After SIdepony, we kept busy in November and December.

We went to the Bone Dry Taphouse a couple times for music bingo. It is not challenging, but it is fun and they have good pizza and the best tap list in town.

We joined the Huachuca Art Association and took advantage of the open studio hours a couple times. I did some watercolor and Karla worked on jewelry and did some acrylic painting.

We made a drive to Parker Canyon Lake. We walked the trails but it was a little cloudy. It would be a nice place to visit on a hot, sunny day.

We continued to furnish our house. We bought some stuff from Amazon Marketplace and visited some thrift stores. We even bought a second-hand turntable so we can listen to records.

We are also getting settled with local doctors, dentists and optometrists. It really is our primary residence.

We went to the Urban Axe Yard for trivia a couple times. They only have trivia once per month and there is a specific theme.

Our favorite trivia is Friday’s at the High Heat Sports Grill and we only missed a couple times. Our best finish was 2nd place and a $25 gift card.

For Thanksgiving we went to Paula & Ro’s in Maricopa. It was fun to catch up with them and share some beer. Paula’s brother Jay and his wife Cindy joined us for dinner. There was a lot of good food and conversation.

The days after Thanksgiving is always the Bisbee Women’s Club Home Tour. This year it was in Warren. Karla and I visited all of the houses. There were some really cool and interesting places. There was also an art auction and we won some local art to decorate our new home. Karla also bought some local sandpaper art at the Saturday market.

We went to a reception at the Huachuca Art Association. It was nice to see the local art and talk to the artists.

Our friends from Las Cruces, Greg & Marianne, came for a visit. Greg had just finished a 100 mile run in Vail, AZ. It was great to see them and catch up. After some tasty burgers at Tombstone West End, we just stayed up and talked all night.

The church down the block from us set up a Christmas presentation called “Walk through Bethlehem.” It was more elaborate than I expected but it was very nice with actors and a complete storyline.

Karla started volunteering at the Friends of the Library Bookstore and we went to their Christmas party.

We went to the Miracle on 34th Street put on by the Sierra Vista Community Theater. Another good production and we are looking forward to more of their plays.

On December 20 we made a trip to Tucson. We had lunch at Barrio Brewing and stopped at Slow Body Beer Co. to check out their pop-up shop. We walked along 4th Ave and did some shopping. We bought some records at Wooden Tooth and some books at Antigone. We made a stop at Crooked Tooth before going to the hotel. We got ready for the evening and had a great dinner at Chela’s Latin Cuisine. We started with some queso fundido and shared the molcajete bowl. After dinner we went to the Century Room for A Charlie Brown Christmas by Vint, Versace & Black featuring the music of Vince Guaraldi. The Century Room is really cool and it was an entertaining show. When they were done, we talked with the band and bought their CD.

Before we left Tucson on Sunday we had an excellent breakfast at the Cup Cafe.

We searched high and low for Tom & Jerry batter. I do not think it exists outside the Midwest. So we made our own. It was easier than we thought and it turned out really good. We will be making our own from now on.

For Christmas eve we made a stuffed pork loin and watched some movies including “It’s a Wonderful Life”.

On Christmas day we went to the movie theater and watched “Marty Supreme“. This is our third Christmas in a row that we saw a movie with Timothee Chalamet. After the movie we stopped at PC’s Lounge for a drink and watched the end of the Vikings game.

The next day, Friday December 26, we packed up and headed towards Phoenix to see the Gophers in the Rate Bowl. We stopped at the Wren Südhalle for lunch and then headed downtown. We stayed at the Home2 Suites just a couple blocks away from Chase Field. So we checked in and walked to the stadium. After walking around the festivities outside, we went inside and walked around the stadium. It was an exciting game with many ups and downs that ended in a tie at the end of regulation. But the Gopher beat New Mexico in overtime for their 9th bowl win in a row.

After stopping at the hotel, we walked around downtown looking for a place to eat. We ended up at The Kettle Black for some tasty food and drinks. Then we took a Lyft to the Roosevelt Row area for a mini brewery tour. We sampled beer at the Sana Sana Cervecaria, Greenwood Brewing and Formation Brewing before taking an Uber back to the hotel.

For New Year’s Eve we made homemade enchiladas and watched movies including our traditional viewing of Casablanca.