I'm never going to get this vacation log done,

am I? Three days off and I had the best of intentions, but I just couldn't get myself to sit at the computer. Yesterday I sat my ass on the couch and knit for a few hours instead of scanning and writing. Knitting is good too, so I can't feel too bad about it.

I am going to backtrack a bit, all the way back to our first day roaming around Joshua Tree National Park. We drove around the park for a good four or five hours, entering at the west entrance in Twentynine Palms and exiting at the east entrance near Joshua Tree. At that point, we were hot and tired so fortunately, check-in time had finally arrived.

After settling into our room, we took a much needed dip in the pool.



I am not really a pool person, but with a temperature of 110 degrees or more, I figured I could become a pool person. The cool water felt great.

Later, we had dinner at a Mexican restaurant called Edchada's. It was recommended to us by a friend, plus we had passed it on our way into town so we knew where it was, always helpful. Being such a fan of New Mexican food, I am oftentimes skeptical about Mexican restaurants, but this place was awesome. I had an enchilada verde with shredded chicken, and oh my god, it was the best shredded chicken I have ever had. Yeah, it was that good. I was impressed. I can't remember what exactly Will had, some sort of carne asada type thing, and it was excellent as well. So dinner was a happy experience all around. The margaritas didn't hurt either.

After dinner, we sat on our patio, reading and taking pictures. There was a big pile of tile around the corner from our room, and it is one of my favorite shots from the trip.



And of course I can never resist my own shadow.



Given all my problems with insomnia and Will's restless leg syndrome, we were pretty excited about sleeping in a king-sized bed.



Nothing like being able to stretch out. And not feel like an earthquake is taking place every time that Will moves. (And he moves A LOT.)

We had thrown a couple of our netflixed DVDs of Battlestar Galactica into our suitcase, you know, just in case. Lo and behold, the television in our motel room had a DVD player in it. Yes! Our hopes were high. And then crushed because the thing didn't actually work. Alas. No Battlestar for us. So we went back to our books and called it a night fairly early in preparation for our early morning hike.

All-in-all, an excellent Day Two of vacation.