A fun trip to the grocery store

As I may have mentioned before, I don’t find grocery shopping a horrible chore at all.  I rather enjoy it.  I suppose it harkens back to the days when I had three little ones under school age, and I would once in a great while be allowed to go grocery shopping without them.  I’d slowly cart myself down the aisles dreaming up luscious meals to prepare.  Back in those days, it was about the only time I had to myself. 

Well, since I’ve been on the road, my culinary skills have taken a back burner, so to speak, but I still like grocery shopping trips.

                                                   MOODY MANSION – GALVESTON, TEXAS – 2007

Just about every year, my sister, Pam, and brother-in-law, Stan, have met up with me somewhere in the states  for a week or two.  That’s when my cooking comes to the front burner. 

                                                    MISSISSIPPI RIVER – HANIBAL, MISSOURI –2009

You see, when we camp together we switch off days of preparing dinner/supper.  That means next week Pam and I will each fix three dinners.

                                                  TRIP TO YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK – 2010

With plenty of time spent in the rig this week due to the record temperatures, I’ve been figuring out what I’m going to serve for my three days.  When I only cook for myself, I keep it pretty simple to say the least.

                  GOING DOWN MEMORY LANE TO THIS HOUSE WHERE WE GREW UP - CHICAGO – 2011

So that’s why this morning’s trip to the grocery was so much fun.  I had my list, checked it twice, and came home with everything I’ll need…. I think. 

                                       PIONEER FAMILY CAMPGROUND – INDIANA- 2011

Tuesday night I plan to fix hot pulled pork sandwiches with the special Russell’s BBQ sauce on cheese biscuits along with home made cole slaw and fresh sliced tomatoes.  Thursday will feature grilled chicken/apple sausages with home made potato salad and a relish tray.  For my finale on Saturday, I’ll make corned beef with potatoes and carrots.  I’m not much for desserts, but Pam and Stan are, so I even purchased a frozen carrot cake roll stuffed with cream cheese. 

                                          ROBYN’S ARMY RETIREMENT PARTY – DYER, INDIANA - 2012

I am also prepared with Blue Bell Ice Cream and a couple of toppings, crackers, and a small block of natural apple cinnamon jack cheese, and guacamole for appetizers.  I’m only a foodie once a year, and next week is it!  Anyone want to join us at Jenny Wiley State Park in Kentucky?

Seeing as two out of the three main dishes will be done in my crock pot, we’ll still have plenty of time to take trips in the area to see what there is to see.  Pam is a real go getter for touring all kinds of places.  I just hope she doesn’t choose too many old buildings.  I’m about at my limit right now for that.    And what about poor old Emma in this rendezvous? 

Why she’ll be seeing her boyfriend George for a week!  George is pretty good about putting up with her embarrassing antics.  She’s such a ‘lady of the night’ around him that it makes us all chuckle.  George, being a regal collie, is above all that playing around.

If the temperatures continue to be as hot as they are, I think I’m going to have to talk to Pam.  I don’t think I’ve seen her in a pair of shorts in 40 years, and I know I’ve never seen Stanley in shorts.  What’s up with that?  It seems like her favorite thing to wear is beige slacks.  Perhaps the old saying is true?  “Vanity, thy name is woman.”  (I can say all of this because I know she doesn’t have internet while traveling to Kentucky)

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

letters/11

dear ukulele, you're proving to be more difficult than i thought but i am bound and determined to learn how to play at least one song!  dear hubs, i am so excited to hear you give your sermon at church this sunday. who better to talk about joy than one of the most genuinely joyful people i know. i am oh so proud. dear rainy season, you and your sticky gross humidity can just go away.  dear korea, i realize that you have no reason to ever celebrate america's independence, but still giving us the day off would have been nice. dear cliffs, the weather still says partly sunny, so as of now, we're coming for you tomorrow. dear thailand, we found incredibly cheap tickets for you. i realize that our vacation isn't for another eight months but we're already so excited to go! elephants, tigers and scuba oh my! dear students, thank you for being extra studious for your big school exam and not showing up to my classes. out of six middle school classes, i taught two this week. i can't help but love when the big school exam comes 4 times a year. oh and thank you boss for thinking it's an excellent idea to show movies in all my classes next week because "the kids will need a break." 

Do you ever read your old posts?

A couple of years before I started writing this blog I wrote a journal to document my travels as a fulltimer.  I’m glad I did.  It wasn’t the first journal I wrote.  I have a journal of my trip to Alaska in 2004, and a few other short ones about birds and camping that I did while I was still working. 

A few days ago, I went back in my journal to read about my time spent volunteering at Pea Island and Alligator River NWRs back in the summer of 2007.  I didn’t write daily in the journal, but I sure enjoyed my observations from five years ago.  Since I was the only one reading it, I included everything good and bad about that experience.  Over all, I had a good time there with some wonderful memories.  I’ll be heading back there in a couple of weeks, so it was a good time to review things.

I started out staying at the volunteer site on Pea Island.  I had a view out my front window of the ocean.

Being right on the ocean was something I always wanted to do.  I walked the beach daily and collected shells.  On the down side, there were the mosquitoes and salt spray on the rig.

After a month, I moved over to Alligator River NWR, and this was the view out my front window.  The reason I moved was because I had no cell phone or internet reception on Pea Island.

No ocean view, but black bears, wolves, and bobcats surrounded me.  On the down side, I spent some time up close and personal with chiggers.  Ugh!

On Tuesday, I emailed Abbey, the volunteer coordinator for both refuges, and asked if I could arrive just after the middle of the month instead of the first of August.  I’m ready to start volunteering again, but didn’t know if a site would be available for me.

She replied to me today to say that there were a couple of sites available for my arrival around the 18th of the month.  I hope you can enlarge this map to see my choices.  The arrow on the left is Alligator River.  The one on the bottom right is Pea Island which I don’t think is available.  The one in the middle is Bodie Island Light House that is a part of the Hatteras Island National Seashore.  Abbey said that the Bodie Island site is beautiful, and that the National Park Service has offered a site for a volunteer there.  She also said there is good cell phone reception there.

I guess I’ll decide once I get there.  The Bodie Island site is a lot closer to the Visitor’s Center where I’ll be working on Pea Island, and gives me the option of experiencing a barrier island coast once again.  Perhaps I’ll split my time between both locations.  I’m getting excited about getting back in the saddle again, smelling the salty air, and having a purpose for getting up in the morning.  Does it come down to a choice between mosquitoes and chiggers??  Hmm…

Yes, I do go back and read old posts or journal entries.  How about you?

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

This July 4th was kind of a fizzle

First of all I’d like thank those commenters and emailers that were punctual in correcting me on how I displayed the Stars and Stripes.  Seems I had the field of blue with stars pointing the wrong direction.  I’m thinking my 8th grade teacher is probably rolling over in her grave.  In order to pass 8th grade, all students in Chicago had to pass a flag test.  I passed it, but apparently my memory kind of fuzzed over the last 53 years.  My daughter, the Sergeant First Class, ret., gave me a great way of remembering which way to hang the flag.  When you are facing the flag that is hanging on a wall or flat surface, the stars should be on the left, over your heart.  How appropriate.  I was outside at 5:15 this morning correcting that error.

Yep, I set the alarm for 5:00 (groan) so Emma and I could get an earlier start to Cades Cove to beat the crowds.  On a whim, I checked my email before I left, and lo and behold, Judi and Gene of Blue Roads to Hiking Trails had sent me a message.  Judi had read my post from last night and wanted me to know that Cades Cove was closed to motorized vehicles on Wednesday and Saturday mornings until 10:00.  Aw shucks!

Well, since my lunch was already packed, the car was loaded, and Emma could sense we were going off on an adventure, I decided to leave anyway and take my chances.  Maybe they’d change the rules since it was the Fourth of July?  Not a chance!  As I neared the Cove and turned around to while away almost three hours, it seemed like about 8000 vehicles with bikes attached passed me by.  In my mind I conjured up the sight of that famous bicycle race… The Toure de France (sp?).  That did not bode well for my trip back at 10:00.

I just kind of drove around to kill some time.  The park was certainly busy for so early in the morning, and the skies were the haziest I’d yet seen.

I stopped at the Metcalf Bottom's picnic area to use the facilities and discovered a short road across a bridge that led to the Little Greenbrier School.  The final gravel road to this historic site was almost my undoing.  It was awful!  Thank goodness it was before 8:00, and I didn’t meet any other vehicles on this skinny, curvy, lumpy road.  I also found it hard to believe that most of the picnic sites were already taken by this time in the morning.

Eventually I wormed my way back along Laurel Creek Road to the Cades Cove Loop.  By this time I was getting pretty hungry since I’d had breakfast at 5:00.  Well, forget about finding a picnic table.

I just found a shady pull out along the Loop, and ate in the car.  I was astounded to find the traffic along this one way loop to be bumper to bumper.  Kind of like being stuck in rush hour traffic in Chicago. 

It’s an eleven mile loop, and it took me over two hours to do it.  That wouldn’t normally matter to me one bit except I didn’t even try to stop at the historic buildings along the way.  They were just crawling with humanity, and it was getting too hot to leave Emma in the car.  (As with most National Parks, dogs are only allowed on the roads, in the parking lots, and the picnic areas.) 

I even missed the turn off for a circuitous route on a road less traveled that I had thought to take back to the rig.  To get back to that turnoff meant I would have had to go around more than half of the loop again, so I just gave up and returned the way I had come.  There are several morals to this story.  Don’t go to Cades Cove on a Wednesday or Saturday; definitely don’t do it if the Fourth of July falls on a Wednesday or a Saturday; and next time I think I’d do it in April. 

I also couldn’t believe the number of people ‘tubing’ the river on the exit road from the park.  It was as crowded on the river as it was on the roads!  Talk about lessons learned.

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

The saga of the MCD shades

Perhaps some of you recall that I had MCD shades installed on the inside of the rig across the windshield and the two driver/passenger side windows a little over a year ago.  They were well worth the investment for me so I wouldn’t kill myself trying to attach outside sun shades perched on top of a tall ladder.  Besides the sunshades, they also included night shades.  Not those pleated awful day/night shades that are on several other windows in the rig.

While I was at Mississippi Sandhill Crane NWR this winter, the MCD shade on the passenger’s window wouldn’t retract.  I called MCD, and they sent me the needed spring part to replace so the shades would retract.  My friend John did most of the work in helping me get that repaired.  Then on the drive to Tennessee the entire structure of that shade crashed down giving me near heart failure as I drove along.

I was able to get a mobile RV tech out to the rig today to reinstall it.  I was concerned because the last time I called a mobile tech it cost me close to $300 for a five minute fix.  In less than 45 minutes, John Foxworthy not only reinstalled the shade (and improved the attachment so it won’t happen again), but also installed the new mechanism for my TV antenna that had broken and fallen out in pieces in my hands about a month ago.  Total bill was only a little over $130.  A lot of you guys probably could have done these things yourself, but I couldn’t.  Besides not having the proper array of tools that were used, with my left wrist presently giving me problems, I couldn’t lift the shades back in to place anyway.  I was happy as a clam, and would recommend John Foxworthy for repairs if you are in the Knoxville area.

For the last couple of weeks I’ve been trying to tape towels over that window as the afternoon sun just streams in and really heats up the rig.  The side wall around the window would get so hot that it would melt the gorilla tape sticky stuff and the towels would fall down.  What a relief it is to have the sunshade back in operation.

By the time he was done, it was too late to do a day trip today.  Then in the afternoon, these ominous clouds began to roll in.  The wind began to pick up, and I rolled in my awning.  There was more of a threat of rain than actual moisture, but at least it lowered the temps a few degrees.

With the cloud cover, Emma and I were able to spend the early evening sitting outside for a change.  It’s been quite a few days that we’ve been cooped up inside because of the 100*+ temperatures.

I was able to figure out a way to display the flag, that Robyn gave me, in honor of tomorrow’s holiday.  My last flag got eaten to shreds by mice at Anahuac NWR.    There is a street light right outside my rig, so I hope that counts for leaving the flag out over night.  I’m proud and thankful to be a citizen of this country.

I have a trip in mind to visit Cade’s Cove in Smoky Mountain Nat’l Park tomorrow, and my plan is to find a way to get there while avoiding the Pigeon Forge driving nightmare.  I might even set my alarm to leave by the crack of dawn.  We’ll see if I carry through on that idea. 

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

An addendum to “Lessons learned”

One of the lessons I didn’t have to learn over the last six years, was the importance of family and friends.  Without the support and joy of families and friends this journey would be lacking indeed. 

Thanks to Rick, and his advice on how to do this, I’ve compiled a number of collages tonight while I took a stroll down memory lane of the people involved in my life over the last six years.

First up, of course, is family.  I’ve gone from one grandchild to five while I’ve been on the road, and gained two lovely daughters-in-law.

But, almost as important is the friends I’ve met and made in my travels.  Some are bloggers, some are not, some are volunteers, and some are not. 

Some are just interesting folks I’ve met along the way that I’ve managed to keep in touch with.  It’s that community on the road that helps keep me going.

Perhaps some of you will recognize yourselves in these collages.  Please know that you are all important to me.

I’ve had good times and chuckles with just about everyone depicted here.  How could you not enjoy a Mardi Gras parade and raw oysters?

Some folks have come off the road, and some folks haven’t.  Others never have been on the road, or are striving to get there.  And some friends seem to have four legs instead of two.  It’s all just a wonder to me.

As I’ve said a number of times before..♫ ♪ “I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends” ♪ ♫

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy

Lessons learned

As I’ve been sitting here in the sweltering heat the last few days, it dawned on me that June 29 marked my sixth anniversary of being on the road.  While swimming in the pool last night, I began to contemplate what that has meant to me.  Without getting maudlin, I’ve decided to post some of the lessons I have learned while fulltiming.  Some where new, and others just reinforced what we sometimes forget to remember.  I’ve included some photos from the appropriate years (most of which I don’t think you have seen).

2006-2007

                                                    MEDICINE ROCKS STATE PARK, MONTANA

1. In my first year of fulltiming, I learned that I really needed a toad.  The little scooter that I had just didn’t cut the mustard.

                                                   MT. RAINIER NATIONAL PARK, WASHINGTON

2. One of the places I volunteered at that year was Fort Flagler State Park, Washington.  It was here that I learned that I should never again volunteer for an office job.  I prefer to be outside.

2007-2008

 

                                                             CADDO LAKE STATE PARK, TEXAS

3.  As I spent more time in remote locations, I learned I needed a Wilson amplifier and trucker’s antenna so I could stay in touch with the world.

                                   ALLIGATOR RIVER NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, NORTH CAROLINA

4. Being in sunny hot locations also meant I really needed sun shades for the windshield and front side windows.  I got my first set at the Escapade in Indiana that year.

2008-2009

                                                        BRYCE CANYON NATIONAL PARK, UTAH

5. The spring of ‘08 is when Emma adopted me, and I learned real quickly that I needed to secure her traveling crate while under way.  An abrupt turn had it turning upside down and going down the stairs with her in it.  She didn’t complain, but I learned a lesson.

                                                     DINOSAUR NATIONAL MONUMENT,  UTAH

6.  While volunteering at Dinosaur Nat’l Monument, I learned to trust my surge guard.  Staff tried to convince me that it was broken, but I stood my ground and it turned out the electric power at the sight was consistently low.

2009-2010

                                                      HOT SPRINGS NATIONAL PARK, ARKANSAS

7. It was in Hot Springs Arkansas that I learned to take time for my first ever spa treatment and massage.  What a luscious and relaxing experience that was.

                                              SWAN LAKE NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, MISSOURI

8.  While volunteering at Swan Lake NWR, I had plenty of time to be reminded to take time for nature.  It’s amazing what you can see if you just take the time to relax and be observant.

2010-2011

                                                       YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, WYOMING

9. At Yellowstone, I learned that sometimes cameras crap out, and it’s worth a 250 mile drive to purchase a new one so you can have these portraits of your memories in more than your mind.

                                                 MALHEUR NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, OREGON

10.  This is something I’ve learned, but still have to work on.  Mr. wise old owl tried to teach me to take a nap if you’re tired.  He was very good at doing that right outside the visitor’s center at Malheur.

2011-2012

                                               ANAHUAC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE, TEXAS

11.  I have surely learned by now to savor any and all sunsets or sunrises that I observe. 

                                             SELMA TO MONTGOMERY FREEDOM MARCH, ALABAMA

12.  And I hope I have the guts to stand up for what I believe in. 

It has been a marvelous six years for me on the road, and I hope I’ll be able to do six more.  Nothing very prolific in what I’ve learned, but what a journey it has been.  As always…

                           DON’T FIGHT WITH YOUR NEIGHBORS.  THERE’S ENOUGH TO GO AROUND. 

                                                                                  THE END!!

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy