FMCA RALLY - DAY 1

This is a 5 day rally, but during day 1 and day 5, not much is going on. All of the entertainment, vendors, seminars, and other activities start today, and run through the next 3 days. I'm almost afraid to check out the vendors, because I have a pretty good idea that there's probably going to be something that I simply can't live without. When we had our Harley Dealership, we used to tell prospective buyers, "the bike is the least expensive part, it's all of the other stuff like leather and chrome, that eventually puts a big dent in the bank account". It's much the same with the RV lifestyle. There are so many latest and greatest doo dads, available for RV's, that you have to be careful when walking through the vendor area at a rally like this. The test will come later this morning when we see exactly what is the latest and greatest.

Last night, I helped BBQ a bunch of Tri Tips for the Chapter Dinner, and annual meeting. It was a pot luck for all of the other food, and as always, there was plenty for everyone. After dinner, we elected new officers for the next 2 years, and set the agenda for upcoming rallies. At the Mount Hood Railroad Rally this past August, Patty and I had volunteered to do a rally in Carson City, NV, where the new Virginia & Truckee Railroad operates a tourist R.R. between Virginia City & Carson City. It looks like that's still a go for late September of this year. If our application for summer jobs at the Grand Canyon come through, it might be a little tight between the time we stop working, and the start of the activities that we'll need to coordinate. Things like this have a way or working out, so I'm sure we'll be able to do both. We have to be offered jobs first, and the competition is a little tougher than it used to be.

The weather is almost perfect since we arrived in the Palm Springs/Indio area, with 70+ degree, full sunshine days. It's definitely a shorts and t-shirt climate. So far, the only time I've reverted to long pants, was when we spent a few days in Tucson over the holidays. The forecast is for more of the same, so, I guess we'll just have to put up with it!