Sunday, July 19, 2015

Keeping Occupied

Apache Junction, AZ  High 104  Low 85

Tomorrow can’t come soon enough for either one of us.

In the meantime we’ve tried to find things to keep us from going nuts while we wait. I haven’t been on line for a couple of days so I hope everyone is having a great time.

Jim washed the Bungalow and the truck. (And, of course, it rained last night.) He got a larger plane and has been flying it several mornings. Anything that needs to get done is always done early in the morning before it gets too unbearable.

We’ve watched more movies this last month that we’ve seen in our entire lives. Our library card has been a lifesaver.

We met up with Bob and Jo for lunch at Sal’s Gilbert Pizza. I don’t eat cheese so I don’t eat pizza but I have to admit their pizzas look really good and very interesting. Jo had a ziti pizza and Bob had a spaghetti and meatball pizza. Definitely not your typical pizza. (I didn’t take any pictures so check out Bob's blog.) Jim had a Stromboli that was really good but I had one of the best sandwiches I’ve ever eaten.

It was like taking a walk down memory lane. Back in the 1990’s we lived in Kalispell, MT where the county fair was held. There was a food vendor at the fair who sold Italian sausage sandwiches that were fantastic. The sandwich I had at Sal’s was just like that. It had sausage, green and red peppers and onions with Marinara sauce. It was sooo good. Can you tell we’ll be going back there again?

Had to follow up this lunch with an ice cream treat. We ended up at Udder Delights. I don’t eat ice cream (it’s a dairy thing) but everybody else said it was really good.

We also went out to dinner with two other couples from here in the park. Al and Wilma and George and Melva. We went for Chinese food and followed that up with a visit to McDonald’s for hot fudge sundaes and ice cream cones. Being here all summer does have its perks.

One of the really great things about this time of year in Arizona is that you don’t have the crowds. We don’t need to make reservations anywhere and there are no lines.

Now I’m going to rant just a little bit – We have had four hiker deaths in the last 8 days here in the valley. All four deaths have been related to the heat and lack of water. There was a grandfather who had medical problems which the heat exacerbated and his 12 year old grandson who tried to walk back for help and died of heat stroke. A 29 year old woman was hiking Picacho Peak with her fiancée in 105 degree weather in the afternoon. The other was a women who was hiking one of the peaks surrounding the valley and when she got to the top didn’t feel very good. So she sent her husband and son back down the mountain without her. It took rescuers several hours to find her body.

So what is wrong with people. If you insist on hiking in these extreme temperatures, at least make sure you have plenty of water with you, know your limitations and hike in the cooler temps in the morning. These deaths are so needless; if only some common sense was used.

Enough of my rant. I just feel bad for their families.

I’ll post a quick update tomorrow after Jim gets settled in his room. They are going to keep him overnight.

24 comments:

  1. Prayers for those that will be caring for Jim and for Jim and you.

    I think that John has learned his hydration lessons. Those people should have had a gallon for each of them.

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  2. Good luck tomorrow for Jim! Next time we have a blog from you, hope to hear great news about how well he is doing!! :)

    I know exactly what you mean about the hikers. Even without that extreme heat, people do stupid things. When we are hiking in the Adirondacks we meet people on the trail wearing sneakers or even sandals to hike a high peak. Sometimes they don't have any water, or are carrying one bottle of water with no backpack and other supplies. This past month on our way down we met an older woman going up who was obviously not in great hiking condition who told us her husband had gone up earlier that day but she didn't feel like getting up early, so she was hiking up by herself. People sure make some crazy decisions.

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  3. It's the same kind of thing here in the winter. Skiers who go out of bounds on purpose.

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  4. I will be praying for Jim, and for you, too, Sandie.

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  5. Good luck to Jim tomorrow! Hopefully your next post will be full of good news. :)

    I took a back-packing seminar that REI put on years ago, and one thing I learned is to NEVER leave base camp without at least a day pack containing water, a compass, one of those metallic blankets in a small packet, a jacket, matches, cell phone, a whistle, etc. Lots of stuff, but it all fits in a day pack. Then if you get stuck, at least you will survive until help comes. But I'd never hike in these temps. That's just not using good sense. I, too, am sorry for their families. Such a loss.

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  6. Gerry and I hope all goes well for Jim on Monday and you guys can get back to Montana for a little while at least. Looking forward to hearing some good news from you re Jim.

    We are under a flood watch here in Central Illinois now and it's rained hard all last night and this morning. Feast or famine it seems like in the U.S. this year.

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  7. We hope Jim's surgery goes well tomorrow. Don't let the heat get to you.

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  8. Finally tomorrow is almost here. Sending positive healing thoughts your way.

    You are allowed your rant, especially when it points out stupidity.

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  9. I am so happy tomorrow is finally here for you both. Wishing Jim a speedy recovery.

    As for these hikers, I just don't understand why no one seems to understand about this heat! It's a shame these people died just because they don't pay attention. There are signs posted everywhere.

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  10. I remember a hike we took at Lake Havasau in February. We were climbing up a hill and my water fell out of my pocket and rolled down the hillside. That was February and we couldn't have gone much further.

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  11. You keeping busy is good.
    Those deaths are needles to say the least.
    The temps here today are 30c (86f) feels like 104 f. we stay in the shade, wear a hat, drink plenty of water and a few dips in the pool is wonderful.

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  12. You know we all wish Jim well but I also wish you a good night's sleep to help you make that drive back to pick him up.

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  13. I couldn't carry enough water to get through a day in these high temperatures. People can be so foolish! I keep hearing that even under normal conditions you should drink half your body weight in ounces every day - so I would need about a gallon of water, plus extra if I was hiking in this heat!

    All the best to Jim tomorrow!

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  14. Hope all goes well tomorrow...thoughts and prayers are with you!

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  15. No matter where you go you read headlines such as hikers, skiers, swimmers venturing out unprepared. So sad for those they leave behind.

    I'll be glad when you're back on the road and heading to cooler temperatures.

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  16. Prayers for a good outcome tomorrow!!

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  17. I hope all goes well for Jim. Maybe you'll get some cooler temps too.

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  18. Thinking about you both and watching for the update.

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  19. I'll be sending good thoughts Jim's way. I hope everything goes smoothly and his recovery is speedy. Hugs to you both.

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  20. I'll be sending good thoughts Jim's way. I hope everything goes smoothly and his recovery is speedy. Hugs to you both.

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  21. I'll be sending good thoughts Jim's way. I hope everything goes smoothly and his recovery is speedy. Hugs to you both.

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  22. I am sure Jim wanted to get all his chores cometed before surgery.

    Since we hike so much, we have seen some really dumb people. I feel so badly reading about that poor little boy. My heart hurts for all the families.

    Prayers for a successful surgery and fast recovery. Prayers for patience also.

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Thanks for visiting today. I look forward to reading your comments. Have a beautiful day.