On the White Line

Pat picking citrus right off the tree in Phoenix

Bit... all dressed up for the Arizona winter

Just a quick post today. We had a wonderful visit with our friend Bit in Tucson on Thursday evening. After some time catching up, she took us to Mi Nidito for a tasty meal. Sadly our extended stay in El Paso cut our visit with her short.

Friday morning we met Mary Ann, Charlie and Carmelita’s daughter. She and her husband Dick welcomed us into their home, and it was a joy to be sitting in Charlie and Carmelita’s old bedroom. Mary Ann shared photos of my father that my mom and I had never seen, and we were all able to share stories about these great men.

After our visit, we headed north to Phoenix to meet up with our friends Betty and Jim Sanford.

Maybe it’s the connection to my dad, but I find Ajo as one of those little communities with something very special about it.

This morning we stopped at the Catholic Church, walked around the gorgeous town plaza and stopped at the coffee shop. When we climbed back in the RV, Louie Walters who met at the museum yesterday appeared outside our window.

“I’ve got a rabbit for you,” he said holding up a small envelope. He had been looking for us, and by God’s grace, we parked right outside his house.

We invited him inside, and after having to give us the sad news that Carmelita had passed away a few months ago, he still pulled a rabbit out of his hat. Inside the envelope was a copy of an email from Mary Ann, Charlie and Carmelita’s daughter. Mary Ann was a classmate of Louie’s wife, and he emailed her last night to let her know we were looking for her parents.

Reading the letter revealed that Mary Ann was just as excited to talk to us as we were to talk to her. Part of her note read:

“My mother and father thought the world of these people. Eugene was my father’s best man when mom and dad got married in Abilene, Texas. I want very much to be able to talk to them.”

As soon as we said our goodbyes to Louie, we were dialing Mary Ann. The moment I asked, “Is Mary Ann available?” she knew who I was. Although we had never met, it was clear she and I grew up with our fathers telling the exact same stories.

I was still sad I wouldn’t get the chance to see Carmelita again, but telling Mary Ann about the day I brought my father back to Ajo in the 1980s felt wonderful.

I remember the day clearly. We stopped at the pay phone in town and my dad dialed Charlie’s number.

Charlie first questions was, “Gene, where are you?”

“Charlie, I’m at the pay phone… in Ajo.”

A few minutes later we were parked outside Charlie and Carmelita’s house. Charlie met us in the yard, and these two grown men who hadn’t seen each other in 40 years hugged and began to cry. Enormous, honorable tears of joy.

Thanksgiving

Before we left town today, we stopped at the mine lookout to see the enormous hole my dad helped dig. The mine is abandoned now, but the terraced slopes to the bottom remain. And in the center of the pit sets a giant turquoise lake… a turquoise color I didn’t think existed in such quantity.

My mom and I stopped by the museum one more time, and then visited the cemetery to lay flowers on Charlie and Carmelita’s graves. We were grateful to relive a bit of dad’s past… and we celebrated with delicious tacos, apple pie and lemon pie at Marcella’s restaurant in town.

My dad lived in Ajo, AZ, in the 1930s and 40s, and I grew up with stories of the Christmas when he wore a wool suit to mass and nearly melted, of his best friend Charlie Corella, of the cross on the hill overlooking the mine…

He was in his late 20s, and it was a very special time in his life. He always had a story from Ajo to share. When I visited here last year, I found my dad’s name on their museum’s Wall of Honor for World War II veterans who left from Ajo.

Yesterday, we arrived at the museum after closing, but Louie Walters, the museum president, was just locking up and offered to let us in.

While I took my mom to the Wall of Honor, Louie pulled out a binder and started researching my dad’s name. A few flips of the binder pages and he found a reference to Eugene Joseph Hughes from the Ajo Copper News. It mentioned an Elks banquet in 1941 honoring dad for answering the call of duty.

It was a thrill to find another tidbit from my dad’s life. I miss him terribly, and it’s moments like this that bring back fresh memories of the most important man in my life.

After Dark

Between the extra time we spent exchanging stories with Louie about my dad’s life in Ajo and the time it took to eat our meal at the local “fancy” restaurant (burgers and tacos for us), it was after dark before we started figuring where we’d stay for the night. My mom was really hoping for a “real” shower. Unfortunately, the place in town with the best showers had no vacancy, as did the #2 place in town.

We opted to head to Why, where the campground is nice, but the showers aren’t quite as pretty.

January Showers

This morning, we had desert drizzle… it was raining, but we weren’t really getting wet. I walked my mom down to the showers. To address the mildew issue inside, she brought Lysol and disinfectant wipes. While she was busy washing up, I chatted with a guy who has been hopping around the country, but settled in Ajo.

After about thirty minutes, mom walked out of the bathroom with a disgusted look on her face. “I couldn’t get any hot water… And I wasn’t about to clean another shower to see if it had hot water.” All that work, and she didn’t get her shower.

Back to the RV, where I helped her take an RV shower. I won’t share the details, but let’s just say we had to laugh… otherwise, we’d both cry from embarrassment.

Looking Back

Here’s a little video we did about our visit last year… yesterday, we found out that Charlie’s wife Carmelita died last May. Rest in peace Carmelita and Charlie… and dad.

We asked the greeter at this Walmart about the "No Overnight Parking" sign, and he said, "Piss on it. Stay as long as you like." So we did.

After a week in and around El Paso trying to get the RV in perfect working order, we finally reached Arizona. We’re bummed we had to scrap many of our plans in Arizona, but we’re going on the assumption that “everything happens for a reason.”

Now it’s time for a new set of adventures

Being “stuck” near Las Cruces and El Paso took a turn for the better yesterday.

Just over the mountain from Las Cruces, we followed the signs to the White Sands Missile Range Park, Museum and Gift Shop. Warning signs along the way, were enough to rattle us… no photos, no explosive materials, no alcohol, no stopping, stay on road at all times, vehicles subject to inspection, ground may be contaminated, check-in at gate!

In the end, the museum was closed for the weekend, and we were too gun shy to venture beyond the unmanned check-point. We caught a glimpse of the Missile Park in the distance. It looked like a compact garden with giant missiles sprouting from the desert floor.

White Sands National Monument

We headed northeast to White Sands National Monument, a rare desert of gypsum sand dunes. The pale dunes resemble snow drifts, and we had to remind ourselves that it was 50+ degrees outside as we watched (more…)

New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum in Las Cruces.

We’re still waiting on a part to arrive, but luckily we’ve been able to stay in the RV this weekend and were able to slip out of El Paso for a few days. Extremely high winds and rains have been lashing at us for the last few days, but all things considered, it’s been a decent week.

I grew up on a dairy farm in Michigan, so the New Mexico Farm and Ranch Heritage Museum in Las Cruces had a natural appeal to me. However, Liam and his mom have always been “town folk,” so I was curious of their reaction.

Of most interest was discovering how the earliest agrarian settlers cultivated the land. New Mexico has its own set of challenges for farmers… as the 50mph wind gusts we had this weekend emphasized. Following a few centuries of farming in the state proved quite satisfying, with the displays on the late 1800s and early 1900s giving us a good “cowboy” fix. (more…)

Even before we reached the room, Pat announced, “There’s something not right with this place.” The lights turn on and off at will, the TV screen freezes, the bathroom has strange dents in the wall, the shower squeals and the wind outside howls through the loosely sealed window. This hotel room is creepy.

Okay, it wouldn’t qualify as a “real” haunting, but this dump in El Paso has Pat on the edge of her seat. She tries to soothe her concerns. Each time something unusual happens, she jumps up, “Did you see that? Did you see the light? Did you hear that?” She takes a deep breath and announces a theory on what is going on. “They’ve got bad plumbing. The wiring is bad.”

Of course Liam plays with her by saying, “What light? What are you talking about? I didn’t see anything. That cup wasn’t there when we came in. Did I just hear a child laughing?” As soon as Pat says, “That’s enough,” Liam stops his line of teasing, pauses, shutters and says, “This place is just scary.”

Truth is, Liam is just disappointed they don’t have free breakfast.

Making Lemonade

We’re waiting for parts for the RV, so we’re making the best of our extended stay in El Paso. Yesterday, we stopped at the Whoopie Bowl Antique Store… it was an impressive place, but there was a lot of junk… like 98% junk. Then we wandered around Camping World, before taking the scenic drive above the city. It was a pleasant afternoon. However, we’d really rather be visiting our friends in Arizona right now. Sigh, we’ll hold out and hope this RV problem is solved once and for all.

A view of El Passo

Whoopie Bowl Antiques in El Paso, TX

The NEW Mexican Sunset

Liam’s mom had heard stories about dangers along the Mexican border… kidnappings, violence, drugs. Days before we left, a TV show told the story of a San Diego family traveling with an RV who were kidnapped 15 miles south of the border. To add to her anxiety, her sister called in a reprimand when we reached New Mexico thinking the blog read Mexico instead of New Mexico.

To say the least, she was feeling a bit sensitive about traveling close to the border… and Liam couldn’t resist capitalizing on her insecurity.

When we reached an (more…)