Busy, Busy, Busy and Packing Up

DeBary, FL.

78 deg. clear, NE wind @ 8 mph.

Forecast = Scattered showers and thunderstorms. High 88F. Winds WSW at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 40%.


Jim and Linda have been really busy since I've last posted. They've been gathering things up, packing them and then seeing if there''s enough room in Lily to get them into her trunk. They've just about got it figured out though and as of yesterday afternoon, have decided that they'll be able to get everything in. :-) 



In fact, about 2/3 of Lily's trunk is already packed!! 

We will be leaving here tomorrow, (Sunday), and will take 6 days to get up to Champaign, IL. We'll probably spend a couple of nights somewhere in Alabama, but like always, it's written in pencil and Jim was sure to pack that big eraser of his. ;-) Actually, I don't think that Jim is going to have problems as far as stamina is concerned, he's been doing a lot the last few days and seems to have quite a bit of energy. 

I'm getting really excited about going on a "'Road Trip". I've never been on one in a car, and don't really know what to expect. I suppose I'll have to ride in the back seat, but i'd really like to be able to see out of the windows. Also, I've never been in a Motel, so that'll be another new experience for me. I guess it's going to kind of a re-learning experience for Jim and Linda too. Jim says that he thinks the last time he and Linda stayed in a Motel was way back in 2001, just before we moved into Maraiah, their 35' Winnebago MH!!

So,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  ,  a new adventure begins. I don't know how this will go, but I'm sure we'll work it out somehow. At least it's not as scary as when Jim and Linda sold almost everything they had and went Full-Timing. Living out of suitcases for an extended period of time, (probably about 3 months), will have it's challenges, but we've always been able to overcome them in the past. I don't see why this should be any different. 

As for me, I'm READY!!!!!

A Quote to Ponder, "One man with courage makes a majority."  Andrew Jackson

Woof!!!

Everflowing Waters CG and A Drive Up Old Mission Peninsula

Williamsburg, MI.

61 deg. clear, no wind.
Forecast = Clear in the morning, then partly cloudy. High of 86F. Winds less than 5 mph.

Jim took a few photos of the Everflowing Waters Campground yesterday morning, so I thought I'd post a few here.

This is the sign out by Brackett road. It's not very large, so if you should happen to come here, watch closely for it.

When you turn off of Brackett and enter the CG this is your first view.

You'll soon come to this little bridge over Yuba Creek.

As your'e going over the bridge, look off to the left to see this pretty view of the creek.

Just across the bridge, you'll see the owner's house/office to your left. If you don't see anyone, ring the doorbell and either Dennis or Mary will assist you.

This was our site for 2 nights. It's kind of an overflow site, but was very serviceable for our needs.

This view is looking from the front of Bobbie T into the rest of the park. Lots of shade, but quite a few seemed to be able to get satellite signals.

We really liked this CG. It's nothing fancy, but it's neat and well maintained. Couldn't ask for better owners either.

Speaking of owners, Jim was talking to Dennis and told him that he and Linda wanted to take a drive up the Old Mission Peninsula to see the sights. Dennis suggested that about 1/2 way up, they stop at the Chateau Chantal Winery just to see the spectacular views from there, if nothing else.

So, that's just what they did!! ;-)

Then, of course, there was the winery itself.

They have a wine tasting room and of course you can buy their wines too. Today though, Jim and Linda just enjoyed the view from the parking lot. : )

All along Rt 37, the route that goes all the way from Traverse City to the tip of the peninsula, you see vineyards and fruit trees. Many of the trees are cherry trees and along the road the farmers have set up little stands to sell their wares. Jim and Linda stopped at one of these stands and bought some "Washed Sweet Cherries" and a bottle of locally made Maple Syrup

Yummmm!!!! How sweet they are!!!!! ;-)

They ended up going all the way to the tip of the peninsula, but didn't see the Old Mission Lighthouse. There would have been quite a bit of walking involved and Linda just wasn't up to it.

On the way back down the peninsula, they followed 37 back down to Mapleton where they turned West on Bowers Harbor Road and took it over to Peninsula Drive. (Another one of Dennis's suggestions). Following the very scenic Peninsula Drive to the South, right along the shoreline, brought them back down to Traverse City.

After a quick stop at a 7-11 store for milk they headed back here to he CG.

After resting for awhile, Jim got out the grill and cooked a ham steak while Linda got out some potato salad and a vegetable. That, along with some of those sweet cherries made for a very nice meal to top off a very good day. ;-)

Today we'll be heading up to St. Ignace, MI. We'll have to cross that big Mackinac bridge to get there and I'm not looking forward to that! :-O   I can still remember the last time we crossed that bridge when Jim and Linda had that old Winnebago Chieftain. It was real windy and I thought we were going to get blown right off of it!!!!

Did you know that although Michigan is often called the "Wolverine State" there are no longer any wolverines in Michigan?

Woof!!!

It Wasn't Allergies and Remembering Illinois Winters

DeBary, FL.

62 deg. partly cloudy, NW wind @ 9 mph.

Forecast = Today: Sunny. Highs around 70°F. Northwest wind to 19 MPH, gusting to 28 MPH.
Tonight: Mostly clear. Lows around 45°F. Wind chill around 39°F. West wind to 15 MPH, gusting to 21 MPH.

Well, I guess it wasn't an allergy condition that Jim has had the last few day. Guess how I know????

Now, Linda has it, and I've never heard of catching allergies from someone else!! : (   Linda didn't feel too well Saturday night and then when she woke up yesterday morning, she had very sore throat, was sneezing and blowing and just felt generally crummy!!! : (

So,  ,  ,  ,  neither she or Jim did much yesterday. Both napped from time to time, sat and watched quite a bit of TV and in general, just kicked back.

I was watching the news yesterday and they were forecasting a lot of snow for the Midwest. I can remember the winter before I went full-timing with Jim and Linda, (winter of 2000-2001), and sure am glad that they've decided on Florida to buy a house. . In this 1st picture, everything was covered with ice. It sure was pretty, but it did a lot of damage. : (

Then, after the ice melted, we still had the snow to deal with. This is poor Mariah sitting along side of the garage at the place where we lived. (Mariah was the Winnebago Chieftain Motor Home that Jim and Linda had when we started full-timing).

I remember those days well. Jim outside shoveling show and knocking ice off of the edge of the roof so that when the snow melted, the water didn't damn up behind the ice and run back up under the shingles and come inside of the house.

Not once, have I missed that kind of weather!!!

What got me thinking about all of this was the forecast I heard on TV and the fact that Dave sent Jim and e-mail the other day saying that they were just about back home in Illinois, but the weather forecast was for snow and he wasn't too sure that he wanted to continue heading in that direction.

I think that maybe he and Dee Dee should have stayed down here for awhile longer. ; )

Hope you made it home safe, Dave.

Did you know that the U.S. has the highest dog population in the world?