Yes, We Made it to Sacramento Area

 

Indy with her new Hair Cut

We arrived safely Thursday Evening at my Sister Sandy and husband Arny's backyard...a place we have found ourselves each year for a number of month since 2012.  All three of our dogs LOVE their backyard, and LOVE both of them too.  When we arrived, Indy squealed and squealed.  This is our first RV in which we did not need to have ramps since our first Class A which we could pump up the air suspension to get over the steepness of the driveway.  We did scratch with the luggage carrier, but very little, and it didn't even leave a mark.  Hooked up electricity, and we were set up for the night.  We only hook up the electricity because many days we will be leaving the backyard, going to visit mom, shop, do laundry, visit my precious Granddaughter...so using water stored in the fresh water tank makes coming and going easier.  Also, while out, we can empty our grey and black water holding tanks, which is easier than filling the blue tote and walking it over to the other side of the house to get rid of the holding tanks contents.

We have visited a number of times, and tomorrow Sandy takes her to a hearing aid appointment and then the four of us will have lunch.  Visiting her reminds me of when her mother was in the same environment, yet a larger facility, way back in the late 70's, early 80's.  I would visit Grandma and she would always say, "Now which one are you?"  Heck, she had 11 children, and 50+ grandchildren, so what do you expect???  Mom gets confused in that she thinks Sandy is her sister Mary...she has called me by my dad's name many times, but once you point out who you are, she remembers...some day that may not be the case.

The fires in California are a good distance away from us.  We do smell smoke in the air, but the air does not show any heavy smoke look.  We do hear Cal Fire planes going north, but most of the planes hitting the big fire are working out of Redding, which is closer to the active fire areas.  That fire, called the Park Fire, is nearly 400,000 acres and 90 miles north of us.  It was started by a guy who pushed his automobile/truck down into a gully while it was on fire.  He hung around to watch the fire spread, and others who saw him do it told the authorities, and he was arrested on site.  A new fire southeast of us called the Pedro Fire is 130 miles from us and is already 4,000 acres in size.  It is not burning as quickly as the Park Fire, but we are now coming back into a hot cycle, with temps hitting 100 again starting tomorrow.  Oh, how fun...

Saturday we have a date to see my granddaughter...now that will be fun...

Sandy and Arny's Backyard Again

 

Here is a picture of the Backyard of Sister Sandy and BIL Arny's home from 2020.  It has not changed, except that we are here so early that the tree is just not blooming, ready to put out leaves in the next few days after it dumps a lot of yellow crap all over our clean motorhome.   Oh ya, that's right...we could not get it clean due to Easter...so let it crap all that yellow pollen. 

Indy felt 'RIGHT AT HOME' with our return.  She greeted Jack, the next door neighbor's dog, first, then her cousin Parker (Patti's dog), and of course, Arny, Sandy and Patti.  Later in the garage, she greeted Joe and Ed, the next door neighbors, owner of Jack.  She did not bark at any of them, all the dogs got along great, and it is as if we never left!

Went by to see mom around 5.  She was down at dinner.  I told her I would be back around 10 am, and again around 4 pm tomorrow.  She has gotten off her eating schedule, and my first goal is to try and get her back on it again.  A number of folks commented to her how nice her hair was (Sandy cut her hair a day or two ago) and how nice it was to see her again (she had been taken her meals in her room the past week or two.)

She knew exactly who I was, and after dinner she drove her Hoveround right to her apartment, although as we got close she had a small delay in recognizing which door was hers.  It really sucks to get old...and we talked about that.  Overall I found her in fairly good spirits, she knew me and others in the dinner room, and after 10 minutes or so after to committing to meeting her at 10 am, she was able to repeat the time to me.  Can only hope she will be ready when I get there tomorrow.

Our drive today was fairly easy with only about a dozen crazy people weaving in and out of traffic.  One very dark blue two door car was followed very close by a CHP car, which turned its lights on him shortly after they passed us.  However, we did not see them for another 10 miles where the officer was busy giving him a ticket.  Yes, we are limited to 55 mph, but the speed limit was at 65...this guy was going around 80.  At that speed and that distance, the CHP had its lights on the guy for about 10 minutes.  Surprised he (CHP) did not have other CHP cars surrounding him and locking him up.  But oh ya, we are in California...where you can loot, break windows, toss Molotov Cocktails at vehicles and endanger people in the street, and business establishments and have it all be deemed a peaceful protest with no arrests.

Made it to Sacramento Area - a 3,700 Mile Trip

 

A 2,800 mile trip which turned into 3,700 mile trip.  Left on Tuesday June 22nd, in what normally would be a 7-10 day trip, turned out to be a 6 week 2 day trip.  But it included a visit with Marcia's brother and sister-in-law, visit with her friend of 60+ years, seeing my entire family (children & first wife) with the wedding celebration of my youngest son, meeting my daughter-in-laws entire family, a dinner with Marcia's cousin, lunch with Marcia's niece, and some extended stays at a northwest Georgia RV park, Cleveland Fairgrounds, and introduction to the Amana culture in Iowa.  Had some hot weather, some hot and sticky weather, some hard rains, little bit of hail, high winds, low humidity and extreme fire weather.  Other than having to replace a toilet, and losing our Microwave/Convection Oven to an Atlanta pot hole, our motorhome worked flawlessly, and we are thankful for a safe trip...despite the many patches of rough roads which made driving a bit uncomfortable.  

Dad, it is SOOOO nice up here...there are SO MANY birds and little squirrels, and so far I have seen EIGHT other dogs.  Do we REALLY have to leave?

Yes Indy, we do...but I promise you, you will LOVE Sandy and Arny's backyard...you can run, you can smell, you can ... ummm ... do your business in MANY different places, AND you get Arny treats in the morning and Sandy treats in the afternoon.  And I am sure Patti will bring Parker over for some cousin time now and then too.

OK dad, but I am telling you, it has been a LONG LONG LONG trip so far...I hope we don't have to leave too soon once we get there.

Well Indy, the plan is to stay through Thanksgiving...that is nearly FOUR months from now!  And when we go home, we will be taking the shorter route for sure.

Oh Dad, YOU were so right...I just LOVE this yard, and I can still smell things that I smelled last year when we left...and I think Bubba left something way over in the corner of that old shed over there {snicker - snicker}.

Well, I don't think Bubba left anything like that, but you might still be able to smell Bubba, Skruffy, Parker and Charlie, along with other dogs that have visited Sandy and Arny's backyard over the years.  

Hey, gotta go...I think I see me a squirrel to chase!

The 'famous' Naked Ladies

On Wednesday a new fire started up just north of I-80 which we wondered might close the Interstate down...but the wind blew it north and northeast...it was not a problem for us on Thursday, but it sure did blow up fast and do damage (still doing damage) to the area.  We had an easy trip down the mountain to Sandy and Arny's backyard and by noon we were all settled in.  

Indy RAN and RAN and RAN all over the backyard, and loved seeing Sandy and Arny until they came up to the motorhome where her instinctive reaction is to protect us from intruders.  That, we hope, will change real soon.  This morning she went up to the sliding glass door and looked in hoping for her morning treat of pork.  Once she saw someone moving, she barked...was a bit shy at first when Arny came out, and enjoyed the treat when he gave it to her.  This afternoon (and yesterday) she enjoyed Sandy's afternoon pork treat too, even sitting down when Sandy asked her to.

Mom and Patti came by Thursday late afternoon, and I took mom back to her facility...then picked up Marcia and my dinner meal from Jimboy's Tacos (2 taco salads), the first of many meals we will get from Jimboys while we are here.  

It is nice to be back with family...

Back in California's 100+ Degree Weather

At Sister's House, Citrus Heights, CA

There is only ONE thing that would bring us back to the HOT Sacramento Valley...and that is someone who is sick.  Yep, dad ended up in the hospital again last Tuesday.  On Wednesday we made the decision to return, but it was raining in Southwest Oregon, so Thursday would be the day we would take off...but there was one slight problem...

 

Two weeks earlier as we returned from our weekly tank emptying, I surprisingly see this GASH in my front passenger tire.  WHAT!!!!  It was not there when we left my sister's place four weeks earlier.  The gash also included a balding spot about 3 inches each way...other than that the tread looked good.  

Down in Gold Beach there is a Chevron Gas Station which still does car service...for $20 they put the spare on the front right and that tire on the spare.  Although I was worried about driving those short 8 miles, we made it without problem...doing it as part of the next Tuesday tank dumping routine.  Besides dumping our tanks we also filled up with propane at the Union 76 gas station further south in Gold Beach, put in $40 of gas to get us to Fred Meyer in Brookings when we did leave...but the first priority was getting that tire changed.

 

For two weeks since discovering the bad tire, I had researched what tires I wanted to put onto the motorhome.  I knew I wanted to continue with Discount Tire...they have treated us well, and they are nationwide (not all states, but a bunch of them).   When the guy at the gas station took the tire off, he said that it appeared that the belt had busted, causing a weak area and eventually the hole.  We got these tires in the El Paso area back in 2015, and we have put over 55,000 miles on them, which included a trip to Alaska in 2016.  These tires were free, part of a recall of Michelin Tires which had history of the belts breaking...and one broke on us causing a blowout back in 2015.  I did buy a 7th tire back then as a spare...which was rotated onto the motorhome a few years later.  Bottom line, I was not comfortable with Michelin anymore. 

 

Found a website published a few months ago by the US Auto Authority titled "Best RV Tires for Motorhome,Travel Trailer or Camper 2019".  This is their top 10:

 

I then did more research on the Michelin XPS RIB and the Bridgestone Duravis M700.  There was NO WAY I was going to put on Goodyear, something that dates back to 1976 when I bought a set of Goodyears for my Malibu...long story which is not worth talking about now.  I decided upon the Bridgestone and planned to order them 10 days before we would originally have gone through Medford...buying tires in Oregon would be $250 cheaper than in California, and even a little less than in Florida...but there was no way we were going to Florida on these tires.  With our two week earlier departure date, I called Discount Tire in Medford on Wednesday and placed the order,  I was assured they would be in on Thursday around noon.  So at 6:30 Thursday morning we pulled out, bought coffee at one of those little coffee stands, pulled into a turnout to feed the dogs, filled up with gas in Brookings at Fred Meyer ($3.25 per gallon) and by 8:30 we were on the Redwood Highway in California headed for Medford.  Around 9:30 we got a call that the tires were in...but two hours later we got another call to say that only 4 tires were in, the other 2 were coming out of Washington State and would not be in until Friday...

 

I knew that the Valley of the Rogue State Park, 15 miles north of where Discount Tire was located in Medford, had nightly openings...so we drove there.  One thing about Medford is that we HAVE to drop by Harry and David to get sister Sandy Moose Munch, along with other goodies for Arny, Patti and Mom and Dad...so we took care of that on Thursday after setting up camp.  Thank goodness there is a Cracker Barrel near Harry and David now, so we took care of that too.

With 4 tires at the store, and 2 more coming in around noon, we arrived at Discount Tire at 10 am. after filling with gas again at Fred Meyer, $2.75 per gallon. When FedEx arrived with the delivery, he did not have the tires because there was no room in the van when he left.  Telling him our predicament, he graciously returned to the terminal and got the dozen or so tires he had for delivery to Discount Tire, including our two.  I was so thankful, I gave him $10 for lunch, which he was very thankful for.  By 2:30 we were on our way.  Now, THIS is why I like Discount Tire.  Due to the bad tire experience with the Michelins, and with the one day delay in getting the tires, we were charged $1,075, which included a Certificates for Refund or Replacement for all 6 tires, mounting, balancing, tire disposal, and tax...oh ya, there is NO TAX in Oregon!  This is a savings of $275 over the normal Oregon price, and $500 less than the price we would have paid in California for all of this.  If there is a problem...if they screw up...if tires you bought previous did not meet your expectations, they take care of you.  As we pulled away, sister Patti texted me...dad was being released from the hospital.  Thought about turning around...but that thought did not last long.  I knew we would not make it to Citrus Heights on Friday, but we did get the motorhome washed at Blue Beacon Truck Wash in Corning, and stayed at the Willows Rest Area, 100 miles from Citrus Heights.  A bit hot, a bit noisy, by 6:30 Saturday morning we were on our way again, dumping our tanks again, stopping for coffee and feeding the dogs, we pulled into Arny and Sandy's at 9:30.  Nice to be back, but not nice weather.  Oh ya, I almost forgot...mom and dad moved to a different Assisted Living place on Friday, same day dad got out of the hospital.  Oh, what a weekend this has been!

  

Home Sweet ‘Our Family’s' Home

At Sister’s House, Citrus Heights, CA

We pulled in at my Sister and Arny’s house around 5:15 Thursday.  Hoped to be in earlier, but had a leak in one of our tire extensions, which are needed for our Tire Pressure Sensor System.  As we started out from Bakersfield, our left front motorhome tire was down to 47 psi…should be 65 psi.  The RV Park had a inflator, and got it up to 72 psi, and it seemed to hold there.  As we drove north along US-99, known as the eternal bumpy highway, we were dropping 1 psi per 10 miles, so we stopped at America’s Tire Store (known as Discount Tire’s in other states) where they quickly diagnosed the problem (after waiting an hour for ‘our turn’) and we removed the extender and the sensor and drove on north.  The rest of the drive, outside of ‘Devil’s Revenge’ in Atwater where the road was much like the Yukon as you near Alaska, went fairly well…considering we hit ‘Rush Hour’ in downtown Sacramento.

  

The DOGS are probably happier than we are…and we ARE HAPPY ourselves…to be here.  They LOVE Arny, Sandy, and the backyard.  Bubba has rolled in the grass more than I can remember.  Skruffy, despite her eyesight problems, knows right where everything is, and she chased her first Squirrel yesterday.  It won’t be long before the Squirrels start teasing her by coming down to her face and laugh at her…but we hope brother Bubba will step up and give teach them a good lesson…time will tell.

Last time we were here I mentioned that they got rid of the Turtles, and now the turtle pens have been converted to a nice garden.  Here is the home of half of the Naked Ladies, some Tulips, and these various bushes and shrubs.  They also got rid of the rose bushes that ran along the patio, opening the patio up to the nice grass without fear of getting poked by Rose Thorns. 

  

Sat outside for awhile yesterday and today listening to and watching the various birds that come and go from the backyard.  This guy above (top two pictures) was just singing away, turning its head back and forth.  The three in the bottom picture live in the Oleander Bushes which are on the neighbor’s property, but which intrude into Sandy and Arny’s yard.

  

  

So far there are fewer Doves, but numerous of the other birds…including the Humming Birds.

And I think this squirrel will learn ‘real fast’ that Skruffy is not the threat she seems to have been in past years…but it sure was checking her out far below…it just did not understand that Skruffy never did see it, but her nose sure was twitching a bit.

Tomorrow is Mother’s Day, Liver and Onions and Steak for Dad and me.  YUM!

Leaving California, Headed for Home

At Sister’s House in Citrus Heights, CA

We entered California four months and 15 days ago for our yearly visit.  This year, besides visiting with family in the Sacramento area, we visited the Santa Cruz, Yosemite, Kings Canyon, Alabama Hills, Carson City, and Truckee areas, along with a six week trip up in the Northwest portion of California, and Southwest portion of Oregon.  We celebrated Dad’s 90th birthday, Mom’s 88th birthday, both of their 70th anniversary, and the marriage of my oldest son Michael to his lovely bride Anna.  Tomorrow morning we head out…at this time tomorrow we will be somewhere in Nevada along I-80 headed to the Salt Lake City area to visit with my daughter Stephanie.  It has been a wonderful 4 1/2 months here…despite the hot hot hot weather, and the fires which are a yearly occurrence here in the west.  The Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys have always filled with smoke…accounts of early settlers talk about smoke layers due to winter fires used to keep people warm to wildfires which broke out from what is believed to be lightning strikes.  As a kid, I remember the heavy smoke from the burning of the dry rice straw left over from harvest each year on the western side of the Sacramento River, a practice which is less common now days.  And I remember many large wildfires, some in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and lower foothills, which others were in Southern California or along the Coastal Ranges.  It is a part of living in the west.

    

Sacramento is a wonderful place for flowers.  It is the Camellia Capital of the World…just ask the Camellia Society of Sacramento.  They use to have a Camellia Festival in late February or early March--which ran from 1955 to 1993 which featured a debutante ball, princesses and a parade with flower-covered floats.  I think in 4th grade we had to make a Camellia Poster as part of a city-wide contest to help promote the event.  My posters were only good enough for the trash can…  I don’t know why they stopped the huge festivities…but they do still have a yearly Camellia Show, this year was the 94th year, still held by the Sacramento Camellia Society.  Not sure, but I think the parade probably stopped due to the Naked Ladies.  All I know is that the Naked Ladies appeared again yesterday, and we are headed out tomorrow!

Naked Ladies are also known as Belladonna Lilies…and they appear each year in Sandy and Arny’s backyard.  In the spring they appear as a green, leafy plant, which lasts for 4-8 weeks before they seem to die off.  Then in July or August a single stem starts to sprout upward…and lily opens up.  In the picture above, the short ones will be as tall as the lily that is open in just a few days.  The lilies will last for a few days, then die off.  It is an amazing show…  I am glad we were able to see a few of them bloom before we leave.

     

These two fur kids are not going to be happy campers tomorrow…especially the one of the left.  Bubba (upper left) absolutely LOVES being at Sandy and Arny’s house.  Arny is Bubba’s best friend…and outside of our trip to Oregon for six weeks, and the three weeks we were sightseeing California, he has been here at their house for the past year.  However, we were here for all but three months of that time…this time we will be gone for 7 or 8 months…so Bubba is coming along with us.  Boy, he is going to be one depressed dog for a number of days…perhaps a couple of weeks…but he always adjusts to it.  We just hope that at 15 years of age, he has a few more visits back to see his buddy Uncle Arny, and also Aunt Sandy.  Skruffy, on the other hand, is fine as long as she is with me or with Marcia.  But she too LOVES Sandy and Arny’s house…the daily small treats of fried pork that I cook up and give them to hand out twice a day, the squirrels, the lawn, being in Sandy’s lap every now and then…she too will miss them.

  

For us it is a two-sided sword.  We have had some meals with mom and dad, including finding a great breakfast/lunch place called Annie’s right near to their Assisted Living facility.  We LOVE visiting family out here, we LOVE staying in Sandy and Arny’s backyard when we are here, we LOVE the sights we can explore getting here, short trips we take while here, and on the trip home.  We also LOVE our friends and family who don’t live here…and we miss our friends and family back home.  Next year my youngest son Ryan is graduating from Chiropractic School in the Kansas City area in April…and our plans will be to return to California sometime after that.  When, How Long we will stay is all up in the air for now.  But the Lord willing, we will return, and seeing family out here is always a wonderful thing.

Back to the map…this is our proposed route.  It will take us through Salt Lake to see Stephanie, through Kansas City to see Ryan, Aunt Vera and other relatives in the area, then down to Arkansas, and finally back to Florida.  I am not going to see my doctor until next March or early April since we pretty much will be going through Arkansas again on our way to Ryan’s graduation.  We decided to NOT go through the Chicago area, probably saving that for next spring.  Marcia’s driver’s license needs to be renewed in September, and they will require her to take a vision exam…otherwise we could do it over the Internet.  We want to take a bit of time going through the northern portion of Colorado, so we are not ready to set time periods for our Kansas City or Arkansas Visits as of now.

Phone + Water = Delay

At sister’s house, Citrus Heights, CA

Got up this morning at 6:55 to let the dogs out and feed them.  After the ritual of barking, Arny giving them a treat, them doing their business, they come back in for their morning breakfast.  I put the dry food into their respective bowls, reach for the spoon in a small plastic bowl soaking in water in order to dish out the canned food to mix with the dry food, and to my horror I find Marcia’s flip phone sitting in the bowl next to the spoon in about a 1/2 inch of water!

After getting the dogs their food, I immediately got on Amazon and ordered another flip phone.  $40 later, with delivery sometime tomorrow, and a quick trip to a Verizon Store and she will be back in business.  In the meantime, laundry is done, the car is packed, and we are ready to leave…it will just be Wednesday instead of Tuesday (or late Tuesday afternoon if it comes that quick).

Friday Sandy and Arny left for the Bodega Bay area for two nights, three days of not having to care for Arny’s mom.  Monday through Friday a caregiver, Debbie, comes in for 5 hours, then she lays down for a 2-3 hour nap, and by the time she gets up my sister is home from work.  While they were gone, I helped out Friday morning through Sunday afternoon.  My sister Patti arrived around 3 on Friday and did much of the caregiving from then through Sunday evening.  Me?  Well, I am the muscles…picking her up, moving her, and keeping her company as needed.  Marcia also sat with her and talked and visited for a number of hours too.  It is just so hard to imagine being so dependent on others…can’t do anything on her own.  Ninety five years old…good, long life that just keeps hanging on.

Went over to the grocery store over the weekend too, and saw this Model A with a Cadillac engine sitting in the parking lot…what a nice looking car.  Don’t know which is older, the car of Arny’s mother…my bet is on his mother…and I am sure she has more original parts than this car does.

Anyway, we will be on the road to Oregon either late Tuesday or first thing Wednesday morning.  Will need to adjust our stops a little, but that’s ok, plans are made to be changed….