Tuesday March 29th 2011

Well, it didn’t warm up any!!  It is still cold with a nice wind out of the NE.  I won’t be doing anything here at home I don’t think, I won’t have any time.

Well, work should be cool.  When I got there I started fertilizing  the rest of the campground.  Mark purchased another five hundred pounds of the good stuff so I put it all on with a push spreader.  Got a little tired of pushing towards the end but got most of it done before it started raining. I think it took me about two and a half hours.  Hope it does it’s thing!!

This afternoon it was still raining when we went back to work. It hasn’t warmed up any either.  Mark figured I could park campers so Bits could get them checked in without getting the place filled up and backed up out onto the road.  She kept pretty busy but I was standing around in the shop and I don’t like to stand around. I asked if he had a mobile home that he wanted cleaned, at least started.  I could do that during the time I was waiting to park a camper.  I should have taken a picture of the mobile home.  It has been sitting empty for approximately 7 years and it was a mess when the lady left.  This wasn’t one of Mark’s trailers but he inherited it.  Going to take awhile to get it into shape to rent out.

When I came to park a camper I would be wet, when I went back I would get wetter and by quitting time I was about soaked an froze!!  It took awhile after I got home to get warmed up. A nice warm shower sure helped!

We are watching some of our favorite shows tonight and taping a couple more.  Not a lot going on so I am going to try to keep warm and will write more tomorrow…Night Y’all…

Monday March 28th 2011

Sparky gets his stitches out today and I be he will be happy to be rid of them, they are driving him crazy.

We got him in at 8:45AM and the vet’s office was really crowded. Got Sparky in though in just a few minutes and they got his stitches out and they said he did good.  He doesn’t like his feet messed with.

We did a few other things like going to Wal Mart  Wal Mart is always fun except for the checking out.  That gets a little costly sometimes.

When we got back home I played with Sparky for awhile then decided to split some more wood…

This was my third piece and I got both wedges and the maul stuck in it.  Fortunately the maul was kind of loose and I wiggled it loose.  It is coming along, don’t have to much more to do…

I have a pretty good stack of wood.  Some of the pieces I am just going to try to burn with the stumps.  They have knots and who knows what else in them.  I thought that maybe I could split all of it but I don’t think so, I will burn what I can because I have lots of time!!  I really worked up a sweat splitting today and after I finished I took Sparky out for awhile and I was really wet (damp) and the cold wind did a number on me, I felt like I was going to freeze.  I finally warmed up inside after about an hour.

We had chili again tonight, I had the chili dogs and Linda just had chili.  I sure like chili (with hot dogs).

Not going to do much tonight have a few programs on I like to watch.  I fell asleep during a couple of them, oh well, guess I didn’t miss much.

Well time to go to bed so night Y’all…..

Sunday March 27th 2011

Sunday, my day off and I went to church and Fellowship Baptist.  I like the church, people are friendly and the preacher does a good job.

Today for lunch I decided to fix vegetables and rice.  Thought we had soy sauce but couldn’t find it.  Linda had some stuff that she had bought out in California I think.  We tried it and the vinegar was enough to clear your sinuses!!  We put some parmesan cheese on it and actually it was quite good!  We had rice left over so after church tonight Linda fixed rice pudding.  I love rice pudding.

I started singing with the choir tonight.  They are practicing for the Easter Cantata. I always have trouble with the cantatas.  The bass part is always to high for me.  I did get a CD with the bass part so maybe I can learn it before the cantata is scheduled.

I was tired again tonight, so what’s new?  I watched some TV and slept a little before going to bed.  Not a real exciting day but I feel good about it.. Night Y’all….

Saturday March 26th 2011

Here it is Saturday already.  Not to much going on today, have to go to work this afternoon.

We didn’t do much of anything this morning. It is raining and very cold.

At work the work went well and the time went well also. I made a mistake on the drawer yesterday, hopefully today will be the charm.  Very quiet day today, did quite a bit of propane and not many RVs.  Got most of the cleaning done pretty early and took care of the calls for reservations.

Guess this was the charmed day, the drawer came out right!!  Oh Yeah.

Linda fixed chili yesterday and today we had chili dogs, Very good.

There isn’t to much on TV tonight either, maybe a good night for sleeping. So….Night Y’all….

Friday March 25th 2011

Cold again this morning!!  Not surprised, guess it is supposed to be like this for the next week or more.  The farmers were really busy though on the days it was really warm.  I know they didn’t get everything done but they sure got a lot of fields planted.

I didn’t sleep very good last night, I was trying to figure out where I made the mistake on the books.  Called Mark this morning and he hadn’t gotten to it yet.  Anyway, he said not to worry about it that mistakes happen.  I don’t like to make mistakes though but Mark is a great boss and is very lenient.  Guess that is what makes working for him, well, enjoyable.  Don’t have to worry about keeping busy, he doesn’t care how hard you work, just wants the job done if possible and if not, tomorrow is another day.

We got our newspaper in the mail from the SEMO electric coop.  I thought it was very interesting..

They put the Resurrection  Story on the front page…Front page news for sure!!!

We didn’t do anything this morning I don’t think.  We have an appointment for Sparky Monday,  They said it was good to wait a few more days before taking the stitches out.

Had a good day at work, kept pretty busy with campers, propane and selling things inside. Also like to talk to the people that come it and wait for the shuttle to Lambert’s, (home of the “throwed” rolls).  People always have something to say or stories to tell and most are very interesting.  Oh, when I closed up my books were off again!!  Don’t like it when that happens, I was a penny over and I just don’t like it when that happens.

Well, we had our new furniture delivered so I got a picture of one of the pieces…

This is the love seat, the sofa looks just like it only a little bigger. So far we really like it, I would liked to have had a rocking chair but maybe someday I will be able to get one…

Linda fixed a pot of chili tonight and it was delicious.  I love chili and the second and third days are even better after it has time to sit and blend all the flavors together.  She used a can of habanero chili bean and I figured it would be really hot.  Just a little tickle in the throat is all.  Maybe tomorrow it will be a little warmer.  I figure a chili dog day and a day of chili mac and it will probably be about gone.

I feel a lot better tonight than I did last night, not sure why but I do.  We watched some programs that we had recorded because there wasn’t anything new on TV, can you believe it, two hundred channels and nothing to watch!!  What a bummer   After all this excitement I guess it is time to go to bed….Night Y’all..

Thursday March 24th 2011

Well, I hate to complain but it is COLD outside!!  The wind is blowing out of the North pretty good and I’m not sure how warm it is but I think it is about 38, give or take.

Linda and I went into town today, had a few stops to make.  I had to get some more glasses from the Dollar Store for back ups.   I have had the pair I’m wearing for about a year so I’ve gotten my dollars worth from them.  I need spares though just in case.

We went to Lewis furniture and picked out a sofa and love seat.  The sofa we have now came with our home and it was worn out when we bought it.  I took it outside after taking it apart as much as I could, it was a hassle getting it through the door.  Our new one is going to be delivered tomorrow. I could have borrowed our neighbors truck and picked it up but for ten dollars they will deliver them and I don’t have to worry about bringing them in the house.  Guess that is worth ten dollars.

Got to work and it hasn’t warmed up any.  Parking campers in this wind is really chilly.  Things were generally pretty good.  We got eleven campers in and I can’t get the books to balance, hate it when that happens.  I always thought I was pretty good with numbers but I guess book keeping is another subject and I’m not doing good at it.  Hope Mark doesn’t get to upset, I left it for him to figure out…

When I got home we had a bite to eat, cereal, then watched  a little TV and I accidently caught our old sofa on fire, shouldn’t play with matches I guess.

Tomorrow they will deliver the sofa and love seat and I promise I won’t play with matches around them….Night Y’all….

Wednesday March 23rd 2011

Beautiful day!!  Absolutely delightful and the sun hasn’t even come up yet!

I have to go into work today so I will probably keep pretty busy.  Mark left me a list of things that need to be done.  The posts I put in yesterday, well one was out this morning, run over by a darned old truck (or camper).

I couldn’t hardly believe that they ran over one they saw my put in!!  I was fertilizing the campsites, that is a lot of work especially on a hot day!!

Actually had a great day today but I was tired when it was over, worked pretty steady all day, lots of cleanup..

This was a tree Mark cut down last year and I’m cleaning up the bark.  I think I made about six trips but got it done.  Cleaned up leaves after this.

Finished working at 6PM and headed home.  Linda fried some fish and before I got into the house I could smell it and thought that it was coming from another house!!  Fish tasted great!

We took it easy tonight and watched a little TV.  Pretty quiet night and it is supposed to cool down a lot, has started already, I need a sweater to go outside.   That’s about it….Night Y’all…

Tuesday March 22nd 2011

Well, today is my first day to work all day, wonder what I will be doing.  I’m supposed to be helping on the mobile homes so we will see what is in store.

Well, here is a golf cart that is having problems…

This poor little thing over heats and quits running.  I took the cooling shroud off and cleaned off the grease and dirt out of the fins so maybe it will be OK now.  I will use it this afternoon.  I had some odd jobs to do and he wanted to check and see if the engine still leaked.  It didn’t and it didn’t stop either, he said he had problems with it quitting.

Got a picture of Bits, she works the off on Sunday thru Wednesday…

Haven’t talked to her very much but she seems to be very nice, nice smile!!

Linda fixed taco salad for supper, very good, and then I had a peanut butter and jelly (grape) sandwich for desert!!  Scrumptious!!

Well, not much going on tonight, will watch some TV, I’m kind of tired hope I can stay awake!!   Night Y’all….

Monday March 24th 2011

Beautiful day!!  I forgot that Saturday I tried to take the bandages off Sparky’s front legs, he gets quite vicious when you mess with his legs so I took him to the Vet and the nurse took them off. 

OK back to Monday.  Another beautiful day, we invited Jim and June over for coffee this morning, they made it about 9AM.  Had a really good visit.

We have quite a few things to do today, after Jim and June left we headed for town to get me some coveralls.  Well, I couldn’t find any so I guess Levi's will have to do. We tried a few different stores and no luck.  We picked up Linda’s prescriptions and looked at furniture.  I think we will probably buy a new sofa and chair.  We don’t have a chair right now and our sofa is in really bad shape.

I looked at mowers while we were out and found one at Sears that I almost bought.  I don’t need to spend that kind of money, I got ours started when we got home and mowed our lawn and the neighbors, so I think I will save the money for another year.

The flowers are looking good…

The leaves look like they could have gotten frost bitten..

When we got back home I did some more wood splitting.  It went pretty good today but still not easy stuff to split.

I took a picture of the moon last night and this is probably the best picture I have ever taken of the moon, turned out pretty nice, maybe a little blurry from not being real steady but still turned out pretty good…

Now I made this picture larger but now I can’t find it, what a bummer!!!

Well, another easy night I guess, I have to go to work tomorrow, so will try to get rested up.  I go in at 9AM tomorrow and Wednesday. Well, if I think of anymore I will have to add it later…Night Y’all….

Sunday March 20th 2011

Sunday already, I figured I would go to Fellowship Baptist Church this morning to check out the early service.  I was ready really early, I thought the service started at 8:45AM but it doesn’t start until 9:30!  Well, Linda had time to get up, get dressed and eat before we left for church.

The service was nice, Sunday School was nice also.  I think we may start going there, seems like a nice church, nice people and the Word is preached there….

We don’t have anything planned for this afternoon so I guess it would be a good time for a nap!!!  Sparky and I did just that!!

I went to the evening service at Fellowship Baptist Church again tonight.  He is going through the Book of Revelation and I really like the Book and think it is very interesting.  I was just looking at the picture above and the splotchy grass isn’t actually grass it’s wild onions and I love the smell of wild onions when you mow them!!

Nice quiet night again not much going on….Night Y’all…

Saturday March 19th 2011

We are supposed to have a couple of really, really nice days then later next week it’s supposed to get back to normal, back in the 50s and 60s. I’ve been trying to get the mower started without any luck but will keep trying.  Hate to buy a new one but that would sure be nice.

Did some splitting today.  This is the hardest wood to split.  Guess I shouldn’t complain though it is really good exercise.

Back to work this afternoon, thinking it may be a busy day.  Snow Birds coming back from down South.  Mark, Kim and Grant took off this morning for their retreat in the hills a little West of here.

Well, the day turned out to be quite slow.  I only got four campers in.  I got almost all of my computing done but the battery went dead.  I was hoping the computer didn’t crash.  It was so slow I got out of the office about 2 minutes after seven and no mistakes that I know of!!!

Linda fixed turkey and noodles for lunch or supper, it was delicious..

This is enough for a few meals!!

Not much going on tonight, watch a little TV and go to bed I guess!!  Night Y’all…..

Friday March 18th 2011

So far today is a beautiful day, the sun hasn’t come up yet though.  Sparky and I get up about 6AM, well, I get Sparky up about that time. Gives us time to do our thing.  He likes to play and then I can go split a little wood!  I am not going to work quite so hard splitting wood, it is just to wet and hard to split right now.  Sparky loves to be outside especially if it is nice and warm.  He will lay around and watch me, quite a watch dog. He really doesn’t like the bandages around his legs.  I think they are supposed to be on for about 10 days, he has a few more days to go.

I wonder if my memory is getting worse.  Can’t remember what we did yesterday, oops, that is today and I’m writing this tomorrow!!  I don’t think we did much, the other day I replaced the vent on the camper, I think I forgot to put that in.  I also put the battery charger on the compartment side battery of the camper, hopefully it will charge, if not I will have to keep looking for the ground to figure out why all the bells and whistles go off.  Another day maybe.

Linda’s glucose has been kind of erratic.   Not sure if it is what we have been eating or if there is another reason.  It isn’t real bad and I could be wrong about the erratic part.  It fluctuates  from 95 to 130 so that could be OK.

I went to work at Hinton RV Park again today, got a little busy, spurts, but had time to post my blog and read the emails.  Work went quite well, even balanced the books!!!  The old guy that works next door has stopped over to see me and couldn’t find me, I was cleaning the rest rooms.  I saw him this afternoon and finally got his attention and he came over and talked for awhile.  Keith is quite a character, I am going to try to get a picture of him if I can, he stays pretty busy. 

I am remembering the propane procedures, even purged one just before going home.  Been 5 or 6 years since I’ve done that.

Not a lot going on at home, I was hungry for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich!!  They are so gooooooood!!   I had two of them.  Nothing on TV tonight, we watched HGTV until I fell asleep on the sofa.  Tired!  I had Sparky out a few times.  Linda said he did nothing while I was at work except sleep.  I think Linda likes that.

Anyway, if I can get a picture of Keith I will put it on later……Night Y’all..

Thursday March 17th 2011

Beautiful day today, going to get into the upper seventies!!  I can handle that. 

Linda put on a turkey last night.  I have been hungry for turkey.  Smelled good all night…got a picture of it…

I realize it isn’t thanksgiving or Christmas but this really sounded good and I wasn’t disappointed!  We had baked sweet potatoes and cranberries with it.  What a good meal.

I split some more wood today, two or three pieces I think…

The pile is getting smaller.  Only about 6 more months of work and I may get it finished.  I probably should just let is sit for another year and let it dry out.

Work today.  I will work in the office.  It isn’t to bad, the crowd hasn’t started yet.  Maybe next weekend we will be swamped.  Today ended up being pretty good.  Made one mistake so I figure that wasn’t to bad.  Well, I probably made more than one mistake, I know I was a nickel off at the end of the shift, oh well, I’m sure not perfect.

When I got home I was really tired.  I stayed up until after 10PM but I did doze during that time.  I was really ready for bed tonight….Night Y’all….

Wednesday March 16th 2011

OK now if I can remember what we did on Wednesday….I woke up…from there everything is a blank!!

Can’t remember if it was raining or not I don’t think it was I think the sun was shining but wasn’t going to get very warm, maybe 60.  I think it was a nice day though.  I don’t have to work today, I know that.  I think I split some wood, but not a lot, it is so wet and the outer ring is so splintery that it is very hard to split.  Can’t remember if this was the day I dropped a log on my big toe or if it was yesterday, it sure hurt though.

I don’t think we did anything of importance today.   I need to write these while I can remember things.  Oh, we had taco salad again tonight and left over pizza, my favorite meal (left overs).

Well, I am going to call it a night, think I’m starting to get a headache…Night Y’all…

PS, My sister Sr Margaret Anne asked me to add this to the blog.. at the end there is a place that says “comments” or “0 comments” and if you click on that you can leave a comment, if you leave it anonymous kind of sign it so I will know who wrote it.  I’ve gotten a couple that I have no idea who they are or how they found my blog.  Bye again..

Tuesday March 15th 2011

Another day in the neighborhood.  It’s cold, rainy and windy.  Supposed to quit today though and if the sun comes out it could make it up to fifty!! It didn’t make it, I think the high for today was forty four.  Tomorrow is supposed to get up to sixty then Thursday up to almost 80 WHOPEEEE!

I got Sparky up about 6 AM and got him kind of wore down.  Played for about an hour or so.  Got Linda up and got ready to take him into the Vet. They say we can pick him up this afternoon after 4PM.  We are having his Dew (?) claws removed from his front feet also.  I don’t envy him a bit.  Dropped him off just before nine then went to McDonald’s for computer time.  All the time I spent there I forgot to post my blog and that was one of the big reasons we went there.  I downloaded Skype and that took awhile. After that we went to Wal Mart so Linda could spend some money. 

Went to Aldi’s, which is a great little grocery store.  It isn’t American owned I don’t think but they have great products and great prices. Spent a lot of money there.

I decided to go to New Madrid and get the tags for the camper and wouldn’t you know, we got there at noon and they just closed until 1PM.  We went shopping and then went to a gas station to eat.  Sounds funny but they have a buffet there.  Cheap and it wasn’t to bad but we probably won’t go back.  I told them the food was good but the smoke was terrible. Guess cigarette smoke isn’t banned there.

Well, we went and picked up Sparky just after 4PM.  They said he did fine and was up and around.  Linda’s dog, Linda paid the vet…..$322.00!!!  For a free dog he is very expensive.  He isn’t real chipper but not to bad, he doesn’t want to run right now…

He has bandages on both front fee from the surgery and I think that is the most bothersome thing for him, he doesn’t like it and they have to be bandaged for about 14 days.  Guess he will get used to it after a couple days.

This picture was earlier, He doesn’t play with the palm branches anymore. Guess that was a Texas thing.

Well, it should be another quiet night, hopefully Sparky will sleep well, then maybe we could sleep well also.

The weather forecaster was off by a few degrees and a couple of hours.  About 9PM I could see the moon through the clouds and I figure it will get cold tonight.  Oh well, this is still March.  Warm weather is coming and I figure the farmers are looking forward to some dry weather also.  Time for bed I guess..Night Y’all….

Monday March 14th 2011

It’s Monday, it’s raining, it’s cold, it’s windy, it’s another day!!

We have a lot to do today, many stops in town, have to go to the bank, get an appointment for Sparky, get our taxes done etc…

We got most everything done, couldn’t get the tags for the camper, will wait until tomorrow I guess.  Probably end up going to New Madrid to get the tags, need our property tax receipt so that is the easiest, not the cheapest but easiest. (New Madrid is where we get the tax receipt)

Got an appointment for Sparky tomorrow at the Delta Vet Clinic. Sure hate to do that to him but we think it is necessary.

I had to take another picture of the lemon and the orange together.   I have never seen a lemon this big, bigger than most grapefruit, The orange is a normal orange.

I guess the lemon does look a little deformed but it will still taste the same.

After we got home Linda fixed taco salad I think, I don’t think it was yesterday but I could be wrong, I do forget things and Linda is asleep and she is starting to forget things also,  What a pair!!

Not much going on tonight, a little TV and keep Sparky from eating I guess.  Will write more tomorrow.;; Night Y’all….

Saturday March 12th 2011

This is going to be a beautiful day.  Sun is shining and it isn’t cold out, the wind isn’t blowing very hard so I think it will be very nice.

I decided to split a couple more pieces of wood.  I actually split five more pieces because I won’t do any tomorrow.  These weren’t big pieces but they sure weren’t easy to split.  After I finished with that we took it pretty easy since I had to work this afternoon.

I for some reason was tired.  I had a hard time staying awake sitting around not doing anything.

After lunch I headed to work.  Had a pretty easy afternoon.  Mark is still sick so he went on home about five thirty and left me to close at seven. I counted the money and after one mistake had the drawer perfect.  Then I realized I am quitting an hour early, what a bummer.  Oh well, I think it will be easy when the time comes.  It was, I had a couple more campers come in but that was an easy ordeal.  I was finished by about five after seven and locked the doors and put the golf cart away and headed for home.  I stopped and picked up some spaghetti for supper and that turned out great.

We watched some TV then called it a night, I was tired….Night Y’all…..

Sunday March 13th 2011

Well, this morning is sure different than yesterday.  It is very cool, windy and cloudy out.  I think the temperature must be in the low 40s, very chilly out!!

I decided to try Miner Baptist Church again this morning.  Services start at 8:30AM so I decided to try that one.  I got there about 8:15AM and there was no one there.  Well, the time did change this  morning but no one???  The Praise Group was just coming in to practice so I listened to them and then decided to go into the Narthex  to see if they had a bulletin out.  The did so I checked the service times.  Early service is 9AM and there is another at 11AM.  There is a list of about twelve things for Sunday and those were the only two I understood.  When I went there last Fall they were going to have a Miner Switch after the first of the year.  I’m not sure what  that was and I didn’t ask guess I should have.  On the list of things going on on Sunday, there wasn’t any Sunday School that I recognized and no Sunday evening service only a deacon ordination.

Linda fixed taco salad for dinner, delicious.   I know we have corn chips but I can’t find them so I had to do without.  They are probably still in the camper.

This evening I decided to go to Friendship Baptist Church in Sikeston. I have gone here before and I know a couple of people there. The service was pretty good, Revelation Chapter 14.  I think Revelations is a really interesting book.  I think I will start going there to see how the rest of the services are.  One thing I really like about this church is they don’t have praise songs, I like praise songs, but I would rather sing the “old hymns”. Some of the praise songs have a great message but the music and rhythm is not easy to follow.

We watched some TV tonight, I like the  “Undercover Boss” it is very interesting to see how the “boss” does on the job and then what he has to say to them after the week in his office.  Like that part.

Well, that’s about it for today. Nice relaxing day…Night Y’all..

Oh, it’s raining outside and Sparky doesn’t like the rain!!!  To Bad

Friday March 11th 2011

Well, I got kind of an early start this morning. Had Sparky out for about 2 hours and I did a little splitting of wood.  I used my new toys to split two (2) pieces of wood.  I figure if I split two pieces per day I will get done by the end of summer!! I’m not in any real hurry.

Got home yesterday and went to work this afternoon.  I was a little nervous even though I have done this for four years a few years ago.  I always liked working for Mark and he just got tired of the Workamper deal because they got to the point they weren’t reliable.  Got a picture of Mark and Grant…

Grant is a senior in high school and getting ready to go to college this Fall. I also got a picture with Kim in it and Bo the Australian Shepherd…

Got a couple pictures of the campground too..

I planted this tree about five or six years ago but the ice storm got the top of it…

The job was almost the same as before, maybe a few minor changes. I had a pretty good day.

We had spaghetti for supper.  That was pretty good. I need to go on a diet and try to lose a few pounds.

Not much else going on tonight, watch a little TV and go to bed.  Night Y’all….

Thursday March 10th 2011

Don’t say God doesn’t answer prayers!!!  We packed up this morning and I disconnected the twelve volt system in the camper and VOILA no bells or whistles the rest of the way home!!  Had a really decent trip.  Cost of fuel wasn’t good but other than that and the head wind we did just fine.

I have to add this in here.  I am so PROUD of our little boy Sparky, last night for the first time he did something that almost brought a tear to my eye.  I didn’t get a picture of him last night but this morning I got a picture of him SALUTING!!!  What a patriotic dog!!!!

Sparky had to stay in his cage all the way home and I think it must have been a growing experience for him..

OK enough of that.  When we got home we started unloading the camper, can’t believe how much “stuff” we have.  I know I won’t get it all done today but I have plenty of time.  Everything is fine here at home, had lots of mice. I had Decon put out for them to eat and it’s all gone.  See lots of tracks so we sure hope there aren’t any left in here.

Tomorrow I start back to work for Mark.  I really wasn’t looking for a job and the ones that I had applied for would have just been for me so this works out quite well, Linda can stay home with Sparky.  Don’t know how many days a week I’ll be working yet but it is supposed to be part time.  Anyway, we aren’t going to do anything tonight but this afternoon I kind of rinsed all the mud off the car and camper.  Rain on the road sure doesn’t get the camper clean.

Time to relax and take something for my aching legs.  Will let you know tomorrow how the job goes….Night Y’all….

Wednesday March 9th 2011

Cool this morning!!!  The cold front made it here and it is cool!  Sparky and I walked around the park quite a few times hoping he would wear down just a little maybe.  We don’t figure we will drive to far today but would like to get within two hundred miles of home before we stop.

We had a pretty good trip and the wind after getting on Interstate thirty was pretty good.  We drove past the place we had stopped before and I didn’t realize it.  We stopped at another place that was in back of a motel.  Looked like maybe it had been flooded.  I stopped at the office and asked if they had any “dry” sites meaning ones that weren’t flooded.  He directed me to the end of the campground and said they might be dry.  They weren’t to bad but thought I would check the electricity before hooking up.  Voltage was only 86…. way low!  We decided to drive on. 

We are having a few problems.  The vent over the stool blew off.  I knew it was about to go but thought it would hold off until we stopped.  It didn’t.  I got up on top in a rest area and put duct tape over it and it seems to hold.  I know if it rains it will leak though.

Driving on, we encountered more problems in I-55.  Brake light is coming on, couldn’t figure out what it was because it just blinked once in awhile.  Finally it came on and stayed on.  Linda read the owners manual and it said to get it checked right away.  Stopped at a gas station and the carbon monoxide detector started going off.  Kind of makes me think of a pilot when things start going wrong all at once.  Sully landed the plane in the river in New York and he seemed quite calm about the matter. I wondered if this thing would catch on fire and burn to the ground???  Well, we stopped at a camp ground in Blytheville  AR for the night.  It is dark and I hate driving in the dark and hate setting up in the dark.  We did it though.  The campground is Shearin RV Park…

I would like to have made it home tonight, we are only about 75 miles away.  Don’t like driving in the dark and don’t like having problems with the camper especially at night.

We are going to watch a little TV and pray that our camper will be all healed up in the morning.  Don’t laugh, it could happen….Night Y’all…

Tuesday March 8th 2011

Well, it is still warm out and the wind is blowing from the Southeast at a pretty good clip!  It is sprinkling and we are supposed to get some storms. I asked at the desk yesterday if they were Passport America. They think they are but not sure how it works.  I went in again this morning and they had a discussion for about five minutes and finally came back and said I could stay another night for half price if I wanted to.  We don’t have the new PA book so I’m not sure if they are in it or if they are they don’t like to let people use it.  Claiming ignorance works!! 

We decided to travel on anyway. I figure the camper may get the top cleaned off (lots of dust) and get the camper cleaned in the mean time…wrong, we went through a lot of rain and the camper and the car both look like mud balls.  Nothing a little soap and water won’t fix.

We used the GPS and it is taking us in places we have never gone before! Looking at the map I guess it isn’t really out of the way but we ended up in Shreveport LA.  I got the computer out and checked MapQuest and it doesn’t really tell me much either.  I think we will go with the GPS and see some new country.

The campground we stopped at is Southern Living RV Park.  Nice park built on the side of a hill and there is no way I can get the camper anywhere close to level..

The roads are paved in here which is a good thing because of the rains they have here.  The rest rooms were really great but looked like they had just been mopped.  I wonder if the floors ever dry out????  The red light in the picture above is a truck that you can just barely see the tail light.  It is really strange in the camper because you almost fall towards the front it is so low in the front, I am trying to say unlevel but spell check doesn’t like that word!  Maybe I should say it is so “not level”!!

Anyway, we are set in for the night.  Linda got to watch the Bachelor tonight on the computer, which by the way, works pretty good.  I may even get to post this!!

We had some of the left over sirloin steak and a baked sweet potato for supper.  Not to bad, Linda thinks the steak is way to tough, Sparky doesn’t ..

Time for bed, Probably won’t make it all the way home tomorrow but would like to be within two hundred miles so Thursday will be an early day to stop and unload the camper….Night Y’all…

Monday March 7th 2011

Well, today is the day we plan on leaving!!  It is kind of a hassle loading up and hooking up the car.  Had plenty of help though.  Got a picture of Joel and Joel!!!

Not often you meet another person with the name Joel.  Joel and Helen are from Nebraska….

Got a picture of Dale and Velda with us…

This is Cliff and Doris…

Got a picture of Razz…

Razz kind of likes Sparky but likes to climb trees also.

Pretty flowers with a big black bee in it, I don’t think it is a bumble bee..

We finally got on the road about 10:35AM and made it all the way to Edna.  Let me tell you the price of gas is ridiculous.  We spent about $130 just to get here and will probably cost another $60 to get to Houston.  Probably be about $600 to get all the way home.  Oh well, easy come easy go.

Linda bought some burritos for us for lunch.  Will probably not eat a lot tonight.  The wind was blowing pretty hard and was not a lot of fun driving. Sparky did pretty good in his cage.  He didn’t want out, guess that is his “Man Cave”…

Will take it easy tonight.  We stopped at Shady Oaks Campground.  Not really impressed with it.  Wal Mart would have been cheaper.   This is Granado TX.. TV doesn’t have a lot of channels for cable and Linda says she won’t be able to watch “The Bachelor” tonight, guess we don’t get that station.  Going to stop for now and maybe I will get this posted tonight…..Night Y’all…

Sunday March 6th 2011

Sunday morning and it is very cool!!  I had to wear a sweater outside and then I turned the heat on inside because it would have been to cool for Linda to get ready to go to church.

We went to Tip O Texas for church this morning.  We figured this would be our last Sunday down here in the Valley so we wanted to go hear Don preach one last time before leaving.  Got a picture of the choir…that’s LaVon in the back row holding up her camera

After church we went to the Echo Hotel for lunch.  They had a pretty good spread but we had to wait about fifteen minutes for them to put it out.  It was pretty good, the salad bar was great and the buffet wasn’t to bad, potatoes weren’t good, they were powdered (instant) but they had some other things that were pretty good like Chicken Ala King, Ham and beef, and steamed broccoli.  The breakfast we had was better there but we were kind of late today.  They had a desert bar that I almost missed!!!  Linda, watching her glucose, got a piece of pecan pie and ice cream…

Do you like her ice cream???  I think she needs a bigger bowl!!!

We had a good time there and really like the Echo Hotel.  The price is actually pretty cheap, I think it was $7.95 apiece, for that spread it was a good price!!

We left after lunch and headed back home, I’ve been having a little soreness in my right arm for some reason.  Don’t know what is happening, it isn’t bad just aches a little so I am going to take some Aleve and take a nap.  Felt a lot better after I woke up.

I started getting things ready for tomorrow, dumped the tanks and got the lights ready on the car, not much but should help in the morning.

Think that is about all, a little TV and to bed…Night Y’all….

Oh, we left Sparky home and I put him in his cage but left the door open. This was a test and we left him for almost 5 hours and he did great.  Velda said she heard him about 12:30PM barking or whining.  He still did very good.  I am proud of him being so good for five months old…..

Saturday March 5th 2011

Another beautiful day.  Sparky and I were up early, Sparky’s choice, and we went walking.  I didn’t even have to wear a sweater this morning.  There was supposed to be a cold front come through but our air ran most of the night and was still warm and humid this morning. After our walk we came back inside for awhile and by the time I went back out with Sparky it was much cooler.

Not a lot going on this morning, we are going to Don and LaVon’s for lunch about noon.  We decided to take Sparky since it was rainy and cloudy, didn’t figure it would get to warm in the car.  He didn’t appreciate having to stay in the car even though I let him out a couple of times.

Don’s little lunch…

Steak, beef sausage (from Fredericksburg) green beans, baked sweet potato and salad which I didn’t get in the picture.  The sausage was probably the best I have ever had, excellent, the whole thing was excellent. Don did a lot of slaving over this meal…  Forgot to mention he made a shrimp cocktail that was excellent…

Actually Don is making desert in this picture, mixed fresh fruit on lemon pound cake with yogurt, excellent.  Can’t remember what LaVon was doing here but she got her camera out to take a picture when she saw me taking one and she forgot to take a picture…….We sure had a good time… Good food also….Oh, we played three games of Zilch, everyone won a game except me (I wasn’t keeping score!).

Don told us about a café where they had gotten tamales…Delia’s, we had to stop and pick up a dozen.  We ate some when we got home and then gave the rest to Dale and Velda.  We will remember this restaurant when we come back (next year?).  They were the best I have ever had and I haven’t had to many!!

The rest of the night is going to be lazy, I sat outside with Sparky and he played and then sat in my lap, then played, then sat in my lap etc…

We tried to see the Space Station but no luck tonight.  It got quite chilly out and really didn’t want to stay out to long so we went to bed early, Sparky did very well, didn’t complain….Night Y’all…

Friday March 4th 2011

This is our anniversary day thirty nine years!!  Actually it has been a pretty good thirty nine years, the time has gone by very fast.

It is nice out this morning, “coffee klatch” this morning at the club house. There is usually a pretty good crowd there.  People are starting to leave. Our neighbors from Canada, Steven and Janice are leaving this morning. They are heading to Port Aransas I think, only about a four and a half hour drive.  Steven hurt his back and isn’t feeling to chipper.  They were going to leave a couple days ago and he just couldn’t because of his back. I think Janice was going to drive some but I bet she didn’t.

They have quite a long drive back to Ontario, by way of New Orleans.  They are really into hockey, guess you would be from a colder climate.

We went to lunch with Dale and Velda.  We ate at Allehandros again and I know that isn’t spelled right.  We got the all you can eat buffet with lots of shrimp and fish and Linda got a chili rellano.  Lunch was very good and I could taste it the rest of the afternoon!

Linda and I went to a mall a little later in the afternoon.  We were gone about two or three hours and we left the cage door open so Sparky could come out.  He did very good, was ready to go out when we got home. We went to Petco, a linen shop and the Christian book store.  Linda bought a book called “Women of the Bible” which she had been looking for.

We stopped at Burger King and I posted five days of blog I think.  Also checked email etc.

Not much going on tonight, watched HGTV most of the night, in fact all night, they had a marathon “House Hunters International”  I like that channel.  That’s about it!!!   Night Y’all…

Thursday March 3rd 2011

Time is just flying by….we only have about four days left here then head back to Sikeston…

Beautiful day, going to be warm but this morning I wore a sweat shirt, kind of chilly out.

We have some excellent sunrises.  Not only beautiful but cool out.  Sunsets are nice sometimes too.

We don’t have anything planned for today, we were going to go to a Chinese restaurant with Dale and Velda but Linda isn’t feeling well.  Thought maybe it was the burger from yesterday but I called Jim, he had one also, and he feels fine.  Must just be a bug!

If you have ever smelled the Plumera in Hawaii, the orange blossoms smell pretty much the same, very heavy, sweet smell.  Very nice for awhile.  After the blossoms all get opened it gets very heavy….

There are sure a lot of buds and only a few opened.  Funny, only a week or two ago it was freezing and now it is in the 80s and 90s!!  I took another picture of a tree, not sure what it is but they seem to come alive, or green up very fast…

A couple weeks ago this tree looked like it might be dead.  What a living experience.

Got another picture of Sparky…

I think Sparky is an amazing dog for 5 months.  He has really grown and is quite good at obeying and he learned quite fast about going outside to do his “job”.  Tomorrow is going to be the big experiment.  We are going to leave him in his cage but with the door open, will see how good he is.  I have him outside most of the time now without the leash and he does very good.

Well, a little TV tonight and it’s to bed…..Night Y’all…

PS  Tomorrow is our 39th anniversary…Happy Anniversary Linda!!!