Monday, September 20 through Friday, October 8: Pickleball, E-Bikes, and Friends

Monday morning, Annie Evans (wife of the late Brian Burdikoff) and her big sister, Jeanne, came to the Rodeo Barn for pickleball. Jeanne plays pickleball in Morristown, New Jersey. She heads home later today. Jeanne came to Williams over a week ago to help her little sister with the tragic accident and subsequent death.

In the afternoon, Tom and I drove to Prescott. Tom had an appointment at Alliance Homecare for a new bi-pap machine.

Tuesday morning, I played pickleball in the Rodeo Barn. At lunchtime, I caught Kelsey and Jamie begging for some of Tom's peanut butter and apple slices.

I headed over to the Gateway Sandwich Company for lunch with the Highland Ladies. We ordered our lunch and sat on the front porch.

At 4:30 p.m., Jamie had an appointment to get his Rabies shot and his Heartworm test. Kelsey always like to visit the Williams Veterinary Clinic too.

Wednesday, I had a pedicure and fill appointment at 66 Nails Spa. Jennifer and Will are moving their business to Flagstaff around Thanksgiving. I doubt that I will follow them there.

Later in the afternoon, I decided it was time to send the wedding gift to my niece Katelyn and her fiance Dan. Five years ago, I received a Cutco knife with engraving. I enjoy using this knife. So, Katelyn and Dan are getting one too!

In the afternoon, I walked to Cataract Lake. I never tire of the beauty there.

Tom and Jon decided it was time to assemble Tom's new bike.

And a test drive is always important!

That evening, Tom grilled chicken thighs. Yummy! 😃😃😃

I had a hair appointment in Flagstaff. Across the street is the Electric Bikes of Flagstaff store.

I went in to talk to the proprietor, Luke Howland. My Aventon Aventure bike has been shipped and will arrive soon. So, I bought two hefty locks.

We need a bike rack to transport the two E-Bikes. We originally wanted a rack that could fit behind the trailer. Because of the demand, most companies are back-ordered on trailer-approved racks until January or February. One company is back-ordered until 2023! Knowing that Tom and I would like to use the bikes over the winter, I decided to get a rack that attaches to my truck. I made an appointment for Luke to assemble the rack on Friday.

Voila! A half hour later, here it is.

I had a 3 p.m. facial with Amy Aranda at Junto Skin and Laser. With time to kill, I decided to go to Buffalo Park and walk some of the trails. It was a very pretty day.

The results of the Arizona Audit of the 2020 Election were made public today. There were a vast amount of irregularities. Over the next week or so, I will learn more. Our Northern Arizona state senator, Wendy Rogers, has made quite a name for herself over the past eight months.

A pickleball player from Tubac, Arizona --- Mary Kay Sanborn --- was visiting Williams for several days. She joined us for play in the Rodeo Barn. I guess she felt sorry for our dirty pickleball balls. When Mary Kay departed, she handed me an envelope with cash for new balls. I promptly texted her a thank-you and sent her a photo of a sleeve of new balls.

Last year, Tom bought 100 pickleball balls for a great price on Amazon. He gets reimbursed by selling the balls --- six  for $10.00.

Saturday morning, six of us played pickleball in the Rodeo Barn. We had a couple visiting from Mesa, Arizona. Barb and Brian Block are huge University of Michigan fans. Can you tell???

The Kiwanis Club had an arts and craft fair in the Williams Recreation Shed.

I went to support one of my neighbors and fellow pickleball player, Erica Guinn. She makes homeopathic remedies with salves and lotions. I bought a salve to massage some of my arm bruises.

Later in the afternoon, I came home from Safeway and saw these packages in front of our garage. My Aventon bike arrived, along with two bicycle racks.

Tom proceeded to assemble my bike. I helped him.

So, now we have our two Aventon Aventure electric bikes.

And of course, a test drive is essential.

On Sunday, our friend Sandra Smith texted me that a girlfriend of hers was selling a Rad Power bike that was only six months old. I rode this e-bike last month in Flagstaff with Sandra and Ed. It is a folding bike, so not as big as our Aventure bikes. Tom and I were thinking that it might be nice to have a bike for visiting friends. We'll see...

My sister Carrie is back in Bend. Their second home remodel project has been completed. Carrie posted some of the move-in photos on Instagram.

One thing Carrie likes to do is walk her two yellow labs in pretty places. Here are Sadie and Hollister at Todd Lake.

Monday morning, neighbor Gus Beatty texted me. He is out of town and wants me to water his indoor plants. So on our first walk, the dogs and I stopped by Gus's home. 

That evening, we had some weird monsoon weather. The sky was red. Tom said in Indiana, this looked like tornado weather and they would be heading to the basement.

Tuesday, after pickleball, I joined the Highland Meadows Ladies for lunch at Anna's Grand Canyon Cafe.

 That evening, the rain brought a double rainbow.

Wednesday, we played pickleball at the Grand Canyon Brewing Company. We only have the one court, but it is a nice location.

That evening, there was a nice sunset.

On Thursday, after an attempt to play pickleball --- there were eleven players and only one court --- Tom and I rode our e-bikes around town and up to the airport. It was a fifteen mile trip. We love our bikes!

My siblings and family members have begun to assemble for my niece's wedding in Bend, Oregon. My brother Peter and his wife Terry got to Bend early. They stayed at my sister Carrie's home for several nights. Carrie's son Blake and his wife Nicole also arrived several nights early.

Friday morning, six of us played pickleball on the refurbished courts. One of our neighbors, Mike Manley, contributed $50,000 to have the courts redone. Eventually, a sign will be put up as a memorial to his 82 year old mother, Janice Manley.

While several of us were playing pickleball, Jon and Mike Manley brushed off some water that collected after some rain this week.

Later in the afternoon, I took the dogs for a walk in town. It has been almost three months since I was able to take them on a walk in town! It is nice to have both dogs back after the pit bull incident on July 4th.

My niece's wedding is in Camp Sherman, Oregon. It is deemed a destination wedding --- as all the guests are from out of town. My sister Wendy and her husband Kai got to House on Metolius a day before all the activities would begin. Kai and my niece Katelyn were there to get settled in.

The Welcome Dinner was Friday night. My sister Wendy and her husband Kai look joyous!

The wedding is going to have a Memorial Table to recognize family members who have passed away. Wendy shared with me the photo that she will use for Richard. Even though I will not be there, Richard will.

My sister Carrie and her daughter Lauren are not vaccinated. They will drive an hour to view the wedding from afar. They will not be participating in any of the activities. Carrie took some photos that she shared with me.

My sister Wendy posted some of the photos on Instagram.

My sister Carrie also shared with me some photos with family members. Her family.

My brother Peter's family.

Sunday morning, I received a Facebook Messenger text from Howdy Doan. Howdy is my sister-in-law Terry's brother. Howdy and his wife Colleen have a second home in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. They often stay in Williams on their way home to California. They spent a week in Pagosa Springs with Howdy's mother Dudley and with Howdy's brother Larry. So, Tom and I joined them for breakfast at Anna's Grand Canyon Cafe.

Later in the afternoon, Tom and I rode our E-bikes to Kaibab Lake. It was another 15 mile trek.

Before dinner, Tom and I were sitting on our back patio. The dogs jumped up from their relaxation and tore around the corner. They were face-to-face with an inquisitive deer!

Monday morning, I took Kelsey to the Williams Veterinary Clinic to have her teeth cleaned. They were also going to take off a small growth under her left ear. I recently noticed that Jamie has been leaking through his rectum. I mentioned this to Dr. Jacoby. He thought it might be Jamie's anul glands. So, when it was time to pick-up Kelsey, I brought Jamie it.

Sure enough, Jamie has an anul gland infection. So, ten days of antibiotics. I will take him back for a check-up in four to five weeks.

Tuesday morning, Jon brought his pickleball machine to the Rodeo Barn. He bought a book about pickleball drills and is working with four or five individuals before 10:00 a.m. play.

After pickleball, I went to the Red Raven Restaurant for lunch with the Highland Meadows Ladies. Today was a big group of thirteen. We had to split the group up using two tables.

Our friends, Laurie and Tom Plachinski, were coming today to spend one night in Williams. They have been on an 80 day trip in their motorhome. For the past three years, they map out a summer trip to many of the national parks. This year it was Glacier, Mt. Rainier, Theodore Roosevelt, Olympic, and Great Basin National Parks.

Since we have a full-hook-up on our property, Tom pulled their motorhome along side our house.

Tom used to work with Tom Plachinski. Laurie and Tom visited us in 2019, when they stayed for about a week. It was short, but nice visit.

 

Fall is in the air. Our maple tree is fire red.

Friday morning was pickleball play in the Rodeo Barn. Joe and Kim Kelley are back in Williams. Joe is the new pastor at First Baptist Church. They are both strong players, so it will be fun having them in town.

After pickleball, I had an appointment at 66 Nails Spa for a nail fill.

Yesterday, I received a phone call from a Ben Welter. He is a pickleball player from Minnesota. Ben and his wife Mona are on a trip to see the Grand Canyon. He asked if anyone would be willing to play an afternoon game --- from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. I recruited four players from the Williams group. So we had a fun set of games. Ben is a very good player!