Guests, Critters, Travels, and Finding My Groove

Brian and Deena

My New Mexico friend Brian "Many Wheels" Kemsley has been planning to take his 30-year-old Honda Gold Wing with his dog Deena in his sidecar to Mexico for some time. The idea is to relax and explore for the winter. However, numerous mechanical issues have come up.

Deena on her feet, instead of in the sidecar

Brian, Deena, and our friend Jon made it as far as Why, Arizona, to visit Steve and me, but oil was spewing onto Brian's foot, and he discovered he needs to do more work on the bike. So the guys visited us for a few days, took a day trip down to Rocky Point in Jon's van, and then left Brian's rig here. Brian reappeared yesterday with his own van and trailer to retrieve his bike. It was nice to see Jon and so much of Brian lately!

Steve and Jon in front of a cooking fire

We did a little outdoor cooking while the guys were here, and spent lots of time in front of the fire, talking about everything under the sun.

A passerby

As you might be able to tell from the pictures, Steve's place here at Coyote Howls is right on the fence that separates the RV park from the Tohono O'odham Reservation. It's a great location, because we have neighbors only on two sides, not in front or back of us, and we are more apt to see wildlife here than in some other parts of the park. The other day we saw a palomino mustang or Indian horse trot by. We're much more likely to see wild burros, rabbits, hawks and snakes, so this was a treat.

Sonja up on the cabinet that separates the living room and bedroom

Speaking of animals, Sonja did surprisingly well with having a canine guest. She and Deena were very aware of each other's presence and there were some minor confrontations, but no actual fights. They were really both quite civilized and mostly gave each other space.

Besides having travelers visit us, we've been doing some traveling ourselves. Last week, before the guys arrived, I made a solo trip in the Guppy up to Phoenix to do some thrift store shopping. I found lots of good eBay inventory--over 30 scarves, about 20 shirts and blouses, and some vintage household and collectible items. I stayed two nights at a couple of Walmart parking lots near Glendale and shopped at about 25 thrift stores. It was the first overnight traveling I'd done by myself since arriving in New Mexico this summer and since having my knee surgery, and it was great to feel so independent. However, I quickly got tired of Phoenix traffic and noise and was happy to return to the quiet of Why and to Steve's companionship.

A couple of scarves that I'm listing on eBay, and you can find them right here

The day before Thanksgiving, Steve and I headed to Tucson to spend Thanksgiving with some of his family. His sister Mary and Aunt Jean live there, and a cousin and his family were visiting from California. It was a great time! Very relaxing and enjoyable to meet more of Steve's family. On Thanksgiving, while watching parades and football on TV in Mary's living room, I ironed and photographed the scarves I'd bought in Phoenix. Later we had a delicious Thanksgiving dinner at Black Angus.

Tucson Mountain Park

We've been to Tucson several times in the month since we arrived here in Why. Each time we travel through Tucson Mountain Park on the west side of Tucson, and it is some of the most beautiful desert I've ever seen. So thick with saguaro cactus, it's like a forest!

Botany that I can understand

I'm really coming to appreciate the desert. When I was younger, the wide open spaces of the West seemed boring to me. I didn't have the discernment to notice gradual changes in vegetation and terrain that I now appreciate as I travel or even sit in one place. I picked up an amusing 1941 book at the Ajo Library the other day and I'm enjoying learning more about what I see.

I'm also relaxing into a routine, between travels and company. I've been listing a lot of eBay auctions, and today I rooted out my mosaic tools and started breaking some of the plates I'd picked up in Phoenix. I'm cooking slow food and taking life as it comes, and that feels great.