Hectic week

Hi Everyone,

It was a busy week as summer finally arrived.  When I left to return to work, we noticed Shadow's ear was oozing.  We cleaned it out before I left, but it didn't improve.  John took her to the vet on Thursday.  She has a bacterial infection and was given drops.  She's doing better.

On Friday, it was Sassy's turn to become the patient again and she is not a good patient (hence her name:  Sassy - short for Assasin).  She had to be sedated to be examined.  She'd thrown up a hairball (a huge one) and had the runs.  She's on medicine for intestinal issues.  She is still not feeling great, but she has stabilized.

When I left the RV park last week, it was still half empty.  When I returned home last night, it was almost packed.  Right now, another 5th wheel is attempting to set up next to us.  John's going out to offer some help. 

The heat is on in NM, triple digits in most of the state.  Around here, we'll be in the 80's.  Much nicer, but we are still extremely dry.  The "Little Bear" fire is now over 75% contained.  Parts of the forest is opening up for hiking.  We'd both like to get out and see what the fire left.

Visitation at the cave has increased.  We are still using the freight elevators for passengers.  The project is now14 months overdue and we don't expect to get the main elevators back until August...  Yesterday we had over an hour wait to exit the cave.  I lead an off trail adventure tour (Hall of the White Giant).  We hiked out of the cave at the end of the tour to avoid the line.  It will only get more crowded as the July 4th holiday approaches.  I've taken the 4th of July off.  More time to spend in the mountains!

Today's task - find a replacement caster for John's work chair.  One of them broke.  The chair is ten years old, so we're having trouble finding the right size.  Nothing is ever easy.

Miss you all,

Love,
VAL & JOHN & the kitties!!!!

Back to Alto

Hi Family and Friends,

We moved back to Alto yesterday after spending a hot week John was in Roswell with the RV, I was in Carlsbad working (it went up to 108 in Carlsbad).  The mountains are much cooler.

As we drove back on Saturday AM, we could see the scars from the fire (which was 50% contained yesterday AM) on the mountain in the distance.  There wasn't much smoke in the air, just a trace of that acrid smell after a fire.  When it's calm you notice if.  If there's a breeze, it's not bad at all.

We had rain and hail for a couple of hours yesterday afternoon.  It really came down for a while and had to help the fire.  Cooled things down enough I put on sweat pants!  In the late afternoon we drove to WalMart to pick up some essentials.  We saw where the fire had crossed the road and came within 1/2 mile of the campground. 

Today we drove out to the Rim of Fire in Carizzozzo and Bosque de Apache Wildlife Refuge near Socorro.  Both very interesting places.  On the way, we drove past one of the areas hit hard by the fire last weekend.  It was heart breaking.  Fire, like tornadoes and hurricanes can hit one area hard, and leave a house around it unscathed.  There were whole neighborhoods that were nothing but ashes and the occasion melted metal roof left behind and a few feet away, another house left in perfect condition among the charred rubble.  Some mountainsides were totally blackened, other swaths of trees left without a trace of fire.   Eerie...

Fire fighters from around the state are still around.  After yesterday's rain they were concerned for flash flooding.  Local news around here is minimal.  We hear more about small fires around Albuquerque than the 'Little Bear' fire which destroyed over 200 homes.  The internet is our best source for news on the fire and closures.

We're glad things have settled down a bit.  We are all hopeful we can settle in here for the next few weeks...

Love to all,

VAL & JOHN & the kitties!!!!

FIRE!!!

Family and friends,

First off, we are safe, the cats are safe and the RV is fine.   These two pictures were taken last night as I drove from Carlsbad up to Alto.  The Little Bear fire started on Monday from a lightning strike.  It had been 100% contained at one point, and then jumped fire lines. 

Last night, you could see the flames from the RV park, but it was still far away.  This morning, at 5AM, we heard the police sirens and then they started coming through our park with bullhorns telling us to evacuated.

It took us about an hour to get the RV packed, the cats crated, the truck hooked to the RV and then out of there. The local emergency people did a good job notifying us to get out. The winds today are supposed to be bad - 30+ MPH. There was ash everywhere, and really smoky.  If the fire had been closer, we could have and would have left earlier and left some things behind.

We will be in Roswell, NM for the next two nights.  After that... not sure where we will go.  Today's high here in Roswell 104.  Carlsbad is supposed to be 106.  The RV park we are in now has got some trees to shade us, but the AC is already on.

Say a prayer for the firemen, the animals and the people who live there.  We are lucky and can move our house, most don't have that option. 

Love to all...  we need a nap...

Val & John and the kitties!!!!

Alto, NM

We arrived yesterday to our summer home in Alto.  It's about 80 west of Roswell, and next to the small mountain town of Ruidoso, NM, where there is shopping, a racetrack and an indian casino. 

We have a nice view from the RV across a creek to the mountain:
 

 Last night we watched a skunk across the creek. This morning when I got up, there were some elk and deer grazing and the skunk was still there!

Much cooler here, although hot for the area - in the 80's today.  Carlsbad was expected to hit 100+ today.  Glad we're not there.  We did a short hike this morning before it got hot.

That's all for now.  Going to sit back and relax...

Love to all,

Val, John and the kitties!!!!

Moving day

Hello All,

Today we are moving up to Alto, NM.  It's about 175 miles NW of Carlsbad, up in the mountains.  John will be up there for June and July.  I will be up there on weekends, and staying with friends for the next two months. 

The temperatures will be much more tolerable for John and the cats in Alto.  There is great hiking in the area, so when it's the weekend, we won't have to drive for three hours to find some pretty places. 

We expect to leave here in about an hour.  I have the inside of the RV ready to go.  John is working on the outside of the RV.  The cats know something is up - they are all hiding under the sofa!

More to come once we get settled in. 

Love to all,

VAL & JOHN and the kitties!