Vicky wins it all at the 29Palms Dance!

We had planned to leave Joshua Tree National Park and head to Death Valley, with a one-night stop at our favorite RV campground in Twentynine Palms, California. But the morning we left we decided there was more to see at Joshua Tree and that, instead, we would go to the Twentynine Palms RV Resort to restock groceries, ice, and propane and then go back to Joshua Tree and stay at a different campground.

Actually, the reason we wanted to go back to the RV Resort is to attend the Saturday night dance.

One reason we planned our schedule to attend this dance is that it was one year ago, almost to the day, but like this dance, one on the second Saturday in March, that I looked across the room and saw this woman who seemed to glow, and knew I had to get to know her. So it was an anniversary of sorts.

On our way out of the park we stopped by each of the campgrounds in it and scoped them out. None take reservations, so we'll just have to play it by ear today when we leave to go back. And hope we get a good spot. But that's what this is all about--not having real clear plans, only general ones.

On our way through the park, we drove past a Cholla Cactus "garden."

I don't know if you are familiar with Cholla Cacti, but to call thousands of them a "garden" is like calling that huge place in the film Alien in the crashed spaceship with the alien pods in it a bird's nest. Cholla Cacti are the likely culprits for our four flat tires on our bikes. And another one that we got earlier.

If there ever was a plant that felt more like an animal than the Cholla Cactus I'd like to know what it is. It seems like that when you get close to it that it jumps onto you. I have gotten up in the night and then come back to bed with them all over my legs. And they hurt! Apparently they have almost microscopic barbs that attach to you. They also break off from their "mother" plant very easily.

So we had to laugh when we saw the signs for the Cholla Cactus Garden.



Here is a sign that provides a quote from a 1919 book about them. In case you can't make it out, the quote is:

"If the plant bears any helpful or even innocent part in the scheme of things on this planet, I should be glad to hear of it." --1919

Now you have to realize that all THREE of these signs were posted next to the "garden." I don't remember anywhere that we have seen three different signs warning of bears or mountain lions. But, for Cholla Cacti? Three.

Now, having said that, the sight of them (from a distance) was really quite beautiful, don't you think?



But I'm not willing to go so far as to call it a garden.

Beautiful sights along the way:


We got to Twentynine Palms RV Resort to find, once again, that the people were friendly, recognized us from our previous visit, and called us the "dancers." Of course, that kind of thing did nothing for our already, if anything, too high self-esteems.

The dance was fun. Good music. And did I mention that we got tons of compliments? I didn't? How did I manage to omit that?

We got picked to participate in a hot potato game. But since the theme for the night was a luau, it was changed to a hot coconut game. 10 of us were selected. Five men and five women. All five of the men got eliminated before any of the women. I'm not sure what that's all about, except I was the last guy and the women all kept handing the dang thing to me. (oh, and I forgot to mention that the game had to be changed from Hot Coconut to Hot Plastic Fake Pineapple because someone in the group--Vicky, although it wouldn't be fair to give any names--started tossing the coconut instead of handing it off to people and someone muffed the catch and it broke).

I saw a side of my wife that I had never seen before. What a competitor! Here she is, gradually eliminating the competition, showing the same determination that I imagine the final member of the Donnor Party showed.


(cue the theme from Rocky):


Here she is, with her trophy. She was awfully proud.


Here she is, the next morning, still beaming, with her prizes: a solar-powered bird light, which I imagine will prove extremely useful on our road trip, her trophy, and a certificate for 50 cents off on any propane we buy. I had to admit that the last prize was good because I'm sure we need at least 150 gallons in our tanks on Whidbey Island, but then those hopes were dashed when they said it only applied to the propane in their tanks here. But, since we were going to put about 4 gallons in today, that counts for something, I think.



At the dance we sat with two fun couples from Canada. They got selected for the next game (the two couples on the left), competing to see who could wrap a pineapple. They were traveling through, like us, so it was great to be able to talk with them and share stories. They stopped by our camper the next morning to wish us a safe journey, and to invite us to stop by when we take our cross-Canada trip. We for sure will.

(by the way, the third couple got the pineapple wrapped quicker, so of course, they had to hear chants of "USA" for several minutes--they were very goodnatured people and we liked them a lot).



We are off to Joshua Tree in a few minutes, excited about the hike we will take tomorrow. My foot is doing very well. I can do about 7 miles with only minimal discomfort, and danced two hours last night with none.

I'm going to end with a quote on a sign at Joshua Tree. I think you can make it out. If not, I'll repeat it after the sign:

"If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than with contempt, we must leave them more than the miracles of technology. We must leave them with a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning not just after we got through with it." --President Lyndon Johnson

We so appreciate the National, State, and local parks we have visited, and how we have seen a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning.