Winter in Gold Canyon

Most of the country wouldn't think it has been cold here in Gold Canyon but those of us who came here for warm weather are whining. The high temps have only been in the 50s recently and we've had over an inch of rain in the past week. Where's the sun?

Today we walked for exercise inside the Superstition Springs Mall. We weren't the only people doing it, either. Notice that everyone is in long pants, not shorts. We know that people who spend the summer in the Phoenix area walk inside the mall to get away from the heat. We don't expect to have to do it in winter.

Last spring shortly before we left for the summer, we went into Mesa Marketplace, the home of recreational shopping. Open year round, the facility has canvas walls so it is experiences all sorts of weather. In late April and May it is getting pretty hot. Though the swap meet is open, very few of the vendors were trying to sell things. We visited this Sunday and found almost all the vendor stalls open and the crowds of shoppers was increasing. In February and March the aisles will be so crowded it will be hard to move through them.

I keep think of the song from "Annie," "Tomorrow, tomorrow, the sun will come out tomorrow." We certainly hope so.

Driving to Yellowstone

We spent three days in the RV park at Fairmont Hot Springs Resort outside of Butte.

The resort was pretty nice. There was this mountain goat on the wall in the lobby.

And a beautiful indoor pool as well as an outdoor one. We didn't bring our swim suits so we didn't check it out. They also had a golf course.

The RV park was OK. It seems many locals come here regularly and meet friends and family. We saw several groups sharing meals. There was even a small rally of Beaver motor homes.

The weather turned very cold our last day there, the Sunday of Labor Day weekend. It was cold and rainy. This was our view as we headed out Labor Day for Yellowstone National Park.

When it wasn't raining, there were some dramatic views of the clouds.

But look at this temperature! Doesn't the weather know it is only September 5? It should be warm, if not hot.

We have been to Yellowstone twice before but we don't get tired of the scenery there. More about that in future posts.

We've been seeing down coats, gloves, heavy sweatshirts, and even some ear muffs and ski hats. What is this all about? Well, it's winter in Arizona. We've had a really long cold spell. If you are up north, you wouldn't think it is cold, but to those of us who come here to wear shorts most of the winter, highs in the 50s (62 is normal at this time of year) and nights in the high 30s or low 40s are cold!

And this week, El Nino is bringing lots of rain. This is only the 6th of January and we have already received 1.2 inches of rain. Average rainfall in Phoenix is 8.03 inches. If it keeps up at this rate, we will be way over average. Here are two photos of small lakes left in our resort by the rain.

At least we can look forward to beautiful flowers in the desert after all this rain.

Brrrr! But Beautiful

It snowed! Here in Gold Canyon, Arizona! On our truck! That really isn't fair. And it is really cold. The low this morning was 30 degrees. Yes, I know. It is a lot colder in most of the country. But we came to southern Arizona to escape the cold. This is what our truck looked like yesterday morning.

That wasn't pretty. But the nearby Superstition Mountains were beautiful.

If we live through this (and I am sure we will), it is supposed to be in the 60s by Sunday with lows above freezing. Ahhhh. That is what we expect when we come here for the winter.

Whining a Little

We know that most of the country is having just awful weather. It is cold, snowy, icy, and did I say, "COLD? Compared to that, it truly is warm here, and sunny. But look what we found on our truck this morning. Frost!



That is not what we came to Arizona for. Today's high was only 54 and the low tonight will be in the mid 30s. Everyone in Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, even Texas, would welcome this weather.

But would you leave us alone, here in southern Arizona, while we whine a little. Maybe we will even wine a little and drown our sorrows.

Weather Alert

The evening news, and even roadside signs, warned of the coming bad weather here in Arizona. I think there were reports from 3 or 4 people in the field about how to prepare. What were we looking at? Overnight lows below freezing and daytime highs in the 40s until Tuesday!

Here in the Phoenix area, the warnings were about protecting plants from the freezing temperatures. There are lots of oranges and grapefruit still on the trees. Because the weather here is so mild, lots of people have blooming plants out. In fact, the garden centers are selling bedding plants. So this weather can cause lots of damage.
In the northern part of the state, snow, ice and below-zero temps were predicted. We prepared by filling our fresh water tank and disconnecting the water hose.

We have been in Arizona for long enough this winter that we, too, think it is pretty darn cold. But for years I have felt TV news has made too much of the weather. When we were living in Colorado in the winter, a snowstorm, even one depositing no more than 2 or 3 inches, became a major story. Ridiculous.

As I am writing this blog, the Denver Broncos and Baltimore Ravens are in a playoff game in Denver and the stands are packed, even though the temperature is only 14 degrees. I'm sure all those folks would call those of us here in Arizona "wimps."

Western Shufflers

I know we live in a senior's resort, but it is for 55+ active adults. So, what is this sign about? Who is coming that shuffles?

Well, no one is being insulting or talking about people who only shuffle, not really walk. The Western Shuffleboard Tournament is being held here at Valle del Oro November 5-10. I haven't played shuffleboard since maybe church camp during grade school. But it is one of the popular sports here. Obviously, it is popular at other snowbird resorts, as well.

Today, (Thursday, Nov. 8) the Arizona Republic carried a story about the tournament. It gives more detail than I knew when I posted this blog.

I don't know how many teams came for this tournament. I do know that last year there were teams from California, as well as Arizona. Last year it was a lot colder in the mornings during the tournament. The folks from California were complaining. It makes the discs move either faster or slower, I don't remember which. Shuffleboard players here are hardy folks who are out there playing on December early mornings with gloves and hats.

Today, however, the first day of the tournament, is warm and beautiful. It is important to keep the courts clean.





Since resorts in the American southwest are very popular with Canadian snowbirds, flags for both countries' flags are flying.



I think this must be the proper stance for pushing the disc (also called puck or biscuit) because this woman did a good job of placing it just right.



She watched closely to see where it stopped.



Since I know nothing about scoring shuffleboard, I really don't know if these folks are doing well or not.



However, I found the following paragraph in an online article about the game and these scores seem to indicate neither side is anywhere near winning this game.

All National doubles tournaments shall be best two out of three 75 points games for the main and consolation divisions. Also games may be played in 8, 10, 12, 14, 16, or 20 frames.

Cold Front

For the past few mornings, it has been 76 degrees when we wake up in the morning. Yesterday the temperature was into the low 90s in the afternoon. And the humidity is high--the weather forecast says "muggy." Last night the TV news weather warned of a strong cold front coming in. That, combined with the hot, muggy air, would produce thunderstorms.

We know that the central part of the U.S. has experienced horrible weather, with over a hundred tornadoes during the past couple of days. So, it sounds like we should take this local weather report seriously.

With a strong cold front coming through, we wondered if we should dig out our long johns, or at least put the heavier comforter on the bed. What do you think? After all, the morning low tomorrow is supposed to be 72.

As I write this, at 7:50 pm Central time, the temperature is 74, the humidity 87%. (Yes, we did get a short, hard rain. That was all.)

BBQ--Wet, Cold, Mainly Chicken

Saturday, we drove to Mercedes for Smokin' on the Rio, a BBQ cookoff.



When we left our RV, the temperature was in the upper 40s and it had rained for several hours. Not the best weather for cooking outside or for eating there, but we still had a good time. The event was the 9th Annual Texas State Championship BBQ Cook-Off, with $10,000 in prize money for the one team crowned "The Best in Texas." The teams compete in fajitas, beans, chicken, ribs and brisket. Though we went hoping to eat brisket, it wasn't due to the judges till 4 and we weren't willing to wait that long to eat lunch. Instead, we sampled several kinds of beans and fajitas and a whole lot of chicken.

Was that chicken ever good! So tender. After studying what they were doing, we decided they often used the beer-can method of cooking it. We will have to try it some time.





This team is deciding which pieces to turn in to the judges.



It's in the box.


What does it take to cook it just right? It must be at the correct temperature.



Then there is the rub of secret spices.



Later, some other trimmings to enhance the flavor for the last period of cooking.



Of course, there is the mesquite wood. But isn't it cheating to get the fire started with a blast of burning propane?



The contestants brought their own wood for cooking. But if people like us enjoyed the food enough to want to cook it at home, we could even buy our wood there.



The BBQ rigs came in all shapes and sizes. Click on the photo to get a better look.



The names of the teams were interesting, as well.



We see the US Border Patrol everywhere down here. Apparently, in addition to trying to keep our borders safe, they also are good cooks. Last year they placed 5th in fajitas. We don't know the rankings this year--we didn't stay until 6:30 pm.





We ran into Eric and Kathy, two of the volunteers we work with at Santa Ana. Look at how we are all dressed. I told you it was cold.



It was cold enough that we even accepted smelling like a campfire to get warm.



BBQ cookoffs are a family affair. So, if you have a six-week old puppy, you bring it along, too.



And this little fellow was helping cook.



An outhouse was part of the decor at Da Smokin' Boys cooking area.



If you looked closely at the collage of signs for cooking teams, you saw that one was sponsored by a funeral home. This fellow converted a casket into a trailer to haul his BBQ supplies behind his motorcycle.



How about this sign?



I don't imagine they sold much ice cream yesterday, but this sure was a clever way to turn the cranks on the freezers.



There were various bands entertaining during the afternoon, in addition to these dancers. I'll bet they were freezing by the end of their set.

Lutefisk and Winter

Lutefisk is dried cod that is then soaked in water, then lye, then again in water. It is then either boiled in water or baked. Wikipedia says, "It is gelatinous in texture, and has an extremely strong, pungent odor. Its name literally means 'lye fish.'"

In northern Norway, the cod comes in to the coast, either to spawn or feed, between January and April. The fresh catch of cod is cleaned immediately and hung to dry on drying racks. The pure air and the cold winter climate are the ideal components in this unique processing.

In modern times, lutefisk (Norwegian) or lutfisk (Swedish) is often served around Christmas. John remembers it as one part of the Christmas Eve smorgasbord when he was a child. In Mesa, AZ, the local Sons of Norway chapter serves lutefisk on the first Saturday of December. This is the second year we have attended the dinner.

All that said, why does my plate not contain lutefisk?



Unless you are a Swede or Norwegian who grew up loving lutefisk, just read the first paragraph again and you will know why. Both John and I sampled the cod last year. This year neither of us took any. We did enjoy the meatballs, mashed potatoes, lefse and rice pudding.

Here is a plate with lutefisk.



Five of the people at our table were there because they really like lutefisk. Two of us were there because we enjoy the event. One man is of Norwegian descent and came to try it for the first time. "I don't think I will have it again any time soon," he said.

These three women were to my left. All three are members of the Sons of Norway and had worked at the annual dinner for many years. This year, they just came to eat.
From left, they are Carol, Lauri and Pat.



These are the people to John's right. I didn't get the name of the man on the left. He is the one who won't be having lutefisk any time soon. Carolyn and Larry really like the fish.



Many, if not most, of the people at the dinner are first or second generation immigrants. They are patriotic Americans, grateful to be citizens of this country. The dinner began with the Pledge of Allegiance, then a prayer in Norwegian. Music was provided by an accordion player.



Most of the members of the Sons of Norway are getting older, as you can see by those serving the food. In fact, the master of ceremonies said they had considered discontinuing the dinners because their membership was "getting up in years." But they have decided to do it for a few more years. They had a few younger people helping this year, including two foreign exchange high school students from Norway.



There also was a bake sale at St. Peter's Lutheran Church, where the lutefisk dinner was held. We bought this Julekake (Christmas cake). John loves it and says it reminds him of something he ate when he was a child. (His grandparents both immigrated from Sweden.)



It is December, and we are experiencing winter here in Mesa. Now, if you are in the parts of the country where it is snowing, you might not consider our temps in the 50s daytime and 40s overnight as winter. But we do. Yesterday morning it was foggy.





But as we drove west on our way to church, we pulled out of the fog to find sunshine.



Last night, a few of the higher mountains around the Valley received a dusting of snow.



The next couple of nights we have a freeze warming.