Perfection

Every now and then I feel my life with such perfection that it takes my breath away.  Tonight was one of those times.

The sky was huge, wide and dark, with an endless array of stars and other worldly ships that I do not believe were satellites.  They glided through the sky with silence and splendor and I watched them until they blinked out of sight.

I sat in hot mineral springs that soothed my body and looked out upon the Rio Grande as I watched a man paddle by standing upon his surf board.

I listened to achingly beautiful music as a father and son shared their love of music with the small crowd gathered outdoors and reveled in the perfect evening.

It was a night of perfection.  It was a night where I felt like I was 20 years old again and the world offered endless possibilities.

It was a night where I remembered my love of this land called New Mexico.

T or C Revisited

After a week of swimming in the perfect outdoor pool in Albuquerque I am now back in Truth or Consequences.  Specifically, I am parked in an RV site across from Riverbend Hot Springs (http://www.riverbendhotsprings.com/) and somehow I am shocked at the heat of these hot springs.  After the cool waters of Albuquerque my body was quite confused when I stepped into these outdoor waters and found them too hot to handle.  I don't remember them being so hot, or maybe it's because the last time I sat in these springs it was January and barely 20 degrees outside and today it is close to 90.   What a difference. 

It feels good to be back and see the latest changes that have been made and reconnect with friends.  Another big bonus is that there is an outdoor concert on the deck this evening so while I soak and gaze into the stars I can also listen to live music.  Bo-Nus!   The RV sites have been de-weeded and new gravel have made them more level so I am even more pleased to be back for a short visit.

It is also new moon time so the skies should be glorious for night viewing.  Wishing and hoping to catch a falling star.

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida

No, I am not in Florida, but it is the last time I can remember that I had a swimming pool right outside my front door.  So, yes, I have decided to stay a week.

The weather has been perfect, highs in the low 80s and night time temperatures in the high 40s to low 50s.  I don't need to run my air conditioner or my heater.  My windows remain open at all times as I enjoy the cool breeze and the song of the birds and what I think are cicadas.  I am a bit close to the highway so I get the freeway noises but with a certain adjustment to my hearing I can imagine it is the sound of ocean waves.

I settled in a bit more today by putting up my curtains, cleaning windows, emptying tanks and cleaning sinks and counters.

Now off to read a good book....

Albuquerque, New Mexico

I love this park.  I stayed here for three days last year and like it even more this year.  These are the reasons why I love this park:

1.  The friendliest people work here.
2.  They escort you to your site and helped me back-in, total bonus.
3.  They have a free continental breakfast each morning.
4.  They have the best gift shop ever.  I spent lots of money last year and looks like I will be spending more  this time around.
5.  The outdoor swimming pool, ahhhh, the outdoor swimming pool!  The temperature is perfect (I like it cool enough to be refreshing), it is never too crowded and if there are people in the pool they are likely to also be the friendliest people.
6.  I have a shaded spot right across from the swimming pool and sparkling shower facilities.
7.  Good wifi and 48 cable channels.
8.  It feels like I am staying at a resort.

I am thinking about staying a week.

Santa Fe, New Mexico

Nice Site

With a Nice Side Yard

Santa Fe is a bit of a let down.  Maybe it is because after shopping in Manitou Springs, Colorado and Taos I have no desire to do more shopping and Santa Fe is just a much bigger city.

I am in a 55+ community park (http://www.trailerranch.com/) because the benefit was that it is on the city bus line.  I was able to take the bus into downtown Santa Fe and explore to my heart's content, which didn't take long.  I found it very expensive and without the charm of Taos.  But, I did eat some fabulous Mexican food so was glad I made the trip into town.

It has been an odd sort of day.  Future plans seem to have no alignment and I am still not certain of my next direction.

I take it one day at a time but that is as far as I can see.

Taos, New Mexico

Taos Valley RV Park

My plans changed once again and with a strong pull to New Mexico, I found myself in Taos instead of Crested Butte, Colorado.

Yesterday I replenished supplies and walked to a Mexican restaurant and today I spent time visiting all the art galleries Taos has to offer.  The very first gallery I was drawn into had spell binding canvases of an artist's interpretation of the Divine Feminine.  They were stunning and I have now replaced my previous art work with the works of Kimberly Webber (http://www.kimberlywebber.com/gallery.html).   This is the poster I purchased:

Welcome, Isis, to my travels with Minnie.

Peyton, Colorado

I have been staying at Maria's house for a few days.  The land is stunning and between the four dogs, two cats, two birds and one horse, it is a full house.  She took this picture of a double rainbow that appeared just as I was preparing to do a clearing for a friend of hers.  I couldn't figure out how to make the picture larger so it will just have to suffice.  Trust me, it was amazing.

Cheyenne, Wyoming

Made it across Wyoming today, most of it beautiful and glorious, until I saw those dark clouds coming in.  After that it was wind, rain and fog.  Seems I drove right into a cold front.

It may have been a mistake to drive past Laramie and on into Cheyenne as the weather continued to worsen but I am at the KOA in Cheyenne and settled in for the night.  The pool is drained and closed and the weather at 4:00 PM is 48 degrees.  Looks to be 37 degrees tonight. I have my heater on so I am warm and dry as I look outside at the blowing wind and fog that keeps getting thicker.  Just a few days ago I was sweltering in 90 degree weather. 

Should be interesting to see what tomorrow brings.

(As an aside, no more pictures until my computer gets fixed).

Still In Evanston

I decided to stay another night.  It's not much of a park, but it is peaceful and I have grass and trees and no hurry to get anywhere anytime soon.  Just having fun watching all the RVs pull in for the night.

Back on the road tomorrow.

Evanston, Wyoming

I drove over 400 miles today and am now in Evanston, WY.   It was one of those days that just feels really good to be out on the open road and the scenery was spectacular.  I had forgotten how beautiful Utah is and am looking forward to driving across Wyoming.  Not sure if I will stay at this park one or two nights.  It has yet to be decided.

My tanks were getting a bit full so yesterday I wanted to dump the grey and the black.  I had put it off when I first arrived figuring I could do it later in the day when the temperature cooled down.  While I was waiting a neighbor pulled up in the site next to me which meant my dumping valve was now in his front yard and the sites were relatively close.  I sat in Minnie and listened to him on his cell phone, hoping he would soon go into his RV and I could come out and dump.  No such luck.  He drank a beer, smoked his cigar and chatted with the man with the monkey who was parked across the street.

I noticed this man with the monkey when I pulled in as he was doing one of those "check you out" looks.  Subtle, but noticeable.  Ugh, for sure I am not going out to dump while this guy is still around.  Eventually man with the monkey left, it was getting late and it was now or never so out I went.

From my experience, there is always a bit of an odor when you attach your sewage hose and dump.  I try to keep my hose as clean as possible but when you open up the RV and ground pipes, there is just gonna be some odor.  I apologized to my neighbor if there was some odor but he has been RVing for 25 years and was very understanding.  We kept chatting as I was trying to get my gloves on, hook up the hose and open the valves.  With all this chatting it was taking some time and next thing I knew monkey man is back for more conversation.  Ugh again, but here he is, man with a monkey on his back.

Man With The Monkey

You never know what sights you will see from your RV site.

Caldwell, Idaho

Minnie looks a little tilted, kinda the same way her driver has been.  But I am back on the road and stopped for the night just outside of Boise, ID.

My two hour massage while in Eugene turned into a three hour massage and moved massive chunks of energy.  The River of Life that flows through our bodies had numerous log jams and my masseuse, Lilly Crowheart, helped me breathe new life into all those stuck areas.  I walked out calm, peaceful and shifted.  Nothing felt the same and all my previous plans no longer seemed to fit.  I am still not sure what the "plan" is, but I am moving and hopefully things will fall into place.

I spent the last two nights in Bend, OR and put in a six hour drive today crossing the eastern section of Oregon and then into Idaho.  Wide open spaces, good tunes and beautiful scenery, just the way I like it.
Outdoor swimming pools the past two days have been an added bonus in this hot weather.

It feels good to be back on the wide open road.

After the Hood

Minnie has been power cleaned and a small chip in the windshield has been repaired thanks to Safelite.

Aaron, my slave boy of the day, cleaned my windshield and even vacuumed the entryway.  It is not often you get that kind of service, with a smile:).

Now it is my turn as I have an appointment for a two hour massage this afternoon.

It is all good after the Hood.

Fire

Dollar Lake Fire

Saturday morning I was sitting outside enjoying my coffee and the sunshine when suddenly the day light took on a golden hue.  At first I thought it was the sun reflecting off a nearby vehicle but I soon realized it was a huge cloud of smoke that was billowing in off the mountain.  The air became thick with smoke and the mountain ridges that surround the Hood became increasing harder to view.  As the day and evening wore on my eyes started to burn and there was a thick smell of smoke.

During the day campers started to show up that had been evacuated further up the mountain and I was starting to get a bit concerned with every new piece of information.  My main concern was the thought of evacuating 300 RV sites with only one road leading down the mountain.  A fellow workamper came to give me a heads-up to be prepared as the fire was spreading.  Add to this the non-stop phone calls and inquiries from the campers in the park as to updates on the fire and you have a fairly hectic day.  Matters got even worse as the heat and fire added fuel to an already exhausted staff and one woman's anger came blasting out at me.  It was the first time in my two summers at the Hood that I felt so unsafe that I locked my door before going to sleep.

The heat continued on into Sunday but the smoke was starting to lessen.  By now I was weary of the angry woman's drama and wanted to leave what now felt like an inferno of fire, heat and emotions.  As she stomped and shrilled and pouted, my last and only words to her were a joyful "Yee-haw!".  No sense in adding any more fuel to her fire.

I finished work at 2:00 PM, packed everything up and said some tearful good-byes.  By 3:30 PM I was on the road and back in Eugene by 6:30 PM, back at the Deerwood RV Park and back enjoying Maria's company who is parked across from me.

It feels so good to be back.

High

I woke up this morning with an energetic high.  It feels like I have been waiting for this energy for a long time.  It is this high that gets me excited, motivated and buzzing.

I have made reservations for the first two nights after I leave the Hood and reservations for the few months I will be in Mesa, AZ.  I have hired someone to wash Minnie, cooked food and cleaned the grill.  Three more work days and I will be released from my commitment, confinement.

Getting excited, excited, excited.  I am ready for the next adventure.