Out here in the Sonoran desert, most homes have gravel landscaping with occasional plantings of drought-resistant species (trees, shrubs, cacti) that are kept alive by drip irrigation. It is actually pretty lush in our subdivision, and our corner lot probably has more vegetation that most properties.
The gravel keeps the soil from getting too baked and blowing away. It is required by our H.O.A. The home builder provides a 2-inch layer of the stuff when the property is finished. However, over time, due to rain and settlement that 2-inch layer begins to get thin in spots.
I thought it would be a good idea to get some more gravel to beef up the coverage, so I ordered three yards of the stuff to be delivered to my house ($300) where I planned to wheelbarrow it all over the property.
Yesterday morning a truck arrived and dumped the three cubic yards of gravel in the street in front of my house. Holy Shit, that was quite a pile! I had no idea; it was only later, when I Googled it, that I found out that 3 cubic yards of gravel = 6,600 pounds!!!!!
I spent all of the day wheelbarrowing that stuff to the back of my property. I must have made 100 trips in 90-degree heat. Whew! That’s the hardest work I’ve done in fifty years. And it’s a good thing that my brand-new artificial hip was working perfectly: yesterday was my 44th day since the surgery!
Anyway, today my body feels 100 years old.
Day after tomorrow (Saturday) will be the semi-annual community-wide yard sale here in Sun City Mesquite. I look forward to this, as it gives me a chance to drive around in my golf cart, peruse the offerings, and make new friends. The last one (Spring) was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic, so there should be an overflow of merchandise on people’s driveways. Charlie and I will probably buy $100 worth of shit that we don’t need…but will have fun doing it.
Face masks, social distancing, and hand sanitizer will be the order of the day. We don’t have much of a problem with scofflaws in this community because everyone is in the high-risk category and, despite political leanings, are pretty cautious about Covid-19. There are lots of Trump signs in front yards, but those old fogey MAGA true believers In Sun City Mesquite aren’t buying his dismissive attitude about the pandemic…because they could die from it.
That idiot Trump is still holding “rallies” in states that are spiking with Covid-19 infections! What is the purpose of that, anyway? Those nincompoops are going to vote for him…no matter what stupid thing he does…so why “rally”? The only predictable outcomes are that he’s wasting his time with them and that many of the facemask-less supporters will get infected and go home to distribute the coronavirus within their families and communities.
Speaking of venturing out into society and tempting fate, Charlie and I and our friends Lloyd and Sandy are going on an RV trip to Moab, Utah at the end of the month. It will be our first outing since the pandemic erupted seven months ago. We plan on doing a bunch of hiking, off-road exploring in Lloyd’s tricked-out Toyota 4×4, eating good food, playing cards, and enjoying an occasional adult beverage. The dogs don’t know it yet, but they are going to have a good time, too.
We will all be observing Covid-19 protocols while up in Moab. Except the dogs.
Speaking of dogs, little BonBon graduated from junior high to high school this week: she learned how to negotiate the doggie door!
Oh, Boy, freedom at last! Now she is a full-fledged member of The Pack and can come and go (into the large backyard) whenever she damn well feels like it.
Yesterday, while I was lugging one hundred wheelbarrow loads of gravel into the backyard, I noticed BonBon using the doggie door frequently to watch me, sunbathe on the artificial grass, do her business (hooray!), and return inside when she got overheated. Hallelujah, those dog obedience lessons have paid off. Hopefully, BonBon will now start doing ALL of her business outside!
I have tentatively scheduled some RV trips in the next twelve months. In late December we will travel to Yuma to spend Christmas with our good friends Dan and Peggy Quinn and their Boston Terrier “Katie”. We are thinking of putting in a week or so at Paradise By The Sea in Oceanside, California in March. In the Spring, we are going to visit our “adopted 5th son” Jason Friedman at his home in Colorado. And then, we are going to resume our annual Summer RV road trip to the Oregon coast. We will be gone for all of July and August which are wickedly hot here in Mesquite but are pleasantly cool at the beaches in Coos Bay and Brookings, Oregon.
Of course, all of our plans are dependent upon the Covid-19 pandemic.
Charlie’s doctor clients have been warning about this coming “flu season” for the past six months. In their opinion, this is when the pandemic will hit with its full fury. That’s pretty scary, since 8 million Americans have already been infected and 216,000 have died.
I heard on the news this morning that Covid-19 infections are on the rise again in 37 U.S. states and in Europe, as well, where there was tremendous pressure to “re-open” the economy and schools despite the danger from the virus. We will all now pay the price of re-living last Spring and Summer. Can you imagine what our health care workers think about this?
It amazes me how stupid some people are in this country.
Infectious disease experts have laid out all of the facts about this virus and the basic steps to keep it at bay; however, lots of people want to believe that they know better, that the virus won’t affect them, and that it will just go away like snowfall in Spring. Don’t count on it. As an Indian sailor once said, “Trust in the Lord, but row away from the rocks.”
Those airheads will probably be encouraged by President Trump’s recent Covid-19 infection and quick recovery. “See”, he said, “it nothing to worry about!” Nothing could have been worse for America: Covid-19’s chief denier experiencing a quick recovery. How many people will now be encouraged to ignore the danger?
Actually, for the common man, a Covid-19 infection is pretty serious because Joe Citizen wouldn’t be getting the world-class medical care that the President did, including treatment with several experimental drugs that aren’t even FDA-approved or for sale in the United States.
And, for a lot of Joe Citizens right now (and their families), any quality medical care for Covid-19 is problematical since they have lost their jobs and their health insurance due to the collapsed economy.
And, in the midst of this catastrophe, our Imbecile in Chief is scheming to pack the Supreme Court with conservative justices so he can eviscerate Obamacare, denying another 20 million Americans affordable health care.
Go figure.
As for Charlie and I, we are going to be careful about traveling and socializing in the coming months. We’re both in our 70’s now and would probably not fare well if we caught the coronavirus. We’re going to avoid orgies and pong parties this Winter.
I’d do better shoveling three tons of gravel than inhaling one microscopic coronavirus aerosol.