1 1/2 Days To Go

Posted on December 19, 2014 by Jim Melvin

Almost over

My term at Amazon is almost over with only 1 1/2 days remaining in my schedule. By 11:00pm Saturday I will be done. KAPUT!!! I will probably be heading out Monday morning for So CA to see family for the holidays. I can’t wait to get into some warmer weather. This winter wasn’t as cold as last year (thank God) but it is still cold.

I go thru 5 gallons of propane a week trying to keep Chica comfortable. I will really be glad to get to a warmer climate.

RV has new shoes

I got 2 new tires for the front end. I checked out prices and the Purcell’s in Fernley gave me a great price on a couple of Michelins. I had to set my alarm for 9:30am to get up and go to Purcell’s after only three hours sleep. YUK!! I will be so glad to get back to normal sleep habits. This night shift is for the birds!

Heading to Southern California

I will probably take my normal route down 95 when I head to California. I always stop in the Beatty RV Park which is about 100 miles north of Las Vegas. Then it will be on to warm climates. HURRAH!!!

I am looking forward to seeing my Mom and sisters and their families as well as a few friends. Then after the first of the year it is off to Quartzsite and Roger’s 1/2 Acre and all my friends there. If you are anywhere near Quartzsite in January stop by for a few days and take part in the fun.

Back on the Road

Working is OK as it helps to get the money for tires and other RV repairs and a little bit in the bank as well, but it sure will be nice getting back on the road. I really miss that when I am working. Chica misses that as well. See you all down the road!!

Back at Amazon

Posted on October 28, 2014 by Jim Melvin

One day away from leaving Fernley

I have been working at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Fernley, NV for the past 3 years. Since I began working there in 2011 I have made regular trips to doctors in Reno for checkups and to renew my prescriptions. I made the appointments this year as well but wasn’t planning on working at Amazon. I was going to do some traveling as I had just completed my camp hosting assignment in Washington.

I stayed at the Desert Rose RV Park where I used to stay while working at Amazon. I was waiting for a package from Escapees and was ready to depart for Utah to meet up with Jim, Gayle and Debbie.

Then I got a call from my sister informing me that our Mom was on Hospice. She felt that I should be there so I bought airline tickets and made arrangements to board Chica in Reno. I also informed the Desert Rose office that I would be out of the area but would keep my rig connected to electric.

I then flew to SO CA to see my Mom and do what I could to help my sister. My Mom was very weak when I arrived, but has shown improvement while I was there. She is still touch and go after a week.

To make a long story short I was in CA for a week. My Mom is very weak but seems to be doing much better. I flew back to Reno and picked up Chica. She wouldn’t let me set her down once I had picked her up. She was going crazy, jumping all over the car.

Got hired at Amazon

Like I have said all summer, “I am NOT going to work at Amazon this holiday season”. Oh well forget that notion. When I got to Desert Rose RV Park there were already several of my friends staying there. I found Roger and we went out to dinner and got caught up on what each of us has been doing. Then I met Jane who has followed my blog. They both encouraged me to sign up again with Amazon. No way I would say. HA!

Then I met Barb and Chuck who I had worked with last year. They told me the same thing. To make a long story short I called Joni at Amazon and mentioned that I would like to work again during the peak season. She wrote me back that she was reactivating my application and start a background check. I completed the drug screen while in CA and orientation was last Tuesday. I saw the same movies I have watched each year. ZZZ!

Anyway I only have 5 hour days the first week. This week I am on a my regular four 10 hour day schedule with 3 days off. My work days are Wed thru Sat. I decided to work nights so that it would be dark and hopefully Chica would sleep most of the night. My hours are 6:00pm to 4:30am. YUK!!! I hope I don’t have trouble sleeping. On top of that I also make $.75 an hour more. Not too shabby!

Get out the heaters

I got out all the heaters, both catalytic and electric and hooked them up. The weather here is not too bad yet, but the nights have been down in the 30’s. But Chica and I are staying very comfortable.

Only 2 months and then off to Q

Once I finish up my stint at Amazon I will be off to So CA for the holidays with family and then over to Quartzsite where I will meet up with all my friends at Rogers 1/2 Acre. I am looking forward to both, but in the meantime I will work my ass off here at Amazon.

Amazon Friends

Posted on January 26, 2014 by Jim Melvin

Meeting up with Amazon co=workers

While still working at Amazon many of us talked about meeting up while we were in Quartzsite. After spending two plus months in Fernley, NV with temps as low as 4 degrees, we all wanted to warm both our bodies and our rigs up. So the best way to accomplish that was to head to Quartzsite.

Kathy planned and scheduled a get together and notified everyone. So we all got together and hashed over old times. It was really fun and I saw some people I hadn’t seen since working at Amazon.

I took my friend Sara along as she was interested in working at Amazon next year.

Everyone brought goodies to eat and it there was plenty to talk about. Barb, Kathy and Al chatting away.

Even Jessica and Max from Harper’s magazine were there.

It was a great time. The day was probably the worst day we had experienced since getting to Quartzsite as it was very cloudy and the sun never did break thru. But we all had a great time reliving some of the crazy Amazon experiences and finding out what everyone was going to be doing and where they were going this year.

Hiking to Palm Canyons

Posted on January 25, 2014 by Jim Melvin

Palm Canyon Hike

The other day a bunch of us drove the 23 miles down to the Palm Canyon turnoff and the 7 miles on a washboard gravel road to the Palm Canyons trailhead. It was only a 1/2 mile hike up the canyon to the spot where you can see the palms growing on the walls of the canyon.

This is looking in the opposite direction out to the Chocolate Mountains.

A bunch of us gathered at the trailhead.

You can see the palms growing out of the rock.

A couple more pics of the canyon.

Sara checking out the canyon.

We met this couple coming down the trail. I knew them from Amazon. Funny how you always manage to find friends in the most out of the way places.

Some of the group decided to hike further up the canyon.

A better shot of the palms. It is amazing how they grow up there among all the rocks.

We are planning another hike to a trail we passed before the Palm Canyons trail so stay tuned.

Lake Havasu Balloon Festival

Posted on January 21, 2014 by Jim Melvin

Soooo behind on blogging

I am so behind on both writing and reading posts it is pathetic. It seems like there is always something that gets my attention instead. I usually spend my morning on the computer but I always seem to find other things that take up my time. I will try to bring you up to date.

Barbara and Katie come to visit

A few days ago Barbara and Katie of Me and My Dog fame came by to pay us a visit. I haven’t seen her since Rockhound State Park in NM last April. It was really good to see them. Here is Katie in her new fancy stroller.

Barbara is located down Old Yuma Rd near the Big tent.

Lake Havasu Balloon Festival

I had stopped by Kathy and Chuck, my friends from Amazon, one day and they mentioned that they were going to drive into Lake Havasu to the Balloon Festival to meet our other friends Barb and Chuck. I decided to tag along so off we went to Lake Havasu. We all met at the Walmart there and Barb and Chuck parked their rig and we all headed over to the Balloon Festival.

Unfortunately we did not see any balloons go up as it was late when we got there and we left too early to see the glow. However we did go on the grounds and ate lunch. Here is a photo of Kathy, Chuck, Chuck and Barb.

This little girl was doing a bang up job on the drums.

There were lots of things going on overhead.

There were also well trained dogs catching frisbies.

London Bridge is not falling down

We stopped to walk down to the London Bridge.

It was a great day being able to get together with all my friends at Amazon. I enjoyed seeing them away from Amazon as it was so much better.

Arrived in Quartzsite

Posted on January 7, 2014 by Jim Melvin

Wonderful time with family and friends

I was really glad to see my family and so many friends for the holidays. Bev and Bob were great hosts and showed me a wonderful time. On the 3rd I left their house to return to my rig to get it ready for the trip to Quartzsite. B & B had gone out to Jimmy’s Famous American Tavern and picked up some chili and deviled eggs for me and dropped them off at the rig. This is a pic of Bev with Chica.

I usually only see my family once a year at Christmas and it is always a great time.

Back on the road

I left So CAL on the 4th and landed in Quartzsite that afternoon. I immediately drove to the RV Pit Stop and filled up with propane then headed to the La Posa West LTVA where I paid my $40 for my first two weeks here. Then it was off to the dump station where I dumped my tanks and filled up with fresh water. Now I am ready to go. I found many friends who had just arrived that day and John led me to a great spot. It sure feels good to be out in the desert again. We have a great spot with lots and lots of room for anyone who would like to join us.

A bit chilly

The days have been nice with clear blue skies. Yesterday the wind blew from the north. Everyone was saying that it was blowing the cold air in from Fernley, NV where I worked at Amazon. Last night the temperature got down to 31. I didn’t run the furnace but had the catalytic heater running all night. Here are a couple of pics showing how Chica stays warm.

Her favorite spot is right in front of the Wave 3 catalytic heater.

All of us are quite comfortable out here in the desert as you can see from the next pic. Working on a rig you always need a box of wine handy. HA!

Come out and join us

If you are anywhere near this area (within 1,000 miles – HA!) stop in and join us. Roger and John went into town and picked up a lot of firewood and we have fires every night under the stars. During the day it warms up nicely and we always have a Happy Hour to BS about just about any subject anyone can think of.

Enjoying family friends and WARM weather

Posted on December 29, 2013 by Jim Melvin

Back in Southern California and loving it

This year I decided to drive to So CAL for the holidays. I used to fly in from Reno, NV after working for Amazon, but this year after rescuing Chica from the depths of Mesa, AZ I decided that driving would be much better.

I stopped in at the Beatty RV Park in Beatty, NV for the first night and then drove the next night to O’Neill Park in Orange County. Then called my sister Bev and Chica and I spent the next few nights with Bev and Bob. They were thrilled to see Chica and she got along well with their dog Lando.

The next day Bev had invited a bunch of old friends over to have a party. It was great fun seeing everyone and catching up with all they and I have done.

It was a blast seeing everyone. Then we headed inside to exchange presents.

Jimmy’s Famous American Tavern

The next day it was off to see my famous tavern in Dan Point, CA. What a neat place! I wish it was named after me. That Jimmy must be rich.

Here I am having a glass of wine. Jimmy’s had a beautiful view of the ocean.

Here I am having a great time with Bev.

Great to see Mom!

The following day we stopped in to visit my Mom. I took Chica with us and as you can see she made herself at home on my mother’s lap. It was sure great seeing her and we had a good conversation.

Christmas Day

Then Bev and Bob had my niece’s Dani and Megan over with Todd and Chris. It was also a good time. I got to meet Harper who is Megan and Chris’s new baby daughter. She was such a dear.

Bev and Harper on Harper’s first Christmas.

Chris and Chica sure had fun together.

After all the company had gone home Chica and I had a nice afternoon enjoying the beautiful warm temps and blue sky.

It sure was a great couple of days. Then I went back to O’Neill Park and my RV and Chica and I are just relaxing and enjoying this great weather. I will be seeing more friends before I leave on the 4th. I will then be headed for Quartzsite, AZ to meet up with more friends in the desert for our 4th annual GTG.

From Super HOT to Super COLD

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Jim Melvin

Played Hookey

Last Monday I called in sick Cough, cough!) to go with friends to visit a brothel. We all went to the World Famous Mustang Ranch for lunch and a tour of the place. It sure beat working at Amazon, that is for sure. HA!

We got there and had lunch at their Wild Horse Saloon restaurant/bar. Lunch was good especially with the pole dancers in the background. After lunch we then took the tour. It started with a big room where your could buy souvenirs as well as many adult toys. Having worked at Amazon we see many more adult toys then even at the Mustang Ranch. HA!

Our tour guide told us all about the ranch and took us through many of the rooms where the girls do their thing with their clients. It was very interesting to see the many different styles in each room.

We were not allowed to bring in either cameras or cell phones so I couldn’t get any pics. However we did get several pics once we got outside.

Here is a great pic of the girls in our group.

Us guys strike a few poses as well.

It was a great time which we all enjoyed.

Weather dips in single digits

The weather here has dipped into the single digits. It is very cold at night. One morning I woke up and checked the temps. It said it was 3 degrees feeling like -6. Hows that for cold?

My 20 gallon propane tank was empty one morning when I awoke and the furnace was blowing cold air. YUK! I switched over to my 5 gallon tank. A couple of nights later I awoke at 2:30 in the morning and found the tank was empty. I had to switch over to my propane tank in my RV. It was very cold going out in my pajamas. I decided to have the park fill the 20 gallon tank 1/2 full so hopefully I have enough propane to last until I leave.

Tanks frozen

Since the weather is so cold all my tanks have frozen. I have not had water for about almost a week. The weather warmed up yesterday and when I got home I was able to run my water. However when I got up this morning there was barely a trickle out of the tap. I hope that it will thaw out some so I can take a nice shower as I really need one.

I am not the only one in that predicament. Many of the other campers I have talked to have the same problem.

4 working days to go

My last working day is Wednesday. I plan to get everything packed up and ready to go and leave here Friday morning. I will arrive in SO CA on Saturday to enjoy time with family and friends on Sunday and for the 2 weeks after that. My sister has planned getting together with family and many friends I have not seen for over a year. It should be a blast!!

First Week At Amazon

Posted on October 26, 2013 by Jim Melvin

Orientation

I reported to Amazon on Saturday 10/19 for orientation. I have been through this twice before so I am familiar with the procedure. Saw some of the same movies I had seen before, but portions of it had been updated.

In the afternoon it was off to Safety School. Then we got off work at 5:30. I headed straight home and Chica was right their to greet me. It had been a long day for her as well and she was very excited to see me.

My Shift

Sunday is the first day of my shift and I work through Wednesday. They start us right out on 10 hour days from 7:00am to 5:30pm. The first week they gave us a break and Monday and Tuesday we only worked 5 hours.

My Job

This year they made me a Stower. I get the products from receiving and stow it in the bins. It will be much less walking then last year when I was a picker and picked the items out of the bins. Pickers usually walk between 12 – 14 miles per day. However a stower does not walk nearly as much, as we can put the items in any bin that has space.

It is a bit difficult this time of the year for a stower as the bins are very full and sometimes difficult to find some open space. However, once the customers start their Holiday shopping everything will change and I will have lots of open bins to stow the merchandise.

Sore Muscles

Your find out the muscles you don’t normally use as much as usual. I take two Aleve in the morning and it cures the soreness most of the day. I have done that every year I have worked at Amazon and believe me it really works.

Seniority

This is the third year I have worked at the Fernley, NV Fulfillment Center. I have had different jobs each year. The first year I was a Packer, the second year I was a Picker and this year I am a Stower. They always ask you to specify what job you would prefer, but I don’t think they pay much attention to it as each year I have had different jobs then what I stated that I preferred. Oh well, it is nice to be able to do other jobs as well. After going on my third year I am familiar with the layout of the building. It is a massive building and finding your way around it can be very difficult for new people. Most of them get very stressed out not even knowing where all the bathrooms and break rooms are let alone the many different production lines and storage areas.

Home Sweet Home

My home this year as it was the past 2 years is the Desert Rose RV Park. This year I have the same space as I did last year as I was able to reserve it when I departed last year.

Here I am in good ‘ole space #140. It is close to the front and the office.

A few things have changed since my last season at Amazon. I now have a vehicle and satellite TV. Both of those were thanks to the money I made last year working.

Another thing that has changed is Chica. She and I have been together since February 25. It has now been 8 months and 8,658 miles since we have been so lucky to meet each other. She is is her favorite spot on the couch with the sun coming through the window.

She also likes to get on top of the nice warm clothes after I bring them back from the laundromat.

She loves to crawl under them and go to sleep.

Friends

This year I have many friends both here at the RV Park and Amazon as well. I have run into many of the same people that I knew last year. I encouraged some of my friends at Quartzsite to work here this year. However, they all have different shifts so I don’t see them too often.

Weather

The weather during the day is really nice in the low 70’s but gets down into the low 30’s at night. I keep my catalytic heater going all night and turn on my furnace in the morning for a cycle just to warm up. However it is forecast to go down into the low 20’s next week at night. BRRRRRRRRR! I also have a small electric heater I will run once it gets really cold.

I also have a dog walker that I pay $5 per walk to come and walk Chica on the days when I am working. There is another person in the park that cooks really great meals and I can schedule them on a couple of my days off. YUUUUUUM! After 10 hours of work on your feet you don’t really feel like cooking.

I cannot post every day but will try to post as much as I can on my days off.

Arrived in Fernley

Posted on October 18, 2013 by Jim Melvin

My route to Fernley

I left Albuquerque on Sunday and traveled to the Meteor Crater RV Park just outside of Winslow, AZ. It is a nice park and offers a 15% discount to Escapees. I stayed here back in 2010 on my way to my first Balloon Fiesta.

From there I drove to Bullhead City, AZ where I spent 2 nights with my brother-in-law’s twin brother. The weather was much warmer there then in Albuquerque with temps getting into the 80’s.

On Wednesday I drove to the Beatty RV Park in Beatty, AZ. I always stay there at least once a year either coming or going from my winter job in Fernley, NV.

On to Fernley

Then on Thursday made the 288 mile drive up highway 95 to the Desert Rose RV Park in Fernley, NV. This will be home for Chica and I for the next 2+ months. The weather was very nice during the day with temps in the low 70’s. However it is colder at night with temps in the low 30’s.

Parked in my old space from last year

Last year I reserved my old space #140. It is close to the office and in the front of the park. Shannon greeted me as I drove in. She is in the same space as last year right next to me. Rodger also came over to say Hi and told me how things are going thus far.

Requested to be a picker but got stower instead

I had requested on my Amazon application that I wanted to be a picker. Instead this year I will be a stower. The stower puts all the merchandise on the shelves. I am hearing good things about this job and it will be much less walking then the picker job I had last year (12-14 miles per day). Already I am glad they gave me this job and I haven’t even started.

My first day will be tomorrow when I have orientation. I will have the same work days as last year – Sunday through Wednesday with Thursday, Friday and Saturday off until the peak season hits.

Lots of honey dos today

I have lots of things to take care of today including a nice long shower, lots of laundry, set up Drs. appointments for renewing my prescriptions, empty out my car, hook up 20 gallon propane tanked supplied by the park, etc. So I will be busy.

I will try to take some pics and get them in my next post of the surrounding area.