Sunshine on my shoulder makes me happy...........

Not only does the sunshine make me happy, but the Dallas MUD from all the rain, is something I am ever so grateful to leave behind.
My black little toes and my squishy sandals were gettin' old...know what I'm sayin?....and that is not to mention the MESS that dog fur, dog nails and the area in between dog toes gets into......yuck, and not only yuck but a lot of work.....especially if you let it all harden into a clay like substance.....double yuck....I needed a sand blaster to clean the little gal
I got up on Saturday morning in great hopes of getting on the road, but instead woke to the crash and flash of yet ANOTHER thunderstorm.
I love Michael and Russell beyond words, however, enough is enough.
I waited for a break in the downpour, and with poncho on, braved my way back to Ft Worth to pick up my RV.
I arrived there by 815am and I was on the road by 9.
He showed me my drums, brake pads, etc.....

Did I say brake pads? 

There weren't any....there was metal, but nothing one could call a pad.

I must say, I got off lightly.

Everyone is still alive

YIPPEE. I AM ON THE ROAD AGAIN!

AND...........not a drop of rain from Ft Worth to my first stop......PECOS, TEXAS.
I drove 450 miles not only to leave Dallas behind, but also because I liked the town's name. PECOS!

A comment needs to be made here.
I must chastise myself.

It seems I SHOULD have told the RV mechanic to plug in my RV.

Why? you wonder?

When I got to PECOS.........ecstatic to be dry and away from Dallas, I pulled into my site, and practically skipped  around the rig getting set up.....

....THEN I OPENED THE RV DOOR!!!!!!!

GOOD GOD WHAT HAD CRAWLED INTO MY ABODE AND DIED?????

I was greeted with the aroma of decaying EVERYTHING!!!

The odor beat any black tank problem I have yet to have, and trust me....I know..
...I have replaced 2.....

There were yogurt containers that were seconds away from bursting...........eggs that smelled like sulphur, meats that smelled like that rat that once got stuck between your walls and died......
.....Gagging I walked in and promptly emptied my fridge and freezer into the trash !!!!!

Holy CRAP!

I digress........again.

The campground was interesting. Not worthy of a huge dissertation, however interesting in a simple
way.

Not sure what this is, but it was across the field from the RV park. 

I did wonder why I kinda glowed in the dark the next night.........

Firstly, let me tell you that the roads from Dallas to Pecos offered VERY little in the way of scenery.
Flat....an occasional gas station......little to no towns or visual stimulation.
Thank goodness for SIRIUS RADIO.........kept me company.
 I have started listening to 'talk radio'...most of which is very interesting, and informative.
HOWEVER...Do any of you all feel the occasional need to rip the vocal cords out of some of the folks that are, for some reason allowed not only to open their mouths and verbalize, but also to offer THEIR opinions.
YIKES.
AND the political commentary is like listening to a sports event..........Lordy.
I digress yet again.........forgive me!

The roads..........

HUGE mishap on the east bound highway...Semi overturned on road.....Traffic backed up for the very least....5 miles.

Glad I was heading west!

A rabbit in the sky!

Secondly....because of the above, ...easy driving etc.....I was able to drive 450 miles vs my usual 300.
Makin good time.
SUNDAY....May 31.....
On the road by 9am.
More boring roads until I hit El Paso..........GINORMOUS city.
Didn't stop as I had no need to.
Goal.....gas, pee, walk Lilly.

Did go thru a 'smidgent' of New Mexico. Stopped at a welcome center......stretched my legs and snapped a few pics..

Couldn't help myself, but I invaded the privacy, (in kind of a voyeur-istic manner), of 2 fornicating ladybugs.
Naughty me, and naughty them.

I spent the next night in a DELIGHTFUL park in BOWIE, Arizona.
The folks here were awesome! 
Helpful, talkative, genuine...........my kind of folks......again, a simple park, however they had the coolest store. 
I totally enjoyed this $15 camping stop! (if you don't have passport America, you should think about it. So many parks at 50%!!!

My next stop was Val Vista RV resort in Mesa, Arizona.

Check out the bird on top of the cactus!!

This is where I will be working when I return from Alaska.
I will be living at MESA REGAL.
Check this out!!! AWESOME PARK!!
Cal-Am.com     (Mesa Regal)
We had what I will refer to as a little 'mishap' at Val Vista.
There are many thoughts swimming around in my head as to what happened here.
There are certain folks that should just NOT be 'helpers','guides', spotters....or whatever you might call them.
They are more suited for positions involving asking if you would like french fries with your order.......I am just sayin............
Despite the beauty of the park, and the kindest of other folks, I was quite disillusioned after this episode.
I will show you the pictures of this fiasco, and leave it to say, that I had to stay in Mesa, Arizona 3 days vs 1 day.

Need I say more?

All was not lost in Mesa!!!!

I was able to meet my future boss, Mikki, (she is so lovely, and we had an awesome lunch together), She gave me a tour of the facility and  gave me a real look at the vast nature of the DECOR department. I wish I had had a camera with me to photograph the lay out of this division of CAL-AM resorts.

 It is truly mind boggling.
My desk already has a full file of assignments awaiting my official arrival in August/Sept.

Mesa, Arizona, in June is the hottest place I have EVER been!!!

Check out the outside temperature!!!!!!!  It wasn't really 7:19 pm.....it was 4:19 pm.

Honestly, I threw an egg on the sidewalk to fry up..........save on propane, if you know what I mean.

I kept the air conditioner at 55 degrees JUST to maintain a temperature of 80!!!!!

If only high temps truly melted fat.

I would be golden.

I left Mesa, bright and early on June 4th.

Made it as far as Mesquite, Nevada. Passed the back side of Hoover Dam as well. BEAUTIFUL!

JUNE 5   Today was a long long day. Because of this big GORGE I had to drive thru, I only made 35 miles in an hour which really slowed me down.

Despite the incredible beauty of the gorge (ST GEORGE)....I suddenly realized that I am a latent claustrophobic!!!!  The walls of the gorge were closing in on me! The road could not have been more narrow! I was literally freaking out. But, I made it safely thru to the other side, and i live and breathe to tell the story.

So, Now I am at a Campground called Wasatch View in Ogden, Utah. I am only 150 miles from Great Falls, Montana....my destination to meet the Alaska group.

Wasatch is an OK place, but for the passport America price that I got on it, well worth it. 

The owner was kind enough to drive me to the store so I wouldn't have to unhitch.

nice guy.

Since I cannot get into my site in Great Falls until the ninth, I may just hang out here for another day, and then head North.

So, this ends this leg of the trip......am kinda pooped. Today was a very long day.

Will sleep in tomorrow, so kindly dont come knocking at me door.

;-)