Boomerville with Quartzsite in the background.
Sunday, January 22, 2006
1/22/06 Haven't updated this for a while because we have just been hanging around in the desert and not much was happening. Now the Boomers have gathered at the usual camping spot outside of Quartzsite, called Boomerville, and there is so much going on that we hardly have time to write anything! Everyday there have been lots of rigs pulling in with over 80 here already, I'm guessing. Many of our friends are here, with other friends camping with other groups in different locations, and we have been to see some of them too. So much socializing!!
Elaine and I have set up stakes to mark out a walking course on the main road, which we try to do everyday. There is a happy hour everyday at 4 pm, where there are announcements and socializiation. Starting tomorrow, there will be beading and craft groups, discussion circles, 4 wheel drive trips, hiking events, potlucks, and other group activities. There is a big tent set up in town where many RV related booths are set up, and outside of which there are hundreds of small tent booths set up, selling everything you can imagine. This is a shoppers paradise, except for all the traffic! There are many RV lots set up, and Elaine and I looked at some Friday, but didn't find anything of interest to us. We will look at some others on Tuesday.
Yesterday we drove over to another area and had Happy Hour and a potluck with our friends Al & Donna Ellis, who are the moderators for the Stonewall BOF of the Escapees RV Club. This is the gay and Lesbian group, and they were meeting with 2 other gay camping groups. We met many very nice people and had one of the most delicious potlucks we have ever attended. Today we joined Lee & Susie, and many members of the Boondockers for a drive to Parker, where we had a buffet lunch at the Blue Waters Casino. Then we all drove out to a remote and rustic bar, called the Desert Bar. It is only open weekends and is in an area of desert and canyons, so the location is scenic. There is a small band playing and many people were dancing. There is a facade of a steel church, and lots of old rusting vehicles sitting around. Many people were having an enjoyable time there but we didn't stay long.
This winter the weather has been much drier than last year, and also wamer, except for the very early mornings, when it has been near freezing most days. So we are missing all the beautiful flowers we had here last year.
Elaine and I have set up stakes to mark out a walking course on the main road, which we try to do everyday. There is a happy hour everyday at 4 pm, where there are announcements and socializiation. Starting tomorrow, there will be beading and craft groups, discussion circles, 4 wheel drive trips, hiking events, potlucks, and other group activities. There is a big tent set up in town where many RV related booths are set up, and outside of which there are hundreds of small tent booths set up, selling everything you can imagine. This is a shoppers paradise, except for all the traffic! There are many RV lots set up, and Elaine and I looked at some Friday, but didn't find anything of interest to us. We will look at some others on Tuesday.
Yesterday we drove over to another area and had Happy Hour and a potluck with our friends Al & Donna Ellis, who are the moderators for the Stonewall BOF of the Escapees RV Club. This is the gay and Lesbian group, and they were meeting with 2 other gay camping groups. We met many very nice people and had one of the most delicious potlucks we have ever attended. Today we joined Lee & Susie, and many members of the Boondockers for a drive to Parker, where we had a buffet lunch at the Blue Waters Casino. Then we all drove out to a remote and rustic bar, called the Desert Bar. It is only open weekends and is in an area of desert and canyons, so the location is scenic. There is a small band playing and many people were dancing. There is a facade of a steel church, and lots of old rusting vehicles sitting around. Many people were having an enjoyable time there but we didn't stay long.
This winter the weather has been much drier than last year, and also wamer, except for the very early mornings, when it has been near freezing most days. So we are missing all the beautiful flowers we had here last year.
Tuesday, January 10, 2006
1/9/06 We are now located in Ehrenberg, AZ and are camping with the Boondockers. Our good friends Lee & Susie are here, as well as many others, so we are having a social time. Ken and Carolyn Kimpton stopped by here on Sunday, on their way to Guadalajara where they are renting Blue's house for 2 months. It was a great reunion for the 6 of us - Lee & Susie, Ken & Carolyn, Elaine and I all were on the cruise last year from Tampa to Barcelona. Besides getting a much needed haircut from Carolyn, we shared a great dinner and then viewed Ken & Carolyn's pictures from their excursions around Spain and Portugal last Spring, after the cruise ended. Since we will be taking another cruise this April, which will terminate in Lisbon, we were all interested in seeing pictures of places we might soon visit. It was sad that they could only stay overnight.
Lee, Elaine and I continue to work on getting more fit and dropping more weight. It is a long haul and not easy but we are making progress. Usually we walk between 4-5 miles a day and when we add that to our exercises and crunches, it all takes a lot of time!
Early next week we will probably move over to Quartzsite, about 25 miles from here, and get set up in Boomerville for the annual Boomer gathering.
Lee, Elaine and I continue to work on getting more fit and dropping more weight. It is a long haul and not easy but we are making progress. Usually we walk between 4-5 miles a day and when we add that to our exercises and crunches, it all takes a lot of time!
Early next week we will probably move over to Quartzsite, about 25 miles from here, and get set up in Boomerville for the annual Boomer gathering.
Monday, January 02, 2006
1/2/2006 Happy New Year!! It seems funny to type 2006 for the date. Sure hope you are having a relaxing and exjoyable holiday weekend.
Since our last post, we have returned to the desert west of Yuma to rejoin our Boomer friends off Sidewinder Road. There was a group of 23 rigs here for New Year's Eve festivities. First there were games such as cards or pegs and jokers for those who wanted to do that in the afternoon. Then at 4 pm, instead of our usual Happy Hour social gathering, we had a delicious potluck, with socializing during the the eating and afterwards. At 8pm the Z circles started. This was set up this year by Ed & Jolene Northup. This is where 1/3 of the rigs are host rigs while the other people visit them. There are 4 visitors and 2 hosts with the visitors bringing desserts to the first rig they visit. After 45 minutes of getting to know each other better, sharing travel tips, etc. the visitors go to new rigs and the host rigs get 4 more visitors. We had three hours of socializing with 6 different couples, and then Ron & Sharon Mead had a big campfire going outside. All the leftover desserts were brought out there, and everyone who wanted to bring in the New Year with a toast brought their beverages out. Barry & Jan Kessler had fireworks which he shot off for everyone's enjoyment. At midnight we toasted in the New Year, hugged everyone, and headed back to the rig to hit the sack. All in all a very pleasant evening and a great way to see in the New Year.
Elaine and I thought we would get a leg up on the usual New Year's fitness craze by starting on the South Beach diet on Dec. 26. Several other Boomers are on this weight management plan and have been having good success, so they acted as our mentors and coaches. It has been a fairly easy regimen to follow and we each have lost 5 pounds during the first week. In conjunction with the new eating plan, we have been walking 4 miles each morning and doing some exercise ball crunches and working with small weights. Many days other Boomers join us on the walks and the interesting conversations make the miles fly by. Since we have a cruise planned for April, we want to fit into those cruise clothes!! We also want to make sure that we are doing everything we can to maintain our good health.
Barry & Jan have their internet dish set up so we have access during part of every day. We are using this to maintain our blog site, check our e-mail, and do travel research for our upcoming Europe adventures, once our cruise ends in Lisbon, Portugal. Later this week we hope to relocate to Ehrenburg, AZ where we will join Lee & Susie at the Boondockers gathering there, and also reconnect with other Boondocker friends we haven't seen for quite a while.
Last winter was pretty cool out here in the AZ deserts but this year has been much warmer. Usually the days are warm and sunny (70's) and the nights have been only around 50 degrees. There has been no rain, although some days have been overcast, such as it is today. There is a huge gathering of dune buggy and ATV enthusiasts in the desert near us, off Ogilby Road, and they create a LOT of dust. So we were hoping for a little rain from the recent California storms to help keep the dust down. I'm sure most of these people will head home today, as it is the end of the holiday weekend, and the desert will be left to us boring old retired RVers again.
Since our last post, we have returned to the desert west of Yuma to rejoin our Boomer friends off Sidewinder Road. There was a group of 23 rigs here for New Year's Eve festivities. First there were games such as cards or pegs and jokers for those who wanted to do that in the afternoon. Then at 4 pm, instead of our usual Happy Hour social gathering, we had a delicious potluck, with socializing during the the eating and afterwards. At 8pm the Z circles started. This was set up this year by Ed & Jolene Northup. This is where 1/3 of the rigs are host rigs while the other people visit them. There are 4 visitors and 2 hosts with the visitors bringing desserts to the first rig they visit. After 45 minutes of getting to know each other better, sharing travel tips, etc. the visitors go to new rigs and the host rigs get 4 more visitors. We had three hours of socializing with 6 different couples, and then Ron & Sharon Mead had a big campfire going outside. All the leftover desserts were brought out there, and everyone who wanted to bring in the New Year with a toast brought their beverages out. Barry & Jan Kessler had fireworks which he shot off for everyone's enjoyment. At midnight we toasted in the New Year, hugged everyone, and headed back to the rig to hit the sack. All in all a very pleasant evening and a great way to see in the New Year.
Elaine and I thought we would get a leg up on the usual New Year's fitness craze by starting on the South Beach diet on Dec. 26. Several other Boomers are on this weight management plan and have been having good success, so they acted as our mentors and coaches. It has been a fairly easy regimen to follow and we each have lost 5 pounds during the first week. In conjunction with the new eating plan, we have been walking 4 miles each morning and doing some exercise ball crunches and working with small weights. Many days other Boomers join us on the walks and the interesting conversations make the miles fly by. Since we have a cruise planned for April, we want to fit into those cruise clothes!! We also want to make sure that we are doing everything we can to maintain our good health.
Barry & Jan have their internet dish set up so we have access during part of every day. We are using this to maintain our blog site, check our e-mail, and do travel research for our upcoming Europe adventures, once our cruise ends in Lisbon, Portugal. Later this week we hope to relocate to Ehrenburg, AZ where we will join Lee & Susie at the Boondockers gathering there, and also reconnect with other Boondocker friends we haven't seen for quite a while.
Last winter was pretty cool out here in the AZ deserts but this year has been much warmer. Usually the days are warm and sunny (70's) and the nights have been only around 50 degrees. There has been no rain, although some days have been overcast, such as it is today. There is a huge gathering of dune buggy and ATV enthusiasts in the desert near us, off Ogilby Road, and they create a LOT of dust. So we were hoping for a little rain from the recent California storms to help keep the dust down. I'm sure most of these people will head home today, as it is the end of the holiday weekend, and the desert will be left to us boring old retired RVers again.
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