So the sad news is that Mom and I are on our way home. Rob showed up night before last with Dad's car and he's going to stay with Dad until things are figured out at Mayo. So, yesterday we packed the car, loaded the gun--yes I'm serious, my mom is a pistol packin' Mama. She hangs it on the seat behind her within easy reach. Holy crap. She says if it's not hidden, we don't need a concealed weapons permit. We stopped in and saw Uncle Oscar and Aunt Mollie at the hospital in Phoenix before we left (he's been sick), and hit the road. Last night we stopped at a little motel in Quartzsite. I'm not sure what the name of it is because Rodney didn't give me a reciept and there is nothing in this "room" with a motel name. He said he was giving us "the Captain's Quarters, a very large room and the nicest one we have." I went looking for the room (the buildings are all detached) and finally went in and asked Rodney to show me where it was. He came out and pointed to the above structure. Mom said "you mean the little double wide there?" And Rodney replied, "No, the Captain's Quarters." Okie dokie. It was dark and late and we were tired and we said "thanks" and drove over to the Captain's Quarters and sure enough, it is a 2 bedroom double wide.
The lights don't work in most of the rooms, perhaps fortunately, and it was cold so I turned up the furnace which strangely made no difference, and we unpacked our stuff for the night. The worst thing about it is the odd smell. Yuk. Well, a few minutes later there's a knock on the door. No peep hole in this door, I told Mom to get the gun and back me up (it's late and this little beauty is parked near what appears to be a biker bar--did I say that?), and I opened the door. Outside is --surprise--a biker looking guy in a black leather vest, a very nice smile, and big tattoo on his arm (it was too dark to tell what creature specifically was decorating his large left bicep), and he is holding a small space heater. Did I mention he looks very happy--glazed eyes, big beautiful smile, nice laugh (sort of like a serial killer I would imagine). He said, "You're propane tank is almost empty and I don't think your heat will run for very long so I brought you this." I have no idea who this guy is (not the maid, that's for sure) don't know where Rodney is, and Mom's getting tired of standing behind the door holding the gun, so I take the heater, say "thanks," shut and lock the door.
Oh my gosh, we laughed like we had good sense. The front door locked, even so, I pulled the end table in front of it. Mr. Tattoo Guy looked like he might have trouble navigating obstacles and I figured if the door opened, I've have time to grab the gun next to me and shoot (I got the front bedroom). But unfortunately, the slide locks on the back door were a quarter of an inch below the holes they belonged in, so we couldn't really secure the back door except with the door knob lock. That's okay, we did bring our watch dog. Oh wait a minute, she's blind and small, but she's fierce and will make a terrible welt on your ankle if you piss her off.
It is morning now, and we woke up laughing. What a wonderful way to start the day. And guess what? The light in the bathroom and bedroom were on. They are the energy saving florescent lights and it takes 4 hours for these beauties to warm up and turn on. We won't have to shower in the dark. Hooray!
We are packing up and heading north today in search of more adventures. It's so fun to travel with someone who has a sense of humor.
Here's to fair skies and friendly winds.
