We have always tried to abide by the rule that you are supposed to do something we enjoy the first day of the New Year and it will be what you enjoy the whole year.
Doesn't that make any sense?
We used to ride the motorcycles on New Years day and our plans were to ride the bike a lot more in the coming year.
Now we are in the desert and the motorcycles are in Oklahoma so we are doing the next best thing.....we are going on a ride in the RZR's.
We will be surrounded by our very good friends Diana & Chris and also our newer friends Sandy and Bryan!
We rode out on the Barry Goldwater area today.
Some of the areas we girls had never seen. I think the guys had been on the road a few times but they didn't complain at all. They were "livin the dream" today.
The plan was to do some riding and then make our way to Wheezies for a good burger and some beer.
It was all fun and games until 3:45pm....and Chris & Diana's RZR went dead in the water!
Their RZR sounds terrible, like something is really broken in the engine.
Bryan was able to tow Chris and Diana down the El Camino Del Diablo road, until their RZR totally locked up.
The gears were totally locked up and his RZR wasn't going to go another inch. Plan "B" comes into view.
We aren't but about 10 miles from the house so Chuck and I make a break and head back to the house to get the Jeep and our trailer.
We have one thing working against us and that is daylight. You have never seen two people hustle so quickly to get a trailer attached to the vehicle, look for the proper tow straps and head back to rescue the Biggs.
I am happy to report that we got back to them by about 5:15 and within about 10 minutes we had the RZR on the trailer.
Since the gears were locked up we used Chris's winch to literally slide the RZR up the ramp.
You just never know how a day is going to end, but I am so happy we were able to get Diana & Chris back safely.
Now they have to decide who and where can repair their RZR.
Chris is on the phone the next day and he has decided since he was going to head back to Oklahoma in a few days anyway to just take it back to his repair guy in Oklahoma and get it fixed. The places around Yuma are so busy they tell him it will be weeks before they can even look at it. I think he made a very wise decision!
One nice thing is that its already on the trailer, so its ready to make the trip!
Diana is going to stay with us here in Yuma for awhile (months if I have my way) so Chris makes the trip back to Oklahoma by himself. He didn't let any grass grow under his feet and before we know it he has already dropped off the RZR for repairs and plans on coming back the middle of January to play in the dirt again!
In the mean time we girls (Diana, Heidi, Sandi and I) make a trip to Mexico on January 4th. I know for a fact we bought stuff we probably didn't need but we really had a good time.
Hot coffee for us today as it was a bit cool but it really didn't stop the avid shopping.
We had lunch and even pasted another dollar bill on the wall to prove we were here. Los Algodones is a lot busier than it has been. So nice to see the little town bustling around selling their wares.
We even have to wait in line to get back across-the-boarder. It wasn't a long wait but with the new border closing times we wanted to make sure we were over in plenty of time.
I'm happy to report we made it back without any problems.
Angel and his crew have made it back to finish our newly constructed courtyard walls. It was so nice to see Angel even if he was sporting a crutch. Such a nice crew of guys and would highly recommend Brick by Brick to anyone.
We see some beautiful Yuma sunsets, and I love to run upstairs and get a picture to share.
I have to say that we are really enjoying sharing our lot with Diana and her two dogs Abby and Zoey. Zoey gets so excited to walk in the mornings and I think she really is liking this desert life! Bronco and her dogs get along well, as they all just ignore each other.
To say we have hot footed it to Algodones Mexico a few times since Diana got here is an understatement. Heidi has been there with us all the way. I have purchased more things for our slice of heaven and have some cool pieces to share.
I even had time to finally put our tile picture (purchased a little over 4 years ago in Algodones) and even made a primitive frame for it. The picture is now hanging on one of the wall that is enclosed by the new wall.
The decorating of the inside wall has been pretty much just taking things from other areas of the patio and moving it there. Not sure how it will all end up and I am sure it will change several times before I call it done.
January 16th Chris comes back to Yuma and brings their RZR back. It is all fixed and ready to ride some trails. Chris is getting to be an expert at driving the over 1000 mile drive. He starts out very early in the morning and makes it here around 8pm. I am sure he is totally worn out, but with a little sleep he is ready to go out and play.
January 18th we are trailering the RZR's to California (only about a 20 miles). Our plans are to go to Signature Hill and then on to the Narrows. The same ride we did last season with Don & Cathy. This time Chris & Diana will be going with us along with Cathy & Don. It was a cool day starting out, but it warmed up nicely and we had a great ride.
The day ended with a spectacular sunset.
January 19th we get all kinds of warnings on our phones for flood warnings for our area. After all was said and done by January 21st we had 1-3/4" of rain.
All the talk of rain got us thinking about our planned boondocking trip to Quartzsite, AZ. Not wanting to be stuck in the rigs for the next couple of days out in the middle of nowhere, we made an executive decision and called off the boondocking trip. We were supposed to meet Bev, Ken, Laurie and John there and hated to chicken out but our hearts just weren't in it. I hated to call and tell them, but we just thought it was the best call for us.
We got up on January 21st to a somewhat cloudy sky. The weather is supposed to break today and be a great day. We drove the vehicle to Quartzsite and did our browsing and shopping. We were out walking around the outside vendors and who did we run into! Ken, Ben, Laurie and John. It was so nice to see them and couldn't have planned a better place to meet up. We talked a bit and once again apologized for changing our plans. They totally understood. We said our goodbyes and went on shopping.
The guys bought a couple of knives that this guy had for sale. He told them this long winded story about the knives. The boys were really proud of their purchase until we got a few rows over and another guy had the same knives. Diana and I got a big kick out of it as this is usually what happens to us. The big tent wasn't that busy in the morning and due to COVID they have the isles designated to be one way. It was nice to walk though the tent and not be neck and neck with people. We made some purchases but we truly didn't go wild like we normally do! Guess we had all the junk we needed for awhile.
Our lunch consisted of a delicious pulled pork sandwich from the vendor that we always eat at. Diana ordered a brick of their curly fries and they were great. We finished our looking and we got back in the Jeep and headed back to Yuma. We got home in the afternoon just in time to see a small scorpion walking into the casita. Gosh I am so glad I saw the darn thing before it got hidden in the house. Failed to take a picture of the little guy before we squashed him but we did take one of him squished. LOL
Zoey is wearing the cutest sweater that Heidi gave her. This dog is liking the weather here for sure. She is totally into her morning walks and makes such a ruckus to get us out and walking. Bronco has always gotten excited to walk and I guess Zoey and Abby decided if it works for her they might as well join in. I am so glad they like it here because it is really fun sharing our space with them all.
Grocery shopping has been a lot of fun since Diana and Chris are here. She and I have an idea of what we are wanting to cook, but when we get to the store we wing it and come out with several meals figured out for the next few days.
January 24th we are invited by Tony and Heidi to go on a Jeep ride to the old border wall. It gives us a chance to meet some of the neighbors that live at the other end of our block. We had met Steve and Diana before but today Steve will lead us to Wellton side of the mountains.
Steve is a retired border patrol and he was quite interesting to listen to when we would stop and observe an area. I bet he has some good stories.
We drove the "El Camino Del Diablo Highway" today. The rode is dirt and actually pretty smooth. We got to see the area they call the "high tanks", which are actually a collecting area of water. I'm' sure the wildlife likes these drinking pools. Since we were officially on the Barry Goldwater Airforce Range we all had to check in so we are not violating any laws. The permit is easy to get as you have to watch a video and answer a question at the end of the video. It keeps our visits to the range legal. The range is used for a practice bombing range so it is important for them to know who and when you are visiting the area. This link Barry Goldwater Air Force Range will explain the range if you are interested.
Steve also showed us this tree that is over by the high tanks and he says that the big horn sheep rub their antlers on it and it makes them red in color. The Elephant Tree is found here in the Sonoran desert. So many interesting things in this vast desert we call our second home.
The drive was great and we actually got to touch the old wall....LOL.
We didn't want to have anyone thing we were trying to sneak into the USA so we got our pictures and headed back towards home.
We made one last stop before leaving the range our little group decides to stop at the Naked Date Store and get a Naked Date Shake! Yep, you read that right. But alas it is not really naked....its organic dates. We have actually had several date shakes since we have been here in Yuma, but this one seems to be our favorite. They are usually very very sweet. This one was sweet but not overly sweet. We give it a 10!!!
Diana even bought a hat for herself and she got Chris a t-shirt, so they will be advertising for the naked dates. What a fun way to finish off a ride. After all the stops we made today and all the information we were told you would think it was late when we get home, but we are actually back to the casita by a little after 4PM....It really was a fun day.
I can't remember when Chris started back to Oklahoma but I do know that he left shortly after that last Jeep ride. I know Diana is going to miss him, but once again I will say that we are really enjoying her staying with us. Chuck is glad that I have someone to go to Mexico with (along with Heidi)....and he has tried to bribe Diana to keep me from buying things, but little does he know she isn't doing her job, cause every time we go there we all come back with more stuff!
The guy at the little coffee shop in Mexico has gotten to know us and even knows what we want to drink. If it is cold we drink hot foo-foo coffee and if it is warmer we drink our foo-foo coffee cold. To say we are addicted to Los Algodones would be an understatement.
I will end the month of January with a little tidbit that has come to light. Diana has said since I am always running around doing and doing something all the time like a hummingbird. So I am now a hummingbird. We both bought the coolest necklace over in Mexico of a hummingbird and I will wear mine with pride. Have to keep up the image! ROFL
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