April 14, 2022

Temperature 79 Degrees, Abundant Sunshine

Hop Two of Three

Oh did it rain last night. And the thunder. At least that’s what Ms. Barbara told me. I was up for maybe the first 30 minutes and then slept through the rest of it. I guess I was tired.

Today was a whole different story. We awoke to moderate temperatures and abundant sunshine. So with only the electric to disconnect, slides to bring in, and jacks to raise we were soon on our way. We initially hit a bit of traffic but nothing too terrible. The roads were a mix of good and bad. We also had some construction zones to contend with – you know the ones with the barriers right up against the white line on the right. And of course trucks continue to zip by you on the left. I just hold my breath and give a silent prayer of thanks when they end.

One of the new toys I installed before I left home was a dash camera. I’m finding it very helpful to have a record of the journey as well as video’s of the various RV parks we’ve been in. Regarding the journey, today we were completely run off the road by some clown in a rented RV who was blazing down the road weaving from lane to lane. At the last second I caught him out of the corner of my eye and was able to get to the shoulder in time. Otherwise, this trip would have come to a really early end.

So where are we?

The road home, meaning the road from the entrance into the park. This is another really nice RV Park. Well kept, great roads, evidence everywhere that it is well taken care of. The park is packed but my guess is by the amount of auto traffic that came in between 4 and 5 pm, the majority of those here are full time residents.

This is our home for tonight. We have a pull through with a great gravel base that is reasonably level. They had the same rain here last night as we did so the area around the site is a bit soggy. It’s sort of like walking on a wet sponge.

We got in early enough so I hooked up the water so we could do some cleaning inside as well as take showers ourselves. Ah, that shower really felt good.

The Good News is the bad weather now appears east of us. So, from this point on we’re expecting sunny skies but probably some colder temperatures. That’s why we brought our winter duds. We figured at some in time in the early going we were going to need them.

Tomorrow we head to Texas and then to Oklahoma. Mile by mile every state is possible.

April 13, 2022

Temperature 71 Degrees, Overcast, Strong Wind Gusts

Hop One of Three

We’re a day behind schedule. Did I say schedule? I’ve decided to throw it out the window and just roll with the punches. No sense getting uptight about what we can’t control.

We stayed an extra day in Summerdale to hopefully escape the worse of the weather to the west as well as to have our Dish antenna fixed. I must say it sort of worked. Oh, the Dish is working perfectly. But we’re not out of the woods yet in terms of the weather. More about that in a minute.

Today was the first of three overnight hops as we move toward Oklahoma City. That’s where the real sightseeing will begin. From that point on we have all kinds of wonderful excursions planned.

Today’s trip was a mixed bag. We left Alabama under overcast skies and moderate temperatures. Route 10 is a decent road and traffic was light for the first part of the trip.

We rolled into Mississippi and shortly thereafter traffic came to a complete halt. The highway was completely shut down due to an accident some six miles down the road. Thankfully, the highway was reopened within about forty five minutes and we were rolling again.

The next state was Louisiana. The only issue we had to deal with now were the wind gusts. Thankfully, they were coming from the back left corner so though we got pushed around a bit at times it was not a real problem.

Oh, and the good news. The price of fuel is beginning to come down. OK, it’s not back to nor will it ever be what it was a year ago but it is now under $5 in a lot of places. You just have to look for it.

In due time we were at our new home for the night. Again, this is just the first of three overnight stops. The first impression when pulling in was that this was a park that was lovingly cared for. And that impression carries over as you drive to your site.

Here is our new home for the night. It’s a level concrete pad more than long enough for Elvira and our car. We have 50 amp electric and that is all that we have hooked up.

So now we sit and wait. Remember our plan to outrun the weather? It sort of worked. Originally, the weather forecast was calling for severe thunderstorms, maybe a tornado or two and possible hail in this area. Now, the weather forecast is just calling for lots, and lots, and lots of rain tonight. With maybe a thunderstorm or two thrown in. Not the best but a whole lot better than first forecast. And from here on it only gets better.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. Not a bad day at all. We’re looking forward to more of the same as we journey on. I’ve said it before and will continue to say it we are two of the most blessed people on the face of the earth.

Thanks again for stopping by today  It’s always great to be able to share our story with others. Comments? Feel free to share them with me. And always remember, cherish each day that God gives you and live it to the fullest.

Our continuing mission remains the same: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before

April 11, 2022

Temperature 70 Degrees, Overcast, Rain Showers

Marking Time

Time to make the call. The call to Sunshine Satellite to try and get an appointment to resolve our Dish issue. I had my fingers crossed hoping they could come today. But my hopes were quickly dashed like a ship going aground on a rocky shore. They informed me that the earliest they would be able to come out would be Tuesday afternoon. Hum, we were supposed to be leaving tomorrow morning. What to do?

Let’s check the weather again.

I checked the weather again and it sure didn’t look all that promising. The outlook begins to improve as of Wednesday and then gets gradually better as the week goes on. So adhering to the number one rule of life on the road – be flexible – I decided we would stay an extra day.

Which of course would give us the time to resolve our Dish issue. So I made the call and scheduled the appointment for Tuesday appointment. Now, time to call several RV parks we had reservations for in the coming days and push them out. Thankfully, they were all willing to work with me.

Now, remember I was told that no way can we get out today to look at your Satellite we are just absolutely swamped. At 1 pm we received a call that Justin would be at our site within the hour. Now how about that!

When Justin arrived he took one look up at our satellite antenna and said Why there’s your problem. Honestly, I had no idea of what he was talking about. He explained The eyeballs are not in alignment with the receiver. Sure. In essence the bracket that holds the eyeballs that receive the signal from the antenna and relay it down to the Dish receive had come loose and was just hanging loose. A couple of screws and the issue was resolved.

However, still no signal. Justin vowed that before he left all would be resolved. So, back on the roof he went. Within ten minutes we did indeed have a signal. This time the problem was a couple of corroded connections. The long and short of it is we now have our Dish service back in working order. And I now have a much better understanding of how the antenna actually works. As well as what type of maintenance has to be performed to keep this from happening again.

But we’re still leaving Wednesday. Which has me anxious and uptight. The real fun part of this trip doesn’t start till we get to Oklahoma City which won’t be now until Saturday. I’m finding it hard to wait. But wait I will have to. Nothing I can do about it. Bottom line, hard as it is to just mark time I believe we made the right call.

Time to watch some TV. Catch you tomorrow!

As It Was In The Beginning

April 10, 2022

Temperature 79 Degrees, Abundant Sunshine

We had it for a day. One glorious, wonderful day. High definition and all. I’m referring of course to our Dish service. Then we turned it off for the night. The next morning it was no more. And that was the end of it. Nothing I tried would resurrect it. It would not come back on. After numerous tests and pushing all kinds of buttons the consensus seems to be that the signal is not getting from the antenna to the receiver. That’s as far as I’ve gotten at this point in time.

In the meantime its back to days long ago, in a rig no longer ours, to a time when Hallmark was not even a twinkle in our eyes. We survived on OTA and whatever channels we could get and we played hours of Mexican Train. Well, that’s what we’re doing now. But now we also have Phase Ten, and Uno Flip, two new card games to keep us occupied. It’s a brave new world, or should I say, its a blast from the past. Whatever, we’re getting by.

We decided to get out and about today.

We decided to return to a small park we’ve visited before when in this area. The three of us needed some fresh air and a chance to stretch our legs. Proton was in his glory. So many new smells he was having a ball.

The fountain is still in good repair.

This was new. However, we couldn’t decide why it was here. There was no plaque explaining its placement. I even checked the Minutes of the last City Council meeting and still could not find a clue as to why it was placed here. No matter, it is a pretty neat attraction.

So now to confront the Gorilla in the room. Come Tuesday do we stay or go? The weather report for the route we’re taking is not good. It calls for wind, rain, and possible severe thunderstorms. In addition, by the time we get to Oklahoma City, which is the real start of this trip, the temperature is supposed to tank. At this point in time we’ve made the decision to push on. However, we’ll continue to monitor the weather very closely between now and Tuesday morning.

Overall, life on The Road of Retirement remains good. Our time here has allowed us to get everything organized. We’ve been able to purchase the few small items we left home. It’s also been a great time to just get used to being on the road again. We’ve successfully made the transition to being nomads again and are absolutely looking forward to the rest of the trip. Come what may.

Thanks again for stopping by today  It’s always great to be able to share our story with others. Comments? Feel free to share them with me. And always remember, cherish each day that God gives you and live it to the fullest.

Our continuing mission remains the same: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have not been before