NEW YEARS ROLLERCOASTER – BISBEE, AZ

New Year’s Day got off to a great start.  After the day warmed up, we hiked once again to the mountaintop shrine and basked in the sunshine on the viewpoint bench.  We could see remnants of the New Year’s Eve festivities in the park far below, watch tiny cars navigate tiny streets, hear far-off dogs barking and hammer blows now and then.  We spent about an hour watching the scene and enjoying the sun’s warmth.

Back down the mountainside, we were hungry.  Odel’s eyes bugged out of his head when I suggested we zip over to Jimmy’s Hot Dogs for a dog.  Wow, did that make him happy.  Off we went to Jimmy’s, where he tried a Vienna Beef sandwich (a Chicago specialty).  Halfway through our meals, I traded him the remaining half of my hot dog for his sandwich, which I thought was yummy – he preferred the dog.

Home again, we commented that Luna was way more demanding of attention than usual – and “usual” is pretty demanding.  Nothing we did appeased her, including food, brushing or playtime.  Curled up on a lap was the only time her meows stopped.  Cranky, cranky, cranky!

Next, I managed to torque my back somehow, really putting a crimp in my activities.  I hit the sack extra-early, bored with my inability to move freely, pick up anything I dropped, take off my sox…  :(

During the night, Luna went from annoyingly cranky to sick.  She threw up a few times and, most worrisome, broke her habit of sleeping on our bed.  When we got up in the morning, she hardly lifted her head to look at us, and her breathing seemed very fast and shallow.  When she DID move, it was to creep around the room, settling down here or there and emitting pitiful, soft meows.  She was suffering, and we were freaked out!

We immediately found a vet who could see her, 40 minutes away in Sierra Vista.  Frank offered to accompany me and Luna to the vet, so Odel could keep his golf tee time – but easing into a car seat and driving/riding that far was not an option for my back.  Poor Odel gave up on his dream of golfing in the sunshine, and he and Frank took off with Luna. 

Three hours later and a couple hundred dollars poorer, Odel and Luna had returned.  Blood tests reassured us that is was nothing fatal; the vet made a few recommendations and we put Luna under minute surveillance.  The adrenaline released during the harrowing trip (she loves riding in the motorhome; hates riding in the jeep) must have been good medicine because she began to perk up slowly.  By nightfall she wanted a bite to eat, and she slept in the crook of my knees last night.  Today: almost completely normal – she was able to throw herself into the deep dust upon our arrival at our new site, indulging in a good long wallow. 

So, who knows what happened?  The event totally trashed Odel’s golf plans, and a hoped for get-together with our friends Jim and Bobbie went by the wayside.  Now I am the only remaining invalid – and I am so grateful it is me, not Luna!

About half the rigs at Queen Mine RV Park for New Year’s left on Saturday, and another mass exodus got underway this morning.  Our neighbors on the right (Jeff and Margaret) barely beat our neighbors on the left, so the center of the RV park circle was quite active for awhile.  We thought we’d be the last to leave – we were in no hurray with only a short drive planned for today – but three of us started our engines about the same time, causing another traffic jam.

By 12:30 pm, we were at Rusty’s RV Ranch in Rodeo, New Mexico: 81.1 miles total distance; 54.1 mph moving average speed; 66.6 mph maximum speed; 1:29 hours total driving time.  It’s a pleasant drive through open range with ancient mountains in all directions.  The landscape was drenched in sunshine, the drive was uneventful, and we are happy with our site here.  No phone service, but the WiFi seems reliable.  We’re kicking back for four days, easing into 2010. 

WELCOMING 2010 IN BISBEE, ARIZONA

I had every intention of viewing New Year’s Eve through the eyes of Bisbee’s inhabitants and visitors.  Really, I did.  Visualized myself dressed up in my warm coat, watching the stilt walkers, fire-dancers, the parades…

It’s now 9:30 pm.  Odel and Luna are in bed, asleep.  I am sitting in front of the new heater, warm and toasty.  If it isn’t yet freezing outside, it soon will be.  If all I had to do to see the festivities was open the curtains on the big front windshield as the parade marched through the RV park, I’d still have a hard time talking myself into leaving this warm and cozy chair. 

Well, who knows?  Maybe my “second wind” is right around the corner!  :)

Wherever you are, I hope you are doing JUST what you want to be doing, whether it is mingling with the adventuring crowds, taking in a breath of fresh night air alone or with your significant other, or sitting in your own warm and cozy chair, watching the ball drop on TV or quietly contemplating.  Welcome to the new year! 

FOOD (WHAT ELSE?) AND FRIENDS IN BISBEE, ARIZONA

To help orient our friends Jeff and Margaret to Bisbee, we started the day with a walking tour, planning to head up Tombstone Canyon to High Desert Market, then up, up, up along High Street to take in the view across town to the RV park and the big pit mine beyond.

Just past Castle Rock, though, we spied an enticing shop I had tried to enter recently with no success – not because it had been closed, but because it was packed with (potential) shoppers.  Not so this morning, so we all crowded in to check it out.

Chocolate (wish I could figure out how to add the little accent mark over the “a”, but I can’t) sells just that: all manner of homemade chocolate – individual candies, truffles, hot chocolate, bars.  The retail section of the store is tiny; most of the small building is dedicated to the production process.  Not only do Gordon and Kim make chocolate, they roast and grind their own cacao beans! 

Making a living in retail in Bisbee must be a challenge.  With a population not much over 6,000 and no obvious major industry, you don’t get the feeling that residents spend a lot of money on life’s luxuries.  It appears to me that many of the retail businesses in downtown Bisbee rely on the cash tourists bring to town, and capturing those dollars demands not just excellent marketing skills but a true passion for pursuing your dreams in Bisbee.

Gordon seems to have that passion.  While we ogled the fabulously beautiful chocolates displayed in the lighted cases, we learned all about chocolate, from cacao beans (did you know that beans from different regions taste different from each other?) to finished product.  We tasted freshly roasted beans, unsweetened – a texture similar to a roasted pecan, with a lovely deep chocolate flavor.  Gordon brought us each a tiny cup of “the world’s best hot chocolate” to sample, and offered tidbits of chocolate from various exotic locations.

As we sniffed, tasted, and talked, I remembered a bottle of Zinfandel port we had stashed away to be consumed during the holidays.  We had plans for dinner out with Jeff, Margaret, Sydney and Frank… how about a post-dinner port-and-chocolate tasting?  We came away with three chocolate bars, Fair Trade 65% West African Dark Chocolate, Fair Trade & Organic 70% Dominican Republic Chocolate, and 68% Madagascar Rare Red Chocolate (With Natural Plum Notes).

After our walking tour was complete, we hopped in Jules and took off for a driving tour through the various “neighborhoods” of Bisbee: Warren, Lowell, San Jose… past the ball park and the little airport, down to Naco and the golf course, up to the Safeway.  We all grabbed a Chicago-style hot dog at Jimmy’s Hot Dog Company – where Jeff reminisced with Jimmy about Chicago comfort foods – then headed back home.

Bisbee has quite a number of restaurants – but many of them are open only for breakfast and lunch.  Neither of our favorites (Cafe Roka or Rosa’s Little Italy) are open on Monday, so our choices were limited.  Since none of us had yet been there, we decided to try the just-opened Angela’s Italian Restaurant in the historic Copper Queen Hotel.

We were seated promptly at 6 pm in the warm, welcoming dining room – and proceeded to have a typical Bisbee Monday night dinner out: pleasant ambiance, mediocre food, friendly but unprofessional service.  Nothing was BAD, nothing was particularly good (except the salad dressing on the Caesar salad).

One bright spot: we brought our own wine, expecting a corkage fee of around $5 – but the corkage fee was waived.  We mentioned it to our young waiter, who shrugged, smiled, and said it was no charge… particularly welcome since a 20% gratuity had already been added to our checks!  While the food was forgettable, what we bought was the experience: a warm, nicely decorated spot to sit at a big table with friends, plenty of wine, interesting conversation, and no one had to do the dishes.  :)