Rain, Wind, and a Potluck

Maybe it has something to do with planning dinners at the Diamond J Recreation Hall. The last time I was involved with having a dinner there, it rained. This evening was the campground potluck there, and of course, it rained today.

But the rain was needed, and the potluck was well attended with many tasty dishes provided by fellow-RV'ers, so it all worked out just fine.

Since it was quite a bit colder today, I didn't do as much walking, just a short walk early this morning before the cold front arrived. We watched the clouds roll in from the west and then roll out again over the Tucson Mountains to the northeast. Another wave of clouds and rain came after the first and that's how the entire day went. Just as we were getting ready to walk over to the clubhouse, the wind got up with fierce gusts for awhile. Now we're cozy and warm back at the rig and I hear the rain starting up again.

I spent the day puttering with plans of organizing our new home. I also cleared out much of our little storage under the bed and went through old papers that we can get rid of now. I got caught up with some of my blog reading and worked a couple of puzzles. And I baked a cherry dump cake for the potluck.

Dump cakes, or pie cakes, are very easy to make and people seem to love them. Here's the "recipe":

Spray a 9" x 13" baking pan. Take two regular size cans of just about any fruit pie filling and dump them into the pan. My favorites are cherry or blueberry. Sprinkle a box of dry cake mix on top of the filling. I used white cake today, but yellow will work as well. I then sprinkled a handful of chopped walnuts on top of the cake mix. Drizzle a stick of melted margarine or butter over the top. I topped it off with a sprinkle of sugar and cinnamon, but that's entirely optional. Bake at 350 degrees for about 45- 50 minutes, or until the top is lightly browned and the filling is bubbling.

We enjoyed the potluck very much. We talked to several folks we hadn't met before, as well as visiting with people we already know.

Sandra is filling her plate, as other folks are going through the line.



JoAnn and Sandra visit with another guest. Doc Justin and his wife, Christine are on the right.


Doc Justin and Christine are the owners of this campground.

Most of the people we visited with this evening came here planning to spend only a few days or a week, and have stayed on because it is so beautiful here. It's interesting to hear other people say that, I guess I thought it was just us. There really is something about this place that draws us in.