The Winds Are Blowing Hard

Many of our family and friends are expecting quite a major snowstorm tomorrow. That same storm blew in off the Pacific Ocean across California yesterday and brought some very strong winds to us in Yuma. We even had a few rain drops. Yesterday afternoon the winds picked up and were gusting steadily near 30 mph. That lasted most of the night, and they are supposed to pick up again today. People were scrambling to take in items that could blow around including lots of flagpoles.

I always enjoy the view out of our windows of the foothills. When the winds are strong, those mountains disappear in a cloud of sand and dust. Here's what they looked like when the winds started yesterday. After I took the picture, they completely disappeared for a while. You can see someone's windsock on the left of the picture. The winds are supposed to die down later today. I'm glad we're not having to deal with the snow up north. I sure hope everyone stays safe up there.

Last Tuesday I attended a pie crust making event here at the park. I had to borrow a rolling pin, as I don't own one. I brought some cherry pie filling for my pie. We got great instructions from Ella, a workamper here, on how to make the crust. Her secret is to use vodka for half of the liquid in the recipe. It's supposed to make it flakier. While the pies baked, we enjoyed a delicious quiche lunch Ella prepared for us.

The pies turned out great, and the crust was as flaky as promised. Here's part of the group. Ella is in the middle.

I put my initials in my crust to make sure I got the correct pie out of the oven. Kevin is not much of a dessert eater, but even he liked it with some ice cream on top. I don't enjoy cooking or baking much, so I doubt I'll make it on my own. After all, I don't have a rolling pin. But, it was fun doing the group activity.

On Wednesday we visited some fellow fulltimers at The Palms RV Resort in Yuma. Mark and Kay heard about us a few years ago when they were planning to start fulltiming from one of Mark's co-workers. He was in the funeral business, and so is my cousin's husband in Michigan. Somehow our name came up in conversations, and Mark and Kay contacted us a few years ago and came to visit us in Beaver Dam to discuss the lifestyle. What a small world.

Fast forward a few years, and they have been on the road for three years and are loving it. They've visited us in Beaver Dam twice, and are now at the RV resort we stayed at for two months last year, enjoying the first timer discount just like we did last year. We had a great visit, and plan to see them again before we leave Yuma..

On Thursday we spent the day with our friends Tim and Pam from Beaver Dam. They own a home on the lake across from the campground we work at in the summer. They are spending a month traveling and came to Yuma for a few days. We took them to Mexico where we all managed to do some shopping and enjoyed lunch. Tim had looked up a geocache before we got there. We found the place it was supposed to be, but there was nothing there. Too bad, as Tim was hoping to have his first find outside of the US.

Our plan was to be across the border before 1 pm. This time of year, the lines to get through border security can be very long with over an hour wait. We left after lunch, and only waited a few minutes. We spent the afternoon at our RV park. We did a little more geocaching, and I logged my very first find. I have the free app on my phone, which is not all that accurate. Tim has the paid app which seems to be more accurate.

We walked around and showed them the amenities here at the resort. Then we enjoyed the rest of the afternoon sitting outside and chatting. It was a great visit, and we are so glad they came to see us.

The weather last week was fantastic. By Saturday highs were in the low 80s. We golfed Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately, I had a bad round. It's weird how that happens sometimes. I just couldn't do anything right.

The Monday hike for today is cancelled due to wind. I plan to do some sewing instead.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!