Sunday, March 8, 2026

I discovered that I am unable to upload photos to my blog and haven't figured out why.  It will have to wait until I see Ben again to have him take a look.  

I got back home a week ago, on the 3rd and Ben picked me up at the airport.  I couldn't believe how few people were there - I went straight to the restroom and then headed to baggage claim and there was my bag. I texted Ben at the phone lot and he picked me up within 5 minutes.  We stopped at Andale Taqueria  and had some time to catch up on the last two weeks, their trip to Steamboat Springs and mine to AZ.

I made sure to give Joey lots of love when I walked into the apartment, he was jumping for joy.  I got unpacked and spent the rest of the night just loving on Joey who didn't want to leave me out of his sight for an instant.

I woke up the next morning feeling crappy again - now it seemed like my allergies were turning into a cold or sinus infection.  I caught up on my laundry (two huge loads) and laid around the rest of the day - matter of fact, for the next 2-3 days.

I had an appointment for an oil change on Monday and all was good except that they recommended shocks and struts as they were showing signs of wear and appeared to be the originals (my car is 20 years old) to the tune of $1700.  I sent the estimate to Tom to look over and he didn't totally agree - his feeling was that if the steering wheel didn't pull in one direction or the other and didn't behave strangely while driving, and based on the photos in the estimate, he wouldn't do the repair until definitely needed. I then remembered that at some point since I owned the car that they had been replaced.  Sure enough - 10 years ago there was a recall and they were both replaced so that disproves the 'appears to be original' and I will take Tom's advice and keep on driving it the way it is.  I do need to have my tires checked out and may be due for new ones - again there is a lot of warranty left on them but the time allowed may have expired.

Yesterday I had my annual checkup with my dermatologist and was told that my alopecia is under control and I don't need to come back unless I have a problem.  I did learn that I have Rosacea on my face and he ordered a prescription to take care of that.  

Monday, March 2, 2026

 My last day here in AZ and we decided to do another scenic drive, this time it was the loop up to the Roosevelt Dam, south to Globe, and back to AJ, most of it through the Tonto National Forest. We invited Joyce to go along and we stopped at a few little pull offs and admired the water and the surrounding desert. We all oohed and ahhhed at the beauty of the place - it is so desolate but yet so beautiful.  The Roosevelt Lake goes on for miles, fed north by the Tonto Creek and south of the dam by the Salt River. Joyce looked up the word Tonto and we learned that it meant "stupid, silly or dumb" and then we realized that it was named after the Native Americans that once occupied the area - damned Americans and their belief that they are superior to all others.   

This has been a lovely vacation but I believe that I would try to time it before or after the allergy season - the only part that wasn't good about it.  

Sunday, March 1, 2026

 Thinking back to Saturday, oh yea, we met Nan, Monica & Logan, and Karen for lunch at Lucille's BBQ in Tempe. It was so nice to see them again and we caught up on the news of the family and had a great visit.

This morning, we took off and headed out on Hwy 88 toward Tortilla Flat.  Once we got to the Tonto National Forest, the road was well-paved but it became quite curvy.  It is well known for the scenery and I understand why - it is   absolutely gorgeous.  Both of us have been to Tortilla Flat before and it was really crowded, so we continued on past Canyon Lake and as far as the Fish Creek Outlook. Beyond that, the road is unpaved and has been under construction, so we weren't sure if it was open and we might have to turn back.

We got back to AJ, took naps, and went to Panda Express for dinner. It was a beautiful night, so we went and sat in the hot tub for a while. I don't remember when I was last in a hot tub and it really felt good.

 On Thursday, I went girl shopping with Joyce to Bealls, a store that was always one of my favorites when I lived here.  I found a few tops there. We also stopped at Goodwill and then for a burger.  It was nice to hang out with her for a few hours.

Tom and I had salad for dinner, went for walk  and then watched a movie. 

It's now Friday, Tom's 77th birthday and he and I are the same age for 2 months.  We are going out for dinner with Joyce to Babbo Italian Restaurqnt to celebrate.

We decided to go to the Mesa Marketplace, a huge open flea market with lots of booths selling anything from gawdy clothing, sweatshirts, jewelry, body products, rugs, RV gear and lots of ceramic and metal decorative yard stuff. We spent 2.5 hours there and both walked out empty handed. 

Wednesday, February 25, 2026

 On Saturday, we met up with Arlene and Sharla for brunch and had a great 2-hour visit with them.  Arlene was our neighbor at Highlands at Brentwood for the eight years that I lived there and is now 93 years old. She can hardly hear and only has peripheral vision and she was missing her upper dental plate because it was being repaired.   Regardless, she was classy dressed and so happy to see us and I certainly felt likewise.  After parting I realized that I didn't get photos but we might just see her one more time.

I think we filled the rest of the day with walks, naps, dinner, etc.

They had a ventriloquist come in to entertain the people in the park on Sunday afternoon and served Margaritas.  I was a bit sceptical but the guy was good, especially when he came out) for the last act looking like Donald Trump, although his red cap said MALA (make America laugh again) and he did a great job of making fun of the sad situation our country is in.

We watched a movie, "The Hateful Eight".

We filled the day on Monday with some shopping, walks, and laundry. When you don't get moving in the morning until 10ish, it doesn't take much to fill up a day.

On Monday morning, we went to an open natural area nearby that had a bunch of walking trails and took about a 1.2 mile walk through the desert.  The temps have gone up to near 80° and they really affect my energy levels after being away from here for so long.  We also took another trip to the Superstition Ranch Market to stock up on fruits and vegetables again - we walked out of there with two bags of groceries for about $16.

Yesterday we decided to take a drive east about 30 miles to the Boyce Thompson Arboretum and did about a 2-mile hike through the desert and saw lots of cool plants, many had ID tags on them.  By the time we got about half way through, I was getting tired and Tom said he was too. It really upsets me that my stamina levels are not as good as they used to be, but then I'm not used to the warmth and the unlevel terrain.

By the time we were done with our hike, we were both ready for a nap. Later on, we went to Los Gringos Locos for dinner.  The pork burrito I had was delicious and I also had a margarita - it's been a long, long time. 

Today was a day to hang out, catch up on writing in the blog, and replying to text messages. We did go to another nearby trail that was nicely maintained.  There is a lot of open land that is either owned by cities, states, trusts, and Native Americans. I have enjoyed looking out at the wide open spaces and seeing the mountains on the horizon.

Friday, February 20, 2027 - MN, AZ

Happy 49th Birthday to my youngest son, Ben on Monday. We celebrated with a little gathering at their house yesterday.

Cathy took me to the airport, I got checked in and through security with no issues. I flew to Austin, TX where I got on a connecting flight to Phoenix. It was nice to see some blue water and green patches of earth from the sky.

Tom was right there waiting in the phone lot and he picked me up and we headed to JJ Madison's for a bite to eat. It was nice to see him, get a big hug, and share a meal and some conversation.  Funny thing about that restaurant is that one of their featured items on the menu is Minnesota Walleye - and it didn't take long before I remembered the place. 

We got to bed late and woke up late the next morning, had a good breakfast and went for a walk around the park and to the Superstition Ranch Market for some stuff to make salads for dinner.  

A group of folks were gathered in a circle down the street, so we grabbed a beer nd headed over for happy hour. I haven't done that in a while - got to see Harriet, a gal that was our neighbor when I was here back in 2018. There were a couple of other folks that I remembered too. 

We took a walk around the park and heard the hooting of owls and then spotted a pair of Great Horned Owls up in the treetops.

This morning started earlier and after breakfast, we ended up going to a city park and had a nice little desert hike with the mountains in the background, some that I could remember, like the Superstitions, Red Mountain, and the Usery Mountains. It was windy and a bit chilly and we even felt a few raindrops, but much better than that 6-7 inches of wet snow that is falling in Minnesota.

Thursday morning we went over to the clubhouse and had coffee and donuts, followed by an AED presentation by the local fire department.  I feel like I learned a lot, so now I just hope that I can remember what I learned in case of emergency.  I also saw a few people that I remembered from when Tom and I stayed here together, many who have been coming back for years.

Tom's sister Joyce who spends the winter here also had been on a trip to Oregon, so we drove to the airport to pick her up. She was hungry after a long day of travel, so we stopped for a late lunch and I got the Walleye at JJ Madison's - it was quite tasty.

Today was another busy day, taking Joyce to pick up her car that was being repaired while she was gone, did a bit of shopping, took a nice walk around the park and I had a good nap while tom washed his truck.

We went to a Rock and Roll dinner show at Barleen's on Friday night with about 50 people from the park. I sat across from Dewey who is from Cloquet WI and we talked about some very familiar places and even some people - cousins of Mike Butzen (a long-time Navy buddy of Mike's).  Dinner was excellent - roast beef, mashed potato and gravy steamed carrots, salad and chocolate cake. 

The show started and kept us entertained for close to two hours with a short break.  They played Elvis, Everly Brothers, Buddy Holly, Roy Orbison and many others - doing an excellent job on vocals, comedy and silly acting.  I sure enjoyed the show and I think everyone else did too

Saturday, February 14, 2026

 💘Happy Valentine's Day💘

Yesterday was Friday the 13 and the anniversary of Mike's passing on February 13, 2013 - it has been 13 years. There are way too many 13s in there.  It turned out to be  beautiful 50° sunny day here, I was able to go for a walk and have coffee with Ben and an nice conversation with Pat.  I heard from many friends and family, so the day did not turn out to be an unlucky 13th. 

There wasn't much happening earlier in the week, so not a lot to write about.  I did have some very nice, long phone conversations with Pat, Tracey, Patty. Bob. and Leslie. And the weather has changed - we have broken the cycle of three weeks of below zero temps and have come closer to the average and even close to 50°. The last few walks I have taken, I've only worn a hoodie.  The sun has been shining and the snow is melting.