FULL-TIMERS & IS THERE A SQUIRREL IN THE AC ??

Today is Wednesday, the 29th.  Free Donuts and Coffee Day at the Activity Building!!  :-)  We haven't really done too much these past few days as Roger is still on the road to recovery and doesn't really feel like doing too much yet.  He is, however, MUCH improved over a week ago!!

Sunday we took a drive and looked at some local RV Parks.  Some I wouldn't stay in and some I'd love to stay in, but they cost twice as much (or more) than here and therefore, not worth it.  I think we just loafed the rest of the day....can't remember.

We've met some really nice and interesting people at this park.  Some are here for the winter, some for a month or so and some just a week or a night....but all have a story to tell.  I am AMAZED at the number of full-timers.  It's probably close to 80% of those we meet.  Many have just sold their houses and are just starting their adventure and a lot have been full-timing for 8, 9, & 10 years.  Most LOVE their lifestyle and feel they have visited many places, but also feel they've only scratched the surface and have many more places to go.  Ages range from young people with children (that are home schooled) and older retirees.  We've met married couples (some on marriages 2 & 3), same sex couples, engaged couples, and singles.  All socio-economic levels as well.  They travel and live in everything from half million $ 43 foot Class A Motorhomes to a Class B Van...and everything in between.  Some have children and grandchildren back where "home" was and some have children scattered all over the USA and visit each of them for a month or so and a lot have "yours & mine" children and some are DINKS (Dual Income No Kids).  Just met a DINK couple a few days ago who are a few sites down from us and are a lot of fun to talk to.  They invited us to play Euchre...but I don't know how!!   Everyone we meet has an interesting story and history to share and we love talking to them.  Usually, when you meet a new couple, it's "Hi...where you from?"  Then it's, "How long you here for?" and then it's, "So where you headed to next?" followed by, "Are you full-timing?...if they haven't already told you that."  At this point the dialogue is open and for the next hour or so you share stories and pick their brains!!  Ha Ha....great fun.

Monday night we tried a new restaurant (new to us anyhow) just across the street called "The Shrimp Basket".  It got good reviews from people here in the park who come back every year.  They advertised they had Fried Oysters (and I love them) so we decided to try it.  I had a Shrimp and Fried Oyster Basket and Roger had Fried Clams.  Everything was OK, but not great.  I don't think we'll go back when there are so many really GREAT restaurants just East of here in Destin.

Tuesday morning Roger asked me if I wanted to take him out to breakfast....Ha Ha :-)  I said "...sure, let's try TCs Front Porch just down the road".  Again, it was just OK but nothing to write home about EXCEPT, the price was right...$4.99 for their "Special".  One thing I've noticed about breakfasts down here is that when the menu says "Toast" it means ONE little piece of toast...and Grits are ALWAYS on the menu!!  I asked if I could have hash browns instead of grits and waitress said, "sure Honey"...what she didn't say was, "sure Honey, but that will be $1.28 extra".  Grrrrrr Hate it when that happens!!

In the afternoon, I went to a Methodist Resale Shop a 1/2 mile up the road.  Their prices are DIRT CHEAP!!!  I got some cute (small) Christmas Decorations for inside and a new blouse with the original price tags still on it and ALL for only $9.00!!  SCORE !!!  Roger stayed at the trailer and waited for the mobile service repair guy to show up.

For those of you Grand Design Imagine owners..... about a week or so ago, (I think I mentioned this in an earlier Blog...or maybe it was on Facebook) we started hearing a "clicking" noise (and it wasn't "Imagin-ary") above our theater seats in the AC vent just before the furnace cycled on and for about 30 seconds afterwards.  Bizarre, since they are not really connected.  We were told that it could be a sign of impending trouble so decided to get it checked out.  One warranty guy at Grand Design told us to go to park office and get a referral for a good RV service guy, so we did.  He came out and checked it and said it was, in his opinion, a bad "rheostat" (do not ask me what that is or what it does!!!)  So, he replaced that in the big AC vent in the ceiling and the thermostat.  It was too warm for the furnace to come on while he was here, so it wasn't tested.  At night (it cools down quick and a LOT here when the sun goes down at 4:30!!!) when the furnace was getting ready to come on, the clicking started ... AGAIN...and it was actually worse than before.  Louder and of a longer duration.  I was in bed reading, but Roger told me and he was NOT pleased...or as they say, he was NOT a happy camper!!  This morning we called Grand Design again, talked to another guy and told him what had transpired and he said, "I hope you didn't pay him" and "hey buddy, I can't reimburse you for that..."  Eluding to the fact we didn't follow the proper warranty protocol....but we did what we were told!!  I'm not really worried about getting reimbursed....I KNOW Grand Design will stand behind they product....right Bill Martin????? :-)

Another call to GD, David, and he gave us 3 numbers to authorized service companies for our particular brand (Dometic).  2 calls resulted in reaching a U-Haul Dealer and a company who said they were backed up 2-3 months!!  The 3rd guy was very helpful, asked a lot of questions and was willing to drive 30+ miles to come here but said, "the guy you had out yesterday is THE BEST in the industry...he trained me...so I'd continue to use him and he is local"  Well, alriiiiiiiiiiiiighty then!!  Another call to GD and we got permission to have this guy come back and he will, this afternoon.  Everyone is now thinking it must be in the wiring from the furnace to a relay switch in the AC.  We'll see....stay tuned!!

I must get busy on my annual Christmas Letter.  Talk to ya'all later.

PS:  Feel free to leave a COMMENT on any of my posts.  Just go down to bottom of post and click on the orange wording that says "No Comments:" or if there are comments, it will say the number of comments.

MICHIGAN vs OHIO STATE FOOTBALL SATURDAY

We went to Golden Corral in Fort Walton Beach, a little town down the road, for breakfast this morning.  I had always heard they had a good breakfast spread...and we weren't disappointed.  Couldn't believe all the choices for $8.39 apiece, including coffee & juice & milk !!!  Everything was VERY good.  I didn't try this but they had batter dipped, deep fried bacon!!!  I couldn't believe it.  Talk about FAT !!!  Roger did taste it but wasn't impressed!  Also didn't try the Fried Okra or the Grits!!!  However, the banana bread was to die for!!!

After breakfast we got home in time to see Ohio State whomp on Michigan!!!  I fell asleep in the recliner through a lot of it. Thankfully!!!  Not really sure why Michigan is so terrible...oh yeah, they don't have a quarterback...or a good coach!!!!!

I might start on my Christmas Letter this evening.  I'm not sending our cards this year.  I'm doing our annual letter and emailing it to everyone I have an email address for.  If you don't get one in the next week or so, I probably don't have your email address.  Please send it to me at jkpowlison@gmail.com

That's about it for today.  Other than I do want to say we have had NO problems with the trailer, other than an annoying "clicking" noise in the AC vent when the furnace is about to come on.  Go figure!!!  They are not even connected!!!

FAMILY PICTURES

Daughter, Penny DeWulf and son-in-law, Dan

 L to R: Back Row: Kameron & Sage  Front Row: Dan, Hannah (Delgado) Rylan, Penny

Penny & Dan with THE man, Santa

Below:Pictures of our Son, Brent, Daughter-in-Law, Jen and our 2 beautiful Granddaughters, Livvy (Olivia) age 5 and Cece (Cecelia) age 3, & Puppers, Denver & Wyatt on Thanksgiving Day in the woods behind their house in Woodstock, NY.

A BLACK FRIDAY OUTING TO DESTIN & BEYOND

Hubby is feeling much better so I suggested we go for a sight-seeing tour...totally forgetting it was BLACK FRIDAY!!!  Once we got out onto the road and closer to Destin....it was stop and go traffic...mostly stop!!!  Everybody was off work today....except the retail clerks...and the roads, beaches, and shopping centers were PACKED !!!  Oh well, we didn't have anything else in particular to do so we just kept on going.  I was driving because Roger's medications make him kind of "loopy".  There were some RV Parks we wanted to check out, farther East on the Panhandle.  Lots of boats out on the sound and the Gulf.  It was a very pretty scene.

Pictures of a Sunrise from the pier at our RV Park.  Started at 6:15 AM.  Those of you that know me well, know I did NOT take these....Ha Ha.  I was sleeping!!!  Our new friend Jerry Ohare took them and sent them to me.

Jerry and Roni Ohare from Springfield, IL.

THANKSGIVING

Wishing everyone a Happy Thanksgiving.  The park is having a potluck dinner this afternoon.  I'm preparing and baking baked beans and taking a Pecan Pie and whip cream.

I did laundry this morning. Roger is feeling somewhat better but he had 3 episodes of night sweats last night (typical with pneumonia) so I had a lot of laundry to do!!  I sat by the pool, in the sun, while the clothes were washing and drying.  Beautiful blue skies, sunshine and 70 degrees.

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Dinner was FABULOUS!!!  The park did at least 2 turkeys...maybe more...and honey baked spiral hams.  Everyone brought a dish....or 2....to pass and desserts.  We had every conceivable side dish and dessert.  It was so hard to decide what to put on your plate...I mean you only have so much room there ... and in your stomach!!  We sat with a nice couple from Wisconsin who are full-timing in their 40' Class A Motorhome.  It was very interesting to talk with them.  The food was all sooooo good and the desserts ,,,,, oh my!!!!!  Roger made it through dinner and did eat good.  Yes, I missed being with family, but we still had a good time and got to FaceTime with both of our children and some of our grandchildren.  Livvy and Cece were very excited to show us their decorated Christmas Tree.  I think it's going to be a LONG month before Santa's visit!!

At the Pool on Thanksgiving

IN SICKNESS AND IN HEALTH....Ugh!!

Yep...Day 5 and Roger is still sick...really sick.  Last night he had a temp of 102.2...tonight, 102.7.  He feels miserable but did take a walk to our beach here today and catch some Rays. It was HOT down there and NO breeze.  Ha Ha...lovin it!!  Soooo I've kind of been playing nursemaid and hoping he gets better soon and I don't get "it"!!!  I did take him to a Walk In Clinic across the street yesterday but they said they had all the "walk in" patients they could take that day!!!  Seriously???  I was not impressed with Baptist Medical Center and told them so!!  I do hope he's better by Thursday or I'll have to go to The Thanksgiving Buffet here by myself...and bring him a filled plate back.

More Ordnance Practice at Hurlburt AF Base tonight.  It sounds like a giant fireworks show going on.  We just consider it "The Sound of Freedom".  This is our military practicing, testing, learning...to keep us safe and FREE.  God Bless our Military.  I'm in awe of them.

For any GD Imagine Owners reading this....our furnace, well actually the big A/C vent in the ceiling, starting making a clicking noise about 30 seconds before it comes on and for about a minute afterwards.  Makes no sense as this vent has nothing to do with the heating system!!!  Pretty weird!

OK, signing off for this Tuesday night. 

BEACH DAYS, SHOPPING DAYS, & FUN WITH NEW FRIENDS DAYS

My cute little table :-)

Jerry, Roni & Roger relaxing at the beach.

They don't call this "The Emerald Coast" for nothing....it is truly a deep emerald green & the sand is like flour.

Jelly Fish washed up on the beach....YUK!!

2 Rays

Rays swimming close to shore.

Jerry Ohare enjoying the view.

Monday, November 13, 2017:

Sunny and 76 degrees today.  Got a recommendation for a car wash & detailing to the little town of Mary Esther, just east of us. When drying the truck, we think there was a stone or something in the towel as our truck ended us with scratches and swirl marks.  We went to Wal-Mart and got some rubbing compound and Rog was able to buff it out.  From now on, we wash our own!!  After this we went to the Beach and relaxed.  It's such a beautiful beach.  Monday Nights here are BINGO.  I'm not much of a BINGO fan, but I thought I'd go and be "social".  Well, Lady Luck smiled on me and I won the first game...AND the last game of a Cover-All.  I came home with $13.00 of winnings.  Yeaaaa Me!!

Tuesday, November 14, 2017:

Our new friends, the Ohares, from Springfield, IL invited us over for Brunch today.  Roni had made her homemade sausage gravy & biscuits, scrambled eggs, and fresh fruit.  What a special treat!  Her husband, Jerry made scrambled eggs outdoors on the grill....and they always taste better that way :-)  As we were leaving, they said, "why don't you come for dinner too...we have more sloppy joes than we can eat..."  Of course we said yes.  Roger and I then went shopping at Camping World, down the road, wanting to buy a canvas shoe holder that goes around the bottom of an RV bed base.  They were out but said they'd get more on Friday.  Following this shopping trip, we went to Destin looking for a little table with wicker storage baskets.  We saw this in Ohare's trailer (same model as ours) and it was super cute and we knew it would store our CDs and DVDs.  We went to Ross', Hobby Lobby, Target and WalMart and no luck on the table.  Back home and dinner at the Ohares.  Another gorgeous day weather-wise.  Sure hope it holds out for a long while.

Wednesday, November 15, 2017:

As I mentioned in an earlier post, Wednesdays are free coffee and donuts day at the clubhouse.  Afterwards, I went shopping and SCORED!!  I went back to Ross' and they had the cutest little table ever!!  Plus I got some different rugs for the RV as Rog didn't like the ones we had.  We need a park yard sale so I can sell the old ones that are barely used.  When I returned home, Roger had cleaned, vacuumed, dusted, put things away AND did up the dishes.  I was shocked and HAPPY!!  Roni and Jerry teased him and called him "Cinderella" .  What a Sweetheart!  Roni had been talking to me about the CRICUT machine as she had been wanting one.  They went shopping as well, and she bought one!!  Welcome Roni to the world of fun crafting :-)

Thursday, November 16, 2017

While having coffee this morning, we saw our neighbors pull out in their 33' Class C.  We thought maybe they were only staying 1 night, but their hose and chairs were still on their site.  A few minutes later. we  saw them backing up down the road and back into their site.  He went too far and hit the wooden fence behind us and broke his left taillight.  Then we saw others coming over and exchanging "information" that led us to believe something happened.  Seems that he was going to get his propane tanks filled but neglected to roll up his awning!!!!  His awning scraped up the backs and windows of 2 units across the street from us.  YIKES!!!  He was so embarrassed!!  He damaged his awning beyond repair and a mobile RV Service came & removed it.  He ordered a new one.  Needless to say, the neighbors across the street were NOT Happy Campers!!!  They say, "There are those that have...and those that will"! :-( We didn't do too much today as it was too gorgeous a day to not head to the beach.  We packed up a lunch and drinks and off we went.  Navarre Beach is only about 2 miles away, just over the causeway.  So beautiful and so relaxing.  We saw MANY Rays swimming really close to shore.  There must be some good feeding there.  Saw a jelly fish too...YUK!!!  Tonight, after a lot of research, we and our new friends, Roni & Jerry, went to a local restaurant, not far from here called Eastside Crab House.  They are only open 4 hours a day, from 5:00 PM to 9:00 PM.  Their "Catch of the Day" was Mahi Mahi, which Jerry and I had and it was fabulous.  Roger had Crab stuffed shrimp wrapped in bacon and blackened & Roni had crabbed stuffed shrimp, minus the bacon and seasoning.  Roger said his was very good, but a little "hot".  The 4 of us took home a piece of homemade Key Lime Pie.  Rog and I split a piece the next day and it was THE BEST EVER!!!



Friday, November 17, 2017:

ANOTHER perfect weather day.  We had to do laundry but then it was off to the Beach again to meet the Ohares.  This was one of the BEST beach days.  Blue skies, emerald green water, a little wave action with an onshore breeze...whoa, doesn't get much better than this!!  Roni had a wind filled canoe shaped thingy...don't know the name...but it was super comfy and I want one!!!  You just hold the open end into the wind or run with it and it fills up with air then you roll the bottom up and secure it and...VOILA' ...you have a bed or a chair or a floaty for the water.  Then when done you just open the end and roll it up from the other end, expelling all the air and it's a nice little roll that you fold over and put into a tiny carrying bag.  YEP...I want one!!!  I tried to go grocery shopping in the late afternoon, early evening but traffic was so heavy on 98 I couldn't even get out of the park so I gave up and went back home.  6:30 was make your own sundae in the clubhouse for $2.00 a bowl...should be free!!!  Afterwards was games and we played Right, Left, Center with quarters.  The winner took home $27.00...and it wasn't us!!  When we got back, Roger said he didn't feel good...he said his chest felt "funny".  OH NO...that means a chest cold!!!  We got some Cold Eaze so hopefully it will help a little.

Saturday, November 18, 2017

Cloudy and a threat of rain today...so they say...but very hot!!  It was almost 80 when I went grocery shopping this morning. Roger is feeling poorly so he got out of helping shop, carrying, and putting away.  He just "vegged" on the theater seating watching U of M get slaughtered by Wisconsin.  What a sad, sad state of affairs.  Harbaugh is the highest paid coach in the nation and yet he can't put a winning Michigan team together!!!  How many times have we said, "...well, there's always next year..." ???  Typical Florida weather...at 2:30, the clouds went away, and it was blue skies and HOT!!

CLOUDY SUNDAY

Gotta love this working guy!!!!

Today dawned cloudy/foggy and a little coolish.  After consuming a big breakfast that I had made I thought, ahhhhhh this looks like a good "nap day".  But, NOOOOO Roger decided he needed to check the heating ducts under the sink because some Imagine owners had been reporting some of their ducts were not connected at all and some not right thus causing a lot of heat to be trapped in the cupboards under the sink...and I needed to help!!  4-5 hours later, he had put aluminum tape on any areas that were leaking heat and then we had to put everything back where it belonged.  NOT my idea of a fun Sunday. 

HERE FISHY, FISHY.....

Roger, Roni, & Jerry Ohare on the fishing boat.

Good Catch Roger

Our poles, all ready to go....here Fishy, Fishy....

Today, Saturday, November 11th, we went on our fishing excursion with Jerry & Roni Ohare...our "Imagine-ary" friends.  Jerry volunteered to drive so we met them at their trailer at 7:30 AM. 

Arriving at the marina docks, in Destin, we found there were lots of other people going too. 

The seas were quite rough when we left with big rolling waves.  It knocked us around quite a bit, but being former, intrepid boaters, we just held on and enjoyed the ride.  Once at our first fishing stop, we dropped our pre-baited lines & were officially ocean fishing.  The poles were big and heavy with 2 hooks and a very large #16 sinker.  There was a posted sign that said if you drop/lose your pole, it will cost $150.00...YIKES!!  I caught the first fish of our 4-some and it was a "keeper".  Everybody had their own cooler with ice and their catches were thrown in this numbered cooler.  Roger caught the most fish.  They were Mackeral, Sea Bass, Snapper, Ruby Red & some kind of sucker fish that was thrown back!!

The seas calmed down during the day which made fishing so much easier!!  There was a pod of dolphins that kept circling the boat and popping up right beside us.  Very neat!!  Did I get a picture you ask?  Nope!!

The crew of our fishing boat filleted the fish for us (not well!!) and we grilled them and the Ohare's and us had a delicious dinner.

THE BLUE ANGELS

We left around 8:30 AM for NAS Pensacola to watch the Homecoming Show of The Blue Angels.  This is a show done at the end of their year tour to thank the community and their families for their support and to honor all Military, past and present.  We thought that because it was a Friday, a work day, it wouldn't be so crowded but  we were wrong.  There were THOUSANDS of people there.  We enjoyed all the aviation acts prior to the Blue Angels.  At 1:30 the pageantry of the pilots going to their planes began.  We've seen this probably a half dozen times, but it never gets old.

Their show was awesome...as usual.  It never ceases to amaze me what they do with such precision. The roar of their engines just gives me goosebumps.

Back at the park, we discovered we have new neighbors.  We went over to Jerry and Roni's trailer to discuss plans for the fishing trip tomorrow.

Friday nights here are Ice Cream Social night followed by game night.  We had our sundaes and then stayed to play "Left, Right, Center" with quarters.  We played 2 games and came home $4.00 poorer!!

Everyone is so friendly at this park.  I think we're going to like it here for the next 2 months.

Blue Angels in Formation

Bad Selfie at the Air Show

Angels 5 & 6

Skywriters

4 DAYS IN NAVARRE

After getting all set up on Monday, we took time off on Tuesday, from getting "organized" to do a little exploring after breakfast out.  I used YELP to find a local restaurant...didn't want a chain...with good reviews.  The Blue Collar Café seemed to fit the bill, with great reviews and 5 stars so we programmed it into the GPS and set off.  We were warned on YELP to not let the outside appearance deter us from entering and enjoying the wonderful cuisine.  Too bad we believed them!!  Upon entering we noted the place was VERY small, with only 6 tables.  We were lucky to get a table for 2 by the window!!!  When we received our meals, they were served on PAPER plates with waxed paper on top of the plates...seriously!!!  Asking for eating utensils, we were handed PLASTICware wrapped in a napkin...ARE YOU KIDDING ME???  Oh and we each received ONE skinny piece of toast sans butter.  We asked for butter and I'm not sure what we were given but it was absolutely tasteless.  The bill for this "cuisine"....$35.00.  First and last time for The Blue Collar Café!!

After breakfast, we drove around the area and walked down by the Marina and The Waterfront in Destin.  We stopped at Home Depot on the way back to buy some cement blocks so use under our rear stabilizers because they are on the sand and not on the concrete...like they are supposed to be...because there wasn't room to park the truck!!!  I asked for a bigger site but they are full !!!

Also on Tuesday we met some really fun people from Illinois who have the same brand and model trailer we do.  Jerry & Roni Ohare. They told us about a fishing excursion they were going on on Saturday and invited us to come along.  We've never done ocean fishing but it sounded like fun so we made reservations to go too.  Stay tuned.

Wednesday, November 8th.  Wednesdays here at Emerald Beach RV Park are free Donuts and Coffee day at the Clubhouse.  We met more friendly people there and spent the morning talking and sharing stories of travel and families.

Roger decided he had to "clean" the outside of the trailer so using a special dry wash and wax cleaner he did the whole outside of the trailer while I went shopping!!  The stores down here are very well stocked with winter wear!!!  I did find my shirt, finally, on a Clearance Rack for $6.00.  SCORE 1 for me!!!

Day 4...Thursday November 9th:  Cloudy and Rainy this morning.  A good day to do laundry.  Just can't escape laundry!!

Skies cleared in the afternoon and it warmed up.  Because today is Saturday when I'm writing this....I honestly don't remember what we did the rest of Thursday!!!

FLORIDA !!!

We left Birmingham South RV Park at 8:38 AM and arrived at our RV park in Florida at 1:43 PM.  After jockeying the truck and trailer around FIVE times....we finally got in our site with room to park the truck.  When I made reservations on June 2nd, I was told this was the ONLY site left that would accommodate us for 2 months.  We've been on the waiting list for a pull-thru site since June, but nothing opened up.  Today we were told there are 71 people on a waiting list to get in here!!!   This park was made 30 years ago when trailers were MUCH smaller.  It's tight in here but it's a nice park so I don't think we'll complain too much.

The park in Alabama was "OK" but we wouldn't want to spend a lot of time there.  It is VERY close to railroad tracks and trains go through about every half hour and guess where they blow the whistle????  Grrrrrrr  There just aren't a lot of choices for RV parks in southern Alabama.  This one was full with travelers.

Our trip from Birmingham to Navarre was uneventful as far as the trailer and traffic were concerned.  The truck and trailer performed perfectly.  HOWEVER....the GPS, not so much!!  I had programmed in the route we wanted to take and it WAS there...I swear!!!  We got to a "jog" in the road and the GPS said go left on 4.  As we turned, I saw the signs for the road we really wanted going straight!!!  OMG, I said to Roger, "turn around at the first opportunity, we are on the wrong road".  I won't go into his reaction!!!!!  Unfortunately, there was no place to turn around within a reasonable amount of time so we just kept going on 4.  As it turned out, it was a very nice route with good roads, very little traffic and serene countryside landscape with fields of cotton.  All I can say is....NOT MY FAULT !!!

I think our Guardian Angel changed the route on our GPS because it would not have been safe for us to go the other way....perhaps an accident?  God does work in mysterious ways!!!

So, back to trying to get set-up here...first of all, it was 83+ degrees, not a cloud in the sky and HOT!!  Trying to get our trailer into this site, keep it on the concrete, AND have room to get the truck parked so we weren't sticking out into the road or parking the neighbors lot was NOT fun.  In fact, it was downright UGLY !!!  Patience was wearing thin...if you know what I mean.  Ever tried to stuff 10 lbs. of you know what into a 5 lb bucket?  If so, you know what I mean!!

After we finally squeezed in, we put out the awning, got out the chairs and toasted our success with a cold beer (Roger) and a Mai Tai (me).  We walked down by the beach at sunset and out onto their very long fishing pier. 

It gets dark really early now so we decided to do more exploring tomorrow after Roger takes me out to breakfast :-).  Just had sandwiches for dinner. 

As we were coming back from out walk, we kept hearing these loud booms.  I thought, something must be going on that there are fireworks close by.  However, they kept going and going and then we started hearing a succession of rat-a-tats that sounded like our water pump going off, but the water pump was not on!!!  Roger was reading the Guide for the park and they mentioned that, "the booms you hear in evening are from the local air base (2 Air Force bases, a Navy base, and an Army base...so not sure which one) assemble ordnance to be shipped to our troops overseas and are testing them, in their honor, before they ship them.  The rat-a-tat sounds in rapid succession are Gatling type guns used on A-10 Wart Hogs..  It's called, "Honor our Troops".  OK, that's pretty awesome.  NOTE:  It's now 8:00 PM CST and they are still booming!!!  I'm hoping this doesn't happen every night...but if it does, I'm proud to be an American and I can handle it :-)

OK, signing off for tonight.  I won't be posting every day, but I will keep you all posted, at least weekly of what's happening with us.  Our son told me today, he enjoys this Blog because, "I can keep track of you crazy kids" !!!  Too funny.

THE GRAND OLE OPRY

Today is Sunday, November 5th.  We got home too late last night from the Opry to write anything.  Yesterday was, Saturday and Saturday means college football.  I did some laundry and watched a little football too.  Roger helped carry laundry but mostly watched football. 

At 5:00 pm we boarded the shuttle for downtown Nashville.  We wanted to have dinner at Tootsies, a famous Honky Tonk by the Ryman Theater but time was short, the crowds were large, and we were afraid of missing the start of the Opry so we ate at BB Kings Restaurant right where we got off the shuttle.  An excellent choice, as the food (ribs, pulled pork, beans, cole slaw, and cornbread) was beyond delicious.  They advertise the ribs are fall off the bone good and we were not disappointed.  The music in this venue was Blues.  I must say I am not a big fan of Blues or Jazz but the music was very good.

We walked 2 blocks to the Ryman Theater, and arrived just as they were opening the doors.  The show was fabulous...a mix of old talent, new talent, comedy, and dialogue.  We enjoyed every minute of our time there.  As I wrote earlier in this Blog...Nashville is a MUST VISIT city.  It is a vibrant city with thousands of people walking the streets in a colorful, electric, musical venue.

TODAY, we woke to sunshine and the anticipation of getting one day closer to our destination of Florida's Panhandle and the Emerald Coast.

We got all hitched up and departed Nashville at 9:46 AM.  The drive to Birmingham, AL was only 210 miles but it took us longer due to some "hills".  Lots of RVs heading South on I-65.  At the parks we talk to people from all over, including a couple from Australia.  Everyone is heading to Florida or Texas or Arizona...or like us....all 3 !!

We arrived at Birmingham South RV Park and was assigned a very nice paved pull-thru site.  It's 9:30PM now and people are still pulling in.  Everything here from a little tee-pee pop up to a 43' million dollar Class A motorhome!!  It is a perfect stop off spot for travelers heading South and West. 

After getting set up, Roger and I sat out in our deck chairs and had drinks and snacks.  It was a gorgeous evening with warm temps, light breeze, and a beautiful sunset.  Now there is a big full moon out there :-) 

God willing, we will be at our 2 month home in Florida's Panhandle tomorrow, late afternoon.  So excited!! 

Flybuoy V is still giving us no trouble at all and for that we are truly thankful.  Thank you God.

A DAY IN NASHVILLE

Woke up to more rain this morning...Grrrrr!!  We think it's been 2 weeks since we've seen the sun.  Definitely none on this trip yet.

While we were eating breakfast, the rain stopped and we decided to find a grocery store and get some food and beer to tide us over till we get to Florida.  While shopping, Roger said, "...lets find a tour of Nashville for this afternoon".  Sounded great to me, so we went into the KOA office to get their recommendations.  Lo and behold, they have a Concierge!!  He booked us on a "Discover Nashville" tour, which was leaving in 1/2 hour.  Yikes....put groceries away, change clothes, and run to meet the bus, which was already waiting!!!

Nashville is a very eclectic city (and it is HUGE!)  There is everything from state-of-the-art buildings and businesses to Honky-Tonks that were here when the earliest country singers came on the scene.  Tootsies, the very first Honky-Tonk was where stars like Randy Travis was discovered while singing on Tootsies homemade stage, and signed to a contract.  It is still a viable establishment today.

We toured the old Ryman Theater, home of the original Grand Ole Opry.  It is now fondly referred to as, "The Mother Church of Country Music".  We found out why. We will be there tomorrow night for the show, but enjoyed our intimate look at the old theater today.  They have a video detailing the history and we learned it was originally a church and the original pews are still there providing seating for the Opry patrons.

Interesting note...there are 700 churches in Nashville...not a typo....700!!!

After this we toured the Country Music Hall of Fame.  We had only an hour there and I can tell you that is NOT enough time.  Our tickets are still good tomorrow and we could go back, but the traffic is horrendous and Roger wants to watch football games.  We'll just have to come back :-)  It is really an Awesome place to visit.  I especially liked the clothing that was worn by singers throughout the years.  They even had one of Minnie Pearls cotton, puffed sleeve dresses and one of her famous straw hats with flowers and the price tag dangling down  :-) 

A busy fun day!!

LOTS OF BUMPY ROADS...

Encountered lots of bumpy roads on our way to Nashville.  Other than that, it was again a safe, and uneventful trip, albeit a long day. Thank you God for keeping us safe.  Couldn't believe all the BIG trucks on the roadways.  Sometimes there would be 12 or more all in a row.  The truck stops and rest areas are packed with them whenever we stop.  I feel so "little" when parked between 2 53' semis!!

Stopped at a Welcome Center, just over the Tennessee border at 2:53 PM.  We made sandwiches and had lunch before getting back on the road.  I drove from here for the next 1 1/2 hours.  Piece of Cake ladies!!!  We have a deal that whoever is not driving is free to use their phone or tablet, check emails, chat, watch a movie or nap.  It is nice to take time to look up once in awhile though and see the beautiful scenery.  The colors are good in KY and TN but would have been more vivid if the sun were shining...which it was not...and hasn't since we left!!  HOWEVER...the temps were rising....eventually it reached 75 degrees!!  We were freezing last night and tonight we have the A/C on!!!

When I called our intended RV park, Two Rivers RV Park, in the afternoon to confirm they had space (didn't make a reservation) they did NOT have any full hook ups!!  Uh Oh.  Using a phone app called RV Parky, I found some other parks just outside of Nashville and called one of them, Jellystone Yogi Bear.  They had 1 site but it did not have a sewer hook up.  Not an option!!  Called Nashville KOA, which, by the way is next door to the first 2, and they had 2 back up sites with full hook up.  A little more pricy than we had planned on, but...a place to call home for 3 days.

We arrived around 4:30 CST.  Didn't have much time to look around but appears to be a very nick park.  Their new pool is AWESOME looking!!!  Since we have yet to stock the frig and pantry, we went to dinner just down the road to Logans Roadhouse.  WORST dinner and service EVER!!!  If you are in the area, do NOT eat here.  My husband's stead was over cooked and tough so he asked for a new one.  A half hour later, I was done eating and he still did not have his new steak.  When it finally arrives, it too is tough and over done!!!  Complained to the Manager and she took the dinner off our bill.  NOT a pleasant dining experience!!!

I'm still trying to figure out this Blogging thing so I will post pictures when I figure out how.

OUR LONG AWAITED RV ADVENTURE BEGINS....

Leaving Arrow Storage on 11/1/2017

November 1, 2017

Months of planning, buying, mods to trailer, & dreaming is coming to fruition today.  Had a hard time falling asleep last night...it was like Christmas Eve!

We pulled out of Arrow Storage at 9:28 AM and headed South on I-96 to US-127 to I-94 to I-69 to I-65 on our way to our first planned stop at Timber Ridge RV Park in Anderson, IN.  It was a family owned RV park. Seemed to be a lot of seasonal residents.  We had a nice pull-thru site.  Neighbors had a large Class A.  They were from Canada and on their way to Apache Junction, AZ.  The drive down was, thankfully, uneventful and I did my fair share of driving...yea me!!

We arrived in Anderson, IN around 3:30 (ish).  Got set up just before the cold rain started.  Made sandwiches with chips for dinner. (Note to self:  Buy groceries!!)

It rained ALL night but we woke up to dry conditions and much warmer temps...but still cloudy.  After some coffee and blueberry muffins we were on the road again.  Didn't unhitch truck and trailer last night, so getting ready to leave was pretty easy.