Warm, sunshine, and ?????

We've arrived at Pilot Knob RV Resort for the winter now. It's just across the CA border from AZ and about 1 mile from Mexico. So we get it all, Border Patrol cars, trucks and choppers, Chopper from Yuma Proving groiunds, all in all, alot of flyovers each day, but we are at least here and no problems coming down from Fall City, WA !!!! HURRAHS!!

Through snow, wind, and altitude

We're in Pahrump now for the next two weeks. Temps are low 80's days to mid 50's nights and SUNSHINE!!!! We went over 7ooo feet on the way here, stayed a night at that altitude and totally felt it!!! We saw 4-6" of snow, none on the road thank goodness, it was so beautiful!! Didn't see too many animals as we don't tend to travel early mornings or late evening when they tend to be moving. In Ely NV, the hunters are out looking/shooting so the elk, deer, pronghorn, and anything else are really skittish!!

So, here we're going to sit for a couple of weeks (Till the 22nd anyway) then probably go to Bullhead City, then on down to Yuma for the winter.

On the Road again

We got tired of trying to wait out the winter storm warnings in Montana, so are heading south via Pendleton, OR down to Pahrump (about 4-5 days, so going slowly) to get farther south to warmer weather. Oh well. We're both disappointed that we couldn't do the Montana route, but didn't want to take a chance of getting caught in snow and having to sit until it clears. Maybe next spring we can come back that way back to doctor appointments in Bellevue.



Good traveling weather today, sunny and in the low 60's, stopping at Pendleton tonight at the Wild Horse Casino for the night, then on southward tomorrow and the next couple of days.

On our way, FINALLY!!

We left Fall City on Friday, Oct 1, and stopped in Cheney, WA (near Spokane) for a couple of days. We went and had lunch with a good friend, Sharon, at Red Lobster (thanks Sharon!) and enjoyed our visit with her. We can tell we're a a higher altitude (2500) as both our lungs are telling us. Rick still isn't feeling the greatest (coughing can really take alot out of you) and the weather on the route we wanted to go isn't cooperating, so we decided to stay at Ponderosa Pines in Cheney (membership campground, gee, that K/M membership is earning it's upkeep fees) until the winter storm passes through Butte, MT as we want to try a different route going south this time. Sooo, we'll be here till Monday or Tuesday, then make the run to I-15, just west of Butte to start heading south. From there down to Pahrump, the weather looks real good, sunshine all the way.

Yesterday (Saturday) we drove about 10 miles or so to Turnbull Wildlife Refuge and did the Auto route through there. Nice refuge, but most of the wetlands were dry. WA state sure needs some rain to make up for the dry summer, but from the sounds of the weather forecasts, they'll get it in snow again this winter. Strange climates going on!

More later

We are FINALLY Getting to leave the Seattle area!!!

Rick got the finally clearance from the heart doctor and we'll be leaving the 1st of October to start heading south for the winter. We accepted a job at Pilot Knob, for the same person we have worked over the summer with, and will be there around Nov 1. We'll be in Pahrump for a couple of weeks, something around the 6th or so, hopeing to meet up with Kay/Doug Knight on their way to Oregon for a couple of weeks, and us going a different way to Las Vegas!!

We went to the airport and met the girls from Bulgaria as they had a short layover (Eva & Simono from Alaska 2008) The two blondes looked GREAT, nicely tanned, although some peeling action going on and we really enjoyed the visit with them. They'll head to Houston, then to Chicago for two day, then on to Bulgaria to return home. We sure enjoyed seeing them again and we'll post pictures in the next couple of days.

Rick's home and feeling a little better

They stented an artery that hadn't been stented before and was able to watch and see the blood get flowing again right away!! Oh the miracles of modern science! We'll know more once he starts moving around more and as he feels better, still dealing with the thyroid issue which now shows that it is at the right point. We'll see!

So, plans for now are staying here in Fall City, doctor appts the 25th of this month, then leaving shortly after that to start heading south
Pam and Rick

Rick had an angioplasty (another stent) done today and the stents put in last visit (may this year) are fine, but the doctor added another stent to another artery to try and free up the flow more and get rid of the water retention problem that appears to be causing the thyroid problems. He'll go back to the doctor for follow-up on the 25th of Sept and we'll see what happens from there.

This makes 14 trips to the Cath Lab, and 10 stents since 1999!

More news as it happens in the Rick soap opera!!

Changes to our movements AGAIN!>!>!>!

Well, here it is almost time to leave WA state and WHAM, Rick's doctor says "Hang around another month". He went in for another Nuclear Stress Test, good news, heart looks great! Bad news, something is definitely going on and it all is pointing to his thyroid. Rick has taken thyroid for over 20 years now and it is totally out of balance apparently! Okay, no problem, that's the really nice thing about our RVing lifestyle, we can make abrupt changes to our plan.

As we all know, life is what happens as you are making plans!!! So, as of now, we'll be in Fall City until after Sept 25th, and if nothing else stops us, we'll head to Yuma, AZ (Pilot Knob WHR) for the winter to work there. We'll go via Pahrump, and possibly a couple of other places, taking our time as usual, especially once we hit the warmer places!!!

It's been a marvelous summer to be in WA though, sun almost daily since May, in fact, it's been an extremely dry summer and beautiful, including days of record breaking heat.

We've enjoyed watching a family of Raccoons for the summer, will try to post some pics in the next couple of day. Rocki, Mom Raccoon, came in with 4 babies one afternoon, to eat some peanuts we had for the squirrels/birds, and she has since blessed us with being able to watch them grow!!..

Well, keep checking back to see the ongoing saga of Rick and Pam!!!

Three more weekends (counting this one)

and we're outta here!!! We'll meet up with Laura/Jerry to head to CO to visit with Doug/Kay, then we'll stay at Vallecito with Doug/Kay until they leave or we can't handle the altitude of 7k!!

Then we'll slowly head to Pahrump for a couple of weeks, then on down to Pilot Knob near Yuma AZ for the winter where Pam will be working in the office and Rick doing security a couple of days a week.

So if you're out and about this winter, snowbirding like we do, come by and see us!!!

YEAH, we're getting emails again

It is just amazing how much you depend on email and don't realize it until you don't have it!!!! We are up and running again so send it to us!!! If anyone had email bounce, please resend it.

So, summer is getting close to an end. It has been a wonderful summer to be in the Seattle area, there has only been a couple of days of rain since we got here in May, it is really TOO dry for this area. The wild rhodedrendoms are drooping, it's is really sad to see, and of course, there is a fire ban in the county, probably most of the state, due to the dryness. Apparently the NY area is getting all our rain!!!

We are planning on leaving here on September 8th and head slowly up in elevation till we reach Durango, CO and will spend some time there with our good friends Kay and Doug Knight at the campground that they manage. From there, we haven't really decided for sure what we're doing yet. Rick wants to go to TX and Pam doesn't, does that tell you anything!! We'll see how the wind blows and what winter jobs may come up for us.

We aren't getting any emails

Our son who pays for our website let his credit card expire so everything is down and not working yet!! OUCH!! When your main communication is via email and internet, it sure puts a crimp on things. No telling how much email is bouncing back, hopefully no real good job offers for the winter!!!!

We are still in Fall City, WA until after Labor Day, then over to CO to visit with Kay/Doug Knight, then on down to warm winter areas. We really haven't made any plans yet, it will all depend on if we get a good job offer for the winter or not. Rick seems determined to go to Texas and then eastward for next summer, but I'm not so sure about that, needless to say it's been a MAJOR discussion this summer!!!

I can't believe that an ambulance call could be so expensive. While in Florence, AZ , Rick had an extremely low sugar (38) and the resulting lack of control from it, couldn't talk, couldn't stand or walk, just couldn't do anything or have any control. So I called 911, got good response from the ambulance crew who proceeded to give him dextrose via IV . Once he came around, he didn't really want to go to the hospital in Casa Grande (horror stories about it) and he was able to eat, talk, move. Well, next time that happens, he will go to the hospital, it won't matter where it is. Medicare won't cover the $1,000 bill as it wasn't "medically necessary" since he didn't get transported to the hospital. So guess who gets to pay it!!! The working woman of course. Good lesson learned. See, you can teach old people new tricks!

In the meantime, we've been enjoying an especially beautiful summer here in the Seattle area, one of the driest on record. Even the wild Rhodies are drooping from lack of moisture here!! But no complaints about the weather from the humans of course, other than the campers who think you have to have a fire when you go camping, even if it is 89 degrees outside. The county issued a burn ban again last week that will probably go through the summer now. We who don't like the smoke are cheering of course.

more later!!!!!

Our plans for this summer

Well, we had planned on going to Colorado to help our good friends Kay and Doug Knight at Vallecito Campground but those plans have been changed!! That's the wonderful thing abou this RVing lifestyle! So instead of leaving, we decided to stay at the Fall City Resort for the summer. When Pam went told her boss she would be leaving he offered her a paying job instead of the volunteer position she was in!!! She is doing the same job, just not for free now!! Rick is doing some security, mainly down at the park pool, watching the rugrats drown, but not allowing them to run, bring in food, glass, or outside toys, etc. SOOOOO he gets to sit and watch the cuties in their skimpy bikinis, enjoy the weather and the sites, and read or do his Sudoko, for 3 days as needed. What a life!!!

Final chapter of this episode...

Hi All;
Well, I’m out of the hospital and back at the rig. We will wait for 7 to 10 days and see the Dr. again. He has already said that there is no reason for holding us to the area beyond that. We will then be headed to Colorado for the summer providing the altitude doesn’t get to me.
So here is what has happened, I had an angioplasty done yesterday with two new stents added to my heart. One of the bypasses has failed completely, one is great, and the one with the 2 new stents is at the bypass junctions. It appears that the drama will continue for the rest of my life. Don’t become Diabetic, it’s a bitch…
At any rate, I’m as good as it gets for now, just resting after the angio and getting ready to do some stuff before we leave the area.

Chapter 4 - more informative posting

Soo, the angioplasty is over now. One bypass has closed off completely, the same right side that kept closing with previous stents before the bypass, so no biggie. One had both connection sites that were blocked so they are now stented and the third had no problems at all. He'll stay the night in the hospital and if nothing goes awry, home tomorrow. Will try to keep the blog updated as to what is going on, but right now, we're rather happy with the outcome.

Chapter 4 - short version for now

Rick is in the hospital having an angioplasty done, he's been up there over 2 hours now, and they are inserting some more stents. This means some of the grafts from the bypass are clogging. Tonight after we've talked more with the doctor, will post more.

Next Chapter

Hi all;
Went in to the Dr. this morning for an Echocardiogram, they found no extra fluid around my heart so that rules out congestive heart disease… then went to the hospital to have the fluid in my lung drawn out, it was bloody which also means that the lung is the culprit… Now we wait for the lab results on the fluid from my lung… Monday…
I’m doing okay this afternoon and will be ready to go this weekend… Chapter 4 next week, just like any good soap opera…

Health, Chapter 2

Well, hello to all, Dr. just called and I have more information now… It appears that I have water in my left lung, I go to have an EKG in the morning, then to the hospital to have the water drawn from my left lung… they will test the fluid and let me know what is next… it could be cancer, but not likely… it could still be my heart causing the problem but I think not.. it could be an infection in the lung or something else in the lung and that is all curable…
I’ll let you know when I know more…

Saw Dr. today, he ordered a chest X-ray, took me off Cozar, and scheduled but not necessarily needs a cath lab angiogram on Thursday… So, I may be at dinner on Friday or not and I may be here and cooking this weekend or not… check with us tomorrow when we find out what the chest thing did… If it’s the chest being abnormal then it’s good and I get some meds or something to fix it… if it’s the Cozar causing the problem I owe Ilse(Dr.’s assistant) some flowers for believing me that this might be the problem… if it’s not the chest or the Cozar, then I will be in Overlake Hospital on Thursday having my 13th angiogram, the 12th done by Dr. Kures… then we will find out if it’s my heart or not… The other option here is that it may be Valley Fever, which I am showing most of the symptoms except the fever, which is a probability…

I want you all to know that I had another post ready to send to you… not one I ever hope to really send but just so you know… Pam, my love, will send it if need be…

The one comment I have to make is: One is judged by the people He/She touches in a positive way, not by the amount of money or toys… I hope that is true for me in the end… (which is not too damn soon, just so you know) I just wanted to pass that along is all… :>)

We are leaving the warm to go to the cold

Well, it's time to finally start our trek for Seattle. We leave Pahrump this morning and go to Vegas for a few days while we get the trailer repaired. Then on Sunday we leave Vegas going up I15 to St. George Utah, two days there to visit Zion National Park. Then on the road north, we will be spending a couple of days on the Columbia River and then into Fall City on the 9th of May.
So for all of you in Seattle, the 9th is our arrival date. See you soon.

Pam's Totally FINISHED Quilt!!

I finally got the binding done on my first quilt and it is now on the bed along with pillow covers made by a good friend at Desert Gardens (Thank you again Betty!) So here it is in all it's glory, but the picture doesn't really do it just, you have to see it in person!

Travel Time again!

We left Florence, AZ on Friday, April 3 and went to Quartzite to stay the weekend with Doug and Kay, and her families that are there also. Had a great visit, lots of wind, of course, it's the desert after all, and Pam finally got to start relaxing again, not worrying about work!!!

We left there on Sunday, heading to Vegas and a night at Sam's Town RV and had a great late lunch with Jerry and Laura at their son's house, then back to the rig for an early wakeup the next morning as we had an appointment in Vegas for having the axles on the rig aligned. Well, that didn't happen AGAIN!! This time it wasn't a bearing, it was the shocks (Big rubber things) on the rig were pulling away from the steel walls they are mounted to. Called MoreRides... Let's see, $218 each, plus installation and there are 4 of them that are all doing the same!!!!ARGHHHH!!!

Oh well, that's a first of the month expense, good thing Pam worked all winter for money!!!!
So, we are now in Pahrump, in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, for the next couple of weeks, then will head up to the Pacific Northwest and away from the sunshine and dryness. We'll miss the sunshine, but not the dryness at all!!!


Pam managed to get her 1st quilt done over the winter, with much encouragment from the quilters at Desert Gardens!!! It's now been over to the long-arm quilting machine (thanks Ken) and is ready for it's binding!!! Here it is!!

Sorry, can't make it any larger, this is from a friend that emailed it to me and it won't allow me to make it larger@#@#@#

Hi Everyone...

Well, we are about to end our stay in Florence for the winter and start heading back up to Seattle. We have to be there no later than the 15th of May which is about 2 months too soon!!!! Oh well...

Pam ends her stint as the Activities Director here on the 30th and we will be heading over to Quartzsite to visit with Kay and Doug for a couple of days on the 1st of April. A couple of days there and then we will be going to Las Vegas to have the axles worked on and then over to Pahrump until the end of the month when Jerry and Laura can join us for the trek up to Seattle.

While here in Florence Pammy got some new experiences including: getting to ride an ATV for the first time. She went four wheeling all over the desert one day...

Actually we had gone out to visit the 80 Arm Cactus, a Saquaro (sp?) that is estimated to be over 500 years old:

when we got locked into the land management land we were on and had to go out the "hard" way over ATV trails. I'll let her tell about that trip when she gets on here next.

At any rate we are looking forward to starting north but not too fast... See you all soon...

From Pam: It was GREAT Fun!!! The 2 wheel drive truck that had the ATV's got stuck one, so they unloaded them and asked if I wanted to ride on!!!! Do Rattlesnakes bite!!! YESSSS

We were both in shorts, sandals, and no helmets (they hadn't planned to go atving) but we put on hats, sunshades, and bandanas and had a great time. Sue is very experienced at riding and was a wiz, I took some time getting used to the drive, it's not a Harley after all, then finally relaxed and had a GREAT FUN time!!!!

We all eventually got out, even the two wheel drive truck, but the 2 hour trip turned into 5 hours, something like Gilligans Desert Retreat!!! Some of us kept waiting for someone to yell "You're on Candid Camera!" or that we were in Senior Survivor!!

Just another day in paradise...

Just to let you know, it's been in the mid to high 80's for the past 7 days and expected to stay at least in the mid to high 70's for a long while.
The managers that are here have decided not to come back so we are trying to get Doug and Kay an interview with the company. We still don't know if we are going to get to come back next year since the current outgoing managers are not committing to hiring for next year so the the new managers can make their own choices. If Kay and Doug get the job, then we will definitely be back next year.
Oh well, life goes on... Have a great day one and all...

Catching up...

Gee, here it is almost the end of Feb. My how time flies when you are having fun... We have been enjoying our stay here at Desert Gardens and really hope that they will have Pam back next year as the Activities Director. Alot has happened since we started here, but most of it is typical of "owner" parks. We really liked the new managers but now they will not be back next year, for family reasons they are going to Colorado to work. So, now we don't know whether Pam is going to be invited back or not. The new management company isn't much on passing along information to the workkampers.
We have an end date though, we will be leaving here sometime after the 10th of April and starting our slow trek north. We have to be in Fall City no later than the 15th of May for Pam to start her new "volunteer" job there. Me I'm going to just continue to be a "kept" man. Actually we expect to know whether the doctors can do anything for my breathing issue by the end of June and will decide then if we are going to continue staying in the Northwest or start doing some traveling.
The current plan is to leave here on the 11th or 12th and head to Las Vegas. I still need to have the axles aligned and I want to have the fellow who was so good last time we tried do the work. Then we will head over to Pahrump for a stay, probably be there the 15th of April and stay until the end of the month. At which time, Jerry and Laura should be joining us for a trek north. We are hoping to go up through Utah, Idaho and into Washington from the tri-cities area.
We'll try to remember to post more often and keep everyone up to date... Take care everyone!!!