There cannot be a crisis next week. My schedule is already full. - Henry Kissinger

Me with Toby and Mr. Creme on the day they
were going to go to their new home
They were 8 weeks old
5/19/00

I’m still putting things away from the trip. Yesterday I was going through my store coupon wallet to pull out expired coupons and add the new ones I had clipped. There were lots of expired ones.

The last time I used the coupons were a few days before leaving on our RV trip, which was May 10. I had shopped at the Navy Commissary. Can you imagine my surprise to find my “lost” military I.D. card in with my store coupons? I would never have thought to look for it there. Now I have a back up in case I lose the new one I got the other day.

We have requested a copy of the medical report on Toby, which his surgeon, Dr. Aiken, will write up. In the meantime, we had a couple of questions about Toby’s condition, etc.

Yesterday Charlie called VSH and left a voice message for Dr. Aiken to call us back. In less than an hour, we received the call back from him.

We have wondered if Toby's polyneuropathy (his back leg weakness) could in any way have been related to the tumor in Toby's lungs. Dr. Aiken confirmed what Dr. McClemmons had said, which is that there was no link between the two.

We also wanted to know as much as we could about the tumor. Both Chelsi and Taz died of cancer, and Toby became the third pet of ours to die from cancer. Grady also passed away unexpectedly with no symptoms and we regret not having a post-mortem done to try to determine the cause. So we wanted to know as much as we could about Toby.

Dr. Aiken described the tumor as a primary lung tumor in the right lobe of the lung. Such tumors are generally slow growing. The tumor extended much farther up the airway than usual and pretty much filled the right lobe. In addition, there was fluid in the body cavity which was pressing against Toby's left lung.

Since the tumor was slow growing, we thought we should have seen signs that Toby was having trouble even before we left on our trip, May 10. The Dr. said that it was common to find what he called "silent tumors" in the lungs during exams for which there were no symptoms. Cats compensate quite easily and can live with only half a lung with no problems, and given that Toby was mostly sedentary because of the polyneuropathy, he likely rarely exerted himself so much that his reduced lung capacity would have been noticed. The labored breathing symptoms which finally became evident seemed to be a result of the still growing tumor and the more rapid fluid accumulation which began restricting Toby's good left lung.

Dr. Aiken did not do a biopsy on the tumor since the results would not have changed the treatment, but he said that there was no question it was a cancerous growth. When he called us during surgery, he said that he could still remove the mass, but that he could not ensure that he could remove 100% of it, making it almost certain that the tumor would return. Toby’s right lung was collapsed and no longer functional. The Dr.'s prognosis was that should Toby survive the surgery (15% mortality rate) he would have only his left lung, and would need cancer treatment should the tumor return. Patients (even human patients) had a 5% survivability rate in those circumstances.

I received the full medical report via email this morning. This information had also been forwarded to Toby’s primary veterinarian, Dr. McClemmons.

Yesterday I also talked to Dr. McClemmons to get the results of the blood test she ran on Toby last Friday afternoon. I was just curious to see if he had any other problems. The blood test checked out fine. If we hadn’t been looking for something in his chest and took the X-rays, we would never think anything was wrong with him.

Last January, before Toby turned 11 in March, I took him in for a “senior” blood panel. He was having no symptoms of illness, I just wanted to make sure his organs were all functioning well and no diabetes, etc. He was over weight and also had history of urinary tract blockage. He was on a special diet for that. That blood panel showed that he was a very healthy, (almost) 11 year old, senior cat. So, you never know.

Oh, and yesterday morning when I turned on my garbage disposal, it just buzzed. It had done that a couple of days ago and then I pushed the reset button. It started working again. This time, the reset button didn’t work, so I called our plumber.

When he came out he took a “special” tool and manually turned the blades in the disposal. Then he asked if I had ever heard of the "ice treatment". (I've heard of the "cold shoulder") Puzzled, I said no. He wanted some ice to put into the disposal. When the disposal was full of ice, he turned it on. It made a huge racket, but apparently the ice was sharpening the blades.

We had been gone for about 6 weeks and the disposal had not been used during that time. Normally, I use it at least once a day. The plumber said that a disposal will freeze up if it’s not used (I'm sure no pun was intended). I didn’t know that, but then, I really use my disposal. He left the “special” tool with us to use if it happened again.

Also he suggested the “ice treatment” every couple of weeks. Our refrigerator doesn’t have an ice maker, so I’d better start keeping plenty of ice trays in the freezer!

More later.....

The difference between friends and pets is that friends we allow into our company, pets we allow into our solitude. ~Robert Brault

We’ve been home almost a week. The RV has been unloaded. I’ve done laundry and I’m trying to get back into a routine. There are so many things around here that need to be done. I still have a bathroom to paint. All in due time.

Charlie is glad to get back to his computer and he really never seems to have to adjust like I do! I wish I could be more like that. I can find so many things to do during the day and my day just flies by. I don’t know how I managed to do everything I did when I was working full time!

On Monday, we went down to the base pass and I.D. office to get a new I.D. for me. We didn’t have an appointment and it really didn’t take long. Charlie then went to get a haircut. It had been a month since his last one, and he was looking a little “shaggy”. I don’t think he’s ever had “long” hair and that’s fine with me.

The cats are getting used to us being home. Jezibel has continued to sleep on our bed each night. I’m a little amazed to see that she is actually asking ME for attention. She is almost 12 years old. We’ve had her since she was 6 months old. She has always been Charlie’s cat. They bonded right away.

Charlie and Jezibel

Jezibel was pregnant when she came to us. She would lay on Charlie’s desk while he was on the computer. As her little tummy started growing, she loved it when he rubbed her little basketball- shaped belly. Over the years, she has never given me the time of day. If Charlie was around, I didn’t even get a look as she walked by.

Of course, I had Taz then and he and Jezibel were always rivals to see who was going to be the boss. It was a draw. I think Jezibel knew that I was “Taz’s property”. It’s a good feeling to belong to a cat.

Taz

I was a little surprised when our neighbor, Bridgit, who was caring for the cats while we were gone, told me that Jezibel looked forward to seeing Sara, Bridgit’s daughter. She said that when they came over to care for the cats, Jezibel would run upstairs to look for Sara.

I received an email from a friend, Pat, who asked if I could babysit her new cat, “Princess”. She is the friend who owned the little black cat, “Reda”, who we had kept a few months ago. “Reda”, unfortunately, passed away from complications due to diabetes.

Pat has had “Princess” for about a month now. She says she is very sweet and friendly. The picture of her shows a pretty, blue-eyed, cat. Of course, I told Pat we would keep her. She will bring “Princess” on Monday. We will keep her on the “cat patio”.

Next week I’m also going to be “babysitting” for my friend, Kim. I will go to her house each day. She has 5 cats and I’ve taken care of them many times. Her oldest cat, “Pinto”, is one of Jezibel’s kittens. He was her first cat and the rest is history. We all start with one cat.

Kim also came by our house and checked on our cats while we were gone. She knows our cats so well. A few years ago Charlie and I went on a two week cruise to Hawaii. We has asked a friend to care for the cats. She had never done it before and we hoped she could handle it. Kim had not been able to come by and check on the cats every day. We assumed everything was going well.

We were getting ready to cruise back and it would take 4 days. Before we left the islands that afternoon, (we were about 3 hours earlier) I called Kim to see if she’d been by the house lately. She said she was planning on stopping after work that afternoon. Imagine my surprise when we called our “petsitter” and found that some of the cats had escaped the house! They had gotten out the day before and they thought all were back in. Mr. Creme had been allowed in the house and heaven only knew what damage he’d done while in (he sprays at the drop of a hat).

When Kim got there, she did a head count and discovered that Grady was missing. They all went out to look for him, but couldn’t find him. We called back and forth and then Charlie told them to look up on the hill, near the yucca tree, to see if Grady was there. That’s where he liked to hang out. Of course, with strangers looking for him in the yard, he stayed hidden.

Sure enough, they found Grady and brought him in. If Kim had not stopped by here to see who was missing, Grady may have stayed out another night. We were relieved when we heard they were all back in the house. We still can’t figure out how they got out. We were told that one of the cats pushed the screen out, but I know that to take the screens out, you have two spring latches that need to be pulled first.

It makes a difference having someone who actually knows your cats so that if one is missing, they know which one it is. Over this past month while we were gone, Bridgit got to know each one of the cats well. Kim and Bridgit told me that Toby was a favorite. He was more like a dog than a cat. When you petted him, he would take his paw and pull your hand to him. He never could get enough petting. What a love. We really miss him.

Charlie and Toby

More later..........

Another Farewell at the Rainbow Bridge

Toby
3/22/00 - 6/18/11

It was 1:11am late Friday night, early Saturday morning when the phone rang for the second time. We had expected the first call from the emergency veterinary surgeon, but had hoped that the second one would not come. That would be the one we'd get if there were complications.

About 45 minutes before, we had received a call from the surgeon who was going to perform surgery on our 11 year old cat, Toby. The surgery was supposed to be for to repair a hernia which was pushing his liver into his heart. The doctor went over the procedures and the risks. We were aware of them and had agreed.

Earlier that day, Friday, I noticed that Toby didn't seem to be feeling well. He was breathing a little hard and seemed to have lost weight. Toby is a 17 pound cat, and losing a little weight is not necessarily a bad thing, but he'd lost two pounds when we checked his weight. This was around 1:00 pm.

We also noticed that Toby was having labored breathing. I called our vet and could not get an appointment earlier than 4:15 pm. We suspected that he needed help before then.

Toby's breathing got worse, and we were really starting to worry. We tried to get an earlier appointment at the local vet and at another vet we used to use, but the Friday calendar was booked solid. We have two local emergency vet offices, one in South Bay, 10 minutes from us, and the other in La Mesa. We had heard horror stories about the South Bay emergency center, and didn't want to take him there. We'd never been to the La Mesa center for an emergency, but we had taken Toby there in 2007 for an ultrasound. We decided to take him there.

We had just returned home yesterday after a month-long vacation. Our telephone was not working and we had the repair man coming between 1:00 and 3:00pm. Charlie stayed home to wait for him, although he offered to come with me and cancel the repair guy. I said no, I would be okay.

I called my neighbor who had been caring for our pets while we were gone. I wanted to see if she noticed that Toby was not eating or if he was having a breathing problem. I had to leave a message.

When I got to the La Mesa emergency center Toby was still breathing in short, quick sips. He was alert, though, and not in any apparent pain. In the office there were a couple of other people in the waiting room. I gave the receptionist a short summary of the problem Toby was having. My cell phone rang. It was my neighbor. I excused myself and went outside to talk. My neighbor said she had noticed no unusual behavior in Toby. She said that he had not been wetting his puppy pads as expected in the past few days, but thought he was probably doing it outside. She also noticed that he might have not been eating as much in the last three days or so. She hadn't noticed any labored breathing. When I got off the phone and went back inside, Toby was gone!

The technician had left with Toby. Without me. When the technician came back (without Toby) she had paperwork for me to sign and a bill for $400. To say that I wasn't happy ... well. I told the technician I wanted to see Toby. She brought a doctor in who then told me that Toby needed urgent care and that it was very likely that he would die, citing his labored breathing and that his legs were not functioning. I have to admit that the fear and shock sent me ballistic. I demanded that she bring Toby back to me, and when the technician started arguing about it, I called Charlie.

When Charlie was done with her she fully understood that we were not authorizing anything until we had Toby back. They had not bothered to get Toby's history from us and assumed that his leg problem was part of the emergency and I can only imagine what they must have thought - massive trauma, stroke, whatever.

At this point we wanted nothing to do with this place. Charlie suggested that if Toby had not gotten any worse, we should take him to our local vet, even if it meant waiting another hour to get him in. I had to sign a release form stating that I was taking Toby over the objections of the doctor before they would allow us to leave. I got Toby back, paid $58 for an "office visit" and a little oxygen they'd given Toby to help his breathing, and left.

It was still only 3pm, we could not get into the local vet any earlier than our 4:15pm appointment, and poor Toby had to pee in his kennel. So I took him home, cleaned him up, and let him rest at home until his appointment. We thought about going to the emergency center in Sorrento Valley (a 20 minute drive) where Taz had gotten such wonderful care, but since Toby seemed stable, we waited and then took Toby back to the local vet.

It was crazy busy at the vet's, but we are well known there and the doctor made time to see Toby, bringing us into a room where she could examine him with us present. The news was sobering. Toby's labored breathing was potentially life threatening. She explained that many of the things she needed to do to diagnose the problem could agitate and worsen his breathing (blood work, x-rays, etc). Despite the scary news, though, it was comforting to have a doctor walk through all that with us as she examined Toby. She, too, wanted to get Toby on a little oxygen so that he could breath easier, and then took x-rays to see if she could spot the problem.

The results from the x-rays were not good. Something was either filling his lungs, or something outside the lungs was pressing up against the lungs. Toby was essentially breathing with only a small part of his lung capacity. The vet also took blood work, but would not get the results until the next morning. We had two choices. The vet offered to give Toby medication/shots that might help Toby breath better in the hope that it was something treatable that way, and then get him home where he could rest. The vet was most concerned that the more agitated Toby was, the harder it was for him to breath. The second choice was to take a sample of whatever it was that causing the pressure on the lungs, but for that we would need to go an emergency center where they had the full facilities for 24 hour care. We decided on the shots and rest and took Toby home.

Two hours later Toby's condition had gotten worse, not better, and we took Toby to the Sorrento Valley emergency center.

Unlike La Mesa emergency, who had stolen Toby away without me and presented a bill before even talking to me, Sorrento Valley technicians got us into a private room with Toby, got his history and symptoms, examined Toby with us present, and then ASKED us if he could take him to the on site doctor for a more thorough exam. Toby was in good hands.

Shortly after that the doctor came in personally to talk to us. He'd put Toby on oxygen and he was resting comfortably. We talked awhile, the summary being that the doctor believed that Toby had a hernia, and that hernia had caused Toby's liver to get pushed up into the chest cavity and was now pressing hard against Toby's lung. It would take surgery to fix the hernia and move the liver back where it belonged, plus restore what was essentially a collapsed lung. The surgery would take one to two hours. The doctor told us that many cats recovered quite well from this type of surgery, but that there was always risk that Toby could die. He would need at least 48 hours of hospital care after surgery as well. Toby had no chance for survival without the surgery, so we agreed to go ahead with it.

Since it would be several hours before we would know the results of surgery, we went home to wait.

So, the call came at 1:11 am from the surgeon. Toby did not have a hernia. He had a large tumor that filled half his lungs. The surgeon said he could try to remove it, but because of the size and placement he said there was high risk that Toby would die during the procedure. He also said that it was almost impossible to remove all of the tumor, and that chances were very high that the tumor would return even if the surgery were successful. And if the tumor did return, the survival rate of cancer treatment for this type of tumor was only 5% and not recommended, even for people.

Toby was still under anesthesia. We knew we couldn't put Toby through the suffering that would follow even if he survived the surgery. We asked the surgeon to let Toby go peacefully in his sleep.

Now Toby joins his brother Grady, his “brother by a different mother”, Taz, and his dog, Chelsi, over the Rainbow Bridge. We love you big guy and we're going to miss you terribly.

Toby at about 7 weeks old

More later.........

“One small cat changes coming home to an empty house-- to coming home”

Thursday, June 16, 2011

We were up at 6:00am. But, today, the cats were wrestling on the bed and playing. I think everyone knows it’s the last day of travel.

I made breakfast. As we were eating, Sheila begged for a bite of toast. She doesn’t really “beg”, but sits and stares at my food. As I take a bite of toast, she watches. I was talking to her and she never took her eyes off of my food.

Charlie said that when we get home, her “bites” will be cut back severely. We’ve been more lenient with giving her food from the table on this trip. While visiting, we allowed her to have handouts. He said we were going to weigh her too. She reminded us that we needed to weigh ourselves! He said, “Yes, I will weigh myself so I will scare myself into doing something about it”.

We decided that we would officially declare our vacation over on Sunday night. Then next week will be soup and salad week. We are planning a trip to our favorite Mexican restaurant before the vacation is over!

We paid $4.39/gal. this morning before getting on I-15 for home. Driving along we saw a sign for gas at $3.89/gal. It seems to be all over the map here. What is waiting for us at home?

We were driving for about 20 minutes and up ahead we saw something that looked like either smoke or fog. I guessed smoke until we got closer. I rolled the window down and the air was really cool. Then when we got closer, we could see it was fog. Not so thick that we couldn’t see. The sun was shining through too. I turned the A/C off and the vent on and it was pretty cool.

The fog did get a little thicker as we drove through it and it blocked the sun. Charlie officially declared the end of OUR summer!

We came to Temecula and stopped for gas. It was 68 degrees. Gas was pretty normal: $3.89/gallon.

We arrived home around 12:30pm. Mr. Creme met us at the front yard. He was glad to see us. Since we’d been gone so long, we decided to leave the three cats in the RV until we went into the house to say hello to the cats we left behind. Sheila came in with us. She was so happy to be home.

The cats in the house, Jezibel and Lexi were fine. Ellie was hiding upstairs between the bed and the wall. We checked on her and tried to get her to come out, but she wouldn’t. We saw she was fine.

In the garage, Debby was in her cat tree and was agreeable to being petted. Toby was in his bed on the patio. Bridgit had been putting him out in the yard each morning and then back in the garage in the afternoon.

After giving each cat attention, we brought Jonesie, Jason and Kaci inside. Almost at once, it was as if they had not been away for a month. Mr. Creme came in the back door and as I herded him through the house, Jonesie ran along beside him and tried to ride on his back, just as he’d always done.

Bridgit came over when she saw that we were home. We were very happy at the job she’d done, taking care of our babies. She genuinely seemed to have enjoyed it. The only problem she had was a broken sprinkler head in the front yard, and she and our other neighbor, Mr. Pat, took care of it.

Ellie started meowing loudly from upstairs and I went up. When she saw me, she ran to the door, apparently finally believing we were home. I picked her up and she was really congested. She has asthma. We gave her one of her pills and Charlie held her for a few minutes to calm her down. She then went into my closet.

When I fed the cats later, I went to get Ellie out of the closet and feed her. She was breathing freely and ate all of her dinner and wanted more. We feed her as much as she’ll eat because she does not have a weight problem. Her metabolism burns it off pretty well.

Charlie started going through the mail and came across a jury summons for himself. He was supposed to report for jury duty this week! When he tried to call them to let them know he had been on vacation since May 10 and didn’t get the summons, he discovered our phone was dead. So he used his cell phone. They re-scheduled his jury duty for December. Thank goodness they had not sworn out a warrant for his arrest for not reporting!

We called to report our out of order phone. They couldn’t fix it by resetting it, so they will come out tomorrow. While we were gone, they upgraded our equipment, so I think our phone got messed up. Our DVR is also messed up. We tried unplugging and resetting it, but it didn’t work.

So, we are home and it’s nice to be here. The weather is cool, typical June gloom. It’s overcast in the mornings and the sun comes out in the afternoon. Temps run around 68 degrees. Quite different from the 90's and 100's we just came from.

We had such a nice visit with our families. It already seems like so long ago since we were there.
We had no more problems with the RV. Since the gas gauge no longer works, we kept a close eye on the odometer and started looking for gas when we had reached 80-90 miles. We did average around 9 miles/gallon coming home. There was quite a bit wind in the desert.

More later.........

“If you come home as happy as you leave, you have had a good vacation”

Jonesie and Jason on the dashboard

Wednesday, June 15, 2011, California here we come

I woke up this morning around 2:45. The cats were quiet, but I couldn’t go back to sleep. I went to the couch and layed down. Of course, the cats started stirring.

Jason and Jonesie chased each other back and forth. Kaci stayed in bed with Charlie.

Little Girl (Kaci) in her 'happy place' while we are moving
She stays here until we stop for the night

From my place on the couch, I was treated to the “cat show”. As the cats would run through, Sheila also wanted to play with them. She went into her kennel and when the cats ran by, she came out, tail wagging. Jonesie had enough room to get on top of the kennel. When Sheila came out, he swiped at her head and ears. We all finally went back to sleep until 6:00am.

Before leaving the campground, we took some pictures. Since Holbrook is near the Petrified Forest and Painted Desert, there was a big petrified wood log near the entrance to the campground. We took some pictures and also got a picture of the “Cowboy Café” cook and me.

Then we saw a little rabbit stretched out nearby. He was very still. With all of our walking and running around, he didn’t move.

We passed the exit for the Meteor Crater. Information from the internet: It is the world’s best preserved meteorite impact site just minutes from Interstate 40 in Northern Arizona near Winslow. Meteor Crater is the breath-taking result of a collision between a piece of an asteroid traveling at 26,000 miles per hour and planet Earth approximately 50,000 years ago.

Today, Meteor Crater is nearly one mile across, 2.4 miles in circumference and more than 550 feet deep. It is an international tourist venue with outdoor observation trails, air conditioned indoor viewing, wide screen movie theater, interactive discovery center, unique gift and rock shop, and Astronaut Memorial Park at the modern Visitor Center located on the crater rim.

Meteor Crater's "Collisions And Impacts" movie allows viewers to experience the thunderous sound and explosive fury of the meteor's super-heated trip through the Earth's atmosphere. Then, the spectacular result of the collision that rocked the American Southwest with the energy of more than 20 million tons of TNT can be explored first-hand just outside the Visitor Center at Meteor Crater Arizona.

We have been there several times. I’ve always wanted to hike to the bottom of the crater, but it is no longer allowed. Just to see the size of the crater is breath-taking.

In Williams, Arizona, a train takes you to the Grand Canyon. Maybe one day we will come back and do that. We have been to the Grand Canyon a couple of times, south rim, and we went to the north rim once. Both are awesome, but the south is the most popular I think.

Gas prices were pretty reasonable in Arizona, usually around $3.59 - $3.64. When we crossed into California, we stopped for gas. It was $4.79/gallon! Welcome back to reality? If this is the price now, then it means that gas has GONE UP here in California and we found that elsewhere, the gas prices had decreased by as much as $.20/gallon. Go figure. And they are certainly not using the taxes to keep the highway in good repair. We went over some of the roughest roads today—in California.

We have stopped for the night at the KOA campground in Barstow, California. Most of the people we have met, who run the KOA’s across the country, really have been helpful, friendly and seem to really enjoy their jobs. The lady who waited on us this afternoon was “not a happy camper”.

Of course, the temperature here is probably in the 100’s! The office/camp store’s door was open. There seemed to be something running, but probably not A/C. We had to wait for a few minutes to buy some iced tea. It was so warm in there, I thought I was going to have to go outside.

This campground is near the "ghost town" of Calico. They have a nice campground there as well. We stayed stayed there a couple of nights a few years ago. It was in March, so it was much cooler then. Calico is a neat place to go and walk around. It isn't open after dark though. We won't be visiting there this time.

Calico was a working mining town at one time. We still can't imagine what it was like to live there back in the day. No A/C! The heat here is just unbearable.

But, we are happy to be so close to home and tomorrow we will be home. I plan to post from there tomorrow night!

More later……….

No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old, familiar pillow. --Lin Yutang

Tuesday, June 14, 2011, leaving Tucumcari, New Mexico

We were up by 6:00am, but the cats had nothing to do with that. I think we are all getting anxious to get home. After our day at the garage yesterday, home is sounding pretty good.

We left the campground at 8:30am. Charlie says the RV still doesn’t seem right. I think we’re still burning up the rest of that low octane gas. As we got on the freeway, I could see the pink building where we were parked all day yesterday. So long, Tucumcari!

We stopped for gas about 40 miles east of Albuquerque. After going a few miles, Charlie said we needed to stop to see if he had put the gas cap back on. He hadn’t. We got off at the next exit, planning to go back to where we got gas. Then we saw an Auto Zone and stopped there. They had one gas cap. Is our luck starting to change? Our original gas cap will stay in New Mexico….oh, so many memories here!

The RV ran fairly smooth, although Charlie said he still went into overdrive more often than he thought it should. We were steadily climbing though, approaching the Continental Divide. But, then after several hours and some stops for gas, the engine started acting normal. We relaxed enough that Charlie wanted a chocolate shake and I wanted a hot dog when we stopped for gas near a Dairy Queen.

We got to the KOA campground in Holbrook, Arizona around 3:00pm. We are back in our time zone now. Arizona is on Mountain Time, but they don’t go on Daylight Savings, so California catches up when we roll up one hour.

This is a very nice campground. When we drove in, Charlie said, “I doubt we will have a site in the shade here”. But, our site had the biggest tree in the park and all the shade we could want.

There is a “Cowboy Café” here which serves breakfast and dinner. We decided to treat ourselves to dinner.

Holbrook is not far from our property in Show Low, Arizona. We are not going to stop there this time because we really are getting tired and want to get home. Maybe we’ll come out to Show Low for the 4^th of July weekend—in the car, just us and Sheila. There is a motel we like staying in. On the 4^th of July there is a parade right down main street and it goes right by the motel.

More later……….

If you are going through hell, keep going-- Winston Churchill

Ahhhh - me and Dorothy at the concert in Norfolk, VA
May 30, 2011

Monday, June 13, 2011, Tucumcari, New Mexico

The cats were still feeling like they were in the last time zone. They were up playing at 4:00am, although to them it was 5:00am. Thank goodness we went to bed early last night and got some sleep.

The wind had died down this morning. It was actually pleasant. There was a breeze which was cool. I’m sure the wind will pick up later.

Our RV under the overpass yesterday - hot!

Charlie called the AR Towing and Repair this morning at 7:00am. They are the ones who helped us yesterday. They said they opened at 8:00am and we could bring the RV in to have it checked over. The lady said that they had had about 8 vehicles yesterday with fuel pump problems. It was so hot that the pump overheated and freaked out.

Some of the pink tow trucks

We left the campground at 8:00am and took the RV to the auto repair company. As we drove up, a pink tow truck was leaving. I commented that I bet the guy, Dennis, who helped us yesterday was glad he didn’t have to drive the pink one.

Love the wagon wheels on the windows - looks better than the bars we usually see

The building was pink and on the door was “Think Pink”. Charlie went inside and talked to them. When he came back, he said yes, a woman, Linda, runs it. Not a problem as long as they know what they’re doing.

A man, the mechanic’s manager, came out and took a look at our engine. Charlie explained the problem we had yesterday. The man had the name “Pontiac” on his shirt, but Charlie said everyone called him “Jimmy”. We never did figure that one out. But, we think that maybe “Pontiac” and “Linda” are either married or an item. Linda came out to “Pontiac”, gave him a hug and said, “Welcome to Monday!”

They replaced the fuel filter in hopes of solving the problem and they found a bad alternator belt. Charlie saw it and it was frayed. The mechanic had heard something rattling first thing. He said the belt looked like it was original! This RV is a 1993. We always have pre-trip checks and had one in April before coming on this trip in May. The belt must have passed inspection. We had a new alternator installed in Virginia on May 31 and the belt was not replaced then. Either it looked fine then or this happened during the trip since then.

The fuel filter didn’t solve our problem. The fuel pump was not producing the pressure needed to fuel the engine properly. It’s supposed to be steady at 46-50 and it was only about 40. Charlie saw the air bubbles in the line. We need a new fuel pump.

We were told they’d be done by 2:00pm. It was around 10:00am then. They know we have pets with us, so they said they had a concrete slab we could park and plug in to electricity while they worked on putting the new fuel pump in. That way we could have A/C. The cats heard the noise outside and each one stayed in their safe place. Sheila was quiet and went to her kennel.

We called the campground and told them we would be back tonight. Then I called to change the other 2 campground reservations for tomorrow and Wednesday.

This is going to delay us from getting home another day. It will be Thursday, the 16^th now. We are anxious to get home and see our other cats. They are being well cared for and we’re not worried about their welfare. But, we do miss them and we miss our home too!

At 4:10pm we were ready to leave the garage. The engine seemed to be running fine. Our fuel gauge did not work though. It had worked before the new fuel pump. We drove it around and around the gravel parking lot, hoping that it would set itself. It did register more gas, but not full, which it should have registered. When they put the new fuel pump in, they had to empty our full tank of gas. They said they had put the gas back in.

Charlie knows how far we can drive before having to get gas. We usually do not let it get below ½ tank. So, we can use the odometer to gauge our gas used.

We didn’t get far away from the garage when Charlie noticed the “Rear ABS” light was on. We went back to the garage. Charlie talked to “Pontiac” and said “I just want to know if my sensor is bad or do I have an ABS problem”. We would have brakes, but the anti-lock braking system is safer for this size of vehicle, especially in the rain.

“Pontiac” said he ordered a new sensor and if we wanted him to install it, bring the RV back tomorrow. We left. After talking about it and calling my brother, Robert, we decided we would go ahead and drive the RV home. We have two more stops, Holbrook, Arizona and Barstow, California, before getting home. We stopped and topped off with gas. It took just over 5 gallons, so we had a full tank to start tomorrow.

We went back to the campground and had dinner. It was a long day. Thank goodness we had our Kobo’s and Kindle’s! The cats and Sheila had slept all day. It was 104 degrees outside and very windy.

Kaci and Jason

Jonesie drinks lots of water

We’re hoping we don’t have any more problems!

More later……….

Never drive faster than your guardian angel can fly.

From Saturday, June 11, 2011, Choctaw, OK

It was nice to wake up and not have to get ready to leave. We planned on doing nothing all day. I went to take a shower at 800am and although there were four showers, all were occupied. This was the first time I had to wait until later. But, this is the weekend.

Lots of families here. Kids in the pool. Hayrides in the evenings (tractor with a wagon hauling kids, etc. No hay that I could see). Charlie saw it going around Friday evening. He said they went about a mile an hour so the ride would last. But, I think it’s nice that the park has something to entertain families.

There is a dining room in which breakfast was being served. I had made some coffee, so we walked over and got something to bring back with us.

After I did one load of clothes, we just sat outside and read, etc. It was warm, but not that humid. Charlie brought Sheila outside and put her on her tie-out cable. She would have rather been inside because a couple of camp sites over there was a family with two or three kids making kid noises. Just those sounds make her nervous. We still try to expose her though because it doesn’t harm her and maybe she’ll learn that she’s safe with us.

Jonesie wanted to come outside. I brought him out and carried him over to one of the empty, grassy campsites. He likes to get on the ground and scurry around like a squirrel. I stay right next to him, petting him and making sure I have control. I would not want him to run away. I’d probably catch him, but it’s not something I want to have to do. When he showed interest in something that moved in the nearby trees, I picked him up and put him inside.

Then it started sprinkling a little and stopped. Suddenly there were some big drops starting. We gathered everything up and went inside. There was a short shower and then the sun came back out.

Sunday, June 12, 2011, leaving Choctaw, OK on the way to Tucumcari, NM

Early this morning, around 2:30am, Sheila woke us up. She was coughing like she was choking. We got up with her to make sure she could breathe. We couldn’t see anything in her throat or mouth. She drank some water and seemed okay. We went back to bed. Sheila sleeps next to Charlie’s side of the bed.

It again started raining a little hard with some thunder and lightning. I was almost back to sleep when Sheila started coughing again. We got up with her and checked her throat. She seemed to be trying to swallow. We gave her some bread, small pieces, thinking it might help her clear whatever, if anything, was in her throat. She liked the bread and ate it happily. Then had some water. We waited and she wasn’t coughing. Charlie went back to bed and I layed down on the couch. Sheila stayed with me and didn’t cough anymore. It was cooler here, so maybe it helped her.

While I was trying to go back to sleep, I suddenly had a strong urge to be home. If we were home and one of our pets had an emergency, we would know where to take them, but with Sheila we felt so helpless. Thank goodness she seems okay now.

We decided to have the Krispy Kreme donuts and coffee for breakfast. They were still good even though not fresh.

The air outside was cool with a breeze, so we turned the A/C off and opened the door so the cats could see through the screened door. Charlie was going out to start getting us ready to leave.

Jonesie and Jason were at the bottom of the steps with their noses pressed against the screen door. Charlie said “Boatswain’s Mates! All hands to the well deck. Time to cast off all lines!” Charlie’s old navy days come out in him sometimes. So, then, of course, Jonesie became our Boatswain’s Mate. He loves the attention.

It was funny because he just stayed glued to the door and was determined he was going outside. I finally took him out and over to his little grassy spot. He was happily scampering along. Then he went to the gravel and rolled on his back. I threw a small rock along and he chased it. When he got to it, he layed down. I threw it a few feet again and he chased. We did that a few times and then he started looking around for more to do.

I picked him up and brought him in. I don’t need to ask for trouble on our last day here.

We left the campground around 10:00am. Jonesie declared that he liked “living” at this campground. I had taken him outside twice!

Driving down I-40 was as windy as we’d seen it. There was a very strong crosswind from the left (south) hitting us. Our RV is really being pushed around. Our gas mileage will be under 6 miles/gallon! Oh, it was $3.45/gallon just west of Oklahoma City when we stopped after leaving the campground.

After only two hours of driving in this wind, we stopped for gas again ($3.59/gallon). We didn’t need it, but this wind was eating up our gas. I gave Sheila a walk. She was so distracted by the wind. It was warm, but I couldn’t live here! Our gas mileage was 6 miles/gallon that time.

Texas was better as far as the wind. It’s flatter, but not as much cross wind. We stopped for gas ($3.59) about 27 miles east of Amarillo. We stopped here at this same station when we came through on May 12. Gas was $3.79/gallon then. Hopefully this means it is coming down at home too.

When we got to New Mexico, we entered Mountain Time Zone and gained an hour back. Of course our driving time is still the same.

Charlie started noticing that the RV didn’t seem to have as much spunk. It was all he could do to keep his speed at 65 MPH. The speed limit is 70 MPH. The road seemed fairly level, but even the slightest hill caused the RV to go into Overdrive. We thought maybe we had gotten some bad gas at the last stop. Charlie mentioned that it was 86 Octane instead of our usual 87. We weren’t sure, but we weren’t getting good performance.

We were not far from Tucumcari KOA campground, which is where we were going to spend the night. We wanted to get some gas before stopping, but our exit came up and we got off. As we came to the end of the exit, the engine sputtered and cut off. Charlie got it started again, but it really sounded like it was not getting gas. We hobbled across the road and managed to get to the shade of an overpass.

It was hot and very windy outside. We called Auto Club, but since we do not have RV roadside coverage, they referred us to a tow service. Then Charlie remembered that with our insurance policy, Progressive, we have RV roadside service.

He called them and told them our problem. They gave us some services to call. Our problem with the cell phone was not only reception. If we didn’t lose our signal, the traffic overhead was so noisy we couldn’t hear. As it was, we stood in the sun between the overpasses.

I called the KOA campground because I thought they might know of a good towing service. I kept losing the signal, but after about 6 attempts, I managed to finish getting the number from him.

When I called the “All Rite Towing Service”, the dispatcher said “You’re off of Exit 339, right?” I said “Yes, but how did you know?” She said that our insurance company had put the call in and she was dispatching someone. They’d be there in 30-40 minutes. We felt better.

We sat and waited. When Charlie had been outside earlier, using his phone, he noticed some mud nests built up under the overpass. The birds were flying all around like they were mad that we had stopped there. I went out and looked and I think they were some kind of Swallow. We took some pictures of the nests, which were really unusual and numerous.

We kept getting recorded calls from Progressive, checking on whether our tow truck was there yet. We appreciated this service from them.

Charlie tried to start the RV and it started up. We let it run for a few minutes and it sounded fine. We waited for the tow truck. Then we saw a huge red, heavy-duty tow truck. He backed in front of us and started lowering the equipment.

We had decided that if we didn’t need to be towed, we would see if he would follow us to a gas station and if the RV was running okay, we’d go to the campground. Then in the morning, we would go to the mechanic and make sure the RV was okay.

The tow truck driver was agreeable to anything we wanted to do. We started the RV and he listened while Charlie revved up the engine. It sounded fine to him. He told us where a gas station was and then followed us there. The RV did okay, no sputtering. Charlie filled up with 88 Octane.

The tow truck followed us to the campground, which was not far at all. He told us that his garage opened at 7:00am and we could call and talk to the mechanic for a check up.

So, we were happy to get hooked up, get the A/C going, get everyone fed and wait to see what we are going to face tomorrow. For now, we’re getting a good night’s sleep.

I don’t think Jonesie liked “living” under the overpass for an hour this afternoon!

More later……….

"I want to live here tonight"

From Wednesday, June 8, 2011

We had a good night’s sleep and got up just before 7:00am. Charlie went to take a shower. He came back and said it was a cold one…no hot water. I made some coffee and we sliced some of Jennifer’s bread for toast. Very good bread! I had sliced some for dinner last night too. It will go fast.

As we were eating breakfast, Charlie noticed that the reason we couldn’t find any cable channels was because this campground doesn’t have cable! There is an antenna on top of their office/store. We’re kind of puzzled that such a nice campground doesn’t have cable (or hot water!)

We left the campground around 10:00am. The TomTom took us down back roads, through hills, and farm land. Very pretty places. We were at the mercy of the TomTom now because I had not printed out any other directions. I did have a road atlas that I could refer to if we really felt lost. We had a feeling that the GPS knew where to take us this time though.

We missed a turn and found a place to turn around. By that time TomTom had re-planned the route. “She” kept trying to turn us back around and continue on a different way. We decided to go back and make the turn “she” told us to do that we had missed.

I kept seeing signs on the side of the two lane highway which said “Trail of Tears Original path”. I looked it up online and The Trail of Tears was the relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the present-day United States.

The removal included many members of the Cherokee, Muscogee (Creek), Seminole, and Choctaw nations among others in the United States, from their homelands to Indian Territory (eastern sections of the present-day state of Oklahoma). The phrase originated from a description of the removal of the Choctaw Nation in 1831. Many Native Americans suffered from exposure, disease, and starvation while on route to their destinations, and many died, including 4,000 of the 15,000 relocated Cherokee.

We went this way and that way, turning up and down these little county roads that had numbers, but we really didn’t know where we would come out. I had visions of running out of gas in some farmer’s driveway. I’m sure they would be friendly, but in my mind, they would take one look at our out of state (CA) license plate and tell us to “git”. My imagination can run wild sometimes.

We finally came out onto a U.S. highway and we didn’t really need gas, but we stopped anyway. After an hour on back roads, we didn’t want to take any chances. We were now in Alabama and we had gained an hour back in the Central Time Zone. We would never have seen these little towns or out of the way places on our own. Since the TomTom got confused trying to get us to the campground in Mississippi last month, we get nervous when “she” puts us on little country highways.

We arrived at Wall Doxey State Park in Mississippi around 3:30pm. Milton, Charlie’s cousin was going to come and pick Charlie up and take him to see his Uncle James. I decided I would stay at the RV and let Charlie and Uncle James get a nice visit in. I will see him tomorrow when Aunt Marie and Debbie come up to see him too.

We have no cable or Wi Fi at this park, so I will be posting several days when I can post again.

Milton came by at 4:30pm and said they’d be gone for about three hours. After they left, I took Sheila out for a walk down to the lake. We have stayed at this park before, but I don’t think we have ever been to the lake. It’s pretty and has a swift-looking current out in the middle, but it looks stagnant around the edges. I saw some fish in there though.

There is a dock and an old life guard station, but it is fenced around and closed now. Further down there is a new dock. I was going to walk to that one and walk out on it, but there were some teenagers in the park heading that way with fishing poles. Sheila was already nervous because these kids were playing around near the play ground when we walked by and the boys were calling to each other. They were not paying attention to us at all, but Sheila is still very afraid of strangers, especially young people.

We came on back to the RV. It was in the 90’s and although quite shady here, I was warm and ready to come in and cool off. Sheila was also ready for a drink of water.

I fed the cats and gave Sheila her dinner. Right now, 6:00pm, they are all asleep. Charlie should be back in a couple of hours.

Charlie mentioned earlier that I had stopped keeping track of gas prices. The gas prices in Virginia and South Carolina were similar. Usually around $3.67 to $3.79 was normal. We stopped earlier today in Alabama and it was $3.44, which I think is the cheapest we have come across. As we move west, the prices will start going up. We have gotten so spoiled with the lower prices. It will be hard to start paying almost $4.00 a gallon in California again!

I called my brother, Richard, to see how he’s doing. He was also sick with a cold at the same time as me. He said he was much better, although he still had some congestion. My cold is almost gone. I still do not have my sense of taste or smell completely back. I forgot to ask Richard if he had also lost his senses.

Richard and Alice’s younger daughter, Jamie, is in the Air Force. Her husband is also in the Air Force. They are currently in Germany, but will be transferring to an Air Force base in Utah, near Ogden, in October. When we were visiting with Richard and Alice, they revealed to us that they were seriously considering moving to Utah so they could be closer to their granddaughter, Anna. He again mentioned that when I talked to him this afternoon.

Their older daughter, Ginger, would remain in North Carolina. She has a good job and has some seniority now. She would really have to make a tough decision to leave it and move to Utah as well. Hopefully everything will work out for them.

Charlie and I would welcome having family closer to us, that’s for sure. We miss our families. If not for this RV trip, I’m not sure when we’d be seeing everyone again. As it is, the last time we saw them was two years ago July, when we took our first RV trip. That time we also went to Florida to visit my family there. I’m so glad we did. It was the last time we got to spend time with my Aunt Roberta. She passed away the following November.

Last night Charlie and I started talking about how much we miss Taz. He and the twins, Jason and Kaci, and Sheila were on our trip with us two years ago. We are still brought to tears when we talk about Taz. He was just so special to both of us. I wouldn’t take anything for the times we had with that little guy.

My sister, Jennifer, has a cat whose name is “Lacey”, but she calls her “Sweetie Cat”. “Sweetie Cat” is kind of long hair and looks like a Siamese cat with two white paws. She has the prettiest blue eyes. Oh, and did I mention?…..very spoiled.

I was a little surprised when Jennifer told me that they took “Sweetie Cat” with them when they went up to visit Greg’s family in North Dakota last year. Years ago, Greg would not allow a cat in the house, much less in their fifth wheel camper RV! Their life will be richer for it, I promise.

Robert and Angie also have a little girl cat. Her name is “Penny”. She is short haired, striped, and has tawny specks. “Penny” reminds me a lot of our “Kaci” (Little Girl). They both have short tails and their own little attitudes. “Penny” goes up to Spartanburg with Robert and Angie and lives in their apartment with them. She calls the apartment her “mountain get away”.

“T” is Robert and Angie’s independent cat who showed up at their house years ago. He is an orange tabby. They fed him and he stayed. He would disappear for days and then turn up again. But, he preferred to be an outside cat and he considers their front porch his home. There were times I know, when Robert wondered if “T” would come back. He always has returned so far.

I remember the little black kitten that Robert had when he lived in Key West, Florida. His name was “Rastus”. I met “Rastus” when I was there.

“Rastus” was a teenager, a half grown little fellow. I got the biggest kick out of the two of them playing together and the way Robert talked to “Rastus”. That was the cutest little cat. “Rastus” chased his tail round and round. Robert would say “Catch that black snake, Rastus”.

Then Robert took “Rastus” with him when he went up to Canada. Along the way they camped. “Rastus” had been playing around the camp site and some kids in the next camp site were playing with him.

The next morning when Robert was getting ready to leave, “Rastus” was gone. He always believed that the people in the next camp site took “Rastus”. I know how attached he was with that little cat.

Since Robert has been working in Spartanburg, Jennifer takes care of “T”. To Robert’s surprise, Jennifer took “T” to the vet to get his shots and a check up. She had to catch him in a pillowcase and put him in the kennel. But, once she got him to the vet, “T” sat on the table for the vet and purred. Amazing! He’s not feral, but he’s never been taken to a vet either! I have to hand it to my sister. Maybe a little of me has actually rubbed off on her.

Robert and I were talking on his front porch on Monday. “T” was under the swing that Robert sat in. Just from the way Robert talked about “T’s” adventures and past injuries, I could tell how he felt about him. He referred to “T” as “my cat”. Case closed. He protects that cat, but “T” also has his freedom.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Charlie decided to stay with his uncle last night. As usual, the cats woke me just before 7:00am this morning. They have all been fed and are taking their morning naps.

Charlie got back to the RV around 9:00am. He said that James is doing well after his surgery, but he does need some post-op care. Aunt Marie and Debbie are coming up to pick us up and we will visit James.

They arrived around 1:00pm and we went over to see James. Aunt Marie and James are the same age. They knew each other in school. They had a lot to talk about. It was interesting to listen to them reminiscing about their school days and people they used to know.

Soon it was time to go. Aunt Marie and Debbie wanted to get home before dark. It was around 4:30pm when they took us back to our RV.

At 5:30pm Milton came by and picked us up to meet his sister, Betty, and the others for dinner. We went to a restaurant in downtown Holly Springs, called “JB’s”. James and his friend, Emerald, were there, as well as Betty, Milton’s sister, and her daughter and husband, Amanda and Michael. They have two little kids who are so cute. McKenzie (5?) and Tyler (2?).

We had a nice dinner and Milton took us back to our RV at 8:30pm. We were pretty tired and knew we had a long day ahead of us tomorrow.

Friday, June 10, 2011

It was after 7:00am when we woke. We have a drive to Choctaw, Oklahoma today. It was around 9:30am when we left Wall Doxey.

When we were driving through Arkansas, some of the fields were still flooded out. The water was not like it was in May when we came through, but it was still pretty wet.

The gas prices were around $3.54 along the way. In Oklahoma we stopped for gas at a Shell station. The gas pump wouldn’t take a credit card so Charlie had to go inside. They turned the pump on. He came back out and pumped about 20 gallons which took forever. It was very slow. Then he had to go back inside to pay.

I didn’t know he was having the problem with the gas pump. I took Sheila out for a few minutes and then decided I’d go in the store and buy some Krispy Kreme donuts. I got back to the RV and Charlie wasn’t here. I called him. I looked outside. I was just about ready to call his cell phone when I saw that he was standing by the RV pumping gas. I know I didn’t see him there earlier. Finally he came inside. By that time, Jason and Jonesie thought we had stopped for the night. They had come down from their little hiding places and were stretched out, relaxing. Kaci had gone back to the bed and was lying there grooming herself. This is what they do when we stop for the night. We always let them decompress from the day.

Since we talk for our cats, Jonesie has come up with the idea that when we stop each night at a different campground, he thinks we live there. So, he says, "I like living here" or "Where are we going to live tonight?" After all, he's only 9 months old! Yes, we've been on the road long enough........

We hated to disappoint them, but we still had a couple of hours to drive before stopping for the night. When we started the engine, all three went back to their little hide-aways.

We got to our campground at 6:15pm. It is in Choctaw, Oklahoma, just about 20 miles east of Oklahoma City. It’s a nice park.

We were getting settled when Charlie noticed that one of the cabinets in the kitchen area was open. He checked, but didn’t see any cats in there. Then he started looking for Jonesie. He couldn’t find him. We both looked and looked. I called Jonesie, but he didn’t come. Charlie was afraid that Jonesie was small enough to get in some of the small places under the sink.

He heard a “meow”. We turned off the A/C, TV and fan. He looked in a cabinet under the refrigerator. There was Jones. He had gotten in there when I put my “George Foreman Grill” away earlier. I didn’t even see him get in there. Needless to say, we were relieved to find the little monster.

We decided that we would stay here tonight and tomorrow night. That will give us a couple of nights to rest. We’ve been visiting all week and tomorrow we won’t have to worry about waking up early and driving all day. We need a break.

More later……….

“Adventure must start with running away from home”

From Tuesday, June 7, 2011

We went to Jennifer’s this morning for showers and coffee. She had fried some bacon and had the makings for BLT’s, so of course, we couldn’t turn that down. The geese had returned and were eating their breakfast too.

All too soon, it seemed, we had to get packed back up and leave. We’re going as far as the KOA campground in Cartersville, Georgia today.

Before we left, Jennifer gave us a loaf of her homemade bread as well as the recipe. She says it works every time she makes it. I also have a bread machine, so I will use this recipe instead of the bread machine mixes I usually use.

We arrived at the KOA around 4:00pm. It’s a pretty park, lots of trees and a wide, grassy field for Sheila to get her walks and exercise in. The WiFi is good, but there are really no good cable channels to choose from, so we didn't even plug in the TV.

We decided early in the trip that when we arrived at a campground each evening, we’d allow ourselves and the cats and Sheila, some time to decompress from the day. So, that’s what we did. For about an hour we sat on the couch and had a glass of wine, listened to music and talked. All three cats stretched out and slept their day off. Sheila went into her kennel and slept for the first time that day.

We had dinner and sat up for awhile longer. Then I went to the campground’s bathroom to brush my teeth, etc. to get ready for bed. When I came back to the RV and opened the door, Jason was right there waiting to run out.

It was dark and I didn’t see which way he went at first. Then Charlie came out with a flashlight and we saw Jason under the camper next door. It must have taken us 5 minutes to get him back inside. Sheila tried to help us at first, but we were afraid she was doing more harm than good and she might run off too, so we put her back inside the RV.

So, we got our exercise for the day, thanks to Jason.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

We slept well last night. Today we will go on to Mississippi to visit Charlie’s Uncle James. He is home from the hospital now. Charlie’s cousin, Debbie, and his Aunt Marie will be coming up to see us and of course, James, tomorrow. They live in Calhoun City, MS, which is about an hour away. That makes it work out fine, because we usually drive down to see them. We visited them last month at the beginning of our trip.

More later……….