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The rain stopped about 10 o’clock last night. Three hours of gentle rain...then it started
again sometime in the night. The world
was damp but the air was fresh this morning...and a wee bit dirty from the wet
desert sand. Very hard to keep it out of
the trailer. But it dries quickly and is
easily swept back out to be tracked back in. It’s the circle of dirt...
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Took advantage of Nature’s shower to wipe
the bikes clean of the dust that’s just a part of life out here. Also took Moxie and Louie off the bikes,
stripped them down and put them on the picnic table to dry out. My hope is that some animal doesn’t come
along and take off with them when I’m not looking. Kim’s helmet was left out in the rain also...upside
down hanging from his handlebar. Little
pool of water in it this morning so that is also on the picnic table
drying.
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Walked this morning...the air felt almost
humid which is strange because of the dry heat. The ground was still very damp
from the rain so I’m thinking that may have been the culprit behind the humid
feeling. Once in a while the sun would
peek through the clouds which made for heat so the walk turned into a hot and
humid affair. Almost like August in
Michigan.
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Today was about good food and good
company. For lunch we made arrangements
to meet Ernie and Denise Overkamp in Casa Grande. Ernie and Denise are cousins on the Bakker
side who have been in Maricopa since the beginning of February. They heard we were heading out this way and
reached out about getting together. We
decided to wait until Brett and Ann were here to make it like a mini-cousin
reunion.
We met at Anaya’s Fresh Mexican Restaurant
and spent about 2 hours eating and reminiscing.
Denise was a year behind me and Brett in school and also a distant
Bakker cousin in her own right before she married Ernie. So there was lots of common ground between
all of us. So glad that Ernie let us
know they were down here...it was a good couple of hours. Also Dan Overkamp (Ernie’s brother) and his
wife Ronna planned to join us...they are in or near Phoenix. However, they begged off because Dan wasn’t
feeling well so we missed them this trip.
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Got
back from Casa Grande late afternoon...temperature was cooling due to still
cloudy skies. Not exactly fun riding
weather and frankly I didn’t have it in me to change into my riding
clothes. So I passed on riding today.
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Then at some point Brett and Kim decided
that they needed to try out our new grill. Steaks for us and chicken for them. Throw in some baked potatoes and steamed
broccoli and it was a very tasty way to overeat. Afterward sitting out by a campfire was the perfect
way to end the day.
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For my own purpose I'm including a
blurb about the coronavirus just because it's dominating the news and seems to
be all that people around here are talking about. I googled it...articles on the subject
abound. From the World Health
Organization website: This particular
strain of coronavirus, COVID-19, is a respiratory infection whose symptoms
include a rough cough, fever, tiredness and high temp that can be mistaken for
the respiratory flu or possibly a cold.
Those with a compromised immune system and the elderly need to be
especially careful about it because it can quickly advance to pneumonia. It started in China and has now spread to
other countries.
So it is now, early 2020, that schools are
temporarily closing and going online...that stores are running out of
everything from beans to hand sanitizer to toilet paper in case people need to
hunker down for a couple of weeks...that people are coming up with alternatives
to shaking hands as a form of greeting (fist bumps, toe taps, happy hands,
elbow bumps, etc.)...that the NBA has suspended the rest of its season because
a player has tested positive for the virus and that the cancellations of events,
international flights, etc. is becoming commonplace. Personal and business finances stand to take
a hit...Wall Street is feeling the effects.
We are being told that coronavirus isn’t a
death sentence but people need to be careful about being in crowds, shaking
hands, touching their own face, etc. Washing
hands is being touted as part of the first line defense as well as coughing
into your elbow or a tissue. Self-isolating
is the newest catch phrase. There is so much fear, confusion and panic out there.
Glad you guys got together and had the time together. Have a safe trip and enjoy. Love you guys
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