Travel Day - Homosassa Springs, FL

As advertised - the weather was rainy off and on all day yesterday with some thunder and a few bolts of lightning once or twice. Not that I'm complaining much about the weather. The middle part of the country is getting hit with snow and ice and the northern tier is super cold. Stacy and Eric tell me it was in the minus numbers back home last night!

We got a kinda slow start yesterday but did manage to get a few chores done around the rig in the AM before heading over to visit again with the Swartz's in the PM. We visited some - went out for a nice dinner - and then visited some more. Always nice to visit with good friends. Thanks guys for a fun stay in Homosassa Springs.

Today we are heading south about 240 or so miles to Naples and will repeat the whole Visit With Friends routine again as we hook up with our ex-neighbors and good friends Bill and Kathy Ball. Bill is one of those guys who still works for a living so we will only have today and some of tomorrow to visit but I'm sure we'll have a good time anyway.

OK - that's it for today. Time to raise jacks, hook up, and hit the road.

Playing with the Manatees - Homosassa Springs, FL

We had a fun and busy day yesterday visiting with the Swartz's. We started with a guided tour of the Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park. Mike volunteers at the Wildlife Park once a week - feeding the animals, talking to visitors, and doing whatever needs doing - so he was a very knowledgeable guide.

Homosassa Springs is indeed a freshwater spring flowing up several million gallons of water per day feeding the Homosassa River. The water tends to be right around 70 degrees year round so it's a natural place for florida manatees to hang out in the winter. The park is home to 6 florida manatees that have been in "captivity" for many years as well has hundreds of other animals, some - like the birds, just fly in, get fed, and hang around and others that are found injured in the wild, are rescued and nursed back to health and if they can't be released to the wild - they are brought here to the park to safely finish out their lives and watch people all day. The park has mostly florida indigenous species but also has a few "leftovers" from the days when it was a private commercial venture - like Lou the hippo. Lou has been here for many years and is a loved feature in the park.

In addition to the 6 captive manatees we were able to see at least 20 or more "wild" manatees lazing about in the river.

This was our second visit to the wildlife park but we enjoyed it just as much the second time!

After our wildlife tour we visited the Swartz residence where we met up with Jane who was feeling much better today and we all went out for a late lunch at a nice seafood restaurant. Yup - you guessed it - I had more shrimp!

Today it is supposed to rain on and off most of the day so we will try and get some chores done around the rig and will get in some more visiting with the Swartz's. Then it looks like we are heading further south tomorrow. On to Naples, FL to visit with more dear friends.

The last time we visited Florida we were here in May. I have learned that there are several BIG differences when visiting in January. Just to name a few - there are waay more snowbirds driving on the roadways, waay more snowbirds staying in RV parks (making it difficult to make reservations), and the RV park owners seem to know that if they have a spot for you - they can charge you waay more.

Oh well - if this is the price one has to pay to visit dear friends while avoiding the frigid cold of Maine in January - so be it. 

Back In Short Pants - Homosassa Springs, FL

I noticed today that I kinda screwed up yesterday's entry when writing about traveling from the west coast to the east coast when actually I meant the opposite. Bad things happen when you get in a hurry! Actually - I could have made the same mistake under any circumstances. West - East, Port - Starboard. Left - Right ... these are hard things to figure out sometimes!!

We did make it to Homosassa Springs yesterday after an uneventful trip. Slow - but uneventful. I learned that when you travel sideways in northern Florida there are no major highways and the speed limit is more likely to be 45 mph than 65 mph. Now that I think of it Maine is the same way, minimal east-west roads. Regardless - we made it safe and sound, got set up here at the Turtle Creek RV Park, and had a short visit with my old friend Mike Swartz. Jane was feeling a bit under the weather so she didn't accompany Mike yesterday but we hope to see her today if she is feeling better.

The weather turned pretty darned nice yesterday with temps in the mid 70s when we arrived so I immediately shifted into short pants. It is supposed to be similarly nice today so maybe I'll see another short pants day.

We hope everybody is having a great day today. We certainly intend to as we enjoy our visits with some dear friends.

East Coast / West Coast - St. Augustine, FL

Today's post will be a short one because it's a travel day and I better get a-move-on or it will be noon before we head out. Not that it really matters that much since were only driving about 130 miles. Today were are headin' west - from the west coast to the east coast - from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico - sounds pretty far when you say it that way!

Yesterday was a kinda lazy day as we got up late, did a little visiting with Darrell and Judy in the late morning, did a little shopping in the early afternoon, fixed a few things on the RV in the late afternoon, and then had a very nice dinner and visit time with Darrel and Judy and Gene and Judi over at the Curp's 5th Wheel. It sure was nice meeting our new friends the Curps and we look forward to seeing them again soon somewhere down the road. You just never know when you might meet up with these fulltimers - even when you're only a part-timing Maineiac In Motion.

La Florida - St. Augustine, FL

We had a fun day yesterday in St. Augustine. After a leisurely morning we met up with Darrell and Judy and drove into the historic downtown area of the city to play tourist. We could have taken the in-town tourist train or another carriage ride to get a narrated trip through the attractions - but instead we had Darrell and Judy who had already been there and done that so they were our tour guides.

We started off by walking down St. George Street viewing the normal touristy shops, some nice gardens, and the Patterson's favorite Pizza Joint in the whole world - Pizza Time Pizza! Since it was purported to be the best in the whole world - we had to try a slice. Well I gotta tell you - it was super good!!

After our pizza we walked a bit more and ended up at Castillo De San Marcos - a fort built originally built by the Spanish in the mid 1500s to protect St. Augustine and the rest of the La Florida settlement from the English, French, Natives, and a few pirates. The fort is now a National Monument and was an interesting tour. Not only was it interesting it was FREE since Darrell is an official holder of an America The Beautiful Old Persons Pass and therefore entitled to bring us young(er) ones along with him into such places. Let that be a lesson to you youngsters out there about being nice to old(er) folks.

After our tour of the Castillo we drove a short distance to the Mission of Nombre De Dios - the original site of the Spanish Mission here in St. Augustine and a very pretty and well maintained park today with gorgeous views of the St. Augustine Inlet.

After enjoying our outing we came back to the RV park, relaxed for a bit, and then had Darrell, Judy, Gene, and Judi over for grilled burgers, Chili, Salad, wine, and conversation. A nice end to a nice day.

Snowbirds! - St. Augustine, FL

Well I guess we really are snowbirds now - we made it all the way to St. Augustine, Florida yesterday. We put St. Augustine on our itinerary a few days ago for two reasons: 1) We've never been here before and 2) Our full-timing RV friends Darrell and Judy Patterson happened to be here for a few days before heading back to their homebase in Summerdale, AL. So after arriving here around 3 PM yesterday and getting the rig set up we wandered down the street and had a nice chili dinner at the Patterson 5th Wheel where we met another very nice full-timing couple, Gene and Judi.

I suspect that the Floridians who live here year round have about the same opinion of "snowbirds" as Mainers have of those folks "from away" that crowd Maine streets and highways from Memorial Day to Labor Day. We (they) are happy to see them (us) come and spend money and are just as happy when they're gone! Regardless - we're here and enjoying the sunshine and the warmer weather. We'll leave a little money while we're here but try to keep that at a minimum.

So our big issue today is what do we do now?

To visit or sightsee?

take a walk or a nap?

these are the issues of a snowbirding Maineiac in Motion.

Bubba Had it Right - Charleston, SC

Yesterday was a bit nippy and windy but we took a few hours and made it into downtown Charleston for some sightseeing nonetheless. We parked near the "market" area and decided to tour the Confederate Museum. The Confederate Museum is a really interesting looking building with part of the open air market underneath. The Museum is run by the Daughters of the Confederacy and houses some really rare and unique pieces from the civil war era, and especially from Ft. Sumter and the era of The Siege - when in 1864 and 1865 the city of Charleston was held under siege by the Federals for over 500 days. I hear that they still unearth an unexploded federal shell periodically in the old part of Charleston!

After our civil war lesson we dropped into Bubba Gump's Shrimp Co. for a Shrimp Po' Boy and a mess of onion rings. I see why Bubba wanted to be a Shrimp Boat Captain. I think I like 'em almost as much as he did!

After lunch we wandered back "home" and relaxed. Peggy was fighting a nasty headache and I decided I needed to finish the "Lost Symbol." If you like Dan Brown's writing and haven't yet read this one - I highly recommend it!

Today was a whole lot warmer but a bit cloudy with a rain shower or two in the area. Peggy was feeling a bunch better so we decided to head back into Charleston to play tourist again. We decided to take one of the carriage rides around the downtown area. The ride lasted right around an hour and our tour guide Eric did a nice job of keeping us entertained with his southern style humor and good knowledge of Charleston history. At $20 bucks each (and free parking) I think the carriage ride was a good value. We got a leisurely look at some beautiful and historic buildings while being entertained by a knowledgeable and friendly guide. Not a bad way to play tousist.

Of course our last full day in Charlston wouldn't have been complete without another good southern style shrimp dish. This time we decided to try out A.W. Shucks - a local favorite I understand. Peggy had to try the Shrimp and Grits and I had some Stuffed Shrimp (Butterflied Shrimp - stuffed with crab stuffing, wrapped in bacon, and deep fried). UMMM UMMM GOOD!

Yup - Bubba had it right!

After returning from our tour of downtown Charleston we took advantage of the few hours we had left before a thunderstom moved into the area and took a couple mile walk around the lake here at James Island County Park. The Park here is really very nice with a huge closed area near the lake to let your dog run and play and some great walking trails.

Tomorrow we are off to Florida. We plan on heading south to St. Augustine where we will meet up with our RV friends Darrell and Judy Patterson, visit for a few days, and see a few more sights in one of America's oldest cities.

"Boomers" - Patriots Point - Charleston, SC

Yesterday was a nautical day. Peggy and I spent a good part of the day across the Cooper River at Patriots Point where we started by visiting the Cold War Submarine Memorial. During the 1960s and 1970s Charleston, SC was the major east coast homeport for America's Nuclear Powered Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarines (also known as "boomers"). Since I spent a good deal of time on one of these boats in the mid-70s I was definitely interested in visiting the memorial. I remember requesting to be assigned to a boat homeported in Charleston waay back in 1974 but the Navy decided that I should go instead to the USS Ethan Allen SSBN 608 - homeported in Pearl Harbor, HI and actually operating out of Guam. Regardless - it was pretty cool to see a memorial dedicated to all of us that went to sea on these boats. The cold war wasn't very "exciting" for most Americans, but it definitely had its moments for those that served on those initial 41 FBMs - nicknamed the "Forty-One for Freedom." Our mission was pretty simple - go to sea, submerge, don't be detected by anyone (including our own forces), and be ready to fire your missiles and unleash the worst kind of destruction known to man - at a moments notice - and without hesitation. Oh yeah - and also with the knowledge that that if you do fire your missiles there is probably not much left to come home to! Actually - we looked at it differently - our job was to make sure that we never fired our missiles - that's what the doctrine of Mutual Assured Destruction (AKA "MAD") was all about. And it worked!

The memorial was also dedicated (rightfully so) to the families that supported these submariners. We went off to hide under the ocean for a 70 day "Strategic Deterrent Patrol," while our families stayed home - not knowing where we were or if we were OK, and only able to send us 6 - 28 word messages ("family-grams") per patrol. I still have the one that I received announcing the birth of our son Eric., Ah yes - those were the good 'ol days!

After touring the Memorial we drove over to the main attraction - the Naval and Maritime Museum where we spent several hours. First we toured the USS Clamagore (SS-343) - a diesel powered submarine commissioned in 1945 and decommissioned in 1975. Touring the Clamagore also brought back some interesting memories.

This bunk is pretty much like the one I slept in while on board the Ethan Allen - except our COB ("Chief of the Boat") would have never let me get away with having such a messy bunk.

This was not Peggy's first tour of a submarine. Although she never made it aboard the Ethan Allen - she did tour the USS Nautilus with me several years ago in Groton, CT. I kept telling her that she wasn't using the right technique when going through the hatches between compartments - but she wouldn't listen!

Check out the Head. Now you know why living in an RV was perfectly natural for me!!

After touring the Clamagore we walked over to the USS Yorktown CV-10. This USS Yorktown was commissioned in 1945 and was named after the other USS Yorktown (CV-5) that was sunk at the battle of Midway in 1942. Besides serving in WW-II and Vietnam the Yorktown also recovered the Apollo-8 astronauts after the first mission to (near) the moon in 1968. The Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970. We toured the Yorktown for a few hours including walking 5 or so decks down (from the hanger deck) to the engine room and 3 or 4 more decks up to the flight deck and the bridge.

So after all of that we were pooped! Climbing through all those hatches and up and down all those decks is definitely for 20 year olds so we decided it was time to head for the Winne and rest our weary bones.

Today we hope to get back into Charleston and see some of the downtown area. We did a quick drive-by yesterday and it looks pretty interesting ... but I think a carriage ride is the way to go after all that exercise yesterday.

A Crabby Day - James Island, Charleston, SC

Yesterday Peggy and I did a pretty unique thing for the two of us. We had a quiet day (well quiet except for the rain beating on the roof of the RV). Since we had been traveling for several days, since it was supposed to rain pretty hard for most of the day, and since I wasn't really feeling totally up to par (slight head cold I think), we decided to just stay put for most of the day. Peggy got caught up on some Bible study and I took a nap and read about half of the Lost Symbol, the new Dan Brown book. Once the rain let up around 4 PM we decided to get out and move a little so we did a bit of shopping and then we drove over to Folly Beach and had dinner at the Folly Beach Crab Shack. The Crab Shack is a nice local place that looks like it has been there for a long time and was run by some nice folks. We started off with some really great She Crab Soup and then Peggy had some Crab Cakes and Fried Green Tomatoes while I had a bread bowl filled with a Shrimp and Crab Cheezy mixture that was really yummy. The Crab Shack was having an"Appreciation Week" so most of the entrees were only $10.99 (some $4 to $10 off!). Good food at a good discount - a really good deal - we may need to re-visit Folly Beach before we leave.

We are staying in a campground that is located within a very nice County Park here on James Island, just outside Charleston. As you drive along the roads here in the park this time of year you will see some very large displays that are lit with Christmas Lights. Apparently the displays are only lit from November, through December, and into early January so we missed that - but the one display at the entrance to the campground is lit.

I think I read where the displays thoughout the park include over 2 Million lights. That would be a really neat sight to see! Kinda reminds me of the light display along the Riverwalk in San Antonio - another item for the Bucket List.

The weather is supposed to be better today so we hope to get in some sightseeing in Charleston. The problem is that there are a lot of potential things to see and do. Naval exhibits, historic buildings and museums downtown, Fort Sumter, lighthouses, carriage rides ... where do we start?

Ya'll will have to tune in tomorrow to see what path we took.

Ahhh - That's Better - Charleston, SC

Peggy and I continued our trip south yesterday driving from Edinburg, VA, down I-81 to Wytheville, VA, then down I-77 to Charlotte, NC. Actually we stayed a bit south of Charlotte, across the border in South Carolina. When we arrived in Charlotte it was right around 64* - not quite short pants weather but definitely short sleeve shirt weather! We were far past due for getting some laundry done so we took advantage of the campground facilities and got caught up on that chore. Let's see what else happened of note yesterday ... oh yeah ... a Republican was elected to the US Senate in Massachusetts to replace the late Ted Kennedy. Clean clothes and a clean start to national politics all in the same day - what could be better than that.

Today we continued south on I-77 to Columbia, SC and then turned southeast on I-26 to Charleston, SC where we completed this leg of our 2010 Winter Warmup journey. We plan on spending several days here in Charleston while we relax a bit, play tourist in the local area, and generally goof off. It was right around 67* when we arrived this afternoon so I had to change out of my levi's and into some short pants. Ahhhh ... now that's what I'm talkin about!!

It is supposed to cool down considerably tomorrow and rain pretty much all day - so it looks like the short pants will go back in the drawer for a couple of days. We probably won't get much sightseeing done tomorrow so I guess we will concentrate on the goofing off part. After 3 days of travel that's OK with us.

Cruising Shenandoah - Edinburg, VA

Peggy and I finished up our New Jersey kid/grandkid fix yesterday and hit the road this morning for points further south. As always, it was great to see and visit with Brian, Nicky, Alyssa, and Emily. I suspect we may make it to NJ on the way home to harrass them again.

We certainly didn't get on the road early this morning ... but we made it nonetheless. Yesterday's rain gave way to a partly cloudy/sunny day making for a nice travel day with temps in the high 40s to low 50s. We still see a patch of snow here and there as we drive south but they are getting fewer and farther between. We pulled in tonight to a small campground off I-81 in Edinburg, VA. The resident ducks greeted us upon arrival - making us welcome and looking for a handout.

So tomorrow we head for near Charlotte, NC. I see the forecasted temp for Charlotte tomorrow is around 64 degrees! Now we're talkin'. I see those short pants in my future pretty soon!!

Go Take A Walk - Clarksboro, NJ

I suppose if I'm going to keep a blog I better update it once in awhile. We are still in Jerzee, playing with grand daughters, harassing Brian & Nicky, and generally being parents/grand parents. We can't help it - it's what we do!

Since the weather is a bunch warmer here than it was in Maine we have been able to get out for a few walks. It feels good to be able to enjoy the outdoors - even in the mid-forty degree range. It may even make it to 50* today! We need to try and get into a routine of walking or hiking or some kind of exercise. It's always a tough thing to do in the winter in Maine - so we need to take advantage of our travels ... just no hills please!

We plan on doing more visiting today and tomorrow and then we will probably head further south on Monday. We'll need to do a bit of grocery shopping before we leave, probably do some laundry, and will need to fill up again with propane. So it looks like Sunday will also be preparation day.

We also need to settle on a route south. If the weather holds out with no big storms forecasted - I think we'll head over to I-81 in Harrisburg, PA and then travel south down I-81 to I-77, then through Charlotte, NC and Columbia, SC to I-26, and then over to Charleston, SC. We've not traveled on I-77 or I-26 before so that might be interesting. The other option is to fight our way around Baltimore and Washington, DC and then down I-95. Been there - done that - wasn't all that impressed - so right now the I-81/I-77/I-26 route is option A.

Hope everybody is having a great day! If not - go take a walk, breath some fresh air, and enjoy the outdoors - that's my plan for today!

Jerzee - Clarksboro, NJ

Yesterday we made the drive from Sturbridge, MA, across Connecticut, into New York, down into New Jersey, and down here to Clarksboro - just across the river from Philadelphia, PA. We are staying at the Timberlane Campground as usual when we are down this way visiting the Jerzee Evringhams. Timberlane is a nice enough spot, definitely pricey, and about the only game in town this time of year around here. The really good news is that it's all the way up to 24* here this morning! Much better than the 11* we saw yesterday morning and the -2* downeast in Topsham!

When you play RVer in the northeast in the winter you learn to appreciate the small things in life - like running water. This year - like last winter - we left home with the Winne's water system still winterized. We made it through yesterday using the 5 gallon collapsible container we brought on board from home. The portable container was good enough to make it down here - but boy did that water taste "plasticy." So yesterday while it was still above freezing here I hooked up the hose, flushed the fresh water anti-freeze out of the Winne's water system, filled the hot water heater, and put about 50 gallons in the internal water tank. It sure was nice being able to make coffee this morning with the filtered water from the faucet and I'm looking forward to a nice shower later!

We plan on heading over to see Brian, Nicky, Alyssa, and Emily later this morning. I understand that the young'uns have a four-day weekend this weekend with MLK day on Monday and the NJ teachers needing an extra day off on Friday (oops I mean a "workshop" day). Regardless - works good for us!

So how is our Winter Escape Trip working so far? Let's see ... the high in Topsham today is forecasted to be about 24* ... the high here in NJ is supposed to be around 43* ... certainly going in the right direction - but I think I'll keep the short sleeve shirts and short pants in the drawer for now.

Ya'll have a great day!

Knocking on Wood - Sturbridge, MA

This will be a short entry as I need to get on-the-ball and get us ready to roll again this morning. It is 11* here in Sturbridge, MA this morning! One thing I know for sure - RVs, even RVs designed and built with cold weather in mind, are not to be lived in when it gets this cold. We stayed relatively warm and comfy last night with the electric and propane heaters running most of the night and the electric mattress pad adding some more heat, but it's time to move further south. It's pretty bad when we are looking forward to getting to NJ where the high today is expected to be around 37* and the low tonight only down to the high 20s.

Yesterday's shakedown cruise for the Winne was a success! Everything is working like its supposed to work. Now I need to find some wood to knock on.

Time to get going ... I think I know where I can find a Cracker Barrell!

A Short Winter's Nap - Topsham, ME

Yesterday I brought the motorhome home from storage and commenced the final travel preparations. The first step was to try and bring the temperature up from somewhere around 13* to something more reasonable. After running two electric heaters inside and the propane heater for a couple of hours I managed to get the inside up to about 60*. Once an RV gets that cold it takes a lot of heat for a considerable time to not only raise the air temp but also to warm up all the solid mass of the rig. I really didn't want to waste a lot of propane keeping the rig warm last night but I did leave one electric heater running and the inside temp stayed right around 32* while the outside temp was around 10*. This morning I restarted the propane heater and the second electric heater and the temp rose to about 65 in about an hour and stayed above 65 all day with only the electric heaters running. Tonight I think I'll leave the one electric heater running and set the propane heater thermostat to maintain about 50* - that way it shouldn't take too long to get things back to travel temperature in the morning.

Along with getting things warmed up inside we also got a good deal of the load list accomplished and took care of some of the items we needed to accomplish around the house.

So tomorrow we'll finish our loading, top off the propane tank, hookup the Vue, and start our 2010 winter search for warmer weather.

We probably will not make it very far tomorrow ... I suspect we will pretty much repeat our 2009 winter trip itinerary and will stop in Sturbridge, MA for our first overnight - only about 200 miles but a good first day shake-down for the Winne after awakening her from her short winter's nap. 

Two and A Wake Up

It must be my month to play computer geek. Before we left for California last September Stacy brought over her laptop which was having hard drive issues. I played with it a little before we left but was unable to help fix its "issues." So yesterday, after finally finding the original "restore" CDs, I completely reformatted the hard drive and restored the original software. If you've never had to do this before - consider yourself fortunate - you are in for a long day if you have to go down this path. The easy part is restoring the operating system/original software (after you find the restoration CDs) - the fun part is downloading and installing 5 or so years of updates to the operating system, any applications that have been reloaded, and the hardware drivers. Once again Mikee The Geek was successful and Stacy's Laptop was resurrected. It's definitely time to quit while I'm ahead in that category.

When I haven't been working as a member of the Geek Squad I've been doing a number of small things to get the rig ready to roll. It has been bitterly cold outside the last few days so most of my chores have been inside. We are running out of preparation days so tomorrow I will try and get most everything loaded that can be loaded - yet be OK out in the cold for a day or so. Peggy and Stacy are heading to Portland for a wedding show tomorrow so I'll have most of the day by myself to get some loading done in between trying to keep warm and watching a little football. I don't think dads are invited to wedding shows!

It is 13* here in Maine as I write this and I just checked some temperatures around the country. It is 30* in Charleston, SC, 35* in Orlando, FL, 30* in Mobile, AL, 39* in San Antonio, TX, and 65* in Tucson, AZ. Since Arizona is probably a bit too far for this trip I need some of that global warming stuff to show up and thaw out the south before I get there. I've decided to load my golf clubs for this trip and it would be really nice to play a couple of rounds without gloves and a scarf.

Two more days and "a wake up."

An Inconvenient Truth - Topsham, Maine

I want to complain about how cold it has been in Maine the last few days. I want to ... but I can't. Although it has been pretty cold the last few days, at least us Mainers are prepared for it. Much of the rest of the country has been far colder than we have - even places south of the Mason-Dixon Line that are usually much warmer than they have been. I'm pretty sure 'ol Algore got it terribly wrong on the whole global warming "truth." So I won't complain ... but I'm gettin' ready to head south anyway. I'm betting that the cold weather down there can't last too long - although the weather guessers on TV are saying it may last a couple of weeks!

I've started loading our "stuff" into the Winne and did manage to climb on top today to clean off the inch of snow/ice that had accumulated over the weekend. The nice thing about our last storm was that the wind was blowing pretty hard so not much snow accumulated on the roof. Now I have to hope that we don't get any more before next Tuesday.

Normally Stacy has taken care of our mail while we travel by checking our mailbox, seeing if anything "important" shows up, and scanning/e-mailing anything that looks like it needs attention. But since she is now living in Richmond we've decided to try a different approach this time. We have provided the US Postal Service with a temporary Change of Address Notice using Stacy's Richmond address as the forwarding address. If it works like it should - she can still see if anything "important" shows up and won't have to make the trip to Topsham too often. I know - this assumes the USPS does what it is supposed to do. What do you think the odds are of this working without a hitch? I have my doubts and can't wait to see what happens.

So the final preps are in motion. More "stuff" to load, a few things to take care of here at the house, and then we're off! T Minus 5 and counting!!

It's Time

OK - it's time. We spent all weekend watching it snow and clearing driveways, decks, and walkways - now it's time to get serious about heading south. Although I'm not sure why! Today it was warmer in Caribou, Maine than it was on the coast of North Carolina. But I suspect that will change quickly so today I started the process to get the Winne ready to roll.

After doing a bit of snow shoveling to clear a path around Winne I installed the three batteries, powered up the coach, started the engine, cycled the hydraulic leveling jacks, started the generator, and fired up the propane heater. So far all systems have checked out fine. I still have about an inch of snow/ice on the roof that I have to deal with - but I saved that for another day.

We have tentatively set next Tuesday as our target date to roll outa Maine. We have a lot to do by then and the date may have to change depending on the weather - but we have a target nonetheless.

So the check-off list is out and items are being checked off. Now the fun begins ...

A "Good" Year

What a year! 2009 turned out to be a pretty exciting year. It wasn't always "good" but it certainly wasn't boring.

How do you compare years (looking back) to figure out if you had a "good" one? Let me see ...

1) all of our immediate family, including us, appear pretty healthy and are as safe and secure as we were last year at this time.

2) we managed to make it through the year pretty close to the budget we established for the year.

3) we were fortunate enough to be able to do a good amount of "fun travel" in our motorhome visiting with old friends, making a few new ones, seeing some new sights and revisiting some favorite places.

All-in-all a pretty good year by my accounting.

So I'm ready for 2010! Bring on the good stuff and the not-so-good stuff. We'll do what we always do - Enjoy the good and deal with the not-so-good.

As for right now - I gotta go shovel some snow. Is that in the good category or the not-so-good?