Tuesday, December 22 through Thursday, January 14, 2021: Holidays, a New Year, and Life in Northern Arizona

Each morning, I walk the dogs around the block. One walk is before their morning meal and a second is after they have eaten. A family of mule deer --- nine of them --- like to settle in different locations in our neighborhood. This time, they were in a vacant lot adjacent to our home!

Later in the day, a large box arrived with a beautiful gift basket! There were loads of edible goodies and two bottles of wine! Thank you, Donna! 💕💕💕

Looks like we will not have a white Christmas this year. The dogs continue to enjoy their neighborhood walks.

My sister-in-law, Terry, posted a photo of her granddaughter Sophie on Facebook. I had to copy and share this precious photo of my grandniece!

It is Christmas Eve. The number of holiday cards I have received has grown. I like posting them up on the wall.

Pamela, an Australian girlfriend, shared a photo on Facebook of a typical Christmas Eve meal --- Shrimp on the Barbie. It looked so good that I found a recipe on the Internet and made Shrimp on the Barbie for us! Only I broiled the shrimp because our barbecue is covered for the winter.

The meal was delicious and the sauce was outstanding. We may have to make this a Christmas Eve tradition!

Christmas morning brought us a marvelous sunrise!We cranked up the Alexa Echo --- playing traditional Christmas music and Christmas carols. Our fireplace looks festive with the Christmas lights.

All of my California siblings were alone or with their families. With Covid-19, Governor Newsom recommended that large Christmas gatherings not take place. My brother Peter did snap a photo of their small group.

Later in the day, the neighborhood family of deer wandered by. The one buck's antlers have grown substantially!

In the evening, my Italian son, Francesco, sent a photo of him and Thomas from their London flat.

For Christmas dinner, I had purchased a New York Strip roast. Tom did a fine job cooking it to RARE perfection!

The day after Christmas, Tom and Jon went off to the forests south of town. Jamie, Kelsey, and I drove to the nearby dry Holden Lake and parked the truck. We walked a forest road for several miles and back.

As the dogs and I headed back to the truck, we happened upon a dead fox.Yuck!

When Tom came home, it was dark. We decided to drive around and view some of the Christmas lights and decorations. So, we drove to town. The Sheridan House Inn won first prize in the commercial category.

A nearby residential home won the prize for Best Use of Lighting and Design.

Sunday morning brought a pretty sunrise.

Later in the afternoon, Ellen and Mark Burson arrived for an overnight with their dogs. It is always fun when they are making the trek between Malibu and Oxford, Mississippi.

Ellen and I have a mutual Ojai, California friend --- Mara Hunter Redden. Ellen and Mara were together a few days ago. Mara sent a gift for me from the Ojai Olive Oil Company!

Monday morning I was not able to roundup enough pickleball players. So, I drove to downtown Williams, parked my truck, and walked up to Buckskinner Park and back. The skies were starting to thicken with dark clouds.

The next day we got a dusting of fresh snow. So, I adorned the dogs with their colorful coats.

Wednesday was my day to enjoy a manicure and pedicure with Jennifer at 66 Spa Nails. She always does a great job!

Friends Bill and Pat Wheeler texted me a photo of the two of them. They recently moved back to Michigan. Can you say "fight on!"

I didn't get a chance to see them in 2020. Bill and Pat were the reason Richard and I left Los Angeles in 2003. We met the Wheelers in June, 2002 --- when they worked for Xanterra at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. Six months later, Richard and I bought a truck and a 5th wheel --- to begin our new adventure in March, 2003!

New Year's Eve day brought a beautiful sunrise.

Through Amazon Prime, I bought a new seasonal door mat.

That night, Tom and I went to the Best Western Plus for dinner and music at the Western View Steakhouse. We always enjoy listening to Omar Mondragon!

Happy New Year! Welcome this year of 2021.

My brother Peter and his wife Terry texted a cute celebratory photo.

Bel Air friends Bob and Deborah Fischler reached out to me several weeks ago. They were going to be spending a night in Williams --- on their way back from Santa Fe, New Mexico. They have two sheltie dogs and were going to stay at the La Quinta Inn. I invited them over for dinner on Sunday, January 3.

Deborah and Bob brought their sheltie dogs, Kai and Gigi. My Dalmatians Jamie and Kelsey met Kai and Gigi. But we kept each "pack" separate. Gigi is young and too excitable for my dogs. We learned that Deborah and Bob purchased a second home in Santa Fe. Their primary home is in Bel Air, California. Williams is conveniently a halfway point.

Summit Spa contacted me. They were finally ready to send a technician to Williams to look at my leaking spa. Eric arrived on Tuesday, January 5. The cause of the slow leak was a fitting that needed to be replaced.

Voila! No more leak. Thank-you, Eric!

That afternoon, Kelsey had an appointment with Dr. Amstutz at Canyon Pet Hospital. It was the usual acupuncture session.

After the acupuncture, the technician performs a therapy laser session. Sun glasses are provided to protect the eyes.

The first Wednesday of every month is set aside for Colleen Hatton to clean our home. Colleen was right on time and ready to dig in!

Saturday morning, a group of us played pickleball. We had eight people, enough for two courts!

At noon, I drove to Flagstaff. Wendy Rogers, who was elected November 3 as an Arizona Senator, recruited me to be a Precinct Committeeman for the Northern Arizona Trumplicans (GOP). There was a 1:00 p.m.meeting at Mary's Cafe.

The motivational speaker was none other than Senator-elect Wendy Rogers. She will be sworn in as an Arizona senator on Monday, January 11.

I had to leave the meeting at 2:15 p.m., as not to be late to my hair appointment with Shawna at Wildflower Salon.

During the week, my investment advisor, Barry Garapedian, called me. At 63, he has decided to retire from Morgan Stanley. Over the holidays, he had a scare with his heart. Barry's own father died at 62 of a heart attack. But, Barry's daughter Missy is going to take over my account. I had a Wednesday phone appointment with Barry and Missy --- an introduction and the passing of the baton. 

Tom and I are heading out of town on Friday. We are taking the travel trailer and the dogs to Quartzsite and Wickenburg for nine days. We are meeting up with Connie and Ramon Young. The two of them and their dog Chloe visited us in Williams in October. 

They have a 34 foot 5th wheel. We should have a fun reunion!

Tuesday, December 1 through Monday, December 21, 2020: Friends, Trip to Phoenix, Cosmic Events, and Life in Northern Arizona

On Tuesday, my landscaping service arrived to take all of the pine needles off the roof and out of the rain gutters of my home and the RV barn.

This is important to do before winter weather arrives. But so far, the weather has been fairly mild.

Another project this time of year is to turn on the lights of the Ponderosa pine tree in front of my house. I added another string of lights that I had left over from last year.

On Wednesday, I had a facial with Sue Kelly. Later in the day, Mark Burson arrived. Twice a year, Mark commutes between his Oxford, Mississippi home to his Malibu home. Unfortunately, he hit a snowstorm on Interstate 40 in New Mexico. It delayed his arrival by eight hours! In the meantime, Jon came over to show us how to make a Mississippi Mud Roast in the crock pot.

The rub is a delicious mixture of Au Jus and a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing.

Mark arrived at about 7:30 p.m. Over the years, he has not been drinking alcohol. But, Mark said that he is indulging in 2020. So, we poured him a Bourbon.

The next morning, Mark was not in a rush to head to California. Yesterday had been a driving ordeal for him and two of his dogs. So, he bundled up and enjoyed the backyard with Rebel and Donner.

He then sat in a chair in the sun and enjoyed his coffee and a cigar.

Mark and the dogs left for California as Tom and I were headed to play pickleball. It was about 9:30 a.m.

 

Saturday, after pickleball, Jon went shed hunting. He invited Tom to go, but Tom declined. Later in the afternoon, Jon texted this photo to Tom.

Jon is so gifted at finding shed! He is 6'3" tall --- so, this shed is LARGE!

In the afternoon, I drove five miles to Kaibab Lake. I parked the truck and walked the three miles around the lake.

There were a few people fishing, but otherwise calm.

On Sunday afternoon, I walked to Cataract Lake and hiked around the lake. Since living in Williams, this was the first time I have ever walked around the lake!

Monday morning, Tom and I played pickleball with three other players. Brian was Chris's partner, but he did not make it in the photo.

That afternoon, my Christmas cards arrived. The card --- on my computer --- looked good. But the actual cards were very dark. It was hard to make out our faces, or see the dogs. This is a photo of my computer screen.

I decided that I would contact the Photo Center where I ordered the cards and ask them for guidance. I postponed this matter, as Tom and I were heading to Phoenix for several days.

 

Tuesday morning, I dropped the dogs off at the Grand Canyon Railway Kennel. They were the only arrivals on the welcome board.

In the afternoon, Tom and I drove to Phoenix. It was a relaxing 2 1/2 hour drive to our North Scottsdale hotel.

Tom had a doctor's appointment scheduled the next day with a glaucoma specialist, Dr. Jeffrey Kay. Tom was diagnosed with glaucoma twenty years ago. Tom's Flagstaff ophthalmologist referred Tom to Dr. Kay. Dr. Mahanti has not been able to reduce the pressure in Tom's eyes.

 

That evening, Tom and I went to a local sushi restaurant, Yume Sushi Grill. We had some delicious sushi rolls!

When we first arrived at the restaurant, we were the only customers. By the time we left, three other tables were occupied.

Tom's appointment was at 11:00 a.m. The medical office was about a ten minute drive from our hotel. Tom went in for his appointment, and I locked up the car and walked over to the entrance of the Yavapai Trail --- a round-trip three mile walk along a dry creek bed.

At about noon, I walked back to the medical office. Tom was given a one hour lunch break before returning to his follow-up appointment with Dr. Kay. We went to the Pita Jungle restaurant near the medical office. TripAdvisor had good reviews on this dining establishment.

The food was very good. I had a Philadelphia-style beef pita and Tom had a lamb Gyro.

We were back at the medical office by 1:10 p.m. Tom was escorted to an examination room, and I was allowed to go with him.

Dr. Kay came into the room. Tom's eyes had been dilated and Dr. Kay was looking inside Tom's eyes.

Dr. Kay had screens set up with photos of Tom's eyes.

Dr. Kay presented Tom with three options. The first option was a special laser procedure. The other two options involved surgery. Tom decided to start with the laser procedure. One eye is scheduled for February and the second eye is scheduled for March. 

 

After Dr. Kay's examination, Tom and I were asked to watch a short video on glaucoma. In the video, we saw what Dr. Kay looks like. This mask wearing gig is getting tiresome.

That evening, Tom and I yearned from some good seafood. Eddie V's Prime Seafood was highly rated in TripAdvisor --- and it was only ten minutes from our hotel. We called and made reservations for dining in their lounge. On the menu, under shellfish, was an item that caught our attention --- The Big Eddie. It was a tower of King Crab, Maine Lobsters, Jumbo Lump Crab, 8 Shrimp and 8 Oysters.

Needless to say, it was a hit! We also polished off a nice bottle of Chardonnay 😊😊😊

Thursday morning, we headed back to Williams. I told the kennel that I would pick up the dogs around noon. It was raining in Phoenix --- with low clouds. So, we avoided the long climb up into Flagstaff on Interstate 17. Instead, we went back home through Prescott Valley and Chino Valley.

I called the Photo Center where I purchased the Christmas cards. They offered to refund my money if I reordered replacement cards and returned the disappointing cards. So, Tom and I made a special trip to Prescott on Saturday. I picked up the new cards and returned the defective cards.

The new Christmas cards were a lot better!

My friend Tom Poremba sent me a Facebook link about the Geminid Meteor showers. So early Monday morning, I went out to the front of my house and watched some of the showers. I was not able to catch it on camera, so I took a screenshot photo of the showers through my Sky Map application.

Jon's 44th birthday was December 14. He was feeling a little under the weather, so we postponed a birthday lunch or dinner.

On December 15, we woke up to a dusting of snow.

As Christmas cards arrive, I display them on one of my living room walls.

At one end of my dining room table, I had a work area with my Christmas cards, address labels, stamps and mailing labels. I like to write a personal messages on the back of each card.

I finished mailing my cards ten days before Christmas. Yeah!

On Wednesday December 16, I had appointments in Flagstaff. The first appointment was at the Northern Arizona Dermatology Center where Dr. Sara Risner performed a full body cancer screening. Since she found a basel cell carcinoma in June, I needed a follow-up six months later. Then, I took Kelsey for her acupuncture therapy. Dr. Amstutz does such a great job!

This day was also my sister Kim's birthday. Kim went to sister Wendy's home in Pasadena for a celebration. She is now 56 years old. My brother Peter was also there for the lunch and birthday cake.

Thursday afternoon, I had a hair appointment in Flagstaff with Shawna at Wildflower Salon.

Friday afternoon, I decided to walk around nearby Cataract Lake --- this time I went in a clockwise direction.

Monday night, December 21 (winter solstice), there was a cosmic phenomena that hasn't happened in nearly 800 years. It is when Jupiter and Saturn align so closely that it almost appears that they collide. Tom and I watched it with the naked eye.

Jon caught it through his telescope lens!