Jim Morris and I had a socially-distanced coffee time in his back yard under the trees relatively early Sunday morning, but the rest of the day got lost in the busyness of getting ready to travel. Toys (cameras, computers, and fly fishing gear) were assembled and cleaned. Travel bags were recovered from the attic, and a box of camping and fishing stuff was retrieved from the crawl space. The box of stuff stunk from the crawl space stunk to high heaven, and when I dumped it, a dead mouse was discovered. It was quickly dispatched, and the stuff sprayed first with ? and then with Lysol—didn’t work. The items were thrown in the washer, and soaked for a couple of hours, washed, and then hung out to dry. Some residual “stink” remained, so cotton balls were soaked with pure vanilla, put in the box with the stuff not being packed for the trip, and stored again. The float tube was disassembled and the bladder filled to determine if it leaked. The cover was washed. Seems like when something is begun, a bunch of other tasks emerge! Since Kay had finished packing her clothes and personal items, she joined longtime friends and book club members, Pam and JaneAnn for the afternoon at HSV’s new million dollar swimming pool, and really enjoyed it. She is far more efficient than I.

Pam and JaneAnn

Friday morning, after gathering all the tools and accessories, it was off to Walmart for oil and an oil filter; fortunately, most people were masked, and with self-checkout, it was relatively safe. And then, I was off to the RV storage garage to perform an oil change on the motorhome.It was fairly quick, and yes, I managed to get oil all over me! Upon returning to the house, all oily and soaked with perspiration, it was time for the first shower of the day. Meanwhile, Kay ran errands including picking up our meds for the next 90 days, and did other odd jobs for which I’m so grateful. It was too hot and humid to do much anything else, except stay in out of the “miserable” weather.

Up early again on Saturday morning, it was back to Balboa Storage where I moved the motorhome from its “garage” to the wash rack. Of course, I ran out of car wash soap, but Kay was quick to the rescue. Two and a half hours later, the motorhome was washed and dried, and I was soaking wet with perspiration. Back at home, the outdoor potted plants got watered, and I took the first of two showers for the day. Kay got “beautified” in the morning, even scheduling and paying for my pedicure later in the afternoon. She spent the afternoon packing.

On our return from Memphis, Kay and I talked about the heat and the staggering increase in Covid-19 cases in Arkansas, and how we could deal with it. Historically, we travel to cooler climes in July and August; this year was to be no exception. In September 2019, we made reservations for July and August at an RV park in the mountains of western North Carolina, where average daily high temperatures are in the high 70s. Because of other commitments and family concerns, we found it necessary to cancel those. However, the Covid-19 Pandemic resulted in cancellation by the tour company of a conflicting month long United Kingdom trip in late summer and the other issues resolved themselves. This left us free to either stay home or escape the sweltering heat like we have done the last several years. Consequently, Kay called the resort in the mountains of western North Carolina where we had originally planned to spend all of July and August, but they had no vacancies. A high school classmate of hers and his wife were posting on Facebook from an RV park in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, that they really liked. Kay called the RV park (Cross Creek RV Park) and they had an opening; she immediately booked us through August. Focus for the next three days would be on pre-trip maintenance and packing.

The month began with continuing rain, with over 5 inches falling in the first few days of the month. And then, overwhelming heat and humidity settled in for the long term. In our old age, we have become soft, and do not venture out to play golf or pickleball often, and when we do, our clothes are soaking wet. Just watering the plants in the morning necessitate a shower and change of clothes!

We had a great July 4th “picnic” at Jim and Jackie’s. The Altom’s, Pam, Don, and Kay and I had Walmart fried chicken, baked beans, potato salad, and other great food. Dessert was peach cobbler and ice cream, though I didn’t partake.

Jim and Jackie Morris

Bobby and Martha Altom

Pam Williams and Don Atchley

Yours truly and Kay

Harper (our 8-year old grand daughter via Jenny) came with her mom and little brother, Linc, to visit the weekend of July 11-12, and she stayed with us until we took her home on July 15. Despite the “deplorable” weather, we had a great time. Harper enjoyed Balboa beach Sunday, followed by play time in the “cool” hot tub. She loved the “waterfall” and the foam resulting from air injection. One of her many comments was, “I could get used to this.” KK took her shopping on Monday followed by more play time in the hot tub. Tuesday, she and KK visited Aunt Karyn and cousins Ridge and Aker. Ridge came back with them for another beach day with DD. She “hot-tubbed” again after Ridge returned home. We took her home on Wednesday, and while in Memphis, I was tested for and purchased new hearing aids. This makes my 4th set! Getting old is not for sissies.

Harper and Lincoln

Ridge and Harper

Hoping that the Covid-19 Pandemic would wane after all we had been through already this year, we were not shocked to see the situation worsen as much of the US, including Arkansas, entered into “Phase II”.  Arkansas failed to provide guidance and leadership to stymie this outrageous plague moving through the state and nation as if it were an out-of-control wildfire. Thus, we continue to observe a solitary and confined lifestyle, without the closeness of kids, grandkids, other family, and friends. We have seen the kids and grandkids a couple of times, and it is impossible to distance ourselves from them when they don’t understand the lack of touching. So, we’ve been lucky. Regretfully, photos of them are far and few between. Each of us also has a trusted friend with whom we do things. We also play golf and pickleball, though taking care to keep our distances, not take chances, wear “protection” and not touch, and wash and/or disinfect often. We also order-out food once every week or so. FaceTime, Zoom, FaceBook, and other social media greatly helps in maintaining some semblance of a social life, and keeps us as up-to-date as possible. Shopping is via the internet, and what few groceries purchased are done so via online ordering and non-contact pickup. We are quickly exhausting Netflilx, Amazon Prime, BritBox, Hoopla, PBS, and other video venues. I have seen so many YouTube videos that my mind is about to explode with useless information! Hopes for a speedy recovery have all but disappeared, and we have canceled both domestic and foreign travel. Our winter plans will be in serious jeopardy unless a vaccine is developed and dispersed very quickly. This is a hell of a way to live out one’s final years!

Links to photos taking through the end of June are as follows: 

Arkansas Wildflowers

Arkansas Butterflies

Arkansas Dragonflies and Damselflies

Social distancing, exam gloves, sheltering in place—this is what we are doing, at least for the time being. We miss family, friends, church, in-restaurant dining, and other social gatherings. Kay is playing lots of golf, and does our shopping and “going”, ordering groceries online and enjoying Kroger and Walmart’s pick-up services. We use Amazon Prime extensively, receiving packages almost everyday. Thank goodness for internet! 

Though playing less golf, and no pickleball, I have been increasingly making photographs, enjoying Hot Springs Village’s hiking trails and natural areas (though these are increasingly crowded), and visiting great places relatively close in Arkansas: Flanagan Prairie and Cherokee Prairie Nature Areas near Charleston, Mount Magazine State Park, Middle Fork Barrens Nature Area near the Village, Holla Bend National Wildlife Refuge near Dardanelle, Winona Scenic Drive in Ouachita National Forest, Bell Slough Wildlife Management Area, Lake Catherine State Park, Simpson Preserve at Trap Mountain, Camp Robinson Special Use Area, Warren Prairie Nature Area, and Kingsland Prairie Nature Area.

Links to photos taken this year since our return from Arizona in early March through the end of June are as follows: 

Arkansas Wildflowers

Arkansas Butterflies

Arkansas Dragonflies and Damselflies

These are strange times indeed. With the Coved19 Pandemic surging throughout the world and particularly in the US, Kay and I are sheltering in place, only leaving the house to walk, pick-up groceries and take-out food, and take photos—all in an isolated environment with few, if any, people around. Contact with kids, grandkids, other family, and friends is via telephone and FaceTime. Kay has used the “alone” time to read and clean-up data on the iPad, while I have worked on thousands of images, made backup copies of files, and made photos of wildflowers, butterflies, and dragonflies. Ongoing house/property maintenance is ongoing. We watch television each evening for about 2 hours, mostly PBS, Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hoopla, and Britbox. Otherwise, it has been very, very quiet at our house. When this will end, no one seems to know, but better safe than sorry.

Two galleries of my photos have been made available for public viewing.

Wildflowers may be seen at: https://adobe.ly/2w4deps

Butterfly photos made during this time may be seen at: https://adobe.ly/2RuL1jb

Over the course of the few days after returning home, we tried to reestablish connections, attend meetings, etc. Jenny, Harper, and Linc came over March 15-18 for a great visit. It was Linc’s first time to visit DD and KK in Hot Springs Village. It rained almost the entire time, though Harper and I found time to take the dog on a walk on Beaver Dam Trail. And, it was early in the weekend when the Corona Virus scare really hit, keeping all of us more or less housebound.

The return trip to Hot Springs Village was a quick one. Departing Apache Flats RV Park Wednesday morning, the day’s long drive took us through New Mexico to an RV park Midland, Texas. Despite watching the clock, arrival was after dark and directions were poor, at best. After driving on dark, small, deep pot-holed streets, we finally wormed our way to the park, only to go in the wrong gate—wondering what we had gotten ourselves into—as the place was filled with “permanent” not-so-neat campers. Finally finding our site, it was not too bad as we were only staying the night; Ugh!

Thursday’s travel was from Midland to Mandeville, Arkansas, just a few miles northeast of Texarkana, where we arrived and set up just before dark, cutting it close. 

Taking our time to get rolling Wednesday morning, we were off by mid-morning, arriving at the motorhome storage bay just after lunch, glad to be home. Unpacking was uneventful, and over the course of the weekend we were almost back to normal.

Today’s drive in cool, wet, and sometimes snowy conditions was to Bisbee, Arizona, a small city about 90 miles southeast of Tucson, and 11 miles north of the Mexican border. It is in the Mule Mountains and sits at an elevation of 5538 feet. In its heyday, Bisbee proved to be one of the richest mineral sites in the world, producing nearly three million ounces of gold and more than eight billion pounds of copper, not to mention the silver, lead and zinc that came from these rich lands. In the early 1900’s, driven by the booming mining industry, Bisbee had become the largest city between St. Louis and San Francisco. With a population of over 20,000 people by the beginning of the century, Bisbee was one of the most cultured cities in the west.

When the mines closed, a tremendous shift occurred in the local population. As many mining employees and their families left to pursue work elsewhere, an influx of creative free spirits found Bisbee’s historic district to be an attractive, inspiring, and inexpensive location to settle and pursue their artistic endeavors. Today, Bisbee is best known as an art colony. We found it to be underwhelming.