March in Quartzsite
Our winter stay in Quartzsite, Arizona is almost over. We got here the first of December, and it’s been a lot of fun.
Temperatures were a bit cooler than last year. Not as cold as the rest of the nation, but cool for here. Many days were in the high 50’s to mid 60’s, and nights got into the 30’s often. We also had more wind than last year. This curtailed our boating and biking, but we still got in a lot of walking.
Covid also heavily impacted activities. The park is normally full of activities, dances, potlucks, and music, but none of those happened until this month. Here is what we did this month.
I set up a vacuum closet for our Dyson. This little closet wasn’t very useful, and the built in vacuum system is just okay. When we got the Dyson, I built a rack to fit all the attachments, then drilled a hole in the back wall and installed the charging cord.
There was a Grand Design Not-A-Rally 8 miles south of town. About 30 rigs showed up. Met up with some old friends, had a potluck, and met new GD friends. At the end of the evening there was a Blood Moon. It was full, and the site over the desert was spectacular. We didn’t move Bella out there because we are “tied” to regular power until we can get our solar system installed next month.
Gold Star had a Spring parade last week. Lots of us decorated bikes, off-road vehicles (we call them NADMs (Noise & Dust Machines), and any kind of vehicle. We hit the dollar store for our bike decorations. I put our Bose speaker in my basket and played Bavarian music on the route.
Jan doesn’t ask for much, so it’s hard to buy her things. one day, walking through the vendor booths, she saw a really cool t-shirt, and admired it several times, then walked off. She got her “Miss Camel” T on Valentine Day. she loves it!
As the weather warms up, we’ve been biking more, and kayaked on Lake Havasu a couple times. This week it was calm and 85 degrees. Being out on the cool Colorado River, it was perfect.
Evert time we go to Yuma, we pass this rough wood sign for Dirty South BBQ Room. What see is way off the road are a couple of ramshackle dumpy looking buildings. A couple Saturdays ago, it was evening, we were hungry, so decided to stop for an early dinner. Oh, my! We discovered the best BBQ ribs we’ve EVER eaten! Dawson, the very young owner (maybe 30), was running the till. We were in luck, because they only have ribs on Saturdays. We ordered a half-rack, BBQ slaw (awesome!), and mac & cheese. Perfection! And his sauce is to die for! It was so good that before we left we ordered a full rack to take home! A week later we had the pulled pork sandwich. Just as good! We plan to go back every week until we leave! If you are near Yuma, this place is a must stop location.
Last Sunday evening was the first Gospel Jam at the clubhouse. Jan sang two songs, and played in the group band. It was a lot of fun! She’s practicing new songs for this week. She’s loving playing and singing again.
We participated in the park work party on Thursday. Our group was assigned to prune the oleander bushes on the park north border. Jan has really missed gardening, a lot, so she was in seventh heaven! she now has special permission to prune any plant in the park! Subsequently, before we left Lake Havasu yesterday, we stopped and bought a good quality set of shears. I know where she will be doing over the next two weeks!