It has been a wetter and colder winter in Lake Stevens than usual and Harris has been ready to leave for Phoenix for more than awhile. He had to wait until the condo work was done and a new tennant selected before he could go. Judy was left behind and the silver lining in the dark winter clouds were the grandkids River and Skye. (At least that was what Harris kept telling himself.) He left Friday early in the morning and was in an Oregon Costco before the sun rose, waiting to fill up with diesel at 6AM. Although he brought chains for the mountain passes, none were needed as he crossed into California in the mid afternoon. By the evening of the next day he was entering Phoenix.
Phoenix was experiencing its coldest Feburary in recent memory so Harris wasn't able to change from long pants into shorts until almost a week later! In fact, the heater was needed for several mornings to chase off the chill. For the first several games Harris ended up sitting in the sun rather than his habitual shady seats and long pants and long sleeved shirts were the order of the day.
Fortuantely within the first week the sun came back into play and a high pressure came along and entrenched itself within the Southwest. This resulted in higher temperatures. Records were broken. Temps were 18 degrees above normal (90-97) in the next 3 weeks. Harris did not complain. Judy continued to be drenched by record breaking rain in Seattle.
Harris has Spring Training pretty much down to a routine. Upon waking up and checking the weather, it's off for the daily walk. Afterwards, it's coffee and the downloaded newspaper. He has several grocery store stops where food will beckon with a "on sale take me home for dinner" sign. Then it's off to the day's baseball game where he eats his lunch and enjoys both the baseball and the weather. By that time it's late afternoon and time to head to the RV park and prepare dinner. The evening consists of reading or watching downloaded shows capped by oldies music at bedtime.
Rick came down from Montana a little later than usual and showed up on March 17th in his new Sportsmobile rig. Rick and Harris have been doing this long enough to only need a day to mesh two individual routines into one.
Things that needed fixing on this trip incuded one cabinet hinge, new router, new nanostation, bike flat, bike fork that needed to be frozen into place, replace gfi plug in the bathroom, replace led light above sink.
Before they knew it, it was time to pick up the wives from the airport on March 26th and adapt the routine to accommodate four people weary of the rain and snow and enjoy the warmth of Arizona.
Some of the highlights follow:
Lionel and Gayle introduced Harris to Fired Pies on the day of his arrival. Harris has gone back several times since and then introduced Rick to the yummy treat.
The official baseball calendar of the month.
Consider this picture the typical weather day...sunny! Although the temps ranged from 60 to 95.
Harris managed to back Howie up to and then past the phone wiring pedestal which crunched the water pipe. Water to the entire park was turned off while repairs were made. Luckily, they were able to fix it in 30 mins. (and they didn't charge Harris for the "event").
A favorite...salad with breaded chicken, avocado, tomatoes, blue cheese crumbles, and of course lettuce.
One of several night games where the temperature was in the upper 70's.
Harris learned of an annual Folk Festival held in Glendale Sahuaro Ranch. This will become an annual tradition.
Harris also kept tabs on the Baseball World Classic thanks to his kids' Christmas gift of MLB TV.
This picture represents the atypical bocce ball game where Rick gets all of his balls very close to the marker ball. Harris lucked out and spoiled "the usual result".
A game where the temperature dropped to a chilly 60 degrees. They needed to bundle up.
A new dish to the Spring Training menu. Chicken breast stuffed with feta cheese and asparagus.
Rick working on his "Relaxation pose" while awaiting the arrival of Candy and Judy the next day.
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