Back At The Homestead

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Well friends, relatives and followers.

We have completed our fourth winter trip from the Pacific Northwest to southern Arizona. This past winter, we spent one month (December 2012) in Yuma, and three months in Casa Grande. It was the wettest and coldest winter we have experienced to date in the sunshine State. But we appreciated all the more, the cold and wet of southern Arizona compared to the cold and wet that greeted us when we arrived back at the homestead in Washington State.

We are slow and old. My bride celebrated her 70^th b’day in January; sure, the gentleman I am, I picked up the dinner bill for the big 70 celebration. On a minor note, I hit the big “69” in February. What is it with a required minimum distribution?

We put another notch in our belt in celebration of our 36^th anniversary. It looks like it may take! Nan picked up the bill for that dinner. Now, there’s a gal who know how to lead the way! “Paddy, this one’s on me.”

I sure feel good about safe, trouble free travels. Oh sure, we had to have a little work done on the 5^th wheel in Yuma, when we didn’t loosen the electric cord enough to knife jack the rig while backing it into friend Al’s slot next to his driveway. $135 later, all the connections were repaired, and systems were working.

Before going south for the winter, we had new tires installed on the trailer; five tires including the spare. They worked real well and held their pressure throughout the trip. We have never had a flat tire, thank goodness. We have roadside insurance to cover all sorts of things. Why, if I get stoved-up, they will cremate me and put my ashes in a cardboard box, find transportation home for the bride and dog, and get someone to tow the 5^th wheel back home.

Speaking of the dog; Miss Minnie will be 5 years old on Friday. What a love she is; a true blessing, if there is one. I’m not going to compare her to my darling Shaddow, who we put down last year on account of kidney failure. (I still grieve from time to time.) Shaddy would be proud of how well Minnie has blended into our lives. Shaddy and I were the “Nanny Boys.” Now, Nanny and Minnie are the “Paddy Girls.” How sweet is that, to have two girls to love on me, or rag me as the case may be. I’m loving it; King of the Road.

Looking forward to next winter, which is a ways away, we have made reservations at Casa Grande for four months; December 2013 thru March 2014.

Did I tell you that I have become a half-decent lawn bowler? That’s why we go to Palm Creek Golf and RV Resort in Casa Grande; lawn bowling. I love the game; the mental strategy and the art of the weight of the bowl and the way it curves, depending on how it is delivered. I need to add a phrase of appreciate to my bride and Trial Boss for putting up with me and my perclivity for the sport. Why, I like it even better than bocce ball.

There is a lot of landscape work to do at the homestead. The back yard has more than a dozen mole mounds that need leveling. I don’t know if there is any grass left in the back yard; it has been taken over by moss. The good news is that moss grows low and slow, and doesn’t have to be mowed.

There is a new Popeye’s franchise in town. We are in heaven.

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Comments

[Ada]

Re-entry
Hey Pat, love your "Back at the Homestead" narritive. Enjoy your reentry at the homestead, we have many weeks to go in our Oly spring time. Big pat and rub to Miss Minnie on her 5th birthday, what a great home she found! I know you and Nancy will be celebrating! Lots of love, ada

[Livvie Hicks]

Hi Paddy and Nancy. Glad you arrived home safely. Always good to hear about your travels. Hope to talk to you on Skype soon. Livvie