Back in Hot Springs :)

Katie and I are happily encamped at Hot Springs again.  We ended up in staying in San Diego two extra days and drove back to Hot Springs on Wednesday.

We enjoyed spending time with my kids and grand kids - and new grand-dog.  They were perfect hosts and very generous, and they sure fed us well.   We had a great time!  In fact, in two weeks the whole family plus puppy are coming to Hot Springs to visit me and Katie for two days.  They are bringing their tent and all their camping gear - it's going to be really fun.

I was able to get all my medical/dental/vision appointments completed, and everything is fine.  Thank goodness it's all done until 2015!

When we first got back to Hot Springs, I was able to get a HUGE camping site area that has it's own driveway off the road and is surrounded by trees and bushes.  It would be perfect for when the kids arrive, there's even a little "room" off to the side with it's own bushes surrounding it for privacy.  Perfect for a tent.  So we set up camp there on Wednesday.

Unfortunately, after being there for two days, I decided we had to move.  For one thing, the entire floor of the campsite was covered with inches of fine dust.  I couldn't walk outside The Palms without getting my feet covered and dirty.  And the way Katie walks, with her nose to the ground sniffing everything, I figured she was sniffing in way too much dust.  Also, very little Internet in that site.  I was able to post one blog post, but was having trouble leaving comments.   And then I tried to pay bills, and couldn't keep a connection long enough to pay more than one.

So yesterday morning I packed up and we drove around a little and found a site in a new area for us.

This entire LTVA camping area is pretty small compared to the other LTVAs we've visited, but I've always found a site along the main road.  Our new site is in another area we haven't explored before.  It's nearer to the front of the campground area and I think it will work fine:  it's not dusty and has great Internet and TV reception and lots of room for a tent if the kids want to be here.  So we've set up camp again and we're here to stay.  At this time of year people are still coming in, but many are starting to pack up and leave, so by the time the kids come, there may be other sites available.  

NOTE: Just got settled in another site - I seem to be chasing Internet signals.  At first the last site was really good, now it's not.  Oh, well.  It's easy for me to move and there seem to be more sites opening up all the time.  I'll keep moving until I find one that's level and nice and has good Internet.  So far, so good on this one.  It looks just like the photos above.  :)

I have a few photos that I haven't posted yet of two meals I had in San Diego. I especially want to remember the first two. My son, Tom, is the best bar-b-quer there is.  I'd put money on him any time against anyone.  I love filet mignon and whenever I visit, he always cooks some up for me.  He gets the best meat he can find, it used to be Costco but he said their quality wasn't as good as it used to be, so now he gets his meats at a local small seaside market.  He also uses a special kind of coals or chips or something that he gets near where his dad lives, I think.  Anyway, he has his own process and it sure works!   Here are the filets on the grill:

This steak was more tender and delicious than any steak I've ever had.  We also had large artichokes that he boiled until tender, then he cut them in half, seasoned them, and put them on the grill for a short time. Trish cooked up some cauliflower and mashed and seasoned it, and it was delicious - the whole dinner was super.  I took my leftover steak home and made myself two French Dip sandwiches after I left San Diego.  Yummm.

One afternoon we went to Five Guys for lunch.  I've read about Five Guys on other people's posts, but I'd never been there, and now I know why everyone likes their burgers so much.  There were really GOOD!

For anyone who hasn't been to a Five Guys yet, order the Small.  It's enough of a meal for anyone, and if you order it with everything, they put on EVERYTHING - pickles, grilled onions, grilled mushrooms, lettuce and tomatoes.  It was so juicy and delicious.   They also have bins of peanuts in the shell you can scoop up and bring to your table.  My grand kids had fun with the peanuts.
 

I don't know why, but I thought Five Guys was an Italian place, that just happened to have good hamburgers.  I didn't realize it's a lot like IN-N-OUT Burgers.  I love their hamburgers, too, but I think these were a little better because of the additional grilled mushrooms. 

On our way back to Hot Springs, we passed a field of sheep, which we don't see often.  I always grab the camera when I see sheep in the distance.  Green, green fields, a flock of sheep, rows of palm trees and blue sky.  It was such a pretty scene.

From me and Katie, have a great Saturday, everybody!  :)

My Grandsons are in JAIL - and the police question me! :)

When we took the San Diego Trolley, we got off at the Seaport Village stop and had lunch.  On one side of the village is the old police department, which had been sitting empty for years, deteriorating.  It was on the Historical Landmarks list, so they couldn't tear it down and of course the property was worth a fortune.  So they refurbished a small section with some jail cells and tore down the rest and built shops and restaurants and a courtyard all around that area.

We had a great lunch at The Cheesecake Factory (and split a couple of Godiva Cheesecake slices with real whipped cream - yummmmmm), then walked around a little. I wanted to see the jail section, and we found it near the courtyard.  The hallway going to the cells was lined with photos, and I took some pictures of the old photos - I thought they were pretty neat.

First, though, the two dangerous criminals being measured:

Pretty small cells for two people - see the upper and lower beds?

And here they are, the two shifty criminals inside their cell:

 

They don't look very happy, do they?  Such good actors!

And here are the old photos:

 The Fleet of Police Cars:

I guess this is how they used to take mug shots:

And the fancy firing range:

The motorcycle police:

Of course, San Diego's location and the variety of scenery and architecture, the hills, ocean, bay - such a wide variety of locations! -  make it perfect for filming TV shows and movies.  If you're interested, this link will take you to San Diego Film Commission's Trivia Page.

Between a nice family breakfast, church, and our drive to Old Town San Diego to catch the Trolley, it was a super nice, very full day.  The night before we had our overnight at Grammy's and the couch and dinette were put into service as beds.  What a mess The Palms was - but kids don't notice those things, and we all had a great time.  We watched a movie and ate jelly beans.  When we got back to their house late Sunday afternoon, Tom helped me put The Palms back in order and I said goodbye to everyone and drove to my exciting sleepover in the medical office parking lot where I met two of the area's finest.

The second night I spent in the medical offices parking lot was not quite as calm and the first.  It was last Sunday night, and I planned to finish up two appointments then "hit the road."  So Katie and I were all ready to go.

We were parked at the far corner of the parking lot - there are lots of lights and it feels very safe.  We went to bed -  and around midnight I woke up with the entire inside of The Palms lit up.  I peeked out the side window of the bunk over the cap, and saw a policeman there, talking to another policeman out of my sight near the rear of the rig.  They had two cars, one pointing to the side of The Palms, and one behind us, so we were blocked in and couldn't have "escaped" if we were bad guys.  Both cars had their bright headlights pointing at us, and their spotlights too, and both policemen were shining their flashlights back and forth across the motor home. Whew.  I climbed down, pulled on a shirt and jeans, and heard knocking on the truck's passenger door.

I pulled the curtain over that separates the living area from the cab at night and had a light shining in my face.  Long story short, he wanted my name, what I was doing there, etc.  I was ready for my appointment early the next morning and told him that, and had my appointment cards, ID, Medical card, and credit card banded together to take with me the next morning.  I showed him, but all he wanted to do was glance at my Driver's License.  I guess I matched the license photo and the info that I'm sure they ran on The Palm's license plate.  He asked if I was alone.  I guess he wanted to make sure I wasn't being held against my will.

He said, "Okay, We had a call and they were worried. We're just checking to make sure you are okay."  Then they said, Have a good night, got in their cars and drove away.  I knew that sooner or later that was going to happen and I had my story and "props" rubber-banded together and ready and it was all good. 

After my annual physical the next morning, I went to the Member Services Department and asked to speak with someone in Security.  I explained to him what happened the night before, and said it never occurred to me to ask permission, since the facility closed at night and the lot was empty.  He said they had not called, it was probably someone from the neighborhood.  It was fine if I wanted to park in their lots the night before appointments, but probably a good idea to check in with security and let them know.  Then if there's a problem, I can say I have permission.  Yes, Sir, will do!

So... that's the story of my grandsons in jail and me being questioned by the police.

From me and Katie, have a great Friday, everybody!  :)

More dog photos

Quick update on Katie and Jagger  - they got along much better after their first meeting.  I'm putting a few of the pictures from following days in this post so you can see.

Some of my commenters thought Katie was taking too much abuse from Jagger, but he's just a puppy, about half her weight, and Katie could easily have moved away from him.  She could have growled or snapped at him, or run away from him, but she seemed to be in control and I was standing a few feet away.  After a brief about of time, we separated the dogs.  Trust me, I wouldn't let Katie be bothered if she seemed to want to get away.

Going to the dog park before our Trolley tour:

Jagger was much better with Katie at the dog park, and was really good when we were walking the dogs.

You can see who was in charge in these photos.  It was almost like Katie was saying, "Down!" as Trish and Tom do, and Jagger will immediately lay down.  When Katie looked at Jagger like this, he went down.

Katie even got in a little game of "chase" with Jagger:

So things were much better and I'm sure if we stayed longer they would have gotten along just fine.  Katie seemed to know the right things to do to let Jagger get in all his sniffing, but not too much, and then she'd reprimand him with a quiet growl or showing her teeth, and he'd back off.  I loved watching them interact and run at the dog park.

And finally, Jagger in Katie's Doggles.  The frame color is perfect for him. I can't decide if he looks studious or elegant:

From me and Katie, have a great Thursday, everybody!  :)

Wordless Wednesday - Subtle Street Art

Welcome to our newest Follower, Mole007!   Mole doesn't have a photo or any information, so he/she is truly a Mole!  So, Mole007, if  you end up with a post, let me know and I'll give you a plug - thanks for following along with me and Katie.  Welcome aboard!  :)

...and a few more words, on Wordless Wednesday.  One of our fellow bloggers, RV Bond, has a link to the most interesting story - just fascinating.  It's here, if you are interested in checking it out.  It's the February 18th post.

From me and Katie, have a great Wordless Wednesday, everybody!  :)

Photos from another fun day in San Diego

We decided to take the Old Town Trolley Tour on Sunday.  First we had our usually Dewell Family Breakfast, which we always cook once when we get together:  Eggs Benedict.  I used to make it, and now Tom usually does.  He's good in the kitchen and I'd have to say a master bar-b-q'er too.  Then we went to church.  I really like this young congretation and pastor, and there are a variety of older people, too. His message is always really good.  I found out the church has a website, and I can log on to watch/listen to his service messages, and I plan to do that.  :)

Afterwards, Trish's parents came over and we all drove down to Old Town San Diego.  I had bought a Hometown Pass years ago, so I go free with a paid guest, and the family also had passes, so it was a great deal for us. Here are some photo highlights of the day:

Balboa Park - beautiful architecture:

Old graveyard in Old Town.  Do you know how many people are buried here?

All of them!  That's a joke the trolley driver told us.  :)

Coronado Bay and Municipal Golf Course:

Hotel Del Coronado:

Mormon Battalion Historic Site in Old Town:

I love these trees - this was in a restaurant courtyard at Seaport Village:

San Diego Bay and Coronado Bridge:

 San Diego Skyline taken from Coronado:

Boats on San Diego Bay:

San Diego palm trees:

Boat yards in the bay:

Another of my favorite trees:

The seal show transportation:

Seaport Village sign:

Kansas City Barbecue, where they filmed part of Top Gun:

And finally - my beautiful family - Trish's parents, Richard and  Joanne, Tom, Trish, Kennedy, Graydin and Gavin.

Sorry, those aren't in any particular order - I just threw them in and labeled each one.  Can you tell I'm tired?

It was really crowded on Sunday - with Valentine's Day on Friday and President's Day on Monday, there were lots of people out and about, and lots of tourists in town.  Taking the Trolley was a great idea and with the ongoing facts about each of the areas we drove through, it was really interesting.  We pretty much saw the whole area, downtown, shipyards, bay, Old Town, Little Italy, Balboa Park, Coronado, Seaport Village, and probably more I can't think of now.  You can get out at any stop and do a little sightseeing or shopping or have a meal, then hop on the next trolley to head to the next stop. I would recommend it to visitors to San Diego, but plan on getting there early so you'll be able to make some stops and really enjoy the area.  It's an all day adventure.

WELCOME to two new Followers:

Dawn from Camano Island, who has a brand new blog.  She and her husband, Jim bought a Nash 24M at the Seattle RV Show and plan to head down the road January 2, 2014 after Dawn retires.  Jim is already retired.  Dawn says in her profile, "We have three sons, three amazingly wonderful daughters-in-law, and three best-in-the-world grandchildren! We journey through life with our Wirehaired Pointing Griffon, Ari, and our cat, Slim, who came to our door as a stray eight years ago."  Welcome aboard Dawn!  I look forward to reading about your future travels!   :)

Charlene Swankie doesn't show a blog, so I can't give her a plug.  Charlene, if you DO have a blog, let me know and I'll post the link.  Thanks for following along with me and Katie, we're happy to have you aboard!  :)  NOTE:  Charlene's blog address is SwankieWheels - Kayaking America.  Thanks Roxi! 

From me and Katie, have a great Monday, everybody!  :)