One More Little Move

Sunday, November 16 – Saturday, November 22, 2008

Sunday, November 16

Birthday Greetings go out today to son-in-law Ryan McQuitty in Liberal, Kansas, and sister-in-law Billee Little in Mineola…Many Happy Returns!!!

It was great to be back at Rim Rock Cowboy Church this morning. Pastor Larry was out of town this weekend, but the youth minister, John Pollard, who more than ably filled the pulpit with a wonderful sermon based on II Peter 3:18.

We hadn’t been to the church since they finished their remodeling program, so were pleasantly surprised to see all that had been done. It has always been a pleasant place for worship services, but it is really nice now. In fact, when the service was over, I went back to the car, grabbed the camera, and came back to take some pictures. We were both very impressed with the wall decorations behind the baptismal trough (that’s right, their baptisms are in a horse trough…what else would you use in a cowboy church?). Mounted on the wall is a grouping of horseshoes, each one signifying a new baptism.
After shooting the outside and inside of the building and the rodeo arena, we got in the Vibe and drove back to Mineola, where we made a short stop at Mother’s house to check up on everyone. They had just gotten back from their church service and were going to have a quick lunch and take their afternoon naps, so we left, went back to Big V, and did the same.

Around 3:30 we went back to the house to have a little birthday celebration for Billee, who was ?? years old today. Since Barbara has a November birthday, too, TJ presented both with gorgeous flowers. She also baked a double chocolate cake for the occasion and we all sat around and talked and ate (we do a lot of that in our family).
When the party was over, we came on back to the civic center for the night. As we got out of the car, we noticed our “next door neighbors” outside. We had been on casual speaking terms with them since they got here several days ago…something along the line of, “Mornin’ (or Evenin’)…how ya doin’?”, and that sort of thing. Tonight we started the same way, but that initial exchange quickly turned into a full-blown conversation and the next thing we knew, we had invited them into Big V to show off something or other. Two hours later Gene and Carolyn, our newest friends (new full-timers from South Dakota) left to go back to their fifth wheel for the night. It was amazing how much we all found to talk about!

The rest of the night was spent working on the journal and downloading and cataloguing pictures that we had taken over the week-end.

Monday, November 17

Happy Birthday today to granddaughter Randi in San Antonio and niece Brandi in Cleburne!!!

We were still worn out from all the week-end activities, so the morning was a bit slow for us. I finally got around to going to the post office to mail out the last of the Toccoa DVD’s and, while I was at it, I drove by Sonic to pick up a couple of breakfast burritos so we could have breakfast before it was time for lunch.

Around noon I drove over to Mother’s house to see what was happening there and found that Mother and T.J. had gone to Quitman for the morning. Ernie and Billee were there, but they were heading out to Quitman. We visited for a few minutes until Mother and T.J. got back and then Ernie and Billee left. I put a load of clothes in the washing machine and told Mother we’d be back later.

After an hour or so, Ernie called and said to come on over to visit, so we did. When we got there, we found that they had bought a birthday cake for Barbara, since they wouldn’t be seeing us on the 28th. Ernie and I went out to do some work on one of the Vibe’s doors. About the time we came back in, T.J. came over, so we got the group all together and shared the birthday cake and had a “little” surprise party. As you can tell by the pictures, the cake decorations included a little tiara and wand, and Barbara couldn’t help posing as the fairy princess. She figured that when her reign was over, Abby could take over.
When we had finished a couple of loads of clothes and T.J. had left, we said our goodbyes for the afternoon. Barbara went to T.J.’s house to help her with a computer problem and I went back to Big V to take a short nap.

Barbara came back around 4:30, just as I was gearing up to take a motorcycle ride. It was an absolutely gorgeous day for riding, and the Voyager was calling my name. I rode for about an hour and a half, giving it up when it was dark and I couldn’t see where I was going…made a quick stop at the house to check in with Mother, Ernie, and Billee, and then came back to Big V where we whiled away the evening.

Whiling away the evening was easier since Barbara had spent my riding time doing some cleaning and straightening so we would be ready to take Big V to the RV doctor early tomorrow morning. We called Randi to offer our birthday greetings. She was glad to hear from us, but we don’t think she was overly impressed with our unique vocal rendition of “Happy Birthday.”

Tuesday, November 18

When we got back t Mineola last week we made an appointment to get Big V to Southern RV, between Lindale and Tyler, today for general servicing and to let them try to figure out why the electric part of our water heater hadn’t been working. We noticed the problem when we were in Georgia, but there was nothing we could do about it there.

We got up early this morning, moved vehicles around, disconnected the utilities and closed in the slides, and then I drove Big V to the shop while Barbara ran some errands before driving the Vibe down to catch up with me.

I got to Southern RV just a few minutes before 8:00 and, as promised, they took us in right away. They immediately got someone to start tracing the wiring to find out the problem with the water heater. It took nearly four hours to get everything done, but just before noon we drove away with the rig all up to date and ready to roll. The servicing procedure didn’t uncover any problems, and the electrician solved the water heater problem when he found a wire that had jolted loose from a connection…just one of the hazards of driving our house over bumpy roads.

We came on back to Mineola and got Big V back on the slab and hooked up to the utilities, but didn’t put any of the decorations out. After all, we were planning to leave to go back to Artesia tomorrow morning and figured that we could just work around things for a few hours.

Barbara cooked up a big batch of her Mexican casserole and, after eating and watching another episode of M*A*S*H, we started taking care of some general chores. I loaded up some tings we would be leaving in Mineola and took them over to Mother’s house for storage until we get back down here, while Barbara got caught up on her email and a Christmas project she is working on.

Just after I got back from Mother’s place, our next door neighbors, Gene and Carolyn, came over to visit. We’ve really enjoyed talking to them and sharing our experiences. They are just doing some traveling now, but would like to settle down in Mineola if things work out right. We told them we would be leaving tomorrow morning and they said that they would be too…they were having an electrical problem with their fifth wheel and had gotten an appointment with one of the authorized service shops farther down the road toward Waco.

Around 4:00 Barbara and I went back to visit Mother and leave her some of the casserole, put the cycle in storage at her place (not what I wanted to do, but it didn’t make much sense to take it back to Artesia for the winter, so I agreed to leave it behind), and drop off a few other things that we don’t think we’ll need for the next couple of months; then, we returned to Big V to get ready to head west tomorrow morning.

While we were working at our computers Barbara suggested that I give Gene and Carolyn one of the cards that she made up while we were at Toccoa. That would have been a good thing, but I had just thrown the last of them away…they were on flimsy paper instead of cardstock, and had gotten wadded up in my pockets. So, I did the next best thing…I typed out a short note telling them how much we had enjoyed visiting with them and included our email addresses and phone numbers for future reference.

Barbara was working on the Christmas project, so I took the information next door to Gene and Carolyn. They invited me in and gave me the grand tour of their “home on wheels,” and then we sat down and talked about a kazallion different things… it turns out that Gene and I have a lot of common interests, not the least of which is music.

Realizing that I had let the time get away from me, I said goodbye to our friends and returned to Big V where Barbara immediately asked whether I had taken pictures while I was next door. The answer, of course, was “of course not.” I said that we both ought to go back so she could see their home and we could get some photos.

So, back we went and soon we were all talking and sharing stories. Barbara noticed a large case sitting on the floor and Gene said it was his accordion. Barbara asked him if he would mind playing it, and the next thing we knew, we were getting our own private recital. Gene is really very good on the accordion and we enjoyed his music very much. We even discussed the possibility of putting together some accordion and trumpet duets the next time we get together…not a common combination, but also not totally out of the question.

Before we left, Carolyn found a CD that Gene had recorded and loaned it to us to import to our computers. After taking a few pictures, it really was time to get back to Big V for the night, so we said our goodbyes again and went back home, where we set to work importing our newest music collection before heading to bed.

Wednesday, November 19

We had hoped to get away from Mineola by 8:30 this morning, but didn’t quite make it. After we got Big V all closed up we drove over to Mother’s house to say goodbye. Barbara then dropped me off at the civic center so I could move Big V to another lot and hook up the trailer while she went to the post office and to find us some breakfast.

The trailer hookup went more smoothly than usual, so while I was waiting for Barbara to return I went back to Gene and Carolyn’s fifth wheel to return their CD and let them know we were leaving. About the time I got there, Barbara returned, so we went back to the other lot, loaded the Vibe on the trailer, and pulled away from the civic center just a few minutes after 9:00.

The next five hours were drive, drive, and more drive…not the way we like to travel, but this was basically a travel day and we wanted to get to Abilene as quickly as possible. The traffic around the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex cooperated for once and we made it through that mess hardly even slowing down.

Our reason for getting to Abilene today was twofold – it is approximately halfway between Mineola and Artesia and provides a good place for refueling and gauging our progress. Also, we had made arrangements to meet with a friend of Barbara’s from years ago, Dandy Heasley; she had come to Artesia to visit Barbara in the spring of 1962, but I hadn’t seen her since.

Barbara: The summer before my junior year at Hobbs High School, Daddy finished his education at SMU and was given an assistant pastor position in Tucumcari, NM. Since I was going to be Worthy Adviser in Rainbows, Mom and Dad decided that she, Nancy, and I would remain in Hobbs. (Carol was a freshman at McMurry in Abilene)

Every time Daddy would come home to Hobbs or we’d talk on the phone, he would talk to me about this real sweetheart of a girl, Dandy, who was my age. I hated her sight unseen since she was getting attention from MY daddy!!!!

However, once we all went to Tucumcari to visit Dad and I met Dandy, I found a real soul mate and could shed and recognize my “hatred” for what it was…jealousy!

Now that I’m older, I realize Daddy was trying to show me that moving to Tucumcari wouldn’t be the end of my world. (Which I thought it was going to be!) And…I did learn that lesson and began to look forward to summer so we could all be a family again and I could hang out with Dandy.

Once we were all in Tucumcari, every night and as much of the day as possible, Dandy and I were together…remember my dating story of Darrell Bone from San Jon and Barbara Perry from Tucumcari?...well, Dandy had a date with a friend of Darrell’s but since their names didn’t rhyme, we have no clue who he was.

Anyway, much to my chagrin, after balking at moving to Tucumcari, I never even got to attend one day of school with Dandy since Daddy was assigned the church in Artesia and we moved there.

Dandy and I had to be content to write each other long epistles, have an occasional phone call (no cell phones back in them there days!) and once she got to come to Artesia to visit me.

Somehow over the years Dandy and I would find each other, but after Henry’s death, we lost touch with each other and neither knew how to find the other. Then one night not too long ago, Jim got email from his friend Lynn and he noticed that it had Dandy’s email address on it! (Is it a small world or what????)

Anyway, I quickly wrote Dandy and the doors opened for our glorious reunion and the meeting of Glenn, her husband!

The time went far too quickly for us to cover a whole lot of territory during our short Flying J visit, but I remain hopeful that it’s just the first of many we’ll have in the days to come.
Jim: When we had finished our visit with Dandy and Glenn (and taken some pictures, of course), we headed back out to Big V for the next leg of the journey. Our plan was to drive about 60 or so miles to a rest area that we knew of and spend the night there. If the rest area was closed, we could drive on to Big Spring and camp out in the Wal-Mart lot, or turn north on U.S. 87 and go to a county rest area at Lamesa.

As luck would have it, we got to the I-20 rest area around 5:00 p.m. and found a good spot to park Big V for the night. There wasn’t anyone else there at the time, but we both knew that would change (maybe several times) over the next 10-12 hours.

Around 5:30 we grabbed our cameras and headed outside to take pictures of sunset. That may sound like a strange thing, but we hadn’t seen a true sunset since the night of June 30 when we left Artesia to take Mother to Mineola and begin our 4 ½ month odyssey. We saw the sun disappear over mountains and clumps of trees, craning our necks to get that last view, but had gone all this time without seeing the sun set on the far flat horizon. We were just in time this evening to watch a beautiful show as the sun dropped gradually, painting the horizon in incomparable hues of reds and oranges until the dark curtain of night closed off all light except for the stars, which shine brilliantly in this part of the world.

Barbara: Okay, I admit it…this gorgeous sunset photo is Jim’s! Mine paled in comparison to his…however; we each enjoyed capturing the wide open spaces of West Texas! Jim even took a photo of Big V’s cousin, the 18-wheeler parked next to us!

With night upon us, we returned to our “turtle home,” ate a meal while watching a couple of episodes of M*A*S*H, and then turned in to get some much needed sleep.

Thursday, November 20

We both woke up at 3:30 this morning with the sounds of diesel engines rumbling all around us. Sure enough, 18-wheelers had filled every available space in the rest area, and most of them just left their engines running. It wasn’t a loud or overpowering sound, but definitely something one doesn’t normally hear when at an RV Park.

Since we were both wide awake, we got up and checked our computers for email and/or online subscriptions, but it was way too early (and dark) for us to get out on the highway, so we went back and slept until 5:30, when we got up and started getting ready to travel.

The morning light was starting to glow on the eastern horizon as we pulled away from the rest area for a few more hours of travel. We stopped in Hobbs, New Mexico, for a tank of gas. Barbara called Susie to see if she wanted to meet us at McDonald’s for breakfast, but since she had a meeting at 9:00 and wouldn’t be able to do that, we decided we’d just head on to Artesia and eat after we got there.

The farther we went, the cloudier, windier, and colder it got. The clouds were so heavy that we couldn’t see Artesia when we topped 12-Mile Hill, a point from which we can normally see for nearly a hundred miles. The 38-degree temperature and high winds were certainly a change from the hot and sunny day that we had when we left on June 30!

We drove straight to Jean’s place west of town, got the car off the trailer, parked the trailer and unhooked it, and then I guided as Barbara drove Big V around the barn and into its parking place on our concrete pad at 4903 Eastwind Road. Once Big V’s tires were resting on rubber mats on the pad, we both went to work at our assigned tasks to get her ready for living again. I took care of all the outside hookups (electric, water, and the large propane tank), while Barbara put out the slides, leveled the rig, and started decorating. We had everything set up and in place in well under an hour…maybe a new record for us.

After a trip to town to go to the bank and Wal-Mart, we returned home, put away groceries, and spent the rest of the afternoon just piddling around the place. Jean called to see if we made it in ok and asked us if we wanted to go to Kwan Den for dinner with her tonight. Naturally, we jumped at the opportunity since we wanted to visit Jean and Kwan Den is one of our favorite Chinese places in the whole country.

Later, we heard a loud knock on the door…it was Nancy, just stopping by on her way home from work to welcome us home. She didn’t have much time to visit, since she and Jerry were attending the “invitation only” opening of the new arts council theater tonight. The old Ocotillo Theater, where I paid fifteen cents to watch Saturday matinee double features when I was much, much younger, has been completely remodeled and will serve as a venue for productions by the local theater group and community concert touring ensembles. Becky didn’t have a part in this production, but was in charge of props such as making the phone ring, etc.

We went over to visit Jean when she got home and then went out for a wonderful Chinese buffet, where we continued catching up with each other while we stuffed our faces with delicious food. When we were finished, we went back to Jean’s house to visit some more, but the long day had worn us down and we had to call it quits and go back to Big V, where we shut everything down and went to bed, falling asleep almost immediately.

Friday, November 21

Barbara: Friday started out with a lengthy phone conversation with Social Security. Unsurprisingly, we couldn’t understand a word of what the internet interpretation of a law was concerning SS; so I had scheduled a phone appointment. It was quite informative and the lady I talked with was very helpful…I definitely recommend this way of communicating with SS! Sure beats waiting in an office!

Since the phone call required faxing some information to Betty, my SS rep, we decided to hit the road and take some Artesia photos before going by the funeral home to use the fax machine. Jim’s decided we’re not using those photos this week so…moving on.

After finishing business around town, we came back out to Jean’s to share lunch with her before heading out for Roswell. We certainly were in no mood to travel again, but we needed to return the faulty motorcycle battery they put in the Voyager back in June. We feared that it would be a hassle, but Jim met with the manager and in no time, we had received a credit for the battery.

Since we were in Roswell, we went over to my sister Carol’s house to visit. We were greeted with a big hug from both Carol and Cal who is still having much difficulty breathing and is on oxygen all the time now, but we were pleased with how much better he looked today than the last time we saw him. These are definitely hard times for them with Cal not being able to get around much.

While Cal and Jim visited, Carol and I crammed as much talking into the moments as we could! In fact, we didn’t have nearly enough time so I called and visited with her when we finally headed back to Artesia.

Before leaving Roswell, though, we went by Jim’s brother’s house, but found that Jerry and Jane were not home. We had no choice but to write a short note and head back to Big V since dark was approaching. And, as you all know by now, we turn into pumpkins and can’t/don’t like to drive at that time!

Saturday, November 22

Barbara: Go, Texas Tech Raiders! ...wrote this before the game! :(

Since I spent the first 60 years of my live going to football games… first with Henry, and then the boys, to watch him referee, later to observe the boys play, and then to support Jim as he directed the band at games (at least I stayed until after half-time)…football is no longer a huge priority with me.

However, tonight is especially sentimental for me. Henry loved Texas Tech and enjoyed refereeing their scrimmages…he always dreamed that one day they would have a team that commanded respect. Here it is November 22nd, what would be his 67th birthday, and they are rated number 2 the BCS and are playing Oklahoma in a monumental game. What a gift it would be if they could just win!! (Well…that didn’t turn out so well, now did it?)

Jim: It was a football day around here. Artesia played Kirtland Central in a quarter-final round of the New Mexico playoffs. It was a gorgeous, sunny afternoon at Bulldog Bowl, where our Bulldogs destroyed the visiting Broncos by a score of 57-14. I went to the game with Jerry and Nancy while Barbara stayed at the place to cook and visit with Jean.

We spent most of the day cooking a Puerto Rican dinner for Jean, Jerry, and Nancy…chicken, rice, and black beans; and Barbara baked a butter pecan cake as well as hamburger meat to put in the freezer for future use. Around 5:30 we took everything over to Jerry and Nancy’s house so we could watch the Tech game while we ate. The food turned out much better than the game, but at least we had a good time visiting and sharing stories of the last 4 ½ months.

“The great secret to a successful life is to treat all disasters as incidents, and none of the incidents as disasters.” – Harold Nicolson (paraphrase)

From our “Little” house on the prairie,

Jim & Barbara