Days 1-3 of Lupe’s 1st Summer of 2021 Dingo Vacation to New Mexico!
4-30-21, late afternoon – Grandma’s computer was on the blink. Seemed to SPHP like the Wi-Fi wasn’t working, in part because a little message on the monitor said so. What the message didn’t say, or even hint at, was how to fix it. Windows 10 – so cryptic! Fiddling with the Wi-Fi gizmo plugged into the back of the computer in case there was a bad USB port or loose connection didn’t seem to make any difference.
Lanis will know what to do, SPHP!
Yep, Lanis is our ace in the hole, Loopster! Guess I better give him a call.
Luckily, Lanis answered right away. He asked a few questions, then told SPHP what to do. So easy, when you know how! A couple of clicks and Wi-Fi was working again. Grandma’s computer was as good as ever!
Thanks, Lanis, we’re golden! How are you, anyway? Been months since I’ve talked to you.
Oh, life’s been exciting, SPHP! The usual work grind, and my van got stolen a week ago.
What?! Your van got stolen?
Yeah. From work. Yvonne went out to bring it around at the end of the day, and came back asking where I’d parked it, because it wasn’t behind the building. Thought she was joking, but sure enough, it was gone. We reported it stolen right away. The very next day, without realizing it was stolen, police in eastern South Dakota tried to stop the van for a minor traffic violation. A high speed chase ensued all the way to Mitchell where the police blew the tires out with some spike strips to stop it. Whereupon the van promptly burst into flames and burnt to a crisp.
That’s terrible! Sounds like a movie! So now you’re without a vehicle?
Yup! Gotta run, SPHP! Been waiting for a ride home, and it’s here now.
OK! Thanks again for helping with Grandma’s computer, Lanis! Sorry to hear about your van.
Just one of those things, SPHP! Glad to help!
5-7-21 – Lanis sounded terrible on the phone. So down! Only yesterday he’d been all excited. Was he sick?
I’m sorry, SPHP, but I can’t go tomorrow. Have to work.
Work! But tomorrow’s Saturday, and we’re all set!
I know, but the store is open. The owner usually comes in on Saturdays so I can get the day off, but she’s attending a graduation tomorrow. She’s not coming in. We’re way behind on computer repairs, and Yvonne isn’t fully trained yet, so I’ve got to be there. I’m sorry, I was really looking forward to it. Yvonne can go, though.
Oh, I’m so sorry you can’t come, Lanis! Loopster and I were really looking forward to this trip with you. It’s been forever since we’ve gone anywhere together. Of course, we’re glad to have Yvonne come along, but it would have been so much better if you could have come, too!
I know it, SPHP. Feel the same way, but that’s the way it is. Nothing I can do about it.
A crying shame. I’ll call you tomorrow morning sometime between 5:00 & 6:00 AM to let you know when we’re ready to come pick Yvonne up.
5-8-21, 5:45 AM – Hard to believe this was it. Last time ever setting out from home on a new adventure in the faithful G6. An incredibly sad moment.
Alrighty, Looper! Guess, it’s time. Puppy, ho!
I’m in back, SPHP?
Yup. Since we’ll have company.
5-8-21, 6:04 AM – Lanis and Yvonne were ready and waiting. Loopster’s exuberant greeting was so loud, that SPHP had to plead for some degree of restraint. A bit early on Saturday morning to be rousing the entire neighborhood!
Greetings and a few moments of pleasant conversation were exchanged, then everyone except Lanis, resigned to his fate, piled into the G6.
For 350 miles, the G6 purred reliably along as always. A couple of brief stops in Wyoming at the Mule Creek Junction rest area and a Subway in Wheatland were it.
5-8-21, 12:30 PM, Pedersen Toyota in Fort Collins, CO – SPHP lowered the windows and provided water. Fortunately, not a particularly warm day.
Wait here in the G6, Looper, while Yvonne and I go find Megan. This might take a while, but we’ll come and check on you now and then.
Go do what you need to do, SPHP, but don’t take too long! I’ll be chillin’ here in the meantime.
Petersen Toyota was busy! Megan Alayon, internet sales manager, whom SPHP had been dealing with, was tied up with other clients at first, but soon appeared. Super friendly and energetic, she had the RAV4 that SPHP had settled on all spiffed up and first in line out front ready for a test drive.
A few minutes explaining any features SPHP had questions about, and Megan turned over the keys. Yvonne hopped aboard as navigator, while Megan remained at the dealership to tend to other business.
The RAV4 was all so different! 13 days from now it would have been 12 years exactly since SPHP had bought the G6 brand new. An awful lot had changed technology-wise in that amount of time. Brand spanking new, though! What’s not to like? After 5 or 6 miles of tooling aimlessly around Fort Collins, it was back to Petersen Toyota. The RAV4 was a go!
Megan confirmed the previously agreed upon price. There were papers to sign and insurance to set up. Meanwhile, Yvonne checked on Lupe.
5-8-21, 2:44 PM – Done deal! Lupe, Yvonne, and Megan Alayon gathered in front of the American Dingo’s blazing blue, brand new adventure toy to commemorate the occasion.
Megan extended congratulations on the purchase of a terrific vehicle, and offered to help anytime SPHP ran into a problem or question. SPHP thanked Megan for all her help and tremendous responsiveness. Soon Megan had to head off to assist other clients. The G6 and RAV4 then got moved to the back of the lot where Yvonne helped SPHP transfer all the adventure gear from the G6 to the RAV4.
A certain Carolina Dog transferred, too!
And that was it. SPHP’s turn to hand over some keys now! The G6 was being donated to Lanis, and Yvonne had come along to drive it back to South Dakota for him. SPHP gave Yvonne the keys. Fond farewells, and Yvonne started the journey back N in the G6.
The American Dingo wasn’t going N, though. Upon reaching I-25, SPHP turned the gleaming RAV4 S.
Where we off to, SPHP?
Oh, not that much farther today, Looper. Arvada!
Hotel Dusty?
Precisely! The weather is supposed to turn cold and dreary, so we’ll hole up with Uncle Joe, Aunt Andrea, and Cousin Dusty for a couple of days. Then it’s off in the new RAV4 on 2021’s first Dingo Vacation! How does that sound?
Fantastic!
5-8-21, 5:26 PM, Arvada, CO – Uncle Joe, Aunt Andrea, and Cousin Dusty all came piling out out as soon Lupe arrived. Uncle Joe, especially, was both astonished, and very enthusiastic about the new RAV4. Lupe hadn’t been to Hotel Dusty in more than 3 years, but she clearly remembered what it was all about. In no time at all, Lupe and SPHP were ensconced in Hotel Dusty’s luxurious Cowboy Room.
Since the weather was still good this evening, there was a group walk around the 100 acre field. At nearly 15, Cousin Dusty didn’t want to chase tennis balls or fetch gigantic sticks anymore, but she was still up for a swim in Ralston Creek, an idea that Lupe wasn’t as keen on.
This momentous day ended with a short evening trip to Golden in the RAV4 for frozen yogurt and a sniff at dusk along Clear Creek. By the time Lupe got back to Hotel Dusty, a thunderstorm struck with snow granules that fortunately did not turn into hail!
The next 2 days were gloomily overcast with occasional rain. Too soggy for walks around the now muddy 100 acre field, but there were journeys on the bike path with Cousin Dusty up Ralston Creek to Jungle Bridge or Utah Bridge. On the last evening, Lupe got to visit friends Dave & Beckie Covill in their lodge-like home up in the mountains. May was nearly a third gone, yet it was snowing up there!
Lupe received a warm welcome from both Dave and Beckie. They even presented her with a package of Dream Sticks. Naturally, the Carolina Dog had to try one right away. It proved to be an instant hit!
Loopster then got to relax on the comfy black couch while Dave, Beckie and SPHP enjoyed a delicious dinner of pizza, salad, and a beer followed up by ice cream for dessert.
Beckie was into birding, so there were birds to watch flitting about the feeders out by the big deck. Dave had plenty of news about upcoming peakbagging expeditions he was going on this summer, including Denali (20,310 ft.) in early June!
It was all very interesting! The time flew. Soon it was getting dark and starting to snow hard. As Lupe and SPHP prepared to depart, Dave and Beckie both had presents for SPHP, too. So super nice of them! What a great evening it had been!
5-11-21, 8:04 AM, Arvada, CO at the Jungle Bridge along Ralston Creek – Still cool, overcast, and drippy this morning. Lupe and Cousin Dusty had made it to the Jungle Bridge, but it was time to turn around. Both Uncle Joe and Aunt Andrea were back at work. Basking in the luxury of their hospitality at Hotel Dusty was coming to an end.
An hour later, the Carolina Dog was on her way.
Where to now, SPHP?
As cold as it is, we’re going to keep going S, Loopster! Farther S than you’ve ever been before!
The mighty RAV4 cruised onward, Lupe perched high up on the usual pile of gear, pillows and blankets. Dingo Vacation time! On the road to adventure, now with more room, new capabilities, and new horizons ahead! So much to look forward to!
Yet the G6 and hundreds of fabulous adventures in it were in mind, too. Fantastic times now in the rear view mirror, but never to be forgotten. Hopefully, years of happy days in the G6 were still ahead for Lanis, too.
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Megan Alayon, Internet Sales Manager – Pedersen Toyota, Fort Collins, CO:
email: malayon@pedersentoyotavolvo.com
mobile: 970-691-1624
Want more Lupe adventures? Choose from Lupe’s Summer of 2021 Dingo Vacations to New Mexico, Wyoming & the West Coast Adventure Index, Dingo Vacations Adventure Index or Master Adventure Index. Or subscribe free to new Lupe adventures.