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The trip home was uneventful. The rig drove easily and with Steve at the helm it was an pleasant trip.

Steve guided us back into our parking slot at the Coastal Trailer Villa just like a pro. We got the hookups done and the slides out, the furniture back in place, things unpacked and started back to normalcy.

I had my usual Tuesday appointments, workout and such, and then went to see Mother. We got online and booked the airline tickets for our September trip to Paris. Now we have the main components arranged - Air and an apartment rented. Yay.

I collapsed early, shortly after dinner at Tio Leo's. Fatigue and Mexican food. Deadly.

Other than meeting Robb and Chuck, Brad and our friend Christopher at Leon's for brunch we laid low.

Monday we went to visit Gary and Mike at their house. They had to leave Quartzsite due to a dog incident involving one of their Saint Bernards. We wanted to make sure all was well with them. They are such wonderful men. Friends we treasure.

The weather is cool, but sunny. We just wanted to do minimum before the drive back to San Diego.
We really relished the ability to be lazy right now.

We were up fairly early and started the prep to leave. Chairs have to be moved an things on the counters have to be secured somewhere. The shower stuff has to be contained etc. RVer's understand. Stuff to do before you hit the road with your house. You don't want things flying around.

Chuck was ready and so were we so he led the way through Parker to a little town named Earp. I kid you not. Earp. We took off on highway 62 out of Earp across nothingness. I had checked on the Caltrans site to make sure the chosen roads were open and they were. I'm glad I checked as this two lane road was like a roller coaster ride with so many dips. There was much evidence of flooding, but the road crews had already scraped the mud off the roadways. I was amazed that they had this particular road done as a priority.

We travelled on this dippy, straight road for 60 or so miles until we came to a junction. We could take 62 on to 29 Palms or left onto highway 177 to Desert Crossing, another huge destination. We took highway 177 to hook up with I 10. It didn't take long to get to the grade down from Chiraco Summit.

As we started down the grade we were amazed by the sight of the mountains on the other side of Coachella Valley on down to Big Bear. Man they were so white with snow. We were so glad that we didn't have to drive through that kind of weather. Beautiful to look at but...

Chuck split off at Cook Ave and he headed to his home. We continued on to ours. We were wondering if there had been any damage from the severe weather Palm Srings had experienced.

We were happy to see that the house was pretty much in tact. The front doors will need to be rebuilt, not from wind, but from the desert weather over time. They had been deteriorating, but the rain swelled them to unopenable. The paint as well as the veneer is now peeling. We have started using the front door into the media room instead.

Other than that and a wet area rug in the entry, no damage. Yay!!!

We got things arranged in the Rig and brought the laundry in to wash. There was a bunch of course. Later we met Chuck and Robb for drinks.

We arranged to have dinner at Trio with Christopher. We had been missing him. We usually see him at least once a week and we hadn't had the pleasure for almost three.

After dinner we stopped by Blame It On Midnight to see Genine Jackson for a bit, then headed home to bed.

It had been a good, but long and busy day.

Friday was the rainiest day. We made it in to town to another breakfast place. The food was good and the joint was packed. We waited for a table and then we waited for service and then we waited for food. The check came quickly.

On the way home we stopped and picked up a couple of things at the Safeway. That and the Walmart across the street are the biggest things in town.

We decided just to have a lazy day. Chuck went to his rig to relax and we did the same. Good thing too as the rain started and really came down. The wind was amazing as it was all over the southland. They said it rained and inch in three hours. The wind pushed it sideways. But at the end there was a double rainbow. It was beautiful over the red rock and the river. Nice.

Later Chuck came down with a salad and his leftovers from a previous dinner and we heated up ours. We had a decent, and really pretty delicious dinner.

After cleaning up we decided to play dominos. We had a great time. We only played with the set of double nines so it wasn't all that challenging, but next time, now that we are better at the game, we will dig out the double twelves!

We knew that we were heading out in the morning so we called it an early night. We started getting the rig ready for travel as best we could before the last minute things that have to be moved to bring in the slides and hit the road.

Then to bed. No wind, no rain.

We were the first in line for available space in the park. It’s beautiful and we were happy to have a great end site. Chuck got the other end of our row. We are both settled and happy to be someplace safe. The rain came like gangbusters today. We heard that 3 semi trucks had blown over near Blythe, just west of our location about 60 miles. The rain was torrential and the wind was a bit scary. We lost power for a minute, and then it was back on.

We decided to take a ride during the day. We headed to town for breakfast at the Early Bird Café and had a great breakfast as only these small diners can do. Yum. We headed to Spanky’s for some parts that Chuck needed and then headed up the river on the California side. We stopped at different RV parks and looked around. All of the fun places seemed to be on the Arizona side of the river. Some nice parks here but nothing fun to do. And no place to cross over the river for miles in either direction. It made us glad that we were on the Arizona side. Restaurants and floating bars are somehow important when there is nothing else to do.

We watched Harry Potter and the Order Of The Phoenix in the afternoon and then headed to Tommy’s Paradise Café just east of where we are camped. Again we had really good food at really cheap prices. The Paradise is a very nice place.

The rain seemed to be over for the night. The wind came up a bit, but nothing like earlier in the day. Thank Goodness.

We did decide that it was probably time to pull up stakes and head for a safer place than the desert floor. The only ones left that we knew were Kathleen and Jeannie, Frank, and Bill H.
So after a quick trip into the RV tent, where Steve and I purchased what appears to be a good extended warranty on the rig from ACC, and Scott got some last minute things, we headed back to the rigs and started to pack up.

Scott really needed to get back to San Diego as he had to work Wednesday at 3:00. He was going to do it in two segments but decided that he could make it all in one drive. He took off first. It’s always so hard to see him go, even though this time he is just headed back to San Diego. It just means the campout is over and we have to wait another year for Quartzsite to come around again.

Chuck and Steve and I packed up, pulled in the slides, hooked up the tow vehicles and headed north. No one seemed to be home in the other rigs so I called Bill to say goodbye from the highway.
We went as far as Parker and left the rigs in the parking lot of the Blue Water Casino while we scouted for a decent and safe campground with hookups. Not an easy task. Not only were the snowbirds in town, I believe that a lot of people had left the desert floor in Q for safer lodging.
The Casino RV park had nothing for us, so we headed east to Buckskin State park. Only one night available. We needed more. La Paz State Park had no hookup and were already flooded. Castle Rock Resort - no. We kept going until we found a beautiful small State campground called River Island. They had no spots left but told us we could dry camp in the overflow area and we could get something the next morning.

We went and got the rigs and camped in the overflow during some strong and steady rains. We were happy to be off the desert floor. If they got the rain that we did, the washes would be flowing. Whew.

We went to dinner at a little place called Strokes. The food was good and really cheap. We went back to the rigs and hunkered down during that part of the storm.

We went over to Tyson Wells to shop today. Those of you who have been to Q or have read my other blog experiences on Q know that it is where all the swap meet type booths are located. It’s one huge flea market with old and new stuff. A lot of junk, but also parts and pieces of things one needs, and new items every year that keep it interesting. (the new item two years ago was the visor hats with the fake hair on top. They are still selling like hotcakes to the old folks there. Silly.)

There was nothing more I needed except to take easy-fill battery filler back to the stand at the tent because it wouldn’t fit into the new batteries. They told me they knew of the problem and all I needed to do was to push hard and they would go in. They had talked to Trojan, the manufacturer and they said it wouldn’t hurt a thing. We’ll see. We went to the Gambler, a parts store, and got some small things we needed like sewer chemicals, etc. Then on to more shopping.

Steve’s back, legs and hips seem to be holding up okay. I still try and go get the car after so much walking. He still has some pain when he walks too far. Still it is better than before his back surgery. Yay!

With reports of impending deluge rains, Wally and Lee and Craig decided to move across the washes. They will be leaving in the morning and with the reports of horrible rains in Palm Springs headed towards us they wanted to be on the safe side. The good part is that the rains were mild and the worst went north of us. No deluge yet.

At this point the days run into each other as nothing really changes. One gets up, showers, has coffee, heads for the shopping, has lunch somewhere and heads home for a cocktail. The evenings are what make it different and special.

Scott, Steve and I went to Chuck’s for dinner tonight. Scott had some teryaki meatballs and Chuck had some pasta and Italian sauce, It was a wonderful dinner (Sounds weird I know but the flavors of the meatballs and the pasta sauce was really good) and one of them made a salad, There was spinach dip that Chuck had brought for appetizers. We brought some outrageous cookies called Lacey’s for dessert. Nice evening.

After we went back to our rig the rain began. We thought that it would be torrential. It was steady, but not hard. The winds were up pretty good and with that we thought we were in for it. Our luck held, however, and the rain was not enough to produce any flooding of the washes.

We've been busy. There is a lot to do here and a lot of people to visit. Kathleen and Jeannie were, to us, unexpected surprises and we are so happy to see them. What loves. Don C is here as usual and Bill H made it this year. Frank P is here and said he would help me figure out my GPS so I can go Geocaching again. Mark of Tennessee is such a treat to see. Robb and Joe were here from Yuma. So many faces without names, just hugs. New names on new faces. It's hard to keep it all in ones mind. The Saturday night campfire and potluck is what everyone looks forward to and shows up for. Sunday's is almost a big and just as much fun.

We really missed our friends from Canada, Randy and Wayne. They are in Florida taking care of Randy's mom as she goes through cancer treatments. Good luck to her. Maybe next year they an make it out. We missed you guys though.

We also missed Gary and Mike. We passed them leaving as we were on the way in to the camp. I guess there was a dog issue that made them leave early. So sorry.

Then there is the issue of our batteries. I don't know why we always have 12 volt issues. The first year with the Flair we had the converter go out and needed new batteries. Thanks to Buck we got it all fixed and saved our trip. Last year we got new batteries and they weren't charged all the way so we had to bring the rig into town for a daylong battery charge. This year??

Batteries are supposed to be maintained. One should check the water in them on an ongoing basis if you are camping at all. We knew when we got the rig the batteries were old and probably not maintained. I knew we should replace them before the trip but everything was working so I thought we could wait til we got here and found better prices. Bad choice.

When we checked the water in the batteries and started adding, instead of the 1/2 cup to a cup they would usually need, the four batteries took a little over 4 gallons of distilled water. We knew they were cooked. We headed for town to buy new ones.

The only batteries we could find were Interstate Batteries. Because Interstate were supporters and donors of Proposition 8 we could not in good conscience give them any money. We knew that Trojan Batteries were really better anyhow. We went to Discount Solar where they carry Trojan and they were closed for the weekend. NO ONE had anything but Interstate. We decided to just wait and limp on with the bad batteries in the coach. Thanks again to Scott we were calm and resolute. He told us not to worry so we didn't. We made it through another night by turning the generator on as we needed and was polite (quiet hours observed.)

Monday morning we headed to Discount Solar again and they were open. They had Trojan Batteries. Hurray. We bought them and headed back to get the job finished. I was really tired of this being on the agenda.

Scott, with his knowledge and ability, did most of the work pulling the old ones, and putting in the new ones. We helped by cleaning the old terminal connections and sanding the tips to make sure they were clean, and I carried the new batteries over and the old ones back to the car for recycling. We tried to be as helpful as we could. We know we ask too much too often of Scott and don't want to abuse the relationship. He is so very good to us. Thanks Scotty.

With that done, we were free to shop. And shop we did. We went to the RV show tent. There wasn't really anything I needed to have. I signed up for Good Sam Club and for their roadside service. I went across and got an estimate on an extended warrantee, and that was about it. Oh yeah, a new sewer hose support. Whoopee. There was lots of good stuff, but we just didn't need it.

We came home and readied ourselves for the evening potluck, had a drink and settled in for the night.
A full, but productive day. And WE HAVE BATTERIES!! Another 12 volt issue fixed.

A lot of people left today. Many have to get back to work, but many just come for the weekend event and then head out. Many more are afraid of rain on the desert floor, especially since we have to cross to washes to get out. They do flood and we have had to cross them before while they ran with fast water. I understand the trepidation.

But we are staying put for a while longer, so our day begins.

After the battery debacle we could relax and shop for stuff. Not that we need any stuff. It’s just the place where you shop for , you know, stuff. Scott wanted some quartz votive candle lights, Steve always shops the tool booths for odds and ends. One never knows what Chuck is looking for but he always finds something of interest. I bought more LED flashlights.

We decided to get our circle of “wagon’s”, Wally and Lee, Chuck, Scott , Craig and Steve and I for a small dinner party. It had been blowing and cold pretty much all day so we thought the campfire would be to much.

I went to the General Store in town and got enough ground sirloin and pork sausage to make a pretty good sized meatloaf, Scott brought crackers and dip made a great salad, Chuck made some wonderful fried potatoes and Wally made succotash type of vegetable dish that was really delicious.

It was really wonderful being able to seat 7 people for dinner in the motor home. We could never have done that in the old rig. And there was room left over. Sweet.

It was an easy day with the unusual job of dishes at the end. Then the rain started. Light , but rain…

First of all, when I came home from work Steve had figured out that the water problem was one of siphoning and carefully filled the tank and it is just fine. Hurray!! And thanks to all of you who read my blog and offered that information to calm my nerves! They needed it.

After finishing the organizing of the coach for travel, most of which Steve had done during the day, we pulled in the slides and headed for the gas station across the street. We really didn't know if we could fit under the canopy they have (12') so he went slow while I watched. We did get close enough to be able to pump the diesel into the Tropi-Cal. First hurdle cleared.

We met Scott in the parking lot by the Information Center on Mission Bay where we hooked up the car, did a last minute check and headed out on the highway. Looking for adventure... It was 8:00PM.

We had a pleasant uneventful drive over the pass on Interstate 8 and down the grade to the desert floor. Our usual first stop, a rest area in Sealey just west of El Centro, was closed. I wish they wouldn't do that. Close the bathrooms and redo them, but leave the parking open for travellers like us and the truckers who need places to stop. It was another 50 miles to the next rest area. It was 10:00 at night, after a long, hard, full day of work. Steve was tired, Scott was tired, but we made it to the rest stop by the dunes at 11:00 and went to bed.

During our sleep a semi pulled in next to us and, like they always do, left his diesel running. At 4:00 AM we work to our rig being filled with diesel fumes. I had a headache and just couldn't breathe that stuff anymore. We turned on some exhaust vents and cleared it as best we could, woke Scott and prepared to hit the road again. It was 5:00 when we left the rest area.

We got to Yuma and headed north on the 95 just as the sun was beginning to rise over the mountains, so we didn't have to drive with the bright morning sun in our eyes. We filled up at Barneys, got some coffee and headed north to Quartzsite.

Of course in Arizona it was an hour later so when we arrived at the kiosk at the Long Term Visitor area at La Posa, Tyson Wash camping area people were already open for us to pay our fees and register the rig.

That done we headed to our rendesvous area in the BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land. The sight was amazing. We have never seen so many rigs here. When we arived we were counted as the 75th rig to arrive. More were to come.

We found Chuck and formed our usual U shape with our rigs. It blocks the wind and gives us common courtyard type of area.

Parked next to Chuck was Scott's friends from Las Vegas, Wally and Lee. They joined our configuration and formed a square. They are very nice guys. We met them the same year we met Scott, but haven't seen them since then. We got to know them a little better this trip.

Many of our friends from previous years, and guys from Palm Springs came by to welcome us as we got setup, and many wanted to see the new rig. Luckily we put it together inside quickly in anticipation of just that.

We decided to hang around the camp for the day. It was the first day of the RV show at the big tent and everyone coming back said it was way too busy and crowded. We figured Sunday would be fine.

The famous Saturday night campfire and pot luck was phenomenal. The fire was huge as Bud and Brian, the event hosts, had brought in two truckloads of wood. No shortage this year. The guys from Rainbow RV, Tim and Greg brought his group to join the usual TOW group for the event this year and brought the 10' high heel shoe featured in the Palm Springs Pride parade, and had it lit. People were everywhere bringing their pot luck dishes (it took 7 long tables to hold it all!). We got to see friends in passing, like Bob and Gus, and I was never able to locate them again to get more hugs. It was beautiful, organized chaos. It went late into the night.

Ahh. The Quartzsite experience. It is so wonderful with this group.
A special shout out to Bud and Brian for their hosting, and to Tim and Greg for bringing RRV to the event this year. You guys make this event. Thanks.

Oh my. More surprises. I filled the water tank last night. It says to fill it until the overflow vents under the coach start to run. Fine. No problem. Except water kept coming longer than we thought it should. The tank moniter in the coach said full, so we waited.

I checked it a bit later and it said 3/4 full. I check and the water had stopped running out from under the coach, but what does it mean that we can only keep 3/4 of a tank of fresh water. A hole in the tank? A rupture somewhere? Will it hold on the trip?

I know we can get by easily on 3/4 of a tank of fresh, and if not we can refill. It just pisses me off to find it the day before a dry camping trip. And of course it's another big fix, another chunk of money. I guess it keeps me off the street and out of trouble working to pay this stuff.

And now the weather people are saying we may be getting major rain the beginning of the week. Rain like we haven't had since 1995. Maybe a whole years worth of rain fall in the desert in 4 days. Now doesn't that sound like fun!!

I figure we have survived torrential rain in Quartzsite before. We made it through the gullys and out to the highway in deep runoff. We'll make it again. It just takes the fun out of the event to have to deal with it. At least it isn't supposed to hit til Monday so we have a few days to enjoy.

I figure we can always get the rig home to San Diego, maybe to Rick's RV to repair/replace the tank, and head back to Palm Springs if worse comes to worse.

There is always contingencies. We'll just wait and see...

Things are happening in preparation for the annual Quartzsite rally. It's one of our "do not miss" things during the year, and an event that has introduced us to many of our best friends.

This year the event will get going on Thursday January 14, but some will arrive earlier. As some of you know it is a gathering in the Bureau of Land Management land outside of Quartzsite Arizona. The dates are selected to coinside with the very large RV show and one of the largest Gem and Mineral shows in the western states. Thousands of RV's come to the BLM land and camp to participate, shop and see their friends.

Our circle of RVers is comprised mostly of members of two gay RV groups, Travelling Our Way (TOW) and Rainbow RV (RRV). Some years they have been separate but his year both groups will come together for the rally in our usual spot out in the Tyson Wash area of the BLM land.

We will arrive just in the nick of time for the Saturday night campfire and pot luck. This is the big night of the gathering. Many of our group come just for this one night. Last year there were more than 50 rigs, 70 by some count. I don't remember. Many thought the number was down because of the economy, which may have been true. Gas/diesel prices were horrendlous. But everyone I know is coming this year, with some who weren't there last year. AND RRV will camp with TOW this year so the circle will be very large and very full. It should be outrageous.

I just wish we could get there sooner but with all of our other travels and the time off for the holidays, our clients are a bit ootsy as it is. We do have the whole week off so we can decide to stay there, or stay for a few days, and then maybe up to the Colorado river area for a few more.

We have had some things to do to prepare. Our generator in the new rig was not working so we had to get it fixed and it was time for a service so we had that done at the same time. It saved us a bunch of money to do it all at once but still...yikes. It was a costly job.

Scott, who is so good to us, got up on the roof and removed all the silicone the previous owner had put on what he thought might be potential leaks, and replaced it with the proper calking. Then he found that the guy had siliconed over the screws that hold the retractable awning to the coach. They had gotten moisture under the silicone, rusted and snapped off. Dear Scott redrilled and rescrewed the awning back to the coach.

Sometimes I think we shouldn't be allowed to own a coach. We just don't know enough about all this stuff. But just try and take it a way!!! I will learn! There is just so much. And this will be our first road trip with the Tropi-Cal. Exciting. Our first trip in a diesel. In fact, I have never even ridden in this rig. Steve has only drivin it home when we bought it and back and forth for repair, while I followed in the car.

That's another thing that came up. The tow bar receptical on the new rig is higher than the Flair. We had to quickly find a hi-low drop to level off the tow bar so we don't damage the suspension on the car. NEW INFORMATION to us. Lots to learn. And again thanks to Scott who can find anything online.

So Friday night after work we will head out over the mountains to our usual rest stop outside of El Centro. There we will sleep a few hours before heading east, hopefully leaving early enough to avoid driving straight into the sun after it comes up over the mountains. Scott will be travelling with us, which gives me comfort on our first outing. That and a Xanax and I will be fine. Lol.

I'll have the computer with us so I will try and write anything of interest that happens on the journey. I am hoping it is all fun stuff, lacking in drama.

Wish us a good journey.

After working a gruelling two day workweek, and it was a busy, difficult two days, we enjoyed a wonderful New Year celebration. We were at the home of Ron and Jim, some friends I have know close to 40 years. Not that we could possibly be old enough to have friends that long. Right.

The evening was a small dinner party with Ron and Jim, us, another couple and Scott. We had wonderful food and drink and saw the New Year in playing Dominoes. It was a really great group with a lot of spirit and humor. Just the perfect way for us to usher in a new decade. Thanks boys.

Then off to Palm Springs early on New Years Day. We arrived in time to get unpacked, relax a bit and head over to Mitch and Dave's for their annual party. As usual there was a plethora of different foods, enough alcohol and a great group of people. We enjoyed most of the day there before heading home to feed Buster and fall into our chairs for a much needed rest.

Again, the weekend was a blur. Between breakfast with some friends, shopping and lunch with Steve, visiting a friend, Ed, in mid-afternoon, another couple, David and Neil, coming for cocktails before Chuck, Steve and I met Mike and Christopher at Spencer's for dinner. All of it was wonderful and we loved the time we spent with each person. We are just so lucky to have such a great group of friends.

We came back to San Diego a day early, on Monday this week, so that we can get the new RV in to the Onan dealer to get the Generator worked on. It shuts itself off and gives a 3/3 error message, so we have to get it fixed. In two weeks we are heading to Quartzsite, Arizona to meet up with most of our desert friends and a whole lot more from all over the country. We are so excited. We love the Quartzsite gathering and always connect with new and old friends and learn so much about the RV life, as well as technical things about the rigs. I'm sure, with our new rig, we will have a lot of new information to absorb. Hurray.

Life is so good.