Hello again. Our last episode
concluded on Wednesday, November 14th, while we were still
in our official “home” of Pahrump, Nevada. Thursday was a fairly
quiet day and we stayed home most of the day so Jackie could continue
her recovery from her knee surgery. She is still in a lot of pain,
even two weeks after the surgery and is getting frustrated. We did
go out briefly in the late afternoon to get pedicures.
Friday, November 16th, we
went out after lunch so Jackie could go to PT, then we ran a few
errands afterwards. We went back to the coach and did some chores,
then after dinner I went down to the clubhouse for karaoke. Jackie
didn't feel like going down there and having to sit for three hours,
so she stayed home. After I got back from karaoke we watched a
little TV and went to bed. Saturday we again left after lunch,
stopped and picked up our mail, which today was the last package of
several that I had coming from Amazon over the last two days. I
ordered a couple of new speakers for my music system. The ones I
have still work, but over the years they have become really ugly and
are large and hard to store. They were my original speakers from
when I ordered all the sound system stuff in 2001 and have served
their purpose. The new speakers are more compact, but have
comparable performance to the old ones. They are also in more
durable cabinets so they won't get so beat up over time. After we
got our mail we went to the big park in Pahrump for the annual
Pahrump Pow Wow, which is always the weekend before Thanksgiving.
They pull in a lot of Indian tribal members from California and
Arizona, and there are even a couple of tribal areas in Nevada. We
walked around the vendors for a while and watched some of the
drummers and dancers. Some of the costumes were outstanding. After
visiting the Pow Wow we went back to the coach and spent the rest of
the day relaxing.
Sunday, November 18th, I
went out in the morning and got a paper and we had a nice relaxing
Sunday morning. About 2:00 we drove over to the Escapee's Park for a
party with our friends, many of whom either are staying, or used to
stay, at Wine Ridge RV Park. Dick and Millie Duffin were doing the
party, Millie actually, and she used to do them every couple weeks
when they were staying at Wine Ridge. This year their name came up
at the Escapee's, so they now have a lot there. This is the same
park where we just recently put our name on the list for a lot.
There were a couple dozen people there, most of whom we know fairly
well. We had a nice snack pot luck, played some games and talked for
a couple of hours. After the party was over we went back to the
coach, had a light dinner and watched TV for the rest of the evening.
Monday, November 19th, my
brother Russ, who lives in North Las Vegas, came up to spend the day
with us. He is a Floor Manager for the craps pit at the Golden
Nugget in downtown Vegas and has Sundays and Mondays off. We spent
some time talking and catching up. The last time we spent any real
time with him was back in February, although we did get to say hi to
him at work a couple of times during the year when we found ourselves
in Las Vegas. We also stay in touch on social media of course.
About 12:30 we went to the Chinese buffet and had a nice lunch, then
went out to do a few geocaches. We had gotten Russ interested in
geocaching about six or seven years ago and he has stuck with it and
still enjoys caching. One of our “caching kids” who hung in
there with the sport. There is a new caching team in Pahrump and
they are starting to put out caches in the urban area, so we actually
have something to go look for again. We have long ago found all the
urban caches in Pahrump. About 3:00 we dropped Jackie off for her
PT, then Russ and I continued to drive around, talk and check on a
couple of our own caches that had been reported as having problems.
We fixed the caches, stopped at Walmart for a bit, then picked Jackie
up and drove back to the coach. We sat and talked until about 6:30
when Russ decided he needed to head for home. We spent the rest of
the night with the TV then went to bed.
Tuesday, November 20th, we
had a stay at home and do chores day. Never left the park, but both
of us got several chores finished and off our To Do lists. Wednesday
we left the coach about 12:30 and drove to the Mountain Falls Country
Club grill for lunch. We had eaten here once before earlier this
year and had enjoyed the food. I had a Reuben, which was very good,
as was the bean soup, but Jackie's chicken sandwich was overcooked to
the point of almost inedible. After lunch we went to Walmart and did
some grocery shopping, then Jackie went to her PT appointment. After
PT we went back to the coach, put everything away and relaxed for a
while. About 6:30 we went down to the clubhouse for poker night.
Jackie lost a dollar and I came out five ahead. After cards we went
back to the coach, watched a little TV and then went to bed.
Thursday, November 22nd,
Happy Thanksgiving, very early this year. We had a relaxing day and
about 2:00 we went down to the clubhouse for the Thanksgiving Dinner
party. It was a pot luck of sorts, but the park provided the turkey
and all the plates and plastic ware. Jackie made a big Chinese
Chicken salad, which went over well. We didn't bring much home. The
place was full, with probably over a hundred people there, but there
was more than enough to eat. We sat and talked with folks after
dinner until about 5:00, when we went back to the coach, had
cocktails and spent the remainder of the evening with the TV.
Friday, November 23rd, we
had a 10:00 appointment at the Verizon store to take advantage of
their Black Friday sales event. Jackie has been wanting to upgrade
her phone for a few months now, but we waited to see what sales might
be going on. Jackie go a new Samsung Note 9, which is a little
larger and more powerful than the regular Samsung S9 phone. It also
has a stylus that stores in the bottom of the phone, the first
Android phone with a “pencil” attached. Our intention was to
follow our usual routine, which was that Jackie gets the upgrade,
newest phone and I get her hand me down. In this case it was a
Samsung S7 Edge, a nice phone that has worked well for Jackie.
Jackie's new Note 9 had a $400 credit for Black Friday, which was a
good deal, glad we waited. While we were doing all the paperwork and
stuff for her new phone the gal who was helping us was telling Jackie
that we were lucky because apparently the Samsung S7 phones had
battery issues, with the batteries overheating, swelling up and
occasionally even catching fire. We never had any problems with her
phone, so didn't give it too much thought, but when she pulled the
phone out of the leather case Jackie kept it in the battery was
swelling and popping the back off the phone! A dangerous situation,
which meant that I wasn't going to get a hand me down this time. To
the rescue, the gal told us that the Samsung S9, which was the latest
regular Samsung smart phone, also had a $400 price reduction offer
and so long as we did two separate transactions we would get both
offers since both phones were upgrade eligible. So, I did get a new
phone, a brand new phone! Yea! After paying the taxes on $1,400 in
phones, as well as screen protectors for both new phones we were $300
poorer, but both had nice new phones. Our Christmas presents. After
the phone store we headed back to the coach and played with our
phones for a little while.
About 2:00 we left and drove over to
the Escapee's RV park to meet with our friends Dick and Millie, who
now have a spot there. They had invited us over to go with them to a
post-Thanksgiving leftovers dinner and music at the clubhouse there.
They know that we got on the list to get a spot at the Escapee's, so
they wanted us to see what the clubhouse looked like and meet some of
the other residents. It is a nice clubhouse and they had a lot of
leftovers. Most of the people were friendly and the music host was
pretty good. They even did some karaoke so I got to sing a couple of
songs. The only thing was that it started at 2:30 and by 4:30 they
were done and packing up. This is NOT a night crowd at all. We went
back to the coach, relaxed for a bit, and then at 5:30 went down to
the clubhouse at Wine Ridge for the leftovers dinner there and then
karaoke again. They had a lot of food and we had a good crowd for
karaoke. We stayed, listened and I sang about four songs. By a
little after 9:00 we were back in our coach, watched a little TV and
then went to bed.
Saturday, November 24th, we
had a stay at home day. Both of us got a few chores done and had a
quiet day. Sunday I went out in the morning and got a paper and we
relaxed with our coffee and Sunday paper. About 12:30 we drove over
to the Escapee's park for a party with Millie and Dick Duffin and a
number of other friends, most who are staying at the Wine Ridge RV
Resort with us. There were a couple dozen people there, lots of good
snacks, visiting and some fun games. About 4:00 the party was
finished and we went back to the coach. We stayed in the rest of the
evening, watched some TV and then went to bed.
Monday, November 26th,
Jackie had early PT, at 11:00. After PT we went to the new BBQ
restaurant here in Pahrump, called QU BBQ. I had the pulled pork and
chopped brisket combo and the food was quite good. The pork was
better than the beef. The beans and mac and cheese sides were also
very good. Jackie had pulled pork and pork ribs. The ribs a bit
dry, but with sauce were also good. In my opinion the ribs at Red
Sky, the other BBQ place in town, are better, but they don't have any
pulled pork on the menu, so we will probably be back. After lunch we
did a Walmart run and picked up our mail, then headed back to the
coach. At 6:30 we went down to the clubhouse for poker night.
Jackie and I both lost, me about $7, her about $10. Couldn't get a
good hand to save my life. After poker we went back to the coach,
watched a little TV and went to bed.
Tuesday, November 27th, we
left the coach about noon and drove to the new doctor's office for my
first appointment. Unfortunately, we got there at 12:15 and I found
that I had put 12:30 on the calendar when it was supposed to be noon.
They couldn't get me in and had to reschedule me for Saturday. Not
a great first start with a new doctor. We went out and got two of
the new geocaches that have been put out in Pahrump, our first finds
in a few weeks. After that we went back to the coach and spent the
rest of the day and evening relaxing. Wednesday we left the coach
about 10:30 and drove to China Wok, the buffet here in town, for
lunch. Today was a free lunch put on by Medical Air Transport
Association (MASA), which is a sort of insurance for emergency
medical transport, either by land ambulance, helicopter, or fixed
wing plane. They also perform emergency asset recovery, for
instance, if you have a heart attack in New York they will bring your
motor home and car back to your home if you can't. We are lifetime
members of MASA, joining in 2007 shortly after we went full time. We
haven't had to use it, but it gives great piece of mind with the
amount of money that the various medical transport companies charge.
Periodically MASA puts on lunches and welcomes current members to
come. Of the 50 or so people at the lunch today at least two thirds
were existing members. Dick and Millie Duffin, who are also members,
joined us at our table. After a great free lunch we took Jackie to
her PT at 2:00, then went back home for a while. At 6:30 we went
down to the clubhouse to play poker. A little better night tonight,
each of us only lost a couple dollars. After cards we went to the
coach, watched a little TV and then went to bed.
Thursday, November 29th, we
were up and on the road by about 9:15, driving over the hill to Las
Vegas so Jackie could do another follow up with the orthopedist.
There was a winter storm moving through so it was cold, cloudy and
sometimes rainy for the whole trip and after we got to Las Vegas.
Again the doctor didn't come in to see Jackie, but the nurses and
assistants did an interview and exam and gave Jackie some modified PT
orders and some medication samples. They just told her to keep doing
what she is doing and wait for the pain to lessen with time. After
the doctor we stopped at a restaurant called Distill, which is almost
next door to the ortho center. We had eaten here the last time we
came down,
Friday, November 30th, we
left the coach after lunch and went to do our laundry. While the
clothes were washing and drying Jackie went up the street for her
2:00 PT appointment. By the time she was done with PT the clothes
were also done. We went home and put everything away and had dinner.
About 6:00 I went down to the clubhouse for karaoke. Jackie didn't
feel like going as they kind of beat her up during her PT. By a
little after nine I was back home after a fun night of singing with
friends. We watched a little TV and went to bed.
Saturday, December 1st, the
end of the year is approaching. I went to my doctor's appointment at
10:30 and got to meet our new family doctor, Dr. Wiggins. He is a
fairly young guy who said he recently relocated to Pahrump from
Alaska. We talked a little about the recent earthquake, which was
centered not too far from where he lived. The exam went well, he
reviewed my meds and put me on an additional blood pressure med. He
also told me to come see him again in April when we get back and to
get my lab tests done then. He said he would send all my med
renewals to the pharmacy. He also gave me an order to have an
abdominal aorta ultrasound exam. He said it is recommended for men
between 65 and 75 who have ever smoked. Even though I quit 40 years
ago he thought it was good to have the test. After seeing the doctor
I went to the imaging center, which is conveniently in the same
building, to set up an appointment. To my surprise they said to come
in tomorrow at 8:00 a.m., which is a Sunday. After my doctor's
appointment I went home. After lunch we went to Walmart for some
supplies, then went back home and stayed in for the rest of the day
and evening.
Sunday, December 2nd, I was
up and out for a quick 8:00 appointment at the imaging center. It
was the only section of the building that was open, all the doctor's
offices were locked up and dark as were the lab, pharmacy and coffee
shop. I got right, in, the young gal did the ultrasound, and I was
on the road for home by 8:30. I picked up a Sunday paper on the way
home and we enjoyed the rest of the morning with the paper and our
coffee. About 1:00 we went down to the clubhouse for another of
Millie Duffin's Dilly Muffin parties. Since it was getting really
cool someone had made arrangements to use the clubhouse at Wine Ridge
for the party. There were about 25 people there and lots of food and
snacks. We talked, played some games and ate. We had a great time
and the party was over about 4:30. We went back to the coach and
spent the rest of the evening watching TV.
Monday, December 3rd, we
left the coach a little before 1:00 and took Jackie to her PT. While
she was in PT I did my exercise walk. After her PT we went home and
I spent a little bit of time taking down and putting away a few
things. Our original plans were for us to leave Pahrump tomorrow and
head down to Silent Valley, near Banning, California for almost a
month. However, we decided a couple weeks ago to extend our stay
here in Pahrump so Jackie could continue her PT. As it stands now we
have to move to another spot in the park tomorrow. When we decided
to stay for another month the park was pretty much booked up and the
only thing open was one of the pull through sites. I don't have to
take the screens down since I can see good enough through them to
move a few hundred yards, but I had to put away the flagpole and some
other stuff. After I got done with those chores we relaxed for a
while and then had dinner. About 6:30 we went down to the clubhouse
for poker. Unlike last week, both of us had good nights. I ended up
nine dollars ahead and Jackie was three dollars ahead at the end of
the two hours. Yea! After cards we went back to the coach and
watched TV until bedtime.
Tuesday, December 4th,
moving day; or so we thought. I got a call a little after 7:00 a.m.
from the manager of the park telling me that they had some
cancellations and we would be able to stay in our current spot for
another month. Yea! I spent a little bit of time in the morning
putting some of the outside stuff back in place, the BBQ, our chairs,
a few things. I didn't put the flagpole back up because in a day or
two I will be putting up our Christmas decorations since we will be
here in Pahrump over Christmas. About noon we left and went to have
Mexican food at El Jefe, one of the several Mexican places in
Pahrump, and one we haven't been to in a while. The food was good
and there was lots of it. After lunch we picked up our mail, which
is significantly less now that the election is over. We then went to
Walmart and then stopped at one of the casinos in town to game for a
while. We both lost our small stakes, Jackie down $40, me $25, but
it took an hour and a half and we had fun. After the casino we went
home and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening in the coach.
Wednesday, December 5th, we
left the coach just before 1:00 and took Jackie to her PT
appointment. We actually got a little rain overnight, but only
enough to just dampen the ground. After her PT we went out to do
some geocaching. We have already gotten all the urban caches in the
Pahrump area, and we no longer have a high clearance vehicle suitable
for getting the ones on the gravel trails outside out town, so we
have not done much caching lately. However, some caching
acquaintances of ours from Pahrump are putting out some new caches,
so we now have a few that we can go out after. This series of caches
is not far from the RV park, on a good gravel road that our little
electric cart can navigate, so we started doing the series. Today we
got the first ten of the ones that are out, leaving another dozen or
so to get another day. It was cloudy and cold and after ten we
decided that was enough. We went back to the coach, relaxed for a
while, had dinner, then at 6:30 went down to the clubhouse for poker.
We did OK, I lost about six and Jackie lost two. We still had fun
though. After cards we went back to the coach, watched a little TV
and went to bed.
Thursday, December 6th, we
had on and off drizzly rain all night and it appeared that it would
be that way all day too. Considering the torrential downpours in
Southern California I guess our light rain is a good thing. I spent
about three hours, with short rain breaks from time to time, putting
up our Christmas decorations. This is the first time we have been in
Pahrump over Christmas. After decorating we just relaxed and watched
the rain for the rest of the day. Friday we went to Jackie's PT at
1:00, then after PT we ran a couple of errands. We picked up our
mail and made a quick Walmart stop. We went back to the coach and
relaxed and had dinner. At 6:00 we went down to the clubhouse for
karaoke. We had a good time, there was a pretty good sized crowd,
but only about eight singers, so we had a quick rotation. By 9:15 we
were home relaxing with the TV until bedtime.
Saturday, December 8th, we
were up and out of the house just before 9:00 a.m., early for those
of you who know us well. We got out early to go to a small
geocaching event here in Pahrump. It was put on by a winter visitor
geocacher from New Hampshire who was going to be in Pahrump for a few
weeks and wanted to meet some of the local cachers. It was a small
group, about a dozen people, and we had a good time talking caching.
We knew most of the people by their caching handles, and even a
couple that we have previously met. They were mostly from Pahrump
and Las Vegas with a few Rvers thrown in for good measure. The event
lasted about an hour and half, after which we went home and relaxed
for a while. After lunch we went out to do some geocaching on our
own, picking up 13 new finds, which, when combined with the event
this morning, gave us 14 finds for the day. After caching we went
back home and relaxed for the rest of the afternoon and evening.
It has now been about three weeks since
we published and we have about two weeks left here in Pahrump, so it
would be a good time to get this episode published. Until next time
remember the words of Will Rogers, “if you find yourself in a hole,
stop digging.” See ya soon.
