Highways and Fairways

House Hunting Update

Glenda spent another long afternoon with us showing properties from Ventana to the Gallery (communities an hour apart).  She witnessed first hand how different Mike and I view properties.  What Mike thought was perfect made me want to hurl (imagine the Madonna Inn, small scale, for my CA followers).  What I thought was perfect Mike voided because the club wasn't exactly what he wants.  Our quest for ideal may mean living in 40 feet of living space for far longer than I may be able to stand.  Glenda showed saint-like patience.  Afterward we tried to treat her to a drink at a bar near her office, but she was the one generously treating us.  The closest bar to the Accenture Event, we ran into Lee Westwood licking his wounds after his match play loss.

 

He is the one on the left and the others--I have no idea but I didn't want to be rude and ask them to step aside for the photo.  Lee was very kind and self deprecating.  He said he'd better turn his name badge around so folks could see it and would know who he is.  As I told my Facebook friends, his ears don't stick out nearly as much as they appear to on TV.

Let's see...what else can I tell you?  Oh, I'm learning about the Saquaro cacti.  Did you know that if you want to buy one for your yard, a five footer without any arms will set you back about $1,000.  At five feet they are typically about 50 years old and don't begin to grow limbs until they are 60 or so.  How old would you guess this one to be?

 

Last evening we enjoyed the waning hours of warmth before another cold front is ushered into the area.

 

Don't worry family and friends.  Mike isn't sporting a mullet...that's just some tree branches coincidentally behind his cap.

Today we were invited to play the other El Conquistador course, Canada.  We braved high winds, cool temps, and having to leave the motor home at the crack of 6:45am, something us lazy and retired folks don't do too often.

Mike liked the course and the fact that folks can drive their own carts.  He likes the two 18 holes courses.  He especially likes how active the membership is with 5 men's days a week and 18 hole couples tournaments held weekly.  I like that part and before we left I was invited to play again with the ladies on Tuesday.  We'll be playing the same course that we played today because Ishikawa, a 17 year old PGA Tour player, is doing a photo shoot on the other course that day.  Hmmmm.

As for the Canada course (imagine the squiggly line over the "n" on Canada), it was tight from the tees, but scenic with the surrounding mountain ranges.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

According to John and Roy, two members who took us in today for our round, those mountains catch fire in brilliant colors at sunset.  The local saying is, "if the mountains are pink, it's time to drink.".  Good guys!

The Bermuda greens with the recent reseeding were in nice condition but had wicked breaks.  They ran well but lacked the speed and the grain influence that we had at The Gallery.

 

Although the greens were more challenging the lay out played tougher than the Gallery, which was more open and more scoreable, if that's a word.

Snow is expected by morning in the valley.  70 degrees expected the day after.  Weird.  We seem to bring these odd weather patterns wherever we go.  Our friends Lee and Mavis have extended a sight seeing and dinner invitation for tomorrow once the roads are shoveled (ha!).  They have been so kind to us while we've been in the area.  Last week they had us over for a "light supper" though Mike tried googling what that meant before we darkened their doorstep.  He finally reached my daughter who explained, "it means you may need to stop for something to eat afterward."  Actually we had plenty to eat and had a lot of fun and laughs together.

No real decisions yet as we are still in the due diligence process.  I promise to keep you updated.  We appreciate you caring about our final decision!

Gallery North Course and Accenture Match Play

Located nearly touching the Dove Mountain golf course currently hosting the Accenture event is the scenic, perfectly groomed Gallery North course.

 

We were hosted again by founding members Ty and Kit (short for Kathleen and she really reminded us of another Kathleen we know and adore).

 

Perhaps a tad more tricky to navigate than the South course, it was a fabulous lay out and a little tougher to score.

 

 

I know in some photos it looks like a lot of desert to aim away from, but there truly was plenty of glorious grass.

 

At first glance the approach shot below seemed easy enough.

 

Not sure if it was the wind or the pull of the tides that landed three of our four shots here.

 

Two of us took our medicine on this Big Break shot but one who shall remain nameles naturally had to go for it.  Almost made it but instead is resting somewhere in the vast desert behind him now.  At least he didn't put an eye out!

In addition to more gorgeous mountain and canyon vistas, I saw my first Bob Cat outside of the San Diego Zoo,  He sauntered right by us allowing for a photo shoot.

 

 

In keeping with the southwestern ranch theme, the comfort stations are quite that...

 

 

I guess they grew 'em big back in the day.

Locals will tell you that the par 5's are the true challenge here, but I found the most trouble on the par 3's.

 

 

 

Attached to this par three is my latest entry for the cart path coffee table book.

 

Not that the par 5's were a piece of cake...

 

Just ask Kit who had this approach shot.

 

After a beautifully played hole we enjoyed watching Ty giddy up on the Birdie Horsie!

 

Congrats Ty, on being our first inductee since hitting Tucson!  What a good sport and a natural equestrian!

We so enjoyed our two golf outings with our new friends Ty and Kit.

 

The two Gallery courses have been my favorite, perhaps that opinion colored by my scores.  But the condition, the greens running at 11.5 everyday, the beautiful surroundings, and challenging lay out also add to that conclusion.  The other huge plus is the walkability of both courses and the fact that 60% of the members walk them. 

Next step, find a home, which we're setting out on that journey again today with Glenda.

Yesterday we followed our boy, Dustin Johnson, for 19 holes at the Accenture Match Play tournament.  We groaned as his drives landed in the desert gullies, often under a cactus or rock. We cheered as he sunk long putts to stay in the event.  But in the end it was his competitor, Mark Wilson, who hit the clutch sand shot and knocked our boy out in suddent death.  I'd hoped to get an autograph on my favorite hat, but I was too tall and old to catch his attention.  Dustin was quite gracious with the young kids generously giving out balls and autographs but his feet caught fire when I approached and off he went.  Oh well.  Mike tells me I'm too big of a kid to be stalking for autographs. 

I had also hoped to have photos of the course and the event for y'all.  Unfortunately we were sent back to our car to store my camera, so sorry, no photos of this near perfect course.  It looked much like the Gallery courses though a bit of a long course. 8000 yards to be exact!  Perhaps we will get back up there to play it soon.  Those following the blog since the beginning may remember that this was one of Mike's favorite that we played last year.

That's about it for now.  The big rodeo is in town, so who knows?  When in Rome...

Off to house hunt!

 

Ventana Canyon and The Gallery

We were very pleased to be included in Ventana's Couples Member Guest tournament on Sunday which included 18 holes of golf on the Canyon course and dinner afterward. Even with poor weather conditions, something that happens about 30 out of 365 days, they had a nice turn out.

 

It was a treat to be paired with Gord and Jessie who just happen to be members at The Gallery as well as Ventana, two club memberships we are considering strongly.  Both meet our requirements, Ventana with a trail fee allowing you to drive your own cart and the Gallery offering a cart plan for crazed players like us and each having 36 holes of golf.

To give you an idea of the size of the Tucson valley, it took us an hour to drive to Ventana from our RV park in Marana, which is where the Gallery is located.  Gord and Jessie like both clubs so much that they bought a home in between so that they can play all four courses at the two clubs.  We are learning that both clubs consider the other to be too far away from everything.  Funny.

Back to my cursory reviews...Unfortunately we hit the Ventana Canyon course (they also have the Mountain course which we will play next week with Gord and Jessie) on a dark, dreary, cold, and drizzly day.  We still could get the feel for this Fazio designed fairly open course and how beautiful it must be on a better day.

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As you can see there are elevation changes, scenic views of mountains, canyons, desert, and valleys, with plenty of grass to land your ball.  We some how managed to win low gross in the tournament largely thanks to our playing partners Gord and Jessie who brought their A game.  We left ours packed somewhere between the ladder and the dog food in the undercarriage of the coach.  Beside our errant swings, the hard greens were impossible to stick.  The only way to stay on the green was to land your ball perfectly in front so that it rolls up, but not too far.  This turned out to be too much to ask of us Carolinians.

After playing we met more members back in the club house over a nice dinner.  The folks were quite kind and, as mentioned, Gord and Jessie have even invited us back!  We are looking forward to playing the Mountain course and seeing the most photographed hole in Arizona, number 3.  Stay tuned for that late next week.

Under MUCH better weather conditions we were paired with founding members Ty and Kit at the Gallery to play the South course yesterday.  Known for being the easier scoring course of the two, I proved that out FINALLY having my first good round since hitting the desert. It certainly helped to have a course that was designed to open up greatly on the right for my fading drives.  Also cutting down on the strokes were the more welcoming greens.  I actually had to repair ball blemishes on the green for the first time since hitting town. Now Mike on the other hand, well, his game prefers the harder lay outs so he'll probably shine today on the original North course.

The  South course is known for its vistas on nearly every hole.  It did not disappoint.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whether it was to the left, the right, or down the middle, Mike's ball zeroed in on the problems.

 

 

I found my first Tucson entry for my cart path coffee table book...

 

Although the greens were kindly holding our high approach shots, they were often mysterious reads.  We were glad to have founding members with us giving us clues on direction and speed.  I don't think I've ever had to play for the grain as we have here.  Downhill downwind putts that are against the grain must still be slammed, something I personally fight on every putt.  Thanks to Ty's guidance I still got a few rides on the birdie horsie.

Afterward Ty and Kit treated us to cocktails in their clubhouse where we have set up to play with them again today.  Folks have been so welcoming making our decision harder and harder and yet in the end, easier. It seems we can't make a wrong decision.

Back at the RV resort we are parked next to a pro golfer and his family from England.  They are on the same quest we are, only they are looking globally for the perfect golf community.  Yikes!  I can't even imagine how long this would take if we were to expand our search that wide!  So far they are leaning toward Australia though we're told a beer costs $8.  Fogedaboudit!

Next review, the Gallery's North course.  Tomorrow we are hoping to go watch the Accenture Match Play taking place only a short drive from our home this month.

In the meantime we are enjoying beautiful sunset desert views but a little chillier weather than we'd signed up for.

 

Golf Tucson Style

What I am beginning to understand is there is no ONE style of course in Tucson.  They offer target desert golf, elevated rolling fairways, and flat wide open grassy ones as well. 

On Thursday we set off to play La Paloma, a 27 hole course, with three nines, Hill, Canyon, and Ridge.. We have visited courses all over the country in our quest for our next community and we had a first happen. When greeted by the pro shop, we were asked which ball we used and each handed our preferred sleeve.  Although Mike's Pro V 1's will not see the light of day in the Tucson desert.  Like a fine wine, he likes his Pro V's to age a bit.

We both loved the elevation, the desert feel of target golf, yet pretty expansive targets, and the surrounding mountains that provide serenity even when all you really want to do is hurl an expletive or a club. We began with The Canyon nine, which is the more target of the two we played.

 
 

 

 

 

 
If target golf isn't your thing, then you have the option of more open green fairways beckoning your ball on the Hill course.

 

 

 

 

I suppose there was still a hole or two that was on the "targety" side.

 

Other than the lay out, the 27 very different holes, and the kind pro shop staff providing us with our favorite sleeves, the down sides were deal killers for us.  No trail fee or cart plan and, as we learned when we teamed up with a couple members on the back nine, the club is in bankruptcy.  Consequently they haven't had the funds to replace the bent grass greens that are old and beat up on by the harsh elements of late, at least on two of the three greens.  Too bad, because the greens have such potential!

 

 

The Hill course has had their greens replaced with a bermuda variety and although they looked better, sadly they had the speed of velcro.

 

 

Both courses have the signature chewed up, ball filled cactus in front of tee boxes.

 

We did see one unusual Saquaro...with branches and leaves???

 

Upon closer inspection, we found a tree planted directly beyond this particular cactus.  Duh!

We played at El Conquistador on Friday.  A large facility that offers 45 holes of golf, a huge tennis and work out facility, and a trail fee allowing you to drive your own customized cart on the course. One of the least expensive courses to join with a fair amount of inventory of affordable homes, we had high hopes for EC when we were surfing the net back in South Carolina. Unfortunately the homes and the first course experience simply didn't wow us.  It didn't help that we were put on the resort course on our test day.  Like a few of the clubs that are paired with hotel chains, they hold one course for resort play and the other for member play, switching it up each day.  Ours was a painfully long 5+ hour round.  The lay out was, in a word, fine.  And there were some particularly attractive holes in part due to the beautiful mountains surrounding the course. 

 

 

 

 

Most holes looked about like this...

 

or this...

 

The greens were better than La Paloma but still too slow for our liking.

The best part of the course was what we thought initially was a tap on the beer cart. But even better than that...

 

We're told the Bloody Marys and Margaritas are quite good, but we opted out for the time being.

We hadn't ruled out El Conquistador as we hadn't played the other course yet and we were set to meet the next day with a realtor to show us real estate in the area.  Which brings me to Saturday with Glenda.

Our house hunting day began with high winds and tumbleweed warnings...

 

 

Glenda assured us that this was highly unusual, and given we've now been here but nine days, we can't argue.

We can't argue with Glenda but we can sure argue with each other.  Meaning we couldn't agree on any homes in the El Conquistador communities after spending several hours with our new realtor.  She did an excellent job of showing us very nice properties but of course there was always something or another that just wasn't quite right.  And she had done her homework--yikes!  She'd found our blog and had it printed out before meeting us.  Lucky for us, she still hasn't fired us and even smiled as we parted.

 

We will put her to the task of showing more properties after we visit and play a couple more courses that are on our radar screen.

Stay tuned for the next post where we regal you with our fantastic round of golf (albeit cold and drizzly) at Ventana's Couples Member Guest where we met new friends in Gord and Jessie.

 

This house and course shopping is turning out to be a lot of work, but fun too.

Thank you for continuing to follow our pursuit!

 

 

Yes, Virginia, there can be romance in a Trailer Park

Connecting with a realtor in Tucson in February during National Gem Week is a tougher chore than either of us ever imagined.  We finally got one to return our calls and spent some time with him today.  Before the end of the day he called and fired us as clients (Mike's fault I'm sure)...well, he said he's under the weather and wants to give us to another agent.  In the meantime we have done some discovery on our own.  So far my favorite community is also one that the last bank owned property was sold two weeks ago and prices are now ridiculously high again.  They've still invited us to play their two courses (The Gallery in Dove Mountain, down the road from where the Accenture Match play will be played next week), which naturally we will do.  The Membership prices have fallen dramatically since we we were here a year ago.  For example, Dove Mountain was at $125,000 last year and is $25,000 now.  Too bad you can't find a home there for under $1,000,000.  That's OK as there are still so many communities to choose from in the Tucson vicinity.  We thought we'd be able to see all there was within a week but that's not going to happen.  The Membership Directors have been most gracious and consequently we have offers to play four courses over the next few days.  La Paloma seemed like the perfect place for us but they have no cart plan.  Even after telling the Director it wouldn't work she still invited us to play.

We have been surprised with the demographics in Tucson.  The downtown area is sprawling with old town, big finance districts, darling neighborhood pockets with cute restaurants and some theater.  Mike even found a place with terrific looking FRESH swordfish.  I guess he can now live here.

 

Peanut may not vote for Tucson though.  We spent a good part of yesterday with the vet.  Allergies are doing him in so he is now on three kinds of meds and has an appointment to come back to have a growth removed once an ear infection clears.  Poor little guy.

 

If we do end up here, I'll have to adjust my thinking when it comes to gardening and overall greenery.  No more grass and azaleas.  More of this will be in my future...

 

 

Most of the golf communities are 15-30 miles from downtown.  A few are designated retirement communities but many run the gamut with young families, kids our age, and folks a wee bit older.  We are enjoying exploring what there is here.

We are scheduled to begin golfing at the private courses tomorrow but I did get my fix in at a muni course that is a true desert course, Fred Enke.  On the outskirts of town near the "Boneyard", the worlds's largest collection of war airplanes (3000 there now) where planes and jets, like elephants who go off in packs to die,

 

is this unusual Municipal Golf Course.  Not favored by the locals due to its target nature, Mike really liked the lay out. 

 

 

 

Me, I liked the mountains in the background, the lack of homes on the course, and the fact that I could hit the ball a mile with the warm air and long rolls on the arid fairways.

 

I also liked the friendly posing wildlife and the sexy beer cart person.

 

 

Only downsides were the fact that we had to leave drivers in the bag nearly half the time and the deplorable condition of the fairways and the greens.  Apparently the recent unusual freeze caused sprinkler pipes to burst all over the course so they're struggling to get it back in shape.

 

 

 

The greens are challenging with their beautiful curves but it was more than the standard "hit and hope" standing over a putt due to the weeds lined up between you and the hole.

We are glad we played, especially since we serendipidously got to glimpse the Boneyard on our way but are looking forward to the private courses on the slate beginning tomorrow.  If you prefer the more boring tree lined, back and forth typical muni courses then the Randolph Course is for you.  Former home to an LPGA tour event, the flat lay out appears much of a yawner to us.  However, it's in the middle of town and directly across from my favorite restaurant, Claimjumper, so we may have to play it before we leave town.

Since my last post, we also celebrated another holiday on the road.  Valentine's Day was perfect, at least for me.  Mike dropped me off at Crooked Tree (another muni course close to our RV park) which has an incredible practice facility where I worked to convince myself that a pitching wedge really does go as far in this climate as my 8 iron did back in cold South Carolina.  While I was slicing drives, shanking chips, and putting my little heart out, Mike was carefully taking care of that same heart.  He shopped for filet mignon, roses, chocolate, and a perfect bauble.  Of course, had he remembered the gem show that was going on here he might have saved himself some serious coin.  Oh well, it was a perfect night in our little trailer park.

 

Thank you for listening.

 

Taken our last day in South Carolina...with beautiful greenery, and heavy layering! 

First Stop- Tucson

From this

 

to 80 degrees and this

 

in just a couple days of driving.  Not without a few strange sights along the way...

 

?  Do you suppose the plumbing doesn't work in this $300,000 coach that's also towing a Hummer?

We arrived in Tucson just in time for the annual Gem Show that sells out every hotel room and RV park inside the city limits.  Yesterday we moved back into the park we had stayed at last year in Marana, in the middle of what used to be cotton fields (now plowed over and not sure what) with a train track seemingly running through the park.  That's ok, feeling the sun on my arms and legs for the first time in months, it matters not where we sleep.  We flirted with the idea of jumping in the pool, but we had ground work to be done.

After getting a battery jump in our car, which had not been unhitched in a week, we drove around Oro Valley, unable to stop and get out for fear of losing the charge.  Mike had his real estate app up and running so we got a feel for neighborhoods, prices, etc.  So far we are a bit underwhelmed but we will keep our minds open until we meet with a professional realtor to show us the ropes. 

It's Sunday and it has now been NINE long days without swinging a golf club.  Well, not quite true.  I bundled up one evening and hit rocks into the Texas desert with my lob wedge.  Not wanting to start asking for favors of Club Membership Directors until we meet with a realtor, I got us a tee time at a Tucson Muni course, Fred Enke Golf Club.  Sleeveless polo and skort, here I come!

Am looking forward to eating the Citrus Chicken salad at my favorite chain, Claim Jumper, sometime after golf.  Beats the hell out of turtle and catfish, fresh or otherwise!

We're also psyched to see Lee, Mavis, and Amy, neighbors here in Marana!  We'll be calling on you soon!  Don't screen us!

Happy Valentine's Day to all the lovers out there!

Juanita and Mike

Crawling Toward Warmth

Or perhaps we are dancing toward sunshine, two steps forward, one back. We thankfully closed the slide outs at bedtime last night here in the hill country of Texas. The wind was whipping and killing any chance of a peaceful slumber so we shrunk out home, closing the slides. Mike cooked up the fresh turtle we'd picked up at a truck stop in Louisiana.

 

He tells me it's like chicken only really tough.  I opted out of the turtle and went with the fresh cat fish that he bought at the same place.  If you're tooling west on I-10 through LA and see a sign for the Crawfish House, stop by for their fresh market as well as their restaurant.  Their parking lot handles rigs like ours too.

After a lovely home cooked meal and another 300 miles on the odometer we hit the sack.  The horrific wind during the night escorted in an arctic freeze. Consequently we woke to 16 degree temps, ice, snow, and frozen pipes.

 

Our only choice was to hunker down and continue our westward trek tomorrow. Made a dent on our taxes, looked at Tucson real estate online, and enjoyed the raging fire at the clubhouse today but no miles on Winnie.  It's supposed to be in the 40's tomorrow so we hope to make some tracks then.

So glad I packed a parka, winter gloves, and a tobbogan (to my CA friends, this is a ski cap not a sled) this time across the country!

Not exciting, but thanks for following!

Juanita, Mike, and Peanut

Quick Post Super Bowl Note from the Road

After a night at a Walmart in Tallahassee, Florida, on Sunday morning we drank some more diesel, and put more westward miles on the Winnie, all the while showing our Steeler pride.

 

 

While Mike drove I trash talked with several members of my family hailing from Indiana to California thanks to the modern marvels of facebook and texting.  At the time I was very psyched and REALLY believed our Steelers could pull it off. We settled in at a campground in Mississippi, also full of Cheeseheads with whom to trade barbs, and had just enough time to hook up, find the right channel, and make cosmos before kick off.

We were all so excited...

 

Until we were down 21-3 and I began to use my Terrible Towel to dry my tears... and to keep Peanut warm.

 

That's all I have to say about that mess on Fox TV (Super Bowl not the cable channel). We are now camped for the night about 50 miles east of Houston.  At the pace we're on (300-400 miles a day) we hope to be in Arizona by the weekend unless we stay an extra day along the way to golf.  Am badly in need of a fix!

Next year Pittsburgh!

Harbour Town Golf Links, Hilton Head Island

 

Given this may be our only opportunity to play Harbour Town, home of The Heritage Golf Classic, Mike and I braved the 40ish temperature, rain, slow play, and high green fees to see what all the hullabaloo is about.  The head pro kindly listened to our story and gave us a break on the fees (half price) but it was still more than we have paid to play any course in America.  Was it worth it?  In a word, nah.

We were there for the practice round of the International Junior Golf Tour and although they were playing ahead of us in twosomes, they tried chipping and putting from every imaginable spot so it was a painfully slow round. 

 

Patience isn't a strong suit for either of us.  Aside from waiting on every shot, the worst part was having to wait through 16 holes before getting a glimpse of the ocean.  Definitely a well cared for and mature course, the first sixteen holes were a bit on the bland side with some water features, sand, and Spanish Moss draped oaks thrown in to spice up the experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Perhaps not so bland after all?

The bermuda greens were in good shape though cut more for the vacationing hacker than for an International Junior Golf Tour. I expected a little faster roll.  They were usually well guarded by anything Mother Nature, Nicklaus, and Dye could muster.

 

 

 

It was the last couple of holes for which we paid our price of admission.

 

 

 


 

The placement of the green on the 18th hole as well as the pin this day is a formal invitation to go to the beach, quite literally.  And we both RSVP'd with a resounding yes. Eventually, though soggy and a few golf balls lighter, we found ourselves on the final green.

 

 

Note to self, steer clear of places that add a "u" to words like harbor, as it"u"sually comes with a hefty price for that vowel.

After golf, Scottye and Jim graciously treated us to dinner at their favorite watering hole, Crane's Tavern.  Far from the typical bar fare, we enjoyed fabulous prime rib, mushroom ravioli, and likely my last opportunity for fried green tomatoes!  And these were the best I've had!  Check out these mutant gems!

 

Aside from being very close to home, we could see why Crane's could be a local favorite.

 

Before turning in we traded life stories and after dinner drinks in Jim's humble "camper".

 

This morning Scottye showed us her Beaver.  Minds out of the gutter.  Beaver Patriot that is, a high end motorcoach.  It brought back memories of the Beaver Marquis we began this odyssey in some fifteen months ago.  Scottye's immaculate Beaver is being used as an auxiliary closet and wine cellar.

Mike lightened our wine cellar load by a couple of bottles of his 50/50 vino...his homemade wine that half the time is magnificent and the other half, not so much.

 

Thank you for everything, Scottye and Jim, especially for our new friendship.  We look forward to seeing you out west soon!

We are somewhere in Florida now (exit 241 on I-10 to be exact) where we have watched the temperature steadily move up over 20 degrees.  Yay!  I can't tell you where we will rest our heads tonight much less where we will be to watch the big game tomorrow.

Until the next post, here we go Steelers, here we go!

 

 

 

Back by Popular Demand

Those of you reading this likely know already that we somehow sold our house within hours of taking the sign down from our yard.  After a few weeks of logistic nightmares, we are again living in the Winnebago.  We hit the road yesterday (Feb 3rd) after one last sad walk through our Barefoot home...

 

one last peak at the Love course, and my favorite place to spend happy hour--practicing my swing...

 

And before noon, we were on the road heading south...Good Bye Barefoot!

I believe we left our mark here and I know that Barefoot and all of our friends in the community made a lasting imprint in our hearts.

 

We spent our first night in Hilton Head, far better than the Walmart in Myrtle Beach as we did the first time around.  Unfortunately, as the first time around, we had pounding rain all night and again like last time, spent a lot of time with towels and pots dealing with more leaks, KMN (kill me now)!

We are staying at a beautiful coach resort where new friends we'd met in Michigan live part of the year.  Scottye and Jim got us a beautiful spot acroos the street from their gorgeous Prevost bus.  I managed to get a dip in the hot tub before the rain hit last night--something much needed after days of lifting and pushing boxes around.

We are working our way toward Tucson where last week it was 70 and this week it is 20!  Watch out, Arizona!  Wherever Mike and Juanita target as a destination will soon experience a dramatic climate change.

Looking forward to the Superbowl where our beloved Steelers are pitted against the rest of my family's favored Packers.  Not sure where we will watch the big game, but it won't be Dallas-- not with all of the snow they have right now.  It will be some park along the 10 freeway that has cable.  I'm thinking New Orleans?

No golf since Sunday, whah.  We'd hoped to play Harbortown today but the connection we had to play for $25 won't golf in the rain and cold.  Wuss!  Hopefully we'll get out soon before I lose the swing I just found again!

Thank you (I think) for asking me to start this thing back up.  It probably won't be as often as I can't imagine we will have as many interesting things to tell you as last year--but who knows?

Stay warm and dry!