Segway ride

Gold Ranch RV Resort

Verdi, NV 89439

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RV LIFE:
Yesterday, we had a "pot luck" dinner with our Cedar Creek Club members. This is always a fun dinner. We get to try cuisines from different parts of the country & gather recipes also.
I made Captain Crunch Chicken, which was originally introduced at Planet Hollywood. Here's the recipe I use from CD KITCHEN.

Planet Hollywood's Captain Crunch Chicken

Recipe At A Glance

5 stars based on 7 reviews
 Ready in: Under 30 minutes?
 Difficulty:   3/5

Serves/Makes:   4

   

PHOTO BY: NICK
Click image to view

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups Captain Crunch cereal
1 1/2 cup corn flakes 

I use 3 cups CC cereal & 1/2 cup corn flakes

1 egg

1 cup milk

1 cup all purpose flour
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 pounds chicken breast cut in 1 ounce tenders
vegetable oil for frying

DIRECTIONS:

Coarsely grind or crush the two cereals and set aside. Beat the egg with milk and set aside. Stir together the flour, onion and garlic powders and black pepper. Set this aside also.

Dip the chicken pieces into the seasoned flour. Move around to coat well, then shake off the excess flour. Dip into the egg wash, coating well, then dip into the cereal mixture, coating well.

Heat oil in a large heavy skillet to 325 degrees F.

Drop coated chicken tenders carefully into the hot oil and cook until golden brown and fully cooked, 3 to 5 minutes depending on size. Drain and serve immediately with Creole mustard sauce.

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PRODUCT REVIEW:
I made 4 pounds of chicken. I first bought boneless chicken breast and then had to cut the fatty parts out and then cut into bite or nugget size pieces.  This is so much easier with the correct utensils.
To cut off the fatty parts I use Emeril's kitchen shears. The fat really just cuts off like you're cutting paper. There is a big difference between the cheap kitchen shears and the "professional" shears. I think i paid $15.-$20. 5 yrs ago for these shears and they still work great. What's nice about these shears is that they easily come apart for thorough cleaning.
 The other essential is a good sharp knife.  I bought Scott a set of Guy Fieri knives a few years back. They are scary sharp!

PETS:
Devin's paws are doing much better. We are still soaking in Epsom salt and Betadine.

Really, that IS better.

My morning started out lousy.  Our Irish Setter Devin woke me at 7am (which is fine), but I heard chewing, that didn't sound like a toy or his bone.  Sure enough, he was chewing on an antler button! If you've been following what I've been doing, then you know, I just finished the comfy cardigan and used 3 antler buttons.
I've had this finished sweater draped over my recliner (where Devin sometimes sleeps) since it's been finished. I also use it every cool morning. Last night, I left it on my computer chair. The buttons must have been hanging low. And yep, there's holes where the buttons were.
I AM SO ANGRY! My husband took him for a walk this morning because I didn't want to be around him.
Thank goodness the yarn was cheap acrylic and thank goodness it's black.  I can probably sew the hole together and use large round buttons to cover the mending. Grrrrrr. Just think how angry I would be if I had used good wool!!!!

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RECREATION:

Today we headed to the center of Reno for a SEGWAY TOUR! What a fun experience! Cost was $65.00 each. There was 1/2 hour of training, and then 2 hours of riding around town, with Walter giving info about the local sights, history, good restaurants, events, etc.

We toured along the Truckee River in the middle of town. What a beautiful section. the River is open to the public for free. They allow swimming, rafting etc. Very nice to see families cooling off in the beautiful river.

We stopped at Eats & Sweets, about 1/2 way through the tour. Cute little ice cream, candy, luncheon, dog, store.
We passed by the Reno Museum of Art. Isn't this a cool sculpture???

This sculpture looks like wood, tree limbs, but it is made out of bronze. Absolutely amazing.
Overall, this was a really good day!

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RESTAURANT REVIEW:


We stopped here in the middle of our Segway tour by www.RenofunTours.com. Cute little store with a little bit of quite a variety.  Looks like an ice cream store, but when you walk in there are dog treats and dog toys, plus ice cream, plus a light luncheon sandwich menu and a candy section.
CUPCAKE:I had a mocha cupcake, which was pretty good. Rich chocolate cake with a creamy mocha frosting.
CHOCOLATE COVERED STRAWBERRY: Delicious! Large sweet strawberry, covered with milk chocolate (or dark if you prefer). Yum!
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BOOK REVIEW:

The Gold Coast by Nelson DeMille
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

This is my 8th DeMille book. I've loved all but 2 (including this one).I thought this was going to be a good book. Thought the "gold coast" community was interesting and aggravating. Snobs! They need a dose of reality. So when a mafia boss moves next door, they see another type of life, but still that is not normal, middle class life.
Book went on and on and on about the day to day life of the rich. And on and on and on.  1/3 through the book, I thought something would have happened, then 1/2 way through, still waiting for something more interesting than the lives of the rich and infamous. 3/4 through the book, I had to finish it now.
Ended with such a sense of sadness, wastefullness.


View all my reviews

Grapefruit Martini!

Gold Ranch RV Resort

Verdi, NV 89439

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RV LIFE:

Laundry day: Laundry: no big deal. Camp laundries have been fine so far. Only average about $10. a month. The worst part of doing laundry is folding and putting away the clothes. That's the same whether you go to a laundromat or launder at home. I wouldn't want to "waste" precious space in the RV for a washer and dryer.

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RESTAURANT REVIEW:

Our rating 4 out of 5.

This is a great place to bring a date, as long as it's not crowded. I loved the cozy atmosphere, with couches around the fireplace, a couple of booths and a few tables. This is not a big place, but has a log cabin cozy feel.
DRINKS: Hubby had a  Bloody Mary which was EXCELLENT. Just enough spice, with some spice I couldn't pick out. Garnished with pickled string bean, & olives. I had a Grapefruit Martini. DOUBLE EXCELLENT!!! Smooth, refreshing, can't really taste the alcohol but can feel it. This is made with real fresh squeezed pink grapefruit. I'd go back for that alone.
POTSTICKERS: Average. Nice dipping sauce.
CRABCAKES: Very good.  Not loaded with crab but the flavor was really good.
RIBS: Not Texas bbq, but above par for restaurant ribs that don't specialize in ribs.
CAESAR SALAD with Chicken: Very good.
BANANA SASQUATCH: Fair. Was sort of like Bananas Foster, but the vanilla ice cream was horrible. Also disappointed that the whipped "cream" on top was greasy fake stuff.
Waitress was terrific.

Bananas Sasquatch

GOLD RANCH RV RESORT in Verdi, NV

Gold Ranch RV Resort

Verdi, NV 89439

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RV PARK REVIEW:

Site #58, $28.17/day (group discount)
+SITES: Long sites for large RV's, paved, but uneven. Gravel with a 12'x12' patch of nice grass.
+HOOK UPS: FHU
+LAUNDRY: Fairly clean. Washers could have been cleaned a little better. 2012: $1.50 wash/dry.
+PETS: Pets welcome. Poop bags provided at multiple dumpsters.
-WIFI: Pay at site, free at office.
+VERIZON INTERNET: Worked great
+SPRINT INTERNET: Worked great, 5 bars, 3G
+VERIZON PHONE: 5 bars
+AT&T PHONE: 5 bars
+BOOK EXCHANGE: There is a nice selection of books and room for more in the office/lounge area. There are book shelves on either side of the fireplace. Nice lounge area with comfy couches and WiFi hook ups.
+POOL: I normally don't include this, but since I had to pass it to get to the laundry, I'll include it. Nice sized pool, clean and also a hot tub.
This park is within walking distance of the casino, Sierra Cafe Restaurant, Jack in the Box, gas station, convenience store. We are actually right off the highway, but we don't really see or hear the traffic noise.

This park is right on the border of NV/CA

When we walk the dogs around the outskirts of the park, we are in California! The pink line above is the state border. Do you think we're cheating if we fill in our travels map to include California? Our RV isn't there, but...
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RV LIFE:
This week is the Annual International Rally for the Cedar Creek RV Owners Club (CCRVOC).  There are 26 rigs gathering. This is a great group of people.
Friendly, but they give you your space.
Knowledgeable.
Helpful with RV mods, upgrades, repairs, etc.: We weren't here 3 hrs and we saw a group of guys with their heads in the hood of a truck engine compartment and their butts sticking out to the ladies. Sorry, it was not a sexy sight.

Last June (2011), the rally was held near Lancaster, PA. At that time we were still living in our house in NJ. This rally was only 3 hours away. What a great opportunity for our "maiden voyage".
This group has a forum and I posted that this would be our first time setting up and staying in the RV. I invited all to come and watch Scott park and level, so they could have a good laugh. (Oh, I'm sooo mean!) Ended up, we had a pull through site, but we did need to level. At that time, I had no clue as to the concept of leveling. Lee was the first to come over and he was great. He watched, but didn't make fun nor offer to do it for us. He just watched and made sure we were doing ok.
So now a year later, with another CCRVOC rally in November in SC under our belt, we are here together again in NV, participating in our 3rd CCRVOC rally. We are much more experienced, having been full timing for almost a year now. Our responsibilities  lessened, with having sold our house. Ahhhh, this is the life.
If any of our blog readers are Cedar Creek RV owners, I would encourage you to join us. Here is the CCRVOC WEBSITE.
Activities for this week include,
Hors d'oeuvres get together
Boiled omelet breakfast
Early bird brown bag (bring your own) dinner
Pot Luck dinner
Boat Cruise
Casino buffet dinner
Sightseeing
Members' dinner provided by the club.
Waffle breakfast (Mmm, Mmmm, Good!)
Open house: we get to look in everyone's RV if their door is open. This is a great way to get ideas for storage, improvement, modifications, etc.
As you can see by our "activities", most are centered on FOOD!
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It has been horribly windy here since we arrived 3 days ago. This is supposedly very unusual, but it really
S-U-C-K-S! To put it bluntly. The sun is shining, the temp is between 65-70°, but the damned wind does not give up! We can't put our setter flags out... we can't put our name sign out... the hanging basket of petunias is really becoming damaged from the constant wind blowing on it. You know how you rotate a plant by a window, so all sides eventually get sun? Well, I have to rotate my flower pot, to give ease to the sides from constant wind damage.  The RV is shaking, our slide out awning covers are rippling. We can't keep our chairs out, because they'll blow away. We are spending a lot of time inside, enjoying the sun and the heat of the sun from our large windows.
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Just a little side note about RV Life-It is very difficult to find cans of seltzer in the West. I don't really drink soda, I am mainly a water drinker, but once in a while I really want some carbonation, and a seltzer hits the spot.  I can find bottles of seltzer, but 12 ounce cans are a rare find. Sigh...
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PETS:
Devin's paw is getting better. He had a slight relapse, so Scott soaked it in water with Epsom salt and Benadine. Then Scott inspected the foot, squeezed here and there and pop! Another cheatgrass awn appeared and Scott pulled it out. Devin was a trooper. Just laid there and let Scott do what was needed.

At his worst

Much better, just one spot

Devin is now playing with his toys again too!

When we went to the vet last week, we had Lyla weighed. She's got a weight problem just like Mom!  We are both hypothyroid and we are both overweight. Lyla weighed in at 70 pounds!!! Tsk Tsk! She should be about 55-60 pounds at the most! And her Mom weighs in at....well, we won't go there.  But Mom is overweight also!

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RESTAURANT REVIEW:


This is a Denny's type restaurant inside the Gold Ranch Casino. Friendly staff, large restaurant.
CHEESE QUESADILLAS with Chicken: Very good. I was a little surprised that the flour tortilla had some herbs in it. At first I wasn't sure I liked it, since I was expecting just a plain tortilla. But once I accepted it, it was a nice added touch. A combo of 2 or 3 cheeses with sparse chunks of chicken.
HAMBURGER STEAK: (Similar to Salisbury Steak) The meat was average, but the sauteed onions and mushrooms that were generously covering the "steak" was delicious.
ONION RINGS: Average+. If I was in the mood for onion rings, I'd order again, but would not go there specifically for the rings.
Over all and decent , inexpensive place. Even cheaper if you get a free "player's card" in the casino. Then you get discounted meals.

What was that?

Gold Ranch RV Casino

Verdi, NV 89439

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We are currently in Verdi, NV.This is right on the California border. We can walk from our RV site about 300 feet and be in California.
And how are we welcomed??? EARTHQUAKE! We haven't been here 6 hours and we felt it!
It's been REALLY windy here. Shaking the RV, not pleasant to be outside, etc. So while we were settled inside, I was at the computer and Scott was watching TV in bed about 9pm. We've been feeling the RV shake all day, so got to know that feeling well.
Huh? That's an odd sensation, almost like someone pushed on the RV or a wave current. I looked at Scott and Scott looked at me. We both joked and said "Earthquake?". Scott entered a Google search of "Earthquake Reno". Sure enough a 4.2 magnitude earthquake hit at 8:51pm about 20 miles South of us!!!!!! Oh crap!!!!!

From the LA Times: A shallow magnitude 4.2 earthquake was reported Friday evening six miles from Incline Village-Crystal Bay, Nev., according to the U.S. Geological Survey. The temblor occurred at 8:51 p.m. Pacific time at a depth of 6.8 miles.
According to the USGS, the epicenter was six miles from Tahoe Vista, six miles from Kings Beach, 16 miles from Reno and 96 miles from Sacramento.
In the last 10 days, there have been no earthquakes magnitude 3.0 or greater centered nearby.

No damage was done at the center of where the earthquake happened. And we only felt a ripple, but that was a new, eerie experience for us!!!

About 20 miles away

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ELECTRONIC WOES:

Seems our bedroom Tivo has bit the dust.  A month or two ago, our Living Room Tivo needed a new power supply and has been fine since. These are older units, so they are expected to not last long. 

Now the decision, do we stick with Direct TV/Tivo combo, like we presently have only newer model? Or, do we just get Direct TV's DVR model. I love Tivo and that is what I'm used to. I do not like learning new remotes and Scott has been on the receiving end of my extreme unhappiness when I have to use 1 remote for one thing and another for something else, or Scott changes the screen to wide screen and forgets to put it back. It is not a nice experience hearing me rant. 

With that being said, Scott is sticking with what I know...Tivo, even though the Direct TV DVR has more features. But so I don't sound so horrible, another reason Scott is sticking with Tivo is so we can swap the hard drive from the old one, so we can see the shows already recorded and also, so he doesn't have to rewire things for a new device. That's the story and I'm making him stick to it!

WINNEMUCCA RV PARK, Winnemucca, NV 89445

Winnemucca RV Park

 Winnemucca, NV 89445

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RV PARK REVIEW:
Can't really rate this RV park. We were lucky to get a site since we didn't arrive until 4pm and they only had 2 sites left.  Staff is nice.
- SITES: Tight together, short, buddy sites (shared utility post).
+ HOOK UPS: FHU
- PETS: Policy states must be under 25#'s, but they let our 60# dogs in without question. Small (10'x20'), dirty fenced in pet walk area. No poop bags supplied, but they do supply a heavy metal shovel and a bent up rake to scoop. A sign is posted that dogs should be on leash. Huh? In a fenced in area? I'll be glad to leave tomorrow.
 That is the only place they want dogs to do their business. The grassy areas along the edge of the park are for tenting. They try to use every inch for income. These tent areas are 10'x10' areas with a grill along the fence line.
/ WIFI: Free, but they did not offer us the code and we didn't bother since it was only overnight.
/VERIZON INTERNET: Very slow, sometimes timing out.
-SPRINT INTERNET: No signal at all
I was VERY happy to leave this place. I couldn't take this more than one night. I'd rather boondock in a parking lot than stay here.
Now, when I hear the name Winnemucca, its a trigger!

WINNEMUCCA?!! Slowly I turn, step by step...

Maybe you're too young to know what I'm talking about. Let the video below explain.

Here's another RV park with a ridiculous pet friendly policy. Story is from GO PET FRIENDLY, travel blog.
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SIGHTS:

Traveling from Boise, ID to Winnemucca, NV, we did spend about 45 minutes in Oregon.
This trip on US 95 took us through a lot of nothing.  Desert like, desolate ridges, then we hit some huge sand dunes, before arriving in  Winnemucca on Winnemucca Blvd. at Winnemucca RV Park. (Ohhhhh, that name will haunt me!)
We saw at least 3 casinos in this town. I think the town "boasts" 5 casinos.  Gee, that's a reason to stay. Yea, right. When I was in my late 20's I used to go on bus trips to Atlantic City. Someone from work would hire a bus and we'd fill it up. Lots of drinking on the bus. My friend, Beverly would make a thermos of Kamakazi, and we'd do shots the whole 1.5 hr drive down to AC. By the time we arrived, we were feeling very goooood. Part of the package deal for the bus, was we'd recieve a roll of quarters to get us started at a Casino. But not Bev and I. We'd use the money to go eat, or shop or whatever on the boardwalk. They were great times.
I didn't realize all of Nevada allowed gambling.  The only thing I like about the casinos are the cheap and good buffets!
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RV LIFE:
Weather has been crazy! Extreme changes in temperatures. Arriving at Winnemucca (slowly I turn...), it was terribly hot. So hot the dogs didn't want to get out the of air conditioned truck even though they were stuck in there for 4 hours. When I got them out, they tried to jump back in!
I was hoping to do a quick wash (if there is such a thing), but it was so hot out, I have HAVE to stay inside.

Scott is the cook in our family. He hasn't been cooking as much while living our RV life. The kitchen is very small and there are so many new restaurants to try out. But when he cooks, it's always a treat.  He even cleans up the kitchen and does the dishes, well sort of.

I guess he doesn't like to do flatware. Can I really complain? No I can't, but I can still tease him about it. Yes ladies, my hubby is sweet, easy going, a gentleman, & he cooks...and he taken...he's mine. I'm very lucky.
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PETS:
We were late arriving in Winnemucca (grrrr! that name...) because we didn't wake up until 9:30am!!!! I'm usually up by 7am because Devin gets me up. The last 2 days, he has let me sleep AND HE HAS CUDDLED WITH ME!!! So, is this because he is not feeling well because of his sore feet? or is he just changing? I love that he is cuddling with me, but I don't want to be sleeping to 9:30am again...7:30am is a perfect time for me to wake up. Do you hear that Devin?

We're from NJ, we didn't know!

BOISE RIVERSIDE RV PARK

Boise, ID 83714

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RV LIFE:

Our time in Idaho and being anti-social has come to an end. We will be heading to NV and joining other Cedar Creek RV owners for the International Rally. This is a VERY friendly group and a lot of eating together, hanging out together, etc. We'll make sure to take a shot of 100 proof something, to help us be more social.  Don't get me wrong, we do like these folks, but sometimes it's difficult to be "on" when we like to just be alone.

We have really enjoyed our time in Idaho. We enjoyed Declo and it's quiet, nothing to do, country style. We enjoyed our time with Don & Marsha and 4 wheeling & seeing the beautiful mountains. And we've also enjoyed Boise, even though it was much more crowded & busy. Each has it's own qualities. Idaho could be a state we consider settling in. It's still too early to really think about that, and we'd have to spend more time here and research the pros and cons.

Boise gave us a great send off. We had a beautiful fireworks display right next to the RV park! Next to the RV park is the Boise Fairgrounds & I think a minor league baseball stadium. The fireworks were after the baseball game. Devin wasn't thrilled with the fireworks, and Lyla laid down and ignored the lights. She's deaf so she didn't hear all the booms!

Our walks with the dogs have become limited. You can read why under "Pets". We didn't make it to the dog park either. We certainly are becoming quite lazy.

I think after 7 months of traveling, we are definitely settled into an RV life routine. I now call the RV "home" or "the house".  We both seem to have a general daily routine and the days fly by whether we sit around the site or  go out shopping or sight seeing.

We've been eating out quite a bit. Unfortunately, not healthy eating either.

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PETS:

Since being brought up in NJ, we are used to the "hazards" that may await us while walking the dogs. We do have a terrible deer tick problems, which means Lymes disease is very prevalent. We know to avoid tall grassy areas, but even walking through the woods, it is likely we'll come home with a tick or two. There's also plenty of poison ivy that is best to avoid also. 

But NJ doesn't have poisonous snakes, or scorpions around while walking. So when we hit FL and on from there, we have kept our eyes open for snakes.

We've been walking our dogs along the Boise River Greenbelt, which is a beautiful paved bike trail. Some areas pass beautifully landscaped yards, some areas have been maintained as far as keeping the brush trimmed along the sides of the trail, but there's also parts that are overgrown.

Lyla, our Eng. Setter is a little bit prissy. She prefers to walk on the paved area, while Devin is like "Dennis the Menace" and needs to explore, eat things, jump around in the river, etc.

While giving Devin a quick brushing, I noticed he had a sore foot. Upon closer inspection, it was REALLY SORE, in fact maybe infected. It was swollen and seeping. Sure enough, his other foot was bad also, but not quite as bad as the first. But they were so bad that we felt a vet was needed to give a thorough cleaning, and some antibiotics for the infection. Also, maybe find out what the cause was.

I've read many dog magazines and books. I remember mention of "foxtail" being very dangerous for dogs. But from what I read, that was in California. Check THIS LINK, for a graphic story of one dog's bout with foxtail penetration.

No, we didn't have a problem with foxtail, 

Foxtail

but we did have a problem with "cheatgrass"! What's the difference? Not too much from what I can tell. They are both a Bromus Grass, which is a a tall grassy weed.

The problem with both foxtail and cheatgrass is that they they have tiny barbs that once the point pokes the skin, it just keeps working it's way in because the barbs prevent them from coming out. They keep going deeper and deeper and of course the body knows there's something foreign in there, thus the swelling and infection. It can be bad enough that an operation is needed to get them out.

Cheatgrass

Cheatgrass awn

Each of these little seeds? easily pull off the above plant and that is what embeds in the skin.

Back to Devin and the invasion of the cheatgrass.  We happened to pass a small veterinary hospital the other day.  I checked them out on YELP. There was only 1 review, but I liked what they said. This office isn't associated with VCA, (I hate VCA). VCA has taken over 500 vet hospitals. They probably help out the vet financially, etc, but then the client is nickled and dimed, (more like 50 dollared) to death for every little item. 

Anyway, Henricks Vet. Hosp. is a small "mom & pop" type hospital. It reminded me our our NJ Vet, Belmar-Wall Veterinary Hospital. The office was homey, not decorated with anything fancy, the examination rooms didn't have the fancy lifting tables, but instead had older kitchen type cabinets with the stainless steel on top for the table. Everything was clean, but it was nice to see they probably help keep costs down, by not renovating. Just like my house, I don't need stainless steel appliances when enamel is fine for me. (On a side note, that is why we were able to retire at 55 and do what we are doing. No fancy upgrades to our house, no new cars, etc.) 

As soon as the vet tech looked at Devin's foot, she said,

"Oh, he got into some cheatgrass!" 

Huh? What's cheatgrass? (Note to P.L.: Why didn't you warn us about this?)

And then our education to Western nasty weeds.

Luckily, Devin was a very good patient and was able to handle the poking of a forceps type instrument, that was literally poked right down the center of each bubble (see paw photo above), and the vet moved it around and grabbed and pulled out and continued, until he found the offending awn. If the vet didn't get results, we would have had to put Devin under anesthesia to get the awns out.

Hopefully, Devin will be feeling better in a day or two, but right now he's not himself. He's not really eating, doesn't want to walk on the grass, laying in bed, etc.

Poor baby.

VETERINARIAN REVIEW:
Henricks Veterinary Hospital
6224 W. State St., Boise, ID 83703
208-853-0640
Great staff. Friendly, helpful. Dr. Pesnell did a great job taking cheatgrass out of my dogs paws and explaining what it is and after care. We are from NJ, so have never heard of cheatgrass. He was gentle and considerate of how much discomfort our dog could take.
Also updated both dogs rabies vaccines. Only down side is I wish they gave a bigger break on 2 dogs at one visit. A visit cost $49.50, 2nd dog was $41.00. I think they could have reduced to $25./$30. for 2nd dog during same visit.
I think they had a slow day and we spent 1.5 hours between time with the vet tech. and the vet. So can I really complain? No.
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RESTAURANT REVIEW:
Three items I've never had before...
Fry Sauce: Sort of a mayo/ketchup combo that is served more than ketchup with fries in Idaho.
Steak fingers/Chicken fried Steak: Steak breaded and fried just like fried chicken.
Idaho Potato Ice Cream:  Ice cream in the shape of a potato with topping to look like sour cream/butter.


Stopped by because of Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives.
Only outside seating, but there were umbrellas to protect us from the sun.
This place is known for their Prime Rib served on Fridays & Saturdays. An old drive-in joint serving Prime Rib?
Yes and it was delicious.
PRIME RIB: Right up there with the best I've had. Au Jus was delicious! Great to dip bread in.
CORNED BEEF DIP: This was a great sandwich served with swiss cheese melted on great bread. The au jus for this was just fair. Just tasted like beef broth.
MEATLOAF: Very good, we had a meatloaf sandwich and meal.
STEAK FINGERS: I got this for the novelty. Being from NJ, I never heard of them. Heavy breading, but very tasty. I was very surprised that the strips of steak stay so tender and moist. I thought I'd be gnawing at them, but was easy to bite and they broke off easily for nice small bites.

Steak Fingers

FRIES: Average. I think they were sort of like those seasoned type fries.
FRY SAUCE: Seems some pickle juice is added. Nice.
ONION RINGS: Very average. Seemed like they were just the frozen breaded type.
IDAHO POTATO ICE CREAM: Again, had to try for the novelty. Does look like a real baked potato. Was basically just vanilla ice cream in the shape of a potato, with "Hershey's" type chocolate sauce and some CRAP on top to look like sour cream. I was very surprised that real whipped cream wasn't used. Instead there was some greasy stuff on top.

Idaho Potato Ice Cream

SHAKES: Delicious!!!! One day the special was a blueberry shake. The large for the price of a medium. Delicious shake with REAL blueberries.  Also had a chocolate malt and a B&W malt. All EXCELLENT.
We liked the Prime Rib so much, we went back the next day to enjoy all over again.
Would return for many great items, but would also stay away from many items.




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We ate breakfast here twice. First time we almost didn't. It was Father's Day and it was packed! Kids crying, kids sucking on the ketchup bottles, a few well behaved kids with their Dad, but overall very noisy. No fault of the restaurant. In fact, that shows that it is liked enough to bring Dads here on their special day. The second time we went, what a difference. Much quieter. Whether busy or normal, the wait staff was friendly and very willing to please.
COFFEE: Pretty bad. Not horrible. I usually drink coffee black, but HAD to add cream & sugar to make it good enough to drink (not enjoy).

FARMER'S PLATTER BREAKFAST: Diced ham, chopped bacon, country sausage, onions & green peppers atop golden hash browns. Topped with Cheddar cheese & 2 eggs. Very good. The hash browns are shredded potatoes, which needed a little more browning, but otherwise and very good breakfast.
COUNTRY PLATTER BREAKFAST: Big chunks of chicken fried steak & grilled onions, atop golden hash browns, smothered in sausage gravy. Topped with 2 eggs. Excellent!!!
PANCAKES: Good, but nothing special.
DENVER OMELET: Diced ham sauteed with onions and green peppers. Topped with Cheddar cheese.Very good.
GIANT CINNAMON ROLL: Excellent. Not quite as gooey as Cinnabon, but fresh, full of cinnamon, with thin white icing drizzled and a huge pat of butter on top. So large, Scott & I split it.

Zamzow's WOW!

BOISE RIVERSIDE RV PARK

Boise, ID 83714

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RV LIFE:

We prefer to stay at one place for at least 2 weeks. This gives us a chance to settle and relax. We also get a chance to take in what the local area has to offer, such as restaurants, sightseeing, touristy stuff, restaurants, oops, mentioned that already, but that is high on our list.

But even staying two weeks at a time, we are still moving about 25 times a year. Which means packing up, securing loose items, etc.  Little by little, we are learning how to NOT have to pack up so much.

We started by using 3M COMMAND STRIPS, for many things, such as hanging framed photos, cross stitch etc. We haven't had to take any of our frames down or lost any from dropping either. They work great for that.  We used the "small wire hooks" 

to hang kitchen utensils on the wall under our microwave.

We've used the "bathroom hook" in our shower to hang the wire thingy to hold shampoo, shavers, etc. 

Command strips are a great product, doesn't put any holes in the wall and comes off without any residue.

The other thing we find essential is a PUTTY that goes by many names. I originally found it in an office supply store. It's also called "earthquake putty". It prevents knick knacks from falling off shelves during a minor earthquake. It's also called "museum putty", which holds museum items secure on shelves. 

This putty has been ESSENTIAL for keeping things in place during travel. It truly saves a lot of packing and unpacking. For example, you can see above, on my desk I have put putty under the Irish Setter mug pencil holder and the photo frame.  I never put these away during travel and they have never moved unless I want them to for cleaning. 

My next test will be to putty down my computer monitor! I'm hope I'm not sorry!

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Look what pulled up to the site next to us. Very cool and a work in progress.

The front grill and fender was all made out of wood. 

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STORE & PRODUCT REVIEW:

ZAMZOWS  Our rating 5 out of 5

Being from NJ, I never heard of Zamzow's. Wow, what a great place!
Went in for parrot food and $180. later came out with 50#'s of grain free, good quality dog food, a free rolling plastic dog food container, grain free biscuits, a dog toy with extra squeakers, and a cooling mister for myself.
If I bought 2 30# bags of their dog food, they gave us a dog food container FREE! I went for it. Having two dogs that add up to a total of 130#, we can go through dog food fairly quickly. I really wanted that "FREE" container.

Holds about 40#'s of dog food. Wheels so it's easy to get from under the cabinet and latching lead, so nothing spills it the container falls during travel.

The container fits nice and neat in the cabinet below our TV. This is the cabinet that many people have their "fireplaces" installed.
Staff friendly & helpful, great selection of dog & cat items including health items for hot spots, teeth cleaning, etc.
Did not venture into the garden center. I had filled my cart already.
Too bad this store is only in Idaho.

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AUDIO BOOK REVIEW: 

The End of the Affair by Graham Greene
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Great narration by Colin Firth. He seemed to get the feel for this depressing diary.
The best way for me to review this book is by simply QUOTING, Elizabeth's review...

"There are books that make you feel inadequate, intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, something. Something in you isn't able to see, even distantly, what what makes the book powerful to others. It makes me feel broken.
It made me feel like everyone else has deep, aching emotions that I lack. It made me wonder if I just didn't get it. Am I simply incomplete in some way that this book didn't make me feel anything?"

Soooo depressing. This book is following a women's diary and her questioning what is love, hate, love and hate of God, which she questions is there a God? Very deep self searching, which I just couldn't care less about!
Maybe I don't care, because I am happy with my life, who I am and my spiritual or more accurately my lack of spiritual beliefs.


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BOISE RIVERVIEW RV PARK, Boise, ID 833714

BOISE RIVERSIDE RV PARK

Boise, ID 83714

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RV PARK REVIEW:

Our site A13

Sites: Gravel, level. The sites used to share a common hook up post, but now the adjacent site is used for parking your vehicle. Our site, is one of the less desirable, in that it is only 30amp, no grass and no tree. But we are at the end of the row, so no one is in front of us and we have a view of the treed bike path.

Bike path in rear amid trees. View from RV.

Privacy: Not much in the way of privacy, but the "nicer" sites with a patch of  nice grass and a shade tree, can make it pleasant.

Hook ups: FHU, some only 30amp.
Bathroom: Clean. Showers were also clean, but would like a little more privacy than just a plastic shower curtain.
Laundry: Nice laundry, choice of front or top load. Clean $1.50 per load and per dry (2012)
Cost: $27./day (weekly rate)
Pet friendly: Yes, many dogs at sites. Not too picky about rules. Some poop not picked up. Some dogs off lead with owners, but they were under control. A couple of people leave their dogs tied outside overnight, but the dogs were quiet and seemed fine.
WiFi: Free WiFi worked great. Pretty fast.
Verizon internet: Great. Didn't use much because of the good free WiFi.
Sprint internet: Great. Didn't use much because of the good free WiFi.
AT&T (Deb) cell: 5 bars
Verizon (Scott) cell: 5 bars
Sights: We are right next to the LES BOISE PARK, which is a horse race track. The bike path that we walk our dogs is right along all the horse stalls.
Town: Boise and the surrounding area reminds me a lot of where we lived in NJ before full timing. A lot of stores, strip malls, traffic.  NJ has "Jug Handles" (see below ), but Boise has loooooong lights.
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NJ Jug Handles: 
I have copied the well put and great description of NJ jug handles below from A STRANGER AMONG GUIDOS blog. Thank you for your help!

What's a jughandle? Why it's the most backwards way to turn left EVER! Instead of going left, you go to the right! Think of it as an interstate off ramp at nearly every turn. 


Often, the jughandle is on the opposite side of the cross street from you. That means in order to turn left. You must wait for the light, drive straight through the intersection, immediately exit to the right and then...WAIT FOR THE SAME LIGHT AGAIN, ON THE STREET YOU JUST CROSSED! 


If the point of a jughandle is to speed up the flow of traffic then how is that accomplished by increasing the amount time a car will spend navigating a single intersection? 


There are a few places where making a normal left hand turn is possible. But driver beware, you will never have the right of way due to the constant stream of traffic driving past you. You’ll probably end up making that left just as the light turns red. 


And because you made that last second dash to the left, someone will probably HONK and yell at you for making them wait 3/10TH of a nanosecond. For God's sake, don't bother giving them the finger…that's how we say hello in New Jersey...




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RV LIFE:
My morning walk with the dogs goes right beside the stalls for the horses. Very cool to watch all the buzz of the morning activities. Hundreds of horses 1 to a stall, with the ball of hay hanging for them to eat.

Some horses on that "May pole" type device that makes them walk around in circles.

Workers cleaning out the stalls, huge piles of wood shavings

Jockeys taking warm up laps.

There are a couple of Jockeys staying at this RV park.

Since we are right next to the horse park, we also hear the loudspeaker announcing the next race, etc. But it really is only short announcements, and not too annoying.

I'm not into watching horse racing at all. While in NJ, we were very close to MONMOUTH PARK Racetrack. Our Union annual picnics were held there because our Union President was a huge fan of the track.

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AUDIO BOOK REVIEW:

Ancestor by Scott Sigler
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Audio book narrated by the author, Scott Sigler. Most narrations by the author I have found are sub par. This is no exception. Although Mr. Sigler seemed to do justice to the character voices and was good during action scenes, his general narration was boring and monotone.
For Sci-Fi fans this was just typical. Scientist developing a unique creature who organs are compatible with humans & would not be rejected by humans needing transplants.  Of course things go wrong and good vs bad, etc. Not much imagination in this story except how the creatures were developed.
I struggled through this book, thinking it would get better with an interesting twist. Nope.


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