Monday in Naco

Yep.....that is a sunrise.    You know I don't normally see them, sleeping in is one of my favorite pastimes.     Our front furnace was not blowing hot air Saturday  night and subconsciously listening for it all night didn't allow us to fall into a good deep sleep.        We had to leave our site in Benson by 11 a.m. so we just decided to get up early and get to it.

The week's snow was still on the Dragoon Mountains and the ever changing sky gave us stunning glimpses.

We just weren't prepared for the cold and wet weather we had in Benson.   It certainly wasn't life changing weather, it wasn't anything we could properly complain about, but we just couldn't bring ourselves to get out and do anything in it.    We sat inside and read, watched tv, fixed a few things, and generally hibernated under our blankies.    Enough of that.

We were looking forward to a week of golf with Pam and John at the Turquoise Valley Golf Course and RV Park in tiny Naco, Arizona.     As we drove south on route 80 through Tombstone and past Bisbee I wondered at the wisdom of that decision.

A week of golf?   In the snow?   What were we thinking in this El Nino winter?

snow covered Bisbee

Ah well, we had plans so we just kept driving through the snowy landscape.   At least the roads were dry, that was something in itself!  

  We arrived in Naco just before noon and were able to fill our propane tank at the rv park.   We hoped that our furnace situation was caused by low levels of LP.    Nope.   Beluga only took 14 gallons so there was another problem.    Luckily she has two furnaces so we weren't frozen, but we needed to get to the bottom of it.    Long story short, after some further investigation, Dave decided that the furnace circuit board was bad so we ordered a new one and it will be here tomorrow!     Its so nice to have one's own personal repairman on board at all times....Thanks Mr. David.

John and Pam pulled in shortly after we did and it was really good to see them again.     Lewis is beside himself.    Sasha Marie is pretty happy too.

the dogs assume the position in front of Gramma Pamma's
full pockets

This morning we opened the front curtains to bright, warm sun and a brilliant blue sky.     Just what we needed.    I think Dave and I have solar batteries and we simply run down without enough sunshine.

 

 After lunch we all walked across the street to the golf course and were able to play the back 9.     It was determined that the front 9 still had some snow and should remain closed for the day.    We dressed for the weather, not for proper golf course etiquette and we were quite comfortable.

More golf on tap for tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day!

wet Thursday

No sun today, not one glimpse all day long.    It was rain when we got up, slow, steady rain.   Nice for the water table people say.

We took this "stay inside all day" opportunity to do a bit of long term planning and some work on the washer/dryer that we didn't know needed doing.

We tried to call Mr. David's Premier Appliance Solutions to see if they could send someone over to look at our unit.....but they were busy and couldn't fit us in til next week.   We'll be on the golf course next week.      So, Dave thought this was a project he could handle by himself.

The washer/dryer does a wicked dance when its spinning a load and it shakes the entire motorhome with its effort.   Dave took a cue from Mr. Wright and used a left over piece of swimming "noodle" to help it stay in place during the spin cycle.     As he lay on the floor analyzing the process, he discovered that the platform the machine was sitting had torn away from the back wall.    Yes!

Yes! because he was dying to get inside this RV Park's wood shop, and now he had a reason.     With the assistance of the shop's tools and scrap pile he was able to rebuild said platform and added reinforcing legs.    He was a happy man today - pencil in mouth, sawdust on shoulders.  

Lewis enjoyed a few breaks in the rain to work on his courage.   He met TWO friendly people on his walk, two!    They didn't beat him, or eat him, pull his tail or chase him, they just said hello and petted him.   Happy dog.

for you obedience people - note the happy tail and nice loose leash

I wonder if it helped that they both had ponytails.....   He also struck up an acquaintance with Bailey after she ran out of her motorhome to greet him.

Later in the day the rain really picked up, accompanied by very strong and gusty winds.   The temperature dropped 15 degrees and Dave was no longer a happy man.

The nasty rain turned to nasty snow.    We pulled the shades down and pretended it wasn't so.  

 I don't know what its doing out there now.    We'll see when we take the dogs out for their last walk before bed.   Argh...

El Nino took a quick breath

We had a brief respite in the El Nino storms forecast for the next week.   When I got up this morning, the sun was streaming through Beluga's windshield, warming the whole "house".    Lewis was luxuriating on the couch.

After doing a load of laundry, taking care of a few bills and working through an unexpected phone call from Verizon, the clouds had begun to roll in.   We decided to get out and do a few errands, then a little auto hiking before the rain returned.

  
Our routing changed a number of times as we drove along....partly because we missed roads we should have turned on, partly because we didn't really have an agenda.

earth fissures?

We found ourselves at Whitewater Draw Wildlife Area near McNeal, Arizona.  We boondocked there for a couple days with Nina and Paul a few years ago.  

Then, we were just a bit late to see the thousands of wintering Sandhill Cranes that use the shallow waters for food and shelter.   The ponds were filled with many waterbirds and the trees held migrating songbirds, but only a few Sandhills were in residence.

This visit, however, we were right on time.....We walked along the raised, earthen pathways with our binoculars and camera trained on the water and the surrounding fields.

As we got about a third of the way down the trail, the sky opened, it began to pour.    BUT.....the sky also became filled with birds.   Thousands and thousands of cranes took flight.  

Their calls were deafening....squawking and purring,  they kept coming.   Some were coming from the distant mountains and some were lifting off the nearby fields to join the flight.  I don't know what started this exhibition, but we both just stood there in the rain, experiencing it.   My pictures aren't good, I was trying to protect my poor little camera from the downpour.   It was incredible.

By the time we got back into the car, the rain had stopped and the skies were still.    The cranes had settled and were no longer in view.    What an experience.

We drove slowly home.    There was no more rain.

Ho Hum Monday

We arrived back home yesterday around noon.   We unpacked and put away the remnants of our Santa Fe holiday trip, Dave washed the salt and cinders off the jeep and we made some yummy burgers for dinner.   It was warm and sunny.   Sandals were worn again.     Good to be back in Beluga.

Today we were scheduled to leave Benson, Arizona and head south to our Naco meet up with Pam and John.   Two weeks of golf right outside our door were on the docket, but the weather changed our plans.

Its very chilly and has been raining since lunch time, the forecast is the same for the rest of the week.   Golf?  I don't think so.    We decided to extend our stay here for a week and then revisit the Naco plan Saturday, when these rain events pass by.  Finger's crossed!       Water is racing down the park road in front of us and the heretofore dry wash behind Beluga is now running.

Its not so bad, sometimes inclement weather forces one to just be still and take it easy.    Dave took Lewis for a long walk before lunch, before rain.   They hiked the wash (good timing....) out into the desert and both had a great time.   Since then none of us has so much as poked a toe outside.    I think delivery pizza on tonight's dinner menu!

Lewis is just chillin....
actually I think he's missing Jesse and Erin.

New Year

New Year's Eve day we went to the Georgia O'Keefe Museum.  I have to say I was a bit disappointed in our visit.   There was an exhibit entitled "Masterworks of American Modernism from the Vilcek Foundation Collection" in this relatively small museum and I felt it completely overshadowed the O'Keefe offerings we had come to see....sigh.

an O'Keefe sculpture perfectly framed in front of a winter window

Afterward we had a nice lunch across the street at the Terracotta Wine Bistro and then a interesting visit with a Harley School and Skidmore Alumni (Jesse's alma maters, )  Heidi Loewen at her shop next door.   Heidi is a porcelain artist and real character, she welcomed us with open arms, to put it mildly.

We strolled the streets once again, looking in windows, poking around in a huge architectural salvage warehouse and visiting with the Indian jewelry vendors offering their one of a kind works of art in front of the Palace of Governors on the historic Plaza.

 Erin was looking for a brass bracelet she had passed up a few days ago, and I was on the hunt for a tiny something for a friend's newborn girl.   Mission accomplished!

It was another spectacularly sunny and cold day. We walked briskly, enjoying the sites of old Santa Fe.

unusual adobe house painted to look like brick

We enjoyed a late dinner at the Pink Adobe (one of Santa Fe's oldest restaurants housed in a centuries old adobe house) and then watched the NY Times Square ball drop at midnight (knowing full well that the deed was done by the time we sat down to watch it).    There was a large gathering on the Plaza with bonfires and a chili pepper drop, but we all decided it was too cold to leave the fireside....we're all softies.

New Year's day started with a new Bank family tradition.   Freshly made Beignets.   Erin and Jesse have made them for us for a few years now, and we look forward to them with great expectation.

wine bottles make perfect rolling pins

boys play ball

We decided that, since we'd had plenty of fabulous dinners out, we'd make a "fancy" 60's type dinner in our very own little kitchen.     Beef Wellington for Jesse and I and Lobster for Dave and Erin.

It was fun cooking together.   This rental was very well equipped, but it did not have a steamer for the lobster.    We put out heads and hands together and improvised a very good Rube Goldberg steamer.    Who knew that Julian Pie Company could help us make yummy lobsters!

The pie was long gone, but the pie plate was still with us.....Jesse drilled holes in it and we placed it upside down in a large pot.

Erin prepped the lobster tails, put them in the impromptu steamer and - voila!
Perfectly steamed dinner.

Jesse opened the magnum of champagne in spectacular fashion and we sat down to a sumptuous feast.

off goes the cork!

yep, lost lots of bubbly, but the face is priceless (and he brought the champagne)
Ya can't take the little boy out of the man.....

After desert of fresh fruit tarts, Jesse and Erin cleaned up the kitchen, loaded the dishwasher and Dave stoked the ever present fire.    I don't think that fireplace was left to cool down the entire time we had the casita.    Dave and Erin run a bit cold, and they both totally enjoyed the warmth it gave us.

Last night, however, it was almost too hot for them to sit in front of.   They started out right by the flames and as I tried to take their pictures, they kept moving further and further away from it...finally they had to admit it was just too hot for even them~~~~never thought I'd see that day come.

Today, Saturday, we all packed up our things and headed home.   It was a wonderful family holiday vacation.

Our drive south took us through some pretty snowy landscapes as we headed toward our overnight stop in Deming, NM.

The familiar landscape takes on a completely different look at this time of year.

I've just ordered a take-out dinner and the "boys" are ensconsed in front of the TV watching the Oregon Ducks football game.....Go Ducks!