We made it to the desert. Specifically, to Mojave National Preserve. Its’ one of Obama’s last designated national parks and preserves. This place is huge -- 1.6 million acres! There were plenty of flowers and plants to see, and we hiked (or walked) as much as we could each day. It was nice to get away, but medical stuff still managed to trickle in.

In the middle of our travels, Paul’s MRI results came in. Paul’s pain in his hip and leg now appears to be related to his multiple myeloma. He has an appointment this coming week with the radiology department to review the results and decide about having radiation. The alternative is an epidural, but it really won’t help if the cause is the cancer.

Tim continues to try to push through his lack of appetite – although there were pretty slim pickings at the place we stayed at in the middle of nowhere: Whiskey Pete’s Casino Resort. We don’t recommend it. We both did our best at the only three places to eat that were anywhere within 40 miles – McDonalds, IHop and Denny’s.

*This is from Hole-in-the-Wall, probably the most spectacular place we went to in Mojave. The main plants you see are the Purple Sage (Salvia dorrii var. dorrii) and the yellow Interior Goldenbush (Ericameria linearifolia).