There are a few roadside stands but their produce is not necessarily from Yuma. Even the local grocery stores don't support local farmers. But, most of the produce is shipped out of Yuma. There are buses pulling 'portable johnny's' with loads of Mexicans that come across the border each day to work the fields. Yuma has acres and acres of broccoli, kale, and lettuces. Access to good food is important enough to me that I know that I don't want to be too far from fresh local organic fruits and vegetables. I, too, spent several years gardening and spent lots of time squirrelling away food for winter. We would go each Saturday and load up on roasted green chiles, breads, apples, lettuces, tomatoes - beautiful produce! For those of you that don't know me well, I am an old Alabama girl whose roots are small family farmers that knew the value of 'poke sallet' and 'turnip greens'. I loved being in Santa Fe, NM for a month. That sounds easy enough, but it's not always a given. I need access to good food, good weather, and good campgrounds. I have had enough time on the road to know my priorities. I have always preferred living like the locals rather than like a tourist.

And, once we got to our destination, we were tourists trying to pack in as much as we could in the short time that we were there. It seems that when we were constantly on the go, we were always looking for the next campground, gas station and grocery store. It has given me a chance to reconnect with myself - if that makes sense.

I did find that I was ready to sit still for awhile, and am glad we reserved 5 months in Yuma. Phil, Hanni and I are loving life in our little RV. Living life didn't seem to leave a lot of blog time, but now I find that I miss the connection of so many friends in Blogville, and want to say 'hello'.

We also spent a month in Santa Fe, which was a real treat, and ended up in Yuma, AZ for the winter months. Well, in case you have wondered - 'I ain't dead yet'! We have had a whirlwind 4 months, traveling across country becoming residents of South Dakota, exploring the Black Hills, and meeting up with friends gathering in Denver.

We ain t dead yet