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What’s Next?

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If I was still counting days, this would be 175. Yes, it’s been a week since my last post and I have to admit that I feel like I’m falling down on my job. But, the journey is over for a while so I can relax a little, right? The problem with that is that I need something to write about. To do that requires me to contribute a little brain power to these efforts. Let’s see what happens.

First, there’s Max, who doesn’t have a problem with moving around a lot. Any time he gets outside, he plants himself close to his next possible ride. Close enough that he’s hard to ignore. It works, and he gets in his trips around town in addition to his walks around the block, so he knows we see him.

As you can see, there’s a travel trailer parked under the car port and, as far as I know, it hasn’t leaked. I haven’t had the courage to unlock the door and stick my head inside to find out. Maybe I’ll do that tomorrow.

While taking stuff out of the RV Max assumed one of his favorite positions. I think he was channeling Laurie and Pat, hoping they would show up. We explained to him that they aren’t here, but they think about him a lot. He sat on the back of that couch for an hour or so until we closed it up. Funny guy.

Monday I used my air compressor to blow off 6 months of dust that collected on the air cleaner filters on the furnace. It was pretty fuzzy so I did it when Diane was not here. Actually, it was part of the instructions that I do the cleaning after Diane exited the premises and wouldn’t be back for a while. Max doesn’t care about stuff like that so he was allowed to stay with me and watch the fun.

Also on Monday, Max had a bath. A shower, really. He’s not fond of getting clean, but he loves the part about buffing him off with a towel. He must have heard about the need for a bath because he escaped for a little while and came back partially covered in mud. My first impression was that he found some deer poop and had a good time smearing it all over himself. But, it ws just dirt and it came off easily with the shower wand. That made Jerrie happy.

On Tuesday, I think, Diane drove herself to town (Portland) for her CT Scan to see how things are looking with her lungs. I thought she had an appointment scheduled with her doctor but can’t find it on the calendar so will have to find out when that is. We both want to know if we’re going to be visiting Arizona again this year, or if we’re going to get a sauna instead. Might just do both. You will hear about it as soon as I know..

Diane got her hair cut a little bit on Wednesday. The last trim she got was in Coronado, I think, and I did a pretty good job. Made me proud. I offered to do it again, but she nixed that very quickly. That’s OK because Tracey is her friend and they get to talk which is good. Sometimes I go there and just sit in the waiting area and listen to them. They know I’m there because there’s no way to sneak into the shop. Most of the time they just let me stay as long as I want and sometimes I even get a haicut, too.

On Thursday Diane had a meeting with the church ladies, and Friday she had an eye appointment.

On Friday I also got to do something for Jennifer using the truck. I drove way the heck and gone into the woods above our house, but not far enough to encounter snow. We loaded up a free freezer and took it back to her house and got it installed in her garage. Jeran came along to do the heavy lifting while Diane stayed at Jen’s to watch cartoons with the Little’s. We all had a good time and I only got in trouble a couple of times for trying to help move that thing. To facilitate the transfer, we got a trailer from Don’s Rental. There was no way we were going to get an upright freezer high enough to get it safely into the truck. The trailer worked nicely. It turns out that when someone else does the heavy lifting, it’s pretty easy to get stuff like this done.

This morning Pastor Ingrid cooked pancakes at the church for whoever wanted to walk through the church door, so I went about 9-ish and had breakfast with a few people we haven’t seen in a while. It was a good visit, the pancakes were awesome. Thanks, Pastor.

When I got back Diane convinced me to take Max around the block once more, then I drove her and the truck to Scappoose so we could fill the truck’s gas tank, and she could get her Spring Rolls at Simms Restaurant. She’s been craving those things for many months and couldn’t wait for tomorrow. Sunday, after church is when we usually make that trip. It’s a ‘thing’ with us. I usually get Lomein with shrimp but having just eaten a late breakfast, I settled on tempura shrimp. They were really good.

Oh, and we also had egg flower soup. And tea.

That’s pretty much up-to-date as I can get so I’m going to quit.

See you next time.

Day 169 – Sunday – Family Reunion

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Today was for celebrating family. Diane said so. It’s the beginning of our monthly gathering to replace the more infrequent gatherings we’ve done for one holiday or another. She figures, and I agree, that as we get older, we need to do these things more often as long as we’re able.

I don’t have any group photos, but I’ve got these:

Here’s Jeff, the father of our Hill Children:

This is Jerrie Anne Diane, our youngest granddaughter.

This is Baylee with Jasper on her shoulders:

Cedric was hidden behind Baylee in the above photo. I luckily got him in frame later. He’s a hard guy to pin down. Cedric is normally the one who wears his little brothers out, but he had help from his cousins today.

Here’s Gilligan:

This is Diane, Lydia, and Jennifer – 3 generations of one branch of our family tree:

You can ignore Jerrie on the left of that last photo. She was introduced earlier.

This is Daniel and Jasper:

Here’s Siah, the youngest:

Now I’ll tell you who is missing: Jeran, Tiana, Heather, and Elisabeth. By my count, that’s 15 people and a dog.

I always have good intentions of capturing everyone in at least one group photo, but this one got away from me. Then some folks left before I realized my failure. I’ll get them next time. I guess I was too busy just watching everyone. Could be, too, that my brain hasn’t recovered from the faceplant I participated in while in Lodi.

Yeah. Let’s blame it on that.

It was a roaring good time made better by Diane’s Sloppy Joes, and her 30 lb custom made Mac’n’cheese.

As with all family events of this nature, no one went away hungry.

As I type this, the calendar tells me that it’s really Tuesday, not Sunday so I’m obviously running a little behind schedule. I’ve decided that I will stop this rigid daily schedule of info sharing and just scribble something when the mood strikes. It’s much easier that way because being on a daily routine makes it necessary to make stuff up when nothing happens to write about. This is true.

Today Diane is going to Portland, all by herself, to get a CAT Scan, then later this week she will visit her doctor for the results and to find out which kind of sauna would be the best alternative to a trip to Arizona. Yes, stuff like that makes my head hurt a little too.

See you next time.

Day 151 – Wednesday – NAS Lemoore

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We left Tehachapi bright and early this morning with NAS Lemoore in our crosshairs. Today’s drive was about 150 miles, a little longer than the norm, but doable. It was actually a nice trip watching the scenery change from brown to green.

Just before we pulled out of Mt. Valley RV Park, the airport people started launching gliders. I have proof.

The tow plane took the glider to the end of the mountain range before turning it loose. Once it was free it quickly disappeared from my view. Honestly, it disappeared prior to that because they were so far away, I could only guess at where they were.

Since I was driving, there are no other photos of this trip, but I have a doozy for you that I captured after we got checked in at Bldg. 951. After I paid for our stay, I encountered Diane and Max who were out for a little stroll on real grass. Diane stopped me and said I needed to look at what’s in front of the rear wheel. Being a good husband, I immediately went there and looked.

His head was flat, so I didn’t think I was in danger, but these things give me the creepies. I suppose it’s possible that I may have run over it with the front tire when I pulled up to the curb. Considering its location, I’m pretty sure it got a taste of the rear tire, too. I did not stop to look. Perhaps tomorrow we’ll drive over there and see if it’s gone. If it is I will be on the lookout because I’ll be sure it’s out looking for me.

Once we got connected on pad 06, I took Max for a walk in the dog park. He’s been here before so it’s no big deal for him, other than the fact he gets to do it without a leash.

That’s him behind the tree just to the left of the bench on the fence line. This is the big dog side of the park. We had to pretend he weights 26 lbs. or more because that’s the rule. No one was there to check, and we were alone, so I took a chance.

Max circumvented the fence line smelling pretty much everything in his path.

On the way back to the bus we stopped here.

He wasn’t impressed. He’s seen grass before but that doesn’t mean anything since he’s color blind. It does, however, smell different. So, of course, he went about sniffing as many blades of grass as he could before I convinced him to move on down the road.

When we got back to the RV some of Diane’s friends flew over and gave us a little show.

If she could, she’d swap me out for a fighter pilot in a heartbeat. Can’t say I blame her because it looks like fun. They earn more money, too.

This is a photo of the RV Park taken from the dog park. You can see our bus just to the left of the 5th wheel in the middle.

As you can see, there’ plenty of room at the inn. Also, that tall fence on the left encompasses a golf driving range. Some of the balls wind up in the adjoining dog park so they became mine. I almost filled one of Max’s poop bags with them. Thankfully, it was brand new.

Next to park is the swimming pool that’s still full of water – it was 70 degrees here when we checked in. The pool has some nifty water slides, too.

I mentioned the temperature above. It was very pleasant when we got here, and we got to sit outside enjoying it for a bit. Later, it cooled down considerably. Not nearly as cold as it was in Tehachapi. It was 25 degrees this morning. I wisely left our water hose in its container and used the onboard fresh water instead.

Diane devoted her afternoon to doing our laundry. She noticed that I was almost out of underwear and figured it was time to get it done. I helped, when she let me.

The laundry is free, by the way. After the laundry was done, we took a trip to McDonald’s for a simple supper. It’s right across the street from the laundromat so we could have easily walked there, but Diane thought it would be more fun to use the drive thru. She got a fish sandwich, and I had a chicken sandwich. We both had milkshakes. It only cost us $27.00+. Not much of a bargain. Tomorrow I’m cooking.

We hope all is well with everyone.

Ciao.

Max says, “Hi”.

Day 121 – Monday – Prepping to Move On

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Today was supposed to be the beginning of our trip north. Some of it got done, some didn’t. Most importantly, we visited Lazy Days RV We Fix Everything That Is Wrong With Your RV, or more simply Lazy Days RV WFETIWWYRV, Place. All we want them to do is drain the bus’s radiator and refill it with the proper amount and mixture of coolant. At this time the engine is being cooled with mostly tap water. The reason? Mostly because I’m lazy, and I forget that it needs to be addressed. Some of you may remember the Great Catastrophe I created in Nevada a couple of years ago where the bus overheated and I foolishly took the radiator cap off before the engine cooled down. It was pretty exciting for some of us. Had it not been for the quick thinking of our travel partners I would have been scarred for life, literally. Because of them, although I had been drenched head to toe in boiling hot water, I have no scars. But that’s a story already told. If it interest you, there’s a post about it somewhere in the past.

The visit to Lazy Days was to arrange a visit so they could rectify my neglect and hopefully resolve our overheating issue when we drive up long hills. Diane had the brilliant idea to make our first stop after leaving the Bone Yard, a place that could fix it. So, now we have an appointment on January 8, 2025, to do just that. When done, we’ll hook up the car and buzz on up to Luke AFB in Phoenix. Lazy Days is conveniently located just a few miles away, close to I-10 that will lead us north. It’s really nice to have a partner like Diane. Everyone should be so lucky. Thank you, my Love.

After making those arrangements, we stopped by Culver’s to pick up something for lunch. I had shrimp and Diane had Halibut. We took it home to eat.

Two other tasks on my list was to call the Family Camp at MCAF 29 Palms and beg for a place to park next month. That didn’t happen because I forgot until too late. Now we must wait until next year to make those arrangements.

Lastly, I was to call Hudson Garbage Services and discover why we have a credit on our account. This has happened before. The reason is because, for some there were times when it seemed right to pay them every month, like a normal bill. But, Hudson only requires payment every OTHER month. There have been times when we’ve had over $500 credit because of this. Diane called it our Hudson Garbage Savings Plan. You’d think I would learn, right?

After that, the day should have peacefully into the sunset. But, it didn’t.

When Diane was neck deep in laundry, something I normally help with, I was called by one of our neighbors to help install her new TV. Once that was done we had to hook the TV up to the Bone Yard WiFi. Then she needed help getting her car off base so it could be towed to the closest Honda dealer for repair. All of this resulted in Diane doing all the laundry by herself.

Finally, we wound up back at our bus to greet the evening with some downtime. She certainly earned hers. Me, not so much. I had this guilt complex about not sticking around to do my job. I suspect I’ll get over it eventually. Maybe by the time we pull anchor and sail off to Lazy Days on the 8th.

I have no photos to share about all that happened today but here’ one from December 19, 2016 that’d kinda cool. It’s Diane’s 38th birthday cake.

Isn’t she lovely?

Be safe.

“Sorrow looks back, Worry looks around, Faith looks up” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson

Day 117 – Thursday – DVR & Toenails

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This morning, I apparently, magically, fixed a DVR issue with our Dish. As you may know, we’ve been binge watching NCIS and last night watched season 9 episode 22 from 2012. At that point in the menu NCIS stopped and gave us SWAT. Up to this point all the episodes have been in sequence so it was perfect for lazy people to keep up. We needed episode 24, but it wasn’t showing on until Saturday. At 0700. That meant it needed to be recorded.

Any attempts to set the DVR to perform that duty failed because the DVR was not recognized. We knew that was only partly true because we could till watch shows that have already been recorded, but we couldn’t set new recordings. That meant today my primary objective was to make it work again.

I’d already reset the receiver a couple of times, but the results didn’t change so I got on my phone and started a chat session with Dish. I like doing the chat instead of phone calls because I can understand the written word better than the spoken word. That’s not always true, but statistically I have better results with chatting.

I got someone on the line before I gave it one more try. By the time I was all signed in I discovered that somehow the problem went away last night, and it now works perfectly. I thanked the chat person and ended the session. Then I gave the remote to Diane who promptly called up the desired date/time/show and set it to record. She did this from her seat at the dining table, a full 25 feet from the TV! That’s another win for me because until a few days ago the Dish remote barely worked from 5 feet away. Amazing what new batteries can do in situations like that.

Now that the DVR works again, Diane can add to the library of Hallmark Christmas movies that have been recorded previously. She’s a happy camper and will probably be smiling throughout the day.

Pretty much as soon as Diane got up this morning, around 0900 or so, her feet have been marinating in a solution of hot water and Epson salts. The purpose for this was to make her toenails soft enough for me to shorten then with the new wire cutter she got me. She will disagree, of course, because it came wrapped in a container that clearly marked it as a nail cutter, or trimmer. But, they look almost exactly like a small version of the wire cutters I have in my tool bag. She won’t let me use them, however, even though they are easier to hold and manipulate.

The signal for me to start working my way down to the floor to work on her toes is when the water gets cold. It got cold somewhere around 1030 or so. By then I was poised to work on the toes. First, I had to get back on my feet and dump the water in the toilet. Then I had to reassume my nail cutting position near the sofa. Before I started I remarked that I probably should have pulled the trash can a little closer and she agreed. So, I got back up, got it, then back on the floor. I suspect you’ve realized that doing Diane’s toenails is physically demanding on old bones. That’s OK. We’re saving $50 and she’s getting them trimmed exactly the way she wants them, not the way a paid whittler would do it. I suppose I could ask her to pay me but it’s really not necessary because she slips me a few dollars every once in a while, just for fun. That works. I hardly ever use real money, but it’s nice to have a cushion in my wallet in case I fall down. Again. I don’t know why I consider that a proper cushion because I never fall backwards. It’s always forward. I’d be better off wrapping my hands and arms in large pool noodles. On my knees would be good, too. Sadly, that’s the kind of things I consider as I’m falling. It’s been a while, so maybe I’ve advanced beyond that stage of my life.

I finished Diane’s toes successfully without even once making her bleed or yelp in pain. Except the one time I ventured too close to an ingrown nail. Other than that one foo-pah, I did good. She said so. I would have taken a photo but she’s very serious about keeping her toes anonymous. Even so, I’ve secretly named each one of them.

The only other things that happened today was a trip to the commissary for Diane, and a trip to Harbor Freight for me. I needed long screws for a repair project I can’t discuss and waited for Diane to return before venturing out on my own. I was hoping I wouldn’t have to do that but the commissary was fresh out of long screws. So, Diane drove me to HF. Max was delighted because he loves car rides. If we let him out of the bus and gave him the choice of running willy nilly all over the park, or going for a ride in the car, he takes the car every time.

By the time we returned home it was time to cook dinner, so my screw project was deferred to another day. It might have to wait until next year. I’ll explain once I’m done and have achieved success.

I broke out the handy-dandy George Forman cooker and paninied 4 hamburger patties. Two of them were for Pat and Laurie next door. They were very thankful that we included them in our meal planning. Diane brought home a platter of good-looking patties from the commissary, and we wanted to try them. They seemed to cook up OK, but Diane and I found them lacking in smash burger flavor, so we won’t get them again. Pat and Laurie thought they were really good which made me happy even though I’m sure they were just being nice. Still, we’ll take the win.

After supper Max got a long walk then we watched a Hallmark Christmas movie and called it a day. It was getting very cold outside, so we closed all the windows before retiring. Normally we leave at least one window open a little so the bus can breathe.

A gift from Pat, our neighbor, her task while recovering from COVID. It’s very pretty.

Now, I’ll stop.

Day 114 – Monday – Laundry (again)Today

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After a chilly start, this day turned out to be almost like summer in Oregon. We took our laundry up the street to our very own laundromat and sat outside the bus soaking up the sun while the machines did the work. It’s just a short walk – about 100 feet, or so. Maybe even shorter. I’ll have to measure it the next time I make that trip to ensure I’m giving you correct information. I know all of you rely on me for valid information, right?

Yesterday we were going to take a trip to Green Valley to visit with Roberta, my cousin. I’ve talked with her on the phone a couple of times recently and she figured we haven’t seen each other for about 60 years. Yes, 60 years. So, Diane and I were primed for the visit. Sadly, on Friday, our neighbors here in the Bone Yard told us that we’ve been exposed to COVID and needed to quarantine for a week or so. It was good to know so we don’t show up at Roberta’s and spread the good news to her. I called her right away to delay our visit just to make sure we keep it away. So far Diane and I are fine, but Pat and Laurie next door have a pretty nasty case of this critter. Diane and I have had all the vaccines so aren’t concerned about coming down with the virus.

Last night, right after it got dark, Max jumped up to his window, the one next to the driver’s seat, and went ballistic, barking at something running by the RV. Shortly after that we could hear the coyotes howling very close to us. So, technically, Max saved my life by letting me know it wasn’t a good idea to go outside. Actually, I had no intention to go outside anyway, but it was still good to have him warn me.

Now I must do some catching up on stuff that happened previously. Most important was Diane’s birthday lunch at Mama Louisa’s.

Sarah, our waitress, took our picture to commemorate this moment.

Diane had ravioli’s drenched in pesto sauce and she swooned on almost every bite. I guess she really liked them. I was very happy about that.

I was looking forward to some spaghetti ala carbonara but that’s not a menu item. I really like that stuff. But I settled for giant prawns, gently warmed in a buttery lemony concoction, and lovingly placed in a bowl of linguini. It was pretty awesome as a substitute. For some reason I didn’t take a picture of my meal which is unusual. I almost always take a picture of my food, even at home. I did, however, get one of the tiramisù that Diane got for getting older. It was pretty good, too.

The candle was lit when it arrived, and Diane blew it out before the shot. She put the candle back but we didn’t have any matches to relight the candle so you’ll have to squint a little and visualize a flame on the candle so you can enjoy the original effect.

I’ll end this with a photo of Diane’s snowman collection that she’s accumulated since we’ve been here. She finds them in the thrift stores and I gotta say they are pretty cute sitting there on the printer.

Yes, there’s a reindeer in there with a snow globe, and he’s cute, too.

We pray that all is well with you. Peace and Joy to you and your families during this blessed season.

Day 86 – Monday – The Toilet Has Been Fixed

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Almost.

This afternoon we went back to La Mesa RV to pick up the part they got from Phoenix to replace the one that broke in our toilet. We’ve been toiletless since Friday, so we were excited to get the replacement part.

On the way back, as we got close to the base, we saw a couple of A-10 Warthogs were doing touch & go. They’re flying around here all the time.

This is what they look like when they are little dots flying over the highway.

I went right to work as soon as we got back to the RV even though I had to go to the bathroom. There’s something about working on a toilet that manifests that urge. Just like washing my hands, all that running water requires my bladder to relieve itself. Weird.

As I was getting everything positioned to put in back together, something slipped and magically dislodged one of the flange bolts that hold the toilet to the floor. As luck would have it, it did a double back flip into the holding tank, well out of reach if I had a notion ‘to go diving for it. Which I didn’t. It can stay there forever as far as I’m concerned. I figure one bolt will keep things in place for a little while. At least until I can get a replacement tomorrow. Losing that bolt was kind of the topping on the cake, so to speak, after all that waiting.

After hanging my head in dismay for a little bit, I bucked up and put the rest of the toilet back together with no more incidents. It is fully functional and when you sit on it, the small gap on the side missing the bolt is compressed to the floor as if the bolt was there. That means nothing is going to leak out. I’ll still get a replacement bolt tomorrow because one of us might get a little antsy about not having the base firmly bolted to the floor. But it looks normal.

The weather is changing a little at a time, getting cooler. We hear the coyotes more at night, too. Perhaps the weather is their que to get more aggressive. Whatever the reason, Max is going to learn how to hold his water a little longer because I’m a little wary about going out with him in the dark. It was OK previously, but now you can hear them yipping not too far away. Why take a chance?

That’s about it for today so I’m going to quit and take a shower. It’s my turn.

G’nite.

Day 77 – Saturday – Oro Valley

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Diane picked today to visit Oro Valley to attend an American Indian art and craft show. It was held in the National Parks Store located at 12880 N Vistoso Village Dr., in Oro Valley. Max and I had to stay in the car while Diane went shopping. We had to stay behind because I couldn’t find Max’s car leash. I’m sure it’s in there somewhere but I’ll be darned if it would reveal itself to me. So, I improvised and used my belt. It took a bit of adjusting for both of us because Max is accustomed to using all 16′ of his leash but my belt is only 3′ long. There was a lot of jerking going on until we found the limits of the belt. It wasn’t the best solution because I needed that belt to keep my pants up. Without it I was having a little trouble, but it worked. I just kept yanking them back up.

I saw someone with a dog go through to the doors, so I figured it was OK if we also entered. It was. We barely got through the door when a lady walked up and asked if Max could have a treat. He never turns down a treat. He did, however, do exactly what I told the lady he would do. She broke his snack in half and gave him a piece which he took and held it for a bit, tasting it. Then he put it on the floor and looked at the lady as if to say thanks. He pretended to ignore it for a bit, so I reached for it as if to pick it up and he grabbed it before I got close. It’s a game we play. Then he chomped it up and ate it. I gave him the second piece and he didn’t mess around. He just ate it.

We walked around the room where the art was being displayed. The artists were manning the tables, making new art which was pretty cool. I looked at a few pieces and admired the work, but the prices were way over the top for us. A 5×7 original watercolor was $120. After that, I didn’t touch anything else and returned to the store part of the venue. I did, however, decide that I needed to figure out how to paint stuff. Looks easy, right? Thinking about that for a minute brought me back to reality. Painting requires talent and ability. All I have are the physical tools. But, instead of just talking about painting isn’t getting it done. So, I’m going to give it a shot. One of these days.

There must have been 5-6 ladies working the store floor and every one of them came to visit with Max. He was pretty popular which was great because he detracted everyone from watching my struggle to keep my pants up. He’s quite a personality.

After leaving that the store, I did a search for the nearest Petco we could get a reasonably priced leash. The closest one was only a few miles away. I got the leash, and a new toy for Max, and got my belt back. It was a good trade.

All the sudden, it was time for lunch. Diane found a pet-friendly place down the road called Teaspoon. They had a large, covered patio area and we had a terrific lunch. The writing on their sign indicates they serve Breakfast, Brunch, and Lunch. No dinner.

Max spent the whole meal under the table or under my chair. Diane had a huge turkey omelet, and she’d give him a piece of turkey every now and them. He’s really a good dog.

One of the many pretty girls working at the Teaspoon couldn’t let us go without giving Max a hug. He’s a sucker for pretty girls.

We left there around 1440 and headed home after the young lady above rescued us while we were trying to get a selfie.

The chosen route took us through the heart of downtown Tucson where we’ve been a number of times. This is what it looks like. Not only are there just a few larger buildings, some really long freight trains run right through the heart of the city. They don’t go slow, either. The underpass you can see behind the barriers takes traffic under the tracks so there’s no disruption. We’ve never been that direction because the GPS always makes us take a left turn at the light, to a bridge that goes over the tracks.

Although the last photo showed some clouds in the sky, I had to include the next one to show you the Catalina Mountains as seen from the base near the Bone Yard. It’s much more dramatic that the one of downtown.

This next photo is the left side of the above mountain range taken on our way back to the valley. They call this area the Catalina Foothills.

That’s all I’ve got.

Day 73 – Tuesday – Tombstone, Arizona

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This morning, I woke up the first time at 0400, the second time at 0530, and the third time at 0645 or so. While lying there wondering if I could make myself get up before 0900, when breakfast was over, Diane told me I should get up and eat breakfast before it’s over at 0900. That was code for “get up and go eat breakfast.” It’s good to know the code.

So, I got up and took Max for a walk, stopped by the breakfast area and got Diane a cup of coffee, THEN I went to breakfast. I knew she was thinking that and inadvertently omitted those two critical instructions. There are times when I add things to the code and make mistakes but this time I was spot on.

I went back to the breakfast area and had a bowl of oatmeal and two, two pieces of overtoasted toast, the way I like it, and I was good to go for the rest of the day.

When I was done, Diane went down to get some yogurt and then we saddled up for a trip to Tombstone. It’s only a 25-minute drive but it takes you back 100 years in time. When we got there Diane found a shaded parking spot on 4th Street, across the street from Puny John’s BBQ and just down the street from the Visitor’s center.

Tombstone is not a dog friendly town, so we didn’t get to see much together. Max was relegated to tugging on a short leash and hanging with one of us while the other visited a store. I peeked into the OK Shootout ticket venue and thought Diane should go there. She did. Max and I spent some time on a main street bench to wait.

When Diane returned, she took control of Max and released me to go visit the Visitor’s Center. In the VC I talked with Kathy, the lady behind the counter, and learned that she used to live in Hermiston, OR, and Portland, OR and knows where Scappoose and St. Helens are. Small world stuffs. Also, her daughter lives in Forest Grove, OR and might be Les and Sophie’s neighbor. I didn’t get an address to confirm, so we’ll never know for sure.

We sat on that bench for a while and watched the participants in the 1100 OK Corral shootout gather in front of the store Diane visited. Sadly, more than one of them lit up cigarettes and the wind blew it right at us. We were block away and it was still nasty. Smoke is a deal killer for us, so we decided to call an end to this a visit and headed back to Sierra Vista.

There’s a statue in Tombstone that we encountered, and Max stopped, stared at it a bit, then started barking at it. Something new for him. He stopped quickly when I asked him to, then I took him to it and introduced him. After that he was fine.

We came away with some photos, and memories of the old buildings and Kathy in the Visitor’s Center. Max just got in his throne and went to sleep.

Upon arrival in Sierra Vista, we went to 143 Street Tacos for lunch. Diane surprised me by ordering a chicken burrito. When she got it, she understood my surprise because the burrito must have weighed in at around 3-4 lbs. It was enormous. She ate 1/3 of it which made me happy. I’m sure I will have to eat the rest of it one of these days. I had a beef burrito and ate almost all of it.

Before going back to the hotel Diane dropped by Best Buy and I got her a new iPad for her birthday. Her old one stayed in Tucson this trip and it was damaged from an incident with my knee, so now she has something new to play with for the next couple of days.

After eating those burritos, we were a little conflicted about dinner. Like, were we really hungry after all that?

We finally agreed that Diane should go to Safeway and pick up something that looked pleasing to her and to just surprise me because I’ll eat pretty much anything. Anytime.

When Diane was on the way home, she called me saying, “I’ll be there in 6 minutes. Bring a cart.” What this told me is that she went shopping hungry. That’s why we needed the cart.

Here’s what she brought back:
1. A Swanson dead chicken dinner for me.
2. A piece of dead fish and mac and cheese for her.
3. A tray of vegetables for me.
4. A container of green grapes.
5. A can of mixed nuts.
6. A loaf of bread.
7. A jar of chunky peanut butter.
8. A jar of strawberry jam.
9. A container of cinnamon cake.
10. A gallon of distilled water.
11. A 12-pack of bottled water.
12. A half pound of Butter.
13. A box of popcorn.
14. A box of Rice Krispy treats.

That’s why she needed the cart to get it up to the third floor.

The dead chicken dinner was good, and Diane liked her dead fish. I nibbled on the veggies while mine cooked in the micro. Max gave me a little help with the chicken and also with the veggies. He was bugging me about the chicken, but he had chicken in his bowl that’s been there most of the day. He could have eaten it any time. Instead, he conned me into feeding him bits of chicken. When that was all gone, he continued to give me his prairie dog look, so I started feeding him vegetables. He like carrots, and broccoli. I didn’t give him a tomato, but he probably would have eaten it, too.

I finally got him to leave me alone by moving his food bowl from the bathroom to the living area and insisted that he eat it. He did, in about 3 minutes. I figured he’d be looking for dessert after all that, but he settled down and is currently sleeping. He’s such a funny little guy.

I think that’s about it for tonight.

Day 51 – Monday – VA Hospital Tucson

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Today was relatively calm. It started out with me visiting Emily at the BX Toenail Boutique to have my toenails fixed. Diane got hers done last week and really liked her. Emily likes to talk so Diane thought we’d get along famously. We did. Emily is Laotian, she’s 5’2″, and probably weighs about 70 lbs. She has two children with whom she shares her native language. She’s also from North Carolina. I think I got most of that correct. Anyway, she did a marvelous job on my Troll Toes, and we talked about a lot of stuff. It was good therapy.

When I returned to the RV it was almost time for lunch, but Diane wanted to go shopping at two local thrift stores, then swing by the commissary. I’ve previously covered Diane’s dislike of me going shopping with her so she went alone while Max and I stayed home and watched a movie about golfing and racism. Max would have rather gone outside, I’m sure.

When Diane was gone, I experienced a dizzy spell that took a while to dissipate. When she returned, I was compelled to tell her about it, so we had a discussion about all aspects of probabilities, First, I located and resurrected the blood pressure cuff the VA gave me about 8 years ago. All it needed was new batteries. It just so happens; we have lots of those.

The first run was 86/56 which isn’t very close to what we thought it should be, so we waited a bit and did it again. Second run was something like 107/60. Really different from normal.

Considering those results Diane and I decided to bite the bullet and see what the Tucson VA Hospital is like at 1600 on a Monday afternoon. All I really wanted was a professional to take my BP and reassure me that it’s normal. Turns out they are pretty proficient, up to a point.

I was quickly registered upon arrival, and a nurse took my BP right away. The only number I saw was 144 so I figured that was pretty good and took my seat in the waiting room as directed. A short time later I was called into the back room where a medical person took 5 vials of blood. He wasn’t the best phlebotomist I’ve ever had, but he wasn’t the worst, either.

Then I was directed back to the waiting room with the butterfly thing hanging from my arm. Seems like everyone in the waiting room was decorated in the same manner. I can only presume that the blood guy was new, and he was tasked with practicing his newly acquired skills on everyone who visit the emergency room at 1600 on a Monday afternoon.

I hadn’t been sitting long before I was summoned to the back again where I was rigged with little snap pads for an EKG. It was all digital, so I was unable to watch the needles twitch like we did in the good old days.

An hour or so into this last waiting period I was summoned by a nurse and escorted through the locked doors that separate the first waiting room to the area where the REAL waiting rooms live. There are individual rooms for each patient. I don’t know how many rooms are back there, but I was in #19 at the end of a passageway. There must have been another room, #20, that I couldn’t see because I’m pretty sure there’s a universal law about using odd numbers of individual waiting rooms. That law might be incorporated with the hotel industry rule that 13th floors are not identified on elevator choices. The reason for the hotel thing is triskaidekaphobia.

Upon arrival to room 19, my nurse hooked me to a captive oximeter and a BP cuff both of which were connected to an automatic unit that took my BP about once every few minutes. I called the oximeter “captive” because instead of the normal little clippie thing commonly used, this one had the sending unit built into a big band aid that once properly applied is very difficult to remove.

I sat there for a while waiting to see what was going to happen, then asked a nurse if Diane could come back. She said yes and went to get her.

Before Diane arrived at my personal waiting room, I was planted in a wheelchair and pushed to the imaging section of the hospital to have a CT scan of my head. I suspect they were looking for something bleeding in my brain that might have caused the dizzy spell. We learned later that the reason listed for my visit was due to “dizziness and giddiness.” No one ever told us that, but it was listed on my discharge paperwork which we didn’t see until much later. Huh! I was diagnosed for giddiness.

gid·di·ness
[ˈɡidēnəs]
noun

  1. a sensation of whirling and a tendency to fall or stagger; dizziness: “symptoms include nausea, vomiting, and giddiness “Similar: dizziness, light-headedness, faintness, unsteadiness.
  2. a state of excitable frivolity: “the fans can be forgiven their giddiness”.

Who knew? I’ve always identified giddiness with the #2 choice. How about you?

Once the CT was done the real waiting began, and it was cold in that tiny room. I mentioned that before Diane arrived and the nurse, Randy, brought me a warm blanket. I gave it to Diane so she wouldn’t shiver. Randy told me it could take up to an hour for the CT and labs to be read and suggested we hunker down, which we did.

Finally, around 2130, the doctor returned and reported that neither the CT scan nor the blood work revealed anything unusual. So, he suggested a referral to a neurologist and a cardiologist to follow up and see what they can find, if anything. That should be fun.

While waiting for Randy to return with our checkout paperwork, I disconnected myself from the machine. No one seemed to care. I’d actually removed myself from the machines more than once to see what would happen. One of those times I took a walk around past all the other waiting rooms looking for a bathroom and no one questioned me. Interesting, eh?

Finally, at 2200, we were released from their custody and set the GPS to take us back to the RV. Max had been alone there for at least 6 hours, the longest he’s ever been alone. Like normal, he was happy to see us and we’re pretty sure he spent every second of that time in the driver’s seat on his favorite pillow. It’s white, fuzzy and holds all the hair that falls off him. He got a long walk for being such a good puppy.

This is his “Aw shucks” move.

Then we went to bed,