I'm glad I got back to the van before Zoe had a blowout. I hope she didn't suffer long as she had diarrhea when I let her out. She had drank water from a slimy pond behind the visitor center (that she shouldn't have been in due to endanger Pup fish - oops!), so I wonder if that's what did it. I worried that we'd have a rough night, but that was the only episode, thankfully!
It feels weird 'cuz I am so close to the Mexican border and feel like I should go, but I just can't bring myself to at this point in time. And I have my plan (rare as they are) to visit Lenore and Matt.
I realize that I really love the Sonoran Desert. This is supposedly the greenest desert on earth. I guess between the Palo Verde, Mesquite bushes, and the cactus (Saguaros, Organ Pipes, Chollas, Barrel and maybe more), as well as some other plants, it is pretty green. The Saguaros just have so much personality and thus are fun to see all their different shapes and sizes. And the backdrop of the mountains makes it so special.
Views from the campground and my site:
1/6 - In the morning, I decided to book the site for 2 more nights, since tomorrow is supposed to be rainy and this seems like a good place to hang out in the rain. I met and chatted with Deb, who is going to Quartzsite, so I might camp with her and people she knows.
Between my long chat with Deb and then another long chat with a woman named Christine and a small amount of lazing around, I didn't do much, but that's OK! Later I went for a walk on my own for some more exercise and enjoyed the desert along the way. I came back and took Zoe out again, then showered (solar shower and it wasn't all that sunny, so it was barely warm, but warm enough to not be jumping out of the way of the water between rinses. I was pleased that it wasn't frigid!), then shortly after, I left again to do the Desert View hike with Deb to catch the sunset. It wasn't a spectacular sunset, but it was still lovely and so quiet (when Deb and I weren't chatting!). I was almost not going to go because part of me wanted to just sit in my chair and enjoy the sunset from my site with Zoe, but I'm glad I went. I needed the exercise (I knew the next day would be a down day due to the rain) and because Deb decided to join me and I don't think she would have gone on her own, and I enjoyed it!
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| Morning from my window |
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| Young organ pipe cactus |
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| Barrel cactus. Look at those hooks!!! |
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| Young Saguaro |
Views from our sunset hike:
1/7 - Short morning walk in light rain to catch a couple of shots of the desert in the rain (again!). So pretty!
In between here, Zoe and I holed up in the van with both my heaters (electric space heater and diesel heater) running ('cuz I can). It was a high of 53 and rain all day until about 5:30 PM. I spent the day working on this blog. It is amazing how many hours go into it when I'm playing catch-up (which started in the previous post) like today. I have to remind myself of what happened and where I was and when it happened and sometimes do some research on places I've been. So it really takes some time!
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| Clearing off in the evening |
Phew! Time to take a break and hopefully not wait so long in between updates!
1/8 - Before leaving I filled up my water and decided to empty my gray tank into the dump station hole. People are always putting rocks to prop open the cover and this one was no exception. I was opening the cover and moving the rock with my foot and because this rock was small enough to fall into the hole, it did. Yikes! Not a problem for me, but would be a problem for someone connecting their stinky slinky to it. I was going to stop and tell the camp hosts, but then after pulling away, I decided to stop and grab a rubber glove and see if I could extract the rock. Thankfully it wasn't too far down and I got it out. Phew - I would have felt really bad if it backed up because of me (or because of whoever was dumb enough to put a small enough rock there in the first place). Needless to say, that rock was tossed away.
After the fog lifted, I did the Alamo Canyon hike and I'm so glad I did. There are so many Saguaros here and thus I really enjoyed it. It was quite cool, but I was dressed just barely warm enough to not freeze. This hike really showed how green this desert is. I could even see some grass of some sort. The hike takes you to a brick house and then further on to where they kept a few cattle. It's hard to imagine cows grazing here, but maybe that grass is sufficient? I don't know when these structures were built and abandoned.
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| Morning fog at the campground |
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| I wonder if that grass has lots of nutrients... |
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| This sign was at the end of the trail and made me a little anxious for the rest of the hike. Of course I was alone! |
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| Dead chain link cholla. It seems that all cacti have wood-like structures? |
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| So many Saguaros in this area. North and South didn't seem to have so many. |
After the hike I went back into Ajo and stopped at Sonoran Sweet & Savory, which is a crepe place. I got there just before they closed and got a huge and yummy crepe. I may have to go back before leaving town! Then Zoe and I walked around town and then headed to the Ajo Country Club for the night. They are a Harvest Host, but I don't have the golf membership, but they didn't care. No sign in or reserving online. Deb had told me that she's stayed here several times. She and I went and had a glass of wine at the bar and visited with Bob (local patron) and Kevin (bartender). Then I met Jackie, who is one of the volunteers that run the country club - it's all volunteer run. It could be a good deal to stay here and volunteer for a season.
1/9 - Pretty mellow day. It was pretty chilly for the 1st half of the day with a stiff breeze, so I didn't do much outside in the morning. When I was walking Zoe around I realized we were kind of in the line of fire on the golf course, so we headed back. It's hard to tell there because there is a lot of dirt between the greens, so I didn't realize that I was on the golf course. I'm glad they aren't watering the whole place like so many do out here with water being such a precious resource. I finally got going and we went into town to fill up my heater's diesel tank (that I had thought I wouldn't be using much - HA!) and then took a scenic drive before taking Zoe for a walk around town. We walked around the Historic district, but it isn't like any historic district I've seen elsewhere. Many of the homes are rundown, but they are old. But there are some nice homes too. Real estate is very reasonable here. Maybe I should buy a place and be a snowbird here... You can get a nice (small - which is the way I like it) house here for under 200K.
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| Lots of people camping along this loop road. Pretty! |
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| Interesting Saguaro shape! |
I went back to the golf course and Deb and I had fish and chips at the clubhouse. They were actually quite good and it's such a friendly atmosphere.
1/10 - Deb and I had talked about plans for today as we are both thinking of heading out towards Quartzsite. She has a Planet Fitness membership and could bring me in as a guest. But, she texted me after 8 saying she was planning on leaving at 9 to head to the market at the plaza. Since I had a bad night's sleep, I had just woken up and said I was unlikely to be out before 10 with walking/feeding Zoe and getting ready. When I got to town, I walked around and chatted with the very friendly locals and learned there was a tour at the Curley school at 11. So, Deb went on her way and I did my thing, which is how I prefer it anyway - I don't like being on other people's schedule!! I was able to get a shower at the RV park in town for $5, so it was perfect. I grabbed another meal from the crepe place, but it wasn't nearly as good as the last time, not as filling. I should have ordered the same thing. Oh, well.
I like this town so much, I might even come back after visiting Lenore and Matt. We'll see.
The Curley School - built in 1919, then added on in 1926. Ajo was a mining town and there was a population of about 10,000, so they needed more space for all the kids. It is now affordable housing and has about 30 apartments. The building had been in disrepair after closing in 1995 or so, in the early 2000s, they started the process to plan, get funding, and renovate. The building still feels like a school and was well done. The tour guide gave us a lot of history of the town and it's layout along with the info on this building.
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| An ingenious way to keep kids from sliding down the banisters! I imagine it worked 100%! |
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| The Auditorium had this garage door so that the stage could be for inside or outside events. Another great idea. |
After my shower, I sadly left Ajo and headed to Buckeye. It was about 2 PM before I finally left, so I decided I'd stay in Buckeye. We headed to the Skyline Regional Park and grabbed a spot. I considered staying at Walmart or Cracker Barrel, but wanted to go somewhere where we could enjoy a walk. There are only 8 sites and I picked site C because based on the reservation sheet, I thought it was available. After settling in I looked at the sheet again and realized that this site was reserved from 1/8-11, so it actually was reserved for tonight. BUT, there was nothing left out, so I could only assume whoever reserved it never showed up or left early, so I decided to risk it. If needed, I can always go to Walmart!
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| View from our walk. |
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| From the van |
I'm going to head to Quartzsite tomorrow, though I'm a little afraid that I'm going to get bored. I have 2+ weeks to kill before heading to Cornville and I can't imagine spending all that time in the Quartzsite area, but who knows??
1/11 - It was super windy all night long and still windy this morning. The van is shaking in the wind. Do I want to drive today? But the wind is from the East, so I should get a tailwind, rather than a crosswind, so heck, yeah! But before heading out, I want to do a hike, so I hike for a few miles - super rocky terrain - and then go shopping in Buckeye. I decided to go to an Aldis, where I rarely shop, but I liked it, especially for the produce. I got many of the items on my list there, but still went to Fry's to get my Boar's Head hummus and Maple honey turkey!
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| Good morning stretch and back scratch |
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| From along the hike |
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| Ocatillo cactus that has so many leaves. I rarely see them that leafed out. |
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| I met this four month old little cutie on the trail. I commented on his age doing a hike like this and the guy said it was his 2nd time. I should have recommended that he discuss that with his vet as young pups aren't supposed to be doing long hard hikes until their more developed physically, but I didn't think about it until after we went our separate ways. |
So, I didn't get to Quartzsite until 4ish and instead of meeting Deb where she was staying at Dome Rock, I met up with her at her friends' campsite at Tyson Wash. I enjoyed dinner with Deb, Jose, Steve, and Bob. I contributed my Trader Joe's lentil, bruschetta, and feta salad, which seemed to be appreciated. I'm always happy when I actually have something like that to contribute. Now I have to restock at my next TJs shop!
I had a beer and a couple of G&Ts and decided it best not to drive, so I stayed right there. Deb had to go back, since she has a Casita (trailer) and come to find out it was good that I didn't follow here as she said that it took her about a 1/2 hour to find her trailer in the dark! I would have been very frustrated.
1/12 - I went over to the RTR (Rubber Tramp Rendezvous, started by Bob Wells) after a lazy morning (yeah, I'm really good at those!), and found it a bit underwhelming.
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| Typical Zoe - settling in at someone else's rig... |
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| And I was sitting on the grass at the RTR, listening to the presentation, and she went over and laid down right up against this guy, who gave her lots of loving. Odd... |
I was again invited for dinner with "the guys" and Deb, so I joined them again. They cooked Tri-tip and had Caesar salad and bean. I passed on the G&Ts tonight! 😜 I parked there again for the night. This is a paid area ($40 for two weeks, so well worth it), but the booth is closed in the evening and Mondays and Tuesdays, so I couldn't even pay if I wanted to.
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| If you're looking for a cheap tool to take off lug nuts with no effort, this is great. Steve was talking about this and how great it was and that "even Christine could do it", so we tested it out on Joe's truck tire and yep, even I could do it with one hand. It was impressive. |
1/13 - Steve and Bob were going to play pickleball, so I joined them. It was fun and I do fairly well. I'm not good by any means, but I can hold my own. There were only a few of us in the beginning, but fortunately another woman so we could all play. Then it got really busy with only two courts and like 30 people! So, it was a bit of a wait between playing, but it was all good. It was good to finally use the paddle I purchased many many months ago. Though Bob was showing me the benefits of his paddle over mine, but oh, well. I tried using his and it didn't seem to make much difference in my playing, though it did feel a bit different. I don't think I'm good enough for it to matter. Maybe I'll upgrade at some point if I keep playing.
I drove out to Hi Jolly and registered for the 14 day free parking on BLM, but it was pretty crowded and I decided I probably wouldn't stay.
I met Hana for dinner. We had communicated about tiny homes on Facebook (actually I think she's the first person I've met on social media and then met in person) and ended up both being in Quartzsite now. We ended up parking together in a very unpopulated BLM area. It was nice enough.
1/14
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| There aren't many Saguaros here, but it seems like most of them are dead. 😕 |
After Hana and I hung out in the morning, I decided to go play pickleball again. There were only enough people for one court, then two, but that was about it. It was great. Most everyone is super nice, but some of the men are so damn cocky and busy telling me what to do all the time. Grrr.
After playing, I headed to the laundromat for a much-needed shower, then drove out toward Dome Rock to see if I could track down Deb and the art work she had shown me. After calling with no answer, I gave up and pulled over to make something to eat. Naturally, that’s when we finally connected—and it turned out I was parked about 300 yards from her. In a huge area. What are the odds???
We walked up to where her friends were camped in their Casitas (apparently a thing—people with the same rigs like to cluster together). I was especially excited because Diane and Suzanne had created the beautiful rock design that I’d been hoping to see. Totally worth the detour, the missed calls, and the improbable parking coincidence.
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| I love these little hummingbird feeders made out of spice jars - what a great idea! |
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| It has taken them about 5 years to put this together. There has been some disturbance over the years, but not this year. Why would anyone disturb it??? |
Hana and I went to one of Frenchie’s Wednesday night fireside chats. It’s meant to be a circle where people share their stories, but it ended up being more of a casual gathering—people milling around, chatting, and getting to know each other. All good people, though. Mostly solo travelers… possibly exclusively solo travelers.
One guy made it very clear he was on the hunt for a partner - steering clear of that! 😂 There was also talk of a singles event happening on Saturday. It might be fun to go out dancing, but the singles thing doesn't appeal. If I meet someone organically, great—but I have zero interest in searching or being searched for.
When Hana sent me the coordinates for the fire, I realized it was close to where I’d stayed with the guys earlier in the week. As it turned out, it was literally just across the wash. So I walked over and invited them to join us, which made the evening feel even more connected and familiar.
1/15 - Repeat of yesterday morning - hang out with Hana and then go play pickleball. It was much busier than yesterday, but not as bad as the day before. Poor Zoe, three days in a row of hanging in the van while I play. But, it's sunny and warm, so sadly there isn't much she can do anyway...
Then, debating on whether to head onto Ehrenberg where the Skooliepalooza event is going on or stay somewhere else alone. Somewhere else alone won. I spent 2 nights in Ajo with Deb, then one night on my own, then 2 nights with Deb and the guys, then 2 nights with Hana. I felt it was time for me to recharge before heading onto more social activities. So, I headed to the Dome Rock area and found a nice spot with great views and no close neighbors. I can hear I-10, but it's not too loud and I think quieter than at the spot with Hana.
With my quiet, solo time, I cooked up some tofu and mushrooms and spinach. It was nice to cook as it has been a while.
1/16 - Shall I stay or shall I go??? I'm loving this spot and wouldn't mind staying put. We'll see. Ehrenberg is less than 30 minutes, so I can decide at any time! I think the event starts today.
I'm thinking of repainting my cabinets when I'm in Cornville. I think that after more than 2 years, it's time. I think I'd like to change the color to something a little darker. We'll see if I'm brave enough to do it. Or is it motivated enough?
I'm doing a better job of filling my time here in Quartzsite than I thought. Tomorrow starts the big RV show, which apparently brings in a ton of people, so I'm not too psyched about that. I'll head to Ehrenberg either today or tomorrow and go from there. I'd like to leave here by the 22nd so I have some time to explore on my way to Cornville, where I plan to arrive on 1/26 as I signed up for a watercolor pencils drawing class. I have watercolor pencils, but don't know how to use them and really would like to start doing some drawing. Hopefully this class will inspire me.
So, I stayed another night in this spot. It was a very mellow day just enjoying the solitude, the sunshine, the view, and Miss Zoe. I read, stared into space/at the view, talked to a friend, took a walk, and cooked a ground beef stroganoff in the instant pot. My 3 qt instant pot is too small for the whole thing, so I had to pressure cook it in two batches. It was good though!
1/17 - I played pickleball again today and took a shower at the RV park where the courts are. The bathroom has a keypad lock on it, but it's been unlocked all 4 days that I've played until I decided I would go take a shower. I grabbed my stuff and tried the door and it was locked. WTF? I went into the office to ask for the code, then immediately felt a pang of guilt about possibly taking advantage. So I went back and asked outright if it was okay for me to shower. The woman at the desk told me I was welcome to use the shower—and the pool and hot tub too. I walked out feeling grateful, and only then did it dawn on me that she probably thought I was staying there. Oops. But hey—she said yes, so I took her at her word and it was a good shower!
Then finally, onto Ehrenberg for Skooliepalooza. It's a pretty dusty road and the wind was blowing. I unknowingly parked not too far from said dusty road, but once I realized it, I decided it was OK because the wind was taking the dust in another direction. Zoe and I walked the vendor area and then came back to the van. By this time, the wind started to bring the dust in my direction, so I found another spot.
While walking around I saw several people who I had met in Bombay Beach, and talked with a few other people about their crafts. There are some very creative ideas out there. I think I'll go back tomorrow and buy a few things - even though I don't need anything! It will feel good to support people who are making their living doing these things.
So, this is the original Skooliepalooza, while last year, I went to the copy cat one. I am not feeling the vibe here. Not sure why. I walked around tonight looking for music and I found a band playing that I didn't like much and some other music I also didn't like. I went looking for a fire and jam session, but no luck. Tomorrow there is supposed to be an open mic, so I may stick around another night to see how that is. Last year, it felt easier to meet people than this time. I met people right away last time and was parked in a really good area. Here I'm parked way away, but the setup is different and I don't know where I'd park that would be better. Oh, well.
1/18 - Zoe did a good job this morning introducing herself to some neighbors. I went over to get her and met the group that was circled up. Jim and Jill, who are leaving later today, showed me their incredible van. It's a Ford Transit and the attention to detail is amazing. The design and the implementation are just off the charts. Absolutely the nicest van I've ever seen - in person or on video. Jill is an artist and woodworker and I think Jim may have helped out with electrical and plumbing, but I'm not sure. She didn't want me to take photos, which is a bummer. I also chatted with Stefan for a bit and he said I should move over there, which I ended up doing. I really enjoyed being part of this group.
I ended up staying until 1/22 as I just really enjoyed hanging out with Tom, John, Nick, and Stefan. Then Jess, who had also been nearby ended up joining us. And then Sherry, who is the Silver Mermaid on Instagram (with a ton of followers) joined for two nights. And David brought his big bus over on my last night there. Basically my time there consisted of hanging with others, doing my own things, walking to "town", which is really Merchants Row and also where the music was in the evening. I really enjoyed parking with the crew and being away from the hubbub with them, but I think if I were to go again I'd be closer to the activities. We were at least 1/3 mile away, which made it more quiet, but we didn't really know what was going on. There's no schedule, so stuff just happens, so we missed out on a lot of the music. Each time I went in the evenings, I wasn't thrilled. I did enjoy the drum circle. Each day I thought I might leave, but then decided to stick around. I had not filled my water tank before going (dumb move and lesson learned!) as I hadn't planned to stay more than a couple of days. I ended up getting a couple of gallons of drinking water so that I could wash my hair off the back of my van. I was down to about 5% according to the inaccurate gauge (probably had a couple of gallons left) when I finally filled up.
I crossed paths with Jessica and Keith, Syd and Harpeen, and Lauren who I had parked near last year. Lauren's brother is in Burlington, VT (worked at BioTek) and she's planning to visit this summer, so hopefully we'll cross paths there.
Some aerial shots to give an idea of scale. I think these shots are early on though. There were more rigs as the days went on.
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| The Pirate Bus setup |
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| Tom's super cool home built truck camper |
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| The flap opens where the bed is |
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| Every detail is old and carefully selected/created. There are so many amazing details in this rig. |
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| Emma and Raymond. Brother and sister, but Emma is Nick's and Raymond is John's. John is Nick's dad. |
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| Every evening for sunset two ultralights took to the sky. |
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| The vent hose for my heater came off and the only way to access it is to take out the |
fridge (I'm pretty sure that's what Steve said), so Tom cut a hole in the wall of a drawer under the fridge to be able to get his hand in there to put the hose back in place. It's so nice to have that properly sending heat into my home!
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| Zoe isn't thrilled with Tom taking over her bed. |
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| So she decided to just lie down on Tom's tools. 😂 And then Tom gave her a massage. |
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| The night before I arrived, a guy was drunk and drove into the ravine behind us. Apparently when trying to climb out of the ravine he hit his head and had to be air lifted to the hospital. |
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| This beast was able to pull the truck out. Entertaining to watch while I cooked dinner. |
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| Emma and Ted, Nick's dogs. Emma is such a sweetie! |
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| Tom and his pup, Tiger. |
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| Chilly evening by the fire. Stefan, Nick, John |
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| I don't remember the names of the two on the left, they just dropped in for a bit. Jess is on the right. |
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| Jess and Tom |
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| Cool Jellyfish kite |
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| I need to get this for my van! |
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| A Zoe look alike. I think we met her last year. |
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| The Wander Bus that was at Bombay Beach was also here with the music and laser lights. I love watching them with the smoke for the campfires. |
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| Two for Jess's four pups. Nigel in my lap, Frankie on the ground |
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| They decided to swap. Frankie is the sweetest! |
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| Morning gathering with so many pups! |
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| David's bus. I like the saying on the side: "Money fills your pocket. Adventure fills your soul" |
We had a traveling farm move in nearby so I had to go visit. I met Tink, who cares for these critters. Hens, roosters, pig, and goats. So fun!
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| Zoe wasn't interested in the pig or goats at all. |
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| Tink |
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| Emma takes whatever chair is free. |
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| Frankie, the lap dog |
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| Tom is a trained Vidal Sassoon hair stylist along with his many other skills. So he did some repair work after my last cut. Kinda fun having my hair cut out here. It felt like getting my hair done on a movie set. |
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| Sherry |
Sherry interviewed me and took some still shots too. She's planning on creating a YouTube video of it. Yikes.
1/22 - I finally left Skoolie and went to get a proper shower before heading to Quartzsite and fill up my water. I met up with Hana again for dinner and then we camped together again.
1/23 - I thought I'd go play pickleball one last time before leaving Q, but Hana and I spent too much time chatting in the morning. All good!
That's it for now. I'll be heading north towards Lenore and Matt's and will catch up then.
How fun!! Loved the shots of you with Zoe and your van! you're a movie star! :)
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