Monday, December 19, 2016

‘YAHOUIE LOUIE’ IT’S OFFICIAL, OUR HOUSE IS SOLD AND WE ARE ALREADY 92 MILES AWAY:))

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HERE WE ARE 336 MILES EAST OF LOS ANGELES CALIFORNIA  TONIGHT

Well as it turns out Sunday night was our last sleep in the house.  Monday morning bright and early we hit the decks a runnin.  Busied ourselves all morning with a lot of very last minute things and keeping a close ear to the phone waiting for Andrea at the Pioneer Title Company to call saying everything is complete and the house is 101% officially sold.  That call came at exactly 11:45 while Kelly and I were standing in front of the house checking with each other that we hadn’t forgot to load anything into the Motorhome.

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ALL LOADED UP AND ABOUT READY TO GO

Five minutes after that phone call Kelly was in the Jeep and headed for Wickenburg to pick up the final documents at the Title Company.  I did a final check of our shed and closed the doors.  One of the last things I took out of the house was our sirius satellite radio music source and once I did that the house fell silent like a tomb.  In my opinion once the music dies the soul of the house is gone.

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EVEN SAID GOOD-BYE TO ALL MY STUFF IN THE SHED

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KELLY BROUGHT BACK SANDWICHES AND COFFEE FROM WICKENBURG FOR OUR LAST SIT DOWN ON OUR FRONT PORCH….IT WAS SHORTLY AFTER 2 P.M. AND FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER WE WERE GONE

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BELIEVE IT OR NOT I’VE ACTUALLY GOT A BIG SMILE GOING ON HERE BUT IT’S JUST THIS DAM CRANKY OLD FACE OF MINE

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KELLY LEFT TONY OUR HOUSE BUYER A LITTLE WELCOME SIGN OUT FRONT

I had quite a time with myself saying good-bye to everything today.  Said good-bye to all my photogenic birdy pals, my wheelbarrow, all my cactus plants, our big Eagle statue, all the chairs on the porch, our backyard patio, my watering pails, all the Mesquite and Palo Verde trees, my bedroom, the birdfeeder, our Saguaros, all the dust on our picture frames, my recliner, all the rocks and stones we had carted home from the desert over the years, the fence I built, our backyard fire pit, my garden tools, my, my, my, well it just went on and on and on seemingly forever.  And with every good-bye I added a thank-you.  I always make these kinds of situations harder on myself than I really need to make them but that’s me and it’s always been me.  I get attached to stuff.  Had just finished doing a walk around the whole property saying good-bye and thank-you to about everything in sight when Kelly rolled in from Wickenburg.  She very smilingly had the final house sale documents in hand as well as a couple sandwiches from the Local Press Sandwich Bar, a couple coffees from McDonalds and 2 huge apple fritter donuts from Bashas.  Wow what a celebration eh.  We went over to our front porch and had us a last sit down as we ate our goodies.

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It was exactly 2 p.m. when Kelly checked our American bank account on line and ‘yessssereeeeeee’ there was the house sale money safely in our account and that was it at last.  It was finally over and done.  I hooked up the Jeep, we did one last quick walk through the house, closed the front door, locked it and walked to the Motorhome.  It was 2:18 P.M. as we had the big wheels slowly rolling out through our south gate for the very last time.  Thirty seconds later we were at the end of Ghost Town Road at highway 71 and there in front of us went a red pick-up truck by with someone giving us a big wave.  It was Janna from the Mike and Janna duo probably heading home to North Ranch from the post office.

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ROLLING SLOWLY OUT OF OUR YARD I SNAPPED THIS LAST PHOTO OF OUR FRONT YARD CACTUS GARDEN

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KELLY CLOSES THE SOUTH GATE BEHIND US….IT WAS OUR LAST LOOK BACK

Well which way on highway 71 will we go.  East or West??  West it was as I made the wide right turn and watched Congress and the Weaver Mountains slowly begin to slide away in my rear side view mirror.  Rolling westward out of town we chatted a bit about our life and times in Congress over the last nearly 5 years.  But that conversation didn’t last long and as expected the reality of change suddenly kicked in, our spirits lifted and as the past drifted further and further away in my mirror we began chattering excitedly about our future travel plans.  Well as excitedly as a couple 70ish people can chatter that is. DSC_0019

HEAD WEST YOUNG COUPLE HEAD WEST

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MY OLD FRIEND HARQUAHALA MOUNTAIN LOOMS ON THE HORIZON

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WE WERE SOON PAST HARQUAHALA AND EVEN WHEN WE REACHED I-10 AN HOUR LATER I COULD STILL SEE HARQUAHALA FAR OFF IN MY MY REARVIEW MIRROR FADING INTO THE HAZE

Can’t even begin to describe how happy we felt and even though we have driven this stretch of highway 60 west a half dozen times or more we gazed ahead at the distant blue mountain ranges as if we had never seen them before.  The weight of the past year regarding our house sale had lifted and we soared like Eagles down the road.

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EVEN PHEEBS IS HAPPY TO BE ON THE ROAD AGAIN GOING SOMEWHERE SEEING AND SNIFFING NEW THINGS

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BY THIS POINT WE WERE TRULY SOARING:))

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LAST LITTLE SETTLEMENT ON HIGHWAY 60 BEFORE I-10 AND HEY I ONCE NEW A REALLY NICE GIRL BY THAT NAME MANY MANY YEARS AGO……….AND YOU WOULD KNOW WHO THAT IS GB:))

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HEADING DOWN THE ON-RAMP FOR I-10

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HEADING WEST ON I-10 QUARTZSITE IS JUST MINUTES AHEAD IN A LARGE LONG VALLEY THIS SIDE OF THOSE DISTANT MOUNTAINS

Our first night’s destination was Quartzsite Arizona for an overnighter before moving further west.  Gassed up at the east end Chevron then headed off to find us a quiet spot in the desert.  We have been to Quartzsite many times over the past 10 years so we knew exactly where we were going.  Luckily there is hardly anybody here yet but a month from now there will be thousands upon thousands of RV’ers swarming absolutely everywhere.   Mid January in the Q is the largest RV event in the world.  I like Quartzsite best without the swarm…………..

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AHHHHHH, NO SIGNS OF ANY HUMAOIDS ANYWHERE:))

So where will we head for in the morning??  Hard to say and it depends on some decisions based on a couple unexpected variables.  We’ll see how things shake out when the sun comes up.

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GROANER’S CORNER:(( Police officer pulled this guy over for speeding and told him that his eyes were bloodshot, and asked him if he'd been drinking. The guy said "Your eyes are glazed, have you been eating donuts?"

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How do snowmen get around?
On their icicles.

Q: What do snowmen eat for breakfast?
A: Snowflakes.

What does Santa call reindeer that don't work?
Dinner.

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Christmas is just plain weird. What other time of the year do you sit in front of a dead tree in your living room eating candy and snacks out of your socks?

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Q: What do you call a bunch of grandmasters of chess bragging about their games in a hotel lobby?
A: Chess nuts boasting in an open foyer!

41 comments:

  1. Super congrats! Have fun on the road. Looking forward to reading about your travels.

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  2. Congratulation to you & Kelly. Very exciting. I figured you were on the road when your post was later than usual. ( I always read it at night). Looking forward to all the places you will visit in the coming months. Safe travels

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  3. That sign brought back old memories. When I-10 was first built, it was known as the "Brenda Cutoff," because of the time it cut from the trip to California.

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  4. Congrats on the sale of the house!!..now onto bigger and better things!!..enjoy the view out the windshield,once again!!

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  5. So happy for you two! Wish you had time for a chat since we too are in Q ��. I can't believe we never got to Congress.

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  6. Congratulations....time to get on with the next leg of your lives. Enjoy the journey.

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  7. Congratulations! Free at last! If you are headed towards Borrego Springs, make sure to look us up on Rockhouse Trail. Airstream with the red numbers: 5766. 😎

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  8. Congratulations on the finalized sale of your AZ Casa. Looking forward to your adventures.

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  9. I still remember my last house sale. It was a grand freedom to walk away from it. CONGRATULATIONS.

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  10. Tears of joy for you three - (insert some yodeling here) - we are happy, happy, happy for you!!!

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  11. Here's the rest of my comment from the other night, Al and Kelly....Louie! So happy for you two! You did that little house proud. And your smile? You can see it in your eyes. Yep...you look pretty darned happy. Safe travels, and we hope to be able to give you a hidie-ho out there in the next year or so.

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  12. Your excitement cones through loud and clear. Congratulations!! Very lucky new owner to have bought it lock stock and barrel. Happy trails to you all.

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  13. Bye house! Now take care of each other. Whenever you travel one or both of you come down with something. You have had a stressful time lately. You need downtime. OK I'm done preaching, now have fun!

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  14. I guess its "congratulations",,,, but I for one sure hate to see you leave our community. About all I can say is "you will be missed"!!
    God Bless, Safe travels,
    Mike and Pat

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  15. Nothing like that feeling of being on the road, new places and lots of different scenery.
    We like Quartzsite better now too before the crowds. So nice to have the peace and quiet of the wide open spaces and.. no humanoids. Travel safe and keep that grumpy smile going.

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  16. Happy Trails! Be safe, be well, be happy....see ya down the road.

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  17. no knows how much stress is involved in selling a house until it is all over, time to relax...

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  18. Great news and happy days. Enjoy the peace and quiet and let yourselves recover.

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  19. Wow, this is exciting! Your happiness is contagious! Glad it all worked out, and look forward to more adventures.

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  20. Wahoo!! The weight has been lifted! Safe travels wherever the road leads:) Hoping to cross paths down the dust trail somewhere:)

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  21. Congratulations. you got good present for Christmas

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  22. Yep I do Al, and I have a picture of her under that sign. LOL

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  23. Congratulations!! Happy trails and safe travels!!

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  24. Congratulations Kelly, Al and Pheebs! Why am I teary-eyed?? Because it is wonderful to see friends so happy! Enjoy and safe travels!

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  25. Ab huge Congratulations!!! on the final sale of your house, so happy for you both. Onward to new adventures with all the best wishes. Take care of each other and safe travels. May I take this time to wish you, Kelly and Pheebs a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. See you down the road.

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  26. Amazing how we worry about things we have no control over. Glad it is behind you. That was a wonderful second home for many years. Now you are back to where you started. Enjoy your RV travels!

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  27. Congrats on the sale of your house! (Did you really leave that anti-gravity lounger in the shed?) I'll look forward to reading about your new adventures.

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  28. Congratulations Al and Kelly! Let the good times roll!

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  29. It's hard to believe you've been in that house for nearly 5 years. Time flies, so I hope you enjoy the next step in your journey as much as this one. You made the house and yard so beautiful while you were there, and are leaving it a better place. Look forward to what's coming for you now.

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  30. Congratulations to you and Kelly on the sale of your house. I know that you're excited and happy to be back out on the open road. Hopefully one day our paths will cross and I will get to meet the people I've been reading about for the last 7 years. Happy Trails and let the wind blow through your hair!

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  31. Congratulations! Having sold many homes in the past, I know exactly how you felt driving away. It's super exciting, if a little bittersweet, then just super exciting again. Your buyer is a lucky man, not only gets the house, but all the great stuff you left. That's always nice! Have fun this winter, and safe travels. Hopefully we'll meet up in January? :)

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  32. AAhhh, this is very poignant... don't know why am sitting here crying, an end to a chapter is all.... many more to come, right??

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  33. Looks like Tony got a beautiful turn key ready house. So nice to answer the call of the road.

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