Welcome to our new year!

We arrived back at our lot amidst a 7 day rain cycle that finally broke at Christmas. And they say it never rains in sunny California. Not that we're complaining because it's a desert here and water is a real necessity and a treat, too, and not the daily gray grind of NE PA that we left so many years ago. But enough rain is a few inches. Nearly 20 inches in fewer days is more than this parched SoCal could well accommodate! In fact, here's a few pics. The traditional channel/creek through the park became clogged with debris and it remembered it's own pre-RV park route, through our yard and our neighbors'. We didn't have any memory, but nature and a few of our older neighbors did and now,so do we! Little actual damage occurred, but a lot of mud and debris went where it wasn't wanted, and had to be removed, replaced and refilled. So for the next weeks that became the order of the day. Add to this the return of the "Vegas Crud" we had picked up while enjoying the Penn & Teller, the bright lights and food in Las Vegas and another couple of weeks were lost to misery and a sore head, nose, chest etc. But we made it through Christmas and New Years!

One of the benefits of settling somewhere with a few square feet of dirt is that Tom has rekindled his gardening interest. Since October he is a "Master Gardener in Training" with UC Riverside Cooperative Extension. While in town he attends classes in person, and when not, he reads and follows classes online via our satellite internet connection. This training will now be added to his already distinct title of "Master Composter" that he earned in 2008 with the Riverside County Waste Management. He even has a T-Shirt that says so!


He's already enjoyed getting pricked and cut learning to prune roses at the UCR Botanical gardens. By the way, the first rule is never where shorts, sandals and a Tshirt to a full scale rose pruning!

He's also had a day at an olive ranch where they are growing olives and pressing oil. Actually the RV park where we have the lot, Glen Eden, used to be an Olive ranch where there are still many huge, shapely and prolific olive trees. (and olives smushed all around....next year some curing and pressing is going to happen!)


Well, it's almost 1 February and should be time to be in Quartzsite, but looks like we'll stick around here to help with community garden, our site projects including finishing irrigation for our new apple, plum, pluot and nectarine trees and 2 grape vines, along with helping out and visiting mother in a not too distant nursing home. It's comfortable here, but really time to be moving along. Yuma and the desert are calling. Happy trails until real soon (we hope)