It's Time for Girl Scout Cookies!

This is not my post, but rather belongs to a friend of mine who is an amazing woman in so many ways.

She recently posted how she and her daughter went to great lengths to sell Girl Scout cookies ....to ice fishermen!

I've attached the link here to her story and photos of pulling a sled full of cookies out over the ice and snow.

Enjoy!

Girl Scout Cookies

Long Live the Queen of Interesting Friends

Seeing Old Friends

A large part of the RV life is social in nature, and the best part is meeting up with those that you haven't seen in a while.

We met Al and Ingrid while at Quartzite two years ago when they had just started out with their full-timing.  Now their house is sold and they are wandering about the country and having a blast.

Since they were staying at the Elks Lodge and it was on the way to Tortilla Flats it was a given that we'd meet up at their place and then head up the mountain for some lunch.

Both of these people are engaging and funny and it was non-stop talk the entire time we spent together.  There's a lot of ground to cover when you haven't seen each other for a couple of years.  As you can see Ingrid is a tad bit on the silly side.  I've tried to show her how to be dignified and refined...like me...but she just can't seem to get it.

I mean, yes...I do follow her blog faithfully.  But it's when you connect face to face that you share the dirt that doesn't make it into the blog...and that's the really good stuff!

Being with them for the day meant not being able to play my beloved pickleball that day....something I wouldn't give up for just anybody....but definitely for good friends.

I love the bathrooms they have here - great photo opportunities abound.

I'm not sure when we'll see them again, but that's the way it is with life on the road.  You never know what (or who) might be just around the next corner.

Long Live the Queen of Good Friends

Good Fences Thursday

I'm guessing they have horses here, but they may be barefoot since all their shoes have been used as adornment for this fence.

Long Live the Queen

Good Fences

Rubbish Tuesday

Rubbish Tuesday

I love rusty old vehicles.

This one had such nice rounded lines I couldn't resist.

Long Live the Trashy Queen

Arabian Horse Show

Bill and Mary had been wanting to attend this show for a while. Since I had horses in my past, thought I might enjoy seeing it with them.  They were oh so right!

Arabians are the most intelligent and gentle horses  ever bred, which is amazing when you figured they were designed as war horses.

I think it's those soulful eyes that get me the most.  Bill became a fan that day as well.

Of course he was petting anything furry since they are without a pet in their house.  Hmmm, I think it's time for a cat or dog soon.

The front of the building had these great sculptures of horses to admire.

As you can see, this sculpture is huge!

We were able to watch competitions in reining, sidesaddle, cattle cutting, harness racing and jumping.

What do you mean "cattle cutting"?  I don't like the sounds of this!

It was the perfect day to go as it wasn't so terribly hot and that made being outside pleasant while we watched these magnificent creatures perform.

Many of the events took place inside the air conditioned hippodrome as well.

It brought back a lot of fond memories of the horses in my life.  As much as I enjoyed that, I think we'll stick to cats now.

Long Live the Queen of Horses

Hair Today..Gone Tomorrow

When we began our journey of RV living, my plan was to not cut my hair until we came off the road. 

I had visions of it cascading down my back and pulling it into intricate braids and sweeping updos.  However, I've learned that as a woman ages and the hormones diminish, hair doesn't grow like it used to.

It seems that my granddaughters donate 9" of hair to Locks of Love every month, but that may be an exaggeration.  I am prone to doing that as you know.

So after three years of fighting with this limp, sweaty mess on top of my head I decided enough was enough.  Not knowing where to go to I contacted Cost Cutters and was able to get in within the half hour.  Nothing like making the decision and being able to implement it before you chicken out...or think it through.

The hairdresser was a nice bubbly, young woman (keep the young part in mind for later in the story).  I told her it wasn't growing and I wanted something that would be easy to care for.  She suggested a pixie cut.

Remembering Mia Farrow of long ago when she was still happily wed to Woody Allen, I said "yes, that would be perfect".

Remember that she is of a different generation than I, and her concept of a pixie cut was more along the lines of radical short hairstyles worn by current actresses I have never heard of.  She fired up the clippers, grabbed a hunk of hair and drove in.

The remnants of what was cut off looked like roadkill.  Hmmm, that's a lot of hair on the floor.

I had to laugh when I first saw it...what else could I do?  I looked like the love child of Garrison Keillor and Mark Harmon.  It seems whatever color I had left was shaved off and the remaining is much more silver.  Maybe that's the Mark Harmon connection for me.

When I got home I took the kitchen shears (yup, the ones I used to cut meat and debone chicken) and proceeded to whack a bit more off the top until I got it the way I liked it.

Well, maybe liked it isn't the word to use, but it does feel better, takes no time to shampoo or care for and is perfect for my pursuit of hot sweaty pickleball play.  It's also much better suited for RV life with often having low water pressure and now I won't clog of the drains.

Since it no longer brushes against the hearing aids, now I will find out what Left Brain mutters under his breath when he's upset with me.

And, for the first time in three years I wore earrings today.  Wasn't sure if the openings would even be there, but they slipped right in.  I never bothered with them before because they got tangled up and lost in the hair.

Wouldn't you know it...now Left Brain is talking about growing his hair out.

Long Live the Queen of Short Hair

This is war!

While residing in Hemet Ca we picked up some hitchhikers, in the form of very tiny, reddish-brown ants.  We treated the problem immediately and thought it was all over until we noticed them again....in abundance.

I wasn't anticipating a huge battle and may have underestimated the little "buggers".  It appears we have a rather thriving community somewhere in the RV.

Finally I could take it no more!  I removed all the food and dishes from the cabinets, washed the shelves and laid out traps for them.

The instructions on the ant bait were a bit unsettling to me, but this is how it has to be.  To destroy the colony (where ever the #%^$# they are) the poison is set out for the worker ants to find and then take back to the nest.

This is where they offer their tasty morsels to none other than the Queen herself.

Being a Queen, I shudder at this option, but it seems to be the only way.  


Off with her head!



Long Live the One and Only Queen in this RV

Seeing old friends again

When my friends, Bob and Marti, called to see what we were doing on Thursday, I couldn't imagine why they'd be concerned since they were five and a half hours away in Las Vegas.  They are also a "home-free" couple and rent places to stay as they traverse the US.

It seems they were looking to take a day trip to come and visit us!  I was honored to say the least that they would drive all that way just to see us.

We enjoyed an evening sitting around the patio and discussing their future trip to Alaska and all the sights they want to take in.  Since Left Brain has been there with the tour bus he was a good source of information, as he is on many things.

Then we took them to Organ Stop Pizza for supper before they retreated back to their hotel for the night.

In the morning we met them for breakfast at Crackers & Co, a place I'd found using Yelp.  It had four and a half stars so it must be good.  This site is a great tool for finding those wonderful places only the locals seem to know about and is indispensable for those of us on the road.

It's location was finally located, tucked behind the Home Depot and it was worth the search.  Nice decor and interesting food choices.  Marti opted for the cherry cheesecake pancakes and all I wanted was the huge cinnamon roll, which made a meal in itself.

We had the host snap photos of us before we went our separate ways once again.

It was great seeing them again and I look forward to another visit when we both land back in the "old home area" this spring.

Long Live the Queen of Good Friends

Good Fences Thursday

This is a fence I found at a State Park in northern Wisconsin.  I loved the way it was created and how it zigzagged its way through the woods.

Long Live the Queen of Fences

Good Fences

Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Winter

Last night I went to the inter-park play for levels 3.5 and above and there were some excellent players there.  It reminded me of when I was a kid and we'd be at the lake swimming and staying after the lifeguards went off duty....very exciting times.

Let's just say I was out of my league and I think they were being gentle with me.  It also summoned feelings of being the kid sister who tagged along and nobody wanted anything to do with.  They were polite, but I clearly was in over my head and spent more time watching than playing.  And this is fine....you learn a lot from watching good players battle it out on the courts.

I did get to meet a player named Charlie Sullivan who will be competing in the Nationals this July in Bloomington MN.  I promised him I'd be there to cheer him on.  I also learned of some other parks in the area that might be a nice place to stay next time we're in the area.

We started today like any other, him riding his bike and me playing pickleball.  After showers we headed out for some Mexican food for lunch and sightseeing.

During our drive my friends Bob & Marti called and announced they would be coming down to Mesa to visit us tomorrow...if we wanted them to.  Silly girl!  Of course we want them to!  I feel guilty having them do the 5 1/2 one way drive to connect with us, but this couple is crazy and will drive great distances just to have lunch and go home.  At least they are spending the night in a hotel, so we'll have an opportunity to have breakfast with them before they head out the next day.

I've been playing phone tag with my other Bob & Marti couple and trying to arrange lunch with them.  Yes, we have two couples with the same name as friends.  No...wait, make that three.  We also have Rob & Marty in California....can't forget them.

It will be so fun to see them again.  You have to understand that they are also "homeless" having sold their house and traveling throughout Europe for several months.  Now they are rambling around the US, so it's been a while since we've talked face to face.

Hot sunny days....good food....good friends.  What could be better?

Long Live the Lazy Queen

Supper Guests

It was supposed to be a record high for the area and as I write  it is a balmy 80 degrees.  However, there is a lovely breeze and it feels very comfy outside reading our books and sipping lemonade.

More company!  Will this never end?

Sister Mary, Bill and friend DeeDee came over for supper Monday evening because it was warm enough to be outside for dining.  This is a consideration for those in small quarters.

It turned into a bring your own chair event since we only have two folding chairs that work well for getting around the table.

Our day started with his taking a long bike ride and I got in about three hours of pickleball.  I'm starting to be chosen as a partner more and more and feared by some....so life is good.  The really funny part was running into a lady that I play with in Andover MN during the summer.  It truly is a small world.

After we returned home we made some sandwiches for lunch and I started the preparations.  Usually my cooking is referred to as a burnt offering to the G-ds, but my part in this meal is pretty easy....so all was safe.

Appetizers were French baguettes with roasted garlic olive oil from the visit to the olive mile the day before.

Left Brain cooked the pork tenderloin on the grill and I put the foil wrapped potatoes in the crock pot for baking.  I'd never done this before but they turned out great.  You wash and puncture the skin, wrap them in tin foil and put them into the crockpot for about four hours...no water.  It was nice not to add a lot of heat to the house while they cooked.

Salad rounded out the meal with Angel Food cake, cool whip and fruit for dessert.

Afterwards we invited them in to see the changes we made last year to the RV.  Generally George will hide whenever anyone new is in the house, but Larry's influence must have paid off.  He walked around and checked everyone out and sat on my lap for a while.

Bill even managed to sneak in a pet or two as he walked by and Gracie spent some time on his lap getting her ears scratched.

It was a pleasant night with friends and good food.


Long Live the Queen of Outdoor Cuisine

Queen Creek Olive Mill

On Sunday we visited the Queen Creek Olive Mill.

We started with having lunch there and then took the tour on how they produce their extra virgin olive oil.  To qualify as extra virgin there must be no heat or chemicals used in the processing.  The groves are totally organic as the only pest is the olive fruit fly and that dies at 100 degrees, so the summertime here takes care of that little devil.

The olives are hand picked and they never use any that have fallen to the ground as those would be overripe.

The olives are pressed within the first 24 hours of harvest.

We learned that the best way to keep the oil is out of the daylight but not in the fridge.  The shelf life is about one year.

We got to sample some of the different kinds and I went home with a blended blend as well as a roasted garlic variety for dipping our bread in.

They have a place for lunch and we enjoyed sampling the offerings on the menu.

They also had some gelatto, so we had to sample some of that as well.

Long Live the Oily Queen

How hot does it get here?

I had seen a photo of this mural located in downtown Mesa in the Escapee's magazine and just had to go see it for myself.

When we first pulled up all I could see was the front of the building and I was a bit disappointed.  Somehow it just didn't match up with what I had expected.  I mean, it was amazing, but I thought it might be a tad more.

But then I walked around the side of the building and almost fell over.  The entire building is covered in this mural of a melting building.  It literally looks as if the building is melting.

The details are amazing, lifelike and surreal at the same time.

As I approached the rear of the building I wasn't sure if I should proceed or not as there was a rather large dog peeking out from the doorway.

But then I took a closer look at the doorway....

And the dog.



























After I finished laughing at my foolish fears, I proceeded to walk around to the back of the building.  Due to the wire fence, the effect was not as stunning, but to know the entire building was covered was amazing.

Long Live the Queen of Murals

Our Longest Reigning Houseguest

Left Brain's golf buddy, Larry, came to visit and escape the cold and snow in Wisconsin.  He is an extraordinary house-guest,  I realized that when I saw he brought his own bath towel.  They say after three days both fish and house guests begin to smell, but we made it a full week with no problems.

He and Left Brain got some golfing in as well as a lot of bike riding, both enjoying the warm weather. Fortunately for us (unfortunately for him) he was here when our converter quit and there they had to find the sucker, and then replace it.

He's a handy man, much like Left Brain and they make a great team for working on things like this.  I did my part by disappearing from the area.

George tends to be very afraid of other people, especially men and I was concerned that he would spend the entire visit hiding behind the bed.  But, he gradually got to see that Larry was not threatening to him and by the end of the week was going up to him for a scratch and a sniff.  

Having Larry here for a week was really good for George's socialization, but I think Gracie fell in love with him.

As you can see here, they spent a lot of time gazing into each others eyes.

She snuggled up every chance she got and slept with him most nights.  I do believe she's gone into a bit of mourning since he left.

I have to keep reassuring her that Uncle Larry still loves her, he just had some commitments back home and had to leave.   We may have to schedule a Skype call for the two of them.

Long Live the Queen of the Mobile B&B

Rubbish Tuesday

I may have used this before, can't recall.  At one of the campgrounds we stayed in they had repurposed an old fridge into the "post office box"

There were a series of PVC pipes for the mail boxes and outgoing mail was put into the freezer compartment.

I thought this was a very fun idea.


Long Live the Queen

http://rubbishbyroan.blogspot.com/

Loss of Internet

Having to deal with substandard internet is one of the frequent challenges of living in an RV.  At our current location I signed up and paid for one month and it had been working pretty good...until the other day.

We couldn't get signed on and so I decided to call the number provided for assistance.  I was waiting for the message to direct me to which extension I wanted as it said to ask for extension two.

Instead I got a message that said the owner had not yet set up a voice mail box....sorry...goodbye.

The other alternative was to contact them by email.  So, I sent a message via my phone since I couldn't get logged on to contact my provider.

Never did hear from them, but the internet was fine the next day, so I guess it's not too bad.

Friday it rained....all day.  We finally went for a drive up the mountains to visit the little restaurant at Tortilla Flats for lunch.

The coloration of the hills was actually prettier with the rain and there was a definite greening up.

The afternoon was spent working on a jigsaw puzzle with Larry while Left Brain snatched a catnap with Gracie on his lap.

George has finally decided that Larry is okay and has been coming nearer to him each day.  Gracie got over that a long time ago and has been sleeping with him each night.  No wonder we've been getting such an improved sleep.

Larry is a "dog" person and Gracie has been trying to tap into his latent "cat" tendencies and convince him that the feline race is far superior.  I don't think he's completely swayed, but they seem to have developed a definite bond.

Hopefully the rain will subside soon and we can all get outside again to run and play.

Long Live the Queen of Rainy Days