Remember when I was feeling complacent in Quartzsite about a month ago? I already have that feeling again. I feel like I’m just sort of stuck here until my mail shows up. I know I need to do this, and I don’t feel like making yet another trip back here to pick up mail, but the urge to go is strong.
Last night’s killer sunset, though, reminded me of one of the things I love about this place, and what got me hooked on it enough to settle down and call it home for the past several months. It’s not that I dislike Quartzsite at all. I just feel done with it for now, and ready to move on — especially as temperatures continue to increase.
Yesterday I checked out Buck Connors Days, dedicated to a movie star from the early 20th century who is buried here in Quartzsite. It’s basically a celebration of all things old west, as well as the town itself and the local communities, vendors, and interest groups. Organizations familiar to me such as Quartzsite Off-Road and the Desert Amateur Radio Club had tents there.
I also got to meet Evielynne and Mark of Me Gone RVing Adventures. We’ve been following each other for months, and even camped near each other at La Posa South. But they’ve been so busy volunteering for various organizations in town I hadn’t had a chance to meet them in person until now. Even here, they were working, running the Quartzsite Chamber of Commerce tent! It’s always great to put faces with names and online personalities I’ve been following. It doesn’t matter if they have 200,000 followers or 200. It’s all good.
I’m trying to motivate myself for a motorcycle ride. It could be fun to finish the loop I gave up on when my bike started overheating. It’s hard to believe that was over two months ago! Then maybe hit Silly Al’s. I haven’t had pizza in a while, and their calzones (close enough to pizza) are about the right size for me to eat by myself. After today I’ll have work to keep me busy until my mail arrives, and then I can resume my travels. I feel like it’s time.
If I was still heading to the Pacific Northwest on schedule, I’d already be making my way up the California coastline. That’s partly why I’m feeling a bit stuck, with temperatures getting hot in southern Arizona but still too cold for comfort only a couple of hours north of here. But with regular gas averaging $5.84/gallon in California, with some places over $6 or $7, it’s just too much. Prices are slowly starting to drop, though, so maybe after bopping around the southwest a little bit longer I can still make it there this summer — if the entire west coast isn’t on fire again by then. We’ll see.
Smokey Da Van 