the following weeks. Cheers
.
Sunday, 17 January 2016
Washing the Motor Home
Tuesday 12 Jan
You don't actually think that I would wash my Motor Home when someone else will do it for 40.00. Sergio's RV Wash will wash your Park Model , Motor Home or other type of RV for 40.00 and if your car needs a wash he will through that in for free and he will not take a tip. Our MH needed a wash badly so I ask if he could do it on Sat but he too was overbooked so my appoint was late Tuesday afternoon. Sergio has two wash trucks and they use RO water so there is no streaking. However Sergio sometime has a timing issue and has in the past came early so we stuck around all afternoon and this time he came right at 4 PM. However he could not do my car as his "2nd" Rig blew a water pump and he other appointments today and he doesn't like to disappoint customers. He promised to return tomorrow to do my car when he gets caught up. I know he will keep his word.
We all have a soft spot for Sergio because he had Polio as a child and as a result he has a twisted short leg which causes him to have a real bad limp. I personally think it is great that he can run a business that hires 6 or 8 workers. As a result of his handicap he can not climb on the roof of the RV's. Cheers
You don't actually think that I would wash my Motor Home when someone else will do it for 40.00. Sergio's RV Wash will wash your Park Model , Motor Home or other type of RV for 40.00 and if your car needs a wash he will through that in for free and he will not take a tip. Our MH needed a wash badly so I ask if he could do it on Sat but he too was overbooked so my appoint was late Tuesday afternoon. Sergio has two wash trucks and they use RO water so there is no streaking. However Sergio sometime has a timing issue and has in the past came early so we stuck around all afternoon and this time he came right at 4 PM. However he could not do my car as his "2nd" Rig blew a water pump and he other appointments today and he doesn't like to disappoint customers. He promised to return tomorrow to do my car when he gets caught up. I know he will keep his word.
We all have a soft spot for Sergio because he had Polio as a child and as a result he has a twisted short leg which causes him to have a real bad limp. I personally think it is great that he can run a business that hires 6 or 8 workers. As a result of his handicap he can not climb on the roof of the RV's. Cheers
Horse Races/ Steak Supper
Monday 11 Jan
We went to the monthly Horse Races but before you think real horses, it is not. It works this way: There are 6 wooden cutout horse complete with jockeys. You pay 12.00 per person and that includes a steak supper and it is always sold out. Luckily a couple turned there tickets in Monday morning and I got them. The race is held in the Meeting Hall and the people sit around the outside and the Race track is in the middle. The horse have to move 20 tiles to be the winner and they are moved by the roll of the dice. One Die to indicate the horse number and one Die to say how many square to move. To bet you draw a card with a horse number however, the cards are turned over so you actual draw blind. You bet 25 cent a horse with a limit of 4 card ( 1.00 ) There were 8 races and I had a Win or a Place on every races so I cleared 3.00 for the afternoon. That is 3.00 more than I won on the Power Ball.
The table that you sit at for the races is predetermined and since we got the last to ticket we had to sit with people we had never met. The first couple we met just happen to be the Firefighter who trained our son Clark in Shilo, MB some 27 years ago. (Clark is now the Fire Chief for Suncor in Ft. Mc Murray) . The next couple where born and raised in Medicine Hat, AB and he is the brother of Cory Snyder, who was a World Champion Bull Rider. So you never know who you may shake hands with as you travel around the world.
The T-bone steaks where huge and the supper was great. I'm sure we will go to the next Horse Races but it was humorous to see the Seniors holler to cheer on a "Wooden Horse ". Seniors are just older Kids. cheers
We went to the monthly Horse Races but before you think real horses, it is not. It works this way: There are 6 wooden cutout horse complete with jockeys. You pay 12.00 per person and that includes a steak supper and it is always sold out. Luckily a couple turned there tickets in Monday morning and I got them. The race is held in the Meeting Hall and the people sit around the outside and the Race track is in the middle. The horse have to move 20 tiles to be the winner and they are moved by the roll of the dice. One Die to indicate the horse number and one Die to say how many square to move. To bet you draw a card with a horse number however, the cards are turned over so you actual draw blind. You bet 25 cent a horse with a limit of 4 card ( 1.00 ) There were 8 races and I had a Win or a Place on every races so I cleared 3.00 for the afternoon. That is 3.00 more than I won on the Power Ball.
The table that you sit at for the races is predetermined and since we got the last to ticket we had to sit with people we had never met. The first couple we met just happen to be the Firefighter who trained our son Clark in Shilo, MB some 27 years ago. (Clark is now the Fire Chief for Suncor in Ft. Mc Murray) . The next couple where born and raised in Medicine Hat, AB and he is the brother of Cory Snyder, who was a World Champion Bull Rider. So you never know who you may shake hands with as you travel around the world.
The T-bone steaks where huge and the supper was great. I'm sure we will go to the next Horse Races but it was humorous to see the Seniors holler to cheer on a "Wooden Horse ". Seniors are just older Kids. cheers
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