This has probably been the worst Memorial Day week-end that I can remember. Not because anything really awful happened, but because nothing at all happened. For maybe fifteen or more years, I have always joined my daughter Kristi at a special convention in Los Angeles. This year, Bob didn’t want to go and Kristi and Theresa were planning to drive back and forth from their home rather than stay at the hotel.
It didn’t bother me at first. I was just as glad as Bob to not have to drive on Memorial Day week-end, but then I realized it was the further chipping away of old traditions and this threw me into depression that took hold of me for the entire three days of the week-end. So much of what was good in my life is gone.

I spent most of the time watching re-runs of Jon, Kate plus 8 on TV while playing endless games of BookWorm Deluxe.

On TV, I heard it is all right to wear white all year long. Maybe this should raise my spirits. Remember when we all waited for Memorial Day to wear white? However, the fashion conultant did say that white dresses and white shoes was a no-no. Oh and while we are at, put all the little black dresses in the back of the closet and wear your white dresses at night. Probably should go and rearrange my closet, but maybe a few games of BookWorm and more TV is in the making. As I said, this is the worst Memorial Day weekend that I can remember.

Just enjoyed the day yesterday and put off writing an evening post so that I could enjoy the sunset with Bob. The evening sky was cloudy which only made the colors more magnificent as the sun went down behind the White Mountains. By that time, I was ready to turn in for the night.

We took the Smart Car into Lone Pine yesterday for lunch and a trip through the Lone Pine Film Museum. The museum was built after the house in Independence was sold in 1998 and I no longer was making the trek to the Owens Valley on week-ends. Coming back to the Owen’s Valley is always bittersweet. There are times I wish I could have retired here, but looking back does no good whatsoever.

But back to yesterday and the museum. It is a great tribute to the film industry of old and the B Western movie. The museum has an 80 seat theatre and a great 14 minute film about the movies that were shot here in the Alabama Hills. Presently it has a display of Western Wear designed and made by a tailor named Nudie Cohn. He was also known for his wild west cars. The museum is an absolute must for Movie Bluffs. So if you are on Highway 395 passing through Lone Pine, California do make the stop. It is well worth the time.

After lunch we came back to the Motor Home and spent time walking the dogs and reading. There was a cloud build up and a short rain which cooled every thing down to about 75 perfect degrees.

Lucky and LuAnn woke us up at the usual 6AM. They were all wiggly, kissy, and full of vim, so I took all three of them for a long early morning walk. Sammi, who occasionally pulls the “Old Age” ticket and wants only a short walk, was as willing as the pups to make the longer trek.

So this brings me up to date. We have had morning coffee and fresh muffins and a second walk for the dogs. Now Bob is unplugging electricity, emptying holding tanks, I have the inside battened down and ready to roll. Looks like my next post will be after we are safely home and the motor home unloaded.

Lucky woke me up with his usual 6 in the morning tail wag and tongue-licking. All three dogs sleep with me on the fold out couch. The other two are more than willing to sleep in. Not our Lucky. He is definitely an early riser and we all know early risers are also needy pee-ers. This time at Bob’s suggestion, I put down a piddle pad. He was so grateful that he nearly wetted down the whole thing. His look was one of comfortable, but comical relief.

By this time, I was dressed enough to take all three out for a walk. I cannot believe how the puppies are behaving on this trip. There is very little barking. Lots of friendly greetings when other campers pet them. All this good behavior is a far cry from their behavior on our last trip. That time they barked at anything and everything and it would not have surprised me if the Park Manager asked us and the ill-behaved animals to leave.

We took advantage of the cool morning to have morning coffee and breakfast outside. Then another quick walk for the dogs before breaking camp and heading the RV south and back to Boulder Creek RV park for two more days.

The folks here were more than happy to give us the same spot we had Friday. It seemed a little like coming home. Our site has a shade tree by the picnic table which is a perfect place for the birds. It is also on a corner and we enjoy talking with others as they walk by.

Tonight it will be chicken and rice for dinner. Then time for a long walk with dogs before calling it a day.

I took this photo of our spot in the RV Park this morning. The Highlands is not a new park and when there are big rigs with slide-outs on both sides of you, it can be a tiny bit cramped. Other than that, we love it and its proximity to the little town of Bishop.

After breakfast and a little cleaning up, we left the dogs and the birds to enjoy the in the air-conditioned RV while we took the Smart Car and drove about a half mile to the Casino for a little machine style Black Jack. I lost my twenty dollars, but Bob broke even with his. He thought my math was terrible when I said, “That means each of us lost ten dollars.” I justified this by saying 10 x2 is 20 and we still have twenty dollars. Oh well, you can never get a guy to understand womanly logic.

We had lunch there before heading back to walk the dogs. I spotted an antique store just down the road and well within walking distance, so I headed out for a little antiquing. Came home with two ceramic dog planters. I am not sure where I will put them, but their happy little faces were calling out, “Buy me, buy me’ and I just couldn’t resist.

The rest of the afternoon has been spent emailing, reading, and blog writing. Soon it will be cool enough to wander out to say hello to all our neighbors. I like the friendliness that comes with RVing.

I’ll leave you with this photo of Lucky and LuAnn in their outside pen. LuAnn can just get her little muzzle through the fence open spaces. Lucky just prefers jumping to try to see over the top.

On Thursday, as I was making lists and packing the RV for Friday morning’s trip to the Sierras, I received a phone call from a close friend who recently was diagnosed with cancer. She had Friday appointments at City of Hope and asked me to accompany her. Another close friend would be doing the driving and I would be keeping her company while she waited for tests to be completed. This request was not only welcomed I was overjoyed to be able to help in any small way.

Bob and I quickly revamped our plans. He finished packing the RV and I packed a few things to take with me to Duarte. The three of us would go down on Thursday afternoon, spend the night, and be at City of Hope the next morning at 8:30. In the meantime, on Friday, Bob would take Sammi and the parrots in the RV and drive to Boulder Creek where he would set up camp. I would arrive home early evening, pick up the Maltese pups and drive the Smart Car up to the campgrounds.

Surprisingly, it went like clockwork. I was back in Ridgecrest by 5:30 and the pups and I were out of the house by 6:00 and on the road for the quick 70 mile drive. Everything was set up and ready when I got to Boulder Creek. Bob, the dogs, and I took a long walk. There was still plenty of time to sit outside, watch the stars, drink a glass of wine, and catch up on each others day.

Today, we packed up and drove another 60 miles to Bishop. We are staying at a camp a little north of town. Our plan is simply to relax and tonight we might just walk a few blocks over to the Casino and try our luck. Who knows we may hit the big jackpot. Probably not, but I really don’t care.