Humpty Dumpty had a great fall

Feb. 26 - Mar. 13, 2013 Hidden Valley Ranch - Deming, NM 88030

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RV LIFE:

Hallelujah! I finally feel comfortable doing what I want without feeling guilty! That is truly a milestone! I am really enjoying retirement while living in an RV. Life is fairly uncomplicated.
Wheeling It, mentioned in their blog about a "restless gene", causing us to need to explore and move to new places. I may be traveling in an RV, which may seem adventurous, but really, I don't need to explore. I am comfortable in our little slice of real estate where ever we are. As long as I have something to do, I am content. I need to be able to read, watch TV, knit/crochet, surf the web, etc. All that takes up little space.

The weather again went down to the low 30's. But this afternoon, it is sunny, light breeze and 50°. Just my kind of weather to sit outside or take a hike.

There are murals on almost all the walls of the Rec-Community room here at Hidden Valley. The building is used as a library, lounge, office, game room, craft room, coffee club, pot lucks, etc.

Here's a close up of that sign on the left of the mural.

This is right next to the coffee pot area. "Why can't you Pilgrims jest drink yore coffee black!"
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HELP NEEDED:  
Our poor Basset butler who holds our Cedar Creek name sign is broken.

The wind was just too much for him. He went boom boom. Maybe I should call him Humpty Dumpty. Not sure if we'll be able to put him together again.  He stands about 3 feet tall, is hollow, in body only. He has a heart of gold. He is made out of resin. I've had him for many years and knew I had to bring him with us while RV'ing. He has been a good friend. I don't want to let him go.
Anyone have any suggestions on how to put him together again? I was thinking epoxy, or fill him with the foam expanding insulation for stability. Or maybe duct tape and paint him? Maybe not. Would love suggestions. Thanks.

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PET PEEVE: Misuse of the term, "Gentleman".
The original definition for Gentleman, was a man brought up in a genteel way. Genteel meaning, well-bred, polite, respectable.
Today the term generally means a man who is well mannered and courteous.
So why oh why do news people and even police officers use the term "gentleman" to describe a criminal???? When did the phrasing stop being perpetrator  or to be politically correct and state alleged perpetrator, or man/woman, or suspect, or just generic individual?
It drives me absolutely crazy to hear "The Gentleman was caught in the act of mugging the young woman". Grrrrrr! I myself would like to use "That low-life was caught in the act...".
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PETS:

It's all mine and I'm not sharing!

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LOCAL SIGHTS:
Deming, NM is about 20 minutes from the Mexican border. I like this company's name and sign. Cute play on words.

Looks like someone penciled in "pest" at the Border Control building. But nope, they are exterminators, bug exterminators that is.
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BUSINESS/WINE REVIEW:

St. Claire Winery, Deming, NM

Our rating 4 out of 5

Very enjoyable visit to this winery. They do grow their own grapes about 35 miles down the road. I was surprised grapes could grow in the desert. Our wine hostess said because the temps cool down so much overnight, that makes a great condition for growing grapes.
They bottle 3 labels of wine. St. Claire and Blue Teal, are very reasonable. DH Lescombes label is much higher priced.
For the wine tasting, you get 2 free tastings. If you want more, it costs $6.00 for 6 tastings, plus you also get your 2 free tastings for really a total of 8 tastings.
Our hostess was very informative and easy to talk to. She really seemed to enjoy her job.
I prefer dry reds and Scott prefers sweet wine, such as ports and fruit wines. I am usually the more picky in my purchases. When it comes to sweet fruit wines, it's difficult to go wrong. There is such a wide forgiving curve in fruit wines.
I tried:
Merlot Reserve: Not to my liking. Tart and not an enjoyable after taste.
Cab-Zin: described as "Lightly oaked Cab meets a well-mannered Zin". I liked it. Bought only one bottle for $12.
Shiraz: One sip and that was enough. Did not like.
Cabernet-Sauvignon: another I did not like.
Enough of the disappointing dry reds, on to the sweeter wines. I can enjoy fruit wines, but it has to be a warm day out and the fruit wine icy cold.
Summer Peach: Delicious! Excellent! Real fruit flavor and as Scott said, "you can even slightly taste the skins of the peach also". We bought 2 bottles at $10. each.
Sangria: didn't try, but at $10. for a large bottle, we would try it at home.
Triple Berri: Acai, blackberry & cranberry. Nice. We bought two bottles at $11.00 each.
Plum loco: Cherry & Plum. Scott tried this and bought 1 bottle for $10.00
Pomegranate: Scott tried this one. He liked it, but liked others better. We are in an RV and can only carry so much wine.
Lime-a-Rita: I did not like it. If I want a Margarita, I want a Margarita not blended with wine. Scott liked it so bought 1 bottle for $10.
Port, St. Clair label: Scott liked bought 2 bottles at $26. each.
Port: $4.99: Wasn't available to try. Was it that bad? We assume the $4.99 must have been an under-par batch and they were just trying to get rid of it at cost.
Then I decided to be a touch adventurous. When in the Southwest...
I am not really into all the kinds of peppers & hot sauces, etc. that the SW is known for, but since I still had a couple of tastings left, I tried...
Hatch Green Chile Wine: It smelled like peppers! Ooooh, do I dare? Here goes. A tentative sip and----nothing. Just a white wine flavor. Phew, I jumped that hurtle. But wait---there's more! One more chile infused wine.
Chimayo Red Chile Wine: So I took a sniff and just smelled a red wine. This should be easy! I take a sip and, wait for it!...wait for it! Huh? Took another sip and GOTCHA! There is a subtle tingling in the back of my throat. Not unpleasant at all. Very cool! This is a decent red wine, with that after zing in your throat. Not hot, just a tingle, almost like tame "pop rocks". I HAD to buy 2 bottles at $10. each for the novelty. This will be fun to bring out during Happy Hour with friends and see their reaction.
St. Clair also offers a reduced price for refills. I've never seen this done before. You purchase a jug of their basic red or white wine for $9.99. Bring the empty jug back for a refill for $6.00. Or, they will refill your own wine bottle for $3.00!!! What a deal.
We ended up purchasing 14 bottles of wine totaling only $159.00. We received a 10% discount (-$16.60) and the two wine tasting fees were refunded (-$12.00).
A must see if ever in Deming, NM.
We've got to drink up before we head to Sedona wine country in 3 weeks. Anyone want to join us for a glass of wine?
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WHERE WE'RE GOING
Mar 14 - 27, 2013 Desert Trails RV Park-Tucson AZ 85735
Mar. 28 - Apr. 10, 2013 Dead Horse Ranch State Park-Cottonwood, AZ
Apr. 11 - Apr. 17, 2013 Trailer Village,(Part of Grand Canyon Park)