Sunday February 23rd 2020

After a little more rain last night, today was a nice sunny day with a high temperature around seventy around 4PM in the afternoon. The temperature climb was a gradual process from the starting temperature in the forties. Tomorrow is forecast to be similar, but with a little more wind.

During breakfast this morning I took stock of all the travel preparation tasks remaining. The list is long, but most of the tasks only take a couple of minutes. For example, I need to put paper towels between the stacks of plates in the cabinet to prevent road rattle noise. During regular travel, I don’t remove the padding at each stop. During my four month stay it was so much simpler to remove the clutter. Another example is storing the TV table I’m using as a side table. It provides a convenient place for my tablet and TV remote controls, but I don’t get it out during short stops.

I got many of the tasks done today, but there are still plenty to do tomorrow. Another big task I want to get done tomorrow is the laundry. I don’t know when I’ll have access to as good a facility. Once I leave here on Tuesday I have a one night stop followed by three two week stays and a one week stay all in public parks. If they have laundry facilities they usually aren’t extensive.

Despite my focus on travel preparation, I had to make one last visit to the Clark County Wetlands park. After yesterday’s rain I wanted to see how the higher water level was impacting the park. I also wanted to start the break in process on a new pair of hiking shoes.

The park was very busy today. Families and other groups were all out in the park getting their exercise. The water in the Las Vegas Wash was high and fast moving. You really couldn’t walk on the unimproved trails. They were far too muddy. As long as you stayed on the paved or improved trails it was fine. I found the American Coots were plentiful as usual. Only one turtle was enjoying the sun on a rock, but one was swimming near the surface in the pond.

Saturday February 22nd 2020

Today was the first rainy day in more than two months. There have been a few showers at night, but nothing as long lasting as today’s rain. It started shortly after midnight with light rain and really picked up this morning right when the day’s activities began. The rain came down hard until nearly 11AM. After an hour or so of very light rain the sun tried to break through. It didn’t make it.

While the rain was in remission I drove to Boulder Station Casino for one last visit during my stay in Las Vegas. My mission was to use the free play I’d accumulated on my players card. I had the astronomical total of ten dollars in free play accumulated over four months. You can tell I really don’t spend much money on entertainment in the slot machines. From my ten dollars in free play I made $2.35 in really money. I just played it off.

About four in the afternoon the rain made a return. It rained hard to very hard for about an hour. At sunset there was a little color in the sky, but once again clearing didn’t win the battle. In the couple hours since sunset a few light showers have fallen on the roof of my RV home. Tomorrow is forecast to be sunny and nice once more.

My time in Las Vegas is winding down. I have two full days left before I start my 2020 travels. Most of the things I’m doing are focused on travel prep or one last visit to something or other. I haven’t done a lot of exciting and adventurous things this winter. I’ve been enjoying a simpler, relaxed life style. All that will change as I get back to traveling. I’m sure I will enjoy my summers travels, but I’ve also enjoyed the down time.

Friday February 21st 2020

Today was the warmest day of the week. The temperature crossed into the low seventies. The day began with a bright sunny sky, but as the day progressed the clouds moved in. Tomorrow is forecast to be one of those rare rainy days in the desert.

I was up early this morning. The mobile lube service was scheduled for sometime during the morning to change the oil in my RV home. My understanding was that the technician would call me before he arrived, but around 10:30AM he knocked on my door. It took a little more than half an hour to complete the service. The engine in my RV home is now ready for my summer travels.

Later this afternoon I drove over to the Wetlands Park for a little exercise and to check for any changes at the park. I’d like to see some signs of Spring at the park before I leave the area. So far I don’t see any overt change. Last years tall grass and reeds are drying out and thinning, but new green growth hasn’t begun. The birds don’t seem to be as plentiful or as active. Some species may have moved on in their ever going migration. Other water birds seem to be staying closer to their mates. The nesting season may be right around the corner or already started. In which case the birds I’m not seeing may be back in the reeds sitting on nests. The time table for bird behavior in this area is a mystery to me. I still enjoyed a nice long walk in the park and took a few pictures.

Thursday February 20th 2020

The signs of a new growing season are starting to appear on the plants in the RV park. The new growth is thanks in part to the days of bright sunshine with temperatures in the mid sixties that continued today. Today was another nice weather day.

I worked at little more on travel preparation tasks today. All of the stuff that migrated out of its storage place over the last four months without travel is starting to return to its proper place. I’m also replacing some old essentials with new equipment. Today I acquired a new 25 foot water hose to replace one that had a damaged threaded end. The thin brass gets bent very easily and everything I tried to fix it didn’t work. The new one has stainless steel connectors.

My grocery shopping trip to Walmart was only partially successful today. The plan was to buy enough food to last until I was in Arizona next week, but it wasn’t to be. For some reason the shelves were particularly sparsely stocked. The sizes and brands I want weren’t available. Rather than seek out alternatives, I’ll try again Sunday or Monday.

During my evening walk around the RV park, it occurred to me that I’ve seen just about every state and Canadian provence represented in the park during my four month stay. I don’t see that during my stays in Florida. Here I haven’t seen Hawaii, Rhode Island, the Carolinas or North Dakota. I think I’ve seen all of the other states. Manitoba and the Maritime provences are missing from Canada. Las Vegas is clearly a gathering point from all over. Some of the people come here to work, some to play and others just live.

Wednesday February 19th 2020

After Tuesday’s blip in the good weather, it was back on track today. The temperature peaked in the mid sixties under a bright blue sky with only a gentle breeze. Overall it was another great day.

I spent the first half of the day doing some early preparation tasks for next weeks resumption of traveling. As I moved things from the floor or counter into the cabinets I found a lot of dust build up. This resulted in a transition into cleaning mode. It is amazing how much dust and dirt has accumulated since my last dedicated cleaning activity sometime in December. I try to wipe things up and clean as I go, but the desert wind seems to allow a thin layer of dust to enter my RV home and accumulate on everything.

This afternoon while I was out doing a few errands I got caught up in a traffic stoppage. I don’t know if was an accident or one of the traffic nightmares caused by all of the presidential candidates running around the valley. Lucky for me I was near the Ethel M Cactus garden. I made a detour into the parking lot and spent a few minutes wandering through the garden while the traffic cleared.

They haven’t wasted much time getting the Valentines decorations removed from the garden. The big standalone decorations have been removed and the lights have been partially removed from the cactus. It’s a lot of progress for less than four days. Some of the desert plants are starting to show some signs of spring brightness, but the more traditional cactus don’t seem to be ready for spring yet. Even so, I took a few pictures of the better specimens.

Tuesday February 18th 2020

The wind returned last night, but nowhere near as hard as last week. This morning it was calm again, but a weather change remained. Today was a little cloudier and almost ten degrees cooler. The temperature peaked in the low sixties.

Life at the RV park was back to a normal weekday routine today. Yesterday many of the working resident were around because of the holiday. The normal Monday rubbish pick up from the dumpsters didn’t happen. This morning the regular Tuesday propane deliveries toke place, but the dumpsters pickup may have to wait until later in the week.

I’m almost at the end of my four month stay here. I know when to expect all of the regular activities in the park. There is a certain level of comfort in the familiarity of routine. My activities have also fallen into a routine. Today was Young at Heart (i.e. senior) day at Sam’s Town Casino. Most every week since I arrived in Las Vegas I’ve participated in the drawing without winning. Today was my last visit for this stay in Las Vegas. It was no different, I didn’t win anything.

This Saturday is the Presidential primary caucus in Nevada. The democratic candidates have been all over the valley since they left New Hampshire last week. You need to be prepared to take a detour or otherwise change your destination to get out of their way all the time. I was thinking about going to the strip tomorrow, but they are having a debate at the Paris Casino Hotel tomorrow evening. The president and vice president are also going to be in town at the end of the week. Getting in some last minute touring is proving difficult.

Monday February 17th 2020

Today’s weather was another incremental improvement from the day before. The temperature broke through the seventy mark and the forecast late day wind never materialized. It was another very nice day.

I didn’t sleep well last night. It was probably caused by lack of activity yesterday and a warmer than usual night. For whatever reason, I didn’t fall asleep until after 4AM. I woke up after 10AM. It really got the day off to a slow start. It turned out to be a perfect day to watch the Daytona 500 on TV.

Yesterday’s rain delayed race restarted at 1PM Pacific Time. It ended shortly before 5PM. In between it was a pretty interesting race. It had a number of lead changes, a few accidents that slowed or stopped the race and then it had the big one. The big accident took half the field out of contention for the victory. The final dozen laps of the race took a very long time to complete. The race ended up having more laps than any other Daytona 500 as they attempted to finish the race under green flag racing conditions. The need to have a green flag finish came at a cost. On the final lap three drivers fighting for the victory mixed it up to the extent that Ryan Newman lost control of his car. It hit the outer safer barrier and went airborne over the track. As it came down upside down it was struck by another car. Newman was taken to the hospital in serious condition. Hopefully he will be alright. As I watched the accident, I didn’t think he could survive. In a way, you watch the race for the wrecks, but not for accidents that injure or kill people.

Tonight’s walk around the RV park showed a full house. I didn’t see any empty sites. As I’m trying to compose and post this blog entry I’m experiencing another indicator of the parks capacity. The internet access is very slow tonight. It only seems to slow down at busy times.