On the road, more bumps than just construction....

Our Location: Exit 108, Burke Outlet Shopping Center, Bessemer, Alabama

A cooler night last night but still nice enough to leave all the windows open overnight. This morning dawned with only a slight chill in the air but warmed up significantly throughout the day. The high temps today 84F/28.8C. It was a warm one. ~laugh~

Up at the fire it was Mac and I for a bit, then Bobby showed up followed by Swilley, then we added Robert to the mix as well as Mike, Pete and Paige. A bit later on Pat and Billy also showed up but I had left at that point. 

US 49 North out of Gulfport, MS heading toward Wiggins, MS

Mr. Swilley came with the news that the river was rising and moving might be in order. Then there was the 'it's not rising very fast so we don't have to worry' followed by ' Butch says everyone has to go" and then 'well it seems to have crested'. We went to the Wolfe and looked for ourselves, it was 6 ft and surging a bit. We left there went to Walmart to get some fuel and dry cat food, came back to the Wolf River once again and it was over the 6 ft mark with no visible signs of any part of the 6, which meant it was still rising. We came home and packed up deciding that it was easier to just hit the road and not hem and haw about it for a matter of a couple of days. Mac left about 10:30 am, and we pulled out about a half hour later. Trish and Mike were also heading out today. 

We said our goodbyes, gave and received hugs from those wonderful folks there that we have come to know pretty well. It's always sad to leave but it's nice to be on the road again. Hopefully we'll see them all again at some point down the road but if we don't our lives have been enriched greatly by knowing them even for the short time we have. We have been fortunate to meet such wonderful people in our life time. Thanks to Mac, Billy, Charlene, Swilley, Mike, Trish, Paige, Pete, Pat, Robert and Amanda for seeing us off today.

Noticed this old timer along the way.

We pointed the nose of the Dogsled north to reach I-10 EAST, then chased our tail to get on to US49N in Gulfport, from there it was a straight shot to I-20/59 NORTH. We passed thru or near the Mississippi towns/cities of Saucier, Lyman, Hattiesburg, Laurel, and Meridian. We crossed over in to Alabama and continued our trek North East until we came to rest here in Bessemer, a bedroom community of Birmingham. We arrived here about 6:30 pm. 

I filled up the Dogsled's food bowl this morning at Murphy's USA on US 90 at Walmart, the price for a gallon of diesel food was $2.19, I was thrilled with that price. I filled up again at Knoxville, Alabama after 5 straight hours (55 mph for a total of 240 miles) of driving. I thought the gauge was faulty, we left before noon and were still driving at 5:30 pm on the top half of the tank. I pulled in to a fuel stop, filled the dog bowl once again and you know what? It was right on the money, used 17.6 gallons of fuel to travel that distance. I am very impressed. That's just under 14 miles to the gallon fully loaded/towing and driving in tow mode as well. I used cruise so I know I stayed consistent at 55 mph with few variations. The big dog did good. ~laugh~ 

His older brother, or maybe just more USED brother.

We pulled into the Walmart here in Bessemer, Alabama went to customer service asked about spending the night. Negative, nada, nope, no. The Walmart does not allow anyone to stay over night. It's not a city ordinance, it's a Walmart decision. The nice young man told us to try the Burkes Outlet just down the hill and so we did. The nice sales clerk told us it was fine and so we tucked in here at the bottom of the hill under the streetlight for the night.

We walked back to Walmart to get a rotisserie chicken even though they wouldn't allow us to park. I walked Riley back to the Igloo and then I walked over to Sonic to get some fries (it's been a long time either of us have had fries) to go with our chicken. We should have skipped the fries, they were awful. It was our first time to eat anything from Sonic, I think it may be the last one too. The chicken was good though. I added an orange to my dinner and we were finished. 

HRH looking around on her travel day in some time.

After that I called my dad to chat for a bit, brag a bit about the Dogsled's great performance today and to tell him where we can be found tonight. After that I started on the paperwork for the border crossing. This is when things started NOT going according to plan.

 I was not aware the brokers needed 5 days to do all the paperwork( I was under the impression they needed the paperwork just 72 hours prior) and I was not aware that the state of Alabama does not give the TITLE to the vehicle in the 'parting' package they gave me. They need to mail the title which will not work in my case and I'm kind of in a dither about that. I need that title in hand no later than Tuesday so I can cross the border and I don't know if a copy will do for me. They can email the title to the broker (a copy if okay for that) but the broker needs to have it for 5 days before I can cross. I also need a copy of the vendors NAFTA certificate to do my dance at the border which Mr. Manley said they would email tomorrow to the broker and a copy to me. 

Military presence here in the south, NO plates.

We will be in Cleveland for a few days and I'm hoping I can pick up the title at a Chevy Dealership there, maybe they can fed ex the thing there or something. I don't know if I could get it at a campground in Cleveland as I'm not sure where we will be staying yet. Hell I don't know if they can even have it in 5 days. See what I get for procrastinating? I need to stop doing that, this will be my lesson for certain!! So instead of sending any paperwork tonight I'll be on the phone in the morning trying to figure this stuff out!

So now you're caught up with us. Are we having fun yet? ~laugh~ I'll just bet you're saying, How come she didn't know she didn't have the title, how stupid can she be? Well I'll tell ya in Ontario you walk out with the title, you know that's the piece you take to renew your tag, they stick one piece on the back of the title and you put the other piece on the plate. They gave me everything I needed to get the tags so I assumed that meant it was the title. Oh how wrong I was and how foolish do I feel now? VERY VERY. 

We have been in and out of this state for a half times this trip.

However there is nothing I can do about it now, I'll deal with it tomorrow and we'll go from there. We can extend our insurance for a couple of days if we have to and I can extend the truck insurance for a month as well. Riley's first appointment isn't until the 14th so hopefully we get everything worked out for that. Stay tuned for the rest of.....yes, she's blonde!!! ~laugh~
 

It's after 11 pm and I'm tired so I'll sign off. Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed your visit. Feel free to leave a comment. Until next time..be safe, take care..   

Water, walk, and the Wolfe River......

Our Location: Magic River RV Resort, Long Beach, Mississippi

(all photos taken in the campground with the Nikon camera)

The morning started off loud and flashy before there was even a hint of morning light in the air. The long awaited storm came upon us with a vengeance around 5:30 am or so. The thunder was loud and seemed directly overhead, the lightning was flashy and often, the rain poured down in buckets at a time. This carried on for some time, probably close to an hour. Finally the skies lightened, the rain tapered off, and thunder along with his pal lightning moved off to annoy someone else. 

The water was laying in many places but also running in other places. If you know anything about the park here you will know that the swamp is easily filled and the water usually flows INTO the ponds, today the water was flowing across the north road between the maintenance shed and the bath house, thru the middle playground area, going thru the tile at the end of the row then making it's way across the back of the row to the EAST pond, from there it was flowing thru the tiles back to the west north west direction into the swamp. ~laugh~ A circle for sure. 

There wasn't much damage, a few loose branches came down but other than the water there was nothing to talk about. A few campers had leaks during the storm but of course anytime you get a strong wind and rain it's possible to have a leak due to driven water. I think it's a tougher kind of thing to solve as you're not certain if it's actually a leak or if it's a case of being driven into a vent opening, etc. Ah well our Igloo was dry, we're happy campers. 

No fire this morning, too wet, too windy, to loud, too flashy, and you get the idea. However we did manage to all come out after the water stopped falling from the heavens, we assessed the water situation, discussed a number of things but basically just patted each other on the back and glad we managed the storm with such ease. 

Monday is cleaning day as you know but part way thru the work I grabbed the Nikon camera put on my new rainy boots and headed out to take some pics. I know you're thinking I left Riley to do all the work but it's not true, honest it's not. ~laugh~ I was able to get tonight's pic while enjoying the cooler air. Even managed to chat with Mr. Swilley for a bit at the maintenance shed. He assured me if we get flooded out I'll have a spot up by the office. I told him I appreciate it but if we get flooded out we'll just head out and start our trek north, but otherwise we'll be leaving here Friday morning. 

After a quick stop to feed the camp cat I headed home to finish up my part of the housework. It was a deep cleaning day today, I emptied the area under my bathroom sink, cleaned, tidied, sorted, tossed and kept a number of items there. Same thing in the medicine cabinet, the closets, and my dresser area. Next I tackled the pantry, rearranging and making note of the things we have. After that it was time to wash the floors. That done I had to have some breakfast as Riley had eaten earlier. The time was now 10:45 am. It was a late breaky. ~laugh~ 

Finished eating and decided to tackle a few housekeeping chores of a business nature. Having trouble paying my Verizon bill on line, I have no zip code to attach to my credit card so it refuses payment. I know rare for a company to refuse payment but you get the idea. ~laugh~ I ended up on the phone to Customer Service getting this issue fixed for future payments. The nice young man explained the plan to me again which wasn't anything like the plan I originally signed up for but we discussed a newer plan that might work better for us, we'll see when reach the island if we can use our mifi or not. Then we'll discuss our options. 

As I"m on the phone with the man from Customer Service I see Charlene & Billy heading out, and I realize it's Red Beans and Rice Monday but I'm just starting to get my issue resolved, hmmm...what to do.... We opted to miss it today even though its to be our last one of the season. I didn't want to lose my place in line with Verizon and I couldn't take the guy with me. ~laugh~ 

After that phone call I had to make a call to Southern Chevrolet in Foley, Alabama  to ask about fees I may have paid while using the debit machine. I spoke with Miss Kim in the finance department and she assured me there were no fees attached to the machine but that I had been over charged when I purchased the truck. Today they have credited my debit card over $1000.00 US, yes that is a thousand! That made me smile. ~laugh~ Now I"m waiting on a letter to state the the price I paid is not what's listed in the paper work so I won't have to pay extra money on it. 

From there I decided I couldn't do anything more until I get this information so we stomped out the door into the Dogsled and with the crack of a whip we were soon rolling over to the sports complex for me to walk. Riley read her book while I put in my 3 miles today. It was pretty warm walking at noon thirty!! I enjoyed it though, it reminded me of my running days when I would run at 1 pm in the heat of the day!!! I just loved it, I'd be warm and the run would come easily as did the sweat. ~laugh~ 

The Dogsled spun out of the parking lot on a mission as we headed north up Beatline to the Passport America office, today was also pay day for them and we left them some good old US dollars for the privilege of staying a few more nights here in the campground. They wished us safe travels and invited us back next year. Nice folks up there. 

Back to the Igloo we realized it's definitely lunch time but I first headed next door to explain to Mac why we hadn't been at lunch. Well it wasn't actually to Mac's yard but to Mike and Miss Trish's yard where they were all standing around chatting. I of course just pulled up a bench and joined in. They are such a nice couple. Miss Trish is from the deep south and has such a wonderful accent and some interesting sayings as well as a way of saying things that you just don't find anywhere else. They are heading out tomorrow morning and we wish them safe travels, good tailwinds and sunny skies. Perhaps we'll meet them again in our future travels. 

After that I really did come home and have some lunch. It was almost 3 pm before I finished. I spent the rest of the afternoon reading both inside and outside as it warmed up nicely, drying up a lot of the still water but not doing much to lower the depth of the flowing water. 

 

 

I heard Robert over at Mac's talking about the Wolfe River and moving up, river watch, etc. so I headed over to listen, it seems as if the river is at about 4.6 but dropped to 4' even. It seems they think it will rise again due to weather further north and west of us and they just want us to be aware that we may have to move, not that we have to yet. So something to keep in mind. When it reaches 8' it's time to move out. If that happens we'll just point our noses north.

Around 5:30 pm Billy hollered at me, they were up at the fire pit, no fire but just around the area. I headed up finding Mac, Billy & Charlene as well as Mr Bobby chatting in the circle. Some of the stories are priceless and I enjoy listening to them. Some people lead such an interesting life!!! ~laugh~Riley came along shortly after Mac departed and we all chatted a bit longer until the bugs started coming out. Magic the camp cat used both my lap and Riley's lap for quite some time while we were sitting there. 

Home again Riley had left over pasta and I munched on a few Triscuit crackers as I wasn't too hungry having just finished lunch pretty late. After that it was back down to a game of Yahtzee. I know you can see my happy face and my happy dance. Yes, yes, yes I won again. ~laugh~ And I rolled a Yahtzee, of course so did Riley but I rolled mine FIRST. ~laugh~ 

After that I finished my book and then headed up here to edit pics, do the blog and check mail, face book, etc. So a busy type day, an enjoyable one as well. Thanks for stopping by, feel free to comment. Until next time..be safe, take care...

Overcast, busy day....

Our Location: Magic River RV Resort, Long Beach, Mississippi

(all photos taken with my phone)

A nice night last night, a different kind of dampness in the air this morning. More just the early morning kind of feeling to the place today. The day was overcast and pretty breezy with the wind continuing to pick up as the day went on. This evening the wind is almost steady as it blows the storm into our area. Our temps were moderate today, about 75F/23.8C, so a nice day temp wise. 

Seal Avenue, a new to us street.

I told Mac yesterday I was going to sleep in today and I didn't get out of bed until shortly after 6 am. I was up to the fire by 6:15 am and Mac had the coffee going, the fire raging and was singing to himself. We had a nice chat about nothing important but it was quiet and easy. I like those kinds of morning chats. The usual faces didn't show up this morning but Billy's face appeared along with the rest of him as well!! He was hyped on pain meds and talked a mile a minute for a while. Just the three of us for the duration of my stay, but I'm certain others showed up later.

Ugly rims on this Seal Avenue Car.

Back to the Igloo for breakfast, we both had a bagel this morning. Riley has some French Toast Swirl thing, and I have Cinnamon Raisin. As if hers isn't sweet enough she adds Honey Peanut Butter to it. I have mine dry. ~laugh~ Pulled out some sausage for dinner tonight, even though it's pasta night. 

After breakfast we hit the road running, well not really, we drove but you get the idea. First we headed out to the walking path so I could put in my time there. Riley didn't walk today but I managed 3 laps in 58 minutes. ~laugh~ I'm two minutes faster than last time. It was warm walking but I found an easy stride and just kind of zoned out letting my mind run over all kinds of topics while I walked. At this point there is no need for comments from anyone about my mind. ~laugh~ 

Interesting sticker on the back of this car. I won't explain why the writing is backwards. ~laugh~

I've noticed on my walks that the greenery surrounding the path is getting thicker, the wild flowers or weeds are blooming and some are spent, their foliage turning brown already. We have similar wild flowers or weeds in Ontario that I've seen here, some kind of purple bell shaped flower with lots of flowers on each stem, a variation of dandelions, some clover looking type ground cover, and so on. I've seen a tree there that has bark like a cedar but spines or needles like a pine tree, but it's just coming into green now. I posted pics a few days ago. 

From there we headed the big Dogsled down Beatline Road, taking the left turn onto Pineville Road on two wheels we managed to keep it between the ditches all the way to Froogels Grocery Store. We needed some things such as veggies, a few canned goods, and some drinking water. The prices at Froogels are much better on some items than at Wally's but the fruit prices aren't nearly as good. Froogels is very much like Piggly Wiggly which states that it sells everything at cost plus 10%. 

Interesting paint job on a truck at the Flea Market

 

From there we let the Dogsled have it's nose and simply followed where it wanted to go which in fact lead us to see some new roads, possibly so new they haven't been named yet. ~laugh~ No, I'm sure they've been named but they had no name signs on them, nor did they have 'dead end' signs on them which at least one of them should have. We managed to find at least 3 new roads we've never travelled on before. Not that they lead much of anywhere but it was new to see. It was almost like the Dogsled was chasing a drunk rabbit!!~laugh~ 

Busy at the Flea Market, this one of 4 double rows, and you can only see half of it.

 

Finally with it's nose to the ground following some kind of scent, (I think maybe Rotisserie chicken) the Dogsled managed to find Wally World for us. We needed a few other things here that we couldn't get at the last store. Of course we found a few things that weren't on the list but picked up anyway. If I had been carrying a pen I would have just added them to the list!!!! Some interesting people shop at Walmart. Some interesting clothes they wear to the store as well. ~laugh~ We'll leave it at that. 

Upon leaving the store we noticed the wind was getting stronger and steadier, so the wheels took us down to the East bound lane of US 90 and a couple of pics of the Gulf of Mexico as it churned and crashed onto the white sand beach!! Pretty ugly looking colour it was.

Looks like this guy is living in his truck, see the front seat? (That's a house in the background, not something on top of the vehicle. ~laugh~ )

 

Hooking a U turn on US90 back toward the Wally's World we managed to find the road to take us home. Between Riley and the Dogsled figuring out the way we ended up right back at the Igloo with no trouble finding it!! Cudo's to both of them for making the right choices and turns. I'd say they followed the scent but that indicates something stinks, so I'll just say they did well. ~laugh~ 

We unloaded the groceries and I climbed back into the Sled to head to the Flea Market while Miss Riley stayed home and took care of the groceries. Yes you see we didn't buy EVERYTHING we needed at Froogels or Wally's and we required yet another trip out to spend more money on groceries. Damn but we seem to eat a lot of groceries, don't we? ~laugh~ 

This Caddie had rims exactly like a pick up just a few spots away.

I think I need an extra step on the running board of the Dogsled or I need to climb in and out less, it's a big step and I have short legs. ~laugh~ Letting the Dogsled find it's own pace I reached the Flea Market in short order. I wasn't interested in any fleas today just green beans and carrots from the vendor there. He always has fresh stuff. The beans have a nice snap to them and the carrots are huge, one carrot will do us in our veggie packet. I spent a total of $3.50 on beans and carrots, big spender huh? ~laugh~ 

Home again by about 1:15 - 1:30 pm I then began making my lunch which of course is a large garden salad. I also chopped up the veggies for the veggie packet for dinner at the same time. It took me 45 minutes to do 2 garden salads and a veggie packet. Almost seems like too much work for me cause I"m lazy. ~laugh~ 

 

Think they have enough Jerky at the check out line?

 

Reading and eating at the same time I managed to enjoy the start of a new book. I'm reading John Grisham's Pelican Brief. I know I've read it before but I can't remember the ending, so I'll read it again. I probably still won't remember the ending next time....however not being able to remember isn't a bad thing. I can just keep reading the same books over and over always being surprised at the end. ~laugh~ 

I sat outside for a while but wore a sweater with my short pants. The wind was too cool on my bare shoulders but not on my bare legs. The overcast sky kept the temps down, and the wind kept it down even further but it wasn't too bad. Since tonight is pasta night I cooked the sausage and veggies on the grill this afternoon in case it rained later in the day. Riley cut up the sausages, then dumped both veggies and sausage into the pasta sauce, all to be served over Bow Tie pasta. She said it was delicious and I took her word for it, as I wasn't hungry. 

Not a nice looking sky is it?

 

I noticed Mac sitting outside on the swing by the Log Cabin all by his lonesome looking like that kid that waits patiently for his friends to come outside to play, just hoping and hoping that someone will come out. I slipped on my shoes, walked up, sat down and chatted with him for a bit. Soon along came Pete, then Billy & Charlene and finally Mike. We all moved over to the fire pit area, but no fire as it's too windy. About 45 minutes of BS we finally called it off and all headed home. 

Back at the Igloo Riley was washing dishes when I got home, why couldn't I have been 10 minutes later? Dang it all!!! I grabbed a tea towel and started drying dishes upon dishes upon dishes upon dishes. I'm not sure we had any clean ones left. ~laugh~ 

Over the Gulf of Mexico

 

Riley walked the trash to the dumpster while I finished up the kitchen doing all those things we do every night, wiping counters, stoves, tables, sinks, shining up the faucet, etc. Wiping everything down with a Lysol wipe to keep the germs under control is always the last step for me at the end of doing the dishes. 

We brought out the Yahtzee game again tonight. Since I won last night Riley got to roll first. I'm doing my best to hide my smiley face and my happy dance, how am I doing? ~laugh~ I won, I won, I won. I even rolled a .........You guessed it, a Yahtzee! Yeah me....~laugh~ Documentation is very important as I don't win often!!!

 

Kind of brown coloured water as the sediment is churned up today.

 From that game we parted ways and each took off to do our own thing. I called my dad to chat but he had company so we talked maybe 5 minutes however it was nice to chat anyway. We'll be seeing him in about a month's time when we head north for the summer months. We see him then pretty much every day, sometimes twice or three times a day. 

I paid some bills on line but of course had trouble paying one as I have no Zip Code but it accepted my Credit Card with a Zip Code last time. ~sigh~ It's a lot of trouble that just doesn't seem to get any easier. It's one of the things I love about going home, I have no issue with that kind of stuff, nor do I need to enter a zip code to buy fuel at the pump. However you can't beat their weather. ~laugh~ 

 

Looking West toward Pass Christian

 

So there you have it, our day while not life altering was busier than most days here. We enjoyed it and look forward to a few more days here. Tonight and tomorrow will be stormy though so I'm not sure just how much we'll do tomorrow, it may be a watch movies kind of day but we'll see how it goes. 

 

A Happy Birthday to my Aunt Eileen as today is her big day. I think she's 29 today, although she may have turned 30 this year, I'm not sure. ~laugh~ She's my dad's youngest sister and just recently retired in the last year. So Happy Birthday Eileen up there in on Manitoulin Island!

Truly not nice looking..

 

Also birthday greetings go out to Miss Trish, the wife of Mike that I refer to often. I'm sure she is about 25 or 26 today. They spent last night at one of the local casinos for her birthday, arriving home some time in the early afternoon. A pretty lady she hails from the state of Mississippi, not Long Beach though. Happy Birthday Miss Trish!

A number of folks pulled out today leaving the campground with about 4 or 5 empty spaces. I doubt they'll be empty too long though as the folks just seem to keep those wheels turning and pulling in here pretty often.

 

Thanks for stopping by, feel free to leave a comment. Until next time..be safe, take care...

A pizza kind of day...

Our Location: Magic River RV Resort, Long Beach, Mississippi

(all photos taken with my phone)

A cooler night after the heat of the last few days felt nice but this morning it didn't take long for the fog to burn off and the heat to come back quickly and with a vengeance it seemed. The fog was thick enough this morning to cause the Canada geese to crash!! ~laugh~ Just kidding but they certainly had their fog lights on as they screamed at each other thru the thick fog. 

Facing westward along US 90 at Pass Christian

The same faces at the fire this morning, Mac & I about 5:30 am followed by Paige, then Mike and Pete and even Trish showed up today to wish the Mighty Mac a Happy Birthday. Buddy Ron called while we were at the fire to wish the Macster birthday greetings as well. Magic was dancing around and nuzzling up to Mac like she knew it was a special kind of day for him too. 

 

Sea Oats, blue skies, sand, pier and the Gulf Of Mexico

Home to the Igloo for some breakfast. I made Riley an omelet and just a couple of over easy eggs for myself. It was nice to have something different this morning, and today would a day just like that, different. We decided Riley wasn't going to walk today but then I mentioned if she wanted we could go to the beach, she could sit and read while I walked and then we could hang out for a bit. So that's what we did. Grabbing a couple of chairs, our books, glasses, etc we climbed into the Dogsled letting those big wheels run us down to the sandy beachfront. First we drove to Bay St. Louis, as I'd like to walk across the bridge there but we couldn't find a place close enough to the bridge to park for Riley to sit on the beach. Instead we headed back to Pass Christian to one of the pull off spots that has a barrier between the roadway and the parking. I don't like the ones just to the edge of the roadway, they just don't feel safe to  me. 

This isn't steps, it's the sea wall leading down to the beach, the side walk is at the top of this wall.

Riley headed out on the sand I started walking west back toward Bay St. Louis. The sun was warm with the heated rays beating down on us. The air was warm, the breeze was warm and the skies were blinding blue!! I walked for 30 minutes on the sidewalk and kicked off my shoes and socks to walk back in the sand!! Nice walk and very warm. It took me 40 minutes to walk back. ~laugh~ I found Miss Riley sitting in the sun shine enjoying the rays but we moved to a shade shelter just a bit down the beach. We spent the rest of the morning there reading our books, just enjoying the beach, sand, warmth, and the shade. 

Walking back on the sand, heading East by US 90 at Pass Christian

Shortly after noon we packed up the Dogsled to head back to the Igloo, the temp on the dash was reading at 76F/24.4C. Deciding we'd stop and get a Poppa John Pizza for lunch I cranked the wheel as we were flying past and managed to get it parked between the lines before we hustled inside to get some lunch. We were both pretty hungry. We drooled all the way home with that hot pizza smell filling the cab!!!

The rain yesterday cut grooves in the sand at the base of the sea wall, can you see them in the pic?

I had 3 pieces in total of this large pizza. The other slices were just 'gone', poof never to be seen again. ~laugh~ Needless to say there was none left dinner. Of course we weren't really hungry and so we kind of just picked at something that caught our fancy. For me it was a peach yogurt and a pudding cup, I don't recall what feast Riley had. 

A closer look. The water ran down the incline to the sand, gouging out a trench.

The rest of the afternoon was spent reading my last book. Barbara Parker was the author, and an excellent story teller. I enjoyed her book but I cannot at this moment remember what it was called. ~laugh~ It's a sign right? I just can't remember what it's a sign of!!!!

Those are sea gulls/terns on the ledge of the walking rain of a private pier.

Around 5:30 pm I seen Billy & Charlene up at the picnic table by the fire pit so I headed up there to chat, Mac also showed up, then Mike and finally Pete. We chatted about numerous things, some causing me to laugh heartily such as putting walnuts in a gunny sack and running over it in the driveway,  Billy telling stories of his younger siblings, and a number of things that caused laughter. Of course the topic of Billy's knee also came up as Charlene explained the upcoming surgery along with the latest doctor's visit results. They need to call on Wednesday if they haven't heard anything before then, that will give them a surgery date. No guarantees for anything but it might help which would be a step forward from where they are now. 

Beautiful beach!!

After that it was back to the Igloo as the mosquitoes were starting to pick us up and move us around. ~laugh~ They grow 'em big down here. ~laugh~ 

Read for a bit after coming back home, and after that decided it was time to start writing. So here I am, doing my best to remember what I did today. Remember I said that was a sign of something?   ~laugh~ 

Lunch from Poppa John's!

We had a great day, truly one that we've been saying we should do but just haven't managed until today. I hope you've had as good a day too. Thanks for stopping by, feel free to comment. Until next time...be safe, take care...

Thunder, lightning, rain, and sunny skies....

Our Location: Magic River RV Resort, Long Beach, Mississippi

(all photos taken with my phone)

The weather has been fantastic for warmth and until today for sunshine as well. Today however was a mixed bag with a few rain drops around 4 am, then nothing until about 11 am. While the temps were still very warm and the air was humid the sky turned dark and very threatening. We had thunder, lightning, rain and then it drizzled, stopped, drizzled, stopped, then this evening it cleared up to be a warm, humid nice evening. Temps were in the 80's today, 26 -30 C for my Canucky family and friends reading this. I will say that there is still some dripping going on as the slightest breeze is making the drops fall from the trees over head, however the frogs are once again making their nightly voices sing, and the night sounds are wafting thru the humid southern air. All is right in the neighbourhood!!

Half a blow up Chicken - taken from half a block away with my phone

The last few days have been good days but nothing exciting so I just didn't bother to write about nothing. Believe me I've saved you from lots of boredom. ~laugh~ We've walked, we've shopped, we've enjoyed evening campfires, we've read, we've napped, and just enjoyed our days here. Nothing pressing but enjoyably simple and relaxing. We've been slowly getting things accumulated to take home to Canada with us and I can tell ya that we're almost full. ~laugh~ 

Temps yesterday, top one is outside, bottom one is inside..

Morning fires have been the same crowd with the addition of Bobby, a fella from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, Don from Vermont. Bobby is doing some local contracting work and will be here for some time but Don & wife, I think her name is Rose but maybe not, arrived two nights ago and left today after the big rain. Three new units have arrived in the past day or two which once again brings the campground to almost full. 

I walked by myself today as Riley didn't feel like going today. I only managed 2 laps before the thunder started rumbling and so I headed for the Dogsled before the lightning and/or the rain started. The rain drops started about 10 minutes after I left the walking path which means I would have been at the furthest point from the Dogsled at the time. I think I did the wise thing. ~laugh~ 

Looks like the bark from a cedar tree, doesn't it?

At home we loaded up the Dogsled with our dirty laundry and headed off to the Wash & Save coin laundry place on Railroad Street and N. Burke Ave. While we were there the skies grew very dark, very threatening and the rain came down hard for a while but then slowed, finally stopping and the skies brightened significantly. A little drizzle was falling by the time we left 2 hours later. While at the laundry Donna & Malcom from Collingwood, Ontario all came in carrying laundry bags. 

Home around 1 pm we managed to get all the laundry inside and didn't find too much stuff misplaced due to weather, although a number of inch - inch and a half thick branches were down just where the Dogsled usually sits, so I'm happy we were out at the time. A number of smaller pieces of dead wood, small leafy branches, etc were down around the place but nothing major. Water however is laying around in most low areas. 

Can you see the spindly little green needles that are just starting to come out? Same tree as the above pic

Reading this afternoon was an excellent way to pass the time. Too wet outside to do much and I'm too lazy by afternoon to do anything anyway. ~laugh~ I did however mention to Billy & Charlene when I met them on their way out that if they got into trouble Billy wasn't to call me for bail money. ~laugh~ 

Mac dropped by around 6:45 pm to see about a fire but I declined, it's too damp for me tonight. However Mac and I have been doing the morning fires around 5:30 am but those will be stopping shortly as Mac will be heading out soon, and so shall we. Mac will be 79 years old tomorrow, March 31. Happy Birthday Mac!!

Sky while I was out walking this morning..

Magic the camp cat has been hanging around getting lots of attention from most of the fire dwellers. She has figured out that by sitting on a chair one of two things happens, someone either just leaves her alone and she gets the chair or they pick her up and she gets to settle in their lap, either way it's a win/win for her. ~laugh~ She's truly enjoying the attention and often times will just tease us by wandering around our feet but ending up sitting on the picnic table just out of reach. ~laugh~ She's a diva!!!!

A Canada goose is nesting in one of the ponds, not sure when the eggs will hatch but I'm willing to bet that this pair of geese have given up their Canadian citizenship and are full time residents down here. I don't think the travel ban has  bothered them one bit. ~laugh~ 

Pretty dark  up in those tree tops huh?

So as you can see, nothing exciting, but it's been interesting all the same. We are enjoying our last few days here and the weather is fantastic temperature wise. The storm that was worrying everyone didn't really have any effect on us here except for rain and dark skies. Thunder rolled and the odd bit of lightning flashed but it was nothing like the predictions were guessing at. So we're all very happy about that down here in Southern Mississippi. 

One of the things we managed over the past couple of days was a to Ocean Springs to find the Fred's Super Pharmacy to pick up a few things. Glad we found one in Mississippi. Our last chore will be to get my dad a couple of bottles of Bacardi's Rum before we head out. Other than that we have pretty much finished getting everything we hoped to purchase down here. Hope the Dogsled can pull it home. ~laugh~ 

Rain falling while at the Laundromat today....

So on that note, thanks for dropping by, hope you had a great day. Until next time...be safe, take care...

Flea Market, Quiet Sunday, and small night time fire crowd.....

Our Location: Magic River RV Resort, Long Beach, Mississippi

(today's pics are just a variety of pics I've collected in my travels)
 

Our weather this morning was damp, humid and warm. With water laying around, the heat turned that water to humidity rapidly and the warm temps made things muggy. The sun shine was intermittent with clouds for a bit but eventually the clouds moved on and the sun claimed the vast blue skies over Long Beach.  Every once in a while a light white wispy cloud would rush across the skies but they seemed to be high and merely decoration until later in the afternoon around 4 and then they started making the sun more dappled than covered, if you know what I mean.

In the Great Smokey Mountains

This mornings fire was Mac and I until Paige showed up and soon followed by Mike and then Pete. It's nice to chat with Paige in a more private type setting, she a very intelligent and spontaneous woman, fully of laughter and is very quick witted with quips that would make a sailor blush. ~laugh~  She is often pensive and silent but at other times her laughter readily at her lips, and her smile lights up the gathering. She does however not like the camp cat due to allergies but we can't hold that against her. ~laugh~ 

Heading north on Hwy 6 toward Espanola, Ontario

Leaving the fire and coming home I found walking wasn't any easier on the way back than on the way up, so we decided to skip our walk this morning. Even with the anti inflammatories I don't think I could have managed 2 miles today. It's been an unusually damp winter here this year. 

Tunnel between Knoxville, Tn and Greensville, SC

  Sitting was not on the agenda this morning as I've found in this kind of situation sitting on a soft surface gives more trouble than it's worth, so I decided to prep dinner while I was trying to keep on my feet and keep moving some to help loosen up the joints. Since I was already going to be cutting up veggies for dinner I made two large garden salads for my lunch today and tomorrow. It takes a long time to cut up all those veggies so I do two salads at once and if I remember I try to do our dinner veggies at the same time. It's usually around lunch though, not before 10 am. ~laugh~ 

Colleton State Park, Walterboro, South Carolina

Just before I started bringing all the veggies out to chop up I reminded Riley we needed a few veggies from the produce vendor at the Flea Market so that's where we headed at 9 am this morning. It's the only vendor we visited and our purchase of a dozen large carrots, a half bag of green beans, a cuke and a fresh pineapple all for $7 was well worth the short trip there. 

Along I-75 North in Tennessee

We didn't really enjoy the lime on the veggies the other day so today I added both lime and orange to see if that meets with our approval. We like to try to spice things up a bit and we're looking for some new flavours. I forgot to add the dill to the potatoes today but I'll try to remember next time. Old age just sucks. ~laugh~ 

Hwy 6 near Birch Island Rez, Ontario, Canada

Back home I got to work making salads and tonight's veggie packet trying to get my fingers to work. It wasn't pretty but I managed to get it done. Nothing is cut to a uniform size but at least the pieces aren't big enough to choke me when I eat them. ~laugh~ I even managed to cut up the potatoes for dinner tonight too. That left me free from prep all the rest of the day. 

Sign says it all.

Campers are pulling in and pulling out on a regular basis these days. The big Ford parked half in the roadway over by the maintenance shed who was pulling a massive toy hauler along with a buddy of a smaller F150 pulling a big boat left this morning. The folks beside us left this morning, and two more units pulled in so far as of 4 pm. For a small little campground it sure does have a steady stream every day!! 

Heading across a bayou near the Gulf Of Mexico

Riley and I decided to head out for a wee walk around the campground to just kind of stretch and make a trip to the dumpster just before lunch. Water laying on the roadway by the maintenance shed is always just enough to make things muddy and with the rain yesterday it's a bit more soupy than usual but still manageable. The rain has made some spots very soft and I'm glad we're on pretty firm ground now. Adding fresh gravel would be nice but I think it would just wash away during a campground flood.  I am straying from my point. ~laugh~ On our way around the park we stopped at Bing and Cathy's to chat for a bit. They are enjoying the campground very much as is their son and DIL. We chatted for about a half hour which was nice, they are simple country folks with warm hearts and ready laughter. 

In the I-10 tunnel going under Mobile Bay

After lunch Riley sat outside in the shade but I stayed inside today. Laid on the couch to read a bit and I think I may have dozed off and on but I can't be certain. It's a bit fuzzy. ~laugh~

Somewhere on Hwy 6, Ontario, Canada

 We turned on the fan to move the air around but we didn't feel the need to turn on the AC as it wasn't too hot for us, but a number of folks had their AC units running today. We even checked out a small 12V fan we bought to ensure it works and do you know what? It does. ~laugh~ That will be nice to use during the summer time on those hot nights.

10 Mile Point Hill, Hwy 6, Ontario Canada

I think I'm going to make a run to Harbor Freight one of these days I want to get a couple of 12v plugs and one with USB ports to have installed in the Igloo in a couple of spots to aid when dry camping charging of charging of electronics. I've decided to just go with the small inverter  we currently have until we are certain of what we need. Since our needs aren't that great I'm not sure we'll need a bigger one. I also want to see about motion lights that I purchased there a few years ago, the ones I have are worn out and a new set would be nice. If I can't find that kind I may go with something else in that same manner for security purposes. I like having them and I miss them since they aren't working any longer.

The Shoe Tree, Lakeshore Road, Ontario Canada

Buddy Ron sent me a text message telling me I have a hurricane named after me, I wonder what he's trying to tell me. ~laugh~ Oh Congrats on the new to you truck buddy!! I'm sure it's made you feel much better having a truck once again. Ron lost his last truck 'Oaf' in a wreck this past summer and has been without since then. I'll bet it was like feeling naked in some way. ~laugh~

Sheguiandah, Ontario, Canada - Hwy 6

Dinner was of course BBQ'd tonight. We had Garlic Potatoes and onions, Orange Lime Zest Veggies, and Friend Roger's BBQ sauce Chicken breast. It was all very good but I think we'll forget the lime on the veggies however it would have been nice on a piece of chicken. Alas we've used the last drop of Roger's sauce as well. It was good as we used a whole PINT since Jan 1 when he gave it to us just before we left Devencrest Rv Park in Albany.

North Channel approaching Little Current, Ontario Canada

We had a lot of dishes to do and it seemed like we were busy for a half hour just doing all those dishes. I was happy to be finished, oh my dishpan hands, good thing I used Palmolive. ~laugh~ Do you remember those commercials way back in the day?

Great Smokey Mountains, Tennessee

Quick clean up outside and a walk to the dumpster before stopping at the fire pit. It was a quiet fire with only Billy & Charlene along with Riley and I. I don't think anyone realized there was a fire going. It was nice to chat one on one with Billy & Charlene getting to know them a bit better.

New England Road, Manitoulin Island, Ontario Canada

Home to have a shower before bed, I actually put some of my clothes outside for the night as the smoke seemed to really like me tonight. ~laugh~

Our summer time view

So there you have it, nothing exciting but a good day all the same. Hope your Sunday was enjoyable as well. Looking forward to Red Beans and Rice tomorrow at the Rusty Pelican. Small group we don't have to rearrange the restaurant. ~laugh~

So until next time...be safe, take care....