Yuma III

Carol and Arden
The Little Woman's aunt and uncle, Carol and Arden, couldn't be nicer. What gracious hosts! Any time you spend days and nights with relatives or friends can be uncomfortable, irritating, or downright not-very-good. Not so with these two. We always felt welcome and just settled right in and had a good time with them. They rolled out the red carpet (okay, it was a hide-a-bed, really) for us, and shared their house, neighbors and friends. What a great time! You can't pick your relatives, but if we could, we'd pick them anyway.
Yuma, Arizona
I never knew Arizona grew so much stuff. I expected sandy desert, but lush fields greeted us, with lettuce (okay, it was already harvested, but they grow it there), Arizona Wheat (whatever that is) oranges, lemons, and what do you know, dates. Arizona grows 60% of the country's dates. The farms are typical American farms. That is, first class. Huge green patches sliced with irrigation ditches, with no bare or yellow spots. Mile long furrows, straight as a string. And the scents of cut hay, orange, and other things (Onions? Spices?) tickling the nostrils. Beautiful.
The airbase looms close by, and we were treated to ten helicopters flying like a flock of geese. And you don't call them choppers. A 'chopper' is a blender. You should have known. While they scream the sound of freedom, they do get a bit irritating after a while. However, I observed the natives didn't notice them at all.
Yuma may be one of the top ten snowbird nests in the country. Already, it's evident that soon they will roll up the sidewalks until October. Funny how the population spikes, then plummets. The city is used to it, I suppose.
If you get tired of shovelling snow, head out to Yuma during the peak of winter. You will appreciate the change. But the summer? Right. A buck twenty in the shade. Stay North!
One more day, one more adventure.