I miss New Jersey....

Apr. 18 - Apr. 24, 2013 Meteor Crater RV Park - Winslow, AZ

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NOT! I do miss Spring in NJ though. I'm sure I can find the same kind of Spring in other areas of the country, but here in Winslow, AZ it's all brown and some green. Sigh.  I've been seeing photos of Spring Flowers on other bloggers posts. Sigh.

Lily in my NJ garden

NJ Garden

NJ hostas

I really miss my hostas. I sort of gave up flower gardenings when we adopted Setters. They are not good off leash, so they couldn't be in the front yard with me gardening. I lost the heart for gardening when there were no dogs to keep me company. But hostas are easy care, great edging, great ground cover and come in thousands of varieties. They start showing in April and within a week are huge. I had them all along the edges of our yard.



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PETS: 
I met a nice young man (don't I sound OLD?) at the dog park here in our campground. He is taking some time to travel the country. Sort of his "bucket list" before he has to settle down with a real job and real responsibilities. He purchased an old Bounder Motorhome and has a scooter. He's from MA and headed West and is now heading back East.  His friends are very envious. He says he invited them along. But they were not adventurous enough to leave their "cook" jobs that they've had since high school. Opportunity lost and may never be possible again, until MAYBE retirement.
His roommate is Rocky, a really nice 110 pound rescued black lab. Devin is thrilled to have a playmate again!

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RV LIFE:
We are having plenty of down time this week. There isn't much to do in this area.  We visited Meteor Crater (review below), and went into the actual town of Winslow, AZ. Rt. 66 passes through there, so of course there are plenty of places with that theme. Sorry folks, I couldn't care less.

There is not much area to walk or hike here either, so this will be a very sedentary week. I do not have the discipline enough to just walk around this small park over and over and over, just to get 10,000 steps in a day that is recommended.


Another thing I don't miss in NJ, my job: 
Ya know what's nice about our RV life? I'm retired and away from the crap at my job.

This is from our APWU (union) facebook page.

Ex Co"worker" Sue's post : APWU Sucks. I had my issues, yes. But my Union Rep got me fired. The union rep (Ed: name deleted) sucks. She called me an F'N C---- I responded and got fired. Thanks for taking my money, Red Bank Local, the most "dangerous local around" (Ed: the union's motto)the only ones you have to look from are the Union Reps. They kiss ass
Ann's reply: So nothing you did was what actually got you fired? They just fired you because a Union Rep said to do so? I'm confused.
My reply:  I guess you don't know Sue.
Sue's reply: Neither do you Debbie. There are always two sides to a story.  Mind you own business Debbie, you never talked to me before, oh yeah, you were another ass kisser,/ supervisor wanna be.
Ann's reply: OK. I see now why.

Perfect!!! Sue showed her true colors in her reply to me. Ann also saw and understood.

Ahhh, those pleasant memories. Do you know how I was an ass kisser? I did what my supervisor's told me to whether I liked it or not. Yep, that's kissing ass and yep, I got along with most of my supervisor's. I had an uneventful 32 yrs in the postal service and glad for it. I put in my time and my work ethic and was blessed by being able to retire early at age 53!

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SIGHTS:
Meteor Crater, Winslow, AZ $16.00/per person admission
My rating 1 out of 5
Scott's rating 3.5 out of 5

Scott really liked it and would have rated it a 4 out of 5 if the price was cheaper. I would have rated it 2 out of 5 if the price was cheaper.

This is the best preserved and first proven meteorite impact site on Earth. It is about 1 mile across, 550 feet deep, and about 2.5 miles around. In the museum is a detailed history of the founder and how it was eventually proven to be a meteor crater and the money spent and possible wealth in iron, blah, blah, blah. Glad I brought my Kindle to read!

Scott was a Geology major at Catawba College in NC, so he's really interested in this and can understand it better than I can. He really enjoyed the museum. What turned me off was there was a replica of a piece 3' long, 2' wide piece of a meteor (Helsinger meteorite). The real piece was on display just outside the museum. Artists can make things look and feel so real, I become very skeptical of anything on display. I'm outta here. I sat on a bench reading, while Scott enjoyed the museum.

Seeing the crater itself was anti-climatic. Is it because we just were at the Grand Canyon the week before? Or was I truly able to judge this crater on it's own? Either way, it is difficult to realize the size of it from their 3 viewing posts. Yes, they state the rim is about 2.5 miles around, so we were prepared to walk the rim. Not gonna happen sucka! You are not allowed to walk around it, and can only view at their 3 lookouts.

Can you tell I'm not a fan? They are spending 20 million dollars!, yes, 20 million dollar$!$!$ on a "Sustainable Visioning Masterplan" to renovate and expand the visitors center. I did not see a railing and walking path around the rim in that plan. What a waste!

A definite tourist trap at $16.00 per person. 

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FOOD:

On to a much more enjoyable topic. Lunch! Ever since enjoying the home made tortillas at Verde Lea Market in Cottonwood, AZ, I am so hooked on putting almost anything between them.

I stated before my coleslaw mix, pica de gallo in a tortilla. Today I added sliced cucumber and some Tuscany Herb olive oil. I bet it would taste good with cucumber or ranch dressing also. Maybe add sliced avocado, hmmmm.

A healthy lunch.

Eat those veggies!

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FOOD PRODUCT REVIEW:

Philadelphia Indulgence, Cinnamon

My rating 4.5 out of 5 

I rated the chocolate flavor in a previous post. Now it's time for my second sampling. This is also delicious, although it won't satisfy my chocolate "needs" like the chocolate cream cheese does. This tastes almost like the Cinnabon frosting, only thicker.  I'm not sure what to use this on other than maybe a sweet roll, or...tortillas! I told you I was using all kinds of things to stuff a tortilla! 

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RECIPE:

Cinnamon Cream Cheese Rollups

Soft Tortillas

1 pkg. Philadelphia Indulgence, Cinnamon

Sliced apples or bananas (optional)

Spread cream cheese (and fruit) on tortilla, roll up and eat or layer, then roll up and slice for a nice bring along snack while visiting friends.

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CRAFTS; 
My 6"x9" rectangles have been shipped off the the HAP (Handmade Afghan Project) to make into an afghan and sent to VA hospitals.

1850 Old South Gown This is a crocheted outfit for a "Barbie" type doll. This is for display on your bed. I've had these patterns for years and years.
When I had to purged my craft room to get ready for RVing, I had to decide whether to keep these supplies or give them away. So I brought the material for one project and have been working on it for the almost 2 yrs we've been RVing. My heart is not in this project. What am I going to do with it? I guess try to sell it on Ebay or Etsy or find a nice Grandmom who would want it for her Grandchild.
So far I've completed the base of the skirt. I'm now ready to crochet the ruffles. I am a project crafter. I hate to have a project unfinished. So this project is my outside craft project because the sun give excellent light for this thin thread and tiny crochet hook use.

Sample

I'm also experimenting with a sun hat pattern. I've seen so many sunhats for sale in this area. They are crocheted and I KNOW I could make them, but...what is the material they use? It's not cotton, it's much stiffer so the hat holds it's shape. So I'm experimenting with some twine I bought at Walmart. I plan to make the brim wider and hopefully curl up a touch. Well see.

Cable Jacket

Sample

 I've been a good girl knitter and knit a swatch, soaked and blocked.

Yes, it is full of cables, but it is made with worsted weight yarn, so the bumps and jolts riding in the truck will not be too much of a problem. Come back next year to see the finished project. I hope it doesn't take that long! But it could.
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WHERE WE ARE HEADED:
Apr. 25, 2013 (Tentative) Calizona RV Park, Needles, CA
Apr. 26, 2013 (Tentative) Sierra Trails RV Park, Mojave, CA

Apr. 27 - May 5, 2013 (Tentative) Sequoia RV Ranch, Three Rivers, CA

June 14 - 24, 2013 Armitage County Park, Eugene, OR 

NV, CA, OR, ID, WA, MT, ND, SD, WY, then south for the Winter of 2013/2014

RV PARK REVIEW: Trailer Vlg, Grand Canyon, AZ

RV PARK REVIEW:

Apr. 11 - Apr. 17, 2013 

Trailer Village - (Part of Grand Canyon Park), AZ 

Site # I-60 $35.00/day

Our rating 4 out of 5

/ SITES: Gravel and very unlevel.. Close, but enough space to let our dog out on a 15 foot tether. Sights at the end of rows are more spacious with shade. Some sites are open, others have shade. Our site had a beautiful Utah Juniper tree for shade.

+ HOOK UPS: FHU

/ BATHROOMS: Toilets only, no showers. Did not check for cleanliness, did not use.

-  LAUNDRY: No

+ PETS: Pets allowed. Plenty of area to walk the dogs. Many paved walking paths and woods are cleared so easy to walk through. Dogs are not allowed on shuttle buses nor on many unpaved trails into the Canyon. There is a day kennel if needed.

-  WIFI: No

+ VERIZON INTERNET: Worked very well.

-  SPRINT INTERNET: No service

+ VERIZON PHONE: good

-  AT&T PHONE: No service

-  BOOK EXCHANGE: No

+ ACTIVITIES: Hiking the Grand Canyon.

/MAIL DELIVERY ACCEPTED: No, but there is a US Post Office in the Park at Market Plaza.

/AREA/TOWN/SIGHTS: Did not venture outside of park.

Other comments:

We saw huge Mule Deer almost daily in the RV park. On two occasions we saw Elk just grazing in the RV sites. Very cool experience.

Free shuttle bus to other areas of the South Rim available right outside the campground (walking distance).

Market plaza is maybe 3/4 to 1 mile from campground with a well stocked, but premium priced grocery, the US Post Office, a cafeteria, Chase bank, and a gift shop with hiking equipment available for rental or purchase.

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WHERE WE'RE GOING:

Apr. 18 - Apr. 24, 2013 Meteor Crater RV Park - Winslow, AZ

Apr. 25, 2013 (Tentative) Calizona RV Park, Needles, CA

Apr. 26, 2013 (Tentative) Sierra Trails RV Park, Mojave, CA

Apr. 27 - May 5, 2013 (Tentative) Sequoia RV Ranch, Three Rivers, CA

June 14 - 24, 2013 Armitage County Park, Eugene, OR 

NV, CA, OR, ID, WA, MT, ND, SD, WY, then south for the Winter of 2013/2014

Wackadoodle day!

Apr. 11 - Apr. 17, 2013 Trailer Village - (Part of Grand Canyon Park), AZ

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RV LIFE: 

What a weird day I'm having! It's not what I expected.

First, Devin wakes me up at 3:30am. He had to go out. He's been a pooping machine lately. We're not feeding him anything different. At 3:30am it is 31° outside. Brrr! That sure woke me up. No going back to sleep now.

Time flies while on the computer in the wee hours of the morning. Somehow 7:30 arrived and it's now 29° outside. Our propane RV heater, and 2 electric heaters are keeping the RV toasty. 

Since I only had about 4 hours sleep, Scott asked me if I still wanted to hike the Bright Angel Trail. 

I told Scott it didn't matter. If he wants me to go with him, I'm fine with that. He actually said he'd prefer to go alone. That way he won't have to worry about me falling off the path, over the edge! He was concerned I may not be as alert as I should with so little sleep. So, I opted out of hiking today. I'll just enjoy a virtual hike of Bright Angel Trail.

I thought I might have another "down" day. Especially being so cold, I'll just snuggle under the afghan. Unlike yesterday, I did get out of my jammies and into street clothes. I walked the dogs about 1/2 mile to the US Post Office that is right here on the Nat'l Park grounds in the Market Plaza.

So just as I begin to clean up the kitchen and get ready to settle down to read, it starts snowing, well barely snowing, but I did not expect this out West in April. But I guess at 7000' high, it's a different climate than lower down.

I know it's not much but still seemed odd to me.

So as I'm outside trying to take photos of the snow, I almost walk into....An Elk, or 2! Actually there are FOUR Elk just grazing all around our site. Cool! I'm glad I didn't go on the hike. I would have missed the wildlife show!

Next thing I hear is our African Grey Parrot growling and spreading his wings. Yes, our parrot growls. He growls when he sees a strange animal (usually a foster dog). The parrot is growling, Devin is barking, poor Lyla who is deaf can sense something's going on and is just looking at me for reassurance. Ok, ok kids, calm down. What the...? Trot, trot, trot....

This is looking out our back window!
Holy crap, we're surrounded!

Devin's keeping an eye on those huge "dogs". They don't look like they want to play. Devin is staring at the Elk behind this tree on the left. You can barely see if. He's in between the white trailer and the tree.

The Elks seemed to graze in pairs. So there's the one pair that Devin is watching, where are the others? I go to the front door to see if they are on the other side. Holy double crap!

He's at my door!

Woo hoo! What a great experience! I'm thrilled!

Beautiful

It's only 2 in the afternoon. What other adventures await just sitting in the RV? Maybe Scott will have some stories about his hike.

SIGHTS:

The other day we planned on taking the dogs along the "Trail of Time". We walked from the campground to the trail. Lyla & Devin were enjoying all the smells. I made sure I had a good hold of Lyla while walking along the rim. I don't want my nightmares about her chasing something over the edge to come true.

We walk about a 1/4 of a mile on the trail, when Scott & Devin lag behind. What's up? Lyla is a senior and I'm not in very good shape any more. I turn around and there is Scott struggling with Devin to stay on the trail. Is Devin afraid of heights? Does Devin know he could fall off the edge? Nope. Devin is afraid of children. This was a Sunday afternoon and many kids were jumping, skipping, oohing and ahhing, complaining and just generally making kid noises. Devin was pulling as hard as he could to get away from them. He just wanted to hide under a tree. We have no idea why he is like that. Sad. Instead of struggling and instead of making Devin go through this panic state for the next 2-3 miles, we opted to go back home. We'll do the trail minus dogs another day.

Another day came (what a surprise) and we did walk the "Trail of Time" just Scott & Debbie. I tried to take in all the info along the trail. Signs explaining what layer of rock, mineral, whatever was formed at that time. The trail starts at present day and goes back 100 million years or so. I gave up on taking in all the info at 14 million. It just all blended together into mush in my brain. It is an easy, paved fairly level trail. 

There are big chunks mounted on cement of whatever substance layer was formed at the time along our walk.

Scott on South Rim

Ther are many campers who only stay a day or two here. I guess it's just enough to say "been there, done that" or "check that off my bucket list". Many Cruise America Class C rentals in the RV park. I did see a unique "RV" rental. It's called Jucy rentals. 

 The top is called the "Penthouse". It is not just a car top carrier, it's a...

sleeping quarter. It literally is a car top carrier made into a bed. Whatever works.

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COFFEE REVIEW: 

Major Dickason's Blend, by Peet's

My rating 5 out of 5

When living in NJ, I used to mail order this. You couldn't find it locally. This company started out as just a coffee house in California, and kept expanding their coffee sales. Now you can find Peet's Coffee fairly regularly in major grocery store chains.

I purchased the Whole Bean bag and then Espresso ground it at the in store grinder. 

Flavor Notes from their website, "Rich, smooth, and complex, with a very full body and multi-layered character." I think that describes this blend perfectly, although I don't know what multi-layered means.

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AUDIO BOOK REVIEW:

Listening is an Act of Love, by Dave Isay

My rating 4 out of 5

This is an interesting concept. These stories are non-fiction.

Story Corps is a non profit organization that has recording studios both in stationary buildings and in a traveling Winegabo. You reserve recording time to record YOUR story, whether it be a fictional story you created or the story of your life and experiences. Listening is an Act of Love is a sampler of those stories.

Publisher's Summary on Audible " Drawn from the work of StoryCorps, the largest and most ambitious private oral history project in American history, comes this tapestry of the stories Americans have been sharing from their lives to leave behind to their loved ones."

What I listened to was a younger relative asking a senior relative about their life and memories. It is a great way to not only remember your family, but also to record life as it was and as it is now for future generations. These books I don't think are private. There is a copy kept at the American Folklife Center in the Library of Congress.

I found it very interesting listening to how things were in our grandmother's time. I think a great idea would to be record your story of going through a struggle and how you are dealing with it. That would be a help to others going through similar problems. 

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WHERE WE'RE GOING:

Apr. 18 - Apr. 24, 2013 Meteor Crater RV Park - Winslow, AZ

Apr. 25, 2013 (Tentative) Calizona RV Park, Needles, CA

Apr. 26, 2013 (Tentative) Sierra Trails RV Park, Mojave, CA

Apr. 27 - May 5, 2013 (Tentative) Sequoia RV Ranch, Three Rivers, CA
June 14 - 24, 2013 Armitage County Park, Eugene, OR 

NV, CA, OR, ID, WA, MT, ND, SD, WY, then south for the Winter of 2013/2014

Sometimes you just need a "down" day.

Apr. 11 - Apr. 17, 2013 Trailer Village - (Part of Grand Canyon Park), AZ

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RV LIFE: Last night's temps went down to 39°. Brrrrr. The propane heater was off and on most of the night even with the electric heater in the living room.
This morning we woke to high winds and overcast skies. Yippee! What a great day to stay in my flannel jammies and just putter.

So what did I putter about?
A cup of coffee and email & blog reading time.
Walk the dogs in my jammies. That's the great thing about the transient life. My neighbors can judge me, but we'll be gone in a couple of days, so who cares?
Baked Sweet Potato & Pecan Bread. Yum!  Link to recipe.
Another cup of coffee & 2 slices of delicious Sweet Potato & Pecan Bread.

Watch a little TV...stupid stuff like those small claims court shows.
Change the sheets. Huh? This is supposed to be a down day. Changing sheets in an RV is work! Unless you are one of the lucky ones with a larger sized bedroom. We sacrificed some wiggle room for more cuddle room in bed. We have a King sized mattress. Nice! Enough room for humans and 2 Setters+ if needed.
Clean the flatware drawers. It's amazing how much dirt collects in there. Yeck!
That's enough work for the day.
On to finishing up my 6"x9" rectangles for charity. These are made into afghans and sent to VA hospitals for soldiers injured.
Now on to blogging!

I get very lazy the morning of a move. I become quite the procrastinator until it's late and I have to RUSH AROUND, to pack up and last minute cleaning. Why? I don't know, but I'll have to work on that. Maybe start packing the night before, so my morning can be relaxing like most mornings.

We are enjoying ourselves here at the Grand Canyon. This is Scott's first time. I took a plane ride into the Canyon about 30 yrs. ago.
I get motion sickness and yep, I had to use the barf bag. I was single and in my 20's and trying to make a good impression on the cute pilot. I guess that didn't happen! I'm sure I made an impression though.

We are at 7000 feet above sea level. When we were in Santa Fe, NM, we were about 5500 feet and I was miserable. I felt like I constantly had a cold, I was tired and breathless.  At 7000', I'm doing ok. I get dizzy once in a while and it is a little difficult taking in a breath while walking an incline. But other than those little nuisances, all is good way up here.

REVIEW DESTINATION:
Grand Canyon, South Rim, AZ
Our rating 5 out of 5
It truly is an amazing sight. It is huge! It is beautiful! It is frightening.

There is a $25.00 vehicle entrance fee which we did not expect. But it is worth the view and all the free services that are provided.
There are many free Ranger programs available.  We chose to attend the "Geo-glimpse" talk. This was a lecture trying to explain to us plain folks how the Grand Canyon was formed. Stupid me thought it was a meteor hole. Nope it is millions of years worth of water, sand, rock, lime, fault lines, earthquakes all influencing the making of this canyon.
Ranger Kristi was very informative and funny at the same time. She really involved the group in her talk.

Scott's first glimpse of the canyon

There are free shuttle buses to get you to most parts of the South Rim of the canyon. We never had to wait more than 10 minutes for a shuttle. It is a well run system with maps and announcements to help you go where you'd like.

There are enough paved walking paths on the rim to get your fill of canyon views, or you can be more adventurous and take trails down into the canyon. There are some less strenuous trails, but none that are easy. There are many signs stating that once you start going down, you are committed to having to come back up. I am totally impressed that Howard & Linda of RV-Dreams hiked a trail to the BOTTOM of the canyon. This was a two day hike, so they had to also carry their supplies and stay overnight in a shelter. Read about their hike here.

How brave we are to stand at the edge of the canyon when there is a metal fence hopefully protecting us from falling. There are many, many places to go to the edge unprotected. I am surprised at the openness of these areas. Why are some edges protected by fencing and others are not?

We did see some fools that climbed out onto some narrow rocks. I almost get sick thinking of that. I have had nightmares of dogs running after a ball or a bird and unknowing jumping off a cliff and impossible to save them. We saw a Mom holding her approximately 7-10 year old child near the edge. Oh my gosh! All it takes is a wiggle to lose your balance or footing. What were you thinking? I also see other folks looking over the edge. All it takes is some stupid jokester to give a push like near a pool and game over. Can you tell I'm scared to death of the edge? We may attempt the easiest trail down into the canyon, but I may end up freaking being too close to the edge and head back up to safety. We'll see.

Scott has a walking stick there are little thingies you can purchase to nail into your stick. I bought this one of the Grand Canyon for Scott.

Nice way to add a souvenir without taking up space.

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We see this sign displayed in many business windows. A little culture shock. I've never seen this displayed in NJ.
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FOOD/RECIPE: And to finish off my easy day, I actually cooked dinner! I brined chicken tenders in salt, sugar, water and lime juice. Then I made fajitas! Yum!

The photo does not do the dish justice. It was delicious. I'll have a repeat for tomorrow's dinner!

Tip: Save some money and make your own seasonings. Here's the recipe for Fajita Seasoning. I've also made Taco Seasoning. Much cheaper than buying those little packets at over a dollar a packet/serving.

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WHERE WE'RE GOING:

Apr. 18 - Apr. 24, 2013 Meteor Crater RV Park - Winslow, AZ

Apr. 25, 2013 (Tentative) Calizona RV Park, Needles, CA

Apr. 26, 2013 (Tentative) Sierra Trails RV Park, Mojave, CA

Apr. 27 - May 5, 2013 (Tentative) Sequoia RV Ranch, Three Rivers, CA
June 14 - 24, 2013 Armitage County Park, Eugene, OR 

NV, CA, OR, ID, WA, MT, ND, SD, WY, then south for the Winter of 2013/2014

Desert dangers

Apr. 11 - Apr. 17, 2013 Trailer Village - (Part of Grand Canyon Park), AZ

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SIGHTS:
Finally, we are really seeing green landscapes. We are finally getting back to the kind of vegetation I am more used to...pine trees & grass. I am definitely a mountain lakes and pine forest kind of girl. The desert is fine in the winter when the snakes and scorpions are not out, but in the Summer, I want GREEN, LOTS OF GREEN.
A couple of unfortunate desert encounters we've experienced are,
Puncturevine or goatheads

These things get stuck in the soles of my shoes. If I wear "Crocs", they'll go right through. Ouch! They are very hard. Thank goodness I've never stepped on them barefoot. These are very invasive. There was a poster at Dead Horse Ranch Campground in AZ, stating that if you do step on these, do not just pull them out and toss them (as I have done in the past). These nasty hard ouchies are actually seeds. They separate into 5 sections with 4 or 5 seeds in each section. To dispose of at the least is to throw it in the garbage and best is to burn it.

Surprisingly there are opinions that this plant has health benefits, such as lowering cholesterol.

Cholla cactus, pronounced Choy-a, also known as teddy bear cactus or jumping cactus
This is a NASTY, NASTY cactus. I was walking our dogs while at Desert Trails RV park in Tucson, AZ. I happened to take a shortcut off the path. I noticed Lyla falling behind. She had these pom poms of spikes on her chest and on her legs. I've never experienced them, so didn't know that it was NOT a good idea to try to pull them off with my hands. OUCH! They are like velcro, only they poke in your body. Everytime you try to take them off, they just grab onto you somewhere else. I had two dogs, so I had to try to keep Devin from also being attacked by Cholla, while trying to free Lyla of them. Lyla tried to take them off her legs by biting them off. OUCH! She looked like she was attacked by a porcupine  She had all these 2" barbed spikes in her snout, and still had them on her legs and chest. Since it hurt so bad to try to pull them out with my hands, I tried my feet. Glad I wasn't wearing sandals. But then these painful puffballs attached to my jean's at the ankles and onto my shoelaces. This is a nightmare. Finally, we just had to slowly walk back to the RV site for help. I was too upset to take a photo. I just wanted these spikes out of Lyla's snout and these evil balls off me also. Scott came to the rescue with tweezers. They are very painful when being pulled out. Lyla was a brave girl.
Here are a couple of videos of people getting caught in Cholla.
Attack of the cactus and Jumping Cholla

RV LIFE:
Speaking of painful things, I had a slight mishap the other day. I was trying to sew Devin's harness to make it smaller. I knew it would be a difficult task trying to poke a needle through 3 thickness of webbing, but I gave it a try. Scott warned me to be careful. I used an old credit card to push the needle through. But that was not enough. The needle ended up poking right through the credit card and THROUGH MY THUMB. Yes, actually THROUGH. I was in shock! Oh my gosh! What happens now? Is this dangerous? I don't want to go to the hospital! I don't want to tell Scott! Done! I pulled it out myself. I didn't give myself a chance to think about it. I just wanted it out! Once it was out, I put it under cold water, wrapped it with a towel and told Scott. Lesson learned. What has this to do with RV life? I wouldn't have had to try to adjust the size of the harness if we lived somewhere permanently and I could have ordered a harness easily.
Again, I was too upset to take a photo. I needed to get the needle out before I lost my nerve. So, this photo is a "re-enactment" sort of.

Black dot is where needle came out through

Healed nicely with no ill effects.

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FAMILY:
I spoke to my Mom today. She is staying at American Cancer Sty's Hope Lodge. She has to go through 35 radiation treatments on her nose. 1 per day, 5 days a week. The facility where she is getting treatments is not near enough to home to commute. So, thank goodness there is Hope Lodge that provides housing during her treatment. So far so good. She is handling the treatment well and the oncologist feels they are helping so far. If this does not clear her cancer, they will have to amputate her nose. I know they do wonders with prosthetics, but still when the prosthetic is off, there is a gaping hole. I'm sure that is VERY DIFFICULT to deal with.
Samples of nose prosthetics:



Here's a  video of a Woman's prosthetic nose
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WINE REVIEW:
St. Clair Cab-Zin $12.00
My rating 4.5 out of 5
While in Deming, NM, we visited the St. Clair Tasting Room. I only bought 1 bottle of Cab-Zin and I'm sorry I was so conservative in my purchase. This is the first winery, that I actually really liked their red wines. Cab-Zin is not as "blushy" as I would have thought. It is more on the Cabernet side than Zinfandel side.

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MUSIC REVIEW:
Johannes Linstead
My rating 5 out of 5
While shopping in Jerome, AZ, Johannes Linstead, Mediterranean was playing. So soothing. I love acoustic guitar music and this is mainly just that with an added Spanish guitar touch also.

While browsing this same shop I was in awe of the artistry of Jon Anderson. He is a Fimo clay artist. I've tried my hand at Fimo clay. This is one of the crafts I made room for in our RV. There are so many little crafts that can be done with this clay. You can make decorative  pens, crochet hooks, knife handles. You can make cute little critters and characters, or beads for jewelry. 

But Mr. Anderson's work is amazing.

This is NOT painted. This is all clay rolled and flattened to make these patterns. Here is a video, briefly showing how he does it.
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WHERE WE'RE GOING:

Apr. 18 - Apr. 24, 2013 Meteor Crater RV Park - Winslow, AZ

Apr. 25, 2013 (Tentative) Calizona RV Park, Needles, CA

Apr. 26, 2013 (Tentative) Sierra Trails RV Park, Mojave, CA

Apr. 27 - May 5, 2013 (Tentative) Sequoia RV Ranch, Three Rivers, CA

NV, CA, OR, ID, WA, MT, ND, SD, WY, then south for the Winter of 2013/2014

Another day

Another day packed full, but alas leaves me no time to blog.
Tomorrow is another day.