Saturday, May 1, 2021

Temperature Low, 47 Degrees; High, 68 Degrees

Amanda and The Grand Dogs

I Adopted Jules

What a fine morning we awoke to. Beautiful blue skies and abundant sunshine. Plus, the wind had finally died down to just a whisper.

Breakfast was waffles with a side of ham plus juice and coffee. Afterwards, tummy full, I decided to putter around outside for a bit.

I was able to get the front privacy screen on; next, the tire covers; and, finally the mirror and wiper covers. After that I went shopping in the pantry for my sweetheart. I ended my chores for the day by cleaning the love bugs off the front and then touching up the nicks in the front cap with the paint I had ordered.

While outside I struck up a conversation with my neighborhood on the left. What a wonderful family. This was their madden voyage for this year and their two boys were having a grand time. I believe its really great when you see a family getting out and enjoying the outdoors together. They’re doing things together, playing ball, flying model airplanes, bike riding and so much more. I wish them all the best this year in their travels here and there.

Later in the afternoon our daughter Amanda and our two grand dogs came for the night. Oh, that’s Ms. Barbara in the background making chicken cutlets for our supper. In addition to the cutlets we had mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing, and vegetables. Absolutely yummy!

Grand dog number one, Inky.

Grand dog number two, Mae. She is the older of the two and is blind. She navigates by moving around and bumping into and off of things. Doesn’t seem to faze her in the least.

They’re so cute. And the best part of it is, they go back home in the end with my daughter.

Meet Jules, my newly adopted turtle. He is a loggerhead hatchling. As of now Jules is doing fairly well, however, I just received an email informing me that he is having a few issues which they are currently working to correct.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. It was a great day made even better when Amanda and the grand dogs came to visit. Over the course of the next three weeks we hope to see more of her and our son, Adam. We also have our grandchildren which we hope to visit as well. Ah yes, life is good.

Thanks for taking the time to read our blog.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!

Thursday, April 29, 2021

Temperature, Low 71 Degrees; High, 73 Degrees

Travel Day

Moving day for us again. Yup, we’re continuing to head north. Next stop, kids and grandkids.

Today’s trip would be a short one, just over two hours. Moreover, since we couldn’t check in before 2 pm without paying a fee we were in no rush to get on the road. So, we just sort of eased into the morning. We took the time to have a great breakfast of eggs and sausage and a couple of cups of coffee.

All in all, we were still on the road at 10:30 am. The first challenge of the trip was a 4% grade of six miles. Now, I know we’ve done climbs like this in the past without an issue but for some reason this one had me spooked. Don’t know why. However, in the end the grade proved to be a none issue. I dropped down into 4th gear, held the RPM’s at 2100 and we went up as slick as could be without ever going over 180 degrees on the temperature gauge. Now, how about that.

The rest of the trip was an absolute breeze. I engaged the cruise control and let it do it’s thing. I find that this is the best way to get the best mpg. In fact, on this trip even with that grade Elvira averaged 9.3 mpg. OK, it’s not your usual 30 plus mpg but hey we’re talking about a rather heavy lady.

In due time we entered the state of West Virginia. But not for long, twenty five miles later

We entered the state of Maryland in which we would find our new neighborhood.

However, since it was just a little past 1 pm instead of going directly to the park we headed to a Walmart where we would park for a few hours. In addition, since Ms. Barbara had a prescription to pick up at this Walmart it was the logical thing to do. We were also to get in a quick visit with our son, Adam, for about ten minutes.

A little later we hoped back on I-81 and ten exits later we were headed to our new digs.

Just like that we were there. Our new neighborhood for the next three weeks. We’ve been here before and we have a love/hate relationship with this park. This is basically a family park with tons of things for kids to do. But for full-timers like ourselves, we view it as over priced but a necessary evil because it is the only decent place to stay,

This is the back section we are in. The roads are hard packed gravel, wide, and easy to navigate. All the sites here are pull thru.

This is our site. It is dirt with a sprinkling of gravel and an ample dose of weeds. It is absolutely unlevel, so unlevel that even with the front jacks at maximum extension I can’t get Elvira level front to back. The plus is, our DISH antenna has located and locked on to all three satellites.

This will give you an idea of just how unlevel these sites are. What do you think? About three feet between the top of the tire and the fender!

Then again our utilities are not in our neighbor’s patio this time!

We arrived just in time for the heavens to open up. It came and went, and came again. In between the bouts of rain I managed to get the essentials set up. The rest can wait until tomorrow. Then again, they’re saying tomorrow we are supposed to have strong, gusty winds between 30 to 50 mph. Time will tell. As of now, we’re settling in and just kicking back.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. I’m beginning to get a little more used to all the traffic that’s part of the east coast. I can’t say I like it but I can tolerate it a bit more with each trip I take out here. Well, for now we’ll be stationary for the next three weeks. We have visits planned. Some sightseeing. And I have a ton of maintenance to do while we’re here. Ah, life on the road.

Thanks for taking the time to read our blog.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!

Wednesday, April 28, 2021

Temperature Low, 62 Degrees; High, 89 Degrees

Company Came Calling

Get Lost In The Past –Part Two

We had company last night, well sort of

I have no idea what brought them to our site but they are still here. When I went out this morning after breakfast, they were still there under our picnic table. I decided not to feed them because I’m sure if I did, they would never go away.

Time now to Go Back To The Past. Yesterday, we were in Ireland, today we move to

Germans were the largest group of non-English speaking Europeans to settle in colonial America. Between 1683 and 1776, roughly 120,000 German-speaking immigrants arrived in the colonies. Thought most settled around the Philadelphia area, over time, German-speaking colonists found their way into the Great Valley of the Appalachians and, by the 1730s, across the Potomac River into the northern Valley of Virginia. 

We were informed that this home, found and brought from Germany, was the home of a tailor. We were also told that though a tailor he would still be considered a peasant, but an upper class peasant. I forgot to ask him what one had to do to advance even higher in the social hierarchy. It was probably a combination of land and money.

Though the house had recently been whitewashed, the outbuildings were in urgent need of repairs and also a fresh coat of whitewash. The guide at this exhibit informed us that he would be beginning such immediately after his lunch break. It’s good to know that all the buildings in the various exhibits are constantly being tended to.

We move now to early Indian and American Settlers

Ganatastwi is a Native American Exhibit at the Frontier Culture Museum that shows how a small group of native Americans might have been living west of the Blue Ridge around 1730, or just near the beginning of European and West African settlement in the wider region.

Eastern Woodland Culture is a term used today to classify the people who lived in this area. The dome shaped home above, commonly known as a wigwam, was one form of house that inhabitants of this area lived in. These houses, usually owned by women, were made of saplings, tree bark and cat tail reeds. The women typically did the farming and the men hunted and fished.

They traded furs, beads, and cloth with both settlers and other Indians.

Now we come to the early American settlements.

Settlement of America’s Appalachian river valleys began in the late 1720s. The colony of Virginia enacted land policies to attract settlers to create a buffer of Protestant farmers on the colony’s western frontier.

The 1740s farmhouse is a lonely log cabin, with just the basic necessities.

Most of the time the inhabitants of the cabin slept on the floor. When there was a bed, if you can call it that it was a crude creation crafted out of slats and posts.

Life was simple and tough. The fireplace was small and the chimney was built separate from the cabin. The reason being when there was a fire in the chimney, which was frequent, they could just push the chimney away from the cabin thus saving their home. Cooking equipment consisted of a cast iron pot and possibly a frying pan. Food was served on wooden platers or pewter dishes.

It was up to you to supply your own food. You either grew it or hunted for it.

Moving on

By the early 1800’s farmers in the Valley of Virginia were able to provide a comfortable lifestyle for themselves, and their families.

This farmhouse is palatal by earlier standards.

Instead of just one room, there many different rooms for different functions. Off to the right you can just see the one corner of a cast iron stove. These stoves were slowly replacing the fireplace as the means of heating homes.

Cooking utensils were becoming more varied and of better quality.

Moving outside

With that we now move from the past back into the future. We found the Museum absolutely fascinating and highly recommend a tour of it to anyone who happens to have a few hours to spare when in this area.

I know one thing, I have an absolutely new perspective on those who settled this country. I can only imagine the hardships they suffered. By the sweat of their brow they built this land that we call America. Now, it is up to us to preserve it and the freedoms they fought so hard for.

Our day on The Road of Retirement has once again come to an end. It’s been a fun day in many ways. We were able to spend some more time with Carol and Bob. We met them at

Without going into any detail, let me just say lunch turned out to be very interesting!

Time now to say goodnight. We move again tomorrow and we need to be rested and ready to go for our really long move – maybe two hours!

Thanks for taking the time to read our blog.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!

Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Temperature Low, 42 Degrees; High, 83 Degrees

Get Lost In The Past

We awoke to yet another beautiful day. Cool but comfortable with the promise of higher temperatures very shortly. The sky was clear blue and the sun was shining bright. Oh yes, this was going to be another great day.

Today we were going sightseeing. More to the point we were going to

Up the entrance road into the parking lot and on to

the entrance to the museum. The Frontier Culture Museum is an outdoor living history museum that tells the story of thousands of people who came to colonial America and of the life they created here for themselves and their descendants.

The Museum operates on about 200 acres with 11 major exhibits. The path that connects all these exhibits is over two miles long and winds over hill and dale. Well, given the state of our knees we decided rather than try to try walk we would instead

take advantage of one of the the golf carts they have for rental. All I can say, we are sure glad we made the decision to rent one. It made for a much more enjoyable day.

Each week they have a special event or exhibit. This week they were doing sheep sheering.

These ladies were doing it the old fashioned way – using hand shears. At the rate they were going I would imagine it would be a very long time before they were finished. I was amazed, though, at how docile the sheep being sheared was. It never put up a fight nor tried to break free. I guess it was really anxious to get rid of its wool coat especially since the weather was beginning to warm up.

Back to the exhibits, the first one you come to is

the 18th century village of the Igbo people of West Africa. We were told by the interpreter that 40% of the slaves in early America came from this one tribe on the Atlantic coast of Africa – a poignant reminder that not every one came to America voluntarily.

This is the furnace for the village blacksmith.

This hoe was one of the items he would make. It was a large iron disc attached to a wooden handle. It was used by the men of the village to dig up yams. The women used smaller but similar hoes. Yams were a cash crop in West Africa and some could weight up to ten pounds.

This is the kitchen area. The wood standing upright was stacked around the center fire pit until it dried and then it was used as fuel and replaced with other limbs that were green. Once they were dried they were used as fuel and the cycle continued.

This was a common area in which meals were taken, baskets were made, and other necessary household items were also made.

The men in the village had multiple wives. The number of wives a man had depended on his wealth and status. This would have been the hut for one of them. She would live here with her children until they reached puberty. Then the boys would go to live with their father, and the girls would end up getting married.

There used to be three other huts out here but winter weather destroyed them. One hut would have been for the husband. They will be rebuilt this summer.

From West Africa to England

This English farm house was built in England’s West Midlands.

By 1700 ,over 250,000 individuals, most of whom were born in England lived in the colonies. Virginia was England’s first north American colony, and as many as 120,000 English migrants arrived here in the 1600’s.

A typical hearth for cooking.

In the left of this picture you will notice two kegs. Home brewing was common in the English household since beer instead of water was often served at meal time; the safety of water was often in question. Now, let me think maybe I can convince my DW that our water isn’t safe either!

A typical bed of that era. The mattress was often stuffed with hay or down, and suspended in the bed frame with rope or web straps.

From England to Ireland.

This two room house was made of native Irish sandstone and covered in whitewash. It had a typical thatched roof.

The migration of Irish Protestants from Ulster, Ireland’s northern most province, to the American colonies began in 1718. By the American Revolution, more than 100,000 Ulster immigrants had arrived in America. Education and religion were important to these settlers and they established schools, academies and Presbyterian churches in the places they settled.

It was a women’s job to spin flax into thread but a man’s job to weave it into linen.

We have a lot more exhibits to cover but we’re going to end here tonight. We’ll continue our tour of the Museum tomorrow.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. It was a beautiful day from start to finish and we had a great time together touring the Museum. As always our day was spent just traveling along, side by side, singing our song. What a life we live it is the best that can be. Hope yours is also.

Thanks for taking the time to read our blog.  We always appreciate your company, your comments, and your suggestions. Keep safe, keep healthy, live to the fullest the days that God gives you.

These are the voyages of  Elvira and her two intrepid travelers.  Our continuing mission: to explore as many new states as possible, to seek out new acquaintances and make new friends, to boldly go where we have never been before.

See you on down the road!