Life in the Slow Lane

In some ways it feels like time is standing still, as we’re in a holding pattern for Don’s fistula to become mature and viable for dialysis. Examinations show that it’s healing properly, so we expect everything to happen the right way, but it’s a waiting game that requires patience.

In the meantime, we appreciate his progress in regaining his strength and mobility. He no longer needs a walker at all (stored 4-wheeler, donated the other), and we take at least 2, and usually more, walks every day with Gigi. He still has trouble using his right hand, with about 50% of total use as measured by the PT folks. But he has managed to cut and eat all types of food, even using a knife with his right hand, clean and polish the motorhome using the long pole and Aero wash/wax pads (I still do most of the lower portion), install a female end on a 50amp RV extension cord, make many meals both in the kitchen and the outside BBQ, clean and vacuum floors, and YES even wash dishes! Yea Don!

We love the lack of hot temps in the desert now, but Mother Nature has given us a few cold days and some rain lately. We wish the weather could hit a happy medium and stay there, but we also know that’s not possible. So we’re just happy not to have violent weather like some parts of the country have had. And when we have clouds we usually see great sunsets.

We enjoyed attending the first Escapees regional luncheon in Benson on Nov. 11. The City Grille at San Pedro Golf Course has great food as well as great views of a duck pond and the golf course, and we had a good turnout of about 25 people. It was nice to see lots of familiar faces.

Since Don was in a coma in the hospital on our anniversary June 13, we decided to have a late celebration on Friday Nov. 13 (our wedding day was also a Friday). We’ve been curious about a restaurant on Houghton Rd. that we’ve driven past several times. I looked it up and found it was called McGraw’s Cantina, and boasts “The Best Views In Tucson.” I was thinking it was a fancy place with fine dining that requires you to dress up, but when I checked the web site I discovered it’s far from that. It’s more a locals’ hangout that promised to get louder and rowdier the later the night became. Glad we were there early enough that the bar crowd wasn’t too noisy. And we got a nice table by an open widow with a great view. The ribs we ordered tasted pretty good, too.

Here’s a view of the dining room, and there are other pictures on the web site (click the link above).

The FamCamp at Davis-Monthan is getting a lot fuller now that fall is here, and the new section across the road is open. But there are still enough empty sites to give us elbow room. We enjoy walking Gigi around the park and chatting with other dog owners and letting the dogs get acquainted. This neighbor wasn’t outside, but we saw a toy poodle looking out the driver’s side window and an interesting yard decoration. There’s an Escapees decal as well, so we’ll have to meet these folks.

Because the weather is sometimes a little chilly, I thought Gigi could use a hand-knitted wool sweater. She didn’t seem bothered when I put it on her, but she walked a little funny the first few yards. It was hard to get a good picture while she was moving, but you can see the sweater pretty well. I might make her another one that will give her more coverage, but I had a limited supply of this yarn. I put velcro tabs on the collar and the belt so it’s easy to put on and take off, and included a buttonhole to attach the leash to her harness underneath.

Gigi got a good health report from the vet but needs to have her teeth cleaned, so we’ll make an appointment for that soon. She has become quite comfortable in the motor home, and has taken over the sofa as her own special spot. We now have it covered with a washable throw.

She also loves the “doggy window” supplied by Tiffin.