Our Lifestyle Adventures: Taking a Break from Writing II

what we found at the Mesa Market...our flags!

This past week many events prevented me from writing very much: Superbowl, dinner and games with a friend, shopping and dining at a Filipino restaurant, a hike to the Tonto Ruins, a flea market, and a fundraising dinner/dance.  Fortunately I was still able to work on about two chapters of the book!

with Val and Wayne watching Superbowl at the RV

Superbowl is one big American event. That is when the NFC (National Football Conference) champion duel with the AFC (American Football Conference) champion. This is the first year I really got involved. Why? Because the 2014 NFC champion is the Seattle Seahawks, the team Bill followed from the Preliminaries to the Playoffs and to the Superbowl. He had season tickets for the ‘Hawks for the first 20 years they were in Seattle, but Scouting then took precedence.  They dominated the duel with a 43-8 performance over the Denver Broncos and Seattle burst into one explosive celebration. 700,000 people (the population of Seattle) spilled into the streets to welcome the team, the first time in its history!

Lilybeth and Mark after dinner and games

Then we had Lilybeth Brazones, Ann’s sister, and husband Mark for dinner on Tuesday.  I served pasta Bolognese, which simmered for five hours, carrots and celery with ranch dressings, garlic bread, and red wine. Since Lilybeth celebrated her birthday earlier in the week, we also had a small chocolate ganache cake and vanilla ice cream. One of my fiercest competitors in Words with Friends, Lilybeth brought Taboo. We also played squabble and Rummikub. Hopefully, this will not be the last!

Manila Sunrise Gourmet, a Filipino restaurant

When we went out shopping for Bill’s pants, golf hat, and golf shoes, we also got the chance to go to the Manila Sunrise Gourmet Restaurant owned by Rosario Soliman’s (a FB friend based in the Philippines) husband. We loved the beef kaldereta and pork sinigang we ordered. Chef Angelito is a great cook! Now we have a place to frequent and order catered Filipino food.

Lower Ruins from the parking lot

The following day, we went with 12 for our friends from Viewpoint on an outing to the Tonto National Monument. It was a 2 hour drive from camp and a 4 hour hike up and down a 3 mile round trip trail. We had our picnic lunches at the Upper Ruins which were the Salado (from Salt River) Indians’ cliff dwellings for some one hundred years from 1200 to 1300 AD.

the group at the Upper Ruins looking out to Roosevelt Lake

Upper Ruins, up close

I was so glad I made it to the top, learning about jojoba bushes, cholla plants, saguaros, sotals, barrel cacti and other vegetation the Indians made use of in their everyday living. We also got to enter some of the ruins and learn more about the construction and lifestyle of these Native Americans. The lovely Roosevelt Lake created from the construction of the Roosevelt Dam provided such a beautiful backdrop to the narrations of Peg, our NPS guide. We all ended the day with an early Asian dinner at Wok In!

resting and dining at Wok In

Yesterday, we also went to the Mesa Market, a flea market just like the ones we went to in Florida. One of our finds was a tandem of flags: a Filipino flag and an American flag, both 2 x 3 feet. Now we can proudly hang them to proclaim a biracial partnership in our RV, I suspect a rare occurrence in the RV communities. I was also able to find my Dawg house slippers and some nice green chile chowder soup mix! And we enjoyed sausage pizza and a chili dog for lunch!

In the evening, the same street block group of friends went to a Softball fundraising hamburger dinner/dance. Carolyn, one of our friends, was a member of the Gems women’s softball team which entertained the audience with fun dances on stage. There were 900 of the possible 3600 campground residents there, or 25% of all of Viewpoint! The campground’s ball park is the best in the valley. Every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday 13 of Viewpoints’ teams and those from other resorts in the area compete and the park takes on a festive atmosphere with burgers and hot dogs and other fare available at the concession stand. Bill and I then danced the night away… okay, only  ‘til they shut down at 9:30 pm!