Captain's Quarters

 

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.

Keeping in mind we're in the middle of the desert, this is the sight that greeted us this morning as we were packing the car (it's decorating the back of the biker bar):

Here's to fair skies and friendly winds.

On the road

Well if it's not one adventure after another, I'll put in with you.  We made it to Oregon okay and when we got to Jackpot, Nevada we stayed at Cactus Pete's RV Park and Casino (I know, weird, huh).  We got there Saturday and stayed Sunday so Dad could see the Superbowl, which he missed most of because of some card game....  But, on Saturday night the heater went out.  Then on Sunday night the space heater I bought went out.  Crap it was cold.  And mom talks in her sleep and flops around like a fish on the bank praying for rain.  It was awful the first couple nights.  So I'm cold.  I'm laying next to mom who is talking and flailing about and around 2 in the morning...that's it.  I got up, got some clothes on, and we headed south.  Dad woke up.  Mom was up.  She felt bad because, who knows what they do in their sleep unless someone is rude enough to tell them (that would be tired, cold, cranky me).  We stayed in Ash Springs.  Which I don't know why it's called Ash Springs because there are no springs and no fires or ashes as far as I could see.  It was high mountain desert, lots of sagebrush, some cactus (kinda cool), and a lot of nothin else.  There was a gas station with a killer bakery.  And it wasn't as cold as Cactus Pete's RV Park.  A plus as far as I am concerned.  So Dad wants to make it to Bullhead City, Arizona, past Las Vegas, through Laughlin, Nevada and just across the river where he once had some service done at an RV repair shop that he doesn't remember the name of and can't remember exactly where it is and not only that but we got there at 4:30 but in Arizona time it was 5:30 so everything was closed anyway even if he could remember which he didn't.  So we stayed at the Golden Nugget Casino and Hotel.  They have a great parking lot for motor homes, camp trailers, and semi trucks.  No backing up monster motor homes.  Which still isn't my strong suit although I haven't hit anything of consequence yet, but I haven't really backed up yet so there's still time. 

Sooooo, this morning I got up early and went in search of a motor home repair place, which I found one, thank the Good Lord, and they seemed quite busy but the lady at the front desk said...maybe you flipped a fuse.  Like I haven't checked all the switches and pulled all the fuses out to make sure the little metal z part was all in one piece.  Which I had.  So Justin, a very nice young man pulled the motor home into their "fix motor home" space and plugged the monster in and guess what.  The lights went on.  Just like that.  When Justin came in with a little deal he stuck in the outlets to see if they were working...they were, I said, "Justin, you're awesome."  He said, "Wow, this is the first time anyone ever thought I was awesome for plugging a motor home in."  Apparently, I had too many things running and flipped the fuse at the plug in thing in the RV park (who knew those things had a breaker thingy that flipped if you tried to run lights, a heater, and a computer?).  Now I know.  So then, he looked at the furnace gauges and moves one little piece of metal that got misaligned and he aligned it and, bam, just like magic the furnace comes on.  I tell you what, it was a great day in hat rock for this mechanically challenged woman.  So then I go in to pay the bill and guess what.  No charge.  What a kick.

We're staying one more night in Laughlin and heading for Quartzsite, Arizona tomorrow.  I'm waiting to hear from Mayo Clinic.  I have requested an appointment for Dad.  He was thinking he would just wait till after he visited friends in Quartzsite, but I said, "Dad, what if it takes them a week to get you in.  If you wait another week, we'll have a real problem because I'm scheduled to work on March 1."  This is a fact he has been aware of since we left home.  At least that little detail is finally taken care of.

So as far as gambling goes, I'm a terrible gambler.  I've lost money on the slot machines, the crap table, and playing cards.  I was seriously considering going to church on Superbowl Sunday but Jackpot doesn't have a church, any church as far as I could tell and the nearest one was 30 miles or so away.  Can't take everyone's house and leave for 3 hours to go to church, now can I?  Nope.  So I lost money.  I should have gone to church.  It would have been better for my soul and my pocket book.  My sister said it was a lesson from God.  If I would have won, I would have wanted to gamble more, but as it is, I've been pretty much hanging out.  Bought myself a hat.  Mom almost barfed when she saw it.  I think it looks Arizona-y.  Blue feather.  Beaded turquoise medallion.  Black kinda bolero thing with a chin strap.  I'll post a picture of it if I can get one of them to take it.  They threatened to make me go to dinner by myself if I wore it.  Didn't. 

Other than that, we all seem to be managing.  Whipped them at rummy the other night.  That was good.  No one is sick.  That is good.  We're heading south to visit with friends and family, and that is good.  So all in all, everything is good.

It's been a fun adventure so far, and I expect it to be even funner coming up.

Here's to fun!

Traveling

Tomorrow I will be heading for Tacoma. I was going to go today, but that didn't exactly work out. I'm excited to see the West Side kids and grandkids, especially in light of the fact that the Bremerton kids will become San Diego kids in February. Home is where the Navy sends you. My kids joined the military and I get to see the world. Guam, Hawaii, Idaho Falls (Idaho Falls? Yep).

Once a long time ago the Greyhound Bus company had an anywhere in America $50 fare. So my little sis and I got on a bus in Pasco, Washington and headed east. I got off in South Carolina, she got off in Flordia to visit friends and drive back to the real Washington with them. We spent five days and nights on a dozen different buses and a day sight seeing in Washington DC. We took bagles and yogert and if there was a store near the bus stop we resupplied. We had no money to eat out. If we had money we wouldn't have taken the stupid bus. There was an old guy who bought us breakfast. His daughter was going to pick him up from the bus station in Washington DC, and he wanted us to tell his daughter that he married both of us in Utah and he was bringing us home. We thought it was hilarious at the time. We laughed and ate and had a royal good moment. It was an adventure to say the least.

My kids are moving, rearranging their lives, having adventures, tragedies, and excitement. I watch them, pray for them, hope the best for them, and trust that they will eventually figure it out. Maybe without the five day bus trip. Smelly proposition to be sure. Kind of how life is. Sometimes stinky, but always interesting.