This is the 'archive' of my monthly log and information from 2023.
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December, 2023
The holidays are here and the 2023 year comes to an end.
There was a lot of travel for us in December - 2 trips to Laughlin, 2 trips to Las Vegas, and 1 trip to the Phoenix area for Christmas.
We were chasing a bunch of tier multipliers this month, so we stayed at casinos more than usual - but we both got rated quite high this year (which was our goal).
While in Las Vegas we stayed at the Horseshoe and Paris - both great casinos in our opinion, rooms were comfortable and clean. We did a LOT of gambling to get our needed tier points and enjoyed dinner at Battista's and Martha Stewart's Bedford. Battista's was your typical family Italian dinner fare (we like it) and the Bedford was high end Martha (we enjoyed both the bar and the restaurant).We also enjoyed Happy Hour at Maggiano's one night, it's been a minute but they still have a great flat bread special.
We spent Christmas with half of the family down in the Phoenix area, really enjoyed being with the grand kids. We're going to try to take a trip up to Idaho to spend some time with the other half, we really miss the little ones!
So the year ends and another one starts, we move on - enjoying life, and hope you all do as well. See you in 2024!
November, 2023
Another fun month brought a little travel and celebration of the holiday with part of the family.
We stayed a couple of nights in the Sedona area for a wine pickup and enjoyed a short hike and all the beauty that is in this area, one of our favorite regions to visit.
We then stayed at Harrah's Laughlin one night for a special offer and a great dinner at The Range steak house then it was off to Las Vegas for 2 nights at Planet Hollywood. We had a wonderful dinner at the Strip House restaurant in Planet Hollywood the first night and then Happy Hour at Cabo Wabo (which was just ok, we probably won't revisit in the future).
We traveled to the Phoenix area to celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday with part of the family and had a great meal (both Mike and I cooked).
October, 2023
October was an especially busy month for us.
The first week we flew to Cleveland to attend the AE Sailors Association (AESA) annual reunion. I served on the U.S.S. Mount Baker (AE-34) and have been going to this reunion for many years. It's always fun to catch up with other sailors that served on AE-34 and other AE ships, no matter what time they served. There is a small group of us that actually served in the early 70's on AE-34 that still meet up every year to swap stories and enjoy a good visit.
After the reunion, we took a road trip across Pennsylvania. Starting off in Pickerington, OH we visited the American Motorcycle Association (AMA) Hall of Fame Museum - so many vintage motorcycles on display, as well as stories of motorcycle legends. We stayed in Pittsburgh, PA for the night and enjoyed a double-decker bus tour of Pittsburgh the next day. We then drove to the Flight 93 National Memorial in Stoystown, PA - which was quite the somber experience. We then headed to Hershey, PA where we spent the night. The next day we toured the Hershey Story Museum and Hershey Chocolate World before heading to Philadelphia, PA where we tried Philly Cheese steaks at both Pat's King of Steaks and Geno's Steaks to decide which was best (Pat's won, hands down). Both are legendary locations - Pat's opened in 1930 / Geno's in 1966 - and worthy of the visit. While in Philadelphia we stopped to see the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall. Our day ended after a short drive to Atlantic City, NY where we stayed at the Tropicana Hotel and Casino. The next day we drove south towards Virginia and took the Cape May ferry across the bay to Delaware and continued the drive to Norfolk, Va.
We then attended the U.S.S. Mississippi (CGN-40) reunion in Norfolk, VA. We again caught up with many people I served with and shared stories of what we've been doing since the 2021 reunion. While in Virginia, we took a trip over to Hampton to see where we lived from 1977-79 (and where both boys were born) as well as met up with an old friend and fellow shipmate for a great BBQ dinner.
After returning home from the 2 week adventure, we cooled our jets for about a week and spent a couple of nights at the Flamingo in Las Vegas, enjoying a great meal at Ruth's Chris Steak house.
Now that we're back, things have slowed down quite a bit and we're looking forward to our next adventure.
September, 2023
September is over and fall has arrived, the days are getting milder and the evenings even cooler - we really love the change of seasons here in Arizona.
Our travel to Las Vegas was great, 2 nights at the Flamingo and a great dinner at Ramsey's Kitchen. We were supposed to have dinner at Ruth's Chris Steakhouse but while we were enjoying our before dinner drink and appetizer at the bar the power went out. Just a section of Harrah's Casino and the Kitchen were affected. They decided power wouldn't come back soon so they comp'ed our drinks and appetizer and said we can get a 20% discount at Ramsey's Kitchen if we wanted to eat there (of course we took them up on the offer). The meal was great and the power outage was only a mild inconvenience. The second evening we enjoyed appetizers at Public School 702. This is a fairly new pub-style location that had great appetizers and beer, it's worth a go (even if for appetizers and Happy Hour).
We also stayed in Laughlin a couple of times, they had an end of summer drawing for a couple of Razors (of course, we didn't win). We enjoyed a great dinner at The Range (Harrah's) one night and Brew Brothers (Tropicana) the 2nd night.
Last (but not least) we celebrated Mary's birthday by staying in Sedona 3 nights. The first night Mary had a wine pickup at Page Springs Cellars, they have a new Executive Chef and the food was awesome. The second day we shopped around Sedona and then we had a great birthday dinner at Moscato in Camp Verde (an excellent Italian restaurant). The third day we enjoyed the Sedona Wine Festival and had dinner at Colt Grill in Cottonwood afterwards. If you like BBQ, the Colt Grill is the place to go - the sampler platter is to die for and we usually bring some of it back with us since it is more than enough for 2.
Finally we took a quick trip to Flagstaff to meet with Mary's Orthopaedic Surgeon to get the ball rolling for her other knee replacement before Summer of next year.
August, 2023
August is a very important month for us, especially this year. We were married in August (back in 1973) and this year we celebrate our 50th anniversary.
For that reason we reserved a cruise out of Long Beach to Catalina Island and Ensenada MX (one that we have been on many times and really enjoy the itinerary).
The cruise was very fun, relaxing, and full of celebration. We had a great balcony cabin on the aft part of the ship and it's the best location we've enjoyed.
I took lots of photos and video with my GoPro and put a compilation video up on YouTube, find HERE.
We also had the time to visit Las Vegas twice, first we stayed at the Flamingo and had a great dinner at Bugsey and Meyer's Steak House - which is an incredible restaurant. We also hit Tommy Rockers for Happy Hour the 2nd night and had a great meal there as well.
Believe it or not, we stayed at the Flamingo again (right at the end of August) and had dinner at Ramsey's Kitchen (a newer venue at Harrah's Las Vegas) and really enjoyed the meal. The ambiance and service was a good as it gets, and the food was excellent as expected. We also hit Firefly on the 2nd night for Happy Hour and I don't know why we never hit this place before, the fries are to die for and the empenadas were excellent.
July, 2023
July was (and always is) a hot month. We tend to stay inside during this month, so we ended up enjoying 3 stays at the casinos in Laughlin and 1 stay at The Horseshoe in Las Vegas.
While in Las Vegas, we tried the new Jack Binion's Steak House at the Horseshoe, it was pretty good but I can't say it was worth the price. The Smoked Manhattan at the bar after dinner was quite good!
The next night we tried the Golden Tiki for Happy Hour, man is that place a hoot. It's a little pricey but I think the personality alone is worth the price of admission. There are a lot of items to explore in this place and the staff is friendly and very entertaining. We were at a table in the Pirate Room, which was an interesting room. If you want something different, give the Golden Tiki a try during Happy Hour.
During July we also spent a couple of nights in Phoenix to visit Mike and his family. We were able to have Madelyn visit us here in Kingman for a week and she had a great time.
Mary and I have been doing quite well at the casinos this month and are probably up this year as far as wins and comps goes, I hope it keeps up.
June, 2023
June started out nice, just another part of a great Spring season with incredibly mild weather. But at the end of the month summer arrived. Although we get a lot of heat during the summer months, this year we were spared the entire month of June so the summer won't seem as brutal as normal.
We stayed at the Flamingo in Las Vegas (more comps for Mary) and had a great dinner at the Top of the World restaurant, at the Strat. This restaurant revolves very slowly (takes about 1 hour and 20 minutes for a full revolution) and the views are spectacular. You have to pay extra for a window seat but the views are worth it, especially around sunset. The next night we had dinner at Battista's Hole in the Wall, one of our favorite local restaurants that serves a great Italian family style dinner.
We also stayed in Laughlin a few nights during the month, Caesar's is very kind to us by comp'ing our stays so we can take advantage of special gambling offers. We've been doing quite well with our gambling this year (so far) and I even won a $3000 tournament at the Tropicana Laughlin, which is paid out in comps (that I can use at any Caesar's property). Mary's free play has been bumped up a bit, making it more worthwhile to spend time in the casino (especially if we are winning).
We are now heading into the heart of summer so we will limit outdoor activity for 3 or 4 weeks, but hopefully the monsoon season will start and we'll get a number of storms to cool us off.
May, 2023
It was a sad ending to this month for us. On May 28 Jim's mother passed away, she was 88 years old. She had not been doing well for the last year and was placed in a full time health management facility. I'm really going to miss her.
We completed a number of trips in May, got to see the grandkids in Phoenix (celebrating Jaylynn's birthday) and made our way to Sedona for a wine pickup and a fantastic dinner at Dahl and Deluca. We also stayed at the Paris in Las Vegas and dined at Bazaar Meat by José Andrés, one of the best restaurants we've dined at. I tried the smoked Manhattan drink and it was absolutely wonderful. The entire experience was great and it's highly recommended. We've been hitting Laughlin more often lately, since both of us have been doing much better in the casinos. As long as they keep comp'ing our stay and our winnings keep up, we'll accommodate them.
April, 2023
The weather is getting much better now, we are definitely in our spring season with great temperatures.
I celebrated the anniversary of my retirement on April 1 (2011), can't believe it's been 12 years since I walked away from DCPP (and so happy that I did).
We ended up selling our Kia Soul because once the RV sold there really wasn't much reason to keep it around. A nice couple from Lake Havasu bought it (they are RV'ers also) and now we'll order a new car to replace it...more on that later.
April saw us travel to Las Vegas TWICE, with great meals at Bavette's and Piero's restaurants. They were both excellent experiences and I highly recommend either for a great meal.
We stayed at the Paris Hotel and Harrah's and we really like Paris better, rooms are nicer and the casino experience is much better (but Harrah's is still a good place for a jackpot, just ask Mary).
We tried something a little different this month, instead of only enjoying the Happy Hour at Maggiano's we tried Happy Hour at Morton's and the Yard House (I think the Yard House was a much better value).
Mary enjoyed the Nationals Bowling Tournament in Tucson the middle of April, even bringing back some $$$ from the tournament and her play at the local casino.
Yep, one night in Laughlin at Harrah's to take advantage of a special Tier Multiplier (it's always a fun time there).
Stay tuned for more of our adventures next month.
March, 2023
We've been a bit busy this year so far, traveling a lot and it seems like we've been visiting places more than staying at home.
February was an abnormal winter-like month here, lots of rough weather (including quite a few inches of snow).
We've had at least 2 trips per month to Las Vegas and a trip to Sedona/Cottonwood for our winery pickups.
Of course, while in Las Vegas we treat ourselves to a great dinner at a high end steak house once each trip and are usually quite pleased.
In February we enjoyed our stay at the Cromwell and Paris Casino/Hotels and in March enjoyed Planet Hollywood.
We had a great dinner at Giada's and Oscar's Steak houses and a not so great meal at Butcher-Cleaver (our 2nd try, for some reason they can't get a medium-well steak cooked correctly).
In March we stayed at the Beaver Creek Inn, near Sedona, but I wouldn't recommend it (property is old and falling apart - we were without hot water for a day and a half).
Of course we stayed in Laughlin a number of nights, mostly to take advantage of special tier credit multipliers but we also stayed at the Avi because they offered us a comp'ed room (we had a great meal as well).
Here's to new adventures in the month's to come!
January, 2023
Here's to a New Year and better times ahead...
We really enjoyed the New Year's Eve party at Red's Cellar Door and Bistro, I even stayed up past midnight to ring in the new year!
January was a bit quiet for us, but we will turn it up in the next month.
Mary & I took a short trip to Cottonwood for a wine pickup at Page Springs Winery. We drove through quite a lot of snow, since we went over the mountain and through Jerome.
I also passed my FCC General Ham Radio License exam this month, upgrading me from Technician level. I plan on volunteering for the county as an emergency HF radio operator during emergencies.
We also enjoyed our monthly trip to Las Vegas by staying at the Flamingo and having an awesome dinner at Flemming's Steak House, I highly recommend it - the service and food was awesome.