My Journey

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Some guys in Slab City told me about that place Park and I was thinking about checking it out but at the moment the hot springs are off limits for me. The day after I found Mex, I was backing out the camper door without the stairs in place, and had Mex in one hand, and I slipped. I landed on the door jamb and cut both my shins pretty good. Even worse than that though is that I may have cracked one of the shin bones (it hurts like hell all the time). A nurse looked at it while I was at the RV resort and said that she thought the bone was broke and that I should get an X-ray. My left leg and ankle are swollen and the left foot is bruised pretty bad. Today I went to Mexicali to get an X-ray (as she suggested) but they were swamped so they said come back tomorrow morning .....



I did get to see the outside of the bull ring since it was next door to the facility.....





I took a taxi from the border crossing to the facility. The driver went maybe 500' and we got pulled over by 2 cops. I have no idea what that was all about. I jumped out and moved on.....



And an update on Mex.....I took him to the vet Friday afternoon and he was really pleased with her progress. So she's off the pain killers and antibiotics. And she only needs bathed twice weekly (thankfully). The vet also cautioned me about Parvo Virus. Apparently it's out of control in Mexico and she won't be immune for up to a year. If I go south with her, he says I need to be extremely cautious. Even here in El Centro, they advise you to keep your puppy in your yard or indoors to keep them safe from the virus.....



Lots to think about as I hang here in Calexico.....

 

[bigskypylot]

Some guys in Slab City told me about that place Park and I was thinking about checking it out but at the moment the hot springs are off limits for me. The day after I found Mex, I was backing out the camper door without the stairs in place, and had Mex in one hand, and I slipped. I landed on the door jamb and cut both my shins pretty good. Even worse than that though is that I may have cracked one of the shin bones (it hurts like hell all the time). A nurse looked at it while I was at the RV resort and said that she thought the bone was broke and that I should get an X-ray. My left leg and ankle are swollen and the left foot is bruised pretty bad. Today I went to Mexicali to get an X-ray (as she suggested) but they were swamped so they said come back tomorrow morning .....

View attachment 386262

I did get to see the outside of the bull ring since it was next door to the facility.....

View attachment 386263

View attachment 386264

I took a taxi from the border crossing to the facility. The driver went maybe 500' and we got pulled over by 2 cops. I have no idea what that was all about. I jumped out and moved on.....

View attachment 386265

And an update on Mex.....I took him to the vet Friday afternoon and he was really pleased with her progress. So she's off the pain killers and antibiotics. And she only needs bathed twice weekly (thankfully). The vet also cautioned me about Parvo Virus. Apparently it's out of control in Mexico and she won't be immune for up to a year. If I go south with her, he says I need to be extremely cautious. Even here in El Centro, they advise you to keep your puppy in your yard or indoors to keep them safe from the virus.....

View attachment 386266

Lots to think about as I hang here in Calexico.....

View attachment 386267

Good to hear about Mex. I sure hope your status improves and pain subsides. Be safe out there!

 

[KE7JFF]

Just catching up on everything...holy cow...glad Mex is OK...if you ever head back up to Oregon, I know of someone who can help find him a home easily.

Regarding your Wal-Mart kick out, this is what I remember a Wal-Mart assistant manager at store up here told me: at 24 hour stores, they have an unofficial rule is that as long as your paying customer, keeping quiet, they don't mind a single overnight stay in your RV; the idea is that you are running in the store after a long drive, grabbing some supplies, sleeping and then leaving in the morning.

HOWEVER, with that said, many stores that have a shared big lot with other retailers generally don't allow overnight parking; I think most new Wal-Marts are like this now. He also mentioned that the non-24 hour locations generally don't like overnight camping but if you see a Wal-Mart over the road truck parked in the lot, its a good sign. If the location is in an city where there is a parking lot camping ordinance, police usually will ask everyone to clear out at 7 AM or so or earlier if there is a large crowd.

Interesting trip to a Mexican Urgent Care clinic; a friend of mine who goes to Mexico a lot loves those little clinics as he gets a yearly checkup when he goes thru in his business travels; He also swears by dentists down there, not because of the cost, but the fact they do so much good work with very little equipment here; the place he goes in Tijuana is just the DDS and his hygienist! He interestingly uses digital x-rays now as it shaves off 15 minutes per patient.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

We continue to spend our days and nights in either Calexico or El Centro. So there's really not much to say when it comes to travel. I went to a small festival one evening and could hardly believe how bad this band was. I've always thought I was the worst but now I know I was wrong.....



I know I haven't made it to Mexico yet, but I swear I'm always the only white guy.....



I went to an excellent little car show in Calexico and just loved the low riders that all the Latino guys were driving. You don't see much of this on the east coast.....









I think I was the only white guy again.....and I love that.....cause the Latino people are so friendly.....



One day I walked over to Mexicali, caught a cab, and went back for my leg X-ray ($11 US) and a haircut ($5 US). It's not broken but damn it still hurts a lot.....



And then there's Mex. Her wounds are healing nicely but now that she's walking I'm noticing that she's having a difficult time with her right front leg. So I called the vet and we were back in there yesterday, her third visit in 10 days. The news wasn't good for poor Mex. The vet said that she suffered a compression injury to the leg and one of the bones in the leg has stopped growing. It's causing her leg to curve, almost like a bow legged cowboy. He wants to do surgery on her as soon as her wounds are healed, which he estimates will be in 2 weeks. He will actually cut the defective bone in half so that it will allow the other bone to grow normally. So here we are.....more decisions to be made.....



This seems appropriate.....

 

[ghostdancer]

If and when you need some $$$, let us know.

 

[bigskypylot]

If and when you need some $$$, let us know.

+1

 

[unkamonkey]

Good for you Jerry. Around 50 years ago I picked my Black Lab pup out of the crib full of happy little faces with waggely tails because I could see that her right foreleg had been broken. The best dog I have ever had for a companion.
I hope you figure out the leg, OK, legs bit and there are some nice old Chebbys you showed.

 

[shellb]

+1 from me too.

The pure enjoyment I have gotten out of reading all of these adventures is priceless...

To be able to help along the way would make me happy!

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

So it's been a rather slow week on this journey.....up until today that is. I spent some time at Walmart of course.....it's free. There was this particularly unusual fellow that set up next to me. He was playing a stick and singing.....actually put out a bowl for tips.....



And then there was this very cool couple on their way to Mexico. Like me, they were taking advantage of a free place to stay. Now, the reason I call them a very cool couple is because of their generous offer. Of course they saw Mex, heard her story, and almost immediately asked if they could help pay for her surgery. Of course I don't know their financial situation, but I doubt they're rolling in the cash. Yep, they were very cool.....and they were very interesting as well.....



So yea, not much happened this week until today. I had noticed since leaving the vet's office on Monday, that Mex's leg was beginning to straighten itself out, each day a little better. Since it appeared to me that it got better, I took her back to the vet this afternoon and sure enough, the vet said it can happen and he said surgery would not be required. He gave her a Parvo booster and a kennel cough vaccine.....what a miracle I think it was that it healed itself.....



I had never mentioned this in my previous posts, but the day I found Mex, I had taken her to Petco to get some puppy supplies. Well, there was a woman that worked there that just fell for Mex in a very big way. So we've been visiting her (Melanie) off and on since then. Two days ago she saw us hanging out in the mall parking lot so she stopped by and said that she'd be willing to watch Mex for up to a month while I traveled.....



As you can see, Mex just absolutely loves her and likewise. I decided that it was in Mex's best interest to go with her. She's going to bring Mex to work everyday, they're going to start training her, and she said that they're even going to feature Mex in a Petco publication. And if she finds a great family, I gave her permission to adopt him out to that family.....



I was in that Petco for about an hour today handing over Mex and all of her supplies and paperwork, and several families were already interested in adopting her, but Melanie said nope, she's holding out (honestly I think she wants time with Mex). And oh my gosh, Mex was just loving all that attention.....barely had time to say goodbye.....





I was thinking that Mex was born in hell but when she flew over that border wall she landed in heaven and she's flying high now. I'll sure miss that pup.....I really loved her.....sometimes it sure is hard to do the right thing.....

 

[stioc]

What an awesome update on Mex and I hope your leg is healing well too.

 

[unkamonkey]

Nice write up.
Jerry you are a great person and it looks like Mex has found a good human companion. It is hard to give up a dog you love. My mother decided that my Black Lab was hers. My father loved her as well. You don't argue with your mother and even if I was always referred to as Samantha's boy for years, she had a very good home.
Crap, that was like 40 years ago...

 

[parkkitchings]

Jerry.......Something tells me it's all going to work out for Mex. Sure hope we cross paths as I'll be back on the road beginning the 28th of this month (see below) for almost five months. For what you did for that Pup the least I can do is buy lunch.

Proposed route.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

I think sometimes I should be more aware of and thankful for the people that belong to this site and reply to my posts. I need to do a better job of that. I'm very appreciative of everyone that offered to help financially with Mex's bills. It says a lot for the type of quality people that are attracted to this site. Shellb....I really liked what you had to say.....real nice. Ghost dancer and skypylot.....thank you. To everybody else unnamed.....thanks ! Park.....yea I'm always up for a free lunch. And it would be great to hang out one day.....

Last night after posting here I had to go out and celebrate Mex's good fortunes. Since I was in the land of many Latinos, I celebrated with some good spicey Mexican fast food.....



Then it was early to bed since it would be a night without Mex.....meaning I wasn't up at midnight, 2:30 a.m., and 5:00 a.m. It sure felt good to sleep in a bit as well. I woke up this morning to find my new friends from North Carolina camped nearby. We've both been hanging around this town for a few weeks. These guys are hard core travelers living in their homemade trailer. Good people that I think may be joining the XP community.....



I had a few things to do for Mex this morning. I stopped by Ulta Beauty to get her some skin cream. The vet said that her skin was badly damaged and that it would help as she grows. The cashier asked me for my member number.....I couldn't help but laugh and I said, uh no I usually buy my make up elsewhere. Anyhow.....



Afterwards I met Melanie at PETCO to give her the cream and the bag that was used to throw Mex over the wall. Well, Melanie had a surprise for me. Last night on her way home she stopped by her daughter's house to show her Mex. Mex is still at her daughter's house.....her daughter and son in law adopted Mex. Melanie said it was love at first sight. Her daughter is a registered nurse, lives on a large property, no kids, and lives with her husband and her 8 year old dog. It sounded perfect to me. And Melanie told me PETCO will be using Mex's pictures and her story in a national publication. She asked if they could use my name and declined on that one. Melanie's last words to me were "Thank you for this gift. You've made all of us here so happy". Can't say that that didn't bring a tear.....

Tonight we're back camped along the border wall with all the border guards. We went out for a walk and I was talking with one of the guards and telling him about Mex, and he said that the guards had been wondering about her. He was pretty stoked to hear her story. I think there's gonna be a lot of happy border guards around here this week. Little Mex sure has touched a whole lot of hearts since coming to America....

But now it's time for the team of JerryYukonMontana to fly. We've got some plans.....

 

[bigskypylot]

I think sometimes I should be more aware of and thankful for the people that belong to this site and reply to my posts. I need to do a better job of that. I'm very appreciative of everyone that offered to help financially with Mex's bills. It says a lot for the type of quality people that are attracted to this site. Shellb....I really liked what you had to say.....real nice. Ghost dancer and skypylot.....thank you. To everybody else unnamed.....thanks ! Park.....yea I'm always up for a free lunch. And it would be great to hang out one day.....

Last night after posting here I had to go out and celebrate Mex's good fortunes. Since I was in the land of many Latinos, I celebrated with some good spicey Mexican fast food.....

View attachment 387166

Then it was early to bed since it would be a night without Mex.....meaning I wasn't up at midnight, 2:30 a.m., and 5:00 a.m. It sure felt good to sleep in a bit as well. I woke up this morning to find my new friends from North Carolina camped nearby. We've both been hanging around this town for a few weeks. These guys are hard core travelers living in their homemade trailer. Good people that I think may be joining the XP community.....

View attachment 387167

I had a few things to do for Mex this morning. I stopped by Ulta Beauty to get her some skin cream. The vet said that her skin was badly damaged and that it would help as she grows. The cashier asked me for my member number.....I couldn't help but laugh and I said, uh no I usually buy my make up elsewhere. Anyhow.....

View attachment 387168

Afterwards I met Melanie at PETCO to give her the cream and the bag that was used to throw Mex over the wall. Well, Melanie had a surprise for me. Last night on her way home she stopped by her daughter's house to show her Mex. Mex is still at her daughter's house.....her daughter and son in law adopted Mex. Melanie said it was love at first sight. Her daughter is a registered nurse, lives on a large property, no kids, and lives with her husband and her 8 year old dog. It sounded perfect to me. And Melanie told me PETCO will be using Mex's pictures and her story in a national publication. She asked if they could use my name and declined on that one. Melanie's last words to me were "Thank you for this gift. You've made all of us here so happy". Can't say that that didn't bring a tear.....

Tonight we're back camped along the border wall with all the border guards. We went out for a walk and I was talking with one of the guards and telling him about Mex, and he said that the guards had been wondering about her. He was pretty stoked to hear her story. I think there's gonna be a lot of happy border guards around here this week. Little Mex sure has touched a whole lot of hearts since coming to America....

But now it's time for the team of JerryYukonMontana to fly. We've got some plans.....

View attachment 387169

That's wonderful news! Will you be keeping in touch with Melanie to keep tabs on Mex's progress? So glad you were where you were when Mex needed you. Safe travels!

 

[georgia5623]

I am sure the dogs appreciate you very much, and I'm certain that you have a "dogs heart"