Catch Up Post

 AJ AZ  Temperatures are all over the place. From breaking records with 99 degrees back down to the 40's at night. We even got some wonderful rain for a couple of days but that's long gone by now. My allergies are driving me crazy. Lots of sneezing and nose either running or stuffed up. But I wouldn't trade our weather for anywhere else in the states. 

Since I haven't blogged for awhile this is going to be a catch up post. Life has been busy and lots of good times. 

Had good friends pull into our park for a week. I saw them last summer in Billings, MT. Tina and Woody were here to go to some spring training games and spend time with their granddaughter. 

I did get to fit in a dinner with them and Paul even with their busy schedule.  

I am so grateful to have such a good friend in my life. Paul is always there for me when I need something done or questions answered. This time around he installed a new shower head for me and checked out my water tank because he is going to change the anode rod for me. So many maintenance things to be done. Thank you Paul.

Went to Bisbee Breakfast Club with Pat, Marilyn, and Tacey (who is Pat's granddaughter). We were having such a good time I forgot to get a picture. My next post will be another adventure that we had. 

Ginny and I went to the AJ Library to check out their book sale. These two were waiting very patiently for their owners to come out of the library.  Parts of AJ are still like they were when we first started coming here for the winter.  But growth is everywhere and we are becoming nothing but another crowded suburb of Mesa.

 I finally had to get rid of the love seat in my rv. It was shedding thousands of little dark brown pieces of fabric everywhere and on everybody. I hired 1-800-Got-Junk and out it went. I'm borrowing a chair from a good friend here in the park until the new one I bought arrives. Time for spring cleaning.

 For the month of February our park donated 72 containers of disinfectant wipes for an elementary school that had sent out a request on Just Service. My trunk was a little full. Then for the month of March, it was Pasta Pallooza time at the food bank. This time I collected 74 boxes of pasta.

 

And you know this section had to show up. Yup - pictures galore of my family. I am so looking forward to this summer to spend some time with them again. Elias is growing up so fast. 

First Haircut

Uncle Jerin and Elias

Friends and Family - be sure to let them know how much you love and appreciate them.

Date Shake and Ancient Visitors

 Weather is still the same in Yuma

The next morning we had a good breakfast at the hotel and then talked about what we wanted to see. We decided that there were a couple of places we wanted to stop on our way back home and we wanted to get back before rush hour got too bad.

This was the carpeting in the hotel hallway. It doesn't really show it in the picture, but when I stood outside my door and looked towards the elevator, it looked like the hallway was going up and down.

We loaded up the car and headed out. Our first stop was at Date Land.  Jim and I used to stop here quite often when we were rving. 

Dateland  began as a road stop in the 1920s. During WWII, Dateland was the site of two of General Patton's desert training camps. In 1942 three airstrips were built for training B25 bombers. This area is still used for training purposes for those who will serve in Iraq or Afghanistan.

We stopped here mainly so Marilyn could try a date shake. Jim and I tried one years ago and I said that was enough for me. Pat tried Marilyn's shake and both agreed it was good but they probably wouldn't order another one.

We drove down the road to check out the date trees. Not very many of them back there.

 It was time for us to move on because we have another stop to make.

I don't know how many times Jim and I drove by the exit for the Painted Rocks Petroglyphs Site and never stopped. Well, this time we were stopping.

The site is only about 10 miles off I-8. There's even a campground there. The whole area has a small fence around it with a path you can walk. So after reading a few of the signs we started around the hill going to the right. 

 

We did not see any petroglyphs even though these basalt boulders were said to contain about 800 images. It's not a long walk to go all the way around so we kept going. And it's a good thing we did.

As we came around the corner everything was covered in images. Here are just a few pictures that I took. 

It was a great stop. And if you don't feel like a little walk around, just go off to your left from the parking lot.

We had lunch in Maricopa and I dropped Pat and then Marilyn off around 4. It was another wonderful adventure for us. We have a few more fun things to do and we're also planning our next overnighter.

Is This A Felony? And The Center of the World

Still in Yuma 

Oh my word. We have a possible felon in our midst. Here's her story.

We decided we wanted to drive over into California but why put it in Google Maps. We could just wander and find our way over to I-8. As per usual, I got lost. Wandering around the fields I had no idea which way to turn. So I pull off to ask Google to help me out.

Before I knew what was happening, Marilyn jumped out of the car and ran over to the field. We had mentioned that we wanted to know what was growing in that field. So she picked a head of lettuce.

She Picked A Head of Lettuce Right Out Of the Field!!! Okay, it's probably not a felony but we had a good laugh. She put the lettuce back and we just hoped that there were no cameras recording our license plate.  

Found our way through the produce check point (sure glad she put that lettuce back) going into California and took the first exit. I'm sure many of you are very familiar with this exit as it leads to great boondocking BLM land. 

But if you turn right instead of left, you go to the official Center of the World in Felicity, California. 

This is a very interesting and unique place to visit. First of all, how did it become the "official" Center of the World?

The founder of this museum, Jacques-Andre Istel, wrote a children's book about a dragon. This fairy tale was presented to the Supervisors of Imperial County as evidence that the Center of the World was in Felicity and, for whatever reason, they agreed.

A 21 foot granite and glass Pyramid houses the bronze plaque marking the spot precisely. You can pay to go into the pyramid to have your picture taken standing on the spot.

 

Stretching out behind the pyramid is the Museum of History in Granite. I'm not sure how to describe it so it's best if you check it out on their website History in Granite. These are just two of the over 700 panels that have been finished.

There is also a Church on the Hill of Prayer. Michelangelo's Arm of God sundial points to the Church. 150,000 tons of earth were moved to create the 25 foot Hill. To reach the church, there are 49 steps to climb and the distance between the Pyramid and the Church is 910 feet.

The blue door and window symbolize wisdom, stability, faith, purity and spirituality.  

 

As I have said before, Marilyn is the walker in our group. She walked all the way to the hill and then climbed the 49 steps to see the chapel. Pat and I waited at the gift shop for her to return.

 

 This is Section 12 of the original stairway of the Eiffel Tower.

This place is definitely interesting. There is a maze and a replica of the Liberty Bell but half the size. If you are ever in the area, take the time to check it out.

 It was starting to get late by the time we left Felicity so we headed to the hotel to check in and then decide what we wanted to do for dinner. 

Just down the street from the hotel was Penny's Diner. We weren't very hungry so we decided to share a basket of onion rings and each have a milkshake (I had a malt). That really hit the spot. 

Back to the hotel and agreed to meet downstairs in the morning for breakfast.

Join us for more adventures tomorrow.

Still in City Hall But Moving On

Yuma, AZ  High 78  Low 46

Still in City Hall.

Down the hall from the Buick Convertible is a wall of honor. All of the employees for the city who have been in the service are honored with a flag hung under the branch of service they were in. I thought that was a really neat thing to do.

 Farther down the hall and around the corner is a grand old fire truck which is the Yuma Fire Department's first fire engine. It is a 1916 American La France Ford Model T. 

It was originally a hand cranked starter which was replaced in 1922 when it was converted to electric starter. 

The wood Carousel in City Hall was carved by the Yuma North End Wood Carvers for Yuma's Centennial celebration in 2014.

Pictures of other interesting things in City Hall. 

 

Our next stop is to find Robert G. Fowler. On September 11, 1911 Bob took off from San Francisco to become the first person to traverse from the West Coast to the East Coast.  

 

He was flying a Wright Model B that he purchased from Orville and Wilbur Wright who taught him to fly.

 Bob left Los Angeles (a stop on his flight across the US) October 19, 1911 and on October 25, 1911 because the first pilot to land in Arizona. His statue is on 4th Avenue next to the Yuma Landing Restaurant.

 

Okay Blogger, let's just start centering everything!

 We still have more to see and do but that will be in the next blog.