The saga of the eyeglasses

On Sunday, we went to Eyeglasses World so I could have an eye exam done. The Optometrist, Dr. Jim, gave me a very comprehensive exam, and really took time to show me different options to improve my vision. Apparently, my distance vision has improved but my close-up vision has deteriorated. Dr. Jim decided that I need to strengthen my reading prescription, and I needed to do something about my mid-range vision. I told him that I had tried progressive glasses before, and could not adjust to them. He said that I should never have been prescribed progressives, since I had been using bi-focals for a long time, and adjusting to progressives is almost impossible. He suggested tri-focals, a cost effective alternative. He then proceeded to demonstrate the vision that I would experience with tri-focals. Wow, what a difference.

Prescription in hand, we went to check out frames. The store had a promotion on, two complete pairs of glasses for $99.95. Now, I know that usually these promotions have all kinds of fine print attached, so I carefully read all the in-store signage and brochures. I had already read the website info, and I knew that the promotion applied to basic plastic lenses, but not polycarbonate or ultra thin lenses. No problem, because I wanted basic plastic.

I sat down with a nice sales guy, Victor, and he made all the measurements, and inputted all the info into his computer. He looked at me and said: "The total is $262.00. How do you want to pay." I was shocked, and told him the total would be $99.95, as stated in all their materials. He said the promotion did not include multi-focal lenses. He read the signs and brochures I showed him, and agreed they did not mention any exclusions of multi-focal lenses, but his manager had told him only to included single vision lenses. I argued with him, to no avail. So I told him I would go elsewhere. He agreed to talk to his manager in the morning, and call me.

I was steaming! We got back to the motorhome, and I went online and sent a nasty email to Eyeglass World's headquarters, explaining the situation and threatening a complaint to the FTC. The next day I was surprised to get a call from Victor telling me that they had heard from head office, and that I was correct and they were wrong. Wow! He went on to tell me that they will honor the promotion price, and I could pick up both pairs of glasses at 5:00 if I still wanted them. I agreed. A couple of hours later I got a call from the headquarters of Eyeglass World, asking if my problem had been resolved, and apologizing for their failure to instruct the store manager appropriately. Wow again! I am pleased with my new glasses. The moral of this story: Do your research, and don't be afraid to complain.

Today we picked up the last of our supplies for our month in Mexico. We now have an electronic translator to help with the Spanish. Tomorrow we will have a subdued New Year's Eve, and get to bed early so we can leave for Mexico early on Friday morning. We plan to be in San Carlos for a month, and expect it will be a nice new adventure.

We are getting more calls about bookings for Armageddon, and we are hoping to firm up more dates while sitting on the beach in Mexico! Stay tuned....

Holiday Greetings

Merry Christmas everyone! It's been a while since we last reported, so lets get up to date. We celebrated Channukah from the 11th to the 18th. As usual we lit the candles, sang the songs, and observed our traditions. We also went to the Jewish deli here and had matzo ball soup and chopped liver sandwiches. Yum!

On the 21st. we celebrated Marlene's birthday. We roasted a leg of lamb, had a nice bottle of Australian wine, and generally had a good time. After her birthday, Marlene decided to prepare food for Christmas. She made perogies and cabbage rolls from scratch, a real trick in a kitchen as small as in our trusty Georgie Boy! Marlene also used some of her treasured dried mushrooms to make mushrooms in cream, a job that takes 2 days to complete. She really is the "McGuiver" of the kitchen.

On Wednesday the 23rd. we went to the pot luck dinner at the RV park. We took a Caesar salad. The dinner was served from 5 til 7, and we got there at 5 on the dot. Good thing, because by 5:15 all the food was gone! The park provided ham, mashed potatoes and veggies. The guests were to supply the rest. Well, only about a third of the guests brought anything at all, and most of them brought deserts! We met a strange couple, a woman in her 70's who travels in an RV all the time with her son in his 30's. She had so many far fetched stories to tell, we needed hip waders to keep out of the B...S.... We also met a cowboy who hadn't slept in a bed for months. He has an old trailer here now and for him it's a mansion! We meet some real characters here.

Last night (Christmas Eve) we stayed in and herb roasted a chicken for dinner, and watched the incomparable Alastair Sim in A Chistmas Carol. This is always a great movie for the night before Christmas.

Today, we had special coffee's for breakfast, and opened the gifts Miranda and Dustin had sent us. We were very impressed with the thought that had gone into these gifts. Marlene actually was in tears looking at the wonderful scrapbook Miranda had made for us. We watched Miracle on 34 st. this afternoon, and this evening Marlene dished up her wonderful Christmas dinner. It was great! In addition to the perogies, cabbage rolls, and mushrooms we had grilled polish sausage, pickled beets and pickled herring. Our New Year's resolution will be to lose a bit of weight! Tonight we'll watch It's a Wonderful Life and have some left over chocolate birthday cake and a drink or two.

Now we will plan our next adventure. We're leaving on New Year's day for San Carlos, Mexico. It's a coastal community about 275 miles south of Tucson. We'll tow the Echo behind us so we have transportation while there. We're expecting to stay there for a month, getting in some nice beach time.

We'll be back in Tucson for February, because we are excited to have Miranda and Dustin visit us for a few days. We're saving up some things to do while they're here, like going to Old Tucson, and the Air and Space Museum. Miranda also wants to visit a Victoria's Secret store, and the flea market.

On another note, we've got our first bookings for Armageddon. We'll be doing shows in Oregon and California at the end of May and first weekend in June. We've also got some leads for shows in April in Quebec, and March in Oklahoma. After the holidays we'll start a phone campaign to augment the email campaign we've been running, and hopefully book some more jobs. Our goal for this year is 15 to 18 jobs.

We wish all of you following our exploits a fantastic year in 2010. We'll try to keep our blog up to date while in Mexico. Stay tuned....

We Try to Buy Real Estate...Again

On Wednesday we went to Phoenix to check out the place. We looked at 10 properties, didn't like any. In fact, we didn't like Phoenix at all. It's another big, smoggy city. Heavy traffic, no parks (that we saw), very jammed together. Tucson is much nicer, with plenty of open space and parks.

Yesterday we went to Coolidge, a small town in between Tucson and Phoenix. We saw seven properties, and were interested in three of them. They are pretty old and run down, but cheap! So we called a realtor, and arranged to meet him and see the inside of the three we found interesting.

The first one is a large mobile home permanently situated on two large lots. It has a nice shop building as well. The house is in pretty good shape, and has a kitchen Marlene likes. Unfortunately, it is surrounded by dumpy, garbage strewn, run down or abandoned properties. It is also not in town, but 8 minutes away. It's listed at $25000.

Number two is a 1000 sq. ft. house built in the 50's. We could not see inside it because the keys were mysteriously missing! The realtor called the listing broker, and was told there are many offers on the property already, and too bad about the keys! It's listed at $19000.

Number three is a 1200 sq. ft. house built in the 30's. We couldn't see this one, because the listing broker had failed to note in the listing that they have multiple offers and the bank has not accepted any. It's listed at $10000.

We have now learned that the games realtors play in Vegas are the same here. They leave enticing listings on the active list, when they know that they cannot sell them. They hope to use the listings to pull prospective buyers in for bait and switch. We are pissed off, as was the agent who tried to show the properties to us.

We are now done with realtors. Each time we've bought a great property, we've done it our own way, despite what the agents had all told us. We'll look for a seller who is just as frustrated with realtors as we are.

The search continues...

Huge Windstorm Rocks Georgie Boy

Last night we had a HUGE windstorm here. At times we thought we'd be blown away in our trusty Georgie Boy. There were weather warnings broadcast all night long, with rain and even snow in higher elevations. But we're actually lucky. Many areas of the US are being hit with much more severe winter weather.

Marlene has decorated our little Christmas tree, and we've got our Hannukah menorah out and ready for the first night of Hannukah on Friday. Today we went in search of some Hannukah candles, and found them at a little Jewish deli/ market. While there we indulged ourselves with matzoh ball soup and chopped liver sandwich.

We have approved the proofs of our fan cards and business cards, and we're now waiting to hear that they've been printed. The prices for printing here are less than 50% of what we were quoted in Edmonton for similar work.

We've also been sending out emails to tracks across the US and Canada. So far we've sent 347 emails. We hope to get some response, but will probably need to start phoning tracks right after Christmas. We really want to line up some jobs for Armageddon starting in late January or early February.

My friend Andy had an interesting idea. He suggests maybe we should arrange "Dental Tourism" trips for Canadians looking to save money and get away from the cold. Something to think about, for sure.

Stay tuned....

Dentists in Mexico?

Today we went to Nogales, Mexico to see the dentist. My tooth had been causing me great pain for 4 days, and had become unbearable, so it was time to bite the bullet (LOL) and see a dentist. Dentists in Arizona charge about the same as in Edmonton, in other words EXPENSIVE. But dentists in Mexico charge about 70% LESS, so I did some research.

There are many kinds of dentists in Mexico. Many operate in the border towns. The closest border town to Tucson is Nogales, Mexico, the twin city to Nogales, Arizona. There are over 150 dental clinics in Nogales, and 1500 pharmacies too. I wanted a dentist who worked to U.S. standards, and my research led me to Dental Advanced, a clinic with three dentists. They had many good references from American patients, and were obviously considered up to standards because they are acceptable to the big North American insurers. Check them out at www.dentalnogales.com .

I called yesterday morning, and they said I could come in today at 11:00. I asked how far they are from the border crossing, and the polite receptionist told me they were just 3 blocks from the crossing, and she would be happy to meet us there and walk us to the clinic!

This morning we left at about 9:00 and headed south. Nogales is only an hour south of Tucson, and once we got to Nogales, AZ we parked the car in a secure lot and walked across the border into Mexico. Again, we are struck with a bit of culture shock at the change that takes place just by crossing the road. Using the map supplied by the clinic, we decide to walk unaided to the the dentist's office. Other than being called upon by every shop-keeper along the way to see "the best prices in town", we found the clinic with no problem.

Met by Veronica, a well spoken young lady who immediately told us she had been waiting for our call to come and escort us. We told her that we didn't need to take her away from work when we could find our own way. She gave me a medical history form to fill in, and after completing that I was immediately taken into an exam room, even though we were 25 minutes early!

The exam room was filled with the most up to date equipment. Two dentists and two assistants settled me in, asked about my problem and immediately started shooting pictures with a fantastic digital instant xray system. Each shot was displayed on the 36" flat screeen TV above me, in colour and everything! Dr. Miguel took a dozen shots, then called in another Dr. and the three of them started speaking rapid fire Spanish to each other, pointing at the pictures. Then they stopped, and apologized for not speaking in English, but they are having a problem figuring out why I am having pain since there are no cavities, no infections, and no absesses. Time for more pictures, this time with old fashioned film. After 5 minutes the films are returned and the doctors pore over them together. A collective AHHH.... and they turn to me smiling and tell me they have a diagnosis. Tartar build up after 20 years of not going to the dentist has moved my teeth, causing a top tooth to press on a lower molar, moving it in the gum and exposing the root... hence the pain. They announce they have agreed that I need a total deep cleaning, a grinding of one tooth, and laser surgery to close the gap in the gum.

Now I ask the important questions: When can it be done, and what will the cost be? More rapid fire Spanish, and then Veronica the receptionist is called in to explain in American English exactly what is needed. The work will be completed in about an hour and a half and the cost will be in "hundreds of dollars". I gulp, and ask Veronica "How many hundreds of dollars?" She looks confused for a moment, then tells me "One hundreds of dollars." I nod agreement, and they get to work.

For an hour and a half they all work non-stop on me, trading places as needed. In the back room someone starts playing the piano in a most amazing demostration of musical skill. Must have been Dr. Mike, the only one not in and out of my room. Marlene had been patiently sitting in the waiting room, and she thought that the steady grinding noises from my exam room sounded like jackhammers on concrete. She too apppreciated the wonderful music emanating from the concert pianist in the back.

All done, and my smile is much improved, and the pain is diminishing rapidly. I'm given a prescription for anti-inflammatories, and even told where to get it filled. I pay my $100, and the Dr.'s come out to tell me I should have my wisdom teeth removed to make things easier on my other teeth. A maxillofacial surgeon will be brought in from Guadalahara University, and they can remove the teeth right there. Cost will be $250, and it can be done in December. In Edmonton in 1990 I was quoted $7500 to do the same job! With many thanks to all the staff at the clinic, we took our leave, and went browsing the shops, looking at junk.

We decided to have something to eat, so we went into Olivias's Restaurant (it looked nice and clean) and had a very nice lunch, complete with free margaritas. A bit pricey, we thought, but good food, and we were serenaded by a couple of mariachis. We then walked back to the border, and lined up (for 45 minutes) to cross and pick up our car. An hour later we were back home.

What we can tell you about dentists in Mexico is this: Don't pick the ones that advertise "Dental Cheapo" or some such. Go for a 5 star place like we did. The extra $20 it costs is well worth it.

Happy Turkey Day

Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers! Yes, it is a really big deal here in the U.S.A. Yesterday we went shopping for groceries and bought a 12.6 pound turkey for just $5. Marlene is ecstatic! Then we picked up our new team uniform shirts. We're pleased with the way they look.

At 4:00 we went to the RV park pot luck Thanksgiving dinner. We weren't sure what to expect, but we were pleasantly surprised. The food was really good. The management provided turkey, ham, potatoes and veggies, and the visitors provided the rest. We brought a mediterranean roasted eggplant and pepper salad, and it seemed to go over well.

We ate too much, as is expected at Thanksgiving, and met some of the other people staying here. Unfortunately, the fellow at the table with us wouldn't stop talking, so we really didn't get a chance to speak with anyone else. True, he had some interesting tales, as he and his wife have been travelling the world for the past 13 years, but he really did go on!

Tomorrow we will cook up our cheap turkey, for Shabbat. Probably drink more of this nice California wine we've been buying for $2.97 at Walmart. We will stay clear of all stores tomorrow, because it is Black Friday here. This is like Boxing Day in Canada, stores open at 5 a.m. and offer steep discounts.

Sunday we are planning to take ARMAGEDDON out for a test run. Of course, the weather here has been 75 and sunny just about every day, but now they are forecasting 65 and rain for the weekend. What're you goin' to do?

Monday we may need to take a drive to Nogales, Mexico (about an hour away) to consult a dentist about a persistent toothache. Apparently they offer U.S. standard care at 70% discount. We'll keep you informed...

Down south, Mexico way

Yesterday we drove to Puerto Penasco, Mexico (AKA: Rocky Point). Took a little under 4 hours to get there from Tucson. Entering Mexico the border guard didn't ask where we were going, how long we were staying, or even to see I.D., but she did check over the lunch that Marlene had packed!

As we headed southwest the scenery changed from Saguaro cacti and rocks to sandy flat land, then to dunes as we approached the Sea of Cortez. As usual whenever we enter a third world country, both Marlene and I were struck by culture shock. The strange sights of shacks built alongside million dollar mansions, the federal police travelling in groups of 6 armed to the teeth, the trash strewn everywhere, these are all a bit jarring at first.

The first thing we noticed in Puerto Penasco is that the town seems quite dead. There are beautiful condo complexes and hotels along the beaches, but hardly any tourists. The worldwide financial collapse has had a hard effect on this place. Our purpose this trip was to scout out the RV parks for a place to stay in December. They are almost empty!

The first place we looked at turned out to be the most appealing to us. It is large, open, and right on the beach. Unfortunately, even though the place is almost empty, they have not reduced their rates like the others we visited. Maybe we can grind out a deal, we'll see.

The beach is lovely, and quiet. Only drawback is the distance to the shops, which will require driving ten minutes. As expected, merchants selling jewelry and other junk did approach us, but a quick "no gracias" and a smile sent them on their way. Not as aggressive as the sales people we've encountered in Caribbean countries.

We went to the Old Port area, and walked the Malecon (the sea-front boardwalk). Here are the usual shops selling souvenirs, but also a lot of fish markets selling seafood right off the boats that are moored here. Everyone we spoke with was friendly, polite, and helpful. We got a little lost, and stopped to ask directions from two fellows at the side of the road. The spokesman (Arturro) was thrilled to hear we were Canadians, and had to tell us about his friends from Calgary. They produced a map, and gave us concise directions, and didn't ask for anything, although I did slip Arturro a couple of bucks as we left.

The two things we have to come to grips with before we decide to spend a month or two in Puerto Penasco are whether we can overlook the third worldliness of the place, and whether we can find something to do when sitting at the beach (besides drinking, eating and reading).

We headed back to the border at about 4:30 because we didn't want to drive in Mexico in the dark. At the border the US guards are armed with M16's, and take their time tapping door panels and looking under the car. The unsmiling guard questioned us, and released us. A bit different attitude than at the Canadian/ US border!

Driving back we encountered deer, coyote, and fox on the road, requiring a bit of driving skill to avoid in the dark. We came upon one of the ubiquitous Border Patrol checkpoints on the highway, and the agent there asked us the usual "all American citizens?". The shocked look on his face when we answered "No, we're Canadians" was something to see. He told us he never sees Canadians, and wanted to ask us about where we're from, etc. But then his young female colleague decided to tap on the window on the opposite side of the car, and surprised a just awoken Ben, causing him to go "Cujo" on her. The guy gave up on the small talk, and waved us on. We got home at about 8:00, tired and hungry.

Hasta Luego!

The Green Desert

On Saturday we went to Catalina State Park, just to the north of Tucson, in the mountains. What a beautiful place! We hiked two different trails, and were amazed at the variety and abundance of plant life. Not what we think of when we hear the word "desert". The weather was nice for it: A bit cloudy which kept the temperature down to about 68, not much wind, and the rains held off for us.

Sunday we went to a large used book store and stocked up on some reading material. They have a great selection. After picking up books, we went to a nice bakery for some fresh rye bread, then decided to try the other dim sum place in Tucson. What a disappointment! We couldn't get served any food. The waitresses just totally ignored us as they ran around taking the food carts to all the Chinese people while we went hungry. Finally got fed up and tracked down the owner and asked if we were going to get served or if we should just leave. Instead of sending the girls with their carts over to us, he started carrying over plates of different food for us to look at. What a poorly run place. The food, when we finally got some, was good. Oh well, that's it for dim sum in Tucson. Guess we'll have to wait until we're on the road again before we get to try some more.

Today we have some chores to do: grocery shopping, banking, post office, etc. Tomorrow we hope to take a day trip to Puerto Penasco, Mexico to check out possible RV parks for us for December.

Things are moving along... slowly

Good news to report: The Echo had finally arrived! Took long enough, but we're glad it's here. We've been getting the trailer rigged out, installed some cabinets and stuff, going to install the air compressor tomorrow.

Marlene has been busy removing Tim Arfons name from the sides of the car, and polishing up the paint. We hope to have everything ready to go by the end of the week. After the car is ready, we hope to take a two day break in Puerto Penasco, Mexico to check out the real estate situation and spend some time on the beach.

We have our new ARMAGEDDON web site up and running. You can find it at www.armageddonjetcar.com . It's a bit simple right now, but we'll expand it as we go along.

The RV park we are at is quite near a HUGE truck stop, and there is a restaurant there called "Omar's Highway Cafe" which always seems busy with truckers, cops, and lots of other folks. So we decided to give it a try tonight, and we were pleasantly surprised. The fare is simple, but tasty, quality, and in HUGE portions. We will probably go back sometime for their "world famous" deep dish apple pie and ice-cream. Stay tuned...

We try to get some Dim Sum

Today we wanted to have some Dim Sum after suffering withdrawals after 3 weeks without. There are only 2 Dim Sum restaurants in Tucson, and we chose the one with the better online ratings. Were we ever disappointed! The selection was poor, the service lacking, and the prices enough to anger Marlene (who as we all know is tough to anger). We were enticed (actually nagged) by the waitress to order the seasonal snow pea greens. "velly healthy, velly delicious". Well we got a huge heap of greens alright, and the price on the bill: $14.95. WOW. We complained about the price, to no avail. Told them we won't be back, they just shrugged. So much for that place.

After that experience we needed some spiritual reinforcement, so we decided to go and visit the Mission San Xavier, located just south of Tucson on an Indian reservation. The church was quite impressive, and well preserved since its construction in 1692. After touring the mission and attached museum, we went to one of the food stalls in the parking lot and had an Indian fried flat bread. Yummy!

Next we visited the Crafts Market at the mission, and met a silversmith/ actor who showed us his album of photos of himself taken on various movie and TV sets with actors like Keifer Sutherland, Emilio Estevez, Melissa Gilbert, and many others. He played in over a dozen big box office movies. Quite an interesting guy.

We left the mission and headed further south to Green Valley. There we visited a decommisioned Titan 2 missile silo with attached museum.

We have to return our rental car tomorrow, and our Echo is delayed (again), so we'll be car-less for a couple of days. We hope to visit Mexico next weekend, and start looking at places to stay there.

Tucson

Yesterday was a frustrating day. Started off O.K., rented a car for a few days until the Echo arrives. The pick-up driver was only 1/2 an hour late to pick us up. Got a free upgrade from an economy car to a Hyundai Elantra with XM sattelite radio. Quite a nice car, actually, but it seems to use a lot of gas. Then we went to get a US cell phone. Since our broadband card is with Verizon, and we've been pleased with the service, we decided to stick with Verizon. We went to Best Buy, and the trouble began. First, there were only two sales people working in cell phones, and they were busy with customers who couldn't make up their minds. The staff kept taking personal calls, and the customers kept wandering off to other departments, only to be hunted down by the staff who needed more info from them.

After half an hour of waiting, we interupted the sales manager and asked if he couldn't get someone else to help. He seemed surprised at the idea, but got another associate. She couldn't figure out how to activate the phone we wanted. After 6 tries on the computer, she finally followed our advice and decided to actually phone Verizon. Just one problem, all the phones she tried calling on were dead! The idea of going to use a landline was obviously too much for her, so after another 20 minutes of this nonsense we decided to leave. Asked to speak to the store manager on the way out, and told him what had transpired. His answer: These things sometimes happen. Verizon is the problem! We left in a rage.

Next, we decided to go back to Georgie Boy and find a Verizon corporate store online. Just one problem, the computer died on boot-up and displayed the "blue screen of death". An hour of heavy duty restoration got the computer working again, we looked up the local stores, and headed out. The first store on the list: Gone. The next store: lined up with us #9 on the list to be served. After finally speaking with a sales rep (1/2 an hour later) he comes out with two phones, neither of which is the one we had chosen. Apparently the phone we wanted was out of stock. He told us that "no one wants that phone, it's too simple". He kept trying to sell us different phones, each of which cost more of course. Asked him to check if any other stores have the phone we want. YES, across the street in the mall they have one! Asked him to get it, he refused, so we went across the street to a tiny store. Another line-up. We told the greeter we would not wait more than 5 minutes for service. She balked, so we LOUDLY suggested we'd go across the mall to the T-Mobile store. NOW we got service. This sales rep was professional, personable, and efficient. Not only did they have the phone we wanted, they had 83 of them. Their second most popular seller he says!

We go through the paperwork, as quickly as possible, then get hit with another surprise. The price quoted was actually after a mail-in rebate. Told him we're not interested in mail-ins, just give us the price on the price card, and sort out the rebate internally. He didn't argue, just got his manager who agreed and the deal was finally done. If your'e keeping track, the whole episode took 3 hours, and brought our blood pressure to the danger point. Take our advice, NEVER SHOP AT BEST BUY!

Next, it was time to go and arrange a local mailbox. Found the place, and luckily it was next door to our favourite 99 cent store, so Marlene went shopping while I went through the 9 pages of forms to open a mailbox! Never seen so much useless information collected. The poor clerk was new, and had to keep phoning her boss to find out how to fill all the forms out. Finally got done with that after 35 minutes. Marlene was still shopping, so I joined her and we bought a pile of fresh veggies, water, cleaning supplies, etc. for the grand sum of $24. Love that 99 cent store!

Finally, we returned home, to find Ben a bit scared after being left so long and the sun had already set. Marlene whipped up a nice dinner of fish and veggies, we had a few drinks, and relaxed to watch TV. What a day!

This morning we decided some R & R was called for, so we went to see the old Presidio district. It was very nice, with many old Spanish buildings. We wanted to see the cathedral, but it was closed. We did, however, see the Freemasons Cathedral. Very cool, but we don't really get Freemasonry. Have to learn more about it. We picked up some literature at the downtown Visitor's Center, and now have some other things we want to see. We stopped at Walmart to buy a water filter for Georgie Boy (the water here tastes and smells awful), and went home for lunch and a nap. Tonight it will be time to start working on the new website for Armageddon (the jet car). Stay tuned...

We're Here

Yes, we are finally at our destination, Tucson. The drive from Las Cruces was uneventful. We figured we would stop at the first rest area in Arizona, but for some reason it was closed. Continuing on, we were all in need of a potty break, so we pulled into San Simon. What a little hole that was. But, we attended to business, took a picture and moved on.

The next rest area was open, so we stopped for a nice lunch and picture taking.

Rolling on to Tucson, we found the storage facility for our trailer without difficulty, and after completing reams of paperwork, we were assigned an parking spot. Wow, was this tight to get the trailer into. But, with a lot of wiggling and manuevering, we did it. Temperature of 90 was no help!

After dropping off the trailer, we then proceeded to the RV park where we will stay for a month or so. It is pretty basic, but has all the neccessary facilities, and is only a few miles from the storage facililty. The near by airforce base provides some entertainment as we can see fighters flying low passes and approaches in formation.

Here we will stay while we sort out Armageddon and the business, and set up our winter base. Once the Echo arrives (who knows when) we will set up the trailer for work, and then go and visit Mexico.

If our reports become sporadic, it's because we don't have anything interesting to report. Stay tuned... we'll try to keep it interesting.

A Slow News Day

Today was uneventful. After our big breakfast, we left late, around 11:00 a.m. got some gas, and hit the interstate. Beautiful sunny, warm day required the use of air conditioning. We wanted to see the Gila cave dwellings, but when we exited the interstate and stopped for directions at a cool little store/ gas station/ RV park we found it would take us 100 miles out of our way (each way). We did see a couple of RV park/ horse motels along the way, and Ben got a chance to see a guy riding a horse.

Ben is having trouble with his paw, since getting burr in it. Hasn't diminished his appetite, however!

We did see several places with strange names: Elephant Butt, Darrey Arrey, and Truth or Consequences.

Arrived in Las Cruces, New Mexico (near El Paso, Texas) at about 5:00 p.m., which turned out to be 4:00 p.m. since the time zone mysteriously changed for no apparent reason. We stopped for gas, and Georgie Boy was thirsty, because we had spent the day crossing the mountains, going up and down, up and down. Too bad the gas prices here are about 20 cents a gallon more than Oklahoma and Texas. We then stopped at Albertsons for some fresh meat. This was much less expensive than Oklahoma or Texas, so we stocked up a bit. Booze is also cheaper here, so we replenished our supplies.

Then it was off to another Walmart for the evening. This one is really busy, and the parking is tight.

Tomorrow is the last leg of our 4000 mile trip. We hope to leave early, and get to Tucson in plenty of time to put Armageddon into a storage facility before checking into our RV park for the month. So it's early bed tonight, after a dinner of liver and onions.

Hasta la vista....

Only Two More Days to Go

We left Amarillo and headed west across the rest of the Texas panhandle. The winds were light, and that is a good thing. In all the other states we passed through, the anti-littering signs were polite requests to not litter, and some tell us the fines if caught. Texas, however, takes a different approach. Its signs read: "DON'T MESS WITH TEXAS!" You almost expect an armed litter cop to jump out and shoot you if you drop a gum wrapper. There is one town in Texas that REQUIRES every resident over 16 to have a gun. Since enacting that bylaw several years ago the crime rate has dropped to zero. Food for thought....

We dawdled along because its a short drive day. After crossing the state line into New Mexico we stopped at a Flying J truck stop and dumped our tanks and filled up with water. The water has a strong smell and taste. We are now back in the Mountain Time zone, so maybe our time lag feeling will dissipate now. Shortly after crossing the state line we came upon a large rest area/ info centre. It was busy, and there were actually staff handing out lots of literature and free coffees. They had a brontosaurus hip bone on display. Both of us immediately thought of Fred Flintstone, and had cravings for Brontosaurus burgers. Yaba-Daba-Doo!

The weather is clear, sunny and beautiful, and the scenery is like something from an old western movie. You can almost see the Indians riding the high plains. New Mexico is mostly Indian lands, and there are many different tribes here, each with its own language and customs. Unfortunately, the ground is covered with plants that drop nasty burrs everywhere. They get caught on everything, especially Ben's paws. And they hurt! He didn't like them, but he also didn't like having them removed. Ouch!

We stopped at a rustic rest area high in the mountains of New Mexico, and Marlene decided to cook up a huge lunch of stroganoff, salad and mashed spuds. It was great. We got into the spirit of the wild west by watching a Bonanza video while eating.

Made the mistake of extending out bedroom slide-out. We were sitting on quite a hill, and didn't bother to level the motorhome. When it came time to leave, the slide would not retract. Oh boy... after messing about and leveling Georgie Boy, we finally got it back in.

We drove through Albuquerque on our way to Los Lunas Walmart (about 20 miles south) which is our overnight stop. Albuquerque is a huge, spread out city. There was snow along the road before Albuquerque. We were over 5000 ft. up.

At Los Lunas, we decided to celebrate Halloween with KFC chicken. We walked to the restaurant, only to find that an 8 piece meal costs $19! Holy smokes... Marlene, the budget queen, freaked out at the prices. We returned to Walmart, and for $9 at the deli we got a whole rotisserie chicken, a pound of coleslaw and over a pound of home fries. We gorged ourselves, and washed it all down with red wine (of course). Then we settled in for a night of watching Young Frankenstein (a Halloween tradition) and drinking bourbon.

Sunday morning we're enjoying a lazy lie-in and a big breakfast before heading south to Las Cruces. A short drive because we can't stay at Walmarts in Arizona for some reason. We hope to be in Tucson early Monday afternoon. We are all getting a bit tired of the constant movement, and need to sit still for a while. This is probably the longest trip over the shortest time we will do, but it was necessary for business.

Deep in the Heart of Texas

Here we are in Amarillo, Texas, right in the middle of the Texas Panhandle. We left Oklahoma City with clear skies, cold and high winds. The driving was tough, but not as bad as yesterday. At least it was sunny. We planned a shorter drive today, and loafed along a bit.

Our first stop was at the only Oklahoma rest area that was of a quality close to those award winning rest areas in Missouri. It was in Erick, Oklahoma, right by the state line. Marlene fried up the left over perogies and kubasa, and we took Ben for a long walk. He then was happy to sit and look at all the semis coming and going.

We have been amazed at the staggering number of semis on the interstate. It is a constant river of trucks, many of which carry "drivers wanted" signs. We also note that at many rest stops there are free trucker magazines available, also listing many jobs and owner/ operator opportunities.

Back on the road, we crossed the state line into Texas, and came across a fabulous rest area. We figured this was a good opportunity to get some excersise, so we walked Ben again! First thing we noticed were the "Beware of rattle snake" signs.

For the past 300 miles we have been seeing billboards advertising a free 72 oz. steak dinner, free that is to anyone who can finish it in one hour! Mike was considering stopping and attempting the gastronomical feat, but Marlene is wise, and reminded him that he isn't 25 any more!

Filled up with gas just before Amarillo, and Georgie Boy was thirsty after running into headwinds all day. Love the accents of the staff in the gas station.

Pulled into Walmart at Amarillo at 5:00, and took Ben for another long walk, then stocked up on groceries for the next few days. Marlene was planning a big dinner for Shabbat, but in Walmart we found pizzas for only $3.33, so we decided to have a supreme pizza. We had purchased a gallon jug of Sangria in Brownsburg for only $10, because it reminded Marlene of the jugs of wine her dad used to keep. Unfortunately, we've almost finished the jug, and Walmart in Texas doesn't sell liquor. They do, however, sell firearms and ammunition! A side note: In Rolla, MO the clinic next door to Walmart had signs in the window saying: No concealed weapons please. Were not in Canada anymore, Toto!

Armageddon has survived the trip so far. Can't wait to fire her up again. Wonder if Walmart would mind a little fire show in the parking lot tonight.

Byyye Y'all til t'morra....

Hell Day on the Road

We woke in Rolla, MO to rain and high winds. The weather then got worse! For the rest of the day we fought terrible crosswinds and torrential rains. We even were hearing tornado warnings on the radio! Our faithful Georgie Boy is a handful in the winds, but with the trailer attached it is four hands full. Glad we decided on the electric brakes for the trailer, since we used them a lot to straighten out each time we got hit with a huge wind gust. Mike's arms and shoulders got a good workout today.

We took an international detour, and filled up with gas in Lebanon (Missouri that is)! Burned a lot of gas on the next leg, due to winds and the Ozark mountains (which are big hills). We were in need of propane, and to empty our sewer holding tanks, so we stopped at a Flying J truck stop in Joplin, Missouri. Just as we arrived, so did a thunder storm. No propane can be pumped during an electrical storm. Oh well, Marlene made lunch, and we settled down to wait. But... another RV from Texas pulled in behind us, and when he learned he couldn't get propane immediately, he wanted to leave. He couldn't back up his rig, so we kindly moved out of his way, manoeuvring our 60' long rig around for him. Since we had to move anyway, we decided to take that time to dump the tanks. Of course, that is when the rain REALLY hit. Mike was standing outside in a lake, in a huge rainstorm, doing the nasty business of tank dumping. He looked like a drowned rat!

We finally got our propane, and hit the road, only to find our Texas travellers stopped 5 miles up the way, so we actually made time on them, and we accomplished all our tasks too. After Joplin, we hit the Oklahoma state line, and the first of 3 toll-roads. We ended up spending a total of $23.30 in tolls in only 2 hours! We saw more police cars in 3 hours in Oklahoma than in our whole trip to date. They raise money for their poor state by tolls, tickets, fines, etc. The difference between Missouri and Oklahoma is striking. The homes in Missouri are large, beautiful, well kept houses. In Oklahoma it's shacks, sheds, and ratty mobile homes. We heard a joke on the Oklahoma radio station about people living a double wide lifestyle on a single wide budget. If you don't understand, it's mobile home humour.

Finally, we arrived at the Walmart Supercenter in Oklahoma city. First thing we noticed is we lost the temporary Indiana license plate on the trailer, probably because it was made of paper. Lucky we have our Alberta plate from the tow dolly. Armageddon survived the stormy drive just fine. We, however, were so stressed, we decided to forgo our usual Thursday night tradition of pasta night, and Marlene is treating us to perogies and kubasa that we carefully packed in Edmonton. Large glasses of bourbon are also called for.

Since we are a day ahead of schedule, we decided to change our itinerary and shorten our daily mileage. We are now re-jigging our route, and will try to stop more often and smell the roses! Stay tuned...

Westward Ho!

We woke this morning after a night of torrential rains, to a better looking day. Made some adjustments to the motorhome rear view camera, and checked on the safety of Armageddon in the trailer. Paul had been at work in his shop since 6:00 a.m., and when we rose at 7:30 he said: "Oh, you're finally up. What time is it in Alberta?" What a character! We decided a photo shoot was in order, check out the pics we've posted today. Marlene told them that she felt like a Munchkin beside them. Me too! They are really nice people, and we hope to see them in California in March. After our good-byes, and hugs between the girls (Paul rejected my hug!), we carefully backed out their driveway, and headed for the highway.

Immediately the weather turned dark and gloomy. We travelled through Indiana, and stopped for lunch at really nice rest area in Illinois. Then we entered Missouri, and found going through St. Louis was very nerve wracking, and Marlene couldn't look at the road with 4 lanes of traffic wizzing by and overpasses, interchanges, and general freeway madness. However, we got a good look at the famous arch, and even Ben was impressed! The old buildings and the Busch Arena were quite interesting in design.

After St. Louis, the scenerey changed. It was nice to see vineyards and wineries instead of cornfields. Tonight we stay at the Rolla, Missouri Walmart. Wonder if it's any different from all the others? Stay tuned...

Made it!

We left our campsite near St. Louis late, around 11:00, and started the last leg of this part of our trip. An uneventful drive most of the way, until about an hour before Indianapolis where the road turned bad and we got shaken up for the whole hour! We finally reached the Indy area, and the highway was closed due to a semi rollover, probably caused by the road condition! Anyway, our trusty GPS led us by another route, and we ended up at the Walmart in Brownsburg. We are shocked at the prices of groceries at Walmart here. The selection is poor, and prices are worse than in Edmonton. Can't wait to head west, where we can shop at the 99 cent stores again (hopefully).

This morning we rose early, and prepared for a busy day. First, we went shopping to be fitted with the remainder of protective clothing for driving the jet car, at Impact Race Products. Then we navigated our way through Indianapolis to the place where we were to drop off the Toyota for shipping on to Tucson. Then we washed the car, so it could be inspected (it was FILTHY). The drop off went well, they were prepared for us, and very professional. While at Hobbs Transport (the drop off) we asked about a truck wash for the motorhome, and were directed to the nearest one. We were also told to avoid the I465 north for a while, as a tanker truck had rolled and exploded. Traffic was apparently standing still for hours. What's with all these truck rollovers?? These folks were so helpful, what a pleasure to deal with them.

We met a fellow coming out of the indoor shooting range, an 84 year old country musician who claims to have been featured on Hee Haw! He was entranced by Ben, and had to tell us about his dog. Another really nice person.

We made it to the truck wash, and had a crew of guys hosing and scrubbing old Georgie Boy down. Looks great now.

Tomorrow we go to pick up the new trailer, and then to meet with Paul Stender and get the jet.

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Stay tuned...

We see the heartland of America...

When last we reported, we were in Fargo, North Dakota. After an uneventful night at Walmart we headed south. A long, mostly boring drive of 422 miles. We saw miles and miles of corn fields, and we wonder if this in response to the US subsidy of ethanol, because we saw several ethanol plants and found that premium gas (which contains ethanol) is actually cheaper than regular! Go figure. We passed through South Dakota, and a lot of Iowa before ending up in Council Bluffs, Iowa, which is right beside Omaha, Nebraska. We pulled into a huge Walmart/ Sams Club and found a nice parking spot for the night. There were a few others staying the night, including cars, vans and RV's. Grocery prices here were much the same as Alberta. In the morning we woke to a sunny day, but cold and frosty.

After a few hours on the interstate heading south, the temperture rose, and the scenery changed. Missouri is very pretty with the fall leaves, the hills, and the rivers and streams. Kansas City is HUGE. We had no idea. All the way south the interstate is being ripped up and rebuilt. Stimulus money in action. It's impressive to see several hundred miles of construction!

While on the road, enjoying the great scenery and the spotless rest areas, we decided to try to find an RV campground for the night so we could empty our holding tanks, fill our water tank, and spread out a bit for the night. Walmarts are O.K., but sometimes its just nice to have a quiet spot where we can open our slide-outs and cook outside. We found a nice place just 40 miles west of St. Louis, and only $25 for the night! Ben the wonder dog particularily enjoys the trees, pond and birds and crickets. There are people next door deep frying and entire turkey outside. Our dinner is bangers and mash, which we are cooking right now. Tomorrow we have about 300 miles to Indianapolis, our destination for this leg of the trip, where we will pick up our trailer and the jet car. Stay tuned!

On the Road Again

Well here we are on the road again in our trusty Georgie Boy. This is going to be a long trip, mostly business but some fun stuff too. Our first stop was Saskatoon, nothing much to report, as the Walmart was the same as any other. The drive from Edmonton was trying, with fog and rain most of the way. We had a good night, and left early for the long drive to Portage La Prairie Manitoba. If the federal government wants to spend stimulus money, they really should pave the entire Yellowhead highway from the Alberta border to Winnipeg. The road is ATTROCIOUS. Large chunks of pavement are missing, the heaves and cracks shook the motorhome until we thought it would fall apart. The weeds in the ditches are waist high, there are dead animals squashed all over the road, and no one seems to clean anything. It is an embarassment to have a major highway in Canada look like a third world road.

We did see some interesting things though: Huge flocks of birds sitting in fields, or flying around in circles; strange collections of rusted cars and equipment lying around; and wierd signs for businesses. Gas was expensive, averaging 99.9 a litre, which hurts when we only get 8 miles to the gallon!

In Saskatchewan we uncovered what may be a huge hoax! We passed a sign directing us to Kandahar. It's now obvious to us that we really have no troops in Afganistan, they are all really in Saskatchewan playing war for the cameras. :)

Portage la Prairie was just another town, and the Walmart was just another Walmart, except it had a particularily large parking lot which was great for us.

Today we crossed the border at Emerson, MB. The US immigration official was courteous, and really didn't ask many questions at all, but he did send us to the Agricultural Inspector who insisted on going through our food and making sure we weren't importing any Canadian lamb (we only have New Zealand lamb on board) or fruits. Surprisingly, she didn't care about our tomatoes, but she had to read all the ingredients in Ben's dog food to make sure we didn't have any lamb bi-products! Go figure.

So now we are in Fargo, North Dakota. A lot like Winnipeg but with more stores. The Walmart we are at is HUGE and is attached to a Sams Club. The driving in the parking lot reminds me of the driving on the Las Vegas Speedway. We filled up with gas (2.59 a gallon/ .63 a litre), and bought some stuff for dinner. Since it's Thursday, it's pasta night. We also hit the liquor store, and bought 1.75 litres of bourbon for just $26 and a 1.5 litre bottle of Lindemans merlot for $11. That's half the price in Alberta, and no bottle deposits either!

Tomorrow we head for Council Bluffs, Iowa, then to Rolla, Missouri, and then our final destination of this leg of the journey: Brownsburg, Indiana, where we will pick up our new trailer, and then the jet car. We already have the firesuit, and will pick up accesories in Brownsburg. Then we'll drop off the Echo for shipping on to Tucson. We hope to spend a couple of days at Paul Stender's place figuring out the jet, and testing it at the local airport, before we head out for the long drive to Tucson, Arizona.

There'll be more stuff to report once we get into the whole jet car thing, and we'll keep you all updated, so stay tuned!

Plans are being made!

Well, finally we have news to report. On September 1 Mike went to Indianapolis to look at a jet powered car. After spending a couple of days with the owner of the car (Paul Stedner: http://www.indyboysinc.com/ ) Mike made a decision, and we are now the proud owners of the Armageddon 3/4 scale jet powered funny car.

Our plan is to campaign the car in different types of events from Monster Truck events, to circle tracks, to airshows. We will travel the U.S. (and maybe even some of Canada and Europe) putting on thrill shows for the crowds. This fits in with our original plan to travel extensively while keeping busy and having fun. We hope to find a place in Mexico where we will spend our off time, and we also need to find some shop space in the U.S. where we can base our operation and work on the car. It's all very exciting!

Welcome Home

Well, we are back in Edmonton. Wouldn't you know that the only bad weather (except for winds) that we encountered was on entering Canada!

Customs agent was more interested in whether we had had any repairs done on our vehicles in the U.S. than anything else. Guess you have to pay GST and duty on repair work! When entering the U.S., border agents come out to your vehicle and talk to you politely, and welcome you to USA. On entering Canada, fat agent sits in booth and is barely polite.

Things we have noticed along the way:

1. Americans seem polite, quick to talk to strangers, and generally helpfull;
2. American truckers have better road manners than Canadian truckers;
3. A lot of people in US seem to be nervous about Obama health plans;
4. Despite recession, people in both countries are still spending plenty on entertainment;
5. Cost of living in US cities we visited is lower than in Canada (a lot lower).

Now we will start planning our next trip, and settling on our business ideas. Will also see how difficult it is to settle back into living in one place with Miranda.

The Return

Last night we stayed at the Walmart in Pocatello, Idaho. Not much to report except that the parking lot was very small for a Walmart, and we had to squeeze ourselves in. We did buy a cheap microwave, and a nice toaster/ convection oven, so now Marlene can cook a full repetoir of recipes again!

We arrived in Great Falls, Montana a couple of hours ago. This Walmart has a huge parking lot, and there are a lot of RV's here tonight. Marlene cooked minestrone soup, lasagna, garlic toast, and salad.

Expect to hit the border tomorrow morning, and be back in Edmonton Friday a.m.

Yesterday was our last day on the salt here at Bonneville. We watched the action on the courses from about the 2 mile marker of the long course, and had a great view. There were quite a few 300+ mph runs.

Ben seemed to get a lot of attention, which he liked of course, including having his picture taken, being coddled, petted, and OOOHHH'd over! Since Ben has now been to Speed Week, he is officially a "salty dog".

We walked through the pits one last time, and bought some tee shirts. Many of the competitors have left, if they have set a new record, or realized that they weren't going to this year. They'll head home and work on improving their cars for next year.

We are also heading for home today. We hope to be back in Edmonton on Friday afternoon. Hope we have no more mechanical trouble. Yesterday our convection microwave oven quit working, and our batteries are not taking a charge properly. One of the things we've decided is that before we hit the road in October for the winter, we will install 5 new batteries, and a solar panel. We are going to replace the convection/ microwave with a separate convection oven and microwave setup, so if one dies the other will still work.

If service is available, we'll log on from Idaho next. Stay tuned...