Waldport and Harrisburg, Oregon March 11 - April 20, 2011

March 24 post:  Yesterday was Betty's birthday but I didn't make much of it this year.  We drove to Salem the other day and visited a winery where we sampled some wines trying to decide what to buy for the occasion.  Betty finally settled on fruit wine and bought a bottle of Rhubarb and a bottle of Logan Berry under the guise of a birthday gift.  Both are very tasty but very sweet.  We also tried to negotiate a "reduced price" membership with the Junction City fitness center for Betty's birthday but they would have none of it.  That would have made a nice birthday gift but, alas, it was a matter of  making one of those controversial "earmarks" in our budget so she can pay the daily rate for the two or three times a week when she goes there.  Since we were "out and about" looking for ways to celebrate Betty's birthday we drove over to Spirit Mountain Casino because Betty loves to play the penny slots.  It panned out that I won over $200 in just a short time so we ate dinner at their buffet and then drove back home.

When visiting mom recently they talked about how to celebrate Betty's birthday and also remembered a time two years ago when we brought mom some Chinese take-out that she really enjoyed.  Betty and mom decided to have Betty's "birthday dinner" in that same fashion so yesterday we stopped by the local Chinese restaurant and picked up mom's favorite, sweet and sour chicken, as well as some other dishes.  The nursing home staff were really supportive and brought a small table and extra chairs into mom's shared room.  Dad came across the street from his assisted living home and we all ate too much "birthday dinner" while mom's room mates were having their dinner in the group dinning room.  Desert was a fortune cookie because mom is not really supposed to eat deserts.  It was good to see mom enjoy food and she ate more than she usually does.  As a footnote I have to say that eating in a patient's room in a nursing home also means trying to ignore some pretty obnoxious odors that are natural to a large group of very old people who have cathaders (sp?) and wear diapers.  Outside of that challenge we had a very nice time.

Before we left the nursing home dad gave Betty a nice birthday card with a Starbuck's gift card in it.  Starbuck's is Betty's favorite and dad was pretty pleased that it was a hit.  Of course, sister Judy orchestrated the whole thing by phone from Waldport and had her sister-in-law deliver the gift card to dad's room so he couldn't make a mistake.   DRW

During this time period we also visited some historic homes in both Eugene and Salem.  Although we took many pictures these two were the most beautiful:

March 19 post:  We have been visiting mom & dad every day since arriving in Harrisburg.  Mom has been feeling much better after an adjustment to some of her medications.  It's been really nice to talk with her.  She is as sharp as ever and can be pretty quick witted.  Her Parkinson's is more under control  the past few days so her speech more clear and its easier to visit with her.  So often her speech is so slurred the I just can't understand what she's trying to say.  I know that it frustrates her worse than me so when that happens we have only short visits.  We try to visit in the evening because dad comes over to read to her and we get to see both of them at the same time.  Mom is usually more verbal with us before dad comes in.  Anyway...we visit for awhile with dad there and then leave so he can read to her.  Last night I took him my Patrick McMannis collection because both mom and dad like his humor. I hope the print is large enough for dad to read.

The weather has calmed some today.  It has rained every day but the skies seem to promise a dry day today.  That would be a nice break.  We enjoy staying here at River Bend Resort but I miss seeing Brad and Jo's coach sitting nearby.  It seems kind of strange to have gone through several days here without being insulted at least a few times.  I've had some mood swings from depression to anxiety which must be symptoms of PTSD stemming from last fall's stay here.  DRW


March 16 post:  We've had an enjoyable stay with Judy for nearly a week even though it rained heavily every day.  We drove over to Junction City and visited mom and dad only twice because mom has been pretty sick and not feeling up to having visitors.  I feel pretty helpless because there's nothing I can do and no way to get the medical staff to focus more on getting mom to feel better.  She can't hold down food and has difficulty sleeping.  Today we moved the trailer to River Bend Resort in Harrisburg so we can be closer.  DRW

Laughlin, Nevada to Waldport, Oregon. March 8th - 10th, 2011

March 10 post:  We made it all the way up hwy 101 today to Port Orford, OR.  Our original plan was to stop in Crecent City, CA but decided to continue because it was too early to stop.  About 3:45 am we were awaken with a Tsunami warning and had to unhook the truck and make high ground.  After an hour of so of trying to be patient in the truck we came back down the mountain, hooked up to the trailer, and started north to Waldport.  From Port Orford the highway goes inland for many miles so we were pretty safe from any Tsunami related danger.  We heard on the news this evening that Crecent City, where we originally planned to stay, received quite a bit of flood damage.  Good we continued north instead of stopping there.

We arrived in Waldport by mid-afternoon and parked in front of Judy's house.  Not long after we arrived she returned from Junction City where she was visiting mom, who has been quite sick lately.  We'll go to Junction c\City as soon as mom is feeling well enough for a visit.  DRW


March 9 post:  Had a long day today and made more distance than planned.  We exited I-5 at Williams, CA and headed toward west via hwy 20.  The map showed many RV parks along this route but we found them to be closed or to far off the beaten path.  We finally went to The Narrows RV and Resort on a tiny lake west of Clear Lake.  The entry to the "resort" was over a mile long, VERY narrow, and traversed a steep mountain side that in some places looked more like a ledge than a road.  We finally got back down the other side of the ridge and arrived at a place where we could park for the night.  Really nice older couple but it was just so tedious to get in there that it ruined the whole experience.  It rained hard all night and we pulled out in the morning to travel the "ledge road" again before we could get back on the highway.  Finally made it and we're on our way to hwy 101 and north to Oregon.  DRW


March 8 post:  A quick 300 mile drive from Laughlin, NV to Bakersfield, CA with moderate winds.  Although it was only 2pm when we arrived in Bakersfield we decided to stop because the RV  Park picture north (up I-5) looks bleak.  We're spending tonight at Bakersfield Palms RV Park with is pretty nice considering the SKP discount of 15%.  Did laundry and are just relaxing in the late afternoon.  I left the truck hooked up so we can have an easy start in the morning hoping to make Williams, CA where we'll probably spend tomorrow night before heading west on hwy 20 through the giant Redwood forest and come out on hwy 101 heading north again.

Although it is a good decision to go to Oregon early we'll miss connecting up with Brad and Jo who will be in Havasu starting tomorrow.  We really look forward to catching up with them but it will probably have to me next fall or winter.  DRW

Laughlin, Nevada March 6 - 8, 2011

March 8th Post:  We arrived on schedule at the Riverside Casino and RV Park in Laughlin mid day on the 6th and enjoyed our stay for two nights.  We walked around Laughlin and visited a couple of casinos to help stimulate their economy.  The RV park is big and a pretty nice place to stay for $30/night with full hook ups.

Mom isn't doing well so we decided its time to go to Oregon and spend some time with her.  Its about a month earlier than we had planned but cancelling our reservations at Nellis AFB in Las Vegas seems prudent.  There were high wind advisories all day and into the night the 7th but we were lucky and the winds died down by Tuesday morning when we were able to start our trip to Oregon.  DRW

Lake Havasu City, AZ. March 4, 2011

March 5th post:  Today we went to the classic car show in Havasu at the local Ford dealership.  They really had a pretty good show with lots of entries.  I always love to see the classics that have been restored.  The average age of the crowd was probably late 60s which is either a reflection of who's interested in the 50s and 60s cars or just that that's the age group who populates Havasu in the winter.  The place is filled with RVers. Here's some pics of cool cars we saw:

After the car show we went to the park at London Bridge on the beaches of the Colorado River where we wandered some of the shops and had ice cream cones.  It was really nice to have some time Betty to simply wander without a plan.  Finally, after a drive around the area on the island, we went to the Javalina Cantina for fajitas which were great!  Tomorrow we'll head for Laughlin which we're looking forward to.


March 4th Post:  We had a short 40 mile drive from Parker Strip yesterday and after having lunch in town we arrived at DJ's RV Resort.  Lake Havasu City is VERY busy with RVs this time of year and we were fortunate to get reservations anywhere.  I called here 2 days ago and reserved a spot for 3 nights at $30/night (cheapest in town).  This is the first time for us to visit Lake Havasu City so we're excited about exploring later today.  Betty went for a swim this morning in their heated pool.  I would have joined her but my back is aching today.

I had the world's worst landing yesterday when we arrived at our assigned space.  For some reason I couldn't do anything right the first time.  These are back-in spaces and it took me several tries even though there's plenty of room to maneuver.  Then in the process of getting unhooked and set up I ran into an open compartment door on the front of the trailer bruising the top of  my head and scraping my arm when I tried to avoid falling down.  The worst part is that it kinda wrenched my back.  I should have charged admission because lots of folks were watching out their windows to see what this amateur would screw up next.

We'll move on the 6th to Laughlin, Nevada.  Our reservations at Nellis AFB (which is only about 3 or 4 hours from here) don't start until March 8th so we're early.  We're in no hurry and the weather is VERY nice right now.  It's nearly 80 degrees today and fore-casted to stay this nice for awhile.

Yesterday I got a phone call from my very dear and kind friend Brad over in Scottsdale who I think had been considering a defamation of character suit against me (if I can judge from an email in which he subtly named a law firm)  because I slandered him in a previous post (you know the huge world-wide readership of this blog).  His phone call was a really nice gesture (or an attempt to get my location so he can send a hit man) so I thought I'd print a short retraction to my earlier comments about suffering his verbal abuse during a previous phone conversation.  The real truth is that we  have grown to love Brad, Jo, and Sophie, and so much enjoy Brad's humor.  And I can't think of anyone who is a higher quality person than he (other than myself, of course).  We're are really sorry to have poor timing that causes us to be in Las Vegas at the same time Brad & Jo are here in Havasu City.  Brad, we WILL connect while your here in Havasu - that's not a promise it's a threat (or however that's said).  Are you buying lunch that day?   DRW

Emerald Cove RV Resort, Parker Strip, AZ/CA

March 3rd Post:  Yesterday we met with a sales person as scheduled and, as we had anticipated, they didn't really offer anything that was reasonable for us so we said no.  Apparently we ruined the guy's day because he was clearly unhappy and explained how it pained him to see people walk away from the world's greatest deal.  I think we'll pull out tomorrow and head for Lake Havasu City.  DRW


March 2nd Post:  It was a short drive here yesterday from Ehrenberg on a pretty good state highway.  It was nice to have virtually no other traffic (off the beaten path) and be able to drive 55 MPH without being in someone's way.  We checked in a little before noon to this huge RV park on the Colorado River.  There nearly 1000 sites here and the RVs are packed in within about 8' of each other.  They have nice amenities such as mini golf, two swimming pools, an outdoor bar / snack bar, and a fairly well stocked country store.  In spite of the otherwise nice set up it doesn't have a good feel to me - probably because its so jam packed.  We'll meet with the sales folks at noon.  DRW