Strange Birds

I've come across some really strange yard birds recently while browsing the Internet.

That said, I think Stu needs to make me one of these - which one would you choose?

Flamingo

"I don't know what it is" bird

Maybe a frog bird?

Cardinal bird?

While the above are all made from metal and recycled tools, these are made from PVC. You can learn more on this website.

Would you have one of these in your yard? Me - I love quirky and am thinking seriously about the "I don't know what it is" bird.


Ciao for now!

My kind of town....Quirksite, AZ

Ahhh, I think I am falling in love with Quartzsite or Quirksite as we renamed it today. I went to breakfast (that became lunch due to the long wait) with three lady rider friends. Two of them live locally, one in Sun City; two used to RV, one still does. Time passed quickly as we caught up as we waited and then ate. After that they took me on a tour of the area.

The first stop was the Reader's Oasis owned by Paul Winer. The store is new but not the merchandise. It's well stocked with magazines, books, and an assortment of music & video selections....all used and there are several spots you can pick up something free (books, magazines). For me the biggest thrill was finding an old issue of RV Companion magazine. I was a part-time columnist, initially covering health topics (Healthy Trails) and later on topics interesting Baby Boomers (like motorcycling). I also designed and maintained their website. One of the issues featured Quartzsite and had my column covering the March of Dimes Bikers for Babies charity run in Ft Pierce, FL.



Now Paul is not your average bookstore owner....not by a long shot. In fact Paul is probably world famous....for being the Naked Bookseller. He typically wears three socks, loosely defined. On really cold days he might have a long sleeved shirt or jacket as well. I had seen several photos in blogs lately, all featuring the blog owner with Paul. The first one had him wearing three red socks. Well, today was mesh day....oh yeah! Needless to say I had to get my picture taken with Paul as did my friend from Sun City. (Don't enlarge the photo if you are easily offended....)



While it's fun to talk about the quirky side of Paul, he does have another more serious side. In 1995 Paul and his wife Joanne lost their daughter Celia at age 8 1/2. Joanne calls Celia her miracle baby....first because she was conceive and second because she survived a birth weight of 1 1/4 pounds and 12" long.

After Celia's death, Paul and Joanne wanted to do something to give back to the community that helped them, a community that Celia loved. They petitioned the town for an area where they could establish a botanical garden in Celia's memory. They worked tirelessly to make that dream a reality and today it stands as a loving memorial to not only Celia from her parents, but from many others. Joanne says it best, "What started out as a small nature trail has grown over the past 6 years into a mosaic of beauty, like a patchwork quilt made by many loving hands and hearts."

Here are just a few of the photos I took there....there are memorials to family, friends, other loved ones including pets. Quite a moving experience. There is also a little miniature old west town, Adamsville, and other items of historical interest.








I hope you will take the time to read the full story behind Celia's Rainbow Garden and visit it when you are in Quartzsite.

For those who wonder how long I will be here, I am moving to the Desert Pueblo RV Park in Bouse this Wednesday morning. I'll be there a week before going back to Augie's Quail Trail RV Park in Gila Bend for another week.

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna

Addicted to Dust

Yes, I made it to Quartzsite and I have been having a ball, thus the lack of a blog for several days (well, that and boondocking with limited generator time).

Harvey and I took a slight detour on our way to Q and hit a Super Wal-Mart. It had been a while since I had stocked up and my list had been growing. We got on I-10 East for 4 miles and got off in Buckeye, AZ. This had to have been the largest Wal-Mart I have been in to date. It had everything I needed and more....LOL!

We hit the road and found our Escapees SOLO folks around 3 pm. Everyone had a good laugh at my looking for "pull-through" parking. Needless to say, we could pretty well pick our spot. Nicely level, far enough from other rigs so my generator wouldn't bother them and was good to go. Well, except it was COLD...much colder than I expected thanks to the wind (we had been fighting it for about the last 50 miles of driving).

There is no way to remember all that has gone on so I will hit the highlights, thus far, in list form:

1. Had Hobo Stew* with the other members of the Full-Time Graduating Class of 2007. What a wild, wonderful, wacky group of folks. The stew was DELICIOUS! Wish I could have spent more time with them but they are 12-15 miles away on the other side of Quartzsite. I know I will see many of them on the road over the next year or two.
   *Take whatever meet, canned goods, etc that you can find, mix it all together and simmer for as long as it takes. Then you've got Hobo Stew. Some of the best ingredients are beef, sausage, chicken, corn, potatoes, tomatoes, green beans, carrots...you get the idea.
2. I've eaten in a couple of local restaurants, courtesy of several friends.
3. I've seen every variety of camper - I won't even attempt to name them all but wow, what a variety - types, styles, brands, sizes, classics, homemade and more.
4. I've had my first (and definitely not my last) meal cooked in a solar oven. What a wonderful way to cook. I see one of these in my future....much easier and cheaper than using a conventional oven. YUM! With the prices in propane rising and the cost of using my generator to run the microwave, this would actually be a cost effective item (and would would involve healthier eating).
5. I got out to meet some of the local folks - dinner time at The Yacht Club. Great people, love the quirky flavor here (yup, I'm definitely a fan of quirky). Convinced me that I need to exercise more to get my back, hips & knees back into the groove of dancing. Good band, too!
6. I've seen beautiful sunrises and sunsets...photos to follow...almost every day.
7. I've met other RVers who also travel with a motorcycle as their "toad".
8. I sat in front of, behind, beside, all around multiple campfires - moving as needed to lose the smoke and keep my voice! (Someone asked if that was why my nickname was Froggi...)
9. I've learned that I have to remember to turn off my propane heater for the day or in 4 hours my generator won't charge the batteries enough to keep the heater firing all night long....even when set at 60 degrees.
10. Solar is definitely in my future....but I am much more comfortable boondocking than I expected and that is a good thing!

Here are some random photos taken so far....


As a friend posts in his blog....I am having TOO MUCH FUN!

Till next time - keep on rollin',
Froggi/Donna