Friday, June 27, 2008

BOO BOO!

Dang it! Dang it! Dang it! I went to Clarksville to get Somewhere to bring her to Nashville to get ready for next week. I was pulling out of the fenced area through the gate, stopped got out and looked to make sure I was okay. Pulled slowly forward, got out and looked again and the gate was a little too close on the passenger side so I opened it more and I was fine. Got back in and all of a sudden, that dreaded noise of doom was upon me. Screeeeech, grind, screeeech! I stopped, thought a minute (couldn't register what that sounds was)so I went out and dad gum, the back end of my beautiful unharmed MH was smack against the gate with the corner dangling! Yep, smacked her good. Even thought I was careful, that last check I did was to the passenger side and once I moved the gate I didn't go around and check the driver side again. See I have analyzed all this now!

Cindy got Roger who came out and helped me get loose, we checked the brake & turn lights, nope, nothing. They had just come unplugged so Roger plugged them back up, I got a tall glass of water, sat down a few and then headed for home. I was taking her to have some routine things done before I head out next week so they will take a look at it. Sure hope it won't cost an arm and leg. But I guess that's what I have insurance for. Dang, Dang, Dang! I could just kick myself!

Just thought I would share my lovely experience! Did I mention how unbearably hot it was??? Plus I think stress adds sweat! LOL

Oh, forgot, know how I dealt w/all this?? After I dropped Somewhere off and picked up my car, I went straight to Krispy Kreme donut shop and ordered TWO chocolate iced cream filled donuts! Very adult I would think...

Later...

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Destin FL

We headed to Destin FL on Thursday morning but had to stop at the Waffle House before we got on Interstate 65. YUM, YUM, pecan waffles. Weather was terrific. We stopped at the Ava Maria Grotto in Cullum AL and it was amazing. I am going to do a separate post dedicated to this leg of the trip when I get the photos, so stay tuned. I got the idea from Margie and checked out Roadside America. If you are ever that way and you have time, I highly recommend stopping.

Since this was a trip to visit a timeshare with Theda, we had to stop to check in and get all the paperwork at a Wyndham Resort office before we could check into the Country Inn & Suites. Why Wyndham doesn’t allow its potential buyers to stay on property is beside me but oh, well, we had a suite, nice pool & hot tub. It just wasn’t on the Gulf.
After checking in we went to Long Horn Steak House to eat, it was yummy. Theda got the big prime rib and I ordered a side of shrimp and salad and a perfect margarita and it was, perfect that is.

Next day was the appointment for the timeshare tour. Country Inn & Suites has a deluxe contentinal breakfast so that took care of us all week. After breakfast we went to the pool and hung out until it was time to get ready for the tour. After the tour (she didn’t buy), we went to the Henderson Beach State Park for the rest of the day. Here is what the website has to say about it:
Pristine white sugar sand beaches and more than 6,000 feet of natural scenic shoreline border the emerald green waters of the Gulf of Mexico. Natural features of the park include sand pines, scrub oaks, and dune rosemary. Boardwalks provide access to the beach for swimming, sunbathing, and fishing. Two large pavilions allow for picnicking and grilling. A playground is the first stop on our nature trail and is sure to be a success with the kids. The nature trail provides visitors a rare glimpse of the coastal dune ecosystem and abundant wildlife and is pet friendly. Camping at Henderson Beach State Park provides 60 campsites that are located in our secondary dune system. The sites include water and electric hookups and access to air conditioned and heated bathhouse facilities. A separate beach access boardwalk with outdoor showers and a playground are included in our campground. Henderson Beach is A.D.A accessible and includes beach wheel chair availability. Visitors can enjoy truly breathtaking sunsets while relaxing by the warm crystal clear water of the Gulf of Mexico. The park is located just east of Destin on U.S. 98.

ALERT! ALERT! One thing about the beach is that the yellow and purple flags were flying. That meant that currents were cautionary (yellow) and marine life was present (purple), jelly fish were everywhere. Theda is allergic to stinging critters, she had her Epi pen but I sure didn’t want to have to use it and I had been stung at Fernandina Beach and didn’t want to experience that again, so we decided to just sit. Needless to say we did not go in the Gulf but we had our beach chairs and sat for a while and I had my book, the breeze felt cooling to my skin and all in all it was a fine late afternoon way to just chill. We were able to see a partial sunset and I say partial because there was a dang high rise building in the way.

Next day was christening my kayak, Sea Eagle (SE), and that was fun. Not in the gulf but in a river. Theda and I drove to Blackwater River State Park because, according to the website, (A favorite destination for canoeists and kayakers, Blackwater River offers opportunities for a variety of outdoor recreation. The river is one of the purest sand-bottom rivers in the nation, making this park a popular place for swimming, fishing, camping, and paddling.) we, well I, thought it would be smooth & calm and a great place to play around w/the SE. Well, let me just tell you, was it clear? Yes; sandy? Yes; smooth? NO. It was not whitewater, but if we had quit paddling for longer than 30 seconds we would have been down stream quite rapidly.

It took about 15 minutes to get the SE unloaded and pumped up. The weather was quite hot and humid, so we sat for a spell and had a bottle of water before we carried the SE to the water. I had bought a 12X16” DryPack at Bass Pro Shops that is a waterproof, clear, multi-purpose case for everything you don’t want to get wet. So I loaded that with cell phones, T’s cigs & lighter, snacks, things like that and took a carabiner and affixed it to the rope on the SE. (I highly recommend this easy to open/close DryPak, it works.) We had taken the small cooler with water & soft drinks and some snacks so that went into the SE. Then we loaded the Sea Eagle with the paddles, cooler, it was just so much fun. Here are a few pictures of us trying our hand at us kayaking.

We carried the SE to the launch site, not too heavy and not too far, and entered the FREEZING water. Never thought it was going to be that cold. It was almost as cold as the Hiwassee River in East TN. We were just not prepared for it to be that cold and of course, we were quite warm. So in we go. We pushed SE over to the island in the middle, the water was only about three feet deep so we chose to not use our personal flotation devices (pfd).

I got in and then Theda got in. Okay folks, neither T nor I are tiny; in fact, you could say, well, we are plus size girls but, that’s okay because SE is rated for 500 lbs. We are getting all comfortable and finally get our strokes going together so that we are making some headway and Theda stops paddling, she’s in front. She starts leaning back like she is straightening her body, well, she has a cramp she is trying to work out and I can feel us starting, oh, no, here goes, watch it Theda, over we go!!! Into the cold water, we had made it to the bridge and here we are in the water, hats, cooler, DryPak and all. I come up and said what happened. Then she told me about the cramp. We were laughing and I kept saying where’s the cooler. We tipped the boat back over and there it was, it never moved. Everything in the DryPak was dry, so it works and if it hadn’t been clipped to the boat it would have floated down the current to who knows where. Oh my, that was too funny. After we got settled we decided to go it one at a time. I paddled around and then she did. It was a trip.

We decided to sit and rest and relax a while. All of a sudden it started to rain. It was a warm rain and the contrast from the cold water was quite nice.
We paddled around some more and then it was time to leave. By this time the sun came back out and we were able to get the boat dried out a little before folding her back up and putting her in the back of the car. Not a tough job. I can’t wait to use her again.

At each of these state parks, we had to drive around and check out all the campgrounds. All were nice and I can’t wait to try out the one in Henderson Beach SP. Check out the FL state park website for more pix and details about them. I have decided that I either need a scooter or a bicycle to get around in some of these big camping areas. Lots of walking if I stayed there now.
On our way back to the hotel, we stopped to eat. Theda had received a $50 gift certificate for AJ’s seafood. We ordered the steamed crab legs & shrimp for 2. It was the best seasoned crab legs I have ever eaten. There were about eight crabs worth of legs and about 48 huge shrimp. More than two could eat. Corn on the cob and new potatoes were also part of the meal. I think you could say we had our own crab boil. We peeled all of them and took some back with us. Yummy! You must check it out if you are in the Destin FL area.

Next day we headed for home about 11:00 and got back into Nashville about 8:30 pm. We paid $3.79-$3.99 for gas. Went exploring, not lost, a couple of times but we looked at it as an adventure. Almost ended up at Elgin AF Base but when we saw guards, we realized we were in the wrong place; a U-turn was in prompt order.
Have you ever been to Navarra Beach? Beautiful little place. We checked it out, no camping but it was a nice place to spend a little time. My friend Sandra and her sister, Carolyn, had spent a week at one of the penthouses on the beach so I wanted to check it out. I may stay there sometime.

Reality set in, back to work on Monday. Sure can’t wait till retirement and I don’t have to worry about going back to work.

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

Cornfield update! and other stuff

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When to Clarksville to do some work on Somewhere and my how the corn has grown! Didn't realize until I uploaded that I had taken the picture through the screen in the window so sorry it's not the best picture of a corn field, LOL. I'll do better with another update. This is a way for me to gauge how time is flying by and April '09 will be here before I know it.
As planned, I was going to locate the fuse for the hydraulic jacks and see if that was what caused them to not work. Well, the fuse was not where I was told to look so I got the owners manual out to see if I could locate it that way. Not to be, so I guess to the shop it will go. That works out pretty good because I am planning a trip to Natchez Trace State Park on July 2 and I have an appointment at Cullum & Maxey on June 26 to have the jacks and a few other tweaks worked out. Cindy and I have it worked out as to how I'll get her on the 26th and still leave my car in Nashville. Man, we are good! Can't wait to actually spend five days in Somewhere in a cg w/lake, w/kayak, w/hammock, just doing nothing.

That should be a good relaxing vacation for me before my busy, busy, July, August, September begins with Edison training. It is official our Edison computer go-live is October 1, which means I have to get all of our employees trained before September 16. It's rather exciting to be involved in this transition. I believe the new computer system will be so much better than we have now and when employees get used to it, they will know it was the right thing to do. However, the learning curve is going to be huge for our field people. Some of them don't know how to operate a computer so, ta da, that's where I come it. Gotta love it, I do. I am hoping that I will earn quite a bit of comp time during this period, then I can leave even earlier!!!! I am so looking forward to retirement.

I talked to sister Wanda last night and we were talking about a family reunion. When I went to the wedding, many cousins were talking about how they wished we would have a reunion. Wanda and I talked about how if it were to be done, probably Shirley, Wanda and I would be the ones to plan it. I told her I could help if we would wait until Oct '09. I would be free to help out because I would be retired. Oh that was soooo sweeeeet to say. I think my time will be filled quite nicely in doing what I want to do and not what I have to do. Look out, there may be no stopping me. LOL

Oh, another purchase! Bed Bath and Beyond had paper lanterns that run off AAA batteries and I just could not resist... getting them. They are so bright, can't wait to see them at night. In my excitement I had to go ahead and put them together so I have them hanging inside. When I get someplace where I will stay for a while and I have my awning out, I plan to put them outside with my other lights Missi got me. It should look so festive.

I'm beginning to shop for a toad. A toad is a vehicle I will pull behind my RV so when I get to a destination I won't have to drive Somewhere while sightseeing or to the grocery, etc. It is sometimes referred to as a dinghy. I want one that is towable 4 down, that means all four wheels on the ground. From my research, 4-down is easier to hook up for one person than putting it on a dolly. My current vehicle, '01 PT Cruiser is not towable 4-down and would cost too much money to have it towable ready. So I'm looking. So far I like, the Saturn Vue but I think it's maybe too big, the Pontiac Vibe is really cute and it doesn't weigh a lot I haven't driven it but it's a close 1st. Of course the Smart4two is just precious and weighs only about 1500 lbs. It comes towable ready, base plate and all which is appealing but it is only for two people. Since I have Jonathan & Taylor who may visit, I sure don't need a vehicle for two. But is sure is sweeeeeet! I also like the Honda CRV, the Toyota Matrix and the Saturn ION.

It's funny when I went into the Carmax and I told the salesman that I wanted to look at vehicles that could be towed 4-down. He came back to me and said, any car that is manual transmission could be towed 4-down. I told him I wanted automatic and he said, oh, that won't be a problem, every car we have can be towed 4-down w/out modification. Well, now folks, I have done my homework and I told him I just wanted to see the owners manual that I didn't believe he knew what he was talking about. Not a good way to get started out w/a salesman w/an attitude. So he takes me out side, where you can't just go, you have to be escorted, and the first we look at is a Jeep Liberty (I liked these too but didn't much think they would work for what I wanted) and he said oh, yes, this can be towed 4-down. We looked at the owners manual and guess what???? Nope, it cannot be towed 4-down. I just wish you could have seen his face. He was dumb founded. We looked at a couple of others that I knew could not be and then I asked to see the Honda CRV, which I knew could be, and he got the owners manual out and lo & behold, it had the recommendation and said how to do it, etc. By this time, he was curious and interested in finding out more.

We looked at a few more and then he had the appraisal back on my car and when he told me how much they would give me for mine, I said, no thanks and tired to walk out...notice I said tried. It seems that you have to be taken over to their "Carmax would never sell this car because..." model and let the salesman go over their pitch of why you should by Carmax. NOT! Anyway it's a little early to get my toad so I'll keep looking and maybe something will come up.

Oh, I did see a '03 Chevy Tracker convertible for sale by owner that is cute as a button and can be towed, in fact, it's set up for towing but Chevy doesn't make Trackers anymore and I'm just not sure about it. Something will come along for me.

Next time you hear from me, I'll have returned from Destin, FL. Theda and I are going there for a long weekend and I just can't wait to get away to the beach. Other friends were supposed to go but it didn't work out for them. Their loss, not ours. We will go and have a great time.

Life is good right now!

Later...

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Dentist

UGH, it was not a pleasant afternoon. I am trying to get all my tooth work done before retirement and had really procrastinated having this last bridge completed. I bit the bullet and the dentist office went to bat with my insurance company to get coverage since it had been so long since the tooth came out, they didn't want to cover it.

Anyway, this little "jewel" is a cantilever bridge on my upper right. I didn't do anything to it for so long because when the surgeon pulled it, it opened up my sinus and it took FOREVER for it to close back up. So now that it has closed, I'm getting a bridge. You know what that takes, shots. I was so numb last evening and I have bitten myself twice on the side of my mouth. I hate that. Anyway, it will be complete July 7.

When I visited my sister, Shirley, this weekend, she gave me an early birthday present. It will be terrific. It's a ball and you make ice cream in it. Just add ice and rock salt. You pass it around to each other for the movement or you can roll it w/your foot. It only makes a pint but it will be good for me. Thanks, Sis.

She got this idea because one year I did the same thing with ziplock bags. You take a quart and put the mix in it and then take the gallon and put the ice and rock salt in it and shake it, worked when you passed it around to people at the pool. Of course it got soooo cooooold that you had to use towels to wrap it around so you could hold it. This present will do a terrific job.

Hey, Becky, didn't think about payolla. I'm not opposed to it you know. LOL

Service awards ceremony is today for the good folks at TWRA who have 30 or more years service. Ann is in charge of the program but she called me and left a message that I should dress up today. Gee thanks. I just don't know what that is any more. She does such a great job at the program. I'm glad I have her.

Bought my fuses last night so now have 5, 10, 15 amp fuses. I'm ready for anything. Can't wait until I'm at a cg and someone asks for a fuse or a washer. By golly, I'm ready. Of Course I've got to get out there in order for someone to ask me that, right?

Margie wants to go to Land Between the Lakes (LBL) this weekend. Sounds promising so I'll work toward that goal and let you know how it works out.

Later...

Monday, June 9, 2008

Notes from the weekend

My oh My, was it hot??? Yes it was. I headed out early Sat morning for a visit in Etowah with my sisters. I rode all the way with my windows down to save precious fuel. I think it helped because my PT Cruiser got 30.8 mpg and that is the best it has ever done. Of course I didn't have my lead foot down on my accelerator either. Ooh, could be a song! A nice consistent 68-70 mph and I was good to go. Forget that my hair looked like a tangled mess when I got where I was going. Headscarf??? I don't think so, more like ball cap for me but I didn't want hat head so that was out. I paid $3.89 gal when I left Nashville and $3.68 in Maryville, TN. What a difference. I saw $3.75 gal on my return to Nashville.

I sure saw a lot of RVers on the road. I was surprised there were so many big rigs still out there. Don't blame them though. Good weekend for travelling. Of course, going up Hwy 411 there were a whole lot of RVs for sale. Guess people are getting scared off by the high cost of gas. Not me, yet anyway. But Somewhere is staying put for a while, too much other stuff to do.

Oh, speaking of going up Hwy 411 N, I saw this sign, U bawt what? on the front of a store. I just chuckled to myself. It struck me as funny. Is that typical of East TN or what??

I'm glad some of you are reading my blog. I am getting some notes from people and one friend Missi, sent me some help on Microsoft Word transition from 2003 to 2007. This website is terrific. http://office.microsoft.com/assistance/asstvid.aspx?assetid=XT100766331033&vwidth=1044&vheight=788&type=flash&CTT=11&Origin=HA100744321033 Thanks, Missi. I should be able to figure out the new stuff quite nicely now.

Oh, and my nephew, David asked me what the outcome from my Cancun trip was. He said I never got back to telling you. Well, probably because I'm gonna have to slam Just Cruisin Plus on this one. We each received a voucher from Travel Impressions for $150 to be used in the next year through them. Just Cruisin Plus did nothing to make us whole. I have sent many people to them, much business for them. Not anymore. If I didn't have such a good rate for my cruise in November I would be canceling it and going through Becky's new travel site. Can't get a good deal so I'll keep it. The $150 is not tranferrable nor can it be combined with the others so they probably won't be used.

Oh, btw, (I don't think this is a secret) Becky is a referring travel agent now, her website is www.ytb.com/beckyhopper and her email is letstravelnow@bellsouth.net. It sounds like a fun new business venture she is getting into. When I travel, well outside of my RV, you can bet I'll be booking through her. You can go to her website and book or you can just email her and she will do it for you. Customer service first!! Good Luck Becky!

Oh my, the wedding. It was just so beautiful. It was held outside (hot as hell) next to a creek and the reception was under the pavilion. Stephani was radiant. Oh, I know we say that about all the brides but Stephani really was. Her dress was beautiful, she had a great tan and her posture was exceptional. Now, why did I talk about her posture and poise? Because Stephani has a background in beauty pagents. It showed. She was exceptional. The food was good, dancing was great and the wine was a little too good for me. I rode home with Teresa and stayed the night.

It was good to see cousins I had not seen since they were just little. We all talked about a family reunion. I told them, hey, you get it together and the Etowah group will be there. There is so much work to reunions. You can never pick a good time. It would be good to see everyone.

Later...

Thursday, June 5, 2008

Deer Burgers???

This weekends post seems to be in three part harmony but I keep remembering things I want to remember later. I had called Cindy and said why don't we have a cookout. I have this new baked bean recipe that I want to try and it makes a lot so if you have the burgers, I'll bring the beans. So it was all set, the party was on.

The beans were from a recipe on the www.womensrvforum.com from Jenny and here it is:
This is a hit at all barbecues & Potlucks!!

1 lb Bacon-diced
3 med sweet onions or I use 1 large sweet onion diced
1 Lrg can B & M or Bush's Baked Beans ( I like Bush's)
1 sm can diced Tomatoes
1 sm can kidney or black beans drained
1 sm can pinto beans drained
3/4 cup drk brown sugar
1/2 cup Ketchup
1/4 cup Yellow Mustard

In a frying pan Saute bacon and onions together till the onions are translucent. Put the remaining ingredients in a large Crock pot and then add the onion & bacon to it. Simmer over very low heat for a couple hours to blend the flavors.

This tastes even better the 2nd day and makes enough for a large crowd. Half the recipe for a smaller pot. Everyone loves it!!

Jenny is right! A BIG hit.

So I went over to Cindy's with my crock pot and she was getting ready to pat out the "hamburgers." The meat looked so lean & rich, I asked where she got it. She looked at me and said "I didn't have any "beef" burgers so we are going to have these, and held them up." I said okay, and what are those??? She said "deer burgers," with a little gleam in her eye. I snarled my nose and said, well if you had told me you didn't have any hamburger, I would have brought some. Now, here is Savannah (10) looking up at me and I thought I have to set a good example for her since this is her dad's hunt. blah, blah.

I ate one and it was not bad at all. I probably won't add it to my shopping list but whatever she seasoned it with, I couldn't tell it was anything other than a burger. So, I have expanded my palate with ONE deer burger. Thanks, Cindy. Let's don't push it, I think they have elk too. ugh Knowing Cindy, she'll sneak it to me some way and I won't even know it. I understand it hard to mess with ground deer.

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

Perils of RV Ownership

As with everything mechanical there is always maintenance to do. This weekend, one of my objectives was to get the oil changed in the genny but I needed the part numbers from the air filter & oil filter. I didn't get to it on Saturday so Sunday I went in search of the filters, oh, via phone. No one had them so I was SOL for my planned maintenance. I went ahead and checked the oil, which was full and amber in color so I think it's doing okay until I get out to Cullum & Maxey (C&M) and get the parts. It doesn't look too complicated to do and I thought I would drain the oil into a milk jug and take it to be recycled. Hum, how's that for environmentally thoughtful????

Let me back up. On Saturday I got ready to put the jacks down so I could put the slides out and the jacks wouldn't work. I looked at the owners manual to see if I could figure out what was wrong, you know the supposed troubleshooting section? What a laugh, it was non-existent. Guess it's 'cause they don't want lay people working on them. Anyway, this had happened one time before and the C&M guys took the plate off and there was some rubber dropped down and prevented the connection. I thought I would look to see if that is what happened again. Well, lo, and behold, there were two little pieces of rubber preventing contact. Gosh, I'm so smart. Saved me a trip. So I put the plate back on, put my tools away, got up in the driver seat, started the engine and reached down to operate the controls and-------NOTHING! What, that was supposed to have fixed it but nooooo, it did not! So I do it all again and got the vacuum cleaner out and sucked all the debris out of there, tried it again, this time before putting the plate, tools, etc back and still nothing. So it will have to be a trip to C&M or the RV place in Clarksville. So aggravating.

Didn't have too much luck with the maintenance end of Somewhere this weekend. Maybe next time will be better.

Lesson learned, but if you laugh...I don't blame you, I did too. Well you see, I turned the frig on in Somewhere when I first arrived and turned it to Auto which puts it on the setting where power is supplied. In other words if there is AC it will use that first, if no AC it will use LP. Okay, here goes! I turned the generator on because it was so hot and I wanted air conditioning. I checked the frig, well, nothing, I thought. So I switched it to LP. Here it comes...did you know that if you run the generator it's the same as producing AC so the frig will run on AC instead of LP???? DUH, DUH well I didn't! Yes, I admit it. I didn't. So I called C&M and the service dept was already closed so I asked the salesman if he knew anything about frigs? He said, what's your problem. I explained about the frig, he asked how long it had been on, I said 4 hrs, etc. He said well, it should have cooled by now. Sometime in that conversation I mentioned that the genny was running, he said, well if your generator is running it will supply the AC you need to run your frig and you don't have to use the LP. WHAT? I said. Then I could hear the little grin in his voice. I explained that all this is new to me, he said that's alright, we all have to learn.

I stopped and did a palm to my head and said dummy, I should have known that. And folks, I could have figured it out, but I didn't stop to think. I am so unsure of all this right now, that it doesn't come second nature to me. YET! I'm getting more and more comfortable and the more I go out or go to where she is parked it does get better. I am so glad that I went ahead and got Somewhere before I get on the road full time. At least this gives me time to figure most of it out and will prepare me for what I'm up against. If I had not done this now, I would have been a basket case and been questioning myself, my skills, my abilities and my knowledge. This is what I want to do and this is what I will do!

I don't know what I would do w/out the crew at Cullum & Maxey. They are just terrific to help me troubleshoot, answer "stupid" questions and just all around a good dealer to solo women. But I'm sure they are that way to guys too.

Oh, one more thing. Saturday night I went to bed early. Turned the genny off and opened the windows. I'm fortunate that Somewhere's windows in the bedroom crank out and they are opposite each other so a nice breeze blows through. About 1:30 a.m. I awoke to a very loud, ground shattering boom! Thunder. Then it started raining hard. I lay there a few minutes and thought how nice the rain sounded on the roof of Somewhere and what it would be like if I were out next to a body of water and thoughts of my life after state government. Man, am I ready to go. Oh, but I digress...then Somewhere lit up like a giant strobe light. Lightening, followed by a giant clap of thunder, didn't even have time to count, one-one thousand. It was here. A thunderstorm like no other. Sedona sits straight up in bed with that one. It's time for me to get up and see what's here.

Somewhere has a weather band radio built into the radio in the dash. So I went in to the living room and turned it on. Severe thunderstorm warning for Montgomery Co. That's where I am and I thought it was so cool that the weather band picked up my location. It wasn't giving info for Nashville but for Montgomery Co. Anyway, the next county over Springfield, Robertson Co had a tornado warning but that county is just southeast of Montgomery so I thought I was going to be okay and didn't need to go into Roger's basement. I opened the big window shades and Sedona and I just sat there and watched the most beautiful light show I've seen in quite a while. I couldn't tell if it was because I was out in the country away from the city that made everything looks so crisp, and ominous at the same time but it was just awe inspiring. I enjoyed my storm in Somewhere and hope to experience many more.

You know it seems that every time I have been out in Somewhere there is always rain &/or storms. Hope this is not a sign of things to come.

Monday, June 2, 2008

What's been goin' on???

Oh my goodness, where to begin. This weekend, I went to Clarksville and stayed in Somewhere. I had so many projects to do and knew I would stay busy for the weekend. Packed everything up on Saturday morning and I started too early because Sedona bugged the dickens out of me to "go." She loves to go and when I start loading she thinks that is an automatic that she gets to go too. So for the last time she darted out, I put her harness on her and she just knew she was going then. She went into her car seat and got zipped up so that she could "go" even though I was not finished loading. But she didn't care, she was ready.

On the way up to Somewhere I called my sister, Shirley. Doug has been going through some tough times with his health and I wanted to check on him. Doug's retina detached in his right eye and he doesn't have his sight back. The Dr has said it will be another 4 months and then it might not come back. Then he had to have 2 units of blood, seems he's bleeding internally somewhere and they don't know where. He's having some tests done soon to determine where. Sis and BIL (brother-in-law) think it is from some of his medication that has made him bleed. That's probably the case but they need to get it stopped.

I really look up to this Sis & BIL, they retired early and head to Ft Myers, FL every year right after Christmas day and stay until April 1. They have done this for years. They really planned their retirement and have lived every bit of it to the hilt. They have travelled to every state, well, Shirley hasn't been to Alaska because she is a chicken to fly, and have some great memories. A great inspiration for me to work my plan.

Anyway, I digress from my trip. When I arrived at Somewhere there was Cindy and Savannah waiting on me and came over to the car. I was still on the phone so didn't get out. They went away. I unloaded, got the windows opened and then went to say hi. My goodness how the corn has grown. This is the field where I'm staying. They plowed up the field and planted corn around me, so from my window this is what I see. I asked Cindy if it's edible corn or feed corn. She thought feed corn so there goes the idea of sneaking out on a full moon night and getting some ears of sweet corn. I thought it was pretty cool that Roger kept a space just for me so I could continue to park Somewhere in that place. It's right under a light and behind a fence so I feel very safe with it being there. I'll give you updates on the corn.

I found a step that some people use for exercising (not me) and I painted it blue to match my MH. My niece, Deborah, gave me the idea at Christmas to put it under the bottom step so it wouldn't be such a high step, but I didn't want to pay a lot of money for one so I found it at a garage sale for $1. Yep, you read that right One Dollar. I like those kind of sales. Well while I was reading the instructions that came with it, you know, just in case it needs to serve a dual purpose, tee hee, I found out that it has another section to it that comes out and raises the step another 2.5 inches. Only problem with that? I've either got to get more paint or leave it 2 toned. Someone on the forum suggested the two-toned and that would look kind of funky. I also have to add some no skid strips to it so someone doesn't break their neck and sue me. Theda has some of those so I'll get those next time I'm down there. I'm just rather proud of this find. Theda's crew made me a step out of 2X4's and it is heavy. This one is much lighter and a little larger. Hope the blue paints works, it's for plastic so it should. It worked great this weekend and even though it stormed, it's wasn't slick. Sedona likes it too, gives her a little life to make it to the bottom MH step. It's a winner!

I learn so much on the womensrvforum.com and get so many ideas, one from Karen really caught my eye and I knew I just had to do this. My bed lifts up and the edges are a blank slate, well not anymore. I found some fabric and Ann, co-worker) and her mother stitched them up for me. I had them put on the sides too. Now I have little pockets, between 6" & 12" all around the three sides of my bed. You can tell they are versatile, I can use them for shoes, adapters, anything that will move around when travelling can be placed in these little pockets. I thought I would go ahead and do this before I start full-timing because I won't always have access to someone with a sewing machine and the know how to do such a good job. On the long one, I gave Ann the wrong dimensions, I told her 54" which was the width but it should have been 52", my bad but with staples I can do anything. The nice thing is when the bed is down, you can't see the pockets but it could pass for a dust ruffle if it is seen. I think Karen had a terrific idea and I hope it's okay that I stole her idea. I love the womens forum. We have a good sisterhood.

Oh, and I got an early birthday present from Eileen the other day. When I first put it down, Sedona plopped her self right down on it as if to say, this is mine. She stayed there long enough for me to take her picture if that tells you anything. I think it is a pretty rug, however I'm not sure how it's going to do in front of the door, it scoots around quite a bit. But the colors are great, the message is true so I'll give it a try. I can use it for something.


This post is running a little long so I'll continue with some maintenance stories in my next one. Later...