Cold morning, stayed in today....

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

(all photos taken with my phone)

A cold night again, with a cold damp morning on it's heels, I opted to stay inside this morning and missed the fire crew. The day eventually warmed up to just needing a light coat or a heavy sweater but I felt better staying inside for most of the day with just a short walk around the campground this afternoon. Tomorrow the weather looks to be great and I'm hoping to get back outside walking again. It's been a long time since we've walked and I'm ready.

Breakfast was a quiet affair and the only decision we made was about dinner and that Riley would definitely have it. ~laugh~ I can say that is a decision we carried thru on too. Just so you know Riley didn't miss a meal. ~laugh~ 

Magic the camp cat.....

Spent the morning doing some more research for campgrounds in Canada that we will require a number of times this coming spring and fall. I've located one for our appointments in Southern Ontario and I think one in the Ottawa region for a later date in September. I'll keep doing a bit more research in that area to see what will suit us best. 

Mac came by this afternoon to check on us since we hadn't been seen outside all day, nice of him to do so. I find with the damp, cold weather it's just better to stay inside until it passes, it's a lot less bothersome that way. Like I said, we managed a short walk this afternoon in the warmer sun. 

The pool looks inviting but not heated...

I read a bit today and am enjoying being immersed once again in the world created by Robert Ludlum, he's a fantastic writer and draws the reader into his world with an ease and skill that is flawless. I've always enjoyed his books but not the works that have been co-written or that use his name such as Robert Ludlum's Bourne series by.....some other writer. I think these are story lines he had fleshed out a bit before he passed away and some one else has used his ideas to write a book. They aren't nearly as good. 

Jerry and Carol pulled out today about 2 pm heading for their home state of Michigan. Jerry was originally a Canadian but is a US citizen since he was in his early years, mid twenties I think he said. He was a radio personality in his time and has one of those voices that you always hear in commercials. 

Ron & Sharon's empty spots...now filled with a Roadtrek van.

The park was looking pretty empty with about 8 or 9 spots open but 3 more folks pulled in to help fill the emptiness. One a returning couple that has been referred to as the 'drunk bump' people, and two we've never seen before. 

Again no night time fire as no one seems to be interested any longer. I think it's because there are so few of us here that know each other. 

 

Jerry & Carol's empty spot with the 'drunk bump' coach off to the far right of the pic.

 

On our walk we happened to see Magic the local cat in all her black glory. She was coming from the cabin and stopped long enough for us to scratch behind her ears for a quick second before we left. I think she misses Ron & Sharon a great deal. 

During our walk we happened to go past the maintenance shop to check out the pool area as the temps are heating up maybe Riley will take a dip before we go. We happened upon Swilly once more working his magic with wood, refinishing a china cabinet for the owner's wife. A fantastic job he's doing, he's truly a wizard with wood. An extremely friendly fella to boot!!!

Riley's dinner...looks pretty good doesn't it?

Dinner tonight was inside, having decided to stay out of the cold night air tonight. Chicken breast with friend Roger's BBQ sauce, steamed veggies with orange zest and Long Grain brown rice. Miss Riley said it was very good so we will just have to believe her!! I enjoyed the veggies which was all I felt like eating. 

Clean up and then off to our own interests. So as you can see not a big day but a day all the same. Tomorrow the temps will be better and I'm going to get out and enjoy them!!!! Thanks for stopping by, until next time..be safe, take care...

Cold, blue skies, saying goodbye to friends....

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

(all pics taken with my phone)

A cold night brought on a cold morning with temps in the low 40's over night, which for us folks from Canada would translate to being just about 4 degrees C. In other words brrrrrrrrrr, bring the heavy coat and mittens!!!!! About noon the temps were a bit warmer with the heat wave coming in at about 52F/11C, but the wind makes it much colder. We didn't get out of the 50's today but we're holding out hope for tomorrow. ~laugh~

The East Pond here at the park, clear blue skies but cold.

The fire pit crew was Mac, Ron and Jerry at 6:30 a.m. when I wandered up. The wind from the east was cold, we couldn't huddle any closer to the fire or we'd catch fire. ~laugh~ A sad day as our good friends Ron & Sharon pulled out this morning about 8 a.m. for the long drive back to Kansas. Miss Sharon had no complaints about being parked close to the fire but Ron whined about the smoke and the noise. We think he may have lodged a complaint with management. ~laugh~ We wish them a safe journey home and hope to see them again in the fall!!!! The send off committee was pretty big, Riley and I, Mac, Jerry, Carol, Swilly, Robert, and Pete all showed up to send them on their way.

We headed home as their big wheels reached the hardtop. Breakfast was a quick event and after that I defrosted the fridge and freezer as it's been a while since I've done that. Took about an hour from start to finish and can you believe everything fit back in better than before? ~laugh~

Definitely John Deere country, see that green and yellow bird house?

We sorted the laundry and debated about doing it today or tomorrow however today won out as it's too cold to do much else except sit inside looking out. ~laugh~ Loading up the Dogsled we headed off to the coin laundry on Railroad Street! The place was just about empty but the dryers were almost all busy as they also do laundry service there and it seemed they had a lot of 'service' to wash, dry and fold. ~laugh~ We managed to finish shortly after noon and had everything buckled into the Dogsled with the tires spinning in the homeward direction. The Igloo, that place where we hang our hats and call home was waiting for us as patiently as ever when we got there just about 1 pm. We managed to have everything put away and have lunch on the go by 1:30 pm.

The blue skies, bursting shades of green, and the yellow ball in the sky all beckon us to come outside and enjoy but I'm telling you folks, I have the heater running in the Igloo. It's dang well cold. ~laugh~ Friend Swilly says it should warm up by Friday and I hope he's right or I might lodge a complaint with management. ~laugh~

Inside the log cabin here at Magic River

The rest of the afternoon was spent with a good book by James Patterson called 3rd Degree. My next reading adventure will be with Robert Ludlum, one of my all time favourite authors, I'm going to read The Bourne Ultimatum, also a good read. It's been years since I've read it and I know I will enjoy it again.

Keeping an eye on the fire pit I can report that NO ONE ventured up to the place all afternoon or evening. Due to cold or just lack of interest I'm not sure but it's a dark place up there tonight. Ron usually built the evening fire and since he left this morning no one was around to do the honours. I did see Mac and Jerry wandering around looking lost and forlorn. ~laugh~ They had their head inside the engine compartment on Jerry's rig but seemed to spend most of their time just aimless walking. They might miss their buddy, it's hard to know.

The fire pit here at Magic River

Dinner tonight for me was the last of the homemade chicken soup and Riley made herself some turkey tacos which smelled good and according to the cook, they also tasted good. I'll have to take her word for it though, which means you'll have to take my word for it. Or not. ~laugh~

We had a game of Yahtzee this afternoon and I won, I won, I won....~laugh~ by 14 points but I won. Riley thinks I cheated!

The Igloo here at the park.

I chatted with my sister Jan today for a while. She says it very cold up there with some snow but spring is just around the corner. We are mid way thru March and we all know that means April will bring rain to melt the snow, encourage the world to start greening up again. So you see, Spring is coming. Robins are heading north, one was spotted in South Western Ontario just this past week, a sure sign of spring!!

A clean up inside and a we were off to our own ends of the Igloo. So ends another day here at Magic River Park. Thanks for stopping by, please feel free to leave a comment. Until next time...be safe, take care...

Campground starting to empty....

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

(all photo's taken with my phone)

A cool night again and once more a cool day today with some wind to add interest to the fire throughout the day. We all smell like we've moved into the wood stove. ~laugh~ 

Iris are starting to bloom!

Late getting to the fire pit this morning, didn't arrive until about 6:30 a.m. to find Mac and Jerry chatting away, soon we were joined by Ron, then Linda, and I think Pete came by later. Jerry wandered home and Linda was off to finish packing as she was leaving today. Not sure where Mac went but soon it was just Ron, Pete and I at the fire. Ron's new neighbour came by and within a couple of minutes we were getting a lesson on the evils of wheat, government and a few other things. I folded up my chair and came home. 

Walmart with cloudy blue skies.....

Riley and I went over to Linda's RV to say our goodbyes since we were headed out and she would be gone when we got back home. Nice lady, I like her and little dog Yodi with the wild hair. ~laugh~ Hopefully we meet again at some point in the future for a few days. 

Camo football...only in America!!! ~laugh~

After I had breakfast we headed out to Walmart to pick up some much needed things. With a considerably lighter wallet we wrapped our shopping there, groceries, seat covers for the truck, garbage 'can' for the truck, a few 'gifts' for up north, we pretty much had everything on the list. I'm glad because we were running out of room to stack the stuff in the back seat. ~laugh~ Can you guess what time we got home? It just worked out to be 11:30 a.m. and we met Linda just outside of the campground as we were returning and she was headed for Texas. Lots of things to put away when we got home, seat covers to put on, chicken and sausage to be divided into smaller bags and lots of other goodies in need of a new home too. 

Almost need a bigger back seat.

Lunch was a large garden salad which I truly enjoyed and after that I didn't much of anything except read and maybe cat nap on the couch, but I don't really think I slept, more like I just closed my eyes. Riley and I went for a walk around the park, sat up by the fire for a bit, and Riley even restarted the fire which was very impressive for her to do so here. We visited with a few folks around the fire pit and watched while Ron & Sharon moved from their old spot to the one just by the fire pit in preparation for their departure tomorrow morning. They actually took NEWmar out to get him filled with juice before they hooked up the 'toy' hauler trailer. Looked funny to see Ron driving a motor home instead of a truck, almost looked like he knew what he was doing. ~laugh~ As they got parked in their new spot and hooked up the toy trailer we all joked how the new people would be complaining about the noise and smoke from the fire!!! ~laugh~ I suggested ear plugs and keeping the door closed but I'm not sure they'll do that, I think maybe the guy might just like to complain. ~laugh~ 

Richard would have loved this place...

Magic the Cat is looking very forlorn today. She's been spending a great deal of time in Ron & Sharon's motor home being feed, and cuddled but they won't be taking her home. They live on a busy roadway and Miss Magic would not survive long, nor would she want to stay in doors and would eventually 'escape' from the house to either wind up on the roadway or wandering off leaving them to worry about her. So I think leaving her here where she's familiar with everything is the best idea. They are leaving cat food and donating some money to ensure someone feeds her. This cat was sitting in the empty spot from which they had moved their motor home and looked very sad and confused to see the spot empty and to see the 'house' moved. She did however manage to find her way inside at the new location. ~laugh~ She's a smart little thing and has traits similar to a dog!! Maybe she has an identity crisis. It was very sad to see her sitting there looking around and trying to figure out what is going on. 

Ron & Sharon's new 'toy hauler' fits a sidekick and the motorcycle with it's little trailer and has a bit of room to spare.

Sitting around the campfire for a bit in the early evening chatting with a few folks before heading home to find some dinner which will be chicken noodle soup that we made on Sunday. Called middle daughter instead of heating up my soup and chatted for about a half hour, she sounds good and yet tired at the same time. We managed to fit a lot of information in a short conversation. 

 

Ron & Sharon's NEWmar (not the best pic but you get the idea) which pulls the 'toy hauler' to make them very long!!!!!!

By the time I'd finished chatting with Bradey I was getting a text from my buddy about the lack of me being at the fire. Once again I put aside the idea of having soup and headed up to the fire for a quick visit with Ron. We chatted about a number of things, told a few stories and just enjoyed the peace and quiet of a nice visit. Started getting cold, time to head home to the Igloo for the night. Home by 9 p.m. and decided I'm not hungry, I'll have my soup tomorrow for lunch I think. 

Swilly's fancy truck, changes colour in the sunshine!!!

So there you have it, our quiet day, nothing earth shattering but still enjoyable for us. Thanks for stopping by, until next time...be safe, take care...

Goodbyes, Dinner Out.......

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

A cold dreary night followed by a cold dreary dreary day for Sunday and now again today it's more of the same. The next few days are much cooler than we'd like but hopefully we are finished with the rain. However time will tell, won't it? 

No blog last night as there was nothing to say except some whining, so the less said, the better. I'm sure you agree. 

This morning up at the fire the usual suspects showed up and chatted for a bit. A sad day today as Buzz and Lisa left our little neighbourhood. They are heading home to Columbus, Ohio which will take them 4 days to reach. Hugs and well wishes, they were on the road around 9 am. We wish them a safe journey. 

Today was house cleaning day and we completely took Riley's room apart. She's been complaining about a musty odor and I think we've finally found it. I believe the trundle bed is causing the problem. The trundle bed is a small single, while Riley's is a larger twin. The trundle has a front face plate that reaches from the floor to the underside of Riley's bed and is full length of the opening, thus not allowing any air to circulate under Riley's bed and leaving a 'dead' space between the small single mattress and the wall. I removed the face plate, tucked it flat under the bed and we moved the mattress to the top bunk to see if that would allow the air to move better and get rid of the odor. We shall see if it works, so once again, time will tell. If not, I'll have to keep looking.

No one went for beans and rice today, we think it's because Buzz and Lisa weren't here so the whole thing fell apart or may be we're all just old and forgot. ~laugh~ We did however use some of Buzz's coupons to go to dinner this evening at Sicily's Italian Buffet on Hwy 49 in Gulfport. 

 

Ron and Sharon stopped by to see if we needed anything from Walmart but we declined as tomorrow we need to do a shop there and since they just have small little vehicle I didn't think they'd appreciate having no room to bring home what they were going for. ~laugh~ 

 

I  had a nap again today, and according to Miss Riley so did she. Seems like it was just one of those days when we needed to recharge more than we had thru the night hours. 

 

Up to the fire around 3:30 pm this afternoon chatting with a few folks, Ron, Mac, Riley Jerry, Pete, and Pat it was there we decided to head to Sicily's for dinner. Ron & Sharon came with us, and we met Jerry and Carol at the restaurant. Riley and I had never  been but we enjoyed it a great deal. Many, many choices of pizza, along with a nice salad bar, regular fare such as mashed potatoes, veggies, gravy, chicken, lasagna, etc, then there were the desserts of puddings/custards, pizza, ice cream, brownies and such. I can honestly say I enjoyed the experience and will go again without hesitation. Riley seemed to enjoy it as well. I tried apple pie pizza and rocky road pizza. A first for me but I will have the apple pie pizza again for certain. Coupons were used and new ones given, they have no expiry date so we'll use them next time we are around. Dinner was $14.00 for the two of us!!

 

Light rain on the way home making it hard to tell about daylight saving time as the evening was so grey anyway. I'm sure the daylight hours were longer but ....

 

I started trying to call Dad last night around 7 pm but it was busy until at least 9 pm, then again this morning it was busy. I called Rick this morning to check on the phone at dad's house but just left a message. Tried Dad's again about an hour later, left a message there as was no answered. Finally reached Dad to chat around 6 pm our time tonight, he said they were out but hadn't known about the phone, so maybe Rick fixed it while they were out today. Things are cold up there but everyone seems to be doing well. Talked to Barb last night, she was telling me about Jason & Leah's wedding plans, and the stag & doe coming in May. Nice to chat with her again, it's been a long time. I should call more often but for some reason I just don't seem to. Also called my sister tonight, she's struggling with her depression again, meds are being changed too, so that makes things difficult as does the time of year. I should call her more often too but well, it just doesn't seem like I think of it before it's too late in the evening there to call. Sis and I have made some tentative plans to do some shopping when we get to the island. 

Up at the fire again this evening but the rain came so we moved into the cabin for a bit. Always enjoy chatting with my buddy Ron, he's a character. ~laugh~ I'll just leave it at that!!!

 I have a few business things to handle in the next week in preparation for heading home to Canada in a few weeks. I  need to contact a broker and get the paperwork to them with regards to the truck and getting it across the border. I'm not looking forward to that day, I think it'll be a long one. I've decided to cross the border in Buffalo as we will be staying about an hour from there when we get back to Ontario. I've been looking at a number of options for our upcoming time in Southern Ontario for appointments. I think Fifty Point Conservation area will be our home location while in the area. That will allow us to be close enough to the city to handle all of our appointments with ease. It will also allow us a short trip from the border to our home base should we get tied up at the border crossing for any length of time. 

 

So as you can see we are managing to put get our days in down here in the Mississippi Gulf Coast area. We've not walked for 3 days but we'll be fixing that in the near future I'm sure. This will be a week of goodbyes for us as many folks are pulling out. Sad to see them go but we'll see them again in the future!!

 

On that note, I'm calling it a day. Thanks for stopping by, sorry no pics today either. Tomorrow I'll work on that. ~laugh~ Until next time...be safe, take care...

Not feeling so good....

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

(pics today from our visit to Beauvoir House a couple of days ago)

Last night was warm again and today while warm had a cool factor to it.

No post yesterday and a short one today as the last couple of days have seen a flare in my arthritis and typing is not much fun. I think a combination of the damp weather and the humid temps have brought about this flare. Normally it's not too humid here at this time of the year but we seem to be ahead a couple of weeks in the timing of things here. 

Rose Garden at Beauvoir House.

We've kind of coasted thru the last couple of days and probably tomorrow as well. We have been out and about yesterday but not doing much of anything, a 10 minute walk due to rain and pain yesterday and today's walk was about the same length as the cool wind and pain once again was a deciding factor.

Pocket doors/room dividers from the front parlour into the back parlour.

No fire pit yesterday at all and only for a short time this morning. Ron came by to check on me yesterday wondering if I was mad at them. ~laugh~ He must have informed the folks at the fire pit of my issues as they all seemed aware of my issues this morning. Considering how long I've been dealing with arthritis I've been fortunate to have as few problems as I've had. 

Grave of Samuel Davis, Jefferson's father in the Confederate Cemetery behind Beauvoir House.

Today we spent the day inside venturing out for our aborted walk, and my short time at the fire pit but otherwise we stayed in keeping warm and watching movies. Two good ones today, the original Magnificent Seven with Yul Breener, Steve MacQueen, Eli Wallach, and James Coburn along with a few others. I preferred the TV series myself but it was still good to watch. After that we watched Jason Statham in Safe, which was a lot of blood, guts and gore but a good story all the same. From there we just kind of did our own thing, I had a nap and I have no idea what Riley did. ~laugh~

This coming week will be a week of goodbyes here at the park with Buzz & Lisa leaving on Monday, Ron & Sharon leaving on Wednesday, Jerry & Carol leaving on Wednesday, Linda leaving on Thursday. Buzz and Lisa stayed a week later than usual which I think they've enjoyed a great deal. Maybe it will be a trend for them. ~laugh~ 

Old time microwaves - food warmers.

The park is pretty full. The guy across the way has two units here, side by side and I heard him saying he's going to put a new roof on one of them so I think it will be noisy. We've paid up to the 20th and I'm not sure what we're going to do from that point on. Time will tell I guess. 

My good buddy Ron came to check on me this afternoon while I napped, and came again while Riley was having her dinner. I'm so fortunate to have such a good friend!! We both ventured up to the fire about an hour tonight, the heat from the fire was nice. I'm going to be sad to see Ron & Sharon leave, such wonderful people they are!! Wish we could have spent more time with them but that's the way it goes.

Hand made quilt by Mrs. Davis

Daylight savings time tonight, hope Poppa remembers to turn his clocks or I'll be calling him late into the night. Would hate to call him too late. ~laugh~

On that note I've typed enough. Thanks for stopping by, have a great evening. 

Historic Beauvoir House....

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

A warm night followed by a great day with lots of blue skies, warm temps and little wind. Tonight seems to be a repeat of last night!

Jefferson Davis Presidential Library and Museum

Up at the fire shortly before 6 a.m. to see the usual faces, Buzz, and Mac followed by the regulars in a staggering line. ~laugh~ The chatter was constant and the discussions varied. Jerry, Ron, Linda, Pete, Pat, Swilly, Amanda, and Robert all put in an appearance this morning. 

Glass section in the floor between first and second floor in the Museum

Home by 8:30 am to find that Riley had bagged up the garbage, washed the dishes and had a shower all before I managed to get home. Busy lady she was!!!!! So sweet to do all that work by herself. 

Piano in the museum near the Library.

After breakfast we headed out for a walk, doing 2 miles before we called it off. Both of us were kind of tired at that point. Climbed into the Dogsled to head off for a tour of the Jefferson Davis house known as Beauvoir House in Biloxi. I've toured it before but Riley hasn't so we thought it would be interesting. The fee of $12.50 each covered everything on the grounds. The museum and Presidential Library are new since my last visit a few years ago but the 'house' was the same with a great Docent to lead us thru. He was a fun fellow that encouraged interaction, questions and engaged us often. At one point I ended up as a Volunteer! ~laugh~ Why are the door handles so low on the doors? Because men were required to be gallant and with the handles so low they had to bow to open the door and therefore bowed to the young lady in their company. Chivalry is not dead in the deep south at Beauvoir house. The Docent bowed to me while instructing me to lead the troops out and to the left.   Jim was a delight to lead us through the house and explain all the answers to all questions, even if he didn't know the answer. ~laugh~ 

The funeral carriage that carried Jefferson Davis' body.

Riley and I wandered to the cemetery before we took the tour of the house and ran into another Docent in period dress that talked a great deal about the deep south, the gardens, Beauvoir house and many other things. While a kindly woman I was happy to get away from her as she talked way too much!!!

Cannon, balls, confederate flag in the Museum.

The house was built by Mr. Brown, a rich plantation owner who used it as his summer house for 3 months out of the year. Two separate cottages grace each side of the mansion. One was a schoolhouse/library and the other was a guest cottage used at that time by visiting clergy to the area, latter as a guest house in which J. Davis stayed for 2 years. Both of these cottages were destroyed by Katrina and rebuilt. The marble arches that once graced the front yard were destroyed by Katrina and the larger rescued pieces of marble were made into a smaller arch that now graces the cemetery in the back. Mr Brown sold it to Mrs. Darcy, owner when Jeff Davis used the guest cottage. Mrs. Darcy and Mrs. Jefferson Davis knew each other from 'finishing' school and were about the same age. Mrs. Darcy sold the house to the Davis'. 

View from the front porch of the house.

The cemetery holds confederate soldiers, any family member that may have died at the this location (when it was a Hospital for the confederate soldiers) and even some servants. The cemetery also holds the body of Samuel Davis, Jefferson Davis' father who was fought in the Revolutionary War. The tomb of the Unknown Confederate Soldier is also located there. 

 

The grand staircase!

 

We spent a couple of hours at this place enjoying the sights and tours. We would strongly recommend a visit to the place if you are in the area, it is well worth the time and money. 

 

Jefferson Davis' father's clock.

 

From there we headed homeward but stopped a a Surf Style just because we could. We both decided against a Wally run today for a couple of reasons. Home we managed to find some lunch, I sat outside reading for a while this afternoon, taking a chair to the pond's edge to sit in the sun. After that it was reading inside for a while, then close up the place as night is falling. 

 

Tomb of the Unknown Confederate Soldier.

 

Dinner was pasta since we haven't had it for a while. It was good, broad noodles with various kinds of cheese. Yummy. We left the dishes again tonight. I'm just exhausted tonight for some reason! 

 

Ceiling in the back parlour/library.

 

So there you have it, thanks for stopping by, feel free to leave a comment. Until next time..be safe, take care...

Busy Monday....

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

(all pics taken with my phone)

A much warmer night last night than it has been for a while. This morning was warmer as well and the day followed that lead!! We had no wind this morning, but it picked it up continuously throughout the day and died down a bit during the evening but still hasn't died out yet. A few rain drops tonight sent us all scurrying away from the fire and homeward bound but it stopped before it started. If ya know what I mean...

Rusty Pelican Parking Lot

Usual suspects up around the fire at about 6:15 a.m. and the new guy Jerry showed up as well. He's not new, he's been here many times before and I remember him from before. Mac, Buzz, Ron, Pete, Charles, Linda, Lisa, Jeannie, Jerry, Paige, and myself  were the morning crowd today. Mac baked cornbread and Jerry brought Zucchini Bread for the morning goodies today. 

 

Rusty Pelican Signage at the roadway.

 

Home around 8:15 a.m. and since it's Monday you know it's cleaning day. I try to keep things tidy thru the week and therefore it's not a major deal to actually clean the Igloo as I try to keep the drawers/closets/cupboards neat and often times clean up one or two a day during the week which basically leaves the vacuuming, dusting, washing floors, cleaning bathrooms to Mondays. Of course this morning we had dishes to handle as well and once again tonight I'm leaving the dinner dishes until tomorrow. Strange how I'm able to do that these past couple of nights. 

 

Colourful houses on US 90 West

 

After cleaning the Igloo we both had some breakfast and made plans for the day which included first thing...our walk. We climbed into the Dogsled and headed off to the Sports Complex for our daily couple of mile trek. We started at 10 a.m. and made 2 laps by 10:40 a.m. but Riley opted to call it a day. I took another 20 minutes and walked a third lap before calling it done. 

 

Back home we had about 15 minutes in which to do something before heading out to pick up our friends Ron & Sharon. We all headed to the Rusty Pelican for the Monday special, Red Beans and Rice. Not that everyone got Red Beans & Rice but that's the special today. Along with the four of us there was also Lisa, Buzz, Jerry, Carol, and Mac. I think only Buzz and I managed the special today. 

 

Angel Tree in Bay St Louis

 

On the way to the restaurant the Dogsled seemed to be shifting funny so I convinced Ron that he should drive on the way back home to get a feel for what it might be. He managed to get the thing to do the herky jerky a time or two but didn't think there was much to worry about. However calling the dealership was first on my list when I walked thru the door. The local dealership said this transmission is not the smoothest one and often times the drop from 2nd gear to 1st gear is not smooth. Said I could bring it in and they'd look at it but it's normal. Also told me the warranty is good to 100,000 miles and good for all of North America, so even if I decide to have it looked at I can do that back home in Canada. Good to know!!! 

 

 

Cold, dull and almost ominous 

 

Home after lunch, got my truck seat all back to 'right' for me after a guest driver had moved everything. ~laugh~ Riley and I headed off for a drive shortly after getting home since we needed milk and bagels anyway. US 90 West thru Pass Christian and Bay St. Louis left us with the impression of cold, murky waters that promised to be make a body shiver if they got too close. Taking US 90 East we returned to Walmart to do some groceries!! While we only needed two things we did manage to grab about a half dozen other things as well, our motto is always be prepared. No wait, that's the boy scout motto, our motto is always have lots of food on hand. ~laugh~ 

 

Bay St Louis bridge to Pass Christiam

 

Back home once again we unloaded the groceries and put things away. We had some time to read our books and I started prepping dinner about 4:30 pm. In fact I even BBQ'd dinner early  so we could go up to enjoy the fire with our friends and dinner would be ready to just warm up in the microwave later.  Dinner was Italian Potatoes, Orange Zest Veggies and JD Smoke House BBQ chicken breast. Riley enjoyed it, but I wasn't hungry when I got back from the fire, so mine is in the fridge, one of us will have it tomorrow. 

 

It's not a nice looking body of water.

As you've guessed we also wandered up to the evening fire tonight. Although on my way I stopped a few doors down and chatted with Donna & Malcolm, a very nice couple from Collingwood, Ontario. Leaving the fellow Canucks I made my way to the evening fire. A smaller crowd with just Ron, Charles, Jerry, Mac, Riley and myself for a while and then the deck shuffled with Charles, Mac and Jerry leaving but Lisa, Pat, Pete and Sharon coming to the party. Interesting conversations to be certain. Riley left before I did as she was hungry and came home for her dinner. Chatted with Ron as he noticed Riley has been chatting more the last few days then she did when we first arrived. Riley is becoming much more comfortable with most of the people here and enjoys being more independent and confident within this new lifestyle. I'm so very proud of her for making such enormous strides, it is my hope that she continues to hold such confidence and independence when we return to Canada. I suppose time will tell. 

 

Leaving the fire pit due to rain drops falling on my head I was certain the rain would pick up and we'd have a good downpour but alas by the time I got to the Igloo it was over. ~laugh~ A quick visit with Lisa to thank her for her assistance today and I was back home before 9 pm. Not hungry so I just readied myself for bed and writing this blog. I'm not sure I'll get it finished and posted tonight as I'm tired and having a hard time keeping my eyes open. I may just finish it in the morning. 

So there you have it, our Monday excitement. Thanks for stopping by, hope you enjoyed your stay. Until next time...be safe, take care.....