#76 - January 2021 - Benson AZ

 #76 - January 2021 - Benson AZ

I think life during Covid finally caught up with us. The Co-op is very quiet, especially compared to "normal" times. No bingo, dances, concerts, bake sales, polar bear parties, fund raisers, happy hours or dinners, and that's just January's typical schedule. We have lost three members, and 16 more have tested positive. Luckily they have recovered from varying degrees of illness. Most people, including us, are being very cautious about getting together. No one wants to catch it, especially now that vaccines are beginning to arrive. Folks have figured out how to have conversations across the street, and the Co-op's business meetings are done on Zoom. There must be a hundred dogs here, so we walkers get to see each other several times a week from a discrete distance.

Yup, it's snowing

Covid notwithstanding, this is still a beautiful place. When the wind stops we can get out and enjoy it! I have started hiking in the desert again, and working on the landscaping crew twice a week pulling weeds, trimming trees and digging up cactus. Kayeanne has worked hard on the yard, clearing the last of the leaves, bringing in more rocks and planting some flowers. 

We (finally!) have a plan for the floors in the casita and are about to order materials. Carpet turned out to be way too expensive because the floor plan might have been intentionally designed to maximize waste. More on the results next month.

In Albuquerque, I noticed that the dolly brake master cylinder was leaking and the pads looked pretty worn. I refilled the fluid reservoir and added it to the list of jobs in Benson. When I really dug into it I discovered that not only was the master cylinder shot, but one of the calipers had actually lost a pad. I wouldn't have believed that could happen if I hadn't actually seen it. A simple cylinder rebuild got much more complicated and expensive. A long story short, I had to replace the master cylinder and both calipers. It wasn't hard once I got the right parts, but it sure was messy. Kayeanne turned out to have a knack for brake bleeding, making that final step much easier.

Schroeder watches
the bird channel

What with shopping for flooring, getting caught up on our annual medical visits and, of course Covid, we only made one fun drive. Last year we discovered the Gathering Grounds cafe in Patagonia and liked it a lot. Patagonia, Sonoita and Elgin are home to several vineyards and in normal times are popular destinations, especially on weekends. Mid-week in January 2021, not so much. Gathering Grounds, though, was busy and the food was just as good as last year. The park across the street has lots of picnic tables and paths to walk which we and Schroeder appreciated. Some tasting rooms were open but we weren't comfortable being inside, and it was too windy to sit outside. We'll come back after we get our shots. 

Aside from the medical visits, we look forward to coming to Tucson for ready access to wine. Three Trader Joe's, Costco and Total Wines makes shopping for wine a pleasure. Trader Joe's released another of their Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, this one from the  Alexander Valley (Sonoma) 2017 that we really enjoyed. Kayeanne liked another TJ's wine, this one from France: Les Portes de Bordeau 2019 Sauvignon Blanc. 

I  stashed a number of books in the casita and have been rereading several of those, so nothing new this month. 

More soon,

Bob