Smoky Mountain Memories

10/15/10 Day 99

Only 300 miles of road lie between us and the end of our grand adventure. We have driven 3,000 miles over the last 25 days documented by almost 400 pictures but not yet documented on the blog. Oh my....

The Great Smoky Mountains is where Fall began in earnest for us. Although we were too early to see much change in the color of the trees, the towns of Sevierville, Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg were all decorating upon our arrival. I can't wait to try and replicate some of it at home.

As a reward for enduring all the ham radio events, Fred took me to Dollywood. We took in a variety of stage shows and were impressed by how well the park was run. One day was not enough time to see all there was to see but we had to move on to see the Appalachian Trail.

The trail provided us with 100 yards of the most beautiful and challenging terrain we had hiked so far. We passed hikers on their way down wearing sturdy shoes, sensible hats and wielding sophisticated walking sticks. Fred had a camera and I had flips flops and a purse.

We discovered luxury mountain cabins for rent within earshot of the Dollywood train whistle. Some of the cabins could sleep up to 20 people, and amenities included private balcony hot tubs, high definition satellite TV, and internet. Because the cabins were perched on stilts on the hillside, the views were breathtaking from every cabin but those roads were steep! Fred took lots of pictures in case any of you ever wanted to rent one of them.

That brings us to the ducks. Behind the biggest Christmas store I have ever seen, is a parking lot full of ducks. There is a big creek running behind it where I assume the ducks call home, but as you will see in the pictures, they prefer the parking lot. Could it be because there is a coin operated duck food vending machine located there? We refer to it as “The Quacker Barrel.”

Click here to see the pictures...

From the road

-robin

An Impromptu Trip to Kennebunk and Kennebunkport

It is still day 98 and as I write my 26^th dispatch I am 300 miles closer to home than I was when I wrote dispatch #25. Egads, after I finish telling you about our four days in Kennebunk and Kennebunkport, I will still only be up to day 73.

I have captioned most of the pictures so I think I will let them tell the story. Except the picture of the fried squirrel. That one takes a bit of explaining.

Picture a tranquil campground; birds chirping, leaves rustling, children playing. Suddenly, an explosive bang rocks the trailerhood and the power is cut throughout the park. As it turns out, it was sabotage inflicted upon the camp by a lone kamikaze squirrel scampering up a high voltage transformer in pursuit of the perfect acorn. Within the hour, a singed carcass was brought forth by the investigative team and put on display as a warning to all others. Evidently, an effective deterrent, because there were no further such incidents for the remainder of our stay.

Don't miss the picture of former President George H. W. Bush's summer home. It played a big part in our political history and the neighborhood is a just a tad bit upscale.

In conclusion, I would say Maine was another favorite state worthy of a second look.

Click here to see the pictures...

From the road

-robin

Our trip Northeast of Up North

It is October 14^th, day 98 and we are on the road again after being parked for 8 days. You skeptics out there may note that I have indeed made it past the three month milestone. I admit I include myself in the skeptic pool. We have about 1000 miles between us and home and we are hurtling that way. I am attempting, once again, to report on the past while living in the present and looking toward the future.

We spent 6 days headquartered in Trenton, Maine from Sept. 11^th through Sept. 15. My last dispatch covered our lobster experience so I'll move on to New Brunswick, lighthouses and extreme tides.

We headed out in the jeep for the Downeast Experience of Lubec, Maine. It is the easternmost point in the US where the sun rises first and we should have spent three days there instead of one. The town was picturesque and we enjoyed dinner in a charming inn when darkness forced us inside. The real attraction, though, was across the International Bridge, over the Lubec Narrows on Campobello Island , New Brunswick.

I really wanted to ferry over to Machias Seal Island, home to one of the largest breeding colonies of Atlantic Puffins. I have a formerly undisclosed, secret love for Puffins. No time. There is a boardwalk which crosses a rare Arctic bog with an abundance of unusual plants. Missed it. In St. Andrews, New Brunswick there is an elegant Algonquin Hotel. Didn't see it. What we did see was Head Harbour Lightstation. It is located on the outermost of a group of small islands at the northeastern tip of beautiful Campobello Island. Built in 1829, it is the oldest surviving lighthouse in New Brunswick and one of the oldest in Canada. We neglected to check the tidal schedule and you can only walk over to the lighthouse island during the 4 hours surrounding low tide. It was still worth the drive for the incomparable scenery of Head Harbour Passage with its dramatic high tides, craggy seashore, rocky cliffs and numerous whale sightings. 

We missed low tide at the lighthouse because we were touring FDR's summer home. Since I am currently reading a book about Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt, I was thrilled to go on this field trip through time. We did not leave enough time in the schedule to see it all but you won't believe it by the number of pictures Fred was able to take. Click here to see the pictures...

Next stop, Kennebunkport and another former president's home.

From the road

-robin

Maine, a first look

Day 64 was the Windsor Hamfest. The funniest thing I can think of there was that at the site where it was held, they were preparing for the belt sander drag races. No kidding, belt sander drag races. We were really sorry to miss that, but we had to move on to Trenton to start our exploration of Acadia National Park. Here is what you all are missing by not being on the hamfest circuit with me.

The next group of pictures are of our first few days exploring Maine. We have so many great pictures that I have divided them up into a few separate dispatches. In this group, we went to Bar Harbor, ate our fist 3 pound lobster and visited a number of sites on Mount Desert Island.

Click here to see the pictures...

From the road

-robin

Mystic Pizza and more

On September 9^th, Day 63, we explored the Mystic Seaport. As you all know, and if you didn't, you do now, Fred and I really enjoy film, theater and television. One place I always wanted to experience was Mystic Pizza. I loved the movie, Julia Robert's first, and I wanted to eat there. Well guess what, the movie was filmed all around Mystic, and the author placed the center of the storyline in the restaurant, but it was not filmed in the building. We ate there anyway and the pizza was terrific. The interior was filled with memorabilia and the movie played on a loop for everyone's enjoyment. It met the criteria needed to check it off the bucket list. For those of you who think our bucket list is a tad bit lightweight, we also explored the Appalachian Trail but that story comes later.

If you enjoy shops, ships,ship building, ship history, seafood and a sea breeze, this is the place to visit. We took a boat ride, drove all around the neighborhoods and seaports and enjoyed a nice light wine at lunch next to the water. It gave us another opportunity to reflect on our good fortune. We are having a ball.

When we started this adventure, Fred promised me we could come home any time I wanted. I thought I would give out at least by 60 days. The cool air in the East and the heat back home made it surprisingly easy to stay on the road a bit longer. We entered Maine into the GPS and headed to the Windsor Hamfest. It was a great choice.

Click here to see the pictures of our day in Mystic, Connecticut....

From the road

-robin

Winner Best Campground - East Lyme, Connecticut

 We arrived in East Lyme, Connecticut on September 8th. It was Day 62 of the adventure and we had driven a total of 8138 miles. Aces High RV Campground was an award winner from whomever it is that decides such things. We placed it in our “Best Of” category as well and think we all should meet up there next year. They have three big cabins for rent and a pond with a beach for swimming, fishing and boating. There is an easy hiking trail,a bridge over untroubled waters, wildlife and a playground for the child within. The weather was cool and the leaves were just starting to change.

Click here to see some pictures of the place.

From the road:

-robin

Shelby, Charlotte, Edinburg to Plainview

Monday  September 27 Day 74



We have been in the Smokey Mountains for a few days and tonight we are readying the coach to move on in the morning.  I am writing and editing pictures as I do laundry to try and get caught up on our adventures.  These dispatches are starting to feel like homework that I'm turning in late.  I hope reading them doesn't feel like grading papers to all of you. 


I'm guessing that if you are tired of it all, then you are not even reading this, so I will continue with Charlotte and the Shelby hamfest. 

Day 57 through Day 62

We attended a very large hamfest in a town called Dallas, North Carolina.  It was held at the Gaston County Fairgrounds where we shopped, spoke, and slept.  Fred rented a golf cart so he could get around to an almost endless supply of ham radio garage sale artifacts. You have to admit he elevates shopping to a high art form.  The pictures will show you the alpha and omega of this place. It was very pretty with a lake and ducks but it also had a porta john with an antennae and an endless supply of “artifacts.”

Ham radio artifacts for sale

On Sunday we drove into Charlotte and took another horse drawn carriage ride with no cigar and no company.  I didn't miss either one.  The pictures  show an East Indian street festival that we stumbled upon as well as a glimpse of downtown Charlotte.

Our next one day layover was at the Creekside Campground in Edinburg, Virginia.  Lots of history in the town and in the ducks. The campground owner told us all about each duck....You don't want to know. However, I must admit, it was much nicer there with a boring campground owner than it was sleeping in the Prevost bus company parking lot. We got a lube job. Fred got to watch and take pictures. He acted like it was Disneyland for goodness sakes.  My oh my he does love his bus.


Lots more pictures here...

From the road:
-robin    

The Quintessential South - Charming Charleston

Monday September 20 Day 74

We are on the road again after a lovely four day stay in Kennebunk, Maine. Ten days in Maine and I am days and days and adventures galore behind in my correspondence. We are just having too much fun to stop and write about it all. My last dispatch was about Savannah which means I should tell you about our time in Charleston and beyond.

September 3^rd Day 57 we arrived in Mount Pleasant, near Charleston, and were greeted by a gorgeous campground complete with a fully stocked lake. We made excellent bread dough balls tossed 'em in and Fred photographed the feeding frenzy. It was “catch and release” so why pull them up? Check fishing off the bucket list. We hiked the trail and noted signs telling us to stay on the path to avoid a confrontation with the camp alligator and poisonous snakes and plants. I was not sure the gator had read the sign so we were very careful during our walk.

There was a railroad caboose that had been re-purposed to serve as a rental cabin replete with air conditioning, indoor plumbing and a porch the overlooked the lake. Fred loves planes, trains, and automobiles so he played on it and made me take his picture multiple times. (Wait until you see the pictures of him on the swings in East Lyme, Connecticut.)

In Mount Pleasant US 17 is dotted with roadside stands displaying native sweetgrass baskets, a traditional art form started in that community more than 300 years ago. Slaves brought to the area from West Africa have passed the skill from generation to generation and today their descendants sell these hard to make, beautiful baskets. Maybe we'll save up to buy one next time we come back.

On the way to James Island (Walgreens RX run) we stumbled onto the Charles Pinckney National Historic Site. It was free and way more interesting than 7^th grade history class. This 28-acre site was once part of Charles' 715-acre plantation known as Snee Farm. Evidently this guy had a big role in the framing of the U.S. Constitution. Not the actual frame, frame. He lobbied for its creation and helped write it. The visitor center is in an 1828 farmhouse and has a lot of information about the Constitution, Lowcountry plantation life and slavery. I learned a lot about the Gullah dialect which I had never heard of before I came to the South.

All this put us in the mood for some Southern cooking. The guide directed us to a local traditional Gullah restaurant. We were the only white people in the place but the guy at the table next to us took me under his wing and explained what I was eating. He told me to eat several helpings of the beans and that, to him, they were worth his extra diabetes pill. The beans were fabulous and the fried chicken was as good as my Southern Grandma's chicken. Fred would like me to mention that he recognized everything on the buffet since he is from the South, Hey, I just wanted to talk to someone new by day 57.

So, we get back on the road to go to James Island to pick up my meds. We grumbled as we passed multiple Walgreens since we thought we had ordered them from the closest one. Fred stopped complaining when we stumbled upon a farmers market with boiled peanuts that he had been craving. Next we stumble on to Folly Beach whose slogan is “The Edge of America.” It was very “Jimmy Buffet” with all the surfers trying to catch hurricane waves, live music and lots of adult beverages.

We drove home at the end of the day having done nothing we actually planned except going to Walgreens. It was a lovely day.

I know this dispatch is long but I can't end without telling you about the houses in Charleston. I think you all know that Fred looks at everything through the lens of his camera. I'm pretty sure he thinks in pixels. The scenery in south Carolina was vast and varied especially with hurricane Earl adding a unique dimension to the surf. There were so many architectural gems from the 18^th and 19^th centuries that he just went crazy trying to capture their beauty. He took over 300 pictures in Charleston and vicinity and most of them were keepers! We picked about 50 of the best for the online album. Many have captions describing where they were taken.

One of my favorite homes was the Two Meeting Street Inn. It is a Queen Anne mansion completed in 1892 and it gleams like a pearl. The arched piazzas provide a panoramic view of the Historic Battery, the waterfront and the lush gardens. They serve a “gracious southern breakfast,” afternoon tea and evening sherry. My kind of place until I saw the price tag....$225.00 to $479.00 per night depending upon, evidently, the ceiling height of your room. We slept in the bus.

At some point we donned our hats and flip flops and headed to Isle of Palms Beach. The pictures will show the long lawns of the houses backing up to the beach. They don't show all the cars of beach goers that are parked in their front lawns.

There was so much else to do here but we just didn't have enough time. Fred was really sorry we missed the Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum. He wanted to tour the USS Yorktown, an aircraft carrier that served in World War II and Vietnam. I wanted to visit Boone Hall Plantation and Gardens until I found out they don't produce Boone's Farm Wine.

You should visit this place!        Click here to see the rest of the photos...

From the road:

-robin

A Taste of Savannah

Hi everyone,
It is September 14, and we are in Trenton, Maine buying REAL maple syrup from Vermont (it is cheaper) searching for colorful changing leaves (we arrived too early) and waiting for the rain to stop so we can explore Acadia National Park. We have traveled 1,935 miles since we left Florida so I have a lot of catching up to do in the dispatch department.

I have always wanted to travel to where the trees are draped with moss and words drip from folks mouths like syrup. I found that place  in Savannah, Georgia on day 53 and it was delightful.
We did not arrive in the rain, our campground was lush and the food and drinks were great.  Many of my visions of the South came from movies and I was glad that I was not disappointed.  You all know how much Fred and I love movie trivia so it was a special treat to eat in the pub where a few scenes were filmed in one of my favorite movies, “Something to Talk About.”  Savannah was steeped in history and we loved reading about it on a walking tour.

It was dark and we were looking for fun so we decided to take a narrated, horse drawn carriage ride through the old town squares.  Fred had just lit up a cigar and while booking the ride, he specifically asked if smoking would be OK. He was assured that it would be fine and that we could even bring drinks from a local tavern to make it even more fun.

The wagon held about 10 people but only two others, a couple of women, joined us.  Being polite, we asked them if they would like to have the front seat in light of the cigar smoke.  The older woman was very insistent that it was perfectly okay and that she wouldn't mind sitting in the back.  She added, “ I   love the smell of a cigar.”  Her words were, “If you can't smoke outside then where can you smoke?”  All was well as the ride began but within minutes, the younger woman asked Fred if he would put it out, as the smoke was bothering her.   Apparently she didn't want to be on the ride in the first place since she spent the entire time tapping away at her phone on Facebook and talking over the guide.

Fred declined to extinguish the newly purchased $10.00 cigar and instead, she and the older woman switched seats.  That seemed to placate her for a while until she insisted he put it out because the smell made her sick.  “Oh well,” Fred said, “What a shame because it was an excellent cigar, right down to the nub.” It had been out for 10 minutes.  Guess they should have taken the front seat we offered.

 I am going to let you see Savannah through the camera lens so I can move on to the Charleston dispatch.

Click here to see our Savannah photo album...

Surprises: Panhandlers on every corner with creative ways to skirt the no panhandling laws
Celebrations: The sun came out 
Disappointments: The irritating lady who joined our narrated carriage ride and no wifi in camp.

from the road:
robin

Clearwater, Florida – August 23-29   Days 46-52

The Sunshine state

We had a GRAND time in Clearwater Florida.  We arrived in a downpour and had to park at the campground filling up with water. Our friend Chris Noell suggested a campground that actually bordered his property where he and Cheryl and their dog, HollyRaisin live. Chris showed up to laugh hysterically while Fred and I worked in the rain to park and hook up electricity, water, sewer and cable
 We couldn't make the sharp right turn towing the car so Fred went out and unhooked the jeep....first soaking.  Then he tried to back into the spot and needed me to guide him in so that was my first soaking. I tried to use an umbrella and that turned out to be so ill conceived that I'm embarrassed to mention it.  We are talking POURING, DUMPING, rain.  Then I had to go retrieve the jeep, third soaking.  Trisha and Robert drove up to take us to dinner and they started laughing too.  It was finally decided that since we were unworthy of taking to a restaurant, that we should all gather at Cheryl and Chris' house for a spaghetti dinner. Yummo!  I looked like a drowned poodle but no one mentioned it and we were so glad to be with true friends that we were thrilled! I wanted to cry I was so happy to be with people that knew me and loved me (there are not that many!)  I have been so lonely for all my friends that I was about to tear up each day.  I truly did not know what close friends meant to me until they are far away. We had a marvelous time with everyone and Cheryl's brother and dog also.  I felt like I had come home even though I was thousands of miles away. 
We checked out all the towns and landed on the beach of Fred's youth on Tuesday.  I checked and his name was not  spray painted on  the girls bathroom wall. Trish fed us at her house Tuesday night and then wisked me away on Wednesday morning to have my hair cut and colored.  The girl who did it was from Ethiopia and had a fabulous story to tell.  The result, not so normal for me, very trendy for the world to day.  Fred had to work and went to one of our moderator's homes to interview him and check out his ham radio set up.


We toured the area, shopped in Dunedin (I bought a purse you will all covet) and got rained on.  The streets of Dunedin were so flooded I was afraid the jeep wouldn't even get through the intersection. And they call this “The Sunshine State.”

We were wined and dined by the Noells like we were royalty.  It was fabulous to have  friends close by.  Chris and Robert's dad, Bobby, took us out on his boat for a day and we were thrilled.  It was too fun. Lots of pictures with captions  follow....somewhere....I still have to have Fred figure this whole blog thing out.  Would you all rather just get an email or is the blog working for you?

We just got word that Jaime was in a car wreck that totaled her car.  She and the other person are unharmed due to lots of airbags. If anyone has a car they are selling, I know someone who is buying.


Surprises: We never saw an alligator
Celebrations : Spending time with good friends
Disappointments: It rained 6 of the 7 days we were in Florida


Thanks and check out this collection of 27 pictures...

from the road:
robin

The Huge Huntsville Hamfest

The Huntsville Hamfest, August 21, Day  44
 
This event turned out to be much larger than we anticipated. Our longtime advertiser, Robby Spears owns Giga Parts and let us camp behind his store.  Giga Parts had the largest, busiest booth at the show so we  hung the QRZ.com  banner and opened for business.  I was schmoozing, answering questions and solving problems for  QRZ subscribers.  Fred met with current and prospective advertisers and shopped....a lot.  He bought a telescoping pole, his second, which was a big thing judging by the oohs and aahs from the guys in the booth. I admit, I still don't get it. Evidently its a ham radio antenna thingy. 

It poured rain and was still steamy when we took off that night to get a little road under the tires before we retired in a rest stop somewhere in Alabama...I don't know where.  I do know that sometime during the night, something took the whole QRZ site down. I awoke to find an ashen Fred frantically trying to figure out what caused the failure.  He had planned an unusually hard day and a half of driving to get to Clearwater, Florida by Sunday. He was scheduled to speak to the Tampa Amateur Radio Club on Monday night.  We had to stop several times during the day to log in to the site and talk to the network engineers in Phoenix so we only got as far as Dothan, Alabama.  At one point, it looked as if Fred was going to park  me and the bus in Florida and fly home to solve the problem.  Thank goodness for his experience at Sun Microsystems managing remote servers.  He supervised long distance and was able to configure a temporary fix so he didn't have to abandon me.  The temporary fix is still holding and we are still married. Fred ordered some new equipment online, had it delivered to the house and Peter delivered it to the network engineers in downtown Phoenix. 

Some of you know Peter and some don't.  He is our friend and the keyboardist in Desert Voodoo.   He  has moved into our house while we are on the road and has assumed many of our day to day duties. He and Prudence, his cat, are keeping the dogs fed and out of trouble, doing our banking, sorting mail, running to the post office, watering plants, spa and pool duties and the ever necessary poop patrol. I guess you could say we now have an English butler.  We think we'll keep him when we get home.  Our grand adventure could not have happened without his contribution.  Peter also has an assistant; our neighbor, Deb Fisher.  She has been busy walking our dogs, driving them to the beauty parlor, fixing sprinklers, cleaning up the dead plants and housing Peter and Prudence when they lock themselves out of the house. Jaime came to their rescue with her key. As they say...it takes a village.

Road signs that made us smile:     Little Pecker's Wing House
                    Cuckold Landing
                    Fancy Gap

Animals spotted in the wild, in flea markets and roadside:  Lots and lots of possums who we are sure were NOT playing possum, alpaca, turtle, swan, geese, egret, gray and brown pelican, koi, frog, antelope, fox, armadillo, skunk (duh), seagulls, dog, raccoon, cat, chickens, deer, squirrel, rabbit, badger, macaw, parrot, parakeet, crow, stork, osprey, horses, cows, mountain goats, big horn sheep, lizards, many fish of indeterminate type, porpoise, porcupine and hundreds of frigates.  We were told that the frigates flew in and swarmed on an island in near the shore in Florida to escape Hurricane Earl.
To see what a BIG hamfest looks like, Click Here...

Up next.....Florida!
From the road
-robin

River is rising in Nashville, Tennessee

Friday September 3, Labor Day Weekend 2010

Hi again everybody,

Although today marks 57 days on the road, I need to do some backtracking to day 38 of our journey. We rolled into Nashville on August 15^th and it was hot and... you guessed it... raining. By then we had learned how to have fun in the rain so we ventured forth. We went on a bar crawl, listened to some good music and had the best barbeque so far. Check out the pictures. I think the guys in the second band were better looking than the first but it might have been the beer. We never even took pictures in the third or fourth bar. They had girl signers who I remember were very talented and beautiful. I told Fred to holster his camera. We also continued our search for good Mexican food. Once again it was very different, due, in part, to a lack of Mexicans. Nashville is still rebuilding after the May flood so the big attractions were closed. The campground we stayed in bordered the Cumberland River as did the nearby homes and all had been flooded. Many of the campers were construction folks working to restore the Grand Old Opry, the Gaylord Hotel and the Opryland shopping center. I'm including pictures of the river with this dispatch and you can see the change from one day to the next. As the rain fell, we stood in a park watching the river rise with people who had just gotten back in their homes. They were so scared that it was going to happen again and for a few hours it looked like it might. After five days of steam heat in Nashville, we took off for a hamfest in Huntsville, Alabama. I hope you get a taste of Nashville from the photos that Fred took and the captions I wrote.

Click Here for Photos

From the road

-robin

Dispatch number 14 - My Old Kentucky Home

Monday, August 30, Day 53 6203 miles

We woke up in Florida to our first sunny morning in a week, so what do we do? We leave paradise and head toward our next hamfest in North Carolina. The extreme wind and rain we have experienced so far is just not enough for us. We want the ultimate in weather....Hurricane Earl, here we come.

When I wrote you last, we were on our way to Kentucky. The rolling green hills were manicured and neatly partitioned into palatial equestrian ranches. We saw an occasional grazing horse and it felt tranquil, looked beautiful and made me long for a mint julip. On Friday we met some fans of QRZ who entertained us at a fabulous steak house in Lexington. They returned with us to our campground for after dinner drinks which made our home on wheels feel tres chic. Saturday we drove through Woodford County, the home of all things Woodford including the Woodford Reserve Distillery. Since it is Fred's favorite bourbon, we had to stop for a tour and a taste. Our next accommodations were not quite so cosmopolitan. We were on generator at the VFW fairgrounds in Lawrenceburg, enduring yet another furious thunderstorm. Fred spoke at the hamfest in the morning and by noon we were on the road to Nashville. I hope you get a kick out of the wide variety of pictures here.

Woodford County, Kentucky

Entrance to someone's "Old Kentucky  Home"

The Woodford Distillery

Yum - products made by the Woodford Parent Company

Our "New Kentucky Home", Lawrenceburg

Fred learning about antique radios from his new friends

 

Close up of 3 antiques

from the road:

-robin

Dispatch number 13 - Chicago Detour

Tuesday, Aug. 17th Day 40, 5437 miles

We are writing to you from a KOA campground in Nashville that was under 13 feet of water last May. We sent out a batch of pictures but it has been more than a week since Robin's last dispatch. We have covered a lot of ground in that time and so it's time to get crackin'. First, a little history....

After Mackinaw City, our next Hamfest destination was Lawrenceburg, Kentucky. A sick water heater on the bus forced us to make a detour, however, to North Chicago, a suburb of Chicago proper. There, we took the bus to Liberty Coach, the factory where it was originally built. We decided to take the opportunity to hop in the jeep and tour the city while the bus was being repaired.

For advice, we called our own Chicago expert, Susan Fynmore. She had a bunch of great suggestions. We would have one whole day to spend in the city before having to return to the Liberty factory to spend the night on our bus, parked in their barbed wire fenced parking lot. This was probably the our least appealing camping spot of the entire trip, but on the positive side, we had good electricity, which hasn't always been the case. Somehow we managed for two whole nights, sleeping in an industrial parking lot, a destiny that I had previously hoped would never befall me. It was only after the second night that we learned that the Jelly Belly factory across the street had a shift change at midnight. We wondered what all the late night commotion was, but it proved to be a generally peaceful spot.

As for downtown Chicago, the city was interesting, the surrounding neighborhoods were really pretty but the traffic was awful and the toll roads were irritating and expensive when driving the bus. Some toll fees were only 80 cents but the lines leading up to them sometimes backed up traffic for miles. It seems like a stupid system to us. Why don't they just raise the gas tax a penny and be done with it? Also, when you shell out hard cash for the privilege to drive on a stretch of highway, you tend to expect that all of those riches that they collect are spent to provide modern, well maintained roads. Well, let me tell you, they're flushing that money down the toilet because we didn't see any decent road maintenance whatsoever. In other parts of the country they call it a shakedown: here, it's a Toll Road. Same difference.

We read in the paper that the city recently signed a contract with a private company to build, maintain, manage, run, and police their parking meters. At first, this sounds like just your ordinary outsourcing contract until further in the article you learn that the contract was let for 75 years! The city expects to collect 1.5 billion dollars from the deal. The parking meter company, which also issues tickets, is said to collect some 74 million dollars a year from their meters. I don't know about you, but the deal sounds fishy to us, especially since it will be the grandchildren of the guys who put this deal together that will still be lining their pockets. Sweet home Chicago.

Once downtown, however, it turns out that parking cost more than driving. We drove along Lake Shore Drive admiring the shoreline and the impressive city architecture. After navigating the downtown streets for a while with our trusty but sometimes schizophrenic GPS unit, we parked to go up into the Willis (nee Sears) Tower. At $28 plus tip for parking, we made sure that we walked around and gawked at the tall buildings for a while to get our money's worth. It was about $l5.00 each to go up to the 102nd floor of the tower and we thought it was worth the wait and the dough. It was very well run with lots of interesting facts and trivia to read while waiting in line for the elevators. I'd say it is one of those must do things in Chicago. Susan advised us not to go if the sky was cloudy but we lucked out, it was a beautiful day and we got some great pictures.

Coming down from the tower, we grabbed a Starbucks, retrieved our car and headed down the shoreline to the Museum of Science and Industry. There, we spent another $16.00 to park plus $28.00 per person to go inside. We wished we had had more time for this place. As adults alone, it could easily take 5 hours to see everything. With kids, plan on spending the day. We barely skimmed the place but did get to spend time for a special tour of the World War Two Nazi submarine, U-501. The U-boat tour alone took about an hour and a half but was well worth the history lesson. It is truly an impressive artifact and one of the star attractions of the museum.

We returned “home” to North Chicago only to find that the bus was not quite ready. This meant yet another night in the industrial parking lot but we were now much better prepared for the experience. The next day we drove into the town of Libertyville in search of some cigars and some public WiFi where Fred could login and do some work. We thought that the Libertyville public library was probably a good bet but we had no such luck. It was closed for massive renovations. There was a small farmers market / street fair nearby so I left Fred on a park bench while I did some shopping. I was happy, Fred, not so much. He met a farmer with a tractor on display and the next day the guy emailed him and said he was going to get his ham radio license and buy a subscription to QRZ.com. You just never know what is going to happen when you look up from your computer and mingle with the locals! Lesson learned I hope.

We left Chicago feeling like we had a good taste of the place and headed for our next ham-fest in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky.

For more pictures of this dispatch, see our Picasa Web Album

from the road:

-fred..... and a little bit of robin

Dispatch number 12 - Ditch Day

Tuesday, Aug. 10th  Day 33… 4627 miles driven

The Mackinaw Bridge

This year I made a New Year's resolution and have been sticking to it.  I resolved to be adventurous and try something new every day if the opportunity presented itself. I have always been timid  when it comes to trying new foods so almost every day my resolve is tested when faced with a menu.  Michigan is known for its whitefish so I ate that last week.  I saw one on the wall and it is one ugly fish, but I ate it. Yesterday when faced with the soup or salad question, I chose the soup.  I can't pronounce it and certainly can't spell it for you but it was delish!  The waitress said it was a stuffed cabbage roll made into soup.  Mackinaw City is also famous for its fudge; so much so that the tourists are called “fudgies.” Since I've had lots of fudge, it didn't qualify and I'm proud to say I passed on it. I did try a sample of German chocolate fudge...yuck.

The USCG Mackinaw Icebreaker

Our purpose for being in Mackinaw City was a visit to the ice breaker Mackinaw Maritime Museum. Fred interviewed the museum staff for an article on QRZ.com and we received the VIP tour. It was another of those “boys and their toys” tours but this time I stayed interested the entire two hours. We got to see places in the ship   that even one of the guides had never seen.  I gotta say it was cool.  When Fred has his blog up and going, I'll give you that site address so you can read the technical story and see the pictures.  My main impression was that there were LOTS of spiders and their accompanying webs everywhere.  I ate one but not on purpose so it doesn't count for my resolution.

Our Guides

Down to the engine room

Two of the 4 engines

Now to the new “incident.” While I've been learning little lessons along the way, Fred has been saving his learning for one big lesson.   Do not drive a jeep in to a ditch. It's hard to get out.

So, we are enjoying a nice drive on a  Sunday afternoon and stop to explore the beach from a small public park.  Children are romping around, a watermelon is chilling in the lake and a young couple is getting married  on the grass under the trees. There is a big display map of the county showing the “Old Macinaw Road” which looks fun to Fred and not fun to me.   With no road map and no GPS in the car, we take off for adventure.  Turns out, the road is narrow, isolated and not paved.  Just when I am thinking....what if we had a wreck here...no one would ever find us, I spot an old dilapidated farm house begging to have its picture taken.

The "Incident" farm house

I mention it as we pass it so Fred slams on the brakes and whips an exuberant U-turn.  It is clear to me that there is no room for this maneuver and I hollar as the jeep sinks into a ditch full of cat tails. 

We lurched along straddling the bottom of the ditch, trying to climb back up onto the roadway.  No luck.  With each try the jeep would strain and struggle but could not quite lift itself up over the hump.  Fred stopped and put the vehicle into 4-wheel drive.  No luck.  We weren't getting out this way.  With the jeep canted sideways at  a 45 degree angle, we backed up and leveled off again in the bottom of the ditch.  Fred asked me if I wanted to get out.  I didn't and I couldn't anyway; too deep.  He got out and walked several yards in front  and then behind the vehicle and realized that conditions worsened in the direction we were going. The path to self-extrication would be rearward and the maneuver would have to take place in reverse.  Fred put the vehicle in low range 4-wheel drive and started backing up, first slowly and then with a sharp turn to the left, managed to get both back wheels up onto the roadbed.  The front ones followed and just as suddenly as it had started, the event was over.  We were again on safe, solid ground, on the roadway.   A local came driving by in a beat up station wagon just as we came up out of the ditch and he never slowed down.  I think he saw our Arizona plate. I was ashen and silent but Fred was beaming.  His little white jeep proudly displayed a  layer of mud proving itself worthy of its four wheel drive heritage.  Fred declared himself an extremely skilled driver and proceeded to take the picture of the farm house. Fred says it was thrilling in an adrenaline pumping sort of way.  For me, not so much.

from the road:

-robin

Dispatch number 11 Beautiful Marquette and weird Ranger Jeff

Saturday, Aug. 7th  Day 30…

Man, oh man, Michigan is a sight to see.  We love it here. This is where my mother was born and both my parents were raised.  My grandmother taught both of them at Denby High School and all my cousins lived here.  I've got roots, just no experience with the place.  We stayed just outside Marquette in a forested campground for five nights. Ranger Jeff  was described in every review as “eccentric” but he was flat out weird. Too many examples to even write about, but he gave us lots to talk about.  So, we are camped in a forest and when we walk across the street, we are greeted by a pristine beach with only a few people enjoying the sun and sand. Lake Superior is so large it looks like the ocean except there are no seashells and the sand is a fine, tan color with very little debris.   One of the weather dudes said the water was 69 degrees, but it was so shallow where we were that it seemed much warmer. Strangely, at home we would never consider going in the pool at that temperature, but here it seemed perfect. The sunset was so pretty it made me miss Arizona.

We were in Marquette to tour the National Weather Service station.  Fred is writing an article about the Skywarn system for QRZ.com. It's a federally sponsored program where amateur radio operators in surrounding areas call in to report severe weather sightings. Their info is used to update NWS weather alerts and forecasts.  Each NWS station has at least one amateur radio operator available to listen and take reports from the network of hams calling in  their reports.  With tons of technology, big generators, charts and graphs, Fred was once again in the “big boys and their toys,” world.  He scampered up a 100 foot radar tower with glee, crawled under big machinery and interviewed all the guys that worked there.  It was an interesting hour....we were there for three.

Every time Fred gets to have “fun through technology,” I get to have “fun through tourism.” We went on a boat cruise along Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore. The waters of Lake Superior are crystal clear blue green and  have created masterpieces of colors and rock formations found nowhere else in the world. We had a narrated, up close tour of the caves and rocks, a light house and an island. There were people waving from beaches, kids swimming into caves, teenagers jumping from cliffs and general frolicking.  I wondered how all the people got there since it's a forest on top of sheer cliffs. Evidently there are hiking trails, campgrounds and parking lots behind the trees.  Anyone who  loves camping should definitely check this place out.  At least it looked good from the boat.  The last time I camped in a tent was in my living room with a toddler and a four year old.

Michigan Attractions we skipped: “Mystery Spot – Open Rain or Shine” ...and...“Weird Michigan Wax Museum”

Celebrations: The calm and quiet of staying in the same beautiful campground for 5 nights
Surprises:  The abundance of gorgeous beaches along the coastline of Lake Superior
Disappointments: Mouse droppings on the clubhouse tables (pool table, however, was clean..I won)

Lessons learned:  It takes twice as much charcoal to cook a steak than I thought (dinner was very late)

Next dispatch, I have a brand new “incident” to report pertaining to one WHOPPER of a lesson learned and I've created a blog so I can embed pictures for all of you who have requested visual aids.

from the road:
-robin

Dispatch number 10 There's no place like home...there's no

Sunday, Aug. 1st  Day 24…

This is officially the longest Fred and I have been away from home.  For 32 years  I have told my clients that after three weeks in their new house their anxiety will dissipate and it will finally feel like “home.” Well....maybe it takes some folks four weeks. Especially if the house moves down the road to a new city with a new culture most days. It is still exciting and fun, just not “home” yet.  Another thing, you girls were right about all these mirrors.  I clean mirrors several times a day and often in my sleep.  Sometimes I feel like I am living in a fun house at the carnival.  Luckily, four sections of mirror fell off in the kitchen so I got a reprieve for a few days before we glued them back on. Also, unless I cook our meals, we get tummy trouble.  Who knew my cooking would be the preferred fare?

Last Thursday we landed in Minneapolis at that ugly trailer park that cost a whopping $40.00. Even the squirrels had tatoos.  It got 3 out of 4 Ws in Woodall's campground guide and usually a triple woody is a good thing. It was the closest place to downtown which was its only redeeming feature. After a half day of work Friday, we moved to a lovely campground in Prior Lake at the Mystic Lake Casino.  A trip to the Mall of America left us winded and impressed.

Saturday we headed toward our next official speaking engagement at the Cedar Rapids Ham-fest.  We parked in the lot at the Union Hall and dry camped so as to be ready for an 8:00 a.m. start time. Fred spoke at 9:00 to an small but enthusiastic gathering of more than half a dozen local hams. We hit the road Sunday afternoon for destinations unknown.  We landed in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin at a lovely KOA.

More signs from the road:
In Iowa: A steak restaurant: There is no such thing as a chicken knife
In Wisconsin: Polaski Polka Days – 25 bands – 2 locations
                Heavy Critters next exit
And our favorite:  The Mustard Museum-Free Tastings-Home of Poupon U


Celebrations: Finding a fabulous campground in Prior Lake, MN on Friday
Surprises:  The Skyway in downtown Minneapolis
Disappointments: Staying at a rotten trailer park in Minneapolis, MN on Thursday

Lessons learned:  Our next ham-fest was Sunday... not Saturday...oops
                             The pump button must be on to enjoy the new improved flush


from the road:
-robin

Dispatch number 9 Big Boys and their Toys Heaven

Thursday, July 29, Day 21…

Fred on Top of the Bus

Wednesday was a big day in Fred's life.  He actually found a cherry picker  to lift him on top of the bus. We had to drive to the nearby
town of Vergas where they had a ballpark parking lot big enough for the
bus and the truck to maneuver.   He was in “boys and their toys heaven.”
He did some improvements, caulked some, cranked a spotlight and
generally had a ball playing around up there. Our satellite dish is now
all connected and we are spending some of our free time trying to figure
out how to work it.  

I, on the other hand, did the job that follows a woman where ever she
goes....laundry.  The laundromat was in Vergas and was also a restaurant
and bait shop.  There were little bistro tables in between the washer
aisle and the dryer aisle with menus and tent cards warning me not to
sit there unless I was eating. To tell you the truth, the food looked a
lot better than the laundry equipment. The bait looked very fresh. We
have seen many  other odd combination stores. One of note was a
smoke/gas/dinette/hardware store and casino.

Road signs are fairly interesting; especially if you have no idea what
they mean.  Oink Joint Road for instance. Zorba's advertises with an
aging hippie who claims his pizza joint is “nicely baked since 1969.”

Eating and shopping was always interesting.  I created a “Minnesota
Glossery” for you who may visit for the first time.

                      Tap Pop = Fountain Soda
                      Mac Hot Dish = Hangover Hot Dish = Macaroni Casserole
                      Walleye fingers = fishsticks
                      Pull Tabs = Cardboard Cocaine = gambling similar to
scratch off lottery tickets but ya pull
                      Oof da Tacos = Indian Frybread (elephant ears sold
here but I have no idea what they are)
                      Kum pow chicken = Kung Pow chicken (you can choose
your spice level 1-5 here)
                      Scenic Wetlands = Swamp

We are driving to Minneapolis today and will write again after we
experience that new town.
THANK YOU to all of you who have written back after getting my emails.
News from home is one of the highlights for us each day.  Don't forget
to check out our pictures of good and bad campgrounds.

Lessons learned days 20 and 21
There is a difference between a campground (good) and a trailer park
(bad).

Bad Campground!

Good Campground

There is such as thing as too much butter - tummy troubles after Ruth's
Chris Steakhouse

from the road:
-robin

Dispatch number 8 They have tornadoes here? Say what?

Tuesday, July 27, Day 19… When we were in Turkey a couple years ago, I was haunted by two words ....they were......wait for it.......“Turkish Prison.”  The two words scaring me now are.........“Tornado Warning.” Last Thursday night we were greeted by a “Tornadic Storm” in Detroit Lakes, Minnesota. I don't think there is any louder sound than pouring rain and howling wind pounding the skin of an all metal bus. At least I hope I never hear a louder sound, after all, the tornado missed us by 5 miles. Our bravery was rewarded and tested with three more storms starting at 2:00  Tuesday morning, only two of which had the potential to swirl us off to the land of Oz. The bus held fast to the soggy ground although the rain held us hostage in our grand metal house for three quarters of a day.

On Friday we headed to Brainerd for the smallest ham-fest I have attended to date.  I did manage to buy  an old table top radio for $10.00 that the guy swore was worth $60.00.  It will make a good addition to our antique radio collection at home.  I need it for the bus because it just has one knob for on/off/volume and another knob to dial up an A M station.  So simple, I can handle this bad boy all by myself!

Saturday we headed back to beautiful, charming, Detroit Lakes where we collected our mail at Terry and Jane Stallman's house on the lake. Jane just happens to be my friend, Vonnie's, big sister. Vonnie is visiting them this week so we all cruised around the lake on their pontoon boat.  Very fun! Sunday was the Flea Market, Art in the Park and more lake time including a swim.  I was surprised to find out that the common practice is to bathe and wash ones hair in the lake.  Since it was 13 feet deep, I didn't think I could tread water long enough to get this mop of hair clean so I passed on the hygiene part of the fun.  When I came home to use my own shower, I was not happy to find out the hard way that Fred had not turned the water heater on. He said lightening was coming out of my eyes when I exited the shower.

In addition to work, Fred has been researching all the parts and pieces of this bus so he is prepared for the inevitable repairs. If the past is predictor of the future, there will be many opportunities to put his new found knowledge to work.  He spent most of Monday improving the toilet and adding a pressure gauge.  He spent the rest of the day cleaning the shower where the holding tank spilled its guts when he flushed the toilet so many times during its “improvement.” It was a good thing I was at the casino all day while it happened or I would have been on the first plane home.  By the time I returned, there was no evidence of his very eventful day except a flawless flush.

That brings us to today, Tuesday....it's raining...a lot...for hours...Chinese food tonight then dispatch.

Celebrations: A royal flush from an improved throne
Surprises:  People with bathrooms actually choose to bathe in a lake
Disappointments:  A shockingly cold, take your breath away, shower

Lessons learned days 14 – 19
GPS is not to be trusted
My recommendations are rarely respected, and rarely wrong
The food in Minnesota is as unusual as the food I've eaten  in foreign countries
This traveling in a bus thing......is hard

from the road:
-robin

Dispatch number 7 Glacier National Park and We sing

July 21st 2010  Day 13… We have traveled 2503 miles, are just outside of Bismark,  and have replaced 400 gallons of fuel so far.  The top local news story in Mandan, North Dakota tonight is the rally in corn prices.  Not something I am used to hearing in Phoenix. It is just so gol darn interesting traveling across this country.  Our campground tonight was carved out of a corn field and the corn stalks are taller than me. It reminds me of the movie, “Field of Dreams.”  I half expect Shoeless Joe Jackson  to appear and can slightly hear some disembodied voice whispering, “if you build it they will come.” Thunderstorms are expected tonight but I  already knew that just by checking out my hair after our evening walk....curly and growing bigger by the minute.

Last Monday we took the roof off the jeep and went exploring throughout Glacier National Park.  We cranked the volume as we drove the Road To The Sun.  Thank goodness we didn't scare the abundant wildlife with our enthusiastic singing.  Time slowed as we tried to take it all in.  It was all so, so beautiful that we kept pulling off to the side at every opportunity. We are posting just a few of the 200 pictures we took. Highly recommended.
http://picasaweb.google.com/flloyd.qrz/GlacierParkJeepRide#

We drove about 400 miles each of the last two days and stopped so Fred could work on QRZ for a few hours. There is no internet provided  here but the WiFi system that Fred set up in the coach is allowing him to work and me to send out this latest dispatch.  We also have TV!

Celebrations: Free WiFi in the rest areas (which are even prettier than Utah's rest areas).
Surprises: They mow the grass along side the highways in this part of the country.
Disappointments: The local KOA charges $50.00 and we have our own room!!...we passed on that one.

Lessons learned days 10 - 13:
With the top removed in a jeep, water from the weeping wall will pour into the car.  Rain is also a problem.
When you forget that you are filling the coach tank with water, the campground manager will knock on your door and remind and reprimand you.
The unbelievably adorable white Shitz Tsu puppy named Popcorn......bites.
Maps and AAA tour books multiply and fill the coach with clutter if not kept in check.

From the road
-robin

Dispatch number 6 lemoncello, plungers and we get TV

We got TV!  Turns out that without Tivo, it is full of commercials with no pause or rewind; a wholly unsatisfying experience.  I guess the rehab worked after all.

Today is Tuesday, July 20th, day 12 of our adventure. Four days have passed since my last dispatch and those days have been chock full of fun and interesting people and experiences.

We set up camp on Friday afternoon at the Glacier-Waterton Hamfest. We were directed to the center of a grassy meadow surrounded by campers of all kinds with a beautiful forest on the outer fringe. Much to our surprise, our arrival was met with a bit of “shock and awe.” Several directors of the festival came over to greet us and were so excited to meet the owner of QRZ.com in person.  Those of you reading this know him as plain ol'  Fred. Within several minutes, a brain trust was formed and a plan was developed and implemented to hang our banner on the side of the bus. We had the banner but were sorely lacking a plan for its display. Our table was set up, chairs accumulated and Fred was open for business.  All things radio, mechanical and electronic related were discussed with a smattering of politics.   The event was attended primarily by local HAM radio enthusiasts from both sides of the US/Canadian border. We met so many wonderful folks, most of whom came to Fred's presentation on Saturday afternoon which I must say was very interesting. I didn't fall asleep once which was good since I was working the power point part on the computer.   Saturday night was the potluck and “beer bust/hootenanny” part of the Hamfest.  Because we were “celebrities” we did not have to pay the $l.50 cover in order to drink beer and box wine. They had no idea how much box wine I can drink! Here are some photos of the Glacier Waterton Hamfest, Just outside Glacier National Park, Montana.

http://picasaweb.google.com/flloyd.qrz/GlacierWatertonHamfeswt#

Sunday morning we took off for Whitefish, MT because Charlie Wanner emailed us and said he was arriving there on Sunday.  See how flexible I have become about (non) planning? While most of you were at the monthly wine tasting, we three were enjoying drinks and dinner in charming downtown Whitefish.  Although the weather was wonderfully cool in Montana, it was reported to me that it was cooler at Charlene's house. We missed you all. Tomorrow I will write about our day in Glacier National Park and post some more pictures.

Now a few notes about life on the road.   I must report that we have had two events involving plungers. The first time, Fred made an emergency night time run to Wal-Mart and bought the most expensive, plastic, deluxe model available.   It snapped  immediately upon use.  The next day, after careful comparative shopping and extensive deliberation, an old fashioned wooden model earned our business and did not fail when pressed into service. After much research and reflection, Fred has now developed and shared the proper techniques, that if followed, should obviate the need for said tool.

Celebrations: Delightfully cool weather with sporadic rain (no leaks)
Surprises: Montana has casinos... everywhere
Disappointments: Inadequate WiFi

 Lessons learned day 8 and 9:
A $4.00 plunger is not more effective than a $3.00 plunger.
Just because someone offers you lemoncello shots, doesn't mean you should drink them.
Just because Fred doesn't drink his lemoncello shots, doesn't mean you should drink them... too.
Fine box wine and lemoncello do not mix well.

From the road
-robin

Dispatch number 5 Fred broke his thighs and "the incident"

Today is Thursday, July 15th, day 7 of our adventure and our second full day of camping in Dillon.

Fred broke his thighs.  Maybe his calves too.  He found out that you can not squat down under a bus 200 times without painful results.  Remember, this is a guy who has to be reminded to push away from the computer and walk around twice a day.  At home, I swear, I have to tell him to stand up at 4 hour intervals. It's my job.  Tonight he begged me to let him go to bed at 9:15.  Mind you, it is still light here in Montana at 9:15.  I made him stay up until dark; 9:45, 8:45 Phoenix time.

Mosquitoes have become an issue and we haven't even gotten to Wisconsin yet.  Oh my....

Today was laundry day.  Our salesman told Fred he had run the washer and it worked fine which was a relief to me.  Can you imagine a malfunction of that piece of equipment?  We've all been there.
So, a load of whites go in, clean wet load of white clothes come out. Clothes go into the dryer.  Stop......could that haze covering the inside of the dryer be black grimy dirt????? Why yes it is.  Did it get on the white shirts and towels???? Why yes it did. You must picture me on a step stool peering into this dryer high above my head with a flashlight, horrified, looking every where for someone to yell at.  No one to blame...Just me. I so hate it when that happens.

Lesson learned day 7: Check to see if a dryer is clean BEFORE loading wet clothes into it.  It's a good rule of thumb for any strange dryer. It took me 45 minutes to dismantle and clean the lint filter and clean the drum of the dryer not to mention rewashing the “clean” clothes before I could dry them.  Good news, we now have a clean washer and dryer and clean clothes. I've also decided to purchase black towels and underwear just to make my life easier.

Watch for my new sporadic section entitled: Celebrations, Surprises, and Disappointments

Well, I suppose you all want to know about “the Incident”  Here goes......

On our first days out, we discovered that lots of doors and cupboards and refrigerators fly open unexpectedly during travel.  We are not yet familiar with all the bangs and clicks and clangs that occur on the road so at first my seat belt would go flying as I lunged out of my chair and surfed my way back to see what was the matter.  Slowly we became desensitized to the clatter and just ignored it. So, it's hot, we are leaving Vegas and drinking lots and lots of water.  We have to pee.  We stop the bus (since we are THE luckiest people on the road who happen to have their own toilet...gloat, gloat.  I arrive at the appropriate area just off the kitchen and there is a plate glass mirror reflecting me, knees squeezed tightly together with Fred behind me with floating teeth. The mirrored closet door has swung open and the support hinge has locked into place.  Behind it, lies the bathroom and bedroom, literally, half the coach. We are locked out....not good.  We try everything known to us to get that support hinge unlocked.  My ideas are dismissed as silly, his ideas do not work.  I give up, turn my back and Fred lunges at it and breaks the support hinge off that holds the door in place.  Not such a bad solution since we both really have to pee. This alone, does not constitute “the incident.”  Fred decides the hinge is a menace and decides not to replace it. Later, imagine me in a closet with a heavily mirrored door that keeps closing on me as I try to hang up the clothes and hold onto the door at the same time. So, I let go of the door so I can use both hands to get Fred's shirts in the closet unwrinkled. The bus is not on level ground.  The closet door swings open and continues (sans hinge) to plunge into the corian counter in the kitchen.  Did I mention these doors were made of plate glass mirror? So in 13 years every owner managed to keep these mirrors in perfect shape and in 2 days, I put a hefty star burst crack in a prominent door. I felt so, so bad that I cried.  Then I remembered something my friend Charlene said, “who wants mirrors in front of the toilet?” “They must be replaced!" After all, who wants to watch themselves, well, you can imagine.  So this “ incident”  resulting in a fast growing star burst in the glass is really the beginning of Charlene's plan to replace these doors.  I just got things rolling.  I can see that, now that a few days have passed. But let me tell you, it was “the incident” in my mind for many days. I am a total nut case when it comes to keeping my possessions in tip top shape.  Ask anyone that knows me well and the unflattering words, “anal retentive” may surface. Well not anymore.  The incident has taught me to lighten up.  Now it seems I'm in “lighten up” rehab too.  It's got to be easier than breaking a TV addiction.  Trust me.

Pictures tomorrow.....

From the road
-robin