We had a lovely BBQ at Shelby and Lou's and their friends Haley and Austin in Ankeny Iowa! Thanks for everything! Marla and Piper stayed in the RV at the fairgrounds and all seemed well went we got home. Until this morning! Marla was NOT PLEASED she was left behind the festivities and refused to walk potty, refused to go out with Piper, was on a hunger strike and refused pretty much everything. She was sooo mad at us. As of 5pm tonight, she seems to have forgiven us somewhat, but what a day!
In Sioux Falls, South Dakota for a couple of nights. Staying at the Lyon Fairgrounds that is over run with prairie dogs! Anyhow, there actually is a falls in Sioux Falls and the city planners sure did a phenomenal job with the surrounding Falls Park! WOW.
Quick overnight in Fargo, ND. We camped here: www.fargoparks.com/lindenwood-campground It's tucked behind the hospital and is a huge park. The pups loved chasing the squirrels up the trees and since we left Canada and Alaska, they have slept like babies! Hooray! Anyhow, one cannot go to Fargo without finding the wood chipper!
Theodore Roosevelt National Park is an American national park of the badlands in western North Dakota comprising three geographically separated areas. Honoring U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, it is the only American national park named directly after a single person. In case you ever wondered, this is what an RV windshield looks like after driving in the summer in Alaska. Do you see the bullseye rock smash or the long, meandering rock smash cracks?
It was a beautiful night to walk around the market district in Spokane. The pups were loving all the smells and were reading all their messages on the tree stumps and such. I had Piper and John had Marla. Tra la la we were strolling like a couple of kids in the open market and micro brewery. Suddenly, I felt a tug on my leg and then slowly realized I was going to fall flat on my face on the cement! I could feel myself making a spectacular sailing crash right past the patrons having their micro brews! I sailed past them horizontally and with great momentum and then WHAM! Landing right on my elbows and chin! Somehow my shoe flew off mid flight and piper came right out of her harness! She was baffled and shocked and had no idea what just happened! I was completely flat out on my stomach and when I lifted my head, my chin had split open and blood was pouring out with reckless abandon. John reached over and gave me his ever present pocket bandana (Cass knows the one) to keep it from looking like a murder scene. Fortunately, there were two off duty female paramedics who got me back together. John had to collect PIper who was all "RAAAAHHHH! I AM SCARED FOR MY LIFE!" running around the market. When he finally got her back into her harness, then Marla got loose and started trotting off for safety! In the end, my forehead and nose were badly bruised, I had a very deep gash in my chin, my elbows and knees were bruised. Over the next few days, the bruising around my forehead and nose bled around my eyes so I looked like Alice Cooper in full shock makeup! Dang it!
Longest leg ever. 8 hours and we arrive in Medora, ND in twilight. This campground has rules such as : DO NOT CALL FOR INFORMATION! Come in the office in person! If you ask us a question we will ask you to come to the office in person for the answer! And: SOMEONE FROM OUR CAMPGROUND WILL ASSIST YOU IN PULLING INTO YOUR SITE!! While I registered, John disconnected the tow vehicle and then "Christina" was walking assisting John to the site. She pointed to the left for him to go there. I hop out of the tow vehicle. "Christina! Are you sure we shouldn't back in? The hook ups are waaay up there!" She barks "I AM ASSISTING THIS AS PER THE RULES IN THE HANDOUT. I AM HANDLING THIS!" John is like is this a pull in or a back in or what? Christina starts doing this hands maneuver like she's making shadow dogs barking with authority. John hops out of the RV "What am I supposed to be doing? I don't know what those hands going back and forth smashed together means?" As I watch I am like "is she gesturing the salmon are spawning?" She tells him he has to back in to the spot way behind. John gets back in the RV. She starts making all these hand signals and dancing and what not. John has NO IDEA WTF she is asking him to do! He yells out the window at her "Do you realize I have over 100,000 miles on this rig? I can see the damn picnic table with my four cameras and my eyes! What do you want me to do?!!!!" At this point John is OVER Christina. He just ignores her, puts the gear in reverse, punches the gas, burns out and whips back into the site like a picture perfect BOSS. Christina balks and walks away. We had no freakin idea what the hell her signals were all about.
By accident, we found the epicenter of Spokane's homeless. It's right across the street from the LaQuinta we stayed at while our RV was being repaired. There is a 7/11 on Division street that one can see from the hotel window. It's non stop vagrants with non stop police presence. As soon as the police show up, they move about 1/2 block away from the 7/11. As soon as the police drive through, they all come back. No matter what time of day or night, there is a constant couple of dozen homeless walking around the building. When I took the pups out yesterday at 6am, 8 cop cars zoomed in there and yelled at the homeless coming toward 7/11 "Don't go that way! Turn around!" and they all convereged on someone in the 7/11 parking lot. It was constant, just constant movement of homeless around and through. |
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