Tuesday, January 30, 2018

January 29-31, 2018, AZ

Wednesday, January 31.  Tom set the alarm for 6:00 this morning so we could check out the Super Blue Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse this morning.  At that time, it was a dark orange color and not quite as big as we thought it would be.  He went back to bed and I took the opportunity to walk Frisco and watch it for a while and it became very dark with hardly any light showing at all.  I was expecting to see more light or to see the moon dropping on the horizon but by 7:00, it was gone.




Friday, January 26, 2018

January 21 - 28, 2018, AZ

IWe Friday, January, 26.  It's been a long time since I've written anything in his journal and trying to backtrack is difficult.  Last week, Tom and Ron signed a contract for Ron to purchase his house and a tentative closing date is set for May 1.  Ron and Louisa cam be by to look at the house back in November, gave Tom an offer that he wasn't willing to accept, and then came back with another offer that he did accept with some adjustments.  Tom and I came up with a Purchase Agreement and Ron made a good deposit and the agreement was signed.  


So now, Tom and I are trying to come up with a plan for the summer.  Right now, we're thinking of it being an exploring of options, visiting with family, and making sure that we are compatible and want to continue on together.  For now, life is good and I'm hoping it continues.  We definitely have our differences but have been able to work through them.


On Sunday, my good friends, Susan and Dean arrived for a few day's stay in Scottsdale.  I had 3 cleaning jobs on Monday and Tuesday but managed to get together with them on Monday afternoon and Tuesday evening to hang out.  It's always nice to connect with old friends.  We met at Rula Bula on Mill Avenue, Tempe on Tuesday night for a good dinner and conversation and Roger and Dean enjoyed a cigar out on the patio.





Wednesday morning, Tom and I loaded up the Wildweed (my nickname for his Wildwood travel trailer) and were on the road by 10:30, heading for Roper Lake State Park and a few days of camping.  Our site #33, is a very nice pull-through and the park and Trails are well kept and the facilities are clean and tidy.  We don't have a view of the lake, but can see it from the north end of our site.


   Hacienda Loop, Site #33

     Roper Lake

    Bloody Mary's, snacks, and planning


On Thursday, we hung out in the park, took a long hike on the trails surrounding the park, checked out the visitor center and the mineral spring hot tub, had a nice campfire and passed the day away like that.


Today, Friday, we took a drive along Highway 366 to Mt. Graham, about a 20 mile drive through the Coronado National Forest.  We made a few stops at campgrounds and hiking trails but it was cold and windy and there was snow on the ground too.  The campsites are mostly for tents, are quite secluded and,  for now, unoccupied. About 18 miles in, the road was blocked and we couldn't go any further and had to turn back.  The road was out and back anyway - we just had a to turn back earlier than we expected.  There was lots of evidence of the Frye fire that went through here last July. 


   The Fry Fire Closures

     The end of the trail.

Burned out trees in the forest.

Saturday, January 27.  We decided to take a drive along the Tanque Road today, toBowie, AZ.  Not far from the turn-off from SR-191, the road became dirt and we tried to follow it on the Gazeteer.  We saw a sign that said it was 20 miles to the Hot Well Dunes and we finally came upon a few campsites, a Riparian area, and 3 hot well springs - nothing else for miles and miles, as far as the eye could see.  The camp sites are on BLM land and went for $3/day (half that for seniors with the national park pass).  Neither of us would have any reason to return or to ever want to stay there. The rest of the way to Bowie was paved road.  There was NOTHING in Bowie.


We headed back north and took SR 266 to the west to Bonita and Fort Grant (both looked like there might be little settlements.  Fort Grant, once a historic site is now closed to the public and is now a State Prison.  There is nothing but an elementary school at Bonita - nothing else.  We explored a few camp sites along the road as we headed back to Roper Lake, all very primitive with rough road accessing them.  Again, NOTHING we would come back here for.


We had a beer at C&C Bar before heading back to our campsite, also stopping to see if we could extend for a night but our site was already reserved, so we will return to Mesa as originally planned.





Saturday, January 6, 2018

January 1 - 7, 2018, AZ

OSaturday , January 6, 2018.  Happy Birthday, Randy!  It's hard to believe my younger brother is 61 years old today.  Makes me feel old.


It's been a good week, with only one work day.  On that day, I took on two more cleaning jobs for Carl in the near future - one is just before Tom and I head out for our next camping trip to Roper Lake State Park.


On Wednesday, we headed to downtown Phoenix to meet Tom's sister, Geri, her granddaughter, Allee and her great grandson, Josiah at the Children's museum.  When we got to the parking lot, Tom got a text from Geri that she forgot about the time difference between CA and AZ and she would be arriving an hour later.  We strolled around Heritage Square, stopped and had some coffee and got back to the parking lot just as she pulled in.  It was nice to meet them and nice to be around a kid again.  Josiah had lots of fun and we had fun watching him have fun.  We had lunch together, a little more exploring and then said our goodbyes before heading back home.


     Tom and Geri

   Josiah and Alee

I got the minutes for the last HCC meeting typed and distributed, my last duties as Secretary and then met with Delores, who is taking my place.  I passed off my notebook and keys and gave her some training on the duties.  


Tom had an appointment Friday morning and I went to a few garage sales and an estate sale.  In the afternoon, I met Janice at the clubhouse and gave her some training on the job of keeping the supply room stocked.  Another Highlands job delegated and I am once more retired - from those responsibilities anyway.


While watching TV tonight, I got a call from Jacki B's daughter, who is here to help her get settled in an assisted living home - she has been on the decline since late summer and just can't stay in her hands me any more.  She asked me to clean Jacki's house to get it ready for real estate agent to show it, so I'll be doing that on Sunday (already have 3 jobs scheduled this week). In just a week, they have emptied the house and got it on the market and got Jacki settled in at Arbor Rose.


Tom and I went to McDowell Mountain Regional Park today and hiked the Scenic Trail, it ended up being a 4.1 mile hike.  A beautiful day - not too warm because of the light clouds in the sky.  The trail was pretty easy without a lot of steep climbs and the trail wasn't too rocky.  Frisco got a bit tired, but recovered after a rest and a snack and water.  He usually isn't too interested in drinking water while we're hiking.  A great day.