The Decision Has Been Made

DeBary, FL.

87 deg. Partly cloudy with afternoon showers or thunderstorms. High 89F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 40%


We took our little trip over to Crystal River, FL. It was about a 2 1/2 hour drive to get over there from DeBary, but it was a nice drive on FL.Rt. 42 and some other small roads as we neared our destination. That is, all except the first part of our trip, when it started raining so hard that we couldn't see anything, and then we came upon an accident or something that had US 17/92 completely closed off!! 

They just turned us off on a side street and if we wouldn't have had our GPS turned on, I don't know how we would have found our way around the section of road that was closed. Of course all of this time it continued raining very hard and I could only think of what it would have been like if we were driving one of our big Motorhomes instead of our little car!! 

Anyway, we made it to our destination, King;s Bay Lodge, and it turned out to be just as advertised, a nice little place, in a very quiet part of town. :-) 

This is the view of part of the bay, from just outside of our room. Not too shabby!

We spent 4 nights at King's Bay and then headed back home, refreshed and ready to get back to normal day-to-day activities. 

OK, now to get to the title of this post. 

We've decided to head up North this summer. We've made some changes to our travel plans though, and so will not be gone for as long as we were last summer. We're planning on leaving here around the 1st or 2nd of August and heading all the way up to Alexandria, Mn. to attend Ed and Denise's wedding on the 11th of the month. (Ed is Linda's nephew). From there, we'll head up to Blackduck, Mn. (which is way up  North of Bemidji), to see Linda's cousin Bruce and his wife Jody. We haven't seen them in a really long time and so we figured since we're within a short day's drive, it would be a good time to go. 

After we leave Bruce and Jody's, we'll head down to the Wisconsin Dells for Linda's family reunion. It starts on the 19th of August, and we'll get there earlier than that, but we can always find something to do at "The Dells". 

After the reunion, we'll head down to Champaign, IL where we'll start with doctor's visits and hopefully be able to spend some time visiting with friends and relatives. We'll be in Illinois for about a month before heading to IN, KY, NC, and VA. Then we'll head back down here to FL, arriving about the 1st of November. 

Although this sounds like a long, busy trip, I've got quite of few extra days scattered about during this trip, so we can stop for an extra day or two if necessary,  and, we'll actually be only gone for 3 months instead of 4 months like we were last year.

I've already made hotel reservations for our stay at the wedding and for our stay at "the Dells", so I guess we'd better go. ;-)  

Linda and I are doing well. I still have lots of fatigue, but it's getting better, and I'm hoping that once I start doing more, it will improve even more. 

"You'll never do a whole lot unless you're brave enough to try"  (Quote by Dolly Parton).


Bye!!!!

Where To Start???

DeBary, FL.

77 deg. partly cloudy, no wind.

Forecast today = Scattered Thunderstorms. High 82F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain, 70%.


Where to start?????

I know, it''s been a long time since I've posted, and I'll take all the blame!!! :-(

At the end of February,  Linda and I took a little trip over to Cedar Key, where we stayed at the Beachfront Motel for 3 nights. It was a nice little "get-a-way" but it really wore me out, especially being that our room was on the second floor and we had to carry all our "stuff" up and down the stairs. :-(  We had a good time though, and I think if it wouldn't have been for the stairs, it would have been much more pleasant.

March, 18th, Ashley and Chris tied the knot at a very small ceremony, (Only 20 people in attendance). It was held in a banquet room at a large restaurant over in Lake Mary, Fl. ( about 15 miles from here). It was very nice and then after the ceremony, we had a great meal at the restaurant.

The first part of April, I had a PET scan. The results were good and I won't have to go back to the Dr. again until November, when I'll have another scan.

On the 11th of this month, Linda had a CT scan. Things got a little scary as they found some very small spots, but it turned out to be nothing and so, she also won't have to go back until November.

I've been having a lot of fatigue and around the first of this month, received 2 iron infusions, (at 1 week intervals), and now seem to be regaining some stamina.

I hope it continues, cause I don't like feeling tired all the time.

For the first week in June, I've booked a 4 day stay at a "lodge" in Crystal River, FL. I found it on-line and it sounds like just what we need for a nice quiet "get-a-way" for a few days. I don't know about the "lodge" part, but it sounds really nice and it has very good ratings,  so we'll see.

I'll let you know how it was when we get back.

If I continue to regain some energy, we have penciled in a trip up to Illinois, Wisconsin and possibly  Minnesota beginning about the 9th of July.  Linda's nephew, who lives up in Minnesota is getting married, and she'd really like to attend, if we can.

Other than doctor appointments, we've just been doing normal things. We go out to eat occasionally, and do other things like grocery shopping etc., but that's about all. I promise I'll try to post more often, and if we do get to head North this summer, I'll have something to post about.

In the meantime, Linda and I hope all of you are still checking in on our blog and hope you'll check back again.


Chinese Proverb,  "The person who says it cannot be done should not interrupt the person who is doing it."

We still miss you Blaine!!!

Bye!!!!

Dave and Dee Dee's Annual Fish Fry and A Visit With Donna

DeBary, FL.

62 deg. clear, no wind

Forecast today = A mix of clouds and sun during the morning will give way to cloudy skies this afternoon. High 83F. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 mph.

Well, another month has gone by and I really didn't have anything to post about.

Quite a few people have been asking me why I haven't posted, but I can't imagine any of you wanting to read about Lina and I going to the grocery store or even going to a restaurant once in awhile. In fact, this past whole month has been just day-to-day living.

Now, this month started out with a few things to post about!!!

Dave and Dee Dee decided to have their annual "Fish Fry" on Sunday, the 4th of February, but that got changed to Saturday the 3rd because of a weather forecast of anywhere from 50 to 80% chance of rain, depending on which "weather guesser" you watched.

Once the date for the Fish Fry was set, Linda called Donna, (a long time RVing friend), who lives in Wildwood to see if she would be home on Sunday. You see, the plan was to go to Thonotosassa for the "Fish Fry" which was to take place at 3:00 pm on Saturday, stay overnight someplace Saturday night and then go see Donna on Sunday, getting back home late afternoon.

Donna said that she'd be home and would love for us to come for a visit, so then, I called a Hotel in Brooksville and made reservations for Saturday night.

As you can see in these 2 photos, they had very good turn-out for the Fish Fry

Everyone brought food, so there were lots of other things to eat with the great fish that they fried. ;-)

After a great meal and a lot of catching up with old acquaintances, we left Dave and Dee Dee's and headed North on (Ugh) I-75. Actually 75 was not near as bad as (Ugh), I-4 through Orlando with all It's construction through the city.

It didn't take us too long to get to Brooksville where we stopped at a Microtel. It was pretty nice, but the people at the desk weren't too friendly and about 10:00 pm a wedding party came back from a reception somewhere and continued partying in the hotel until about midnight!! :-(

It was quiet for the rest of the night though and after a pretty good night's sleep, we left Brooksville and headed a little further North to Wildwood where we stopped at the Russel Stover Candy factory store, on Rt. 44. After Linda bought a bunch of sugar free candy we went to a Waffle House for lunch, before heading to Donna's house.

Donna seems to be doing well, but I'm sure she misses Monte. We had a very nice visit and talked for a couple hours before heading back here to  DeBary on Rt's 44, 441 and 46.

While we were at Donna's it started to rain and we had heavy to moderate rain all the way home.

Monday evening, Ashley called and said that she and Chris would like to come over for awhile if we weren't busy.  In about 1/2 hour they arrived, and gave us the news that they would be getting married on the 18th of March!!!!! :-)  They've been engaged for quite awhile now, so we were kind of expecting them to set a date pretty soon. 

They're planning a very small wedding with just brothers, sisters, parents and grandparents attending.

Well, that's about it for now. I'll post again when I have something interesting to post about.

Did you know that There are 20,275  people in the U.S. listed on whitepages.com with the last name 'Fish'?

We miss you Blaine!!!

Bye!!!

Happy New Year!!!!!

DeBary, FL.

55 deg. overcast, N. wind @ 5 mph

Forecast today = Showers. Morning high of 56F with temps falling to near 40. Winds N at 10 to 20 mph. 60% chance of showers.

Tonight = Overcast. Slight chance of a rain shower. Low 42F. Winds N at 15 to 25 mph.


Happy New Year!!  I hope you've had a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!

Nothing much going on since I last posted except of course Christmas and now New Years, which have both been very nice.

The Sunday before Christmas, we went over to Lindsey's parent's house for a very nice Christmas dinner with them, then on Christmas Eve, we went to Laura and Lindsey's house to open gifts from them and also, gifts that Joe and Nancy who had sent to Laura's. Christmas day was just sort of a kick-back day and we just watched some specials on TV and took naps. ;-)
Other than than, we've just been doing normal day-to-day living. Things like grocery shopping, going out to eat occasionally and a little Christmas shopping.

Oh and we also got to know the mailman better as he delivered packages from family and stuff we had ordered on-line.

Both Linda and I have been doing well. Linda is trying to lose weight and I'm trying to gain weight, since my bout with the side effects of treatments. This really makes for an interesting meal time. But, we both seem to be succeeding since I've gained some of my weight loss back and Linda has lost some weight. 

We're starting to think about possibly traveling some this summer. Of course that all will depend on what the tests that we both will have in April and May show.

Anyway, Linda and I both wish all of you a very good 2018 and hope you're well and have great travels.

Stay Safe,

Jim and Linda,

We miss you, Blaine!!!!

Finally!! All The Test Results Are In!!

DeBary, FL.

65 deg. clear, no wind.
Forecast = tomorrow, Mostly Sunny. High 81F. Winds light and variable.


Monday morning, I had that needle biopsy on my left lung. After waiting for 2 hours, they finally wheeled me into the room where there was a CAT Scan machine and all the other necessities for the biopsy. I was given a sedative and soon I was in "la la" land. ;-)

I was aware of what was going on though and the experience wasn't one I'd like repeat if I can help it.

The procedure took about an hour and then it was to recovery for 2 hours for observance and to make sure there was no bleeding our leakage of the lung into the chest cavity. Linda and I had arrived at the hospital about 9:00 am as directed and it was almost 4:pm by the time we got out of there.

Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday were spent worrying about the results and finally today, it was time to see the doctor to get them.

So, here are the results!!!!

There is no cancer, the shaded area in the lung is from an infection and scar tissue, probably caused by the collapse or previous radiation treatments.

I'm now on antibiotics and have been released by the radiation doctor until the first part of April, when I'll have another scan to make sure everything is still OK.

So, as of now, both Linda and I are cancer free and it sure feels good. Time will tell, but maybe there's even a little more traveling in our future?

We miss you, Blaine!!!

   

Jim Reluctantly Takes Over Blaine's Barks

This is going to be difficult!!!

I really don't even know where to start, so I guess I'll just "dive in" and see where this goes.

First of all, Blaine's last post was way back in August and we were staying in Champaign, IL. We met up with Ron and Marilyn and had a nice meal and some great conversation with this great couple. While in Champaign, we also met up with other long time RVing friends, Mike and Terri who we also went out to dinner with and had a very nice visit. We also spent a day visiting with Linda's sister, Nancy who lives up in Plainfield, IL.

Before leaving Champaign, Jeff and Heather, my son and his partner, flew in to Chicago from Portland, OR. They then rented a car and came down to see us for a few days. It was so good to see them as we hadn't seen them for a few years.

After being in Champaign for 5 weeks, we headed up to River Falls, WI, where we spent some time with Glenn and Jeanette, (Linda's brother and his wife). Upon returning to Illinois, we stayed at a very nice motel in Paxton IL where I rested up before continuing our trip towards the East Coast.

From Paxton, we headed over to Indianapolis where we visited Linda's cousin, Mike and his wife, Sandy. Then, it was on to Berea, KY where we visited with another of Linda's cousins, Rick. From there we headed to North Carolina to see Roland and Louise, who are very good friends of ours.

It was on this leg of the trip that Blaine disappeared!!!

I don't know what happened or where he went, but all of a sudden, we realized that Blaine wasn't with us!!!! Linda called back to the last 2 motels that we stayed at and no one had seen him. I don't know if he left on his own or if we missed bringing him out of a motel, but at any rate, we couldn't find him!!!! I do know that he wasn't very happy with our current mode of traveling from Motel to Motel.  My hope is that he found a nice family to live with, hopefully one with a small child or children who would love him like we did.

We do really miss him as we've traveled with him for so many years and he had become a very important part of our family.

After spending a few days visiting with Roland and Louise, we headed to Apex, NC where we spent time with my son, Mike, and his family. Then after about a week, we headed to Virginia Beach, VA where we spent about another week with Linda's son, Joe, and his family.

From there, we headed down to South Carolina where we stayed for a few nights at a very nice hotel that was right on the beach, Then it down here to Florida where we arrived at home, here in DeBary on October, 20th.

By the time we arrived here in Florida I was completely worn out. It took all of the energy I could gather to help Linda get all the stuff out of the car and into the house. In fact, it took 2 days to get it all carried in.

It was a very tiring trip for me and by the time we got home, I was saying that I never wanted to take another trip like that again. It was good to see all the family and friends that we visited with though and both Linda and I really enjoyed that part of the trip.

Once home, the doctor's visits started again and also the tests that no one likes to have.

Linda had a CT Scan and then went to the doctor's office for an exam and the results of the scan. I'm glad to say that everything is fine and Linda is good to go until spring, when she'll probably have another exam.

I had a PET Scan and everything looked good on it, except one area in my left lung which the doctor called "a hazy area". It's not clear if it is the start of another mass, an infection, or just something resulting from that lung collapsing, back in 2015. So, now, I'm scheduled for a needle biopsy this  Monday morning, to see what is going on in there. Then, the doctors will decide what treatment, (if any) should be administered. 

OK, enough of that depressing doctor stuff!!!!

Today. Linda and I are headed over to Marv and Inez's house for Thanksgiving dinner. Marv and Inez are Lindsey's parents and if you remember, they always invite us to dinner with them and their family. I'm sure we'll eat too much, but I guess once or twice a year isn't going to hurt us too much.

Linda and I want to wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving and a great Holiday season. Please be safe if traveling. There's lots of "crazy" people out there on the roads.

We miss you, Blaine.

Very Sad News!!!

Champaign, IL.

77 deg. overcast, no wind.

Forecast = Cloudy skies early, then partly cloudy after midnight. A stray shower or thunderstorm is possible. Low 68F. Winds light and variable.


About 9:30 or so this morning Jim and Linda hopped into Lily and headed to a little cemetery, out in the country between Champaign and Fisher. Some of Linda's distant relatives are buried there and they usually go out there when we are in the area.

After viewing the graves, they decided to head to Rantoul to stop in at the Prairie Pines CG to see if Paul and Louise were there, and say Hi to them if they were. When they arrived, Jim noticed that Louise's car wasn't there, but the office door was open, so they parked Lily and went up the walk. As they got up to the office, Linda, one of the people who had helped Louise with the CG last year came out and greeted them. Upon asking about Paul and Louise, she told them that while they were down in Texas, in December, Louise had a stroke and ended up in a hospital. While in the hospital, they discovered a large cancerous tumor, (I think in her mid-section).

I don't know all the details, but in March, Louise passed away, from the cancer!!!

Don't know what else to say. We're all in  shock!!!

Paul is living in his 5th wheel trailer at the CG and helping out as much as he can. He is suffering from dementia and is having a lot of trouble. Luckily, his son, Mark, is staying there with him to help as much as possible. Both Jim and Linda said that they doubt if Paul will be able to do much of anything pretty soon.

A very sad  situation.

While they were there, Ron and Marilyn stopped by, (friends of their's that are staying at the CG) and they talked for a little while. They have made plans to meet up at the Urbana Gardens Restaurant for a meal soon, and maybe Jim and Linda will learn more about Paul and Louise then.

Rest in peace, Louise. We'll miss you.

Woof!!!