OH OH….GOT AN EMAIL FROM THE TOWN OF TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, NEW MEXICO TO-DAY!!

IT’S OUR SPIFFY LOOKING BIG GIRL CHECKERS AFTER HER TRIP TO, ‘ON GOLDEN PAWS’ FRIDAY(Click on any of the photos to enlarge them)

Well, I guess I better start off by doing a bit of back tracking here regarding last night's blog on the town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico.  Some of you may have noticed I had a couple comments in Fridays blog comment section regarding T or C's name.  First & foremost  it was never called Geronimo Springs but I kinda like that name anyway.  JERRY first brought the mistake to my attention after I mis-read his blog a few days ago & then came a note from Gina Kelly, Director of Tourism for Sierra County New Mexico.  When I first saw that I thought, "holy smokes I'm in some big trouble now for sure."  And that was the second time this morning I had that feeling but I'll get to the other happening later.  First I'll copy the part in Gina Kelly’s email that will officially set the record straight on T or C......................................

ME OLD  HIPPIE BROTHER-IN-LAW…GRINGO NORM:)))	TESTING ONE OF THE MANY HOT WATER TUBS AT RIVER BEND HOT SPRINGS……….
THE RIO GRANDE RIVER RUNS THROUGH TRUTH or CONSEQUENCES	ELEPHANT BUTTE LAKE WITH ELEPHANT BUTTE IN THE CENTER

 

Greetings from Truth or Consequences! Love your blog & your photos of Sierra County but I feel obligated to comment on the name of our community.
It was never named "Geronimo Springs". The Spanish named it "Ojo Caliente de Las Palomas", which morphed into "Palomas Hot Springs". In 1914 we officially became "Hot Springs". It was a premier destination for the healing arts until pharmaceuticals came along after WWII - and the town's economy died. In 1950 Ralph Edwards of the RADIO show "Truth or Consequences" issued a challenge for a town to change its name for a day to celebrate the show's 10th anniversary & the town took him up on it. "T or C" earned so much free publicity over this that it saw a renewed burst of tourism, so they voted to change the name permanently. There have been votes to change the name back to "Hot Springs" that have failed.  Many towns in America are called "Hot Springs" but there is only one "T or C". People seek us out because of our quirky name. They get here & fall in love with the even quirkier town!
Thanks again! Great blog!!!
Gina Kelley
Director of Tourism
Sierra County Tourism Board
T or C, NM

My personal thanks to Gina for her nice email & letting me down easy.  With inaccurate facts & mistakes like that I just might be very qualified for a job at the National Enquirer. 

And a word to my fellow bloggers........better get it right guys because you never know who the heck is out here reading these darned bloggy things!!

 

ABOVE RIGHT IS OUR BOONDOCKING RV SITE

CHECKER’S IN THE RIO GRANDE RIVER NEAR OUR RV SITE AT THE RECREATION AREA

With to-day's interest in T or C continuing I've decided to post my other blogs & photos from the week we were there & I should also explain why we were there.  Kelly's sister Becky & husband Norm took on a Workamper job in Truth or Consequences at River Bend Hot Springs for awhile that year so we decided to drop in & see them on our way home to Ontario from Arizona & California.  I will include 4 of the 7+ days we were there because I've already blogged about the other days adventures to Hillsboro, Chloride, & Monticello last week.

THE GANG ROLLS INTO TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES           PHOTOS 1

I KNOW WHERE ALL THE HIPPIES WENT    PHOTOS 2

A RELAXING DAY

HIGH WINDS & ANGRY SKIES     PHOTOS 3

THE GANG ROLLS OUT OF TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES     PHOTOS 4

CHECKERS IS WAITING FOR THE CHANCE TO GRAB HER NEW TOY BACK!!

Now for the other reason I felt I was in trouble this morning.  I was outside beside the motorhome doing some stuff when I was aware of a car pulling up & stopping on the road near me.  Heard a voice so figured it was someone needing directions to somebody's place in the park here.  I walked over to the car & the driver shut the engine off.  Oh Oh!!  A big tall fellow stepped out, looked directly at me & I heard him say the words, "your blog."  Geeeeezzzz, now I knew I had to be in some kind of trouble for sure.  Oh no, was this the mayor of Truth or Consequences come to get me for last night's blog.  But then I heard him say the words, ‘Titanium Travelers’ & that immediately rang a distant RV bell for me.......and besides, he was smiling.  Always a good sign when the other person is smiling!!

His name was Doug & along with his wife Sue they have a Titanium 5th wheel  & live south of Cambridge Ontario.  Said how much he enjoyed my blog & has been following along with us for quite awhile.  Said he had sent me an email last winter so that's why I probably remembered that name plus he has a blog himself.  Doug & Sue were in the area on some business so had taken a drive through our park because he knew from our blog where we lived.  Nice chatting with them.   Co-incidentally, about an hour after they left & while sitting in downtown Bayfield’s Cafe Da Vinci having a coffee, Kelly walked in the door & they recognized her right away from our blog so Kelly got to meet them as well.  Thought that was really nice of them to stop by & say hello to-day.  You can find their blog here.....TITANIUM TRAVELERS

PHOTO AT LOWER RIGHT SHOWS A FLEETING SHADOW PATTERN ON ONE OF OUR KITCHEN CUPBOARD DOORS FRIDAY MORNING

Sure wasn't a nice weather day & I can't help but feel bad for the whole wedding party over at Deerpark Lodge who were there this afternoon for an outdoor wedding.  Cold & raining so the bride & groom are going to be off to a cold wet start.  Kelly's been busy getting things organized this week because it is Deerpark's first wedding ever.

Kind of takes me back to the day Kelly & I got married years ago.  It was a cold windy day in May & we never told anybody about it except our dog Max.  We asked a nearby Senior retired farm couple to stand up for us, grabbed ourselves a minister guy in St. Mary's Ontario & had a little wedding ceremony on the nice grounds of a rambling estate where I did part time grounds work.  The estate owners were still at their winter home in Portugal.   Kelly pretty much organized the whole thing & we had that minister guy in & out of there in under an hour.  No fuss, no muss, no bother, & no people.  Now, that's the way to do a wedding:))..........10-4!!!!

AND THIS IS WHAT CHECKER’S WAS LOOKING AT IN THE TOP PHOTO…….CORA’S GOT CHECKERS NEW TOY & WON’T GIVE IT BACK:))

GROANER'S CORNER:((  If a word is misspelled in the dictionary, how would we ever know?

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The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.

THE GANG ROLLS INTO TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, NM

MONDAY FEBRUARY 25/08

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We hadn't planned on heading out too early this morning but after checking the weather report & finding out they had high wind warnings for the area we figured we'd better get on our way. Didn't want to get stuck at that KOA all day & we didn't want to get caught out on the interstate in high gusting winds later so we were eastbound by 8 a.m. We had originally thought of going up through Silver City but after talking to some people & reading some info on the mountain passes we decided it wasn't an area we would be comfortable taking the motorhome. Thought we might make it as far as Deming though & then swing down to the Pink Store in Mexico, but by the time we reached Deming the winds weren't a big threat yet so we made a last minute decision to roll right on through to Truth or Consequences. Made a quick Wal-Mart/McDonald's stop about 10 a.m. in Las Cruces. The winds were blowing hard from the west so we had a tough cross wind heading north up to T&C from Las Cruces (and it's uphill all the way) but we made it ok. Kelly's sister Becky & husband Norm are there doing a 3 month work camper stint at River Bends Hot Springs. We stopped for gas in Williamsburg, phoned them, & they come a short couple of miles to meet us. They then led us to a quiet little spot right on the banks of the Rio Grande river nearby where we parked & set up the motorhome. Had a big super 3 hour chin wag & then they drove us the 3.8 miles over to where they have their rig parked at the hot springs place. Becky & Norm are full timers & Becky just completed a 3 month traveling nurse assignment in Clearwater, Florida. Their rig is parked right across the road from the hot springs so they showed us around the facilities. Really nice with lots of color & a real southwestern flavor. http://picasaweb.google.com/stargeezerguy/ The owner's son is in the process of major improvements & renovations & things are really taking shape. Becky & Norm work 3 days on & then have 4 days off. Becky looks after the office, reservations, etc & Norm does the light maintenance. Becky had whooped up a big pot of yummy stew so Kelly & I ate as much as humanly possible before they drove us back to our campsite & dumped us out on the ground:))))

To-morrow we will have us a look around in the colorful & artsy little town of Truth or Consequences, New Mexico. (Geeeeezzzzz, can't they do something about that name!!!!)


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