It has been an interesting week. The weather here in Phoenix, Arizona, has been a bit of a roller coaster. One day it’s nearly perfect and the next day it’s anything but. Along with the ups and downs of the temperature, the wind has been relentless causing dust and dirt to permeate every square inch of my RV.

Spring Cleaning
With that said, the RV needs a good spring cleaning. As our departure date nears, I like to go through every cabinet and closet. I usually start with the pantry. When was the last time you checked the expiration date on your spices? Eek! At least three of mine ended up in the trash. I’m pretty sure the Rosemary with the expiration year of 2017 has lost its flavor by now. 🥴
And although I feel really good about the cleaning progress I’m making, all that dust and dirt has caused a ‘dry eye’ flare-up. It’s brutal when this happens and I struggle for relief. This means as part of my dry eye relief protocol, I have to limit my computer screen time. Endless hours looking at the screen on my laptop just adds to the eye irritation.
So, in this week’s post, I got nothing. Nothing to write about other than letting ya know I’ve been busy with RV cleaning and doing my best to stay away from my laptop. No hiking. No photography. No travel tales. Gosh, I’m even using photos from Pexels today. Can you believe I’m not using my own images? I think that’s a first!
But come on … who doesn’t like cute doggie pics? Plus, these particular photos seem to fit my current mood.

On that note, please excuse my absence for the next … week or two? I’ll miss reading your tales and seeing your lovely images, but right now, my vision is a little blurry and my eyes are irritated, thus forcing a blogging break upon me. Sigh!
Have a great Sunday and a great week and we’ll talk soon!


Good to see I’m in good company suffering from dry eye conditions. Hope yours are better now and you’re prepped and ready to journey to your summer home. Wishing a safe trip for you.
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Thank you for letting us know, Ingrid. Lovely doggie images. I, too,have been going through closets, cabinets, and pantry. 🙂
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Thank you and you are very welcome Amy.
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I hope your eyes feel better after the break!
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Thank you for the well wishes. 😊
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Hoping the break brings you relief of the dry eye irritation. Take good care of yourself. XO
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Thank you Sue. By limiting my screen time (along with treatment), my eyes are finally starting to feel a little better. We all need those breaks. 😊
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We’ve been having silly weather here in the Midwest too! Of course that’s normal any time of year up here. It’s quite the guessing game knowing when to put down our garden! Good luck on your spring cleaning!
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When we lived in northern IL, I learned not to plant my annuals until Mother’s Day which was sometimes difficult when Mother Nature would fool me with lovely weather in April. We’ve made a ton of progress in the cleaning dept. and just have a few repairs on the RV to complete and we’ll be ready to roll. Temps in Phoenix have us turning on the A/C telling us it’s about time to move on.
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Well narrated article.
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Thank you!
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You can’t win with dust, desert dust.
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No, you can’t. Ah, such is life in the desert. We’ll be heading back to the Midwest soon where I can complain about the bugs and humidity. 🤣
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Que lindo dog
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Thank you!
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Your pups are so precious!
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😎
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Im not a fan of cats , but dogs are fantastic, thank you for sharing this wonderful post.
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Thanks … I love cute dog pics!
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So sorry about your eye flare up 😦 Indeed it has been chilly and windy. We stayed inside most of the time since we both have Valley Fever now.
With this week heating up, hope you are able to see clearly.
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I have my good days and bad days, but I think I found some relief with my multi-pronged approach to treating dry eye. Hope you guys are feeling okay.❤
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Ha! Love dog and 📷. Good watchdog, good watchdog. 😎
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I’m trying to convince my husband that we ‘need’ our own dog … not making much headway. 😆 Guess I’ll have to settle for doggie pics and visits with my SIL’s dogs.
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🙄🤔
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While we don’t have desert dust, everyone is having eye problems because of all the pollen that is swirling in the wind. Definitely give you eyes a rest and I’ll look forward to when you next share some of your lovely photos.
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Seems as though it’s that time of year for many of us. Not only do we have the desert dust in Phoenix, everything is blooming … which I love seeing and smelling the blooms, but could do without the pollen. 😏 Oh well, hopefully, I’ll get out with the camera.
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Cute pet
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Thank you!
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Welcome 🙏
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Have a great break! And enjoy that cleaning!
We have guests here this week… but next week is open. I’ll text you!
Hugs!
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Thanks Nancy. Enjoy your time with friends and we’ll talk soon.
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Hope the weather improves and you are feeling better soon!
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We enjoyed a gorgeous day today but now the heat will start to roll in this week hitting 90. I’m almost looking forward to the humidity in northern Wisconsin. 😏
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Yep, aging eyes just don’t have the same sense of humor that younger eyes do, Ingrid. My eye drops are never far away. –Curt
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Yeah, I’ve been doing the drops and a couple of other things and finally starting to feel some relief. This has been probably one of my worst flare-ups. I’m hoping the humidity in the Midwest this summer will help.😊
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Good luck! It should make a difference, Ingrid.
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Thank you Curt. Stepping away from the computer screen has already made a difference.
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Have a great break!!
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Thank you!
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Just slid back up to Colorado yesterday. Tired of the wind in Phoenix and we have a couple of appointments up here. Curious – What direction are you headed when you depart?
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Can’t say I blame you for heading back to CO. The weather this winter in Phoenix wasn’t as pleasant as we’re accustomed to. We’ll be taking I-40 to TX and then angling up to northern WI. You know how much I love Wolf Creek Pass 🤣 … not. We try to avoid the passes in CO unless we’re meandering around the state.
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Bummer! Sorry about your eyes! I hope they are back to normal very soon. But, everyone needs a break now and then so get some rest and I’ll look forward to hearing from you when you get back. Oh, I love your doggie pics!
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I’m hoping to get my eyes back to something more normal in a few weeks. Normal for me, anyway. Being somewhat housebound this winter, I was really missing my dog. I ‘almost’ have Al convinced to add a fur baby to our RV. We’ll see, but at least I got a bit of a doggie fix by scrolling through pics.
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Ingrid, I still miss our dog every day!
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I hear ya … right there with you!
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Good luck with your eyes!
Having to clean the RV ourselves is – believe it or not – one of the reasons why we decided against buying one. We’re not good at cleaning, not even our own place, where we have help every 2 weeks. We’re just lazy people.
More about our (nixed) RV plans later.
Take care,
Pit
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Haha! I hear ya on the cleaning. Not my favorite thing to do either, and I had let things get a little out of control around here. Thus, a deep dive was long overdue. I look forward to hearing all about the nixed RV plans.
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So, Ingrid! It sounds like it has been extremely windy in your neck of the woods as well. That dirt, grit, and sand does get old! I take fish oil supplements and put drops in my eyes, twice a day, to prevent my “dry eye” to act up. So far so good… But, if I change anything about his regime, I suffer from the same symptoms as you. Hope you feel better soon! Enjoy that forced blogging break!
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Yeah, it’s been a brutal winter with the wind. Usually, I can manage my dry eyes pretty well considering I had punctal plugs put in many years ago, but this time I developed Blepharitis. I seem to be getting some relief with a multi-pronged approach and staying away from the computer has also helped. Plus the blogging break will allow me to focus on getting ready for the journey to WI this summer.😀
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Hi, Ingrid,
I’ve battled dry eyes for years and can sympathize. Tree pollen is just about two weeks away here and I dread it. Enjoy your break and please know we’ll be here when you get back. Getting second vaccine this week and hit the road two weeks later. Hope to leave the pollen behind. Joe
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Yep, that pollen sure doesn’t help with the eyes. Sounds like a great idea to hit the road, not that ya need any excuse, huh. We’re hoping to have the RV wheels rolling in early May, but we have a bunch of things to tend to before we can get going. Ah, always something!
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Hi Ingrid, your post reminds me of an episode of Sandra Lee’s Semi-Homemade. Her food is still delicious, even when it’s not from scratch! Thanks for taking the time to say hello. Take care of those eyes and have a great week!
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Thank you, Suzanne, and I remember watching Sandra Lee. She had some great ideas. Hopefully, I’ll be back to regular posting soon.
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I love your analogy, Suzanne – it’s spot on! Yes, Ingrid, do take care of yourself and feel better soon!
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Thank you, Mary, and yes, Suzanne’s analogy is great!
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I’ve been house cleaning too – though for different reasons – not very spring like here, and still in a lockdown…
Dry eyes – I’ve found two things that help – I use an over the counter eye drop that does NOT have a preservative. Also, every morning I wash my eyelids with a dilute solution of water and Johnson’s baby shampoo. Rinse well, of course. It keeps Blepharitis under control and seems to greatly improve dry eye too.
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I had punctal plugs put in many years ago which helped but the wind and extremely dry conditions this winter resulted in a case of Blepharitis (a first for me). I’m using preservative-free drops, eye wipes, and a couple of other things and think it’s easing up. Also, I’m pretty sure I’ll get more relief when we get to the humid Midwest.🤞
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Hadn’t heard of the plugs before. We also have a small humidifier that helps when the house humidity gets very low.
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I’ve been thinking more and more about a small humidifier and may get one next winter. I had never heard of Blepharitis until I started Googling due to the red scaly skin on my eyelids along with all the other symptoms. Ah, this getting old stuff ain’t for sissies. 😏
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We all love cute doggie pics. And your post is a great reminder that we all need to allow ourselves a few shortcuts here and there. Good luck with the rest of your cleanup!
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Thank you, Donna. I needed a good dose of a doggie fix and enjoyed scrolling through all the pics to find images for this post. Now I’m trying to convince my husband that we ‘need’ a dog. He’s not buying it. 😆
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I totally get it with the eye thing. Dennis wears contact lenses and there were days in Arizona when he could barely go outside. I have a big issue with my right eye called Vitreous Pucker, for which there is no cure but surgery and that isn’t a guarantee. I think sitting at the computer surely doesn’t help. Take a deep breath and chillax for a couple weeks, girlfriend…Sometimes our body knows better than we do that it’s time to slow down…Hugs to you two…Stay healthy!!
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Thank you, Donna. I always enjoy hearing from you. As we prepare for our journey to Hayward, the list of things to tend to seems to only grow and not get shorter.😏 I never thought I’d say that I’m looking forward to the humidity in the Midwest, but I am. You guys should come up and visit!
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Have a nice blog break, Ingrid. The dog pics are so cute! That seemingly never-ending wind has been pounding Las Vegas too. Finally, a nice calm day today with 80 forecast. The dust is ridiculous but that’s desert life, right? My truck is in the garage most of the time, but it’s still got dust on it anyway.
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Thank you, John. Yes, that is desert life! Fortunately, today was gorgeous here as well and my eyes are starting to feel somewhat better. The humidity in the Midwest is calling. I have my UP reservations made including an overnight on Mackinac Island. Can’t wait!
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i hope you feel better soon.
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Thank you, Katie. I appreciate the well wishes. 😀
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Anytime
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I hope u feel better soon
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I love cute doggie pictures! I hope your eyes feel better soon. You know the internet, for better or worse, will be right where you left it 😊
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After perusing all the doggie pics on Pexel, I tried to convince Al that we ‘need’ a dog. So far, he doesn’t agree. 😆 We’re leaving for WI in early May. You guys heading up that way this summer?
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I hope u feel better soon
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