Rummy Anyone?

 Thanks to Terri and Barb in Activities, 28 of us had a fun time at the first 3-13 rummy tournament on Friday afternoon.  In fact, we had so much fun that we decided to have a Rummy game on Sunday afternoons at 1:00 in the Adobe Room.  Rummy is a very versatile game with many versions and can be played with any number of players at a table.  Do you like to play cards?  Like to meet new people?  Come to the Adobe Room Sunday at 1:00.  No need to sign up anywhere.  We'll decide which games to play depending on the number of people who attend.

While I was out having fun at the card tables, Don was home watching the team from Rodriguez landscaping who came and washed out our gutters and downspouts and trimmed the palm trees in our front bed.  They did a great job!  

All this debris from just one downspout!

When they finished, they rinsed the whole driveway and even cleaned the debris from the street.

Wednesday was our ice cream social.  It's fun to meet with folks for a nice snack and some social time.

We kept the staff busy with dishing up the goodies.

I can't get a photo at night but the asphalt crews are out patching cracks in the streets.  Starting tomorrow we face the challenge of getting to our cars and carts and avoiding the wet asphalt.  We received a text message with the following announcement:

Starting next Monday, 8/14, the paving crew will be applying seal coat on the roads north of the tennis courts.  There are 6 phases of this paving project, and it should be completed by the end of August.  Please review the attached map to see which phase your home may be in.  The night before your street is scheduled to be worked on, please park your car on an adjacent street on the north side of the street.  Please do NOT drive on your street for 24 hours after it is sealed.  Driving on fresh oil can cause damage to your vehicle and can stain your driveway.

I just checked Weather Bug and see that we should have some relief from the heat.  It's still showing triple digits but at least its not OVER 110!!  And....there's even a slight possibility of some rain??  I'll believe it when I see it.  

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Taco Tuesday

Whoops:  Regarding signing up for the smoke detector program:  Sign up in Activities....not through the fire department.  When they get 10 names on the list, they will submit it to the Fire Department.  This was a special offer and is done with volunteers when they are available.  We were lucky enough to get in the initial program.

The taco lunch was great!  Thank you, Chef and crew.

I spread the beans right on top of the taco.  They were so good!

And the churros were an extra treaat.

Thank you, Dawn.

Chef, Dean, and Bridgette were at work in the background.

Chef says unloading all the products and putting them away is a chore we don't think about.

Don couldn't go home without a snack.

He loves those pecan sticky buns.

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Kat is always so relaxed and laid back.  Don calls him his spirit animal.

OMG!!  Google Memories brought up this picture of cute little Mouse when he was just a baby!! (2017)  Now when he sits there to keep me company, he takes up over half the desk.

Here's my boy today.  He just jumped up to say hello.  He must have sensed that I was talking about him.  🐱

Crazy Morning Rain + Fire Dept

 Ok.  We had one of the strangest mornings!  The bug spray man comes tomorrow to spray around the house so Don always washes off the patio the day before he comes.  He started spraying this morning but had to quit because black clouds suddenly appeared with thunder and plenty of lightning.  We had a sudden heavy rainfall but it didn't even last five minutes.

It rained enough to let us know that our eave troughs and downspouts definitely need attention.  We have Jose on call.

Just as it quit, Tita from the fire department showed up to replace our 20 year old smoke alarms as promised.  They brought in their tall ladder and it only took them about 15 minutes to replace the three alarms. 

I missed getting a photo of Tita playing with the cats.  They were certainly excited to have so much activity in the house....plus the rumble of thunder outside.  I'm surprised that Kat didn't try climbing the ladder.

Thank you to Tita and Bill for the wonderful service.  Need your alarms replaced and don't have access to a tall ladder?  Sign up in the Activities office.  When they get 10 names, they will contact the Fire Dept. and arrange a date.  The whole program is run with available volunteers so you'll have to be patient.

 Now Don is back outside with the hose to finish washing the driveway.  What a crazy morning.  All that happened within one hour.

I'm excited about going up to the Cafe for lunch today as I want to see how Taco Tuesday is served.  

Google Memories sends me a couple pictures from previous years.  This one popped up so thought I'd share it with you.  This was taken on August 5, 2015 when they were first mapping out the sports pool.

August 5, 2015

To summer residents:  See you at Taco Tuesday!!

Road Work +

 Our fountains on the main pond are working well and look very nice.  It's a good way to greet newcomers as they arrive.

Big activity here this week is repaving some streets and patching cracks.

Some sections of road get completely replaced.

Mountain Mirage has an entirely new street.

We had a fun time at bingo yesterday with our Activities crew (meaning Terri and Barb). 😃  They announced that our fun summer activities will continue all the way through October and received a huge round of applause.  

It's Saturday morning so Don and I were back at Tractor Supply for their Saturday craft fair.  We MUST get our fresh melons every week.  They are SO good.  Grown at a farm at Picacho.

There were new booths today so its always fun to chat with the vendors.  This was a new gal who can customize the stuffed animals and pens.  Great Christmas gift ideas.  I gave her our Palm Creek info so she can come our way in October.

One of Don's favorites is this lady who cooks up her biscuits and gravy.

Our weather is still HOT every day so if you plan to attend, go early!  They're open from 8-12 on Saturdays.  It's fun to tour the booths and chat with the vendors.

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LOL.  Our new Air Conditioner has a bigger blower so the cats don't have to get so close to the vent anymore.  We all love the cool air.

August Calendar

The August calendar looks great!  Plenty to see and do plus a big change in the meals at the Ballroom Cafe.  Now instead of having one sandwich as a special for the whole week, it was switched to a different special each day.  Good idea!

• Mondays:  Hamburger & Cheeseburgers
• Tuesdays:  TACOS
• Wednesdays:  Reuben Sandwiches
• Thursday:  Philly Cheesesteak
• Friday:  Fried baskets (fish or shrimp)

Michelle is doing a GREAT job on our calendars.  Very attractive, accurate, AND on time!  

I copied this from the Dispatch this morning:  

 Phoenix and its suburbs sweltered more and longer than most, with several records including the 31 consecutive days of 110 degrees Fahrenheit-plus weather. The previous record was 18 straight days, set in 1974.  The streak was finally broken Monday, when the high topped out at 108 degrees Fahrenheit at 3:10 p.m. Phoenix also sweated through a record 16 consecutive days when overnight lows didn’t dip below 90 degrees, making it hard for people to cool off after the sun went down.  National Weather Service meteorologist Matthew Hirsch said August could be even hotter than July.  

 OMG!