Blabbin' in Blythe

Something must be wrong with me...I haven't picked up my camera in almost a week. I actually don't even know where it is right now! I just don't see the point of taking pictures of the same thing day in and day out...but hopefully that will change soon. Each day we get closer to January, which means (for us) Quartzsite. I know there are some people (who have been there before) that won't be there this year, but we have never been and it's been a major to-do since even before we started our journey...so we will be going this year and are pretty stoked about it. So, right now it's a little bit of a waiting game but it's giving time for J' to grind it on the work-front and for me to find all the stones in the world to wrap as jewelry! I'm going to have to go through them soon and maybe weed out some of them...and maybe not, hee hee! I am having a hard time finding a place to put them...we'll see. I also haven't really been doing much lately due to my shoulder dislocating a couple of nights ago. The first time my shoulder went out was probably around 2002, I was making a salad at work...go figure! I went to a doctor and he told me surgery wasn't really a possibility due to the flexibility of my muscles and bones because of swimming. He said my shoulder would just stretch right back out to where it is now in time, so he gave me exercises to do and saved me a ton of money! It goes out a few times a year now and when it does, it's so amazingly painful...it takes my breath away. I'm very thankful to have J' around (most of the times it happens) to be able to put it back in place. This time I was pulling the blinds down on one of the windows...POP! I was stuck in between the bed and the ceiling and couldn't move to a better position, it actually paralyzes me...hurts to move, to breathe, to think. After it gets popped back in, the crying and the pain starts...it's just so freakin' painful. For about 2-3 days I can't really do much with it: can't raise it, lift anything over a lb. with it, sleep on it, and walking Savannah has to be done all left handed so she doesn't yank it out of the socket again. It stays sore and spasms for a few days, it's just a real big pain in the butt. I've been having a hard time sleeping due to my shoulder (and the cold) and the other night I swore I was going crazy! I was in between barely asleep and barely awake, actually having nightmares when I heard this noise and started seeing what I thought were lights. At this point I didn't know if I was in my dream or if something was actually going on around us, so I laid there trying to wake myself up. I thought I was hearing cars racing...? What a weird noise right? I mean we're in the middle of the desert it's about 12:30 in the morning, pitch black, freezing cold outside...who would be out here racing cars at this time of the night!? Just as I was trying to make sense of things I see headlights coming straight toward my window and hear a car motor, could have been a Mustang? Then I see this car whizzing by my window...what the crap!? I raise my blinds and see taillights of not just one car but two more ahead of the one that just whizzed by my window. I looked at my watch, in my mind it was like 3 a.m., it was only 12:38 in real time. Savannah was very interested in the whole thing, she was puffing her cheeks, getting ready for a fight. I cracked my window with the screen on it because I heard voices. I have to say, it's kind of unnerving to be where we are and have cars this close to you and able to hear voices...almost like they are walking toward the van. I haven't been this 'weird' feeling this whole time we've been doing this, but I was actually scared at this point. I couldn't see them due to us having our shades in the front windows (keeping cold out, warmth in) and also being in bed...still trying to wake up 100%. They sounded like they were only about 50 yards in front of the van, they were blaring music, hootin' and hollerin'. I just couldn't wrap my mind around why people would come out here at this time of night and hang out, outside...it's like 30 degrees outside! After J' heard me moving around and Savannah huffing and puffing, we started talking about it and he said it was probably just some high school kids drinking with nothing better to do. This was probably true, I just didn't want them to start messing with us because they were bored. I stayed up and tried to watch out of the window...couldn't see anything but pitch black. I finally heard them turn the music off and doors shutting, then heard what sounded like a Jeep climbing a hill pretty close to us. I opened my blinds back up and there were lights coming up over the hill on the side of us, then the lights were coming straight for the van at a pretty good speed. There's no way these people didn't see us. The "Jeep" turned and drove behind us then came up from behind at probably about 30 mph then swerved around the van, got back on the road and finally left. Jerks. It took me about 2 hours to finally fall back asleep, Savannah just wanted to keep looking out the window as she laid her head on the sill. I have to say that as small as she is, she's a great protector with super good hearing!

Other than that it's been pretty darn quiet around here. I think all in all we've only had 6 buggies pass by the van during the day, the entire time we've been here (2 weeks). We haven't even send a ground squirrel in over a week, nor any Coyotes. The cold doesn't just keep us in the van, it also gets the critters! Where do all of the Coyotes go, we wonder? I mean, they still have to eat, they can't just go to Burger King! Now, that's a funny image...haha

I was just looking to see what my last 'photo session' was of. I had actually hung my camera up outside to take pics of my "skinny" jeans (well they used to be) to send to a friend of mine. A few days ago, I was talking to a girl of mine about weight loss and I had actually come across a picture of me a couple of years ago with these jeans on, they were skin tight on me...looked like they were painted on me they were so tight. That same day (we had this conversation) I noticed I was wearing those same jeans. I now call those jeans my L.I.M.P. jeans = Load in my Pants! I swear they are so big on me now I can take them on and off without unbuttoning or unzipping them! So I did a side to side picture to show her...

[caption id="attachment_2996" align="aligncenter" width="232"] Whoa vs. Whoa[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2997" align="aligncenter" width="225"] L.I.M.P.![/caption]

If you're looking for a new "diet" just join us Vandwellers! It's a little different when you don't have fast food on every corner calling to you because it's easier, an oven to bake your favorite pies and cookies in, or a refrigerator to store all your yummy leftovers in, that mostly never get eaten! If you want to lose those extra few pounds that just won't come off,  just live in your van for a few months...works every time! haha

PEACE

&

Chicken Grease ya'll!