NEW YEAR 2026; Coalinga-CA

This Amaryllis is amazing - it just keeps blooming with renewed vigor! And we are going to be just like it, in 2026 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨 

We are working our way through our Bucket List List … as the weather, allows.

DONALDBURGER & Granny's Teeth; Ocean Park-WA

We've been here, in Ocean Park-WA, since April: every time we drive past Doc's … [The Donaldburger] beckons; I didn't know if patriotism was running high … or if the burgers were extra "man-sized" thick. I was curious 🤔

So, today, we stopped in and found out.

I was hoping my husband would be sinking his teeth into a big, fat, juicy, man-sized patty:

Doc's from RV Park; 2 min (0.6 mi) via 261st Pl Bay Ave, Ocean Park-WA

Going in … #1414 Bay Ave, Ocean Park, WA

The interior was clean & well lighted. There are several pool tables inside; very roomy interior.

THE HAMBURGER WAS AWFUL! 😒🤦🏻‍♀️

It was basically a spin-off of a mcdonald's burger; made in a countertop oven 😳

The patty was of the mcdonald's cardboard-"burger" variety, and the whole thing was so sloppy the bun fell apart under the "juicy" attack; while the hamburger slid all over the place. Eating it was tricky - Holland gave up after 3 biting attempts: my chasing the patty lasted a little longer, but eventually I gave up, too. I don't like mcdonald's food - and this was even worse 😑

We trashed the mess and decided to drive into Long Beach, to The Corral, for a takeout meal - we know the food there is worth the $$, and will be satisfying 😊👌

We drove to The Corral & got Prawn Baskets for Supper.

Today is Gorgeous Grandma Day, and even though I didn't hear a single word, get a text or a call, from any of my grandchildren … my husband showered me with attention, love, and genuine affection 👩‍❤️‍💋‍👨

Later, I went online to check my PM's, and saw that the zuckerberg's internet sharks 🤪 were trying to sink their teeth into my private posts.

A.g.a.i.n.: some people just never learn 🙄

FB's "Supreme Court" European Tribunal, tried to cow me with UN tactics …

I fired off a rebuttal - a 3rd world country does NOT run me = they do not run American freedoms.

So, this gorgeous granny had to bite back - with a hard rebuke and an insistent, "There's nothing false about my Post; remove the flag and put it back the way you found it" 😤

No one is going to slip a choke collar on me 😡

No one is going to force me to "obey!" their 1-sided demands.

I got an immediate response …

Don't mess with Granny; she'll show her teeth, and land one across your chops.

This "gorgeous granny" (today is International Gorgeous Granny Day) has teeth rooted in her gums … and isn't afraid to use them 😉

People - especially uninvited strangers - stalking my personal spaces & trolling my private posts, deserve what they find; & what they stir up.

A BLESSED SURPRISE; Shabbat~Ocean Park-WA

Today was pretty low-key.

And filled with humor … as well as unknown blessings.

Yoda dropped by the Pioneer Market, as we were pulling out ;-)

We had to drive to T-Mobile in Warrenton-OR to trade our internet tower in, for an updated one. Our tower has stopped working, and we are using the RV Park connection to get online; we want our own connection that will be reliable when we are road tripping - so, off we went toward Oregon, this morning.

We were there for 2 hours; everything had to be synched with the tower - including the new watch I came home with ;-)

It was a watch I have been wanting basically for the heart rate monitoring & activity calorie burning tally feature … and the price was right; sale price was $10 to walk out the door with it, and $14/mo. x 24 months. It was doable.

This feature will relieve some stress for Holland's peace of mind.

This feature will keep my weight loss goal on track.

I've never seen this before, here: a 'minus tide' in Chinook-WA.

The best feature for me is that there is no metal whatsoever on it that will touch my skin - metal burns my skin like acid, it burns into my skin, and will literally peel the skin off me when it is lifted (I even have to be careful with the miniscule metal on eyeglasses): no metal is a big score :-)

No metal; anywhere. It's perfect ;-)

I'm considering the tower snafu to be a blessing: it being on the fritz got us to T-Mobile, where a watch was waiting for me. Again, Elohim heard my prayer and prepared the way for me.

When we got home, Holland made us a tasty Supper smoothie: so good!

Today has been a perfectly wonderful day - even with the rain.

I have been blessed in every way possible, this Shabbat :-)

Liquid Supper tonight - a veggie-fruit smoothie; Holland's own recipe - he makes these recipes up on the fly. YUM!

AUNT GAYE~Kingman-AZ; Pt. #2

This morning we had breakfast with Holland's Aunt; we punched her address into GPS, and were happy to note that we were only 5 minutes from her front door :-)

We woke up to this message from her:

Aunt Gaye's Welcome.

We were warmly welcomed, and I was immediately embraced: it felt like coming Home.

Aunt Gaye's house; inside is very comfortable - & she has an outdoor garden area; she's 85 y.o., and still doing everything herself. She's very peppy, upbeat, and mentally sharp.

Aunt Gaye a genteel Southren woman - very tiny (I felt like a giant standing next to her), about 100 pounds (maybe) and very dainty bone structure. Holland whispered to me, "She looks exactly like my mother."

Holland's mother has passed, so I never got to meet her; but from what Holland has told me, she was a good mother and a lovely/Godly woman: and everyone else I have met recently (as well as Aunt Gaye, this morning) echoed that sentiment.

Breakfast was slim compared to what Holland dishes up: but the table as laid out like we were being treated to a feast - that's what southern hostesses do ;-)

I was getting a glimpse into how Holland was raised, and what type of women he'd been around: I'm fairly certain that I am a hostess failure, and will never meet the Southren woman standard.

But I instantly loved this woman; and I left feeling the quick love vibe was mutual.

I'm enjoying my new family branch ;-)

I was happy for my husband.

I was glad to finally have met this woman I've heard so much about.

On our way back to our RV space, we stopped at Wal*Mart … and I saw this cute little flowering bush as I stepped down from the passenger side of Betsy; isn't it a pretty thing?

Pink Fairy Duster.

Pink Fairy Duster: 

(https://garden.org/plants/view/80454/Pink-Fairy-Duster-Calliandra-eriophylla/)

Back Home, Holland treated me to one of his original bachelor foodie concoctions - it was delish:-)

He loves preparing things for me to eat: he spoils me shamelessly.

But, after I ate that tasty sandwich, I said I was going on a diet. His recipes are wonderful … but the extra 30 pounds I've gained is not. All that weight I had shed after Bob's spirit left Earth has returned with a vengeance :-(

It's gotta go: I want to fit my clothes, again.

Holland said he needs to drop weight, too; so we are seriously cutting back on heavy, fatty meals (this sandwich will stay on the Menu, though ;-))

Holland's original Tuna-Egg Salad Sandwich. SO YUM!

SUPERBOWL GATHERING~Laton-CA

February 11th: Neither Holland, nor I, are football fans … but most people are; so, the gathering at Kelly's house today was focused on (and centered around) Superbowl Sunday.

The whole family would be gathered, so I dolled up a bit: not too much, but some.

(Left) Sparkly Maybelline Designer Chocolates; (Right) Sparkly Cover Girl Fard Accents.

Glittery Profusion Chocolates - 'Lionheart'; Brow Gel; Mascara; Lipstick for blush & tinted Burt's Bees Lipgloss.

MDChocolates sparkly 'Cream' for browline; CGFAccents sparkly 'Pale Pink for entire eye shadow; 'Rose' for  eyelid color; 'Brown' for both eye liners; PChocolates glittery 'Lionheart' for inner eyelid accent; 'Auburn' Brow Gel; 'Deep Violet' Mascara.

Revlon Lipstick 'Primrose' for Blush, & 'Rose' tinted Burt's Bees Lipgloss; dressed for outdoor face-to-face; Guess - Seductive Red Perfume.

A quick twirl of the hot curling iron and I'm walking out the door …

We drove to Wal*Mart to pick up a sheet cake to take with us: we also grabbed a quick hotdog on Lover's Lane :-)

Leaving the street we currently have Independence parked at, we noticed horse trailers and cowboys on horses in the parking lot of a feed barn … but we were surprised to see people riding their horses down main highways. In California (!) of all places. Bleu started barking his head off, but the horses were very well behaved and didn't startle. What did startle me though, was seeing a toddler seated behind the saddle horn of his mother's horse - I don't think that was very wise given they were riding their horses down the highway where anything could happen: they had control of their mounts, but I have ridden a horse on a main roadway and know horses (no matter how well trained) can get antsy & skittish on a highway.

The family gathering at Kelly's was fun: and Brenda is planning a Family Reunion in March, following Holland's Dr. appointment, and my eyes exam, so we'll be coming back this way again real soon. We are looking forward to seeing Holland's beekeeper cousin from Colorado - he'll be coming to California to collect his bee hives that are pollinating the orchards here, now … we left around 4:30 PM, and then Holland took me to see the main Meyer Ranch he spent time at, when he was a kid (his mother's sister Immajean - Brenda's mother, was married to George - the Uncle we visited with yesterday); this particular visit had been planned before we even started being Road Gypsies, so I'm glad this Bucket List Wish was a "touch down" :-)

Horses! There were people riding horses all over the place, this morning.

Venice Hills and the entire Sierra Nevada foothills, east of Vasilia-CA

Venice Hills; Visalia-CA:

 (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Venice_Hills#:~:text=The%20Venice%20Hills%20are%20a,streams%20running%20through%20the%20area.)

Freaking out flip-flop …

Wienerschnitzel Breakfast: #1400 E Noble Ave, Visalia, CA

Holland got 2 Corn Dogs & I got the Kraut Dog; Chili-cheese Fries - not what I expected, but they were tasty ;-)

A golden leafed tree; the leaves look like pressed gold coins.

Heart-shaped rock in the Wal*Mart parking lot; Visalia-CA

Holland stopped at a small store at a junction leading to Laton, and came out to the truck with a treat for me; he always lets me know he's always thinking of me ;-)

In Layton-CA, we met Brenda & Jeff at the corner junction and followed them to Kelly's house …

The Deck where everyone was congregated - it was an impressive thing.

The backyard layout is beautifully set up, and the deck overlooks the canal.

This is a place Holland knows; this was Benda's Bridal home - now passed to her daughter Kelly & husband Eric.

I think I'll skip the sauce; LOL

Portuguese Donuts are akin to Czechoslovakian Crullers.

Filozes Portuguese Donuts Recipe:

 (https://www.farmgirlgourmet.com/2012/03/filozes-portuguese-donuts.html) & Old-Fashioned Cruller Recipes: (https://www.homemade-dessert-recipes.com/old-fashioned-cruller-recipe.html)

Fried in hot cooking oil …

And rolled in granulated sugar. YUM!

Brenda's first husband Tommy, was Portuguese; Holland went to school with the older adults here - he knows everyone.

Brenda's husband, Jeff.

I love this man - he's so good for me in so many ways.

The Meyer Laton Ranch; Holland spent a lot of time here, growing up. The little cabin is where all the boys slept - and all the boys have funtime memories of their time spent together there. I love listening to their phone convo's :-)

This was Brenda's childhood home.

Texas Longhorn cattle …

The Meyer Layton Ranch was pretty expansive & Holland loved his time spent here; he talks of this place and his Uncle and cousins with great love.

Sunset tonight; Visalia-CA

*TIES THAT BIND~Hanford-CA & Laton-CA Post: https://roadgypsiesvalandholland.blogspot.com/2024/02/ties-that-bindhanford-ca-laton-ca.html