God bless you Lei

Its time to write the final blogg for Wrinklies on Tour USA. I have had this on my mind for a couple of days now and I know Lei would want me to complete it ... she was very particular about writing the blogg. It is difficult to put into words the emotions I feel about doing this. On the one hand it needs to be written in the way she would want it but on the other, it is so very final that it is overwhelming. I know I shall also use this as a form of catharsis that will help to put her to rest. God bless her.

The last time I wrote in the blogg I asked for everyone's prayers. Lei and I had managed to cross the Atlantic and how we did this I will never know. She was brave and strong and typically determined that she wanted to be home, despite all the medical complications she was still facing. The fact that the insurance company had denied cover for any of the hospital treatment and had refused to sanction our trip back did not deter her determination to get home. She worked hard for the week at Bob and Janet's home; to improve her mobility in order that we could at least consider the journey. The final frustration came with the hospital doctor who refused to see her once he knew she had no cover and this became a challenge for us to find a way to bring her back as it is Scotland that she considered as her beloved home.

Lei's friend, Ann Romaker from Girl Scout days came to her rescue. She is a doctor and had been to visit Lei only a short while before and thus knew of Lei's condition. She ordered blood tests and when they were at an optimum level to fly, she gave the word. The medical team from the insurance company were still not giving permission to travel. So, Lei and I took the decision and with the help and support of Bob and Janet, we set off on our journey. Lei remembers very little of the journey and I am so glad she didn't. On arriving at Edinburgh, Nigel and Bobby were there to pick us up and Lei wept....  she was so relieved and pleased to be home. Lei could not be more appreciative of all the support from everyone in order to achieve this mammoth goal.

That said, we spent a few days in Tillygrain and she was happy. The weather was warm and sunny and we sat  outside looking at the sea and just chilling. The hospital doctors saw her regularly and she accepted that she would have to go into hospital as her breathing became laboured. Sarah, our friend came up to give us the loving support that we needed at that time as I must confess, I was exhausted.

The weekend before Lei passed she was still full of fun even though she was uncomfortable. She still gave the nurses hell despite getting weaker.Nigel came and they enjoyed lots of laughs and I am sure some would be at my expense! By Sunday Chris and Helen, my son and daughter came up to the hospital as Lei was not doing so well. Mary Modeen, her friend from Girl Scout camp all those years ago  was also constanly at her side and we all chatted with her .None of us were sure how ill she was but there was a pending sense that something was not as well as it could have been.

On Sunday night we left her for a while as she was very tired we went to find some food. In the event we came back after an hour and by then Lei was not able to talk to us. I spent the night with her, talking and reminiscing  and Helen and Chris joined me from time to time. It was now obvious how ill she was. Mary returned early on Monday morning and said that Winky ( Ann Romaker) had explained the seriousness of Lei's condition. The Consultant Haematologist Mr Culligan spoke to us all  and prepared us for what was to come. We all chatted to her and I am sure she could hear. We held her and hugged her and whispered to her. We sang to her and  kissed her. Finally, I remember saying to her that it was ok to go and that we would be alright and not to worry. I said I knew she had promised to fight until her last breath and I said how much I admired and loved her for fulfilling that promise. We sang her favourite song.. myself, Helen, Mary, Chris, Nigel, Rob and then I sang Brahms Lullaby to her. She closed her eyes and went to sleep.

We thank you for your prayers and all your thoughts and everything that you have done to help Lei in her journey. She said several times to me that she had , had a blast and had absolutely no regrets doing our tour of the US - whatever happened. I believe that all your prayers at the end served to help her pass over to that place of rest and that she is now looking over us, with her mum and Kenny her brother.

Lei also told me how blessed she felt with having all you loving friends and family and being able to visit many of you in those last few months. SHe told me she was not frightened and that there was no point in worrying because what would be, would be. She lived her life believing that she should..

Accept the things she cannot change
Change the things she cannot accept
And be wise enough to know the difference between them.

I have had the honour of knowing such a very special person who has touched so many lives in a positive way. She impacted all who met her, however fleeting a time in her company. She lived a loving and positive life with no negatives, no judgments and would have said to me...

Is this Saint Felicia?

And we would have laughed together.

Prayers around the world.

Lei has not been on the website because she is too ill. Just to catch you up she is in hospital with several complications. She needs your help and I know we can do this.She needs to stabilise and get her strength and so i am askingeveryone to rally round her and please pray for her as soon as possible and for the next few weeks. She has to be well enough for a mild chemotherapy to have any chance of being successful and shrinking her lymph nodes.. It is very important that she gets the chemo on Monday so lets all get our prayergroups going.
With lots of love to you
Karen

...the body and mind is amazing at its ability to recover!

Well - I am back - still quite weak, waiting on some final words of wisdom from the Doctors - but at least I am sitting up, typing for myself and showing definite signs of recovery.  I can say that these past 2 weeks have been quite the trial.  As I mentioned in my last post - I was admitted into the hospital on the 14th of April, by the 18th had deteriorated to the point that they put me into ICU for closer treatment because of the discovered blood clot in my right lung.  To add insult to injury, I ended up having a biopsy of my bone morrow and while we don't have the final results - all indicators suggests that the lymphoma has returned there.  We shall have to wait for the final pathology - but from all signs the absolute best thing that I can do is get released, get my strength back and get home so I can get started on the next phase and find out what is actually happening here. 

We have been in San Antonio since April 7th, many things have happened - none of which were mentioned in the blog - so I thought that we would try and catch you up on some of that...

The cousins reunion started on the 9th of April - Karen and I arrived early and managed to have a great evening out with Janet and Lucille on the 8th who were also here.  By the evening of the 9th, all of the others had arrived and the only disappointment was that Edie had not recovered enough from some prior surgery to make it down.  A big hole in the line up - but little did we know that this would be but a beginning of holes appearing all over.

Sat night - we all stopped over at Janet's for a welcome dinner - my job was to BBQ the bratwurst with the help of my trusty assistant - Judy.  In total - 10 of us showed up for the reunion - which isn't half bad.  It was great just sitting on the patio enjoying the evening and having dinner with family catching up on old times.  Most of the cousins I saw a few years ago at the last Howell reunion - but still great timing all the same.

On Sunday - we were off - did a bit of the river walk, took in a live show trying to sustain traditional country/western music, took in a traditional Mexican outdoor markets and did the open top bus tour of San Antonio dropping off to spend a small amount of time at the Alamo.  I was quite warm and I thought with the open top bus, walking the outdoor market, etc - that perhaps I had over done it - as by the Monday - I was feeling a bit down as was Karen so we decided to stay in that day - take it easy and just relax. 

By Tuesday - Karen was still feeling low - but I decided to try and push that extra bit and go around with everyone on the day.  We spent the day touring the sites...had a picnic down by the Zoo, went to a local museum to look at a small portion of their collection of  the gowns that have been made over the years for past Queens and their courts for the fiesta. 

The gowns are amazing - a tremendous amount of detail goes into them each year.  It is a hugh expenditure - but the gowns are made to last.  Too bad you can only wear them once.  We then all piled onto one of their riverboats for a tour of downtown San Antonino.  I know that Caroline was well aware that her time with the cousin's was going to be short as her daughter was picking her up on Wed to spend the rest of the week with her - so we had to try and fit everything possible into the few days we had with her and I can assure you - Janet did her best.

By Wed morning - Karen was feeling a bit better - I was still a little low - but since this was our last day with Caroline - we all decided to give it a go and do some touring of homes in the historic district.  For this - I have to defer to the people who took the tour.  I was starting on my decline by then so while I went to the historic district with the rest - I ended up staying in the car while the others toured the grand old homes.  What I saw in the district was lovely though. 

Wednesday night - everyone came out to the RV park and we had the rest of the food from the dinners and picnics we had been accumulating throughout the week.  A lovely evening - but by then I was definitely going down hill - just didn't know how much further I had to go.  Thursday morning came and went and my only recollection was the EMS guys coming to take me away.  I fought Karen hard on the subject - but she was not in the mood to let this one pass.  By the time Sandy and Brian got there - they had 911 on the phone and I was whisked away. 

From then until a few days - the rest just kind of blurs.  Jim, Maur and Sam came down to help out - ended up taking the Motor Home back to Michigan for us - (with ALOT of things popping up along the way that shall not go yet into this blog - as I am not sure I can afford to alienate Maureen just yet - I may need her expertise again.)  Suffice it to say that she, motor homes and buildings don't always get along together...  When they left on Tuesday - I still wasn't able to lift my head or arms from the bed - now I am up, about and typing to you.  Margaret Britain (aka Mead) made it down last weekend with her daughter Emma for a couple of days so that we could catch up -

Ann Romaker (Dr. Winky) came down this weekend and we had a great couple of days together.  Besides just the peace that comes with seeing a soulmate after 25 years came the practical advice that only a pulminologist can give you that gives you the confidence to move forward.  I cannot believe how incredibly lucky I am to have the support network that I have around me - both family and friends - that keeps me moving in hopefully the right direction. 

Karen had been kipping in the hospital on the sofa in my room until the past few nights.  She is now comfortable with the fact that I am capable of making the night with just my trusty call button by my side - again she has pulled it through like a trooper.  I hope the day never comes - but if it does - she is going to have alot of built up back credit to call upon from me if she needs it.  I can never make the nurse she has over these past few weeks - but I am not sure I would have been able to recover as quickly without her support. 

Here we are on Sunday night - I am hoping that tomorrow I will be released from hospital - to go to my cousin's home.  The insurance company was talking about arranging a flight back to Scotland as early as Tuesday (yes - you heard right - Tuesday) and my ace in the hole 'Dr Winky' suggested a list of things to ask about but assures me that I will not die on a flight if I do fly out this quickly.  If I can get some assurances/plans in place to answer the list - then Tuesday may be well within a reasonable time frame. 

I will keep all posted as to what is happening.  Know that I am getting stronger every day, feeling my old confidence returning and looking forward to getting on with getting on...

...been awhile since I stopped by last.

Good morning all - been off line for awhile - so I  thought I  would keep you updated as to what is happening - while I can, (thanks to Karen for the typing). These last few days have not been my best and that's going some towards an understatement for me. I have been released out of ICU back to the telemetry floor. So, I'm on my way out the door. That said, crawling those last few feet to the door seems to be harder than everything up 'til now.

Just to let everyone know what's happened to date. I was admitted on 14th April with what appeared to be a gall bladder attack. It quickly became apparent that the gall bladder was the least of my issues. We discovered I was losing platelets to some unknown cause, becoming critically low which meant my clotting functions were heavily impacted. Once they started working on that and the infection from the gall bladder a CAT scan revealed a Pulmonary Embolism in the right lung. So now I have an impeded clotting function whilst throwing clots and needing medication to break down my clots...Go figure!


So we have been balancing these acts for a few days and in the process have lost a great deal of strength and control that allows me to stand up and perform daily functions on my own. What a mess! I am doing my level best to be as big a pain in the ass as I possibly can  whilst trying to recover. I've got Maur and Jim down with Sam; we had  Lucille, Janet and Bob and Margaret Brittain and her daughter Emma this past week. The place has been busy, especially with all the cousins the week before. it has been grand that all the visitors have made the efforts they have made even if I haven't always been as spritely as I should be when you get hospital visitors. So now I am relearning old tasks..how to stand, walk, sit, basic puppy commands. I'll probably get through this pretty good.

There's tons of other things to tell you but I think for now we will leave it be and hold you in suspense. I have loaded some pictures of the visitors... what a handsome crew.

Dictation... never could do it...

Hello all. Again this is Karen. Lei is still in the ICU but much better and is getting out of the woods.She is fighting eating the hospital beef  broth so I know the fiesty Lei is on her way back. I am hoping she can dictate a message as she doesn't like to be out of the loop ! I know she feels very privileged to have such a supportive network of  and family and friends who are always there for her.She said as much yesterday.  Love to you all wherever you are in the world.

Positive thinking

Dear all followers
Karen again.
Far be it that I be a drama queen because Lei sends a message that she is fine. All I will say is that she is in the intensive care unit. Please send her all your prayers and positive thoughts... I'll let her tell me off when she gets better.
She still owes us all a Cousins' blogg for Texas. Watch this space

Take a minute.....

Hello everyone...
Karen here and I am sure Lei will be ticked off with me for this! The fact is that she is in hospital. We called 911 yesterday even though she was protesting overmuch. She has a fever and had a lot of pain which was unbearable. At present she is still undergoing tests but is now in the right place. Please take a minute or so and give her your thoughts as I know she will benefit. At present she is ok. I will keep you posted as I am sure when she feels better the Cousins' Reunion will get its rightful coverage.

...is anybody out there???

Have you ever traveled for mile after mile and not passed another car, seen a house and other than the occasional cattle or antelope grazing not a living thing?  If your answer is YES - then you have been to New Mexico.  Just kidding - but not exaggerating.  We have spent the time traveling down the state - from Santa Fe to Roswell and probably passed 100 cars during the 200 miles or so.  It was a lovely trip - even if a bit baron...

Nothing ever goes exactly according to plan - and traveling across the Southwest in a motor home is no exception.  We had originally planned on staying for awhile in Santa Fe, take in the atmosphere, get some spa treatments , etc... but of course - we got hit with the delay in leaving Denver, then the wind in Raton delayed us again - before you know it - we are down to 2 days instead of the planned 5 or so - and all of the great suggestions everyone made went out the window (sorry Logger, never did find the spice shop - perhaps  there is somewhere you can order it on-line?).  We never made the spa - although for sure - Karen would have gladly agreed to forgo some of the things we did do had we the time to book a treatment.  We took in Galleries, historic buildings, churches, a little shopping and generally meandered around the historical district and watched the characters who inhabit this bohemian town including what I call Squirrel Man.   

We managed to figure out their public transport system - although as usual - we sat and waited for almost 30 minutes for a bus that is suppose to come every 15 min - then as soon as it does arrive - there is another one directly behind it.  We attracted a slightly inebriated gentleman on the way home who felt that he had something in common with Karen as he had visited Germany once so he tried his entire repertoire of the language consisting of 'guten tag' and something else that I could not make out on her and wanted to know what was 'scottish' for good day.  When Karen explained that 'Good Day' was Scottish for good day - I don't think he quite got it - but seemed satisfied with the answer non-the-less. 

We are now in better temperatures - For the past few days it has been hitting in the mid to high 70's - and I can only say how much we are enjoying it.  We have been disappointed in that the RV parks that we have stayed at have not opened their pools yet for the season.  I find this a bit strange as the weather is definitely hot enough.  If they were in Michigan - it would have been opened 2 months ago - but I guess in New Mexico - 75 isn't hot enough yet...

Arrived in Roswell - where we put up for the night.  Decided to take our chances and maybe get abducted by aliens...no such luck.  We toured the UFO museum, questioned a few locals as to their thoughts on what really happened (most answered in the affirmative - either trying to keep up the illusion so that their economy doesn't tank - or they truly think the government hid something), and had a nice evening -

even ordered a pizza.  Finally - we decided that we would get up when we woke up - and drive until we didn't want to drive anymore.  Roswell is over 500 miles from San Antonio so making it that far wasn't necessarily in the plan - but certainly doable. 

By 5am - I was awake and ready - so we packed up and were on the road - made Fort Stockton late morning/early afternoon and decided to get some more miles behind us before we stopped.  Who would have guessed that there are so few options for RV parks between Fort Stockton and San Antonio. At anyrate - we didn't really have a choice - so we ended up doing the entire 525 miles and have now arrived in San Antonino - where we plan on staying put for the next 9 nights.  Looking forward to a more permanent existence.   

On The Road Again...

Yes - it is true.  We are actually back in Tallulah - traveling south on I 25 towards another cousins' reunion.  I am beginning to think that I have way too many cousins - or should I say - Karen is...She knew she was going to meet up with my family on this trip - I just don't think she realised it would be quite so many...

We spent two weeks in Denver - originally planned to stay only a few days.  Unfortunately - I discovered some more lumps and after talking with my consultant in Aberdeen - it was suggested that prior to deciding what to do about it - perhaps I should see an Oncologist over here - have some lab work and a biopsy done so that we could speak intelligently about it.  So I was fortunate to get some fairly quick appointments (for a US Doctor that is...sorry Wink) and after going through all of the prodding and poking - prior to the results coming in - decided to travel onwards.  In the end - whatever the results - I won't be getting treated in Denver so it just made sense to get back on the road and keep pushing on. 

Prior to going though - we had a great time.  Really enjoyed spending time with Marge and Lori and all of the kids and their families.  Friday night we all got together at Amy and Brian's for a dinner and gab fest...The food was great - the company even better.  Only downer on the day was that the Colorado Rockies had lost their opening game with Arizona.  The grand kids were a blast to be around.  Karen had gone skiing with Kristi's family earlier in that week and got her bearings and confidence from the experience.  It cost her a day or so of total rest after the experience - but from her perspective - the recovery time was well worth it.  When her fybromyolgia acts up - she suffers alot - but I think she realises that if she pushes herself - she will be better off for it in the years to come. 

So Sat morning - we went and got the motor home from Kristi's house (had to move it there earlier in the week as Lori's neighbours were kicking up a fuss about it being parked out in the construction area - go figure), packed it up and were just having a last cup of coffee with Lori prior to departing when someone knocked on the door.  We thought for sure that someone was there complaining about it being out front - instead it was another neighbour (who hasn't moved in yet, just signed the contract) that also had a motor home and wondered how everyone reacted to Lori's...Well - after filling her in on how well everyone had taken it - she now realises that she needs to contact the HOA pretty quick and verify that she will be able to bring it in to pack or unpack - or she will be one very unhappy homeowner.  At least our experience has helped someone.

Now - we are back on the road - although we haven't gotten as far as we had hoped.  We stopped last night in Raton, NM - about 250 miles south of Denver.  It was our intention to finish the drive to Santa Fe this morning and spend a few days there - checking out what, by all accounts, is a beautiful city.  Instead - we have wind advisories - 50 to 70 mph gust from the west.  Traveling south - with winds that strong coming from the west didn't make sense to me - so we are staying on another day in Raton with hopes that we can travel tomorrow.  Even sitting still here at the camp site is a harrowing experience.  The winds are hitting the side of the motor home at tremendous speeds - rocking it back and forth.  The only advantage to this is that at the moment while I am writing this - Karen is watching a Russian Opera with subtitles...not my cup of tea - and the wind basically makes hearing it very difficult.  So I am content to let her continue to listen to it - especially after being accused of hogging Lori's TV remote - I decided to be more understanding.  Not everyone is a CSI buff after all...

Life in the slow lane...

'One must sit back and smell the roses'...someone told me that once.  I really didn't get the memo when I was younger and could really take advantage - fortunately - it finally reached me before it was too late. 

We are still in Denver - imposing upon Lori who is handling our extended stay very well.  Not too many allow visitors to stay on indefinitely - take over their TV remote - and generally clutter up their home - but she has so far...We even convinced her to take in another dog for the week - so the place is definitely cluttered.  We decided to extend our visit to Denver for a few reason -the main being that we are enjoying our visit and decided that nothing was pushing us on...

The brush fires that has been burning near Lori and Marge's places has finally been brought under control.  We were living with a great deal of smoke at the campsite earlier in the week - but today - the sky is clear - cloudy and overcast - but clear.
We have moved Tallulah (the motor home) to a construction site across from Lori's - so it is a cheap holiday.  Not paying rent (if we stay much longer - Lori may start charging though) sponging off her kitchen for meals, taking the dogs to the dog park and getting to know other dog owners in the area and generally enjoying the time off.

It's beautiful - sitting here overlooking the Rockies.  I really don't have much to add as we haven't been doing much (hence the slow lane reference) so I will close for now - post this just to let you know our current location and plans.

It's a Family Affair...

I have come to realise that there are some things that it is the responsibility of the older generation to pass down to the younger generation.  Family knowledge that can only be taught the old way - by show and tell.  History of generations that came before, stories of how they and we lived prior to the mobile phone, secret family recipes, and how to tie your shoes (although Velcro is quickly taking that responsibility off of our shoulders).  Up until recently - I had not thought of myself as part of the older generation - but I now have to own up to the fact that indeed - I am, and I have these responsibilities.  Sunday I discharged my duties - in fine fashion I might add - and I now know that the knowledge of how to make pierogi's will live on in the family - if only through 1 or 2 of the next generation.

We started the day out in a lazy kind of way - and in the early afternoon - Lori came and got Karen and I and off we went to Kristi's (Marge's oldest daughter) for an afternoon with the family.  In attendance today were Marge's kids (Kristi, Tony and Amy) with families in tow, Lori, Karen and me (Marge and Bob are in Scottsdale right now - taking in spring training).  Our goal was to make pierogi's - a polish dish that our mothers (who were sisters) use to make.  I know that my mother tried on more than one occasion to teach me to make them - probably my Aunt Caroline did the same with Lori.  It is not a difficult dish to prepare - just time consuming and although it has always been one of my most favorite memories and foods - one that I rarely attempted to make.  We had cooked the sauerkraut yesterday at Lori's - so today was going to be dedicated to making the dumplings up.  Erin (Tony's wife), Amy and Kristi were all on hand to learn the art.  As it turned out we learned a couple of things...

1) - if you are looking to learn a thing or two in the kitchen - look elsewhere as Lori and I are probably the two worst choices you could chose to teach you...
2) - Amy and Kristi will never become the next Martha Stewart...I am sure they will give something else to the world - but it won't be their cooking that they are remembered for.  Erin on the other hand - is a willing and eager student - soaking up whatever knowledge Lori and I could give.  God bless her - she learned something despite her teachers' limited skills.

That said - we managed to produce an amazing amount and variety of pierogis - my favorites - sauerkraut, a facsimile of our mothers' cheese recipe and prune (Lori's favorite - enough said about that!).  We did 4 double batches of the dough - and generally - made a big mess in Kristi's kitchen.  The kids played and dressed up, the boys watched another nail biting disappointment with Michigan in the March Madness playoffs, Karen kept Zander (the newest member of the family) entertained and fed (let's face it - at 5 weeks that is half of the required needs) - and we enjoyed each other's company.  At the end of the gruelling day - those who wanted some took them home.  I have enough to see me through the remainder of the holiday, and Lori has her prunes.  All's well that ends well. 

 

On Monday - Lori, Karen and I got up at an incredibly indecent hour (6am which is early for a holiday) and got on the road to Breckenridge - as Karen asked for only one thing while in Denver visiting my relatives...to ski there.  It is about an hour's drive from Golden where Lori lives and we were on the road by 7am and there by 8.  Karen booked in for a day lesson and once Lori and I were sure she was going to go through with it - we left her to her own devices and went shopping. 

Now - for those who know me well - I am not a big shopper, and once I have something that is fit for purpose - such as a handbag - I tend to stick with what I know.  In 1987 - to splurged on myself - bought a Coach handbag.  It was exactly what I was looking for - and I liked it.  Liked it so much that I have used it pretty exclusively since.  I don't buy handbags, just use this one - so Karen and Lori decided that I needed a new one.  After 24 years - I guess I can't argue too much.  Lori on the other hand loves to buy handbags.  I am not sure where she stores them all since she has downsized the house - but off we went to Coach in search of that elusive replacement to my tried and trusty (as well as incredibly beaten up) handbag.  We got to the store - and before you could say 'Jack Rabbit' - Lori had found a bag she just had to have because it was lavender - and she didn't have a lavender bag...Me - it took a bit longer. 

We both ended up buying bags - I think Coach owes Lori a commission - as she pushed for me to buy 2 bags - which I ultimately did.  We then went back to pick up Karen - who had a full days skiing - won praise from her instructor for having elegant style in her skiing, and decided to treat her successful day with stopping by Coach on the way home and ultimately buying herself another bag.  So - the long and short of it is we all got new bags - I will probably use mine a bit more than the other two since it will be my only bag - not just another one of many.  

Tomorrow - Lori has booked us in with her hair dresser for a spruce up.  I know my hair is short - but I decided it could use a bit of shaping and  Karen is looking forward to a cut as well. We have been in Denver since Thursday last week.  We have managed to fit a bunch of stuff in - imposed on Marge for dinner on Thursday - Lori for dinner on Friday - made pierogis, gone skiing, done alot of eating or catching up and had a blast.  We even talked Lori into taking Marge's dog Snickers in for the time Marge is in Scottsdale.  Jasmine is enjoying the time with her cousin as well...no doubt - it has definitely been a 'Family Affair...'

Between a Rock and a Hard Place...

Dead Horse Point - overlooking Canyonlands National Park

Hello all - trying to catch up on the blog which I know I am a bit behind on.  We are in Denver at the moment spending some quiet time visiting family - but not before we spent a few fun filled/action packed days in Moab, Ut. - home of the off road enthusiasts.  Moab is situated right near not one but two National Parks - Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park.  It is within 30 miles of one of the most captured photos on the planet at Dead Horse Point - overlooking Canyonlands National Park.  Just below this point is where they took the last shot of Thelma and Louise - so it has some history to it.



Local scenery around Moab



The first night we got into Moab I don't think we really understood what was available to do in the area.  We had originally come here because of the proximity of the National Parks to Moab.  Our campgrounds were north of town - so we never got all the way into Moab to understand it's potential.  We did get a clue from the campground though - as probably 70% of the campers in the campgrounds had ATV's with them.  When morning came - the noise started up and we thought we might be in the middle of the Indy500.  That got us up and about fairly early.  On our way out of the campground - KMK wanted to stop at the office and pick up some brochures on what was available in the area - and then it hit us - we needed to stay longer that originally planned as there were way too many cool things to do to miss out on all of them (my thoughts - not necessarily Karen's).   So we decided to go through town - look up a few more campgrounds and see if any of them were better suited to our situation (less ATV’s and cable TV) and then find out about the different tours/opportunities and what we could book/complete in 1 day.  By 1pm – we had sorted ourselves out for the following day – we decided to rent a Rhino (2 man ATV) and tour the back country in the morning and then reserve a spot on a hummer tour across the Hell’s Revenge trail at sunset. Our only difficulty is that we are without any other transportation other than our trusty Tallulah – so we were discussing the fact that we would be finished with our ATV tour at 12:30 and wouldn’t be due back till 5pm for our Hummer tour – so we would need to take the motor home back to the campsite – set it up and then either break it down and come back into town or find alternative transportation.  Karen’s idea was to leave the motor home in the tour site parking lot and take a cab back to the campground – but I had to burst her bubble with the fact that if we did that – we wouldn’t have anything to sit on at the campsite – our motor home being left in town...she agreed that perhaps that hadn’t been her best plan – so we came up with plan B.  We would break camp in the morning – take the motor home into town to do the ATV tour – go back to camp – set it back up and call a cab to bring us into town for the Hummer tour...that way after a gruelling 2 ½ hours on the Hell’s Revenge trail – we wouldn’t have to set up camp again in the dark.  With this done – we took the rest of the afternoon and set out to explore Arches National Park. 

Double Arches - Arches National Park



Arches National Park with LaSal Mountains in background

 Millions of years ago – this area was a sea – in fact it has been a sea 29 times over the past 100 millennium or so and each time it dries up – it leaves salt deposits that accumulate and then are buried in sediment which due to pressure force it to become bulges under the sandstone and eventually cause cracks in the sandstone.  Over time, water has seeped into the cracks – washing away the salt – causing the arches.  This area has the largest accumulation of arches in the world – and because of the softness of the rock in the area – is constantly changing.  It is really quite amazing to see some of the formations in the area.  As Karen expressed – the further we go on this trip – the more we think we have seen it all – or the best – something new comes up and we get that much more to think about.  As you stand looking over the Window’s arches – the snow covered white peaks of the LaSal Mountains in the background – it just becomes impossible to explain or convey the beauty.  You try to capture it in pictures – but to be perfectly honest – it doesn’t work...



The next morning we got up and got into town in time to catch our ATV experience.  They normally won’t take a tour out without at minimum of 2 ATV’s (unless you pay extra for a private guide) and Karen was willing to go as a passenger but really didn’t want to drive.   Fortunately, they had a family of 4 from Kansas City going out that morning in 2 Rhino’s – so we joined their tour and saved the private guide fee.  The time on the trail was dusty – very dusty – but it absolutely was a great time.  Karen thought that I got a bit dangerous every now and then – but overall – brilliant.  We have included a video of some of our time on the trail – forgive the noise of the video – no way to avoid it.  After that it was home and plenty of water – to try and wash some of the dirt out of my mouth...you can’t imagine where dust can get to – when you are travelling at 20 to 30 miles/hour through it. 

After a rest in the afternoon - we called the only taxi company in town – and arranged for him to pick us up around 4:30 to get back in for our Hummer tour.  He arrives on time – but to our surprise – has his two sons with him – as I guess he was the babysitter until his wife gets home from work.  One son had already called shotgun (bummer) – so that left Karen and I in the back seat along with the other son – trying to squeeze in behind a seat that is pulled all the way back with the seatback also pushed back.  Can’t tell you how much fun that was – then on the way out – our taxi driver didn’t notice a large (very large) rock just off to the side of the road protecting a sewer connection pipe.  He ran right up onto it – and we weren’t going anywhere.  It is at this moment when I think a 4 wheel drive would really come in handy...The only way out of the predicament was to jack the car up off the stone – then drive it off the jack and hope we could get the wheel up and on the rock – and then drive off it.  Dangerous, stupid, but ultimately successful.  The low point was when the owner of the campsite came out – yelled at us for getting stuck on the rock in the first place – banned the taxi driver from ever returning to his site – and drove off without offering to help in anyway.  All I could think was ‘well – this is great – the only taxi in town – and our park owner has just banned our ride home...’ but decided not to let it bother me till later.  I knew we would figure it out.



Karen and I in the Hummer

 The Hummer tour over Hell’s Revenge was absolutely brilliant.  I can’t explain how these vehicles manage to go up a rock face that is a 40 to 50 degree incline.  We have videos of the tour – which I have included – but to be honest – you can’t really capture what it is like when you are inside the vehicle.  If you want to see it – just go to www.youtube.com or Google and search Hell’s Revenge Moab – and it will give you a choice of hundreds of videos to look at – some really capture just how nail biting it is.

That’s it – the next day – we left via the River Road (Colorado River that is) from Moab to I 70 – then across Colorado until we arrived in Golden – a small village the west of Denver – and a few days visiting family.  I have cousins (mom’s side) living here and am taking a rest from doing anything other than enjoying having home cooked meals – with someone else cooking them.  Today – Lori and I are planning on making a traditional polish dish (pieorgi’s) which our mothers always made.  I managed to find mom’s sauerkraut recipe – and Jim and I had done some last Jan – so I am looking forward to the eating.  Karen is planning on some skiing at Breckenridge tomorrow – so if that comes off – we shall be adding some pictures from there – and we shall be leaving Denver on Wednesday.  I don’t expect to have a great deal to blog about until we get to our next destination – not that my cousins are boring – just that we intended this time here to be relaxing – and that is just what it is. 

Lori, me and Marge - going over some old family photo's I had found...

Zion National Park...

Hello all - Karen here and I decided that I would do the blog for today.  It's Saturday morning and I am very excited because we are going to Zion National Park this morning. I have been told it is a very special place and we weren't disappointed.  The weather is good we are in for a great day. The plan calls for a route which also takes in an Animal Centre where you can visit abandoned dogs and cats. It is said to be the largest in the US and, having visited a sanctuary in Hilton Head a few years ago, I know I can have my dog fix because they encourage visitors to pet the dogs,( and if we are lucky; new puppies) . From there  we plan to see another, smaller National Park and then home in time to watch the Brigham Young International Folk Dancers in the local College Theatre.

So, we had a plan, (not that everything always goes according to plan) and off we went. As we approached Springfield which is the town at the entrance to the park, there was a fabulous Rock Shop. Now I know not many of you out there would really put the words fabulous and rock shop together .. but I can and frequently do.   So many gemstones, fossils and sculptured rocks. Of course I was in there for at least an hour just enjoying all the beautifully carved stones and crafted gemstones.

Lei gave up on me and came into the shop as she usually passes the time away playing Sudoku under these circumstances .We admired some fabulous, but expensive items and and then paid for a few presents including earrings and necklaces. Then off to the Park Entrance.



Just after the entrance was a theatre that showed the historical background of the area on a Giant 6 Storey screen. It talked about the Indian occupation of the canyons over centuries and how they were spiritual and attuned to nature .  It covered how the Spanish Conquistadors enslaved them and changed their lives into a miserable existence mining gold for their conquerors. Then, a revolt was organised - somewhere around 1680 and although we didn't get the full story - it seems that the enslavement ended - allowing them to find a new life for themselves until the Wild West era. We felt like VIPs because the theatre hadn't run its scheduled viewing with it being a Sunday and a Morman area - so it seems there were few patrons. I decided to ask whether or not they would show us the movie anyway and yep, you guessed it - we got the cinema showing for ourselves alone!  Huge theatre - giant screen and all for us alone - Lei even got her popcorn fix - what more could you ask for?




Lei and me under the Weeping Rocks



After the cinema - it was off to the park.  The most memorable of the areas of the park for me were The Weeping Rocks. The water rolls down the rocks and appears like rain so you can stand under the rocks and let it rain whilst you admire the view from the rock overhang. Below I have downloaded a few videos to show the area. Suffice it to say that Zion National Park is a very beautiful place

It's downhill all the way...

For those who are looking for a place to visit - I can highly recommend St George - although sometimes it almost seemed too perfect (Stepford Wives comes to mind...).  The streets are wide, nobody litters, every night there seems to be a baseball game or tournament going on, there are various cultural events going on all the time (in fact - we had too much choice and couldn't see everything we wanted to see) and just generally - a lovely small city.  Our RV park overlooked the Temple and the mountains in the background - and we couldn't ask for nicer surroundings.

We got to St George Thursday afternoon and immediately decided to take the bikes and go in search of the heart of St George.  After much discussion with a couple of local residents - we decided to just go straight up Main Street to St George Blvd - and the heart of the shopping district.  I should mention that before we left Jim and Maur's - they kindly volunteered a couple of bikes that they had stored in their barn and hadn't used in the last 5+ years.  One of the bikes must have been Sam's as a youngster of 10 or 11 - and is the smallest/weirdest bike I have ever seen.  I would volunteer to ride it - but the seat and handle bars are too close together and my knees constantly hit the handle bars as I pedal - so I for sure can't ride it.  It is actually both too small and too tall for Karen as well (although I can't explain why she had bike dirt on her belly instead of her knees???).  The seat will only go down so far - and then hits the frame - so in order for her to start pedalling - she has to kind of hop along - until she can bounce up onto the seat and start furiously pedalling - it is actually quite difficult to describe her technique - perhaps one day I will video it - and post it to this blog, but until I do - take my word for it - she is someone you want to give a wide berth to until she is going - and then don't stop her unless it is an EMERGENCY!!!

So back to my story of the bike trip.  As I am pedalling along - I come to realise that I am out of shape - badly out of shape - and keep stopping, complaining to Karen that I have to go back, but then deciding that I will go another block or two before I turn around.  Finally, after doing this 3 or 4 times - Karen says that at least we won't have this problem on the way back - since it will be downhill.  It is at this moment that I look behind me and realise that part of my problem (not all of it by a long shot - since I am still really out of shape) was that we were going uphill and I was too stupid to realise it.  Knowing now that I will not have a horrible time on the way home - I tell Karen to just keep going and I will eventually catch up - and I keep talking myself into going a bit further and a bit further until we make the center of town -  Here we find a local cake/coffee shop and stop for some lemonade and homemade cupcakes...(which by the way were excellent).  I am glad that I didn't give up too early -

After a nice rest - with sunset quickly settling in and me realising that I only have my sun glasses - we decide to head back to the campsite - and I begin the ride home.  I knew that it would be easier - going downhill - but hadn't realised that I would barely touch the pedals - just simply glide home - and what had taken me 45 minutes to do going up - would take 5 minutes (and some close calls with cars on the streets) on the way back.  Too bad Karen didn't have it quite as nice as she lost her left brake on the way home and had to dampen her speed constantly or risk going through a red light, etc.  I will definitely have to check that bike out before she takes it out again - and I think until we are out of the mountains - we will leave the bikes tied to the rack at the back of the motor home...no use chancing fate.

On Friday - we ended up spending the day confined to barracks as Karen found she over did it with the biking and needed to recover from our exploring St George.  After our bike trip - we decided that we definitely needed a car in order to see all we wanted to see - so off I go to the St George airport to rent a car.  Now here is another amazing thing.  We had googled the airport - found that it was only a mile or so from our RV site, and thought - take a cab to pick up the car.  At least it won't be the $30 taxi fare like it was in Las Vegas...little did we know that they had just opened a brand new airport outside of town last month.  So new in fact that even Google didn't know about it.  Now - I don't have a $30 cab fare - it is $40 as they put the new airport 10 miles out - in anticipation of growth I guess.  I have never encountered such a remote airport in my life.  But I got there - got myself a fluorescent lime green  Mazda - one that I can find in a parking lot and away we went. 

Sat. we explored Zion National Park and the surrounding area.  I will close this blog for now - leaving you in suspense regarding all that we discovered/encountered for another time.  Hopefully - I will get around to writing this next segment soon as the scenery was breathtaking, we encountered some interesting people and generally it was a great day.  I have included a picture of the park as a taster of what to expect - but it is getting to be past midnight and I must lay my weary head down so that I don't waste tomorrow...

Bye Bye Las Vegas!!!

Believe it or not - we have departed Las Vegas with absolutely no plans on returning to the city.  A lovely place to visit - but I didn't want to live there - and having spent nearly a month in and around the city - I can't say how glad I am to be on the road again.

We left Thursday morning - traveling NE through to Utah with the intention of ending up in the Denver area by the end of next week.  First stop - St George - a small city on the border of Arizona/Utah - about 120 miles from Vegas.  The trip to St George took us through the an absolutely beautiful canyon - called Virgin River Canyon.  The one thing that I will mention is that there are big signs - saying watch for rocks and you look up and all you see are rocks.  Exactly which one do they want me to watch out for?   Karen was commenting on how for her - it's beauty surpasses the Grand Canyon.  Can't say for sure about that - but I do know that no matter how hard we tried - the pictures just didn't do it justice...

We are planning on staying here through the weekend.  Use this as a jumping off point to visit Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon and other sites in the area.  I don't think that we will see northern Utah or Salt Lake - Because of  everything we need to do - and the fact that we need to get to Denver - we will probably just carry on I 70 across to Denver - but hope that at some point we will get a chance to come back to see the rest as it is obviously a beautiful state - I have definitely realised the further I go on this trip that no matter how much time you take - you can't see it all...

Today - we will be doing Zion and some surrounding canyons in the area.  Looking forward to that.  At night after a day touring - we do some laps in the pool and enjoy a hot tub experience.  Life is definitely good...