One day just blends in with another and some days I have a hard time remembering what I did!! I guess that is what retirement feels like. I send e-mails to people and I think I am more chatty and being a bit more descriptive about what it is we are doing here than I am in this blog. I might have to go back to some of my sent items and cut and paste!!

Today is just a day to hang out and do some housekeeping stuff. I washed and dried three loads of clothes, made lunch and watched the Oilers game online. They lost, what else is new? It is Bernie's 56th birthday today and he is doing a whole lot of nothing. There are football games on all weekend long so he will read, do the suduko in the newspaper, and watch football. Since the day that Duke ate all the rawhide treats he hasn't been feeling great. He had diarrhea the day after he did that, then he seemed to be on the mend and now he is back to having the runs again. Poor little guy. He just lays around and sleeps.

We went whale watching yesterday. We left here at 8:30 for the drive downtown. By the time we found a parking spot, walked to the dock, got our boarding pass and stood in the line it was 9:15, the time they told us to be there! We left on the Marietta at 9:45 a.m. and had a nice rolling ride out to the open waters of the Pacific. To the east we could see Tijuana. We were out for about an hour and a half before we saw a whale. It didn't amount to much so we moved on and sure enough we got quite a show. I got some fairly good pictures which I am hoping to post on my Facebook page. We got back to to shore about 1:15 and went for lunch at Anthony's Fish Grotto. After that we strolled along Seaport Village and poked around the shops before coming home. It was a long time for Duke to be alone and he had two poops which is very uncharacteristic for him. So of course I had to clean everything and by the time I was done I was bushed! Nevertheless it was a good day and I am glad for everything that we did.

Wow! I can't believe I haven't written anything since Saturday. The weather here continues to be warm and sunny and some days it is actually HOT. That's why we came so I am really enjoying it.

We have been to see a few things since Saturday. Today we took a tour of the USS Midway. It is HUGE. The day before yesterday we went to the Maritime Museum and toured the ships they have there as well as taking a tour of the Bay in a pilot boat. It was interesting. When we got to the water front today there were two cruise ships loading passengers. My god those things are big. I have never seen one close up like that before.

When we were gone to the Maritime museum we left the dog behind in the trailer as usual. When we got back he had managed to get into an opened bag of rawhide treats that we had left on the table. I am sure he had fun eating them but it was not so much fun for him yesterday because he had the runs all day long. We just stayed close to home.

There are things to do here in the campground if you want to do them. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday mornings there are Yoga and Low Impact Aerobics and water aerobics on Tuesdays and Thursdays. I haven't been yet - mainly because it is in the morning, early in the morning.

San Diego is in the midst of Charger fever. The NFL team is in a division final game on Sunday. We saw them play their last game of the season on January 3rd and the parking lot was crazy with tail gate parties and revellers. I can just imagine what it will be like on Sunday. The city installed two lightning bolts on top of City Hall and there is a barber shop in Chula Vista which is doing a brisk business shaving heads and designing bolts. I could care less but it is amusing to watch everything and everyone get "charged" up for the game.

The weatherman is talking about cooler weather and a storm. What????? I have to listen to the weather tonight and hear what that is all about. It is not supposed to be cool here. LOL

We had a visit from the Park Ranger today just to check out our site and make sure we had everything hooked up properly. We had to get another connector for our sewer hose because they want to make sure it is screwed on tightly to the sewer thing in the ground. We don't like to leave it hooked up all the time anyway, but it is a requirement. Whatever, sewer is sewer - inevitable.

We had to be at Campground School at ten o'clock - early for us. There were eleven others there besides ourselves. There were about 20 rules and we had to check each off as the Campground Ranger went through things. It took about half an hour and then it was done. I thought we were supposed to go this afternoon but Bernie wanted to go in the morning because there is a football game on that he wants to watch.

During "question period" I asked about the cats that wander at will throughout the campground. The lady living behind us told me she feeds the feral cats. That gave me a nice warm feeling. So I asked about the cats and if they were feral cats. I guess some are and some aren't - that was the answer. They make sure that the feral cats are neutered and free of disease and that's about it, they just go wherever they want. Yesterday one tried to get in the trailer and I gave it the boot. The ducks wander around all over the place too and we had to clean up duck poop from our outside rug this morning. I guess that's roughing it. ha ha

The guy next door has a huge dog, friendly, but huge. Every time Duke goes outside he drools all over the place. I think the big dog makes him nervous. He is slowly getting used to this new place, but I think he misses Chula Vista. He'll get over it.

When we were at Chula Vista we would walk from the campground to the nearest strip mall; or we would go on a longer walk between freeways along bike and walking paths. There were always homeless people strolling along the way. They sleep under the freeway. I am kind of glad not to have to navigate around them anymore when we go for a walk. Now we have to dodge ducks and cats.

So we moved to a new camp ground yesterday and it is definitely quieter at night anyway! I guess we can't get away from noise unless we camp in our back yard.

We pulled in here yesterday afternoon, registered and then drove to our site. Oh dear, it was not a pull through (Bernie's favorite for obvious reasons), but he managed and he got it backed in like a pro. It didn't hurt that the two directly across from us were unoccupied. We met the neighbour right away. Of course he told at least half his life story in the first five minutes. I seem to have that effect on people, I don't know what it is but they want to talk to me! Oh well, he seems nice enough and he was embarassed that one of the vehicles in his site was partially parked on our "property". We were good little Canadians and said that we didn't mind, "no problem", "don't worry about it".......yeah, you know the drill!

I had a wicked headache all day and I sure wasn't much help setting up. My head finally felt better about eight o'clock last evening.

We are very close to the water here and the beach. There are two swimming pools, hot tubs, all the other amenities like a store, laundromat and even a restaurant. I haven't checked all that out yet but I will today. Of course there is a marina; something which I do not understand since we are land lubbers.

We are staying here for a month so that means we have to go to "orientation" on Saturday. I am not sure what they are going to do with us but it is a rule and of course one has to follow the rules! We had to make copies of vehicle registrations and insurance and our driver's licenses. We also had to fill out a form and sign a declaration stating that we read all the rules. It is supposed to be a very hot day on Saturday and I would like to enjoy it so I hope "camp ground school" does not take all afternoon!

This place is crowded, I guess it is popular. Sea World is across the Bay and we are on Pacific Beach. There is a wild life sanctuary bordering the campground and I would like to check that out as well. Duke doesn't want to be outside, just to do his business and then he hops right back in the trailer. I guess that is a good thing because when we go for walks on the beach we can't take him because no dogs are allowed and we also would like to go and do things that require leaving him behind. The neighbours have dogs and he has met at least two of them.

We get more sun here than we did at the previous campground and I plan on taking full advantage of that.

We are moving to Campland on the Bay tomorrow. On Monday we went to check it out and then reserved for a month. It is cheaper than this place and hopefully not as noisy.

We are right beside the freeway and there is constant noise. Then there is noise in the campground what with the maintenance workers blowing leaves, cutting grass and putting the finishing touches on the playground. My ears can't take anymore!!

I am looking forward to a different view even though this place is nice and we have grass and trees right beside us. It will be that way there too and hopefully we won't be as shaded because it does get cool. I guess you can't have it all and at least it is not thirty below.

We decided to stay in San Diego because it is warm here. This is really the only place besides southern Arizona, which is experiencing warm temperatures. The rest of the country has had cold, snow, storms and rain. So we are congratulating ourselves on choosing the right place at the right time.

I am struggling a little bit with the size of our trailer. When we bought it we had a smaller truck and so that was a big consideration. Now that we have a bigger truck we could pull a heavier trailer. We bump into one another a lot and some days it drives me nuts with the stuff laying around (just like at home). Bernie was laughing at me the other day when I cleared a path on the table. He was wondering when I would "break". He likes his stuff all around him and he likes lots of stuff. I could live without much and it wouldn't bother me, but not him. I just go outside when I can't take being cooped up or when I can't look at the clutter one more minute.

The one good thing is that it doesn't take long to clean the place up. Not that I am obsessive about cleanliness but I do like things to be clean, neat and tidy most of the time.

We bought a few things for the trailer yesterday and today we got some supplies like water and beer. Bernie dropped the case of beer right beside the truck. One can rolled out and the lady who parked beside us ran over it. It was 17 for us and 1 for the parking lot.

We went to a San Diego Chargers game today. The Washington Red Skins were in town for the game. There were a few Washington fans there but it was mostly blue. It was quite an experience attending an NFL game what with the tail gate parties in the parking lot and the exuberant fans. We had seats on the fifty yard line, field level, five rows up. They were right behind the home team, nice but the view was obstructed......We basically stood for the entire game which was an experience in itself. Everybody stands, all the time no matter where they sit.

For twenty bucks we rode a MTS (Metro Transit System) bus that left from the Chula Vista High School, not far from here, and took us right to Qualcomm Stadium. We were glad that we found that bus because we didn't have to drive and we didn't have to take the trolley which would have meant transferring. It is probably easy but when you don't know where you're going nothing is easy!

It was 23 C when we left for the game and it stayed hot and sunny throughout the afternoon.

This was a nothing game for the Chargers because they are already in the playoffs but I really thought the fans deserved a lot better than they got. The second stringers played the last three quarters of the game and just about lost it to boot. We didn't see the end because we were nervous about getting out of there in time to get on the bus (the place holds about ninety thousand people), so we left with about three minutes left in the game and the Chargers were down by four points. They ended up scoring a touchdown to give them the win with 39 seconds left. That was nice for the fans but it still sucked that they didn't get to see the best players play the game.

Duke was a good boy and stayed "home" in the trailer for the day. We left the blinds open a bit on the window by the table so he could perch on the bench seat and look out if he wanted to. I think that is where he chose to stay and sleep and keep guard because the pillow I left there for him was very warm to the touch when we got home!! He is getting used to his surroundings and I am glad because there is nothing worse than a nervous dog. Well......I guess a nervous Bonnie is pretty bad too. lol

We are trying to decide where to spend the remainder of our time away from home. I kind of like it here in southern California mainly because the weather is so nice. Bernie is getting restless and wants to see different things and go different places. We will decide before Jan. 7th since we are paid up at this campground until then.

So that was our day today. Bernie is happy because he finally got to see a NFL game in person. He loves his football. I'm happy that we went but it is not something I could really get into. I like my CFL and my Riders and that is about as far as I go.

Tomorrow and in the next couple of days we will go to Balboa Park to use our pass to see all the sights there.

I forgot to say "Happy New Year everybody" yesterday, so I will say it today. We didn't do anything special for New Year's Eve, in fact we were in bed and sleeping before midnight (as usual).

I did wake up to the sounds of fireworks but I didn't bother to get up and investigate. I'm sure they were spectacular with or without me seeing them.

We are enjoying our time in sunny California. Today, January 2, it was 70 degrees. I spent part of the morning soaking up the sun by the pool. I went for a quick dip but the water seemed kind of cold.....I guess that's why there is a hot tub.

The day after we arrived here I bought a swim suit. I didn't even have one anymore and I can't remember the last time I went swimming. I think it was in 1988, no kidding. My how the time goes by. Yes, it was the summer of 1988 when we went on a fabulous driving holiday through North Dakota, Minnesota, South Dakota and Montana. We went to two Blue Jays games in the Metrodome and then toured through the Black Hills taking in all the tourist attractions. Almost every motel we stayed in had a pool and that was one of the hottest summers on record I think. I am sure that was the last time I went swimming. I can't believe it.

Anyway, I digress.

We went to the San Diego Zoo on the 30th and we have a week long pass to go to Balboa Park which is a lot of museums and things to see.

Duke is good and really likes staying in the trailer and keeping an eye on things. He doesn't even bark anymore when people walk by. I would hazard a guess that almost 75 percent of the campers here have dogs.

It rained on Tuesday evening but other than that the weather is perfect. It is nice and green here. We walked about three miles on the 31st. There is a farmer's market near here every Thursday so we walked to the downtown area. Not many vendors there because it is New year's Eve, but we had a look anyway.

Yesterday we took a drive along Harbour Drive and enjoyed the sailing vessels and big ships. We continued on a scenic drive and ended up at Point Loma which was discovered by Cabrillo in 1542. The lighthouse there has been restored. It was used in the eighteen hundreds for about forty years.

We stopped at a Pizza Hut, which is in a strip mall close to where we are staying, on the way back and I went in and ordered up a large pizza to have for supper back at the campground. It seemed to take forever and I was starving (as usual). When we got back to the campground there were five police cars at the entrance with cops all over the place. They let us in without an explanation. There is a security gate which closes at eight o'clock so we feel safe here anyway.
Today they were still around although not as many of them. When I asked at the store why the police were around I was told that there was a robbery at the strip mall yesterday and the police were looking for somebody. Well, I guess it wasn't the Pizza Hut they robbed at any rate.

Today we went to a shopping mall. Not my favorite thing to do but we were looking for a camera store or at least a department store that sold cameras. We wanted to look at getting a zoom lens for our camera and we really needed a new lens cap with a little elastic thingy on it so I don't drop it every time I take it off. We were unsuccessful in our quest.

I could just stay here and not go anywhere else. We are paid up until Jan. 7th so I guess we have to decide what to do before then.

I see there have been wind chill warnings for Coronation.......I hope the nasty stuff doesn't last too long. And I hope that the weather smartens up to be a lot milder by the time we get home.