Sunday, January 25, 2009
Lorraine's Report
Wow, what a week for us again. Since last Sunday, we dry camped at Quartzsite, AZ, with several thousand other rigs, of every size, shape and kind you can think of. The days were busy shopping, looking and trying to get the best deal for whatever we were trying to buy. The weather started out hot but ended up with scattered rain showers and cool. Just enough rain to splatter our dark car and make it messy. The dust and wind blew the whole time we were there. Needless to say the coach was filthy inside and out.
Monday, we found the dollar “sliders”, a hamburger with grilled onions, lettuce; you add the condiments you wanted on it. They were delicious and for only a dollar, we ate that several times during the week.
Happy hour was set each day for 5 o’clock. Everyone brought stuff for all to share, and boy did we ever have good food. Virgil made chili one evening, while Patsy and Linda#1 did several types of corn bread. One night Linda #1 made ribs and I made potato salad and Sandy A made macaroni salad. For dessert one evening, I made up my Christmas fudge. That was a hit with everyone.
Thursday was Chuck’s initiation into the Elk’s lodge at Desert Hot Springs. That morning we left the camp site at 10 am and didn’t get back until 1 am. Sure made for a long day for us. It was two and a half hours each way. We met up with our friends, Tom and Dorothy Warren from Desert Hot Springs that afternoon. Tom was happy to have Chuck join, since he had been working on getting Chuck into the Elks for six months. Thank you Tom, we really appreciate all your hard work. Dorothy had her sister Mary, and her niece, Marissa over that day from the Los Angeles area and they went to the Elks for dinner with us, as well as her older sister, Dessa. It was nice to meet Dorothy’s sisters and her niece.
Earlier in the day, we stopped at Walmart in Palm Springs to shop for our trip into Mexico. I went into the beauty salon there and asked what it would cost to have my hair done. She told me $45.95 and she could get me in about ten minutes later. So I went back and she put two colors on my hair for $45.95, the cheapest I have ever had my hair done, and she was fast and very professional. The color is good, looks like the way my hair used to be. She also deep conditioned it after the color and then cut the ends, all for less than what they normally charge to do my hair. I’ll have to go back there again.
Also, on Thursday four rigs pulled out of our circle and four more were coming back in.
Leaving were Richard and Patsy King, Mark and Sue Didelot, Manuel and Connie Esparza and Canada Bob and Karen. Coming in were Earl and Linda Hall, Mike and Kathy Nicks, Jim and Marsha Cauley and Sue Tsuda.
Two nights around the campfire was the initiation of the new members joining our circle of friends this year at Quartzsite. There were four new couples that joined this year. Steve and Sandy Alguire, Dave and Sandy Hasselberg, Connie and Manuel Esparza and Jim and Marsha Cauley. (We were in the class of ’08)
Friday was our last day at Q and we spent the day looking and picking up things we wanted, before we left.
Saturday we pulled out and drove down to Yuma. We got in before noon. Once there, we started cleaning the coach. The wind blowing all that dust, sure made for a messy, dirty coach and the little bit of rain didn’t help either. Chuck washed the windshield after the drive down. There were some bugs that hit the windshield, in January if you can believe that.
We called Richard King, since that group left Q and went to Yuma. We found out where they were, went to eat, then on to see them where they camped at Paradise Casino. We visited, and then Chuck and I went to play at the casino. We both came out with more money than we went in with.
Last night, Chuck and I decided to leave Yuma and caravan with Richard, Mark and Manny down to where we are now, Gila Bend, AZ. We will be here for two nights, then onto Aho, AZ to pick up our insurance for our trip into Mexico. We are going with 12 other couples with their rigs into Porta Penasco, Mexico for a week. The group we were with at Q this year and last, went there two years ago and have decided to do this trip every two years. They stay at a resort right on the beach, it has electric, water and sewer. They go fishing on a charter boat, then the last night they all go on the same boat for a sunset dinner cruise. So next Sunday, I’m not sure if we will be able to post. We plan on going in on Wednesday, January 28 and coming back February 4.
Oh, insurance was a whole other problem. Chuck may talk about that. Any how, we
are able to go with the motor home, but have left the car at our friend’s RV spot in Yuma. Mark and Sue Didelot said we could ride with them.
So I’ll say bye for now and will post as soon as we can…Take care……Lorraine
Wow, what a week for us again. Since last Sunday, we dry camped at Quartzsite, AZ, with several thousand other rigs, of every size, shape and kind you can think of. The days were busy shopping, looking and trying to get the best deal for whatever we were trying to buy. The weather started out hot but ended up with scattered rain showers and cool. Just enough rain to splatter our dark car and make it messy. The dust and wind blew the whole time we were there. Needless to say the coach was filthy inside and out.
Monday, we found the dollar “sliders”, a hamburger with grilled onions, lettuce; you add the condiments you wanted on it. They were delicious and for only a dollar, we ate that several times during the week.
Happy hour was set each day for 5 o’clock. Everyone brought stuff for all to share, and boy did we ever have good food. Virgil made chili one evening, while Patsy and Linda#1 did several types of corn bread. One night Linda #1 made ribs and I made potato salad and Sandy A made macaroni salad. For dessert one evening, I made up my Christmas fudge. That was a hit with everyone.
Thursday was Chuck’s initiation into the Elk’s lodge at Desert Hot Springs. That morning we left the camp site at 10 am and didn’t get back until 1 am. Sure made for a long day for us. It was two and a half hours each way. We met up with our friends, Tom and Dorothy Warren from Desert Hot Springs that afternoon. Tom was happy to have Chuck join, since he had been working on getting Chuck into the Elks for six months. Thank you Tom, we really appreciate all your hard work. Dorothy had her sister Mary, and her niece, Marissa over that day from the Los Angeles area and they went to the Elks for dinner with us, as well as her older sister, Dessa. It was nice to meet Dorothy’s sisters and her niece.
Earlier in the day, we stopped at Walmart in Palm Springs to shop for our trip into Mexico. I went into the beauty salon there and asked what it would cost to have my hair done. She told me $45.95 and she could get me in about ten minutes later. So I went back and she put two colors on my hair for $45.95, the cheapest I have ever had my hair done, and she was fast and very professional. The color is good, looks like the way my hair used to be. She also deep conditioned it after the color and then cut the ends, all for less than what they normally charge to do my hair. I’ll have to go back there again.
Also, on Thursday four rigs pulled out of our circle and four more were coming back in.
Leaving were Richard and Patsy King, Mark and Sue Didelot, Manuel and Connie Esparza and Canada Bob and Karen. Coming in were Earl and Linda Hall, Mike and Kathy Nicks, Jim and Marsha Cauley and Sue Tsuda.
Two nights around the campfire was the initiation of the new members joining our circle of friends this year at Quartzsite. There were four new couples that joined this year. Steve and Sandy Alguire, Dave and Sandy Hasselberg, Connie and Manuel Esparza and Jim and Marsha Cauley. (We were in the class of ’08)
Friday was our last day at Q and we spent the day looking and picking up things we wanted, before we left.
Saturday we pulled out and drove down to Yuma. We got in before noon. Once there, we started cleaning the coach. The wind blowing all that dust, sure made for a messy, dirty coach and the little bit of rain didn’t help either. Chuck washed the windshield after the drive down. There were some bugs that hit the windshield, in January if you can believe that.
We called Richard King, since that group left Q and went to Yuma. We found out where they were, went to eat, then on to see them where they camped at Paradise Casino. We visited, and then Chuck and I went to play at the casino. We both came out with more money than we went in with.
Last night, Chuck and I decided to leave Yuma and caravan with Richard, Mark and Manny down to where we are now, Gila Bend, AZ. We will be here for two nights, then onto Aho, AZ to pick up our insurance for our trip into Mexico. We are going with 12 other couples with their rigs into Porta Penasco, Mexico for a week. The group we were with at Q this year and last, went there two years ago and have decided to do this trip every two years. They stay at a resort right on the beach, it has electric, water and sewer. They go fishing on a charter boat, then the last night they all go on the same boat for a sunset dinner cruise. So next Sunday, I’m not sure if we will be able to post. We plan on going in on Wednesday, January 28 and coming back February 4.
Oh, insurance was a whole other problem. Chuck may talk about that. Any how, we
are able to go with the motor home, but have left the car at our friend’s RV spot in Yuma. Mark and Sue Didelot said we could ride with them.
So I’ll say bye for now and will post as soon as we can…Take care……Lorraine
1/25/09
Chuck's Report
Today was moving day again so we didn't get this one posted in the morning as per our plan. But we are going to get 'er done now. It's almost 4:00 and here I am just getting started.
Lorraine is typing her report and she will probably put more into hers than I will this one. I will only hit the high spots. The days sort of run together when at Quartzsite, most days we went to peruse the vendors and see if they had anything we just couldn't live without. We had our "Happy Hour" at 5:00 each evening and most nights there was enough to eat without anyone having to cook dinner later that evening. We would stay around the campfire until 7:30 or so, depending on the wind and temperature. Once it started to get too cool, everyone would head for their rig and call it a night.
I tried to start each day off with a walk through the desert. Dave joined me most mornings, Mark and Sue came along twice. We tried to get in a fairly brisk, 45 minute to an hour walk. We liked to walk around and see all the different rigs people have, from tents to the million dollar rigs.
We were boondocking the whole week, the only water was what we had in our fresh water tank and we didn't want to overfill our holding tanks. We didn't have power hookups so would run off the batteries and charge them by running our generator a couple of times a day. We also had to run the generator when Lorraine was using the microwave, hair drier or air conditioner or any other high electrical usage.
At night, we would run our diesel boiler as needed for heat. Even though the weather wasn't too hot or too cold, it was nice to have air or heat when we were inside. We spent a lot of time outside visiting or shopping.
One day that was different from most was Thursday. I was going to be initiated into the Elks club back in Hot Springs, California, about 2 1/2 hours away. Lorraine and I decided to leave Q, go to Palm Springs for some shopping and then head for the Elks. While in Palm Springs, Lorraine had an opportunity to get her hair done so I went looking for a Verizon Phone store, my phone hinge is starting to break. I didn't have any luck but Lorraine is very satisfied with her hair.
We met Tom and Dorothy Warren at their house and drove over to her sister's new house. Her sister is 87 and just bought a new to her house. She has a nice place and she doesn't seem to be the least bit intimidated about living in it alone. A very gutsy lady.
The Elks initiation went very well, I paid my money and signed the bylaws and now I am a member of Desert Hot Springs Elks Lodge # 2639. This seems like a good organization with good people in it, looking forward to visiting more of them on the road.
We are now in Gila Bend, Az for two days before we head South to Mexico. I called our insurance company to find out what coverage we have for going to Mexico and was surprised to find out we don't have any. I could, however, purchase a week's worth of insurance for motorhome and car for only $800, that didn't count liability coverage for another $125. I politely declined and looked for other coverage. There are lots of companies that sell Mexican insurance and I called a couple of them, found one that would cover us for a week without taking an arm and leg. We decided to leave our car at TJ's (thanks again, TJ and Sharon!) and try to bum rides for the next week.
As we will be in Mexico next week, we can't use our cell phones or Verizon Air Card for Internet service so I don't think we will have a post next Sunday. If by some chance someone allows us to use their satellite for Internet, maybe we will. If we are able to post, I will send out a note to the normal contact list letting people know.
Chuck's Report
Today was moving day again so we didn't get this one posted in the morning as per our plan. But we are going to get 'er done now. It's almost 4:00 and here I am just getting started.
Lorraine is typing her report and she will probably put more into hers than I will this one. I will only hit the high spots. The days sort of run together when at Quartzsite, most days we went to peruse the vendors and see if they had anything we just couldn't live without. We had our "Happy Hour" at 5:00 each evening and most nights there was enough to eat without anyone having to cook dinner later that evening. We would stay around the campfire until 7:30 or so, depending on the wind and temperature. Once it started to get too cool, everyone would head for their rig and call it a night.
I tried to start each day off with a walk through the desert. Dave joined me most mornings, Mark and Sue came along twice. We tried to get in a fairly brisk, 45 minute to an hour walk. We liked to walk around and see all the different rigs people have, from tents to the million dollar rigs.
We were boondocking the whole week, the only water was what we had in our fresh water tank and we didn't want to overfill our holding tanks. We didn't have power hookups so would run off the batteries and charge them by running our generator a couple of times a day. We also had to run the generator when Lorraine was using the microwave, hair drier or air conditioner or any other high electrical usage.
At night, we would run our diesel boiler as needed for heat. Even though the weather wasn't too hot or too cold, it was nice to have air or heat when we were inside. We spent a lot of time outside visiting or shopping.
One day that was different from most was Thursday. I was going to be initiated into the Elks club back in Hot Springs, California, about 2 1/2 hours away. Lorraine and I decided to leave Q, go to Palm Springs for some shopping and then head for the Elks. While in Palm Springs, Lorraine had an opportunity to get her hair done so I went looking for a Verizon Phone store, my phone hinge is starting to break. I didn't have any luck but Lorraine is very satisfied with her hair.
We met Tom and Dorothy Warren at their house and drove over to her sister's new house. Her sister is 87 and just bought a new to her house. She has a nice place and she doesn't seem to be the least bit intimidated about living in it alone. A very gutsy lady.
The Elks initiation went very well, I paid my money and signed the bylaws and now I am a member of Desert Hot Springs Elks Lodge # 2639. This seems like a good organization with good people in it, looking forward to visiting more of them on the road.
We are now in Gila Bend, Az for two days before we head South to Mexico. I called our insurance company to find out what coverage we have for going to Mexico and was surprised to find out we don't have any. I could, however, purchase a week's worth of insurance for motorhome and car for only $800, that didn't count liability coverage for another $125. I politely declined and looked for other coverage. There are lots of companies that sell Mexican insurance and I called a couple of them, found one that would cover us for a week without taking an arm and leg. We decided to leave our car at TJ's (thanks again, TJ and Sharon!) and try to bum rides for the next week.
As we will be in Mexico next week, we can't use our cell phones or Verizon Air Card for Internet service so I don't think we will have a post next Sunday. If by some chance someone allows us to use their satellite for Internet, maybe we will. If we are able to post, I will send out a note to the normal contact list letting people know.
I was asked to try and tell where we were planning on being the next week in our blogs. People said if they knew where we were going, maybe they could meet with us vs reading where we had been. So on that note, next week we are planning on gong to Porta Penasco, Mexico for a week. The campground we are going to is on the water, although we aren't parking in the first row, on the Sea of Cortez. As I said earlier, I don't know if we will have cell phone or Internet service so we may not be posting next week but will update when we can.
And now for the best part, pictures. There are lots of pictures for this week, we were with lots of friends and did lots of stuff. We got a picture of most of the people standing in front of their rig but didn't get everyone.
Frank and Dave discussing the world situation. I think they should run for president and vice-president.
Lots of nice sunsets in the desert, must be the smog from LA.
Frank and Dave discussing the world situation. I think they should run for president and vice-president.
Lots of nice sunsets in the desert, must be the smog from LA.
A group picture of some of the gals at our campsite. Starting on the left we have Connie, Sue, Lorraine, Patsy, Linda and Sandy.
Sitting at the table where we got $1.00 hamburgers, they were good too.
Canadian Bob and Karen, they are from Vancouver Island.
Sandy and Steve Alguire from Lynwood, Wa. 
Patsy and Richard King from Texas.
Manuel and Connie Esparza from Texas.
Sue and Mark Didelot from Louisiana. They are planning on going to Alaska with us this summer.
Notice Dave's rig on the right, sorry I don't have a better picture. He has his 15' boat inside the bed of his pickup, nice setup Dave.
Sandy and Dave Hasselberg from Minnesota. That's his rig in the above picture.
That's us, just to show we were there.
Bob and Linda Kline from California.
Mike Descha and Linda Oddo from California. They are sort of the brains behind this group getting together every year. Thanks for all the work, Mike and Linda.
Frank Beights from Texas. 
Lorraine flying a kite in January. Really, it was a nice day with a bit of a breeze, about 70F. 
A picture of Lorraine's kite with the clouds.
Part of our camp circle. There were six Tiffins there this year.
La Mesa RV center puts on a free breakfast every morning. This is their front desk from an Allegro Motorhome.
Steve showing proper etiquette when eating with two forks. Make sure to keep the pinkies out.
I don't blame you Richard, I wouldn't want that in my mouth either.
Three new couples getting the official welcome into our group, Steve and Sandy, Manuel and Connie, Mike handing out hats to them and Dave and Sandy.
At the Elks Lodge where I got initiated. That's Tom and his niece Marissa with Lorraine on the left.
Another sunset picture, not too much color but nice anyway.
A shot of the mountains outside of Yama.
We stopped for a Date Shake on the way to Gila Bend.
Manuel and Connie's Phaeton and toad.
Mark and Sue's Phaeton.
Pulling into our campground in Gila Bend. With Passport America we paid half of the advertised price, good deal for us, huh?So another week has passed in review. Until next time - - - -
Thanks Chuck
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