Apricity West 3

December 23, 2022 - Friday

Skipped line dancing today to go grocery shopping! Somehow we kept putting it off all week, so had to go in early to beat the crowd. It was very light traffic on the way and in Safeway. Phew! 

 

Went to Elks for Friday Fish Fry as usual. As we finished our meal, the bartender asked what Rich’s last name was. When he told her, she said, “Well your son just called to gift you an Elk’s gift certificate!” Wow! That was such a nice surprise - Rich got all verklempt. Thanks, Perry and Lynn 💞

December 24, 2022 - Saturday

A few days ago, Rich dropped his phone in water. We immediately put it in a baggie with rice for several hours and it still worked. The problem was that it was hard to plug in the charger now and it didn’t hold. Sooooooo, into Wickenburg on Christmas Eve to the Verizon store. We got there early and before the 4 other people that came in thankfully. We were there about an hour and were told that rice is no longer the solution because of the starch. They have a vacuum of some sort to suck out the moisture and it gathers in a vile so you can see how much water was in it. Anyway, he had to get a new phone - Google Pixel 7 Pro was the thriftiest choice and there is no learning curve from his Galaxy. The pay off amount was $.24 so that was a good thing. All of his information came onto the new phone just like that. All is well...

 

On the way home, we passed a gas station and I saw a fully saddled horse walking through the lot - alone. Immediately a cowgirl came running from the side of the building and bumped him in the side to go the direction she wanted him to and then grabbed his reins. The things you see in Wickenburg!

December 25, 2022 - Sunday 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!🎄 ✝️🌵💗

Sunrise

We had a very quiet morning working on projects. Another birdhouse completed by Rich...

I went over to finish the Christmas puzzle with Lu...

...then she and Roger came over for a cocktail while basking in the sun.

 

We talked with our families over the weekend. My daughter and her husband had Covid during the week, so the family Christmas Eve party at my son's was postponed until next weekend (hopefully) - if everyone is feeling well. 

Kristie, my daughter-in-law, sent us her homemade jams - delicious!

Though I miss everyone terribly, I sure am glad I didn’t fly home this year with all of the sickness, storms, and flight delays. 

 

Our special dinner was lamb chops (with mint jelly), corn and roasted potatoes. It was delicious!

 

December 26, 2022 - Monday

There was no dance class today, but I did go to cardio drumming in the afternoon. Less impact on my hip and knees, with a quick uptick of the heart BPM. Weather was in the low 70’s today. 

A neighbor, Mike, walks all the time - 30k steps avg. He is a self-professed fidget who needs to be busy all the time. Here is what he brought back for us from his walk today…

December 27. 2022 - Tuesday

Lu and I went to the clubhouse today to do a dry run on the Rock Painting Class that we are teaching on 1/9/2023. It was good to do since I haven’t painted rocks for a year… Here is what we produced. 

December 28, 2022 - Wednesday

Practiced with Harvey today. He really should have cancelled me as he is also rehearsing with the band for New Year’s Eve party at the Activity Center. Rich and Dot enjoy a Bourbon and Coke while we play. Ha!

 

December 29, 2022 - Thursday

Practiced with Joanne this morning and did the jam for 2 hours this afternoon. My calluses are getting thicker. Miss Ellie’s son and roadie, Randy, returned home right after Christmas, so I told her I would help unload and set up her equipment if she could get herself here. She lives in Congress. She did not come today and is sorely missed. I hope it was the cooler weather that kept her away. Cindy is a new addition who sings and plays violin by ear! What a pleasure! 

The video of Rick singing Christmas in Dixie is in the body of this email. 

Happy Holidays to all…