Open wide!

August 17—I’m hungry. Since Monday, we’ve been on a soft diet, because the temporary crowns in our mouths make it difficult to bite and chew.

Last Friday we went into Los Algodones and visited the dental office recommended by my sister’s friend. (The dentist the friend used was closed; we went to the practice’s other office.) As we were waiting, a retired American finished her appointment with the dentist. I asked her about her experience. She said she was very pleased with her implants and she highly recommended “Dr. Edgar,” the young dentist. I looked at her smile and was satisfied with what I saw.

Dr. Edgar speaks English, but to avoid confusion, he uses his assistant to translate. She is bilingual, and speaks English without an accent. He initially recommended 15 crowns and a root canal for Jim, and seven crowns (replacements) and the needed root canal for me. Over the weekend, though, we decided to “up the ante” and go all the way: What Dr. Edgar had recommended initially was just to correct apparent problems. It did not address Jim’s lower teeth, which were uneven. Nor did it address my front lower teeth, which over the years had become gapped. So on Monday, when we returned to begin our work, we discussed additional options.

The result: Jim has had a complete smile makeover (uppers and lowers), and I had a complete lower makeover. (I had all done in order for all teeth to match.)

A couple years ago Jim had visited two different dentists in Jacksonville, and had two estimates, which ranged between $30,000 and $40,000 for a makeover. My recent visit to the dentist to replace two crowns and have a root canal was about $2,000. So, when Dr. Edgar told us the total would be about $6,400—for both of us—we were elated.

Why are the prices so much less in Los Algodones than in the U.S.? One reason is because the facilities are plain-Jane. The dentist has all the modern equipment, but the office is very small and crowded. Another is because the dentist does all the work himself. In the U.S., I’ve only had one dentist in Chicago who kept his prices reasonable by working alone—no hygienist or assistant. That’s the way the Mexican dentists work.

Another thing: We each needed root canals (Jim ended up needing two, me one). Instead of our marching over to another office, the endodontist came to us. And, like the other dentist, he worked alone. (As a side note: I’ve had many root canals in the past. This specialist was better than most.)

It took only one visit for me, two for Jim, to prepare for the crowns. Unfortunately, we have to wait until Friday morning to get the permanent crowns, and until then we are on a soft diet, mainly because the temporaries are awkward. It feels like I am wearing a dental retainer. (I’ve had experience with temporaries before; they are all awkward—so this is not a reflection on the dental lab.)

We’ll extend our stay here until at least Sunday, just in case we have to return to have adjustments made. But I’m confident we will be pleased with the end result.

Until next time,

Linda
Your Reluctant RoVer

Ah, Mexico!

August 12—The purpose of our trip to Yuma was not to visit Yuma—it was to go to Los Algodones, Mexico, for extensive dental work.

Los Algodones, known to Americans as “Molar City,” is just south of Yuma. However, we discovered that it actually borders a town in California. (A side note: I don’t know why, but when we entered Arizona, I didn’t feel that far away from home, nor that far west. But as soon as we crossed the border to California, I felt as if we had gone clear across the country—which, of course, we had, from Florida!) Had we known we had to enter through California, we would have RV-camped closer. But, it’s not a big deal to make the drive.

To get to Los Algodones, you drive down U.S. Hwy 186 for about eight miles. The Quechan Indian reservation abuts the border, and the Indians operate a parking lot next to the customs station. Because this is the off season here (winter is high season in Yuma), the parking lot was relatively empty, and we didn’t have to walk far to cross the border.

Border towns in Mexico are all very similar: A lot of poverty, a lot of street-hawking, and a lot of outright begging. In Los Algodones the street hawking extends to soliciting patients for the 350 dentists who practice there. An unknowing dental traveler would be overwhelmed. I had found a website that operates a referral service to dentists; however, we decided to rely on the personal experience of friends.

A friend of mine who lives near Phoenix has visited Los Algodones for years. She provided the names of a couple of dentists she has used. And a friend of my sister in Oregon also gave us a referral. I had spoken to this lady directly, and we decided to visit that dentist. If we weren’t pleased, we would go elsewhere.

The office was very small, but clean. The dentist gave us a complimentary exam and told us how much the procedure would cost. I knew I needed at least two crowns and a root canal, but I also have a number of very old crowns that I suspected needed some work.

Jim also had an idea of what he needed/wanted—his work was more extensive than mine. He also asked the dentist about his options, for instance implants rather than fixed bridges.

The bottom line? A fraction of what we would pay in the States. I will be getting seven new crowns, a root canal, and a cleaning—for $1,330. Jim will get 15 crowns, a root canal, and a cleaning, for $2200. And surprisingly, he said he would do all this in two visits. (He calls in a specialist to do the root canals.)

Incidentally, while we were waiting, an American lady about our age just finished with the dentist. I stopped her and asked her about her experience. She said the dentist had given her implants and she was extremely pleased. I looked at her smile and it was very nice.

Will we be pleased? I think so. We’ll find out next week. Our first appointment in Monday morning.

My niece, who is in the State Department, assigned in Eritrea (a god-awful place in Africa) posted a note on Facebook, saying that the State Department considers Mexico to be the most dangerous place in the world right now.

Not in Los Algodones. Medical tourists are the reason why that town exists, and I think everyone takes extra care to make sure Americans feel secure. We did not feel threatened; we felt safe. And as we left, passing through security was easy.

After we had left Los Algodones, however, we realized we had forgotten to do any shopping. (Jim wanted to check the price of Irish whiskey, thinking it might be cheaper in Mexico than here.) Rather than turn around and return to Los Algodones, we decided to drive to San Luis, another entry point. We didn’t realize San Luis was a distant 20 miles until we were halfway there. When we got to San Luis, we parked on the street, crossed the border, and found a larger city that did not feel as comfortable as Los Algodones.

Someone directed us to a farmacía that sold liquor, but Jim didn’t find any bargains, so we decided to leave. The line at the border crossing was much longer than in Los Algodones. One of the Border Patrol guards wore a bullet-proof vest, and the fellow who looked at my passport questioned me about why I had gone to Mexico! I was happy to have left that town and will not return there.

It’s a warm 104 degrees (but doesn’t feel that hot; there is no humidity), and I think I’ll go for a swim now. Tomorrow we will brave the heat and go golfing.

Until next time,

Your Reluctant RoVer,
Linda

Meow

The cats are not happy campers—especially Charlie.

When we began planning our trip, the question arose, “Where do we put the litter box?” (A 38-foot motorhome does not have a lot of floor space or out-of-the-way niches for such things.) We finally came upon a solution: Put the litter box in the cabinet under the sink. Our plan was to remove a door to allow the cats to become acclimated to the box’s location. Once that was accomplished, we intended to modify the door by replacing its wooden panel with a cat door. Mission accomplished! The cats would have a private toilet and we would have a kitchen cabinet with a door.

Good plan, except that as soon as Jim fired up the motorhome, Charlie hightailed it to the cabinet and cowered on its shelf, and Xena jumped into the litter box on the lower level! They stayed there until they were sure we had stopped for the evening.

We didn’t want Xena to sleep in her sandbox, so this trip after the first night, we moved the box out from the cabinet. Xena still jumped into the cabinet and slept on the floor, with Charlie kept on the shelf above her.

After a couple of days, Xena no longer felt the need to travel hidden in the cabinet. Generally she curled up on the floor near my leather recliner and occasionally even roamed the living area, asking for a little rubbing. She was the brave one.

Charlie has been the scaredy-cat. He doesn’t reappear from his hiding spot until we’ve stopped for quite a long time. And he’s the first to hide in the morning.

We arrived in Yuma yesterday afternoon. The kitties came out of hiding and are getting used to their new confines. A few minutes ago, Xena jumped up onto the dash (the cats’ picture window to the world) and spied something new: a bunny rabbit! She really, really wanted to go play. But, of course, she cannot.

She—and Charlie—will have to be content to watch.

Until next time,

Your Reluctant RoVer, Linda

Oops!

August 10, 2011—Stuff happens. Everyone knows that. And it seems to happen more frequently to novice RoVers.

The night before last we camped in a small amenity-free RV camp off I10 in Balmorhea, Arizona, about 150 miles from El Paso. No frills, but we had full hookups, and we rested well. When I say no frills, I mean it: The camp didn’t even have cable available (although the RV directory and website said it did). We were in a valley, pretty far from anywhere. We could pick up one lonely radio station and no TV on our antenna, although Jim tried redirecting the signal several times.

After a good night’s sleep, we packed up and started on drive westward. Around lunchtime, we stopped at a picnic area and got out of the motorhome. Guess what? We had been traveling with the TV antenna pitched high into the sky! Good thing we hadn’t gone under any low overpasses!

Last night we treated ourselves to a KOA in Lordsburg, Ariz. KOAs have the reputation for being nice, and this one had some amenities, including a pool. We opted to pay a little extra for a pull-through so that we would not have to unhook the car and back in. The pull-through also had sewer hookup.

Jim plugged in the electricity, then the cable, and the water. Then he opened the storage door to the sewer hose. Uh…Seems that he left it back in Balmorhea. Oops!

Oh, well. He said it had a pinprick hole in it anyway and he was planning to replace it. Fortunately, our tanks were empty, so the lack of hose did not pose a problem. It did serve to remind us to double-check everything. I had not gone outside when Jim had unhooked us; from now on, I will, to serve as a second set of eyes.

We stopped in Tucson at Camping World and purchased a few needed items (like sewer hose!), then continued westward. Several miles outside of the city, we were stopped by a traffic accident—an overturned DOT water truck. Traffic was backlogged for miles. I lost track of how long we were stopped.

At one point, I looked out my window. A black SUV pulled up and a lady rolled down her window. I opened mine, and she asked, “We have a little emergency…Would you mind terribly if my friend used your bathroom?”

Of course we let her.

I had just been thinking how nice it was to have the toilet available. I’m glad we were able to help someone out.

Until next time,

Your Reluctant Rover,

Linda

A recalcitrant baby

August 8, 2011—As any parent knows, children don’t always live up to their expectations. Our “Baby” is no exception.

Yesterday we tooled along. I was happy to leave Louisiana; Jim was unhappy to enter Texas. I love Texas! Although I don’t like the Beaumont/Houston area, as soon as we entered the state, I felt like I was going home again, despite the fact that it has been 25 years since I moved away. Jim, however, doesn’t like Texas because of the ultra-conservative politics. I can’t say I blame him in that respect.

When I lived here, I was a middle-of-the-road Republican. I still would be, except for Bush and the right-wing ultra-conservatives that have pushed this country to the brink of economic ruin. I really don’t get involved in politics and religion. I just wish everyone would let everyone else be! But, they don’t, and in Texas, the politics lean farther right than they do even in Jacksonville, another bastion of conservatism.

But Texas is so beautiful! And the people (except for the religious and political fanatics) are so great! I absolutely loved living there, and I would move back there in a heartbeat, albeit it would be a move to the Austin area.

Jim? No. As soon as we passed over the Texas/Louisiana border, he became determined to get out of Texas as soon as possible. Of course, that takes a while: I believe the milepost sign said it was 885 miles until the end of I10 in Texas. That’s a long way.

So, we drove, and drove, and drove.

I suggested that we boondock (dry camp) last night. Our choices were many, from rest stops to Walmarts. But Jim wanted to keep going until he got too tired to drive. So we kept moving westward. That was fine with me. I don’t want to “tourist” until we get our business done. Plenty of time to see the sites on the way back.

We passed through Houston late Sunday afternoon as the sun was starting to set. That was a good thing. If it had been rush hour, we probably would have sat in traffic, moving at a snail’s pace, for hours. Instead, we got through the confusing and ill-marked spaghetti bowl fairly rapidly.

We kept going. San Antonio, according to the markers, was another 250 miles from Houston. We reached it by around 11 p.m. And still we kept driving…until Baby apparently protested. All of a sudden, outside the lit highway areas, Jim noticed that we couldn’t see very far. Our headlights failed us!

We pulled over at a picnic area (where there were several semis parked for the night). Then Jim tried to start the generator to get the air conditioner running. Baby protested again. The generator worked, but we could not turn on the air conditioner!

There is not a whole lot you can do at midnight. We slept the old-fashioned way—with the windows open. Fortunately, there was a cool breeze and the temperature had dropped to the 70s.

Jim has a pretty good idea of why Baby failed to live up to our expectations—at least regarding the air conditioner (something about a faulty transfer switch at the generator). We’ll stop at a Camping World in El Paso tomorrow. Right now we are at a remote RV camp at the Balmorhea exit, about 150 miles from El Paso. We stopped early so he could investigate our problems and finally rest.

This is a plain-Jane RV camp—no amenities except for full hookup. We can see the Davis Mountains in the distance, and the Texas sky is HUGE right here. In a desolate sort of way, it is beautiful.

We’ll sleep in comfort tonight.

Until next time,

Linda, your Reluctant RoVer.

Driving, driving, driving...

August 7—The trouble with RVing is that you have to drive—and drive—and drive. I am not fond of driving, even though I am a passenger, not the driver. Driving was OK was I was young and I shared in on the chore, but now I find it boring and tedious. And I do not intend to drive Baby, with or without “toad” (our towed car). So, driving is boring; one interstate mostly looks like another.

The good thing about RVing, though, is that you don’t have to stop to use the toilet (as long you are the passenger!); you have a clean bathroom; you sleep in your own bedbug-free bed; you can make some popcorn for a midafternoon snack, and you both can listen to the same audiobook at the same time.

You can’t do those things when you are flying.

Jim keeps reminding me to enjoy the journey. To me, it’s the destination. I just want to get to where I am going, in this case Yuma, Ariz.

But, I’ll try to do as he says. I promise.

Still the reluctant RoVer,

Linda

Delayed start

August 5. Things don’t always go as planned. We had wanted to get an early start on our journey to Yuman/Los Algodones, but it didn’t go that way. Our neighbor e-mailed me that the lawn mower (which he uses) was still malfunctioning, so Jim had to fix that before we could even fetch “Baby.” Fortunately the fix was an easy one and didn’t delay us too much.

Packing up was another story. It seemed like I moved my entire house! It’s amazing how much you can stow in a 38-foot motorhome—with room to spare. Baby seems to have a lot of nooks and crannies, and perhaps I admitted to myself that I really don’t need all that “stuff” in the house. At any rate, we packed and finally got on our way at about 2 p.m. EDT.

We traveled as far as Tallahassee. Florida is ONE BIG state! (Can’t wait to go across Texas:<).

More later.

Your Reluctant RoVer,

Linda