May 7, Ventura


Surprise, surprise! Look where we wound up tonight! I had no idea when we left Las Vegas that this is where we were headed. Don and I went for an abbreviated walk in the park this morning, and we made the usual getting ready to go preparations. We headed out a little before eleven, and I promptly went down for a nap. I woke up for lunch, of course, and saw that we were churning along the familiar Highway 15 southward, and went back to napping. We stopped for a refueling at Barstow, but I didn’t feel the need to get out of the rig. Back to napping. I woke up again when we pulled into Charlie Brown’s in Littlerock, and was surprised to see that we were this close to home. Geri and Don scored their usual Date Shakes, but there was nothing on the menu for me. I watched out the front window as we left and saw that we were still heading west, so I started to get a feeling about where we were going. A little more than an hour-and-a-half later, we were unhooking the truck on Telegraph Avenue in Ventura, and Geri and I were heading home, with Don following in the coach. Geri’s job was to get the van out of the driveway so that Don could pull in, but she found a small problem; dead battery! Don had to park the coach across the street, pull the truck in next to the van and jump start it, then get all the vehicles repositioned so that he could get the coach into the driveway. He eventually got it all together, and we were officially home!

It’s been a fun trip, and we’ve seen a lot of places that we haven’t been before, including many that we want to visit again. But it’s good to be home, and I’ll enjoy seeing all my human and doggy friends again. And I’ll certainly enjoy my morning walks in parks and other places that are familiar to me. But the most important thing is that, no matter where we are, I’m with two people who love me and want me to be the happiest dog in the world; and I’m pretty sure I am!

Signing off until our next adventure, this is your bloggin’ dog, DeeBee!

May 6, Las Vegas
Well, we’re still here! I’m beginning to think that we’ve found a new home here at the Motorcoach Resort. It certainly is relaxing here, with not much to do in the way of home maintenance (not that I have a lot of that to do in Ventura), and all kinds of fun things for Geri and Don to do. I like the park that Don takes me to in the morning a whole lot, but when we’re at home, he takes me to a different park every day, so I get a little variety. This morning, at the park, I met a little Schnauzer named Harry, who really seemed to like me a lot. His human, a lady, kept trying to continue their walk, but Harry didn’t seem to want to leave me. So I went up to the lady and let her pet me so that Harry would get jealous and go to her; worked like a charm, except she kept petting me until Harry demanded to continue the walk. Worked out OK. I did a lot of rolling and running, I guess cause my coat feels so good now that we had it trimmed quite a bit.


This afternoon Geri and Don visited a place that Geri has wanted to go to for quite some time. It’s a candy factory, and they make lots of chocolate candies. Don said that he agreed to go if he could meet Willie Wonka, whoever he is. They came back with a big bag of chocolate candy, which I know I can’t have any of, ‘cause it’s really bad for me. They warmed up some leftovers for dinner; it’s always fun when they have leftovers, they have a hard time remembering where they were when they had the original meal, and there’s always an argument. I got some fairly decent plates out of the deal, so I was pleased. After dinner, Don took me for a little walk around the RV Park, and we saw a couple with three Aussies, all of them bigger than my friends Alice and Cooper! They must have a really large motorhome to have enough room for those guys.


They took off again after my walk, headed for some place to play with those machines again. I got a much needed nap while they were gone. When they came back, I met them at the door like I always do, and Don told me that he had won enough money to keep me in dog food for another two months! I had no idea that the machines could be that generous. That’s a whole lot of money! We worked on the blog, I got a few treats and another short walk around the neighborhood, and off to bed. I do think we might be hauling out of here tomorrow, to where I have no idea. But you’ll know when I know, which is when we get there!

May 5, Las Vegas
Sorry I couldn’t do a posting last night, but I couldn’t persuade my typist to come in from the patio, where he and Geri were enjoying the warm night air and a visit with Craig (also known as David), whose rig is parked in the site just in back of us. He’s on his way from Scottsdale up to Reno and Winnemucca, where he will be working at the local hospital for awhile. I just sat out there with them, and enjoyed the attention I was getting.

And I did get a lot of attention yesterday! On our morning walk in the park that we drive to, several ladies complimented me on my friendly attitude and good manners, in addition to telling me that I was beautiful. Though I prefer being called handsome, I’ll take beautiful any time. Not too long after we got back from our walk, I got an early lunch and Geri took me over to the nearby Petco Store, where she turned me over to the groomer there. I’m always excited to go to the groomer’s, particularly when it’s a new place. First, I love getting a bath and being really clean, and I eat up the personal attention I get there. When I’m at a groomer’s that I haven’t been to before, I get to show off my manners and make new friends. The resulting treats are also well received. The groomer lady at Petco, whose name was Stephanie, was particularly good at her work, and trimmed my coat beautifully. When Don came to pick me up, he thought I was someone else! He said that this didn’t look like his dog, but I was so handsome, he’d take me home anyway. Ha, Ha, big kidder that he is.

They went out for dinner, after feeding me mine, to a place called the Claim Jumper, where Don says that the only two problems are that the food is great and they give you way too much of it. Sometimes I really don’t understand him at all. They must have done a pretty good job of finishing their meals, though, ‘cause all I got out of it was a few puny french fries.

This morning, we were kind of late getting over to the park, as we were seeing David (also known as Craig) off on the continuation of his journey northward. So, when we got to the park, there weren’t hardly any ladies walking for their morning exercise, and I didn’t get any recognition of my “new look”. Oh, well, maybe tomorrow. But it was getting so hot that I found myself trotting from shade tree to shade tree, and then standing in the shade waiting for Don to catch up. I got a lot of rolling in, kind of seasoning my clean and newly shaped coat, but I avoided rolling in anything smelly or nasty. After we had lunch, Geri and Don had some shopping to do, and I took a well earned nap. When they returned, it looked like they had cleaned out every Italian delicatessen in Las Vegas. They unloaded a pile of delicacies out of the truck, and I know that some great dinners are going to come out of this, with some super plates for me.

The wind had come up during the afternoon, so we all went out to bring the awning in so it wouldn’t blow away if the wind got stronger. We hung around the rig until my dinner time, and then they got in the truck and went over to the local casino, Silverton, where there was an Italian Festival going on. It occurred to me that this was a day that they call Cinco de Mayo, a Mexican sort of holiday, when many people celebrate with enchiladas and Margueritas. No, they’re out looking for New York style pizza and vino rosso. Guess they gotta be different. They came back a little late, ‘cause they had to stop by the casino and make their contributions to the machines, though Geri said she did pretty well. Don wasn’t saying anything. I got my evening treats, Geri took me for a nice walk, and Don and I got this posting together. Glad to get up to date. Don’t know what we’re doing tomorrow, may be staying here, may be moving on. I’ll let you know when I find out!

May 3, Las Vegas, Nevada
Just a short note tonight, ‘cause we had a dinner party that lasted late, and it’s way past my bedtime.


I had a nice, long wade in the Colorado River this morning, it felt really good, and Don took some pictures. We left Davis Camp a little after eleven, and headed north at a goodly rate. We bombed through Searchlight, one of Don’s favorite places, and pulled into our favorite RV Park, Las Vegas Motorhome Resort, a little after one in the PM. We did a lot of cleanup work, so that we look as good as all the other rigs in this place, and we waited for David (also known as Craig) to pull in from Phoenix. He showed up a little after five, and G-Daughter Genevieve pulled in shortly thereafter. I was very happy to see all of them, as they are very special friends, almost like family to me. Well, maybe they are family, even though they aren’t of the canine persuasion! Don cooked up some bratwurst and baked beans, which were well received, even though he had gone el cheapo on the buns at WalMart and bought some that were way too small. I got some great plates out of it, there was lots of talk, Don indulged in a cigar, which got him isolate to the edge of the conversation, and a good time was had by all.


We really love being in this RV Park, it has everything we want and then some. The grass is great, the people are really nice, and, today, the weather was great! I’ll try to give you a longer post tomorrow. Night, all!

May 2, Bullhead City, Arizona
Not much to report today; Don and I had another nice walk down to the river in the morning, and I spied a roadrunner, but didn’t chase it. I’ve learned that it’s really not worth it. Don had the camera with him so that he could take a picture of me wading in the Colorado, but I didn’t feel like wading this morning. We made a brief trip to the local Sam’s Club to pick up some needed supplies, then back to the rig for lunch. After Geri had a little nap, she and Don headed over to Laughlin to resume their odd relationship with the money machines.
They came back to the rig, looking fairly pleased with their encounters with the machines, just in time for my dinner and a little afternoon walk. Then they were off again, to have their dinner in a restaurant that turned out to be closed, down in Fort Mohave. Don told me that he asked Garmie where to find another Italian restaurant, and she led them to a little family type place down near the river, where they apparently dined very well. When they came home, I welcomed them as I always do, with a nice toy and a wagging tail.

Don and I worked briefly on the blog, we watched a little TV, and then hit they hay. We’re shoving off tomorrow, I hear it’s back to Vegas. That’s great, I love the RV Park there, and Don has found the new park for our morning walks. I think I’ll have a good time! See ya tomorrow!

May 1, Bullhead City, Arizona
It’s a funny thing about this place, the minute you get here, you feel like you’re really on a vacation trip. Like, we’ve been vacationing for about three weeks, but there was always a feeling of being responsible for something, kind of looking over your shoulder to see if some nasty animal was watching you, ready to pounce. Here, we always feel very carefree and relaxed. But we still pay attention to the little details of living and traveling that keep us semi-civilized. Like, this morning Don took some time to get the last of the red dust from the Monument Valley sandstorm out of the truck, even going to a car wash to use their high powered vacuum cleaner to get the dust out of the carpet in my compartment. But before he did that, he took me out for a really nice walk down to the river, where I recognized my old swimming hole, a little lagoon next to the main stream of the river, where there was no current. I looked at Don to gain his approval, and he told me to go ahead and go wading, which he knew I wanted to do. Even in the morning, it’s kind of warm here, and wading in the water really cools me off nicely. So, I waded on in and just stood there for awhile, enjoying the feel of the cool water on my legs. The last time I was here, I actually went swimming in the river, but I didn’t feel like exerting myself that much this morning.


The rest of the morning was spent just lazing around the coach; they were reading some of the local newspapers, while I played with the new squeak toy that Geri got me yesterday. I like it a lot, ‘cause it’s really loud . After we had lunch, Geri and Don left me to do my afternoon nap and headed over to Laughlin, where, as I understand it, they put money into machines and press buttons that make the machines give even more money back to them. Sounds a little silly to me, but what do I know. As long as they have enough money for my food and cookies, I don’t care what they do. They came back very pleased that the machines had given them $4.27 for an afternoon’s work of pushing buttons, and if they’re happy, I’m happy.


They had a dinner of leftover lentil soup, which I love, so I was very pleased with the plates. After dinner, Geri took me for a walk, and we met some dogs that were part Goldie. They were pleasant enough, but not nearly as knowledgeable about dealing with humans as I am. I’m a strong believer in the idea that if you treat your humans with love and respect, and follow their instructions to the letter, they will respect you and see to your needs and desires attentively. It’s always worked for me!


Geri decided I needed some trimming up on my legs, what she calls my “feathers”, and took me outside with the electric trimmer. She didn’t cut me too short, so I still have a touch of hairy elegance to my legs. I thanked her for that. We didn’t take any photos today, so there are none to post. I’ll try to get Don to take some tomorrow morning during our walk. Hope you had as nice a day as I have!

April 30, Bullhead City, Arizona
Last night, when I said we were heading for one of our favorite places, I’ll bet that none of you said, “Oh, they’re on their way to Bullhead City, Arizona!” But it really is a big favorite of ours. For one reason, the weather is usually really nice here, except in the really hot summer months. Another reason is the Mohave County operated RV Park, Davis Camp, which offers really nice sites alongside the Colorado River. Not too many people are familiar with this Park, as it isn’t listed in the normal RV Park directories. We found it by accident some years ago, and it’s one of our favorites. And a final reason is that we’re just across the river from Laughlin, Nevada, our poor person’s Las Vegas, which offers a lot of fun things to do for Geri and Don. I like the fact that there is lots of grass here, great areas for walks, and, when I feel like it, the river to wade and swim in. I’ve really done that, they have pictures to prove it!
We got another late start this morning, but it didn’t matter, ‘cause we only had about an hour’s travel to get to Bullhead City. We got reloaded with propane at Blake Ranch before we left, and the owner was telling Don about a couple who had shown up at the Park a few nights ago, having gone through a sandstorm like ours and then finding that their highway was closed while carrying a cargo of nine horses in a trailer. They had to spend the night in their truck in a snow storm! We stopped at a truck wash to get the rig and the truck cleaned up, ‘cause we were really dirty! Don said you couldn’t tell what color the truck was, though that was hard for me to observe accurately. When we left the truck wash, we were all clean and shiny again.

We breezed through Kingman and caught Highway 68 toward Bullhead City, through Golden Valley. After a brief climb up to the top of the pass, we started the downgrade that drops over 3000 feet in twelve miles, down to the valley of the Colorado. Geri and Don remarked that they usually drove this pass going the other way, but it was just was beautiful heading west, though a bit scarier. Don gave the exhaust brake a good workout on the way down. I was supervising the whole operation, but couldn’t find fault with it. We arrived at Davis Camp, and Geri negotiated a site that looked OK on the map; but when we got there, she concluded that there wasn’t sufficient grass to satisfy my needs, so she found a better one, called the office, and told them where we were settling. They knew better than to argue with her.

Once Don had the rig set up, they left me to a well-earned nap and went shopping for some essentials, including replenishment of my food and cookie supply. They tried to find a groomer for me, as I am starting to look a little ragged. But they couldn’t find anyone who was available on the weekend. Oh, well, people still think I’m handsome! Don cooked up a great dinner, some strip steak on the grill, baked potatoes, and some of the asparagus that we bought from the lady in Montrose. It resulted in some super plates for me, and they seemed to enjoy it, too. We watched a little TV, worked on the blog, and hit they hay pretty early. Should be a good day tomorrow; maybe I’ll even go swimming! See you manana (pronounced manyana)!