A Catch-up Day

Sometimes you just have to stop and take care of stuff. It's that time of year for graduations (our granddaughter and our tenant's youngest son), there's a new baby on the way (our Godson and his wife), and a wedding in the offing (a good friend's son). Even though we won't be back to the NW in time, I had picked up a baby shower gift when I was out shopping with Juni last week. I also picked up a graduation card for Tyler.

Today was also the day to pay the bills. Most of them get paid with the computer, but I had one for seed for the CRP (Conservation Reserve Program) ground that had to be sent by mail. A copy of that bill also needed to be sent to the FSA (Farm Service Agency) in Adams County in order for cost share to be paid.

All of which meant a trip to the local Post Office in Bloomfield. I needed to get one of those stretchy envelopes for the shower gift. I was organized enough to take the address and a marking pen with me, so it all actually went pretty fast. And the PO lady was so very cheerful and pleasant! There was only one other person in line, so I was in and out very quickly.

The Mariners were playing in Toronto tonight, so with the time difference, we got home just in time to watch the game. Felix Hernandez pitched a great eight innings -- so fun to watch!

A Rest-Up Day

After all of the flurry of getting everything back into Auntie Violet and the fighting the wind to get to Bloomfield yesterday, we were quite tired this morning. It's strange how things that used to be so easy are now so much harder. It can't because we are now in our seventies, could it?

We did spend some time with the vacuum and the duster. Somewhere, we have accumulated a great deal of red dust on the windows along the the driver's side of the coach. Everything else is dusty as well, but not with the red, red dust. We may have picked it up yesterday from the wind or?

We needed to pick up some milk, bread and orange juice, so planned a late afternoon trip to the grocery. The closest Safeway store is about seven miles away in the town of Aztec. That seven miles is full of natural gas stuff: drilling equipment, refineries, and various plants. It was a little after five and we met numerous rigs heading back to their various headquarters. Most of them are flying pennants -- so they can be seen in the field? as identification?

We found a drive-through car wash in Aztec and took Toad II though. It didn't do a super job, but she looks a whole lot better than she did before the dirt/rain shower in Mesa.

The Desert Rose RV Park flyer had an ad for a Chinese restaurant in Bloomfield named Panda Garden, so we decided to check it out. Bad move. Lots of very bland over-cooked food. It's the first really bad meal we've had in a long, long time.

And So We Depart...

It took a few trips, but we got everything back out to Auntie Violet and put away. Juni had had an early PT appointment and by the time she was back, we were finished. She brought home boxes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts for our final sit down coffee on the back patio.

This is one of the many striped lizards that love the wall around the yard --

This is Izzy, a small bundle of Yorkie energy who will chase and catch balls as long as she can get someone to throw them.She's quickly figured out that with the new grabbers, we can reach the balls that roll under the table.

This is Cassie! She just turned a year old. Orphaned, Juni and Tom fed her every two hours around the clock. She's very spoiled and very charming.

This elegant lady is Tica. She's the matriarch who will occasionally chase a ball, but most times is found sitting demurely on someone's lap.
 

And these are our gracious hosts, Tom and Juni! We came to visit a couple of days with them and ended up spending almost two weeks, partly because of inclement weather, but mostly because we were having such a good time!

Forry and Tom got that tire with the slow unfindable leak aired up; we disconnected the electricity and hooked up Toad II. Finally we were on the road once more. We headed out on I-40, then cut off on Highway 25 to the other side of Albuquerque, then took Highway 550 north. This part of New Mexico has reservations of the Zuni, the Hopi, the Navajo and the Apaches. It's majestically beautiful.

The road climbs to over 7000 feet with an incredible variety of colors along the way --

We climbed high enough to begin to see Pinyon Pines along with the Juniper bushes and trees of the lower elevations.

You can see the effects of the last several years of drought. This whole area was much greener when we came through here two years ago.

White Mesa is not too far from this area. The white coloration becomes more prominent in the surrounding rocks, replacing the reds.

Forry fought a head wind and assorted cross winds most of the trip. As we got closer to Bloomfield where there is farm ground, it began to get pretty dusty. And cooler as well. It's already 48 degrees outside a little after nine pm.

We're settled in here at Desert Rose RV Park in Bloomfield and will most likely stay through Monday so that we can attend church with our friends.