Maineiacs In Motion 2013 Review - Part I

My what a wild year! I suppose you don't realize how busy you have been until you look back at it all. What better than being inside on a bitter cold New Years Eve Day in Maine - reminiscing on 2013.

Speaking of cold ... we started off 2013 by heading south in January. First stop ... New Jersey to see the NJ Evringham Gang and a visit to Valley Forge, PA.

It was way too cold in New Jersey so we aimed Winne south once again ...

We enjoyed a layover near Maryville, TN where we visited with RVing friends Gene and Judi Curp - including a visit to the Museum of Appalachia.

We couldn't escape winter's grip fast enough as we hurried further south ...

Finally arriving at Rainbow Plantation in early February. Just in time for construction season.

Followed closely by Mardi Gras - Plantation Style.

We stayed in Lower Alabama through February and into March - getting our fill of seafood and enjoying our visits with bunches of RVing buddies.

Still not warm enough - we fled Lower Alabama into Florida for a few weeks.

We mostly visited places we had been before near Crystal River and Bushnell - but we did manage a trip to Tarpon Springs for a fun afternoon.

We started our trip back north in mid-March. First stop - LaGrange, GA to see more RVing friends Mike and Gerri Jones - and to visit new places like FDR State Park ...

Callaway Gardens ...

And the Little White House in Warm Springs, GA.

We then continued our trip north ... by heading east ... to Savannah. One of our favorite places. Great scenery, even better food, and a walk through the "Garden of Good and Evil."

From Savannah we wandered up the eastern seaboard - through Charleston, Myrtle Beach - and up to the Jamestown - Williamsburg  area of Virginia.

Where we got back into some snow  - what the heck is going on - it was late March already!

On Easter weekend we met up with the Jerzee Gang in Pennsylvania again. This time we moved on from the Revolutionary War to the Civil War - in Gettysburg, PA.

We finally made it back to Maine in early April ... and went to work on Mikees new storage shed project.

And got in a bunch of Taylor Anne quality time.

And then Sophie Ann joined in the fun in June!!

I told you it was a busy year. Stay tuned for the second half of 2013 .... to be continued next year.

Happy New Year Everybody!

Christmas 2013 Wrap Up

Christmas 2013 has come and gone. We shared fun, food, and drink with all the Maine Evringham/Johansen gang, finished wrapping, sharing, and opening all the presents, ate too many cookies and too much rib roast, and watched "A Wonderful Life" for the 15 gazillionth time. 

We did all this while shoveling/blowing the pre Christmas snow and then surviving the right-before-Christmas Ice Storm. Since it turned downright figid here in Maine right after that ice storm - we still have lots of sparkly frozen trees outside. Now it is snowing again! I think that Farmer's Almanac may be pretty accurate this year - forecasting a rough winter for us up here in the Northeast.

Regardless of all that precipitous weather - Christmastime 2013 has turned out pretty great. All of our kids and grandkids seem to be doing fine - sometimes in spite of all the challenges that come before them, and Peggy and I get to sit back, watch it all happen, and smile as they figure it all out. Life is indeed - pretty darn good!

The calendar says we have only one week left to complete all those things we had on our list for 2013. Looking back -- I think my list is complete. We enjoyed our winter trip to the southeast, we enjoyed our spring and summer here in Maine. We got to share the joy as Sophie Ann joined our family in June. We had a fun Fall trip out west to visit with Nan and Nevada/California relatives. And we have had a great time enjoying the end of year holidays with family. Pretty successful year I would say!

Since our 2013 list is just about checked off it's time to start thinking about what will be on the list for 2014. I'm sure there will be some RVing with visits to places we've been before and hopefully some new places. More than likely there will be some time watching kids/grandkids grow up. And there will certainly be some surprises along the way. 

Mmmm .... starting to see a trend here.

Christmas Wishes

Once again I make my annual plea to Santa.

I have been more than good this year Santa. I have been GREAT! I have done what Peggy told me to do ... mostly when she wanted it done. I have been kind to small children and animals ... and I paid all my taxes before they were due! What more can you ask!!

With that said ... I offer my wish list for Christmas 2013 ...

1. World Peace (just thought I would get that one out of the way right off the bat)

2. Another travel year free of unwanted excitement in 2014. (This basically means getting where I planned on going with only minor inconveniences along the way.)

3. Good health for me, my family, and all my friends. I'm not asking for free health "care" or even "affordable" health care insurance ... just keep us all from needing health care in the first place. If we can accomplish this then our government can muck up the rest without affecting us much.

That's it - That's all ... see I was not only GREAT this year I'm also easy to please.

Merry Christmas to all ... and to all a good night!

Florescent or LED? --- An Experiment on a Cold Snowy Day

*** Warning ***
*** This post is sorta technical. If you could care less if your light comes from an old fashioned incandescent light, a florescent light, or the sun, or if your idea of "Do It Yourself" lighting is flipping the wall switch ... you may want to skip this one! ***

In between days of running my snow blower and operating my snow shovel - I have managed to do some experimenting with converting one of Winne's florescent overhead light fixtures to LED (Light Emiting Diode).

The light fixtures I am modifying are Thin-Lite Model 766NS that take two F15T8 florescent bulbs and are powered by 12 Volts DC from Winne's DC electrical system. Each bulb is 18 inches long, draws about 15 Watts of power, and puts out about 825 Lumens of light. Since the fixture has two bulbs - the fixture draws about 30 Watts of power (approximately 2.2 Amps) and puts out about 1650 Lumens of light. The bulbs I have been using put out relatively "warm" light and are somewhat yellow in tint.

The first step in my modification was to strip out all of the existing wiring from the fixture - including the "electronics" under the center reflector. 

The next step was to install a small voltage regulator in the area that will be covered by the center reflector. The regulator was purchased on Ebay for about $2.00 and will control voltage to the LEDs at about 12 Volts DC - regardless of the DC electrical system voltage which can vary from about 12 Volts to somewhat over 14 volts depending on how the batteries are being charged.

The next step was to cut a couple of strips of LEDs from the roll of LEDs I purchased on E-Bay. The roll of LEDs contains several "segments" of LEDs with 3 LEDs per segment - and each segment is about 2 inches long. Since the fixture was originally designed for 18" tubes I was able to cut each strip at 9 segments long containing 27 LEDs each. I won't go into all the technical LED stuff here - but each LED produces about 30 Lumens of light  - therefore each segment produces about 90 Lumens and each strip I cut produces about 810 Lumens. With two strips of LEDs I should be getting 1620 Lumens - about the same as the original florescent tubes.

The LED strips have small copper pads on each segment for soldering wires and have adhesive backing for sticking to just about any surface. I understand that the adhesive doesn't hold up in the long run so a few dabs of "Goop" adhesive was added to keep the strips in place.

So with the 2 LED strips and the voltage regulator installed I put on the diffuser panel and wired it all up to 12 Volts.

The panel lit right up with instant-on light - Good News! The light produced with the LEDs I purchased is much whiter than the "warm" light produced with the florescent tubes. Both Peggy and I wanted to try a more "natural" white light than the yellowish "warm" light that we had before. Looks like we accomplished that. You can purchase LEDs with a "warmer" output but I think we got just what we were looking for. 

What about power consumption? The original florescent fixture drew near 2.2 Amps. The modified fixture draws close to 0.8 Amps - about a factor of 3 less! 

As for the amount of light ... I'm not so sure. Without installing the fixture in Winne and seeing how it looks - it is hard to tell if the amount of light is sufficient. Although the Lumen total comes up about the same - I thought the amount of light was a bit lacking.

So ... it was time for modification #2. If 2 strips and a total of 54 LEDs was good - 4 strips and a total of 102 LEDs might just be better. But just in case it's too much - better add a switch to turn off the "extra" 48 LEDs!

With all 102 LEDs on - the panel now draws about 1.5 Amps. It remains to be seen whether or not the "extra" 48 LEDs is overkill. That will have to wait for further comparison on a different day. 

All I'm really sure about at this point is that the conversion is relatively easy and inexpensive if you buy the materials as I did from Ebay. I figure I have about $13 in this modification (LEDs = $7, Voltage Regulator = $2, Switch = $4).

See - I told you it was going to be techie - and boring ... but what do you expect from a nerd on a cold snowy day in Maine!

Just Whining!

OK - I am officially whining now. It was 0 degrees outside this morning. That's right folks - we had no temperature - not even 1 degree! I can take a bit of cold - and it is Maine after all - but 0 degrees before Christmas is unsatisfactory! And to make matters worse it is supposed to start snowing tonight and not quit until a foot has accumulated. Now it usually has to warm up around here in order to snow - but not this time! Nope - the forecast low for tomorrow is near 0 degrees again and we are looking forward to a minus 9 or so on Monday. Yes you read that correct -- we are going to have less than no temperature!

I understand my children have a pool going - predicting when we will have had enough of winter, give up, jump in Winne, and head south. I laughed at them last month ... right now I'm thinking about joining the pool and taking the day after Christmas. How much is in that pool anyway?

But before we go - we have some high school basketball to watch so we are heading out this afternoon to watch Kyla, Bailey and the rest of the Richmond High Bobcats play. That is ... we are heading out if the car battery can still move enough electrons to get the engine started!

One of the things I do each year at this time is start to gather all the financial "stuff" I need to gather in order to complete my federal and state tax returns. Once I have most of the info I will get the latest Turbo Tax software and complete a trial return while waiting on all the first of the year official info to arrive. Needless to say - this is also the start of my annual tax protests!

Although I have plenty of tax related items to complain about - my favorite at the moment is my new "Affordable" Care Act Tax. Now there are plenty of new taxes associated with the ACA and many don't affect me since I am no longer considered part of those "rich" folks making $250,000 or more - but there are still a few that do affect me. More specifically I am talking about the decreased deduction for medical expenses for each of us who itemize deductions. Before the ACA was passed I was able to deduct from my Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) those medical expenses I incurred that were greater than 7.5% of my AGI. This year (due to the ACA) I can only deduct those expenses greater than 10% of my AGI. So --- as a direct effect of the Affordable Care Act my (and anybody else who itemizes deductions) medical expenses are now less "affordable" than they were before! From what I have heard from the ACA supporters - I am supposed to feel "good" about this additional payment to the government because it will make health care insurance more affordable to somebody else. Personally  - no body I know is getting more health care insurance value for their money due to the ACA so I'm not buying that argument. I figure my extra taxes are going to pay for that well run government health care insurance website. 

I suppose I shouldn't be complaining. I'm able to pay for those additional taxes by using some of the money I'm getting from Social Security. Oh yeah - I forgot - I'm paying "income" taxes on a good portion of that "benefit" as well.

Stay warm ya'all.

Winter has Arrived (Early)

The calendar says that winter in still 10 days away. The calendar hasn't spent much time outside these last few days! Pretty much the whole nation has been colder and snowier than normal this past week. My sister in Northern California has been having days in the teens, my sister in Nevada has been having days in the negative teens, and we have a few inches of snow on the ground outside with temps in the low 20s - and colder air on the way! The good news .... I found my snow shovels and the snow blower is working well!

We continued to work on getting our Hibernation House ready for Christmas this week by getting the outside lights up, the Christmas Tree up and decorated, 

the nativity scene is prominently displayed, 

Peggy's snowman collection is out, 

and Mikee's talking/singing/dancing Santa collection is out and working with fresh batteries (don't ask --- I have them thanks to a somewhat insane son and a wife who insists they must be in working condition). 

Yes indeed - "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas" here in Maine! Now all we have to do is finish gathering presents, wrap said presents, mail many of said presents, take a breath before Christmas day arrives, and then enjoy watching the gang enjoy the season. Nothing like a traditional American Christmas holiday!

So while the "visions of sugarplums" are dancing in the heads of children everywhere - I am contemplating my next RV modification project and avoiding thinking about tearing son Eric's car apart to fix a broken heated air blend door. 

The RV modification project involves converting some - perhaps all - of Winne's florescent light fixtures to LED  fixtures. The existing light fixtures use 15 inch florescent tubes which don't last all that long, are somewhat expensive to replace, and consume considerable DC power - which can be important during those few times we are "boondocking" - using only our on-board systems and resources - including our 12 Volt Batteries for power. I have wanted to try converting to LED lighting for some time but the cost of new LED fixtures or replacement bulbs has been pretty high. But I've been doing a bit of research the last few weeks and found a supplier of LED equipment on Ebay that can supply the necessary components - relatively cheaply. So I ordered some supplies and hope to be trying the modification on one of the fixtures later this week. Sounds like a fun thing to do on a wintry day - doesn't it?

As for the broken heated air blend door ... another subject for another day ... but it's not sounding anywhere near as much fun ... especially on a cold wintry day!

Towards Christmas

Here we sit, on the downhill side of the 2013 Thanksgiving holiday - safe and mostly sane. We have survived the feast, the football, and Black Friday. Time now to move on to Christmas!

Last week was certainly busy. 

I got a call early in the week from Stacy asking my opinion on how to turn off her car when the key wouldn't turn to off? Uh-oh that was a new one! But we figured out that by pulling the ignition fuse and then the battery cable the car engine would stop and the battery wouldn't go dead. Stacy and Kaj brought the car (2006 Saturn Ion) over to Dad's Garage on Tuesday and then the fun began. Step one - get the ignition key cylinder removed. But before you can accomplish Step One you have to remove the plastic shroud around the steering column and before that can come out you need to remove the key but the key is stuck in the cylinder ... so here was the classic Catch 22! But a small problem like that won't stop Mikee Mechanic - no sireee - time to break out the Dremel tool and "customize" the key by making it a bit smaller than stock. There! - now that shroud can be removed and with a couple of magic manipulations the key cylinder comes out ... in pieces!! Several hours later the cylinder is back together and ready to be re-installed. Several attempts and several hours later it is clear that the repaired cylinder won't go back in the way it is supposed to so and it is becoming clear that something further is amiss inside the steering column. Oh by the way - the car is sitting outside - and it's snowing!

I'll shorten this story by letting you all know that several days later the steering column has been disassembled, the ignition key cylinder housing has been replaced, the steering column reassembled ... and it all works again. Boy was that fun!

We had the whole Maine Evringham/Johansen gang over for a Thanksgiving Feast on Thursday. Kaj brought over their Turkey Fryer and he and Bailey braved the frigid temperatures to cook us up a delicious fried turkey. It was fun watching this skill being passed down to the next generation!

While the turkey was cooking ... the inside crew was busy preparing the rest of the traditional turkey dinner fare, watching football, and playing with kids/grandkids.

Yes indeed - we had a great Thanksgiving Day here in Maine. And the best part for me was watching the kids and grandkids! (and taking a day off from working on that Saturn!)

So now that T-Day is behind us and most of the leftovers have been eaten or frozen for later consumption - it is time to move on to Christmas. As you can see - Peggy is already getting into the spirit ...

And perhaps I'll get into the act today by getting the outside lights installed?

Only 23 more shopping days until Christmas you know!

Paying Attention?

Contrary to what some folks might think - I have been paying attention. I may have looked like I was enjoying myself traveling all over the country - seeing sights and eating shrimp. I may have looked distracted .... but I have been paying attention.

I have noticed that the Affordable Care Act's implementation has been fraught with implementation issues. 

• The website that cost tons of our money and took 3 years to implement ... and that barely works on the best of days and is a ready target for any decent hacker seeking our (read: "your") private information is somewhat laughable ... but really doesn't cause me any direct and immediate concern -- although I am concerned for anybody that actually has to use the site.
• The fact that the President and his supporters lied about allowing folks to keep their insurance and doctor while getting the ACA passed - and while running for re-election doesn't surprise me ... and shouldn't be a revelation to anyone who pays attention to what's happening in the world around them.
• The fact that the targeted young folks haven't been signing up for a product that gives them little and costs them lots - in spite of a financial penalty that will be assessed by their government when they refuse -- doesn't surprise me. Why should they?
• The fact that most folks' insurance rates have been and will continue to increase due to the ACA shouldn't be much of a surprise. Income redistribution was the goal after-all.

I've noticed the problems. I just didn't think it would be such a big deal. It was all predicted with great accuracy back in 2010 by those who took the time to read the bill.

Then there was the big dust-up in Syria. The President drew a red line - they jumped over it - The Prez played golf - the folks yelled and screamed about the red line - the President listened to the poll numbers and threatened to do something stern if only Congress would let him - the Syrians promised to be nicer - he said "Well OK then." Nothing there to get excited about.

Then more recently the Prez had his Secretary of State sign an agreement where the Iranians promised to be nicer if we would quit bullying them with sanctions. The Prez and his administration claim victory and say the Israelis (and the rest of the world) are now safer. The Israelis say it's the worst idea they ever heard of!

Yep - I've not been asleep - I've been paying attention ... 

What about you?

Setting Records

Once again - these Maineiacs In Motion survived another trip and are safely home again. We made the 480ish mile trip from Clarksboro, NJ to home in about 9 hours last Sunday. That is a really long travel day for us but it went pretty well - all things considered. Considering we got up around 4:30 AM to get a 6:30 AM start in the dark, traveled along some of the busiest highways in the Northeast, and arrived just before dark. But on the good side - the weather was pretty nice for this time of year at around 50 degrees most of the day and the Sunday traffic was relatively light.

We are mostly done with moving "stuff" out of Winne and back into the house. Now we get to get her cleaned up inside and out, change the engine oil, perform her annual chassis grease job - and then put her away for awhile. Winne deserves some good care and a nice rest. She performed flawlessly for the 8,300 mile trip. I reckon those 107,617 accumulated miles just mean that she is now well broken-in!

I should be getting out there in today's sub-freezing Maine weather and get those chores done - and I will - but first -- here are some highly anticipated trip statistics:

Total Trip Miles - 8,295 - A new trip record for us - eclipsing our previous record of 8,221 set in 2009. The trip was divided pretty equally with 4,100 miles from East to West and 4,195 coming back East.

Our Total RVing mileage for 2013 will end up at 12,612. Although our Fall Trip was a record - our 2013 mileage is only our fifth highest. Our 2009 record of 14,621 still stands! The Vue has now accumulated 93,177 miles being towed, 80,564 miles being driven, and about 0.1 miles traveling alongside the roadway under no power while leaving her front facia attached to Winne back in 2010! 

Winne burned right at 1200 gallons for the trip putting her overall fuel mileage at just over 6.9 mpg. This average is lower that usual and is probably due to traveling in a lot of wind on the westward leg and more elevation changes than normal. I know the ups and downs equalize out on a round trip - but the fuel burned on those ups just isn't equalized by the fuel saved on those downs.

We filled up Winne some 29 times during the trip and the fuel cost averaged out at $3.34 per gallon. I budgeted the trip for $3.50 per gallon - and exceeded that average on the trip west - but the drop in prices during our return trip was a welcome sight! We had a tie for the most expensive gas purchased in Lee, MA and Ely, NV at $3.80 per gallon. Our least expensive (per gallon) gas was purchased in Wichita Falls, TX at $2.899!

I suspect we may have set a new record for accumulated toll costs on this trip. Our westward leg included toll highways in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York (although we avoided most of the NY Thruway), Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois - and the total for tolls was $76.82. Our return trip included the same tolls in Maine and New Hampshire, a short section of the Massachusetts Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway and New Jersey Turnpike in New Jersey, and 2 major bridge tolls (One in Maryland and the Tappen Zee in New York). The return total was $68.48 for a total of $145.30!! Boy! the price of maintaining roads is sure going up fast! You folks in the western states should continue to count your blessings ... until your legislators learn from their Eastern counterparts!!

During our RVing "career" since 2004 Peggy and I have now stayed in 245 different RV Parks throughout the nation for a total of 1,023 nights (not counting those months in 2010 when I decided to live in Winne while working for a living for awhile!). That's a lot of hooking up and unhooking utilities folks!

So ... that's about it for 2013 travel statistics. For the next few months we will only be counting grand kid hugs and kisses and looking to set more records!

Grandkid FIx

Well we have made it to our "spot" here in Clarksboro, NJ. Our "Spot" is the Timberlane Campround. It's not that this place is our favorite Spot by any means - and it is certainly not the most inexpensive Spot - but it's close to the NJ Gang, it's one of only a few RV places for many miles, and it's open year round. That pretty much qualifies it for being our "Spot."

When I last posted we were hunkered down in southern Virginia trying to stay warm as the arctic air moved down into the southland. We burned a lot of propane that night and the next night and a fair amount last night. But the temps are starting to get back to "seasonal" for this time of year which means highs in the low 60s and lows in the low 40s. We drove a few hundred miles to Winchester, VA on Wednesday and then a few hundred more yesterday around Baltimore - over the Delaware Memorial Bridge and then here to Clarksboro, NJ.

After settling in here for a few hours we drove over to meet Nicki and the granddaughters at Emily's Karate Dojo. Emily has been taking Karate for a year or so and seems to be enjoying it. We were able to watch them practice their routines and it was very interesting. I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of one of those kicks - even if delivered by a 10 year old! After Karate we all headed over to Outback where we were joined by son Brian and enjoyed a meal out together.

We will be seeing more of the NJ Gang this afternoon/evening and then again on Saturday. 

As our 2013 Fall Trip winds down and I look back on where we've been and all that we have seen and done - I'd have to say it was pretty darn successful. Our main purpose for the trip was to visit with Marcie, Don, Nan and the Nevada Gang. We had hoped to give Marcie and Don a small break from their care giving duties - and I suppose we may have provided them a little relief - but they never did get their "getaway." That was really the only non-success of the trip. By the time we get home we will have been gone for 73 days/nights - traveled through 32 states - visited 4 National Parks - seen lots of relatives and friends - and generally had a good trip!

We plan on leaving here on Sunday - heading north. The only remaining question ... Do we drive those last 500 miles in one day - or take two? It would be nice to make it in one day and get it over with ... on the other hand ... after 70 some days and almost 8,000 miles what's another day? 

Can't wait to find out how it all ends up!

Hunkering Down

Another day - another few hundred miles. I awoke way too early this morning ... and we did manage to get on the road heading north by 0800 ... but we pulled off the road here in Wytheville, VA around noontime after driving about 200 miles into the wind while watching the temperature drop from around 45 degrees to near 32 degrees. We could have driven further today - but we decided against it. The wind wasn't getting much better - the temperatures were going in the wrong direction - and it just seemed that hunkering down for the afternoon/evening was a better idea. So here we sit - with our heated water hose deployed - burning propane and sitting with our quilts on our laps. Gosh - RVing in the late fall/winter is sure fun!

Some 69 days ago we left Maine on a lovely early September day. I believe I was wearing short pants and the weather was warm and sunny. It took us several weeks as we drove from Maine to Minden - through several states of corn - several states of national parks - and along the loneliest road. We enjoyed our trip out west and we enjoyed our visit with the whole gang in Nevada. We even enjoyed the trip back east - the western part through the high desert and the low desert of Death Valley - the picturesque part through the high country of Arizona - and the parts along Route 66 in New Mexico and Texas. We certainly enjoyed the detour through the southeast to visit friends in Lower Alabama. 

We are even enjoying the cold trip north through Tennessee and Virginia as we make our way to New Jersey to visit up with kids and grandkids. 

We have enjoyed it all. But it is definitely time to go home. 

Time to settle into our at home routine. Time to not wonder what road is next.

But time to start thinking about what trip is next.

Ah - the life of a part time RVer.

Look out Jerzee Gang - we are only a few days away!

Thanks

Today is Monday - November 11th .... Armistice Day, Remembrance Day, or more recently - Veterans Day. A day we pause to remember first - those who lost their lives defending the freedoms we enjoy here in the United States of America. Secondly, we remember those who served in defense of those freedoms.  When Armistice Day first became a federal holiday most Veterans had served during World War I. When "Veterans Day" replaced Armistice Day in 1954 most Veterans alive at the time had just survived WWII and/or the Korean War. Today - most Veterans are survivors of the Vietnam War or the Various Gulf Wars. Regardless of their era of service, whether they were volunteers or not, or whether you agree with the decision to go to war in the first place - these folks earned and deserve our respect and thanks. 

As for me - I not only want to say thanks to all who have served but a special thanks to all those with whom I had the privilege to serve alongside. You all were special friends to me and I'm glad to have known you all.

Peggy and I arrived here near Knoxville, TN yesterday afternoon and took a day off from travel today. It turned out to be a pretty nice day weather-wise but that looks like it is going to change dramatically tomorrow! The high temp here today was in the mid 60s somewhere and the low tonight is supposed to be in the 40s. Tomorrow the high looks to be in the mid to high 30s, the low tomorrow night is forecast to be around 20, the winds will be coming out of the North at near 20 mph, and it looks pretty likely we will see SNOW!

As of right now we plan on heading further north tomorrow. Since the weather looks "unsettled" at best -- we may drive 100 miles or maybe 200 miles. Or maybe we just sit right here, turn up the heat, and watch it snow. 

In any case ... stay safe and thank a Vet ... better yet - thank 'em all!

Fajita Fiesta Friday

Brrr! It has cooled right off here in Lower Alabama. It is about 50 degrees outside this morning and I may have to break out the long pants again! I suppose I might as well get used to it since we are planning on heading north tomorrow and I see the lows are below freezing back home in Maine. But before we do - we have more food to eat here in Alabama!!

Wednesday it was blackened shrimp at Big Daddy's with the "gang" from here at the Plantation, 

yesterday it was Cajun Eggs Benedict in Fairhope and then Crabmeat Pie at the Patterson Gulf Shores RV Resort - and today is Friday so that means Fajita Fiesta Friday over at the Meacham's RV! We are certainly looking forward to more yummy food and great conversation this afternoon!

Now that we have fattened ourselves up to survive the harsh New England winter it will be time to head to the north country.

The present plan is to travel for two days up to near Knoxville, TN where we plan on a day off from traveling - and then travel for probably three days up to our normal spot in Clarksboro, NJ - where we will stay for a couple of days visiting with the NJ Evringhams. We plan on leaving NJ on Sunday - November 17 for the final leg home to Maine. We may make the final drive in one day - we may do an overnight somewhere and take two days to finish the trip. I guess it will depend on the weather somewhat but mainly it will depend on our moods at the time. Right now I'm guessing we will just want to be home!

And then the work begins again!! Time to unload and prepare Winne for her cold weather respite, time to get the Chevelle in her cold weather storage spot, time to prepare for the big Thanksgiving Family Get-Together, time to play with Sophie, Taylor and the rest of the Maine Family, and that will be followed quickly by time to get ready for Christmastime!

Yup - we're looking forward to getting home!

But First Things First -- Fajita Fiesta Friday here we come!

No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems

My how things can change in only a week. Last week on this day we were traveling along Route 66 at around 6,000 feet elevation enjoying the dry high desert air and the gorgeous mesas along the roadway. Today we are enjoying a relaxing Alabama morning here at the Patterson Gulf Shores RV Resort - "No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problems!" Well ... I suppose I'll keep my shirt on - no sense scaring the neighbors.

We made the final leg of our trip south yesterday from Jackson, MS to here in Summerdale, AL along a series of "Red Roads" through the countryside of Mississippi. We saw lots of farmland, cotton fields, and cow critters. Although we have visited here plenty of times these past 6 or so years I believe this is the first time we have been here this late in the year. The weather looks to be pretty darn nice over the next few days with highs in the low 70s and lows in the 50s/60s -- not bad for November and certainly warmer than we are going to be facing as we head northeast later this week.

We are both looking forward to resting up here for a few days before finishing up our 2013 Fall East-To-West and Back Again Adventure. It will be great visiting with some of our RV friends for a few days but I'm pretty sure Peggy (and Mikee) are starting to "smell the barn." 

6,500 miles down and only about 1,500 to go!

Today - Mississippi - Tomorrow - Alabama

Here we are ... 3 days and some 750 miles later ... in Jackson, Mississippi on the shores of Ross Barnett Reservoir. We drove from Amarillo, TX to Wichita Falls, TX on day one, then to Longview, Texas on day two, and finally got out of Texas - through Louisiana - and into Mississippi today. A few observations from the last few days ...

1) Texas is a big state. I think I have mentioned this before while driving across I-10 - but it holds true for I-20 as well. Texas is a BIG state!

2) I really like gas prices less than $3.00 per gallon! I may not like fuel mileage around 7 MPG -- but I like it better when the cost per mile gets below $0.50 per mile!

3) As long as we have to change time - from daylight savings to standard - and back again -  it might as well be while we are traveling. When we are changing time zones almost daily - what's one more change added in? 

4) As you may already know - when traveling east to west and back - Peggy and I try to find license plates from each state (except Hawaii) - each way. We are usually successful but we lacked Delaware heading west. In fact - we still haven't seen a Delaware as we head back east! I may have to head through Delaware on the way home to see one! But then I still have to find a North Dakota as well as we head east!!

5) Back in my working days - following my first retirement - I went to work for Entergy Corporation - a power utility with Corporate Offices in New Orleans, LA and Nuclear Power Plant Corporate Offices in Jackson, MS. I only had to work out of Jackson for a few weeks per year in 2006/2007 (I actually had a desk in the Jackson, MS office). The fact that I would have had to relocate to Jackson was a major factor in my deciding to re-retire when I did and must be the reason I get a queasy feeling every time I return here. Nice place I suppose .... but I won't miss it when we leave tomorrow!

6) Obamacare ... what can I say that hasn't already been said? Bottom line - we really need to get the government out of our business - in more ways than just healthcare!

See you in Summerdale - Shrimp Awaits!!

Decisions - Decisions

A couple days, a couple of time zones, and several hundred miles later and we find ourselves in Amarillo, TX. The drive across Arizona, New Mexico, and into Texas was uneventful and Winne just keeps a rollin' along. Up the hills, down the hills, through the wind - she doesn't complain - she just keeps on goin'.

These last several hundred miles have been along I-40 and generally following the old Route 66. Most of the iconic Route 66 motels and gas stations are long gone but you still see a few places if you cruise through towns like Winslow, Holbrook, Tucumcari, and Santa Rosa. And then there are the relatively new icons  - like Cadillac Ranch here in Amarillo. 

We are staying at an RV Park very near Cadillac Ranch - so even the RVs get into the act!

Now that we have made it to Amarillo - we had a decision to make. Do we keep with our original plan and head to Branson, MO for a few play days before heading home? Or do we divert further south to Summerdale, AL to visit some of our RV friends before heading home? We have decided that either way we are going to be stopping in New Jersey for a few days to see the NJ Gang ... but which way to go first - that was the question! Before we decided we needed to find out if our "spot" at the Plantation was available ... so we called the Patterson Gulf Shores RV Resort to check on availability. We soon learned that not only was our "spot" available ... but that Big Daddy's Grill was open for business with plenty of shrimp to be had! We were still having a tough time making a decision so Miss Judy volunteered to flip a coin. Heads - we would head to Alabama. 

Tails - we would head to .... 

wait a minute -- I just figured out this game was rigged!!

Regardless of how the decision was made - I recon we are headed to Alabama. Don't you be frettin' you youg'uns up North - we are still planning our stop in Jerzee and will be in Maine on or around the 18th of November. 

We will spend today here in Amarillo - enjoying a zero mile day and doing some laundry. Tomorrow we head southeast.

Look out Shrimp - here I come!