January, 2003
Happy New Year!!!!                          We started off the New Year in cold and snowy Ohio.  We were still staying with our good friends, the Dews.  (They run a pretty good hotel at their house!)  We spent the first few days of the New Year once again visiting with various relatives and taking care of personal business that is easier to do in person in Ohio.  We got caught in a lovely snow and ice storm while driving out to Bowling Green to visit Tom's sister, Judy and her husband, Ron.  The usual 25 minute drive took us an hour and a half.  We decided to stay "in" for dinner.  But, by the time we were ready to get back on the road around 9pm, the plows and salt trucks had "done their thing."  We were able to get back to Waterville in short order.     On Friday night, Jan 3, we met Ann, Matt and the girls in Arlington, OH (the halfway point between Toledo and Marysville) for a pizza dinner....had to get those hugs and kisses from Coffey, Close and Merrick before going back to Arizona.  We were the only customers in the large restaurant, but their take-out business was going strong.....it was the night of the OSU Fiesta Bowl Game and we were in the heart of Buckeye Territory!!!!  We finished our dinner and went our separate ways so that we, too, could watch the game.  We were proud of our Ohio State Buckeyes!!!!!   And wasn't it odd that we were in Ohio and the Bucks were playing in the stadium just 45 minutes from our RV in Arizona.  We passed a lot of fans in the Chicago and Phoenix airports on our way back.                                           Our return to Arizona had a few "curves" thrown into the game plan.  We were supposed to leave from Toledo on Sat., Jan 4 around 6pm.  We had gone to the movies in the afternoon and Kathy and Dennie helped us put our Explorer back into storage and dropped us off at the airport.  Apparently, flights in Chicago were backed up, so our plane wasn't going to leave Toledo until after our flight to Phoenix had already departed from Chicago.  So....we had to surprise Dennie with a call to come back and get us and we stayed another night.  Our departure early Sunday morning went well, and luckily our phone message to Bev and Don in Palm Creek had been delivered, and they were able to meet us.

So, here we are....back home again in Arizona.  The population at Palm Creek has increased tremendously.  The line-up of RVs at the registration center is constant every day.  We're told that by Feb, all 2000 spaces will be full. At "open tennis" there are always players waiting their turn.  Tom decided that his ribs were healed well enough to get active again, and has played in the "mixed golf scrambles" several times now....even won first place on Tuesday, Jan 14.  Mary has continued her golf lessons...it will be a while before she wins any money at golf!  Tom has also come in first at duplicate bridge several times. (Think we'll have to open a new account for all these big winnings??)  We have also played mixed tennis round robbins and attended a Tennis Club get-together on Sunday afternoon, enjoying some good food and fun games.  The evening entertainment has been varied...country music and comedians so far.  A few RV dealers have been in the park, showing off their new coaches, so we continue to look and dream.  No purchases made yet!  Most afternoons around 4:00 we gather for "Happy Hour" with some of the neighbors - and any who happen by.  It's not a formal thing and we all disappear quickly when the sun goes down and the cool air moves in around 5:30.  We have greatly enjoyed the humor and friendliness of our Canadian neighbors, Peter and Cathy Nichita and Don and Bev McGovern.

"Happy Hour" at Nichita's coach
Wednesday, January 22 we became tourists once again.  We drove from Casa Grande on "back roads" to Florence and then Globe (AZ).  In Globe we took a quick walk through the Apache Gold Casino.  It was nice, but there were no Blackjack tables.  Since we were almost at the starting point anyway, we decided to drive the "Apache Trail."  From Globe we headed north towards Roosevelt.  At the Tonto National Monument we got a glimpse of the Sonoran Desert and the Tonto Valley along the Salt River.  Near the town of Roosevelt we saw the Roosevelt Dam across the Salt River.  The river's water level is quite low, but this was still the most water we've seen in any water bed around here.  Just past the dam, the pavement ends and we had to continue driving on a dirt, but well traveled road for about 20 miles.  The scenery was beautiful, but we were certainly glad we weren't in one of the stagecoaches that used to travel the road regularly.  Tortilla Flat is the one town along the road.  It consists of a few small buildings housing cafes, gift shops and a post office.  The road brought us back to Apache Junction on the east side of Phoenix, and from there we headed home. 
A cactus forest along the Apache Trail.
The Roosevelt Dam along the Salt River, AZ
Tortilla Flat, AZ (the whole town!)
One of our evening Mexican Train Dominos games with neighbors Bev and Cathie.
Monday, January 27 was the evening for our farewell dinner for Bev and Don McGovern.  They departed the next morning for their trip home to Kelowna, British Columbia.  They were wonderful neighbors and we will miss them.  We were joined for dinner by Peter and Cathie Nichita, their friends from home and also our neighbors here at Palm Creek (who will be staying on till the end of March).