The Driver License

Remember the post about going to Hawaii?  This is a story about Diana losing her drivers license in Hawaii.  One day we went to the beach with Daniel and Mona.  As we were getting out of the car and loading to walk to the beach Diana moved her DL.  The next day she was looking for it and could not find it. That was the last we saw it.  We are not sure if got lost in the car, on the beach, on the walk to and from the beach.  So we torn up the car, went back to the beach and looked everywhere we could think of with no luck.  So off to the police station we go to file a report.  The officer was very nice and indicated this happens often.  He checked with South Dakota (the issuing state) and filled out some papers for Diana to sign.  3 days later we went back to get some official papers that would allow her to get on the plane to return to the main land.  What we failed to consider was that she had no other pictured ID.  This is a big problem at the airport for TSA.  Before we left for Maui we both went thru our wallets for items we knew we would not need on Maui.  Things like our Target card, our Sam's club card and a few other things like that.  Unfortunately, we had no picture ID except our DL.  So security for me at the airport took about 10 minutes.  Diana took closer to 40.  She had to answer lots of questions and got patted down several times (I think she liked that part).  TSA would not take my word for it that she was my wife and she was OK.  Go figure!  Finally we were reunited and went to the gate.  All flights were fine.

When we got back to Mesa she began looking in to what she needed to do to get a duplicate license.  Turns out she had to prove to the state of South Dakota that she had spent at least 1 night in the state in the last 12 months.  We have not been in SD for almost 2 years.  So she got to get on an airplane,(using her passport as pictured ID) fly to Sioux Falls, spend one night, go to DMV and get a new license, then fly back to Mesa.  Not a happy girl and probably the most expensive thing she ever lost!

We now know to take other pictured ID with us when we leave home for a trip.

NFL Experience @ super bowl 49

While staying in Mesa for the winter the Super Bowl was held near Phoenix.  One day we went to the NFL Experience and had a blast.  The NFL Experience offers a wide variety of game and entertainment for the family.  It also host lots of radio booths so various players and celebrities show up for interviews.  We did not see any, but they do come in.

Saguaro

Through portions of the southwest you can see Saguaro cactus.  They need a certain elevation and have other environmental needs so they are not everywhere.  But where they are they are plentiful.  We took several hikes off the beaten path and just enjoyed being surrounded by these cacti.

Titan Missile Museum

We went to the Titan Missile museum near Tucson, AZ.  This is where some of the nuclear missiles were housed during the cold war.  Only one missile remains and all war head material has been removed.  As we walk thru the silos and the rest of the grounds we were reminded of some frightening times while also being grateful that these weapons were never used.

Christams on Maui

We planned to go see Daniel for Christmas.  We managed to trade enough time share weeks that we could stay from mid-December until mid-January.  Very nice.  Since we were going to spend the rest of the winter in Mesa, AZ we were trying to time our arrival so we'd have about a week before flying to Maui.  We also needed to get the RV prepared for 1 month of storage.  We had picked up a flyer for a free week at a campground just a few miles from where we were going to store the RV so that all worked out nicely.  Now that I write it it does not seem that complicated but it took some work.  We also planned to leave our car with out nephew, Ken.  Ken lives in Tempe and so he was not to far.  While we were gone Diana's sister and her husband would be visiting in the area and were going to use our car rather than rent one.  Remarkably all the pieces of this puzzle fell together nicely.  Not sure if it was good planning or good luck...maybe both.

Maui was great! Duh!! It's Maui how could it not be great.  The best part was seeing Daniel and spending time with him.  Because we were able to stay so long we had plenty of time for Daniel to spend with us yet not take time off work.  Also, we got to meet his lady friend, Mona.  She is really nice.

Channel Island NP

 We saw a Blue whale on the ferry ride to the island.

 An island fox looking for lunch

Umpqua National Forest and Crater Lake National Park

We did some boon-docking in Umpqua National Forest.  Boon-docking has no hook ups so you are totally self contained.  We have done this before and enjoy it.  It means some changes in how you use your resources but not really any sacrifices in terms of quality of living.  One of the reasons we like it is the camp sites tend to be larger, generally more natural and they put you in the park you want to see.  We have found that all campers are friendly but tent campers and those boon-docking are especially nice.

From Umpqua NF we drove about 30 minutes to Crater Lake NP.

Yes the water is really that blue!