Thursday, December 30/2010

Well, we made it through the night despite the fury of nature and although there was snow in the forcast, we saw none of it last night. It is still chilly out but not all that bad. I did note that it was -23C with a lousy cold wind at home, so I imagine it is in the -30 range with the windchill. I think I will be happy it is only "chilly" here.

Larry and Ariane headed into town to see the sites of Wickenburg, John headed into the bay to finish the installation of the new inverter and Hogan and I headed up the hill to see how Ben managed through last night's rain and wind storm.

Although the camp was in general disarray, the tent and shower were still standing!! Ben said the wind was absolutely incredible and the noise from it was even worse. He ended up spending the night in his truck and truly did not expect to see his tent standing in the morning. He looked ragged and weary and almost all done in. He had gone into town earlier today and told me that he was going to stay in a motel tonight just to relax, get warm and sleep in a bed where he didn't have to worry about whether or not he was going to blow away. I was glad to hear this. He was taking Grace with him and I told him I would take Rizzo (his friend's dog - a little chihuaua he has been babysitting while his friend is in Puerto Rico ) for the night and take care of him while he was away. Together, Ben and I secured his camp with rope, bungee cords and rocks so that if the wind came up again tonight, nothing would blow away.

John finally got the inverter in and working and together we did a happy dance and celebrated with a cold beer!! Another one of life's little victories !! Now the generator can take a vacation and the campsite will be much quieter!!

Ben came down the hill, headed into town for the night and dropped Rizzo off. John gave me one of "those" looks and I gave him one of my "shut your face" looks and Ben drove off into town. Rizzo, who suffers from "small dog" syndrome immediately put Hogan in his place and for a very brief moment I wondered - What have I just done!!

As it turned out, Hogan and Rizzo did get along - eventually and John actually allowed the little rat up on his knee. I can't believe anything that small is a dog!! I moved Rizzo OUT of Hogan's chair (it was attempted hostile take over) and he spent the night snuggled into the blanket on my chair and Hogan spent the night in his usual spot!! God, sometimes they are worse than kids!!

Wednesday, December 29/2010

It was a generally miserable day again today. Rainy and windy. It was a day to stay inside and catch up on housework (yea, right) and read a good book. Well, guess which one I chose.

John and Larry headed into town as the inverter had arrived and John was anxious to get started on installing that.

Once they returned, he started trying to figure all the million and one cables and wires coming out of and going into the old one. Well maybe it wasn't a million, okay, maybe it was only a couple!! Anyway, John knows how to do the job and will finish it tomorrow as the light is fading. One more night with the generator running will not make any difference anyway. Larry says that it is not that noisy from where he is camping so that is a good thing. He can hear it, but it is not bothersome.

The rain and the wind continue throughout the night with some steady and often nasty blowing. The motorhome was rocking and at about 3:30 in the morning John got up and put the satellite dish down so that there would be no chance of any wind damage to it. I wondered how poor old Ben was doing up on the hill with all this rain and the wind. When John returned to bed I asked if he saw Ben, and his tent blowing by!! It really wasn't funny. I can't imagine being in a tent in this lousy weather. The cold and damp alone would kill me.

Rain, rain go away, and take this bloody wind with you.

Tuesday, December 28/2010

Hogan and I up again early to enjoy the sunrise. Although it is a bit chilly in the mornings, it soon warms up once the sun has shown it's beautiful face!!

Today, we are headed to Stanton and it should be a fun time. What a sight we are going to present, with all four of us packed into the little Tracker!! Hogan will have to stay home today and I am sure he will not be impressed with that!!

John has to quickly finish the battery holder thing-a-ma-jiggy on the jeep before we leave and is out there now. There is some rumor that perhaps the new inverter will arrive today as well. Oh isn't life great!!

Well, we had a change of plan. John wanted to see if the jeep was in any shape to take on the trails so we opted to just do some of the easy trails in the backcountry out past Trueman's mine. With the trucks loaded with cameras, water and some extra antifreeze (just in case), down the dusty trail we went. Our first stop was the old house that had been standing for many many years. It is in a sad state of disrepair this year - even worse that last year. I can see that the party goers that use this site are continuing down their destructive paths. I will be surprised if the once lovely porch which surrounds three sides of the house is even standing next year. If one looks past the destruction, you can see the beauty that remains and imagine how utterly peaceful it would be to have the priveledge to sit on the porch and witness the sunrises and sunsets that this area has to offer. The century old saguaro cactus remain standing as silent sentinels to what once was.

So far, the jeep is running well although very noisy. The muffler system will definitely have to be changed. With this much noise, John will never hear me bitching or bellyaching and I will NOT have that!!

As we continued down the trail the jeep started acting up - surprise, surprise, surprise. The engine kept coughing and the motor kept stalling. I knew I hated this Jeep!! Once again, I felt it was my duty to remind John that I have never known him to take a vehicle out on the trails that was in such unreliable shape. He gave me one of "those" looks but, I was not to be silenced!!

As the day progressed and we stopped, stalled and re-started along the trails (thank heavens we have a new starter and a good battery), we eventually made it back to Trueman's mine. We may have been on a tow rope (only for the inclines) but we made it back. The radiator had spewed "green" stuff several times throughout the day and it was a good thing John had thought to bring a gallon of it along!!. Trueman had heard us coming and once he recognized the voices, him and cowboy joined us on the trail and the boys each had different ideas as to what the Jeep's issues were. I asked if Trueman had 5 gallons of gas because that would solve all the jeep's issues!!

Eventually, we did limp the old girl back to the campsite and called it a day but, the jeep is officially in my "bad books" and will remain there until such time as it can prove to be reliable.

Monday, December 27/2010

Although the weather said it was going to be on the cool side today, it turned out to be lovely. I sat in the sun, adding to the tan and read my book for a bit.

Ariane and I both had a load of laundry to do so we headed into town. While we were there we bought a few discounted Christmas items. Feeling bad about Mr Snowman and also a bit responsible (as it "incident" occurred in our campsite), I felt duty bound to replace him. It just so happened that, a much larger snowman was on sale and I ended up buying one for Ariane and one for myself!! He lights up and changes color, just like Mr Snowman did!! Once again, all is well with the world.

John and Larry headed into town once we had returned to check out tires (since the tire shop was closed the last time they went in - or so they say!!). Once they returned, it was a quick supper then back into a heated Kaiser game. The guys were the victors tonight but this has only fueled Ariane's and my need for revenge!!

Tomorrow we are hoping to all pile into the little tracker and head to Stanton Ghost Town. John and I saw it last year but Larry and Ariane haven't, so will take them there and we can walk around for a bit. Larry enjoys this kind of stuff and John and I certainly enjoyed it last year. It should be a good day.

There was a beautiful sunset tonight and I managed to grab a few shots of it. Enjoy!

Sunday, December 26/2010

We woke up to a bit of a cloudy day today. It is the start of the World Junior Hockey Tournament today so I imagine we will be watching that series again this year.

Larry came over for coffee and to use our "internet cafe to" catch up on emails and facebook. I caught up on the blog - finally!!

John managed to catch Ariane for a quick interview about the untimely demise of Mr Snowman!! Clearly, you can see that she has not yet come to terms with the whole situation!!

We spent a quiet day stuffing ourselves with leftovers and playing Kaiser. Ariane and I won the first set - Ya Hoo!! Now, if we can only maintain the momentum.

Saturday, December 25/2010

Merry Christmas everyone from Arizona. The sun is shining and it looks like it is going to be another great day. Ben came for coffee and before long. all of us were sitting outside for the morning coffee talk.

We discussed the garbage can turkey and opened gifts. I had bought Ben a little charcoal BBQ and put it from the dogs. I think he was pleased with it and now he can cook his steak over the Bar-be and not the open flame. This way, if he doesn't want to bother with a campfire, he can use the little BBQ. I hope it will make things a bit easier for him.

Trueman stopped by for a quick coffee and to wish us a Merry Christmas. He is headed out to the mine for use his metal detector. Ariane brought the one she had bought for Larry for his birthday out and Trueman gave her some tips on how to use it and gave it his seal of approval. We detected a bit here at the campsite and to no one's surprise, found some spent gun cartridges and then Ariane found the motherlode!! It was a big wad of tinfoil!! Jesus, Mary and Joseph - we are rich!! Then Larry, being the smart ass that he is, grabbed the detector from Ariane and held it against John's leg and detected it!! It showed Nickel, so maybe that stainless steel plate is nickel coated!! Anyway, we all had a good laugh. It is crazy moments like this that make one think how very lucky we are to have good friends. John and I truly are blessed.

While we were sitting having coffee, Hogan and Cowboy were out having a run around and eventually coming back with Hogan on three legs. I assumed he had dislocated his knee cap again (which is becoming an everyday event) but noticed that he had a cluster of thorns in his leg. Just as I was about to get the pliers to pull them out, Cowboy comes over and starts pulling them out with his teeth. Hogan stood perfectly still while he did this and in just a minute, the thorns were out and Hogan was once again good to go!! We had just witnessed an incredible act of caring between these two dogs. WOW!!

It was soon time to start the turkey. Ben, John and Larry were in charge of this task. After a bit of discussion, the can was ready and the turkey was propped up and ready for the heat. The briquettes were placed around and on top of the can and the cooking began.

The meal was delicious and although the turkey was a bit overcooked, it tasted great. Trueman stopped by just as we were ready to eat and he was able to stay and enjoy the meal with us. Ben provided dessert and we all ate our fill and that includes all the dogs!!

With dishes done and the leftovers put away, we settled around the fire listening to each others stories. Part way through the evening, Ariane said "Hey, where is the snowman?". After a brief search, the dismembered and beheaded remains of Mr Snowman was found under a nearby tree. Ariane was devastated. After hauling him 2000 miles, she had not expected to have him meet such an ugly demise here in the Arizona desert. Grace, who had been eyeing him up earlier, became the prime suspect. This was a hideous end to what was an otherwise lovely day. For the short time we knew Mr Snowman, he was a great guy and lit up our lives. He will be sorely missed and may he rest in pieces!!

Friday, December 24/2010

Christmas Eve and the sun is shining!! It is good to see that great ball of yellow in the sky this morning. It is a sign of good things to come.

Ariane and I went into town again today for all the last minute dinner items - like the turkey!! We had a riot shopping at the different stores the day before Christmas.

We got a steal of a deal on a fresh turkey. It was marked at $32.00 and then further marked down to 50% off. Once we got to the till, we got a further discount with the Safeway club card and ended up paying $12.00 for this 19 pound turkey!! I just don't know how we are going to manage to eat something so cheap!! Trash can turkey, here we come!!

We returned to the campsite with all our treasures in hand only to hand the keys over to Larry and John. They made a quick trip into town to check out the price of tires for the Jeep. It is a good thing that Wickenburg is only a few miles away.

I collected a bit of wood for tonight's campfire while the guys were gone and Ariane set up a craft project to work on.

The guys returned home a short while later and we had the usual Christmas Eve meal. Steak and baked potatoes. It was awesome and the campfire was just as good.

The evening weather was great, the stars out in full force and Mr Snowman was providing the light show!!

Larry and Ariane skyped their boys and spent part of their Christmas Eve with them (much the same as we did last year). We had spoken to our boys earlier. They are busy with their girlfriends. Life goes on.

We headed for bed early to ensure that we would be asleep by the time Santa arrived.