Final Leg Home

Yup - you're right - I am way delinquent on updating the Blog. But I have a good excuse - blame it on the grandkids ... they wore me out!

As predicted in the last entry - we made our way to Harrisburg, PA on Thursday in the rain and then made it to New Jersey on Friday on a pretty nice day. We visited a bit with the gang on Friday before settling in for the night and then back to the NJ Evringham's on Saturday morning for soccer games in the cold and wet ... ahhh brings back memories of the old days. We visited some more with the gang on Saturday afternoon and then we had a good - although too large - dinner at the Outback.

Sunday was a busy day with a trip to the bowling alley for Alyssa and Emily's first bowling experience. After a fun game for all (except me on the DL with a hurt toe) we then visited Nifty Fifties (a fun 50s type diner with great burgers, fries, malts, and game room) for lunch and then back to the bowling alley for another hour of bowling and arcade games. Whew - after that we had to head back for some quiet time, NASCAR racing, and a nap or two.

After saying goodbye for now to the NJ Evringhams we hit the road again this morning and made it through the Philly-NY-Hartford corridor ... back to Sturbridge, MA for an overnighter before we make the final leg home tomorrow.

It has been a great trip and I think we accomplished all our objectives:

1. We got to escape the cold weather in Maine for the end of the winter and got to experience an early spring in Alabama.

2. We got to have an extended visit with our great friends Darrell and Judy. They will be hitting the road again soon and making their way north to their workcamping assignment in Upstate NY. I'm sure our paths will cross again before the year is out!

3. We got to visit with the NJ Evringhams. We don't get to see them often enough so we managed to make it two visits!

4. We got to experience our first RV related convention/rally. We had a good time and we will probably do it again - but probably not more than once a year.

The final entry for this trip will be written from my easy chair in Topsham, ME. I know you all are really in great anticipation for the all important trip statistics. Stay tuned to learn how Mikee and Peggy have done their part to stimulate the economy and lead us back from the brink of economic catastrophe - and we did it without bailing out one bank or insurance company and without firing any CEOs.

Back in ol Viginnie

Yesterday Peggy and I started off the day by taking a hike on the nature trail here at the campground. I let Peggy be the hikemaster and lead the way. This was a big mistake! She ended up taking the long path up the really steep hill! I know the hike was probably good for me but sometimes I think she takes me on these steep uphill paths to collect the life insurance. Just kidding – somewhat! We followed up our morning hike with a drive into Knoxville driving on the backroads. It was a pretty nice day and we were just out enjoying the drive. We were in Knoxville around lunch time and decided to stop in a local Mexican food place named Senor Taco. Kind of a dumb name but the food was excellent! They had one of the best Chile Rellano’s I have ever had! It just proves once again that you can find the best food in the strangest places.

Today is Wednesday and we are in Natural Bridge, Virginia. We made the trip up from Knoxville today during on-and-off rain pretty much all the way. We have decided to make the trip to NJ in two short days instead of one long day so our plan is to make it to Carlisle, PA tomorrow and then roll in to NJ early on Friday. Although our schedule is always subject to change … after looking at the long range weather forecast – I think we will be leaving NJ on Monday and arriving back home on Tuesday.

Hey Stacy – how about getting the remaining snow gone before we get home!

Science and History

Yesterday was another beautiful day here in Eastern Tennessee. After doing some laundry and general putzing around the rig we drove over to Oak Ridge to visit the American Museum of Science and Energy. The museum is in downtown Oak Ridge – a city that didn’t exist in 1941 and consisted of one of the largest industrial complexes in the world with 75,000 workers at its peak in early 1945.

It’s hard to imagine today what an accomplishment the Manhattan Project was! After the attack on Pearl Harbor in December 1941 – in early 1942 the President and Congress decide to build an atomic bomb. This was at a time when just about everything about atomic physics was theoretical, relatively little had been demonstrated in real life, and certainly no one knew how to build a bomb with this theoretical technology. With that in mind – we decide to build three huge complexes at Hanford, Washington – Los Alamos, New Mexico, and Oak Ridge, Tennessee - costing tons of money and requiring the relocation and housing of tens of thousands of scientists, engineers, and technicians – all at a time when we are fighting two wars on two fronts. Americans were truly amazing and innovative patriots in those days – I wonder if we could pull it off today?

So out of a farmer’s field in sleepy eastern Tennessee “taken” by the Feds at a price of $45 an acre (you were allowed to complain but only after you vacated your land) rose this huge complex – and very few people even knew what it was for! Seriously – most of the workers had barely a clue what they were building and what product the plant would produce. Workers, mostly women, would work in shifts – 24 hours a day – while the plant was “in production” turning switches and knobs to keep gauges reading where they were told to keep them – without knowing why! I find that absolutely amazing.

Life must have been pretty interesting for these folks. They lived in a “secret city” surrounded by fences and security checkpoints requiring photo ID badges to even enter the city. But once inside – they had pretty much all they needed or wanted. It may not have been fancy – but they had housing, schools, grocery stores, dance halls, theaters – you name it. All brought to them by Uncle Sam. Come to think about it – we may be headed back in that direction!

About half of the museum was dedicated to the history of Oak Ridge and the other half talks about what goes on today at the Lab (only generally – most of what goes on inside the Lab is still Secret stuff) and then science and energy in general. It was a really interesting museum – I even think Peggy had a fun time.

Since we have been operating without a real plan for our return trip home – Peggy and I decided this morning that we will head further north starting tomorrow, traveling up I-81 in Virginia and will make our way back to New Jersey to visit again with Brian, Nicky, and the grandkids for a couple days before making the final leg back home.

Shhhh – don’t tell ‘em we’re coming!

Bear Hunting

After 5 days of dry camping Peggy was glad to take her shower on Saturday – I think she ran the hot water until their was no more! She deserved it – she did a really good job conserving water while we were in Perry. After a lazy morning we pulled up stakes (there were really no stakes to pull up but it sounds better that way) and made the relatively short drive up I-75 to Knoxville. We arrived in Knoxville around 1 PM, had some lunch, and then took a drive around the local area. We ended up in the town of Oak Ridge – home of the Oak Ridge National Lab – which as you know is the home of the equipment that enriched the uranium for the first atomic weapons. The Oak Ridge National Lab is a huge facility that I believe still produces the material for America’s nuclear arsenal. We drove by a museum that I may have to go back and visit before we leave. Anyway – we had a nice drive and then ended back here in Raccoon Valley, just north of Knoxville.

Yesterday was another beautiful spring day in Eastern Tennessee. After attending services at a local church we decided to go for another sightseeing drive and this time we headed east. We ended up driving through Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and then to Gatlinburg. I’m sure you are aware that Pigeon Forge is the home of Dolly Parton’s Dollywood – but did you know that Sevierville is home of Floyd Garrett’s Muscle Car Museum? Since we just happened to be driving by (how did that happen?) we had to go in and look around. Now I gotta tell you that if you are looking for beautiful classic cars you can see just as nice cars at many car shows. But Floyd Garrett does have some pretty rare pieces. Check out the picture of the Smoky Yunick Pontiac driven by Fireball Roberts! You really have to be a car nut to appreciate that one! (I put a couple pics in here just for you Don). And Peggy got to meet Stacy's favorite NASCAR driver - Dale Jr - see photo attached!

After appreciating all the old cars we drove on through Gatlinburg and into the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. You may remember that we visited the GSMNP last year in late May. Although the views were much greener last year – the park is still a very pretty place for a Sunday afternoon dive. While moseying through the park a few cars were backing up behind me so I decided to pull over at a small pull-out so they could get by and since I was in no hurry. While waiting for them to pass – all of a sudden Peggy yells “Don’t move - where’s the camera!” … When I looked to my right – directly across the river and right at the river bank was a pretty large Black Bear!! Wow. The bear took a drink, looked up to see us on the other side of the road, and then slowly wandered back up the hill. He must have thought something like “I just woke up from hibernation and the darn tourists are here already!” What a treat that was! (If you click on the picture you will get a pretty good close-up of the bear)

We exited the park at the town of Townsend where we stayed last year and continued on back towards Knoxville – but not before stopping at the same little BBQ joint where we had some great food last year. Pulled Pork sandwich with really good potato salad and beans – Yum Yum.

Life continues to be good for the Maineiacs in Motion!

Finishing Up the Convention

When I last left you Peggy and I were getting ready to enjoy our Wednesday evening … and we did! After attending the Workhorse Chassis Social (complete with open bar!) we walked over to the arena for the evening entertainment which was a concert by Restless Heart – a country music band that has been around since the mid 80s and has had a few minor hits. They were very entertaining and we had a great time.

We attended a few more seminars on Thursday as Peggy learned all about fire safety in RVs and I learned a few things about our roadside assistance provider – Coach Net. Coach Net is a roadside assistance company that focuses on RVs but also provides roadside assistance for all our other cars --- except (as I found out) the Chevelle. It seems that in the fine print they exclude providing services for vehicles over 40 years old. I guess they consider it a higher risk if damage is caused to a “classic car” but I can’t imagine the risk is any greater than an RV! Oh well – at least I know it now.

For lunch we drove in to Perry and visited Mrs. Peggy’s – an interesting place to say the least. Mrs. Peggy’s is a drive through only BBQ joint that serves up whatever happens to be on the menu today. Although I had ribs in mind – it seems ribs weren’t on the menu on this particular Thursday so I had fried chicken, mashed potatoes, and collard greens instead and Peggy had the fried catfish and French fries. Both meals were really good and I can’t remember the last time I had real fried chicken. As for the collard greens – I ordered them because I wanted to try something new (at least new to me) and they weren’t that bad. I can’t say they were that great – but not bad. Since they were green and considered a vegetable I could only eat about a third!

After lunch we did some grocery shopping and then headed back to the rig to unload the groceries and enjoy some more of the nice afternoon. We walked over to the final evening entertainment around 7 PM and were treated to about an hour of comedy from a guy named Jerry Farber. Jerry is an older fella (about 70) who is a good comedian and kept the audience laughing for pretty much the whole hour. Some of his jokes were older than me – but he was pretty funny overall.

We left the convention this morning. Think about this for a minute … how do you get 3,000 motorhomes that are parked in several fields pretty close together out of town in a few hours? I was very impressed! Due mostly to the layout of the fairgrounds and the way they parked the rigs as we came in – it was really pretty easy. We complicated the exit a little since I had signed up to get the rig weighed on our way out and I wanted to dump our waste tanks before we got weighed … so we left our parking spot around 8:15 AM, got the tanks dumped at the one on-site dump station, and was in line for the weighing at 9:00 AM. After waiting in line for about a half hour we got the rig weighed at all four corners and were on our way by 9:30. Good News – the rig’s weight is well within specifications and is pretty equally balanced! Peggy’s comment – let’s go shopping!

We really didn’t know where we were heading after the convention when we pulled in – but we finally decided to head up to Tennessee to goof off for a week before we make our way home. We drove to Chattanooga today and our short term plan is to head over to Knoxville tomorrow and spend a few days at the Escapee Park near there and then see where the mood takes us.

Hope everyone is doing well and that all the snow up in Maine is melting away … but not so fast so as to cause flooding. We’re on our way home!!!

But not too fast.

Conventioning

It has been a couple days since I last updated the blog on our doings at the FMCA Convention in Perry, GA so here goes …

First of all the weather has been MUCH better over the past couple of days! It has been a bit foggy in the mornings but once it burns off around 9 or 10 AM it has been clear skies and very comfortable weather (I’m in short pants again!).

Peg and I attended a Seminar yesterday morning on motorhome cleaning techniques believe it or not! Actually it was more a sales pitch for microfiber cleaning cloths with a few bits of somewhat useful info thrown in. After the seminar we watched a little afternoon entertainment with ‘Willie and Company.” Actually a pretty entertaining ventriloquist act. Then it was off to the vendor displays for a bit more shopping but very little buying. I was able to pick up a new dome for one of my ceiling vent fans that was broken – at no cost! It seems that the Fantastic Fan Company is actually a vendor that sticks up to its lifetime warrantee! After touring the new Winnebagos and deciding that we still like ours - Peg and I wandered back to the motorhome around 11:00 AM.

We decided to head into Perry to have a bite of lunch at the local Red Lobster and then we took a drive around Perry. We found a little hole-in-the-wall BBQ joint named Mrs. Peggy’s that we will have to go visit sometime before we leave. After coming back to the rig - I spent a little time installing my new vent fan cover dome (check out the picture of the sea of motorhomes from atop the Rig!), we goofed off a bit, and then we headed over to the large arena (almost the size and seating capacity of the Portland Civic Center) for our evening entertainment which consisted of an Irish Variety Act Troup called Tony Kenney’s Ireland. The group consisted of a couple of pretty good male singers, one not bad female singer, a pretty good fiddle player playing traditional Irish reels, and a group of Irish Step Dancers that I thought were very good. All-in-all - a very entertaining night and well worth the cost considering all the entertainment is all part of the convention cost ($129 for 5 nights of dry camping and 4 days of actual convention time). They picked the perfect act for St. Patrick’s Day!

Today was more of the same except we did more buying. After attending a few seminars in the morning (Me on Workhorse Chassis Maintenance – Peggy on Microwave/Convection Oven Cooking Techniques) we made our way back to the vendor area and made those purchases we decided we couldn’t live without. Peggy found a couple of cookbooks she needed and I found a stand for my BBQ I just had to have and some fancy brackets to install our FMCA number plate and our new Escapees Club Number Plate on our rear ladder. Now we will really look like serious RVers!! I gotta tell you Marcie and Don – I found myself comparing the vendors here with you two - and your routine is pretty top notch in comparison!

After touring some more new motorhomes – including the million dollar Prevost Models – we decided that we already have the one we can’t live without so we headed back home with all of our newly purchased treasures.

Now that we have had some lunch, done some chores, and sat out in the sun for awhile we figure we’ll head over to the convention in a little bit and attend a Workhorse Chassis Owners Social, grab some vendor’s overpriced sandwich or something for dinner, and then see tonight’s entertainment.

Don’t anybody worry – we’re having a good time!

Sloshing in Puddles

Whew! This convention stuff is hard work. Not only did we have to survive the steady rain through the evening and most of the day today – we had to get up early, walk about a half mile through some pretty good size water puddles (some of which might actually have qualified as full fledged Georgia mud puddles) to attend the early morning “first timers” seminar at 8:00 AM – then Peggy attended another seminar on dealing with joint pain and arthritis (it seems more and more each day that we better learn something about this subject) while I registered to have the motorhome weighed on our way out on Friday and then sat in on a couple of other seminars. All that and it wasn’t even noon yet! See what I mean – exhausting isn’t it!?

After walking back to the motorhome to warm up a bit and have some lunch we made the trip back to the convention area to make our initial rounds of the 2 vendor area buildings where we found just about everything you could possibly need (or want) for your motorhome, a couple of cooking wares vendors, a Sham-WOW vendor or two, and a full fledged Camping World. I did manage to spend some money renewing my Coach-Net membership (it’s like AAA for motorhomes) at a $20 “show special” discount but put off any other purchases until the next round.

Then we “had” to go visit the new Winnebagos. We toured several and didn’t find one that we couldn’t live without. So we decided to call it quits for the day and headed back to the motorhome for a much needed rest.

It’s still raining a bit here this evening but is supposed to stop later. The area where we are parked is starting to get a bit sloshy so it better quit pretty soon or I’ll have to row over to the convention activities tomorrow.

Tomorrow’s Plan???
Same Thing – Different Seminars – Better Weather

Before the Crack of Dawn

We have had an interesting day. We started off by being wide awake at 4:00 AM and so we both got up around 5:00 AM which is verrry early for both of us anymore! Since we were up – we went ahead and did our normal morning routines and were ready to leave the campground around 7:30 AM – in the dark! That was a first!

It rained a lot last night but it was pretty calm while we were preparing to leave. We traveled through a lot of fog on the way east to Perry this morning and didn’t get to see much. We arrived here at the convention site around 9:00 AM and were directed straight into our designated parking spot by a very well organized crew of volunteers. They have obviously done this before! We are parked in a large grassy area at the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter and will be here until Friday AM.

After parking, unhooking the car, and getting the rest of our site set up - we wandered around a bit to get our bearings and be more prepared for the rest of the week. After getting back to the rig – Peggy decided she needed a nap – and so she did. I managed to get a few winks in myself. Around 2:00 PM the rains hit pretty hard and steady for a few hours and I see a few lakes have formed. Hopefully this place drains well!

We have just finished with dinner – Peg has outdone herself again with Pork Chops, Baked Potato, and Corn fit for a king. Well – fit for me anyway – it was good. We have run the generator for the past few hours to help with dinner prep (needed the convection microwave oven) and to charge the batteries. Hopefully – a two hour or so charge per day is all we’ll need.

Today wasn’t really a good day for taking pictures – so we didn’t. But I thought I would treat you all to a couple shots Stacy e-mailed us today. Isn’t she just the cutest little ice fisherperson you ever saw! And that hot pink ice fishing trap is to die for!!!

Prepping for Submarine Showers

Peggy and I said our sad goodbyes to Darrell and Judy this morning and left Rainbow Plantation for points north. We did hit a little rain now and again but not too much and the trip was relatively uneventful as we made our way back into the Eastern Time Zone near Columbus, GA. I say “uneventful” but we did experience one irksome issue in that Lola – our friendly GPS decided not to work very well today and kept having trouble locking onto satellites. I have no clue why “she” had issues today but now, while I sit still here in GA – she seems to be working fine??>??>

We also had an interesting experience near Montgomery, AL when we pulled into the Flying J for fuel. It seems the computers at the “J” were also acting up and they had signs on all the pumps saying that their network was down and that they would be unable to sell gas or merchandise. I know they are presently undergoing a Bankruptcy Chapter 11 reorganization – but you would think they would have a way to sell stuff and collect money regardless of the status of their computers! Welcome to the 21st century!!

Tomorrow morning we will leave here and drive the 80 or so miles to Perry and check in for the convention. We have an assigned “show-up” time of between 8 AM and Noon so we need to be there sometime in that timeframe. Not only will the convention be a first for us – so will “dry camping” for 4-5 days. I filled up the freshwater tank this evening and will make sure the waste tanks are drained tomorrow before we leave. We will be running on propane, battery power (supplemented by generator power when necessary) and the on-board water tank capacities. It ought to be interesting seeing if we can survive without running out of water or filling up the waste tanks. Peggy really isn’t looking forward to taking “Submarine Showers.”

Mike & Peg on Spring Break

Yesterday Peggy and I took an afternoon drive down to Gulf Shores to join the college spring break crowd on the beach. The beach wasn’t really that crowded but there were certainly more folks there than last week – probably because the weather was a bit nicer – and the local establishments were advertising for the spring break crowd – so I guess Peggy and I have officially joined the Spring Breakers!

After returning to the Plantation and goofing off for awhile – we joined Darrell and Judy for another great meal at the Patterson Cedar Creek 5th Wheel and Dinner Emporium. Judy made a yummy lasagna and we had another fun visit.

Today the weather looks pretty good this morning but is supposed to start changing towards rain later today. It looks like our travels to Perry, GA over the next couple of days will be a bit wet – but then it is spring so we will just sit back and enjoy it! Since it is getting close to travel time I suppose I better get some pre-travel chores done today and we have a bit of shopping to do as well. That ought to keep us busy until dinner time when we plan on joining the Patterson’s for a dinner out – sort of to celebrate our fun visit here in Alabama and also to celebrate their upcoming wedding anniversary!

We hope everybody has a great Friday the 13th and nothing but good stuff happens to ya’ll!
Next stop – Perry, Georgia – see ya there!

Soarin with the Blue Angels

Yesterday we met up with Darrell and Judy and drove over to Pensacola to visit the Naval Aviation History Museum on the Naval Air Station. The Pensacola Naval Air Station is also the home of the Navy’s Demonstration Team – The Blue Angels. The Museum was quite large and we were treated to many neat displays of restored Navy Marine Corps, and Coast Guard aircraft, info on aircraft carriers, and even a “downtown” area made to look like a typical street somewhere in America in about 1943. They did a nice job finding period furniture and product packages from that era.

They also have an IMAX theater in the Museum and they were showing a film about the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River (mostly the Colorado River) so we decided to watch the flick. The movie had some pretty good photography of the Canyon and the River – but wasn’t as good as the IMAX movie we watched when we visited the Grand Canyon back in 2005. It was a good reminder though of the beauty of the Grand Canyon. We’ll have to go back there soon and spend some more time viewing/enjoying the scenery in that area!

After our Museum visit we sampled some local Mexican food at La Hacienda Restaurant and then made the drive back to the Plantation where we spent a pretty quiet afternoon and evening.

Today is starting off with some fog which should burn off in a couple of hours and then I think we are in for another nice day. It looks like any rain is going to hold off until the weekend. We have had some very nice weather while we have been here in Alabama and it is really starting to look like spring with the Azaleas in bloom everywhere. Hang in there Mainers – spring is on the way!

It’s hard to believe but we have been here at Rainbow Plantation for about 10 days! We plan on leaving on Saturday to head back into Georgia towards Perry, GA (a bit south of Atlanta and Macon) where we will be attending a convention put on by the Family Motor Coach Association (FMCA). Five days with a few thousand motor home enthusiasts – it will be a big change from life here on the Plantation.

Until then we plan on enjoying our last few days here in LA (Lower Alabama).

Burnin Calories

I have obviously taken a couple days off from keeping up the blog but I will try and catch you all up to date on what’s been happening with Peg and Mike in Alabama.

On Saturday Peg and I had a pretty quiet but fun day – I waxed the rig a little and we pretty much goofed off the rest of the day! The day ended with a nice dinner with Darrell and Judy complete with ice cream back at our place.

We were much busier on Sunday. We started by joining Darrell and Judy at their church for Sunday services and then we hit the road for a drive to the other side of Mobile Bay to visit Dauphin Island and Fort Gaines. Fort Gaines is the site of a civil war era fort that guarded the entrance to Mobil Bay – a pretty strategic port during the civil war and the site of Captain Farragut’s famous (although perhaps not entirely accurate) quote “damn the torpedoes – full speed ahead.” After touring the fort we found a local seafood joint for some more fried seafood – after downing more fried gulf shrimp and some fried oysters – I’ve decided that I’d better back off the fried food for awhile or I’ll not be able to make it through the door of the motorhome. But it was really good!

We made it back to the Plantation in time for Peggy and Judy to make it over to the clubhouse for a decadent chocolate sampling hour and Darrell and I joined them for the weekly ice cream social. After a much needed walk back home to work off a few calories we called it a pretty full Sunday.

Today was actually kinda warm and muggy here in lower Alabama. I managed to get some more waxing done in the morning and needed a shower afterwards! Darrell and Judy joined us for dinner and Peggy made a great shrimp and pasta dish. Once again we finished off the day with a walk around the park to work off a few more calories. Unfortunately I think we’ve been consuming more than we’ve been working off!

Tomorrow we’re planning another busy day playing tourist. Check back later to see what we managed to find to do in Pensacola!

Banking on Nevada

The weather continues to improve daily down here in lower Alabama. Yesterday we spent several hours checking out the local scenery with Darrell, Judy, Darrell's brother Mike, and his wife Shauna. We started off by cruising down to the beach at Gulf Shores where the wind was a bit brisk so only Peggy was brave (or perhaps silly) enough to doff her shoes and waded into the surf - well maybe not the surf but she got her toesees wet anyway. Then we wandered through the back roads and made it over to Fairhope where we visited the Punta Clara Kitchen (Peggy's favorite candy shop), toured the new historical museum in Fairhope, and walked around the Fairhope dock area.

Then it was off to Big Daddy's for Linner. Big Daddy's is a bar/grill on the Fish River and has some pretty good seafood including fried and grilled shrimp/oysters and some not bad gumbo. After enjoying my Shrimp Poboy and gumbo - we headed back to the Plantation for an evening campfire and story telling session at the Patterson RV Ranch.



Today was a bit less ambitious. We did manage to make a trip to the local Walmart for provisions and got a bit more of the motorhome waxed. If I can muster up a bit more ambition on a Friday - perhaps we can make it over the Patterson place for another campfire session this evening.



We hope all is well with all of you and we hope Nan is hitting the big jackpots over in Nevada. We can't seem to make any money the old fashioned way - so maybe Nan can make some the Nevada way!!

Relaxin in Ol Ala-bam

I thought I would start this blog entry with this picture from the rest stop on I-10 near Pensacola, FL. Peggy took the picture as we drove through the other day. The folks in Pensacola are real proud of their status as the "home" of the Blue Angels - even the bridge abutments along I-10 in Pensacola have the Blue Angels in formation on them!




We had a pretty tough day yesterday here at Rainbow Plantation. We managed to get up in time to head over to Darrell and Judy's and then over to their neighbor's in time for the hot dog feast. Then we took a nice walk, a short rest, and then over to the clubhouse for a group dinner for 140 or so. These folks at the Plantation sure do know how to eat!

Today was a nice day as the temps are starting to improve. It made it into the 60s today and it looks like the 80s are not far away! We decided to go check out the local area a bit today so we found the local post office, made a trip to the local Camping World for a few "not so necessities", found the local WalMart for a few more "not so necessities", and then just happen to be near Lambert's at lunchtime so we had to go get some lunch! We hadn't been to a Lambert's for lunch before and I can tell you that it's no different than going for diner - The portions are still huge! Now we have been to all three Lambert's! Pretty much the same experience at each place but I think I prefer the one in Ozark, Mo the best.

After all that food Peggy and I needed a good walk - so we did - and then back to the motorhome for a little relaxation. Since the weather was pretty nice I decided to start cleaning and waxing the rig. I only got about 1/2 of one side done but then tomorrow is another day.

I hope all you folks in the northeast are dug out from the weekend storm and are getting back to normal - and you folks out west - I hope you are get some of the snow that those in the northeast have been getting! You need it a lot more than they do!

Rainbow Plantation

Yesterday we drove the couple hundred miles to Summerdale, Alabama to the Rainbow Plantation RV Park. Rainbow Plantation is a park run by the Escapees organization - an organization that caters to all RVers but primarily "Fulltimers." The Park is in a very nice rural area of southern Alabama - near Foley (the home of one of the three Lambert's Restaurants - "home of the throwed rolls" and not far from Mobile, AL. We chose this spot as our Winter Warmup trip mid-point destination due to it's southern location, reputation as being a nice park, and also because it is the winter home of some old friends - Darrell and Judy Patterson. Shortly after parking and sorta setting things up Darrell and Judy stopped over for a quick visit, greeting, and invitation to dinner. I understand is is tradition amongst the fulltimers that RVers don't cook on travel days and so friends do it for them! Pretty nice tradition I say.

After a great spaghetti dinner, a little wine, and some great conversation we hit the hay pretty early last night - at least it felt early since we have transitioned to Central Time and lost an hour somewhere.

Today we have a pretty tough day planned. A little breakfast, a few RV chores, hot dog feast at one of Patterson's neighbor's, maybe a long walk, and then dinner at the clubhouse. We'll need a social calendar to keep up with these fulltimers here at Rainbow Plantation.

Chillin' in the South

Brrrr. Once that front moved through last night and brought a bunch of rain with it - it was followed by some pretty cold weather. We awoke in Brunswick, GA this morning to some pretty heavy rain and about 66 degrees. After hitting the local Flying J for some motorhome fuel and propane we headed west through rural southern Georgia. It didn't take too long for the rain to clear up but then the wind picked up and stayed in our face the rest of the day. Needless to say our gas mileage suffered today!

Did I say it was 66 degrees this morning? Well it got steadily colder today as we headed west and south - does that make any sense? We pulled in for the night here in Chatahoochie, Florida and the temp is already down to 40 degrees with slightly below freezing forecasted for tonight. I'm not really complaining though - just making an observation - it seems Maine is in for another foot of snow tonight through tomorrow!

So I guess I'll sit here and watch the NASCAR race, chill out for the rest of the evening, and we'll finish our trip to Summerdale, AL tomorrow. It should be a short driving day tomorrow as we have something less than 200 miles to go. GOOD - that will leave plenty of time for visiting with Darrell and Judy when we arrive.

Think Warm!!

Jekyll Island

After a great night sleep Peggy and I headed off to visit Jekyll Island this morning. Jekyll Island is a barrier island separated from the mainland by the east coast's inter coastal waterway and is just south of Brunswick, Georgia. Jekyll Island was a large cotton plantation before the "war between the states." After the war the owners decided that they couldn't make cotton growing/harvesting a thriving business without slaves - so they decided to sell their island. Ultimately the island was purchased by a group of very rich northern industrialists - men like J.P. Morgan and William Rockefeller. They wanted the island as a winter vacation spot and they formed the Jekyll Island Club - and proceeded to build a "club house", various "cottages," and other trappings of the very rich and very famous (some infamous depending on your outlook). The "club" atmosphere thrived in the early 1900s but started to become less exciting after the great depression and the "club" started to fall apart after World War II. The State of Georgia pretty much "purchased" the island in the mid 1940s for back taxes and uses the island today as a state park. They have restored many of the old victorian buildings including the main clubhouse and some nearby cottages built by the club members - running the club house and cottages as a very nice 4 star hotel complete with croquet court and the rest of the island is kept relatively natural. There are a few hotels and the northern end has an RV Park. If you are looking for an idyllic place to visit Georgia as life "used to be" - then Jekyll Island is the place for you. The ocean side of the island has about 10 miles of very nice beach and there are plenty of walking/bike riding trails.

Peggy and I spent a few hours walking around the historic district and then we splurged for the guided tour. All in All - a fun afternoon.

Well it looks like the line of thunderstorms moving through the southeast is going to come through here tonight. I was hoping it would move more north but at least we aren't supposed to get the SNOW being forecast for Atlanta and places where we were just a few days ago - like Savannah and Florence, SC.

So tomorrow Peggy and I will head west across lower Georgia and maybe into Florida near Tallahassee.

Put the Kettle on Darrell and Judy - we're on our way!

Short Pants!

Today was another milestone on our 2009 Winter Warmup trip - I made the change into shorts and short sleeve shirts. Even Peggy made it into her shorts today!

After a leisurely morning we left Savannah this morning but didn't make it too far since we had a planned stop at the Cracker Barrel for breakfast. When we are traveling we do try and have most of our meals here in the motorhome - but the Cracker Barrel is definitely one of our weaknesses. We stop there mostly at lunchtime - but their breakfast's are super good also!

After our fill of eggs and buttermilk biscuits we were back on the road once again on I-95 South. Today will be our last day on I-95 and I think that may be good thing since the traffic is starting to pick up since it is Friday, I think we must be approaching Daytona Bike Week, and we are getting close to Florida. I mentioned yesterday that we were going to be staying on Jekyll Island. Well it appears that the Jekyll Island Campground is a popular spot and I waited too long to make a reservation - so we are staying a few miles away at a county campground/park on Blythe Island. We arrived around noon at were pleasantly surprised to find a very nice (and large) campground in a very rural setting with a few lakes, lots of trees, and huge campsites. All that and cable and WiFi to boot! Can't beat that! After settling in we took off on a few mile nature walk around the campground and then came back for an afternoon of R&R. We didn't make it all the way to nap time - but we came close.

In spite of the fact that rain is forecast for tomorrow - we are going to try to get in some sightseeing on Jekyll Island and the surrounding area. Hopefully the rain won't be too heavy or steady.

Can you imagine what our grandparents (and/or parents) would think of the idea that you could travel the country by motor vehicle - bringing your kitchen, bathroom, bedroom, and living room along with you - including multiple televisions. Then you can pull off the side of the road when you want to and park in some really nice areas where water, electricity, sewer, and cable TV are right where you want them to be - and if that don't beat all - you can then fire up your laptop computer to check your mail, the status of your investments, read the local paper, and pay a few bills.

Now that's what America is all about!

Savannah

Today we played tourist as we toured the historic district of downtown Savannah. First let me tell you what a beautiful day it was here in northern Georgia - low 70s and generally clear skies!

As I mentioned yesterday - last night we watched the movie "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" which was set in Savannah. Interesting movie - not quite the type we would have flocked to the theater to see when it first came out - but an entertaining flick to get us in the mood for visiting Savannah today. We started at the downtown visitor's center where they have an info center, a touristy gift shop, a museum, and it is also one of the main stops for the various tour trolleys where you can purchase a guided tour. We opted for parking at the visitors center and then taking our own self guided walking tour of the city. The historic district is about a mile square and is easily able to be walked at whatever pace you prefer. This older part of Savannah was laid out back in the late 1700s with many area "parks" or "squares" all with beautiful statues or fountains in the center, brick pathways around the square and lovely old oaks dripping with Spanish Moss. Kinda makes you want a Mint Julep now doesn't it?

We made our way down to the river where we happened by The Shrimp Company Restaurant. Sounded good to me so we had a real nice lunch complete with boiled shrimp, blueberry muffins, and key lime pie. Yum-Yum.

After lunch we walked around some more - absorbing the beauty of the city along with the welcome sunshine. That pretty much wore us out so we found our way back to the Vue and headed back to the rig for a much deserved nap. Playing tourist can be hard work!

Tomorrow we hit the road again. This time we are not going far - just a bit down the coast to a place called Jekyll Island. I understand it is another really interesting place. Stay tuned to find out what new adventures await the Maineiacs (again) In Motion.

Finally - Warmth!

Now we're talking! Today the temperature made it up to the mid 60s as we drove the couple hundred miles to Savannah, GA. Savannah is one of our mini-stops along our Winter Warm-Up Trip. After arriving here we took a drive into Savannah to the historic district visitors center and picked up a few brochures and a walking tour map. Apparently downtown Savannah has quite the historic district with many old restored buildings so tomorrow we plan on seeing what we can see and experiencing what we can experience. I hear the seafood is pretty good too - so we'll have to find a local restaurant for lunch!

I sorta promised some pictures for the blog - and my head photographer has really been slacking lately - so I'll have to resort to some pictures Stacy sent of our "other" home. Needless to say - we are glad we are here! I hear the temps here tonight will actually stay above 40 degrees and the high tomorrow may be near 70!!!

So far the trip has been going pretty much according to plan. Fortunately the plan has been pretty flexible so it has been easy to meet. One thing I have been surprised by is the cost of tolls along our route on I-95 from NJ to VA. We had to cross 4 toll bridges and some stretches of toll highway at a cost of about $30 for about 200 or so miles. Ouch!

The other surprise (not really a surprise - more like an unknown that now I know more about) is the amount of propane it takes to heat one of these rigs in subfreezing weather and with a wife who really likes to stay warm. It's already time to fill up the tank again.

The really good news - it is a lot nicer traveling and paying around $1.70 / gallon for gas instead of $4.00.

I understand that Savannah is also famous as the site of the book and movie "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil." Since I have never read the book or seen the movie - I have no idea what that means. Soooo - we picked up the DVD today and we'll watch it tonight to get in the mood.

Heart of Dixie

Well we drove a bit farther today than originally planned and made it all the way to Florence, SC. The weather was good, and the traffic was relatively light so we drove on through North Carolina and on into South Carolina. I can't say it warmed up a lot - but it did make it all the way into the low 40s. Tonite it is supposed to get down to around 30 degrees but I am hopeful that this will be the last subfreezing temps we will see for awhile.

Stacy reports that the power was finally restored to the Maine house today so that issue is behind us. Since the DJIA almost recovered what it lost yesterday - things are looking up! All this good news and I haven't even listened to our President this evening to hear all the good news he has!

So tomorrow we are off to Savannah, GA to spend a couple days seeing what there is to see and hopefully enjoy some warm(er) weather and clear skies. We may even break out the camera and finally add some pictures to our entries!

Good News - Bad News

Good news – It snowed a foot yesterday in Maine (more in some places) and I wasn’t there. [Oh yeah - and the house has no power]

Bad news – Stacy was there and was nice enough to snowblow the driveway!

Good news – We had a relatively calm drive from New Jersey to Fredericksburg, VA today. Calm that is except for the wind that made the bridge trips across the Potomac and the Chesapeake Bay pretty exciting.

Bad News – It is supposed to get down to 19 degrees here this evening. What’s up with that! There is no sign of snow here but that is because it is too cold to snow!!

Good news – Stacy informs me that she thinks she can save me some $$ on my car insurance.

Bad News – the DJIA dropped another 250 points today!

Oh well – whaddaya going to do? Good stuff happens and bad stuff happens and then you move on. So we will try and get a good night’s sleep and move on tomorrow – aiming for North Carolina – somewhere near Fayetteville or perhaps further south. Maybe it will be warmer there.

We did have one interesting experience today. We pulled in to a Flying J in southern NJ to fill up on some cheap NJ gas ($1.519/gallon) this morning and I needed to go inside to get my receipt. When I asked the cashier for my receipt she noticed my name on the computer (from my credit card I assume) and asked if I was Mike’s father. When I said I was Mike but not his father – she told me that the cashier working out at the pumps (they have to pump your gas in NJ) was named Mike Everingham. So I went out and said “Are you Mike Everingham? He said yes. I said “ME TOO glad to meet you!” We didn’t talk much more than that as he was busy and I needed to clear the pumps I was parked at – but it was an interesting experience anyway. I knew from my earlier research that there are a few Everinghams in NJ but surely had never met one. Someday I will need to complete linking our family from western New York and the New Jersey Everinghams. Even though they spell the name differently – I’m sure we are related – even if the link may go clear back to Nottinghamshire in England.

Discovery Museum

Yesterday was a fun day with the grandkids. We all went to the Discovery Museum and had fun watching (and helping) Alyssa and Emily experience all the fun exhibits. The museum wasn’t that far away and had plenty of fun stuff to do. We really did have intentions to post some pictures - but of course yesterday was the one day we forgot to take the camera. Peggy did get a few shots with her cell phone camera and Brian got a bunch with his as well so when I can get them on the computer here I will “revise” this entry.

New Jersey isn’t far enough south! It is still below freezing in the mornings so we are going to break camp this morning, team-up the horses, and head further south. Our plan is to head south on I-295, cross the Delaware Memorial Bridge, hook up with I-95 towards Baltimore, skirt Baltimore on I-695 and also skirt Washington DC on route 301. Hopefully that route will keep us away from most of the Baltimore-DC area potential traffic mess. Perhaps someday we will make the DC area a destination and spend some time in the national museums – until then - I look forward to getting out of the east coast traffic corridor.

Look out Dixie – we are on our way!

Still In NJ

On Friday the stars all aligned and with only a minor amount of angst - Brian and I managed to cut the required holes in the final bath surround panel and get it in place. That sounds easier than it was but we got it nonetheless. After some time getting all the seams caulked the job was done. Well not exactly done-done as Brian still has some work to do to finish out the alcove with some green board, fix some floor tile and then paint. But the tub and surround are in with all new plumbing and fixtures. I think we did a pretty good job! But I’m not ready to do it again anytime soon. Remember back a few months when I was complaining about the cost of having Bathfitters replace the tub and surround at our home in Maine? I still think the cost was too high – but I’m complaining about it less and less.

Yesterday was kind of a recovery day. We got a little later start here at the campground, had to unhook and drive out to the front to fill up with Propane and then set up again here at our site (no big deal), and then we headed over to see Brian, Nicky, and the girls for awhile. We took some time in the afternoon to do a little shopping and then we all drove over to Red Lobster for what has become our traditional NJ dinner out with the gang.

Today it is rainy and looks like it will continue on-and-off for much of the day. We have decided to stay over one more day and leave here tomorrow on Monday. Since we have another day with the gang we have decided to take the girls (and Brian and Nicky) to the local Children’s Museum. It ought to be a fun thing to do on a rainy Sunday in NJ.

Tomorrow we will be back on the road – heading south – looking for warmer temperatures – and more adventures. We are relying on Darrel and Judy to will the spring tornadoes out of the south for a few more weeks!

Winter Camping

Boy this working for a living has got to stop! I spent pretty much the whole day over at Brian’s playing Plumber-Man – re-routing the hot/cold water lines to the new tub mixing valve and making up new lines for the shower and tub outlets. The good news – no leaks so far! We also got the back panel and one side panel of the tub surround in. Unfortunately I think those may be easier than the last panel that we have to install today – we have to make holes in this panel for the mixing valve and the tub spigot – and we have to put the holes in precisely the right spots and we have to be able to install the panel which – by the way – has to interlock with the back panel. It ought to be another interesting home-project day here in NJ.

Even though we haven’t spent much time in the motorhome over the past few days except to sleep – I have learned a few things about winter camping;

Although Winnebago has done a number of things to help make the motorhome livable in cold weather (like heated basement compartments and double pane windows on most windows) – these rigs were really not designed to be lived in when temps are sub freezing (although several people seem to be doing that here in this campground in NJ!).
You will use A LOT of propane keeping the inside of the rig warm (I estimate we have already used about 10 gallons since we left Maine). We did bring a portable electric space heater along to help – and it does help – but we don’t leave it on when we have been gone or when we are sleeping.
The basement compartments that contain the freshwater tank, the on-board water pump, and the majority of the freshwater piping stay pretty warm as long as the inside area is heated. The compartment that contains the waste tanks and the outside freshwater hook-ups doesn’t stay as warm and can dip below freezing on cold blustery mornings – even though I have placed a drop light with a 75W light bulb in there to add a little extra heat.
Although this campground has outside water spigots that are insulated and heat traced (taped) - since our hook-up hose isn’t – we disconnect and drain it if temps are going to drop below freezing. I notice that some of the folks staying here longer term have installed heat traced and insulated hook up hoses. They probably work OK if temps don’t dip below freezing for too long.

Other than those few things – we are doing OK in these relatively cold temps. Once we get a bit further south and the temps get up to around 40 degrees or so it will be nice to use the heat pump for heat and save on the propane usage!

Right now our plan is to stay here for a couple more days and leave on Sunday for points further south. Until then – we continue to enjoy our visit with the NJ Evringhams and I will continue to play Construction/Plumber Man.

Construction Man

Yesterday I played construction-man with my son Brian. He had already started the tub alcove demo by removing the walls so that messy part was already done. We got a rather late start on the project since Peggy and I didn’t arrive until around 11:00 and then Brian had an appointment he had to keep – but we managed to get the old tub out and dry fit the new tub by the time Brian had to leave for work around 5:00 PM. That’s when the fun began ....

When we did the trial fit I noticed that the tub drain connection sat a little lower than the new tub but I figured I could simple loosen a connection – move up the drain connection – and all would be good. I was wrong. The connection I needed to loosen – wouldn’t budge, the drain piping is made of PVC, and any further effort to get the connection loose was going to break something that would create a real ugly situation to recover from. So out came the tub again – off I went to Home Depot for a flexible piping connector – back to Brian’s for a little drain pipe modification – and voila – several sore muscles later trying to make everything fit at the same time and the drain was in and the leak test was satisfactory! After a couple more hours installing the overflow pipe, attaching the tub to the wall studs, and temporarily re-installing the water supply valves and shower piping – the tub was usable again for Nicky and the gang’s use in the morning. The short term goal was met!

Today we will try and get an earlier start and get the tub surround walls in and the new water supply valve and shower piping installed. How much do plumbers make these days?

Never mind – it’s not enough!

Jersey

We now know that the motorhome propane heater works pretty well after it ran a lot the night before last in Sturbridge where it got down to around 19 degrees. After crawling out from under the covers (and the electric mattress cover) we managed a quick breakfast and set our sights for New Jersey. We would have left a few minutes earlier but it seems that the leveling jacks that I deployed the night before had frozen themselves to the ground overnight and wanted to keep us in Massachusetts. A small amount of frozen earth chipping later – and we were on our way!

The drive to NJ was pretty uneventful – which really says a lot. I never really enjoy the drive through Hartford, Waterbury, Danbury, and around NYC. But the traffic wasn’t too bad yesterday. After arriving here in NJ we set up the motorhome here in Clarksboro at one of the only camping areas here in the Philly area that is open all year. We even hooked up to outside water, flushed out the RV antifreeze, and filled and started the hot water heater. We then made the relatively short (about 30 minute) drive over to visit with the gang in Sicklerville for a few hours before heading “home” and settling in for the evening. Since it looked like it was going to dip below freezing last night I unhooked and drained the outside water hook up hose. Although it looks like we are in for some wet and cold weather here today – it also looks like it is going to stay above freezing for at least the next 24 hours.

We are about ready to head over to Brian’s house this morning. Since I am providing labor for the bathroom remodel job I guess I better be prepared to do some work. Today’s priority – remove the old iron bathtub and install the new fiberglass tub. Sounds like a couple of busted knuckles to me … stay tuned.

Rollin South

Finally - we are on our way!

After finishing most of our pre-trip chores yesterday we awoke early this morning, got ourselves ready, loaded the car, and headed over to the motorhome to finish loading the rig. By 8:00 AM we had finished our loading and met with Stacy, Eric, and Jenn for breakfast at the Copper Kettle in Topsham. Since we had a short travel day planned it was nice to have a relatively leisurely breakfast with the kids before heading back to the motorhome, driving to the mall, hooking up the car and hitting the road.

Considering that the rig had been sitting in the cold for the past several months - I was very pleased that all systems appear to be working just like they are supposed to! Our motorhome has a feature that Winnebago calls "motor-aid" that uses the hot water from the engine through a separate heat exchanger and fan system to heat the coach area while you are driving - it also heats the hot water system while you are driving. This was the first time we have used the motor-aid coach heating system and it worked really well. The inside of the coach warmed right up to around 70 degrees while we were driving and even more importantly - the bays under the coach that house the water systems also warmed right up to around 50 degrees while it was around 28 degrees outside.

We arrived in Sturbridge, MA around 1:30 PM and settled in for the remainder of the day/evening. It was a relatively short drive for us but considering it was Day 1 of our trip - a short day was fine with us. The Sturbridge area has a few inches of snow on the ground in the shaded areas so we are still in "winter" mode. But all things considered - the motorhome is staying pretty toasty with a only a small electric space heater running. We'll have to wait and see how things work when the sun goes down.

Tomorrow it's off to NJ to visit with Brian, Nicky, Alyssa and Emily. We are really looking forward to seeing them - and to seeing what work Brian has in store for me as he remodels his bathroom. This could be interesting!

It's good to be on the road again.

Final Preps

Today is T minus 1. Although we still have plenty to do today to be ready to roll and in spite of the fact that we need to accomplish the remainder around church, the NBA All-Star Game, and the Daytona 500 - somehow we will manage.

Yesterday I finished up the "outside" chores on the motorhome in the wind and cold (it is not recommended that one change the oil in your generator while the temps are in the mid 20s and the wind is howling) and Peggy worked at getting the house ready to close up for several weeks. Peggy also managed to find time to steam up some Alaskan King Crab legs for my traditional Valentines Day dinner - isn't she great! I'm sure I don't deserve to have her as my Valentine - but I sure do like it!

Stacy will be performing Property Management duties while we are away and I know she will do a great job. She doesn't even have to mow the lawn this time! But I do have to make sure the snowblower has plenty of gas before we leave .

Today we will concentrate on loading our clothes and some food. We have pretty much decided that it will be a lot easier and probably cheaper to wait until we get to NJ to really stock up on food so we won't have a lot to load. The plan for tomorrow is to meet Stacy, Eric, and Jenn for breakfast at around 8:00 AM, drive over to the mall to hook up the Vue (easier than maneuvering around all the snowbanks with a car in tow here in the "neighborhood"), and then hit-the-road for the 2009 Winter/Spring Warmup Adventure.

Darrell and Judy - keep saving that spot on the beach for us - we'll be there soon!

Getting Ready

OK - it's time to get serious about getting ready to roll. Peggy and I have pretty much finished the chores we needed to get done before we leave town so now it's time to load up and go. The weather has continued to cooperate this week and we actually have had a bit of melting of the snow-pack - we even got a bit of rain today! I have been checking the weather forecast for early next week and based on what I see for the northeast - I think we better leave for NJ on Monday rather than on Tuesday as originally planned. So that moves up the schedule a little!! We are now at T minus 4 and counting.

Traveling by RV in the northeast in the middle of winter has many challenges. One of the biggest is where to stop and stay for the night. Very very few campgrounds are open this time of year and as I found out yesterday - even some of those that advertise as being open all year - are either only open when it's convenient or have received so much snow that they haven't yet dug out. But I have found a spot near Sturbridge Village in CT that is open with limited facilities so that's where we will spend our first night. Our kids will remember this place - Jellystone Park - the first place we camped years ago during our first motorhome trip in a rented motorhome. Sturbridge is only about 180 miles from here but the trip to NJ is about 450 miles and farther than I like to travel in one day - especially in the northeast corridor. One of our other challenges is when to "de-winterize" the water systems of the rig. Although the spaces that hold the water and waste tanks is theoretically heated - I'm a little leery of putting water in those areas until I'm really sure it's not going to freeze. So I'll leave the RV anti-freeze in the water lines and leave the fresh water tank empty until we get to NJ. We plan on carrying a few gallons of water inside in jugs until then.

I have added a new map to the blog that will show where we are and where we have been. I'll try my best to keep it up to date.

Everybody stay safe tomorrow - after all - it is Friday the 13th.

Havin a Heat Wave!

After weeks of below freezing weather it made it up to 48 degrees today! But I can't get too excited - I understand the low tomorrow will be around 6 degrees. On the other hand - I'm not complaining. Over the last few days I have managed to get some more motorhome pre-travel chores complete. The tires have been topped off with air, the new Tire Pressure Monitoring System has been installed and programmed, and the first round of loading all the stuff we took out in October has been completed. Peggy had a Vacation Bible School conference to attend on Friday and Saturday in Massachusetts and she made it through that OK sooooo ... now it's time to focus on getting ready to hit the road again next week.

Our friends the Patterson's report that it was in the 70's today in lower Alabama and they are looking forward to a nice day tomorrow as well. Keep those warm days coming - I'm (almost) on my way!

We have some chores to attend to next week including some routine medical checkups for Peggy and a trip to see our Financial Advisor. I can't wait to hear what he has to say - Peggy's plan of putting our $$ under the mattress is looking better and better. Perhaps I can qualify for a special Mikee Economic Stimulus Package and the feds will simply shower me with money that they simply created out of thin air yesterday ... then again I would probably just do the "wrong thing" and save it.

I am looking forward to traveling with the price of gas being closer to $2.00 a gallon than the $4.00 a gallon I had to deal with last year.

T minus 8 days and counting ... think warm and dry thoughts.

Huffing, Puffing, and Super Bowl Sunday

Getting a motorhome ready to travel - in February - in Maine - is no easy task! Yesterday I went over to do a little prep work and just plumb wore out this old body. First I did the easy stuff like install the batteries. I say easy - but "easy" is a relative term used to describe work that you've done before and generally goes according to plan. Installing the batteries did go as planned but lugging those 3 - 50 pound beasts up the basement stairs and out to the truck was no fun task for sure.

After I got the batteries installed I decided that the next logical step would be to start the engine and make sure all was OK there. But since the exhaust pipes were covered by the cover - it only made sense to take the cover off first. Here is where stuff starting getting hard. In order to get the cover off I had to first undo the straps that go under the motorhome. In order to undo the straps I had to dig a path down the side of the rig that hadn't been plowed out. About an hour later ... and lots of huffing and puffing later ... the shoveling was done and the straps were undone. Then I decided to see if I could get the cover off. Now normally this is a pretty easy job. I simply climb up the ladder on the rear of the rig lifting the cover as I go - then I just roll the cover towards the front as I walk along the roof. Remember what I said earlier about "easy" - well it didn't apply this time. It seems that the roof raking I did the day before was pretty effective at removing the foot of snow that had recently piled up on the roof - but it was ineffective in removing the inch or so of ice that had accumulated on the roof/cover before the recent storm! Now What? Well I CAREFULLY (on my hands and knees) broke up the ice and pushed the pieces over the side while working myself forward. And once again - about an hour later and even more huffing and puffing later - the ice was off - the cover was off - and I was safely back down on the ground! Unfortunately - I was too tired and cold to continue so I decided that was enough and headed home to warm up.

Today I headed back to continue what I had started yesterday. Only today was much colder with temps around 10 degrees. The first step I accomplished this morning was to see if the propane heater would work. Once I opened the propane valve on the tank and turned on the heater it fired right up. I love it when stuff works the way it is supposed to! Then I decided to press my luck and start the engine. Once again success as she cranked a few times and then fired right up. Don't get me wrong - she didn't initially sound real happy about starting - but she soon quieted right down and ran smoothly. Now I had the engine running and the propane heater running so the temp inside was really climbing - up to 26 degrees and slowly rising! After running the engine for about a half hour I decided it was time to see if the generator would start. Now the genny took several cranking attempts but finally fired up and powered up the rig ac circuits just like designed. Did I mention that I love it when stuff works like it is supposed to? After the generator was running I shut down the main engine and let the generator power the rig for about a half hour while testing all the lights and letting the propane heater continue to warm up the place a bit. After another half hour the temp was clear up to 40 degrees so I shut down the furnace and then the generator. Since I now had several success in a short period of time I decided that was enough for today, closed up the rig, and moseyed back home to the nice warm house to settle in for Superbowl Sunday!

I'll get back to my trip preparations tomorrow - T minus 16 and counting!