Crowded Quartzsite

Build it, and they will come. Guess maybe that’s how the big Quartzsite AZ RV Show might have started. And indeed, the RVs did arrive. My little patch of dirt at the La Posa West long-term area acquired RVs on all four sides quickly. Also the days are staying pretty full of sunshine (finally) although the nights are still pretty nippy.

I finally undertand WHY the current propane tank for my furnace ALWAYS runs out over night – cause the furnace doesn’t run during the days? But still, four times now in 2 months!!! Once I woke up cold & achy, & it was 41° outside & only 49° inside. That’s just not right. At least I’m keeping track of when propane runs out, gets refilled, tanks emptied, & more water needed so I can be a little more pro-active with this stuff instead of waiting to be surprised. I don’t like surprises – even good ones.

I’ve refilled both the trailer & generator propane tanks several times & have finally gotten efficient at getting water into the water bladder on the truck to totally fill my on-board fresh water tank. Also dug around & found a little plastic gizmo with threads on both ends so I can also run the water out of the bladder into my tank thru the water filter. My major malfunction now is when the gray tank in full & the sink backs up. (I REALLY wish I had a way to determine how full my gray tank is BEFORE it backs up.) I managed to confuse the macerator pump last time somehow & blew a fuse, so had to empty part of the tanks carefully into a cat litter bucket to dump into the grayboy. At least there was enough room to wash & do dishes. Once I trucked over to the dump area & had trouble standing the gray boy up to drain since it was so full. The hose wasn’t seated good in the dump hole & made a mess in the area until I could corral the end of the hose in the appropriate hole. The pickup battery has failed twice, requiring a jump start, & both times, the cables needed cleaning. Desert dust maybe? Yessiree – I’m finally learning how to do all this stuff easier, faster, & correctly.

With all the sunshine, I’m only running the generator during evenings after a cloudy day or every other night for a few hours (gotta watch some TV at night). And I’m also turning off the inverter frequently (that runs the TV, DVR, & sat controller) overnight & seem to be having more battery power (TV) whenever & for however long I want. But this going to sleep without a TV going just isn’t working out so well. Actually, my life-long ‘go to sleep quickly & stay comotose for 8 hours’ habit has totally left the building since Jeff’s death. It’s not that I’m worried or scared or sad – just not tired. In fact, I’m shocked (& possibly slightly worried) at how much energy I’ve had since his death. (Can’t be the not smoking thing since it started when he went into the hospital??) Don’t remember the last time I wanted or had an afternoon nap. I was awake until 4:30am one morning, finishing up reading a book, just cause I couldn’t go to sleep.  Good thing Kira & the cats don’t care when I’m awake or asleep.

I’ve met a few more neighbors recently, & a four single Casita ladies. Rose lives in Parker & lost her husband suddenly a month before Jeff died. We had quite a discussion. I drove out to Dome Rock to meet up with Wendy, another solo woman full timing in her Casita. We’d chatted on the Facebook Casita group previously. Have a lot of things in common & look forward to sharing some adventures together. She’s been parked next to me a few nights. And Mickey returned to Quartzsite from her Tucson holiday only to spend a week battling a bad cold. I also made it to the 2016 BloggerFest this year. Saw 5 bloggers I’d already met, & met 8 authors of blogs I already follow. And I have an invitation to come to LaQuinta CA to visit a photography group friend next month after the fiberglass rally.

Otherwise, not much to photograph & I’m just enjoying being lazy. Reading a lot of ebooks. I guess winter has finally arrived in the Plains states & I’m happier than ever to be in western AZ than most anywhere east of here. Went thru the big tent RV show once, & only bought a gizmo to put my phone in while driving. Jeff’s birthday was this month, & although I was sad, it didn’t immobilize me. Made a run to Walmart at both Parker & Yuma so I’ve actually been cooking a little & eating out less. I even got a little personal blender for making smoothies so I don’t really have to cook much. I checked out the one Mexican restaurant in town, but chips & salsa weren’t free while waiting for your meal (I didn’t buy any) & they didn’t have the shrimp enchiladas I was hoping for. Not going there again. The Hawaiian pizza at Silly Al’s tho is almost addicting. Gas is down below $2/gallon finally during the tent show, & propane is still at $1.99/#.  My cousin & his wife rolled into town during the show to camp near his wife’s niece. I’m looking forward to the Fiberglass Rally in a couple of weeks held out at Dome Rock. It’ll be my 4th time, but being single will be totally different this year. I sure am a lot more social being alone tho.

I had an epiphany last week (love that word). Of all the bad or traumatic events in my life (some of my own making), something really, really good has always came out of those experiences – something I would have never planned. A bad divorce sent me to the Navy – & the GI Bill to get my BS degree later & medical VA benefits that later treated my breast cancer without any expenses & is currently my only health coverage (can’t afford Medicare). Unemployment for both of us gave me time for the cancer treatments & almost max number of weeks of benefits. Plus Jeff was available to be with me during that whole experience. Jeff’s death forced me to learn new things & trust my own decisions.  Sometimes I feel like I’m a totally different person than 10 or 20 (possible just 1 or 5) years ago, & I’m thankful to have acquired better horse sense in that time. Overall, I guess I just needed to put painful memories into the perspective of ultimate outcomes. Life is never all good or all bad – it’s an always-moving pendulum.