Sunday May 22, 2016 Good Morning, It is so nice to be back home and visit family and friends. I did have to go to the clinic on Monday as my cold/sinus problem turned into Bronchitis. It hasn't stopped us much. Jim is feeling the strain of sinus problems today. Combination of cold and hot weather and the peat dirt from the Delta and surrounding farm land. I felt better as the week went on so I had lunch with some old friends from high school and we had a delightful time. Jim played a round of golf and spent some time with his good friend Jim Norton. I took my sister Margaret down memory lane as we visited the neighborhood we grew up in, took a drive out to Pixie Woods and tried to visit the museum but it was closed (we will go back). We have had meals together and playing RummyKub my our new favorite game. Yesterday my nephew Jimmy came down to Lodi and we went to some garage and estate sales and then down to Lodi to visit some antique shops. Jimmy is like me and that fact he loves to explore and of we had more time and he didn't work we would visit every mining/ghost time in California. We will have to save that adventure for another time. Today I am a chauffeur to Jim, Gary, Cheri and her friends Shelby and Dave as they go wine tasting. Our love to all, Jim and Debbie

Good Morning, We have been so busy so hence I have caught a cold. Too much running around I'm guessing. We have seen our friends Jim and Bobbi Norton. Jim and Bobbi are very active in the Moose Lodge. We have been up to see my sister and niece in Valley Springs. We took my sister Merrill to Angels Camp and to the Pickle Patch for lunch. We have celebrated birthdays with dinners and good times. We have celebrated Greg's passing with message balloons to heaven. We have had dinner with our good friends Cyndi and Mike. We went and spent a night in Lake Tahoe with my niece Cheri and her fiancee and our new nephew Gary (this is what Jim wanted for his birthday). I was glad to see snow on the mountains still as this means Lake Tahoe probably got the water it needs for the year. Have a great day, Jim and Debbie

Sunday May 8, 2016 Hi Everyone, Jim and I arrived in Stockton on Wednesday. It was so good to hold my sister Margaret and for us to have a good cry about my nephew Greg and Margaret's son. I have waited a whole year to be able to hold and comfort her. Greg passed away a year ago today on Mother's Day,so today was a bitter sweet day for all of us. Even though Greg is not with us his presents is strong as his love for his family was strong and it was felt today. Miss you little brother. Our month will be filled with being with family and friends and celebrating birthdays. Happy Mothers Day, Jim and Debbie

Tuesday May 2, 2012

Hi Everyone,

I was a little lacks about doing my blog last week my apologizes.  I had a run in with my bike last week and I lost.  Had two crashes in one day.  So this week I am covered in bruises and nursing two sore knees.  Then on Saturday Jim slipped and fell while we were washing the truck so he is nursing a sore ankle.  It is a good thing my niece works for an orthopedic group as we might be visiting them next week, LOL.   We did meet and made some new friends which is what traveling is all about.

We are in Palm Springs and on to Bakersfield tomorrow with an overnight stay and then on to my hometown of Stockton were will be for the month of May.  We did go (and this has been on our bucket list) to Joshua Tree and what a gorgeous place.  Half of Joshua Tree is in the Mojave Desert with the eastern half of the park in the Colorado Desert.  In 1930 Minerva Hoyt, a community activist and desert lover recognized the threats from humans so in 1936 she persuaded Franklin Roosevelt to proclaim Joshua Tree a National Monument.  This park protects 792,510 acres.   

The desert is home to Bighorn sheep, Chuckwalla and the Desert Iguana, the desert tortoise, quail, roadrunner beep,beep, the kit fox and or course the red diamondback rattlesnake.  

Jim and I were amazed at the rock formation which looked like a giant's form of legos.  These rock piles began underground eons ago as a result of volcanic activity. Magma in this case a molton form of the rock called monzogranite rose from deep within the earth.  As it rose, it intruded the overlying rock.  As the granite cooled and crystalized underground, cracks formed horizontally and vertically.  The granite continued to uplift, where it came in contact with groundwater.  Chemical weathering caused by the groundwater worked on the angular granite blocks widening racks and rounding edges.

What make Joshua Tree such a significant National Park is the fact the it transitions between two deserts, it is close to major urban areas, the fact that this park meets the pacific plate with the north american plate, bouldered landscape and beautiful scenery. 

Enjoyed the day,
Jim and Debbie