An Ordinary Sunday

 Sunday, November 30, 2025

Random thoughts no one probably needs to hear.  I do not know about anyone else but songs will pop into my head for a reason other times no reason at all. Like when we are driving through Oklahoma, you know it if you like the old musicals. Or when we go up and down an especially steep up and down like by Benson on I-10, Spinning Wheel starts humming. For a while these last few months I could not let go of God Bless the USA, not that I do not like the song, but after a while enough is enough. This morning I opened my eyes and the lyrics to These Boots Were Made for Walking popped in now where in the heck did that come from. I sat down to type the beginning of today's blog, this was not the plan, typed Sunday and the refrain form Easy, Easy Like Sunday Morning, popped in. No more random thoughts for today, at least none I will share...lol

Anyway, the sky is again a beautiful blue out our window but a little chilly to be sitting out with our coffee so we are enjoying the start to this wonderful new day inside. We are enjoying the soft quiet, except for the tapping of the keys. Wondering what today will bring there are no plans past Mass at 11:30.

As I type this at the end of our day it has been what can only be described as a quiet ordinary day. We came home after Mass and had brunch. Then Tom put a spaghetti squash on the grill and I went and picked up a few things at Family Dollar, Dollar General, and Coyote Fresh Foods. When I got back the squash was done and on the cupboard later I would go in and make a meat sauce to go with it and real pasta for Tom. For now we sat out for a bit just enjoying this place we are presently calling home. 

While we sat there we had two visitors at our hummingbird Feeder. These are Anna's Hummingbirds, also. There is one male and one female and so far they take turns coming in for sips. I have noticed they sometimes then fly over Patsy and Bill's home. I know they have a feeder over there so my guess is they are going back and forth between the two.

The female posed very nicely for her picture.

I had to get up and wait on the other side for the male
but then he also posed nicely.

The moon rising
with a few very light clouds around it. 

As the sun was starting to set Patsy walked over towards our site to take some pictures so I got up and joined her and we chatted while we took our pictures of tonight's sunset.

The sun setting on our day.

I just happened to look out and saw this color. I have a feeling
I missed the beginning. The colors were fading.
What I saw of it though was a beautiful after glow.

I just checked Patsy's Blog, Chillin' with Patsy, and I was right I did miss the beginning. We had some pretty pink to start with. She did get those pictures and you can see them if you click on the link.

One last picture out our bedroom window. I could see the ribbon
of lights on the vehicles on I-10 coming down into Quartzsite.

This was our day. We had dinner and as I type this blog Tom is reading something on his phone and soon it will be time for bed. It was an ordinary day and we have more of these type of days than not. Days were we do ordinary things and are glad we get to do them together while living our dream. We hope you had a pleasant Sunday and that this coming week is a good one.

If you have enjoyed the pictures I have put out there 

or the words I have added that makes me smile. 

If you have time to leave a comment they are always special to read. 

No matter what I am glad you stopped by!

Quartzsite 2024

Every year I seem to take several pictures of things that catch my eye as we drive in and out of Quartzsite and LaPosa South LTVA. Even though we do not always stay there we do buy the 2 week pass, a couple of times during the season, to be able to use the dump station with our blue boy, get rid of our garbage, and fill up our fresh water bladder.  Most years I keep putting them in a album then we leave and I have not done anything with them and they eventually get deleted. This year I have decided to share a few of them in this post.

Where Quartzsite is now located, was from 1863 to the 1880s the site of a waterhole and later a stage station, called Tyson's Wells, along the La Paz - Wikenburg Road on Tyson Wash, in what was then Yuma County, in the newly created Arizona Territory. It was about 20 miles from the Colorado River steamboat landing of La Paz and 25 miles from the landing of Erhenburg from 1866. The next stop was 25 miles to the east at Desert Station.

In the valley around Tyson’s Wells, individual prospectors successfully worked various places during the Colorado River Gold Rush of the 1860s up until the 1950s. While some large-scale operations in the early 20th century faced failures, the area remained significant for gold seekers. (When you ride into the desert near the mountains you can see where there are still mines being worked.)

Today Quartzsite as of the 2020 census, had a population of 2,413 residents. During the winter months that population expands into the millions. It is a popular destination for snowbirds, just like us looking for a place to enjoy a warmer climate then the winters we lived through throughout our pre-retirement days. 

The Dome Rock Mountains overlook the town to the west. Granite Mountain and Oldman Mountain add to the scenic beauty. Nearby going south is the Kofa National Wildlife Refuge and north the Plomosa Mountains. 

It is surrounded by BLM land (Bureau of Land Management) and is approximately 17 miles from the southern California border and 100 miles from Mexico.

The town is famous for its gem and mineral shows, along with the Quartzsite Sports, Vacation, & RV Show which draw over a million visitors annually.

I am going to end this by saying we do enjoy spending time there. It is quiet at times and a madhouse of people and vehicles at other times. We find our spot tucked in on BLM land either alone our with friends and thoroughly enjoy our time. 

The following are some of those random pictures that caught my eye.

Heading west on Main Street.

The "Big Tent" 

Just a few of the many RV's for sale during the show.

This little guy stands at the main entrance road into the show.

Some of the stores in Quartzsite.
Top right is Gem world I have been known to spend a few dollars.
Middle right Coyote Fresh Foods in my opinion they have an
excellent meat counter and some pretty good bake goods.
Bottom Right looking out at I-10 from the bridge on US-95.
The semis going east and west are a constant reminder of all
 the things they move for us every day.

Yes, they even have a Yacht Club.

There were camel rides for a short time.

Where we live there are some big fish in front of businesses.
We have seen cities with moose and buffalo.
Here in Quartzsite they have camels.

Top left I thought I had gotten a picture of all the traffic on Kuehn
Street but I also got some shoppers.
Top Right I was actually behind this guy.
We were both turning right on to Main Street.

I believe this is the Hagely General Store Ruins.
The last rammed-earth building built in Quartzsite.
It was built by Anthony Hagely in 1893

Hagely General Store Ruins. These remnants, dating back to the 1890s, stand as a testament to the town’s history. The Hagely store was once a bustling hub for trading goods and sharing news, and its weathered walls now evoke a sense of nostalgia and survival. 

For the ten years we have been coming here we often questioned what kept this place from totally collapsing there were some boards holding it up but it was totally open to the weather. When we came back in January this year and went by this structure had been built over it. They are trying to preserve it. It is an important part of the history of this town and how wonderful to see this. 

Ocotillo

I take a lot of pictures of the Saguaros all beautiful. This one
looked like it was waving at me.

This one looked like a little munchkin to me.

Driving into LaPosa South LTVA

While Tom was emptying our black tank and filling our freshwater
tank I took a ride around LaPosa South. Someone put this together
not far behind the water stations. Interesting I did not take a picture
of their RV parked inside the circle.

One of the first things I noticed back in 2015, the first time we landed out here, was how many different kinds of rigs, not brands though there are an overwhelming number of those, but all the different types of  "homes"  people live this lifestyle in. I guess would be a better way to put it. When we are in Quartzsite we see people living in cars and million dollar rigs and everything in-between. Tents, cars, vans, travel trailers small and large, truck campers, cargo trailers, homemade campers, pop-ups, 5th wheels, Class C's, Class B's, and Class A's. We see rigs specifically for off roading and we have seen people living in boats. A couple of years ago we saw a fire engine someone had converted into and RV and we saw one guy living in what looked like a large wooden box. There are a lot of school buses big and small, plus city buses, and buses that would have traveled across the country converted into homes on wheels. Panel trucks, ambulances and the list goes on. Sometimes you see a rig and you wonder how it is making it down the road in one piece and then you see one you know just came off the "showroom floor". We see young people with families and older adults, even older then us, and every age in between. The list could go on and on but I will stop here. Well maybe one more observation. What we have found is there is a friendliness that hardly ever existed when we lived in sticks and bricks along with a willingness to help and get to know your neighbor even if it is just a short conversation while we are waiting for the fresh water tank to fill. Now I do know that is not always true and we had some nice neighbors in our last sticks and bricks and I am sure some of you did also. There are, of course, times to be cautious about who you come in contact with, always trusting your instincts, but for the most part it is a good life living among good people. 

Below are some of the pictures I have taken of the different ways people live this lifestyle.

Well if you made it this far I hope its because you enjoyed the pictures. 

☘To All Our Irish Friends and Those Who Wish They Were,
We Hope You Enjoyed a Wonderful St. Patrick's Day!☘

We are glad you stopped by!

If you have time to leave a comment we would enjoy hearing from you.

Happy Birthday to Our Daughter!!! Filling In the Rest of Our Time at Roadrunner BLM in January 2024, Part 1 (Two Beautiful Quilts)

Happy Birthday Rachel!!!

Today our beautiful daughter is celebrating her Birthday!
Tom and I have 7 beautiful grandchildren and she is the mother of 3 of them.
We are proud of the woman you have become, Rachel,
and we love you forever and always!
xoxo     xoxo

We are presently In Gulfport, Mississippi.

Before I go any further forward with this blog I am going to take a step back to our time at Roadrunner at the dates below.  This blog is for our memory book. ( This is an FYI for myself:  I wrote three blogs about the 19 days we were there on January 14th and 17th and February 7th.)

January 15th through January 29th 2024

My first picture is a Saguaro we have used as a marker as to where to turn when we park in this general area at the Roadrunner BLM. When we got here in November I was glad to see he was still standing but when we arrived back in January the first thing I noticed is he has fallen apart. Certainly the circle of life but still sad to see him gone.

He was a good marker for our turn for several years.

 

On the 15th we took a ride over to Bouse where we had breakfast Bouse Booster Club with Melissa and Lyle. A short visit but fun. 

Coming out on the East side of the Plomosa Mountains.

The Breakfast was good the company excellent.

Heading back West to AZ-95 then South to Roadrunner.

These Teddy Bear Chollas look like they are dancing.

Happy Hour on the 15th.
Left to Right: Keith, Kim, Ken, Tom, and my chair.

On the 16th we jumped into the "Jeep with No Name" with Kim and Ken and headed over to the Crystal Hill Kofa National Wildlife Refuge. As I recall the only one who found a crystal, or was it two, was Kim. 

Ken and Tom checking out the map at the kiosk.

I believe this is a Buckhorn Cholla

We are down in the wash looking for Crystals.

Well at least Kim, Ken, and Tom are. 
I am taking pictures of them looking...lol

When we got back we had surprise visitors for Happy Hour.
Always nice to have Patsy and Bill join us.
Left to right: Ken, Patsy, Bill, Ken, Kim, my chair, and Tom

Then on the 18th we had a nice surprise Nancy, Kissack Adventures, along with Patsy, Chillin' with Patsy, and Bill, On Our Way joined us for Happy Hour.

Standing in our doorway looking out at the sunrise.

The ride back to our site at Roadrunner

Out site and on the right in the top photo and middle one our
neighbors.  They called themselves "The Beavers" a Motorhome
that several of them owned. They were a large group but pretty quiet.

For some reason I just could not seem to get the whole group in the picture.
So the Top Picture Left to Right: Bill, Patsy, Ken, Nancy, my chair, Kim
Bottom picture on the right add: Ken and Tom

When we decided to sell the house one of the things I had to do was go through my sewing room.  As I started the " fun" project I found a covered basket I had taken from my mom's sewing room several years before and placed in mine. I had opened it at the time and saw it was material but never went through it but now it needed to be done.  In the basket I found a quilt top she had put together but not quite completed along with a lot of cut pieces of material. There was also material for a backing. Plus, there was other quilting material and some fishing panels. We had taken a quilting class together but I never did anything with what I had learned. In all honesty I really do not like matching corners, something a quilter does a lot of, so I never really cared to quilt. Yet it was fun going to class together. I bagged up what I found not wanting to get rid of her work but knowing I did not have the skills to finish it. It went into the storage unit with several other bags of material, I am not a quilter but I am a sewer, I was still not ready to part with. A few years went by and I kept seeing pictures of all the beautiful quilts Nancy makes and I finally made up my mind to ask her if she would be willing to look at what I had and see if she could complete it. She said yes and last year I turned over all the material that had belonged to my mother. Well at least all that was quilting material. Below are pictures that do not do justice to what she returned to me on this day in January of 2024.

Nancy finished this quilt and quilted it

and added pillow shams

The Fishing Panels and the backing she found.

Thank you, Nancy. It means so much to me to have these! You do beautiful work and I love them!

“To me, the beauty of a quilt or a dress lies within the stitches and the thought of the person who made them. When you spend time making something with your two hands, you impart love in a way that buying never can.” ― Natalie

This guy came and drank from our feeder several times.

Sunset on the 19th

After sunset on the 20th

On the 21st we took a ride.

AZ-95

AZ-72

AZ-72

US-60

I-10

US-95

Home!

On the 22nd it rained in the desert.

Puddles and Little Washes in the Desert.

On our way to Silly Al's for dinner with friends.

While standing outside waiting for a table the sun went down
and the sky glowed.

Having Pizza at Silly Al's
Top left: Bill, Nancy, Patsy     Top right: Kim and Sarah     
Bottom left: Keith       
Bottom right: Ken and Kim with their daughter Sarah    

To be continued in the next post.

We are glad you stopped by!

If you have time to leave a comment we would enjoy hearing from you.