Nov 22nd to 25th - Apache Junction to Quartzsite AZ

Nov 22nd - Sun - Apache Junction
Terry won some money at poker last night. When it got down to 2 players (Terry & another guy), they each had about the same in chips and it was getting late so they agreed to split the first & second place money.
We went with Billy & Lauri to the swap meet. We had breakfast there while they shopped and then we all wandered the rest of the aisles.
We stopped at good ol’ WalMart on the way back and picked up some groceries since we are going to Quartzsite with limited grocery selections and then dry camping for a few days north of Yuma.
Lauri made a great BBQ hamburger/potato salad/beans dinner for us which we had early enough that we could eat outside. Of course she had to have dessert also so we moved inside for that.

Nov 23rd - Mon - to Quartzsite
Said goodbye to Billy & Lauri and left at 9:20 for the 2 ¾ hour drive to Quartzsite. We are staying with our friends Clem & Marlene from South Dakota. We first met them in QZ 3 years ago and then traveled with them in Alaska. Last spring, they bought a house here which sits on an acre and has lots of room for us to park.
We had to get out the clippers to trim some trees & shrubs where we are parked. After we set up, Marlene & I continued to trim and Terry & Clem worked on our generator which is not running correctly. It sounded better when they were done but not good enough. Of course, all this activity called for beers on the patio!
We all went out for an early dinner and called it a night.

Nov 24th - Tues - Quartzsite
We left early this morning for Parker to find someone to work on our generator. The guy at the small engine repair place said a new air filter and a change of oil would help and that it wouldn’t be worth him spending time & $ working on it. We checked WalMart for the TV we want but they were also out of stock. Then a stop at QVC pharmacy for inexpensive booze (go figure!) and back to QZ.
Clem & Marlene had eaten breakfast so I made a late breakfast for us. I puttered around with some more tree trimming and then went with Marlene to pick up pies for her Thanksgiving dinner with family. Their 2 sons & families are coming from California.
Clem’s brother Vince arrived in the late afternoon. We all sat outside and chatted and then I went to make dinner. Just as I put a dish in the oven, my sister-in-law Kathy called and we talked for half an hour - just in time to continue with dinner prep.
It was too cool to eat outside so I took everything to Marlene’s - and she has a dishwasher!! She had bought an apple pie to “test” and see if she wanted to buy some more for Thanksgiving. Luckily there was enough left for all of us - including the caramel sauce that you warm up and pour on the pie.
Marlene has not been feeling really well - doctor does not know exactly what caused a huge, sudden rash to appear on her body - so we went home early so she could get to bed.

Nov 25th - Wed - Quartzsite
I made jelly biscuits & fruit salad for everyone for breakfast before we all went for a drive. We first checked out Rainbow Acres which is a large housing development about 6 miles from “downtown” QZ. All the lots are defined by low brick walls. There is a mixture of houses, RVs, and sheds or small dwellings adjacent to RVs. We drove through nearly empty areas that will be full of vendors in a month.
Back to Clem & Marlene’s and then we all walked to a nearby area with a few vendors already set up. One place had a huge ice chest almost full of buttons and the vendor said they all came from one house where they bought the estate contents.
Vince had bought another wonderful apple pie so we added it to hot dogs for a yummy lunch. Just before lunch, Terry turned on our computer and the screen would not come on even though you could hear boot-up sounds. We have been wanting to get a cable to connect the computer to the TV so we went to Blythe CA to find a Radio Shack. Terry was still also looking for a new air filter for our generator so we stopped at several places with no luck. We got our cable and picked up a few groceries.
It is very strange to be typing on the computer and looking at the TV. Because the TV is on a swing arm, I can put the computer on a bar stool, sit right in front of it and still have the mouse on the desk. I just finished catching up my blog so will post it since everyone else is on the patio.