Monday March 29, 2021

Temperature 100 Degrees

Off To College

What Were We Thinking

Lunch Out

One thing and only one thing really got us down here – we wanted to have the Diamond Shield removed from the front of Elvira. It is the same reason we came to this RV park. This is where the gentleman who is doing the work suggested we get a site. He comes to you and this is the area that he works in. And now, well, it is going to take longer than expected. We’ll be pushing right up against our Wednesday 10 am departure time.

Time to forget all of that and get out and enjoy ourselves. Ms. Barbara discovered an

just about 20 miles from our site. Great, we thought, we really like their Bagels. Ah, but to get to them we first had to go back to school, namely we had to go to

because the Bagel Shop was located in the

Sure enough just inside the doors we found what we were looking for

We also discovered in the hallway leading here the schools Mascot, meet

Azul the Eagle which is Florida Gulf Coast University’s official mascot. He is named Azul which is Spanish for blue which is one of the official school colors of cobalt blue and emerald green. The eagle mascot was selected by FGCU to represent pride, strength and intelligence. Azul has been all of those things and more to FGCU.

Breakfast finished we decided to go to the fishing pier in Fort Myers for a walk and some sightseeing. Oh, silly us. We forgot that it was still Spring Break in these parts. So, after sitting in traffic for close to an hour the only sightseeing we got in were these pictures from the top of one of the bridges.

OK, so this didn’t work out like we planned but nothing ventured, nothing gained. Time to find some lunch. We had a coupon for

so this is where we headed. It was the lunch hour and we were wondering what we would find, empty or full? The place was just about empty, just the way we like it. We had an enjoyable meal, great food and fantastic servcice.

One more stop to make. Harry and Janet have a winter home here in Fort Myers in this gated community

They asked us if we wouldn’t mind checking on their home.

Of course we could. We found everything in order and the temperature at a comfortable 80 degrees.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. It was great to get out for a bit, well, maybe sitting in traffic wasn’t that much fun. Overall, though, the day was perfect in every way. We were together holding hands, singing our song, traveling along. What more could one ask for. Thank you Lord for this day and the time we had to spend together.

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!

Sunday March 28, 2021

Temperature 91 Degrees

Travel Day – First One In A Long Time

Is This RV Park For Real

We awoke to a beautiful day, clear blue sky, warm temperatures, but really windy. The wind in particular would continue throughout our travels to Fort Myers.

We had a few items yet to pick up and put away so we each went to our assigned chores. Over the years we have developed a good division of labor which really works well for the two of us.

It was now time to bring in the slides. All four came in without an issue and the locks on each slide worked perfectly.

Soon enough it was the moment of truth – bringing Elvira to life. Key in the ignition, pre-ignition ritual, and the girl fired right up and settled down to a steady idle. The pressure in the air tanks came right up, the jacks came up without a hitch and soon enough we were at ride height ready to roll.

Time to get the car on the tow bar and check all the lights. I hooked up without an issue and a brake/turn signal light check showed that all were working properly. We were ready to roll south. It was 10:11 am, we were just a few minutes past our ETD.

Out on I75 I set the cruise at 64 mph and sat back to enjoy the ride. However, the wind had other ideas. We had gusty side winds the whole way which made for some interesting driving most of the way.

It was just a little bit over three hours and we were at our exit. At the bottom of the ramp a left turn and five minutes later a right turn and we were at Upriver RV Resort which will be our new home for three days.

Let me say this right here and now, this park was not what I would have picked but the gentleman who is coming here to work on Elvira highly recommended it. Unfortunately, I don’t believe he has ever spent a night in an RV in this park.

This is our premium spot for which we paid a hefty amount. The first major ding is the high-tension wires overhead. I don’t know about you, but I just don’t feel comfortable parked beneath them. Sure, I know that they say that as long as you are not within 14 feet of them you are OK. I just don’t like it. So, yes we’re on a concrete pad, however, it has a slope to the front. Where is our car? Behind on a patch of dirt that would make a great sleight riding spot if it snowed in these parts. I guess you might be getting the idea that I’m not really thrilled with this spot. Suffice to say, we would never return here again.

The view down our block. You have park models on the one side and a slew of trailers across from them on our side of the road.

Across from us is the canal that leads to the bay. Ah, maybe that’s why they consider this a premium spot, it has a waterfront view. Give me a break. Just three days and not a day longer. I just have to keep telling myself that.

On to other things. Thanks one and all for your suggestions regarding our car dilemma. We have an appointment on Wednesday to try one more time to get it fixed. If that doesn’t resolve the issue then eventually we’ll replace it.

When we finally arrived and were settled in we took the time

to attend virtual worship at our home church.

Today was Palm Sunday and the service began with a verbal and choral call to worship on the front steps of the church.

There was, of course, special music, a number of congregational songs and another strong message of God’s love from Pastor Scott.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. Though it was an easy day of travel it was also somewhat of a strange day. I used to so look forward to trips of any kind with Elvira. It didn’t matter whether we were going for service or to a whole new part of the country. But that excitement was missing today. I don’t know why but I sure hope the old mojo comes back once we turn around and head back north.

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!

Friday March 26, 2021

Temperature 92 Degrees

What Would You Do?

First thing this morning we were once again up and at it since we had an 8 am appointment at the Chevy Dealer. We did, however, allow enough time for the necessary cup of coffee and an a double chocolate muffin. Once finished we were out and on our way.

When we arrived they immediately took the car in. Well, we sat for about two hours and then we decided it was time to find out what was going on.

What was going on? They were stumped. The part they replaced the other day was working perfectly. So what could it be? They even called GM Technical Service who, unfortunately, could only offer an educated guess as to what was causing the problem. That educated guess would cost $500 plus but with no guarantee that it would finally resolve the issue.

So, let me ask you dear reader what would you do?

Option 1. The Service Manager offered to install the part but on this basis. I give him a check to hold. If after a week and filling the tank a couple of times the issue appears to be resolved I call him and tell him so, he cashes the check. However, if the issue has not been resolved he rips up the check. Which of course still leaves us with the issue unresolved.

Option 2. Start looking for another car that we can flat tow. The easiest solution would be to find another newer Sonic so we can just swap our existing baseplate, etc. to the newer car. Or, we find something different all together but this means a new base plate, and on and on. But, with buying the house right now money is stretched a bit thin.

Option 3. Ditch the car and get something like this

Of course we would also have to get a small utility trailer to tow behind it when we went shopping. We will also need a cargo trailer to haul it around the country. Plus, some really good rain gear for those rainy days. OK, OK, this is not going to work. Can’t blame a guy for dreaming!

So what would you do?

Back to food again.

This is Kelly’s Lunch Box which is just 5 minutes from our front door. We just discovered it this past week – of course we’re leaving Sunday – but we’re sure glad we did. They make delish sandwiches and the meat is heaped on. It was our lunch stop on the way home. We were not disappointed with either of our sandwiches.

So that was our day on The Road of Retirement. Unfortunately, we’re right back to square one with the car with no clear solution in sight. We can only hope. Be that as it may we still had an enjoyable day together. And that, as far as we’re concerned is all that matters.

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 March 25, 2021

Temperature 91 Degrees

When Life Gives You Lemons Make Lemonade

When we awoke this morning we had a plan. We were going sightseeing. More to the point we were going to see the Mermaids at Weeki Wachee. We allowed more than enough time to get there. With directions in hand we were out the door. Only one stop to make, we had to fill Little Graybeard with fuel. Are you beginning to get an idea as to where this is headed? If you can’t guess, let me fill you in, the original problem is back but even worse this time around.

Well, we knew we needed to address this before we leave this area on Sunday. We called the dealer and the only time they could take us would be tomorrow morning at 8 am. The only problem with this, tomorrow we were supposed to visit with Harry and Janet.

Well, you know the old saying, When Life Gives You Lemons Make Lemonade. That is exactly what we did. We cancelled our sightseeing plans and went instead to visit

with Harry and Janet where they are staying in Tampa. If we ask me, we definitely came out the winners in this situation. A Mermaid show may be great, but time with family is even better.

It was an absolutely beautiful day. We had clear blue skies with warm temperatures moderated by a southerly wind. We grabbed a table out beside the lake and spend a delightful three hours together.

While we are leaving this area on Sunday they will be here for another two to three months. Harry is scheduled for surgery on April 15th and it is estimated it will take about 8 to 9 hours. We will definitely be lifting both he and Janet up in prayer that day.

Midafternoon we returned home. We had someone coming to look at Ms. Barbara’s bike. We decided we didn’t really want to drag it all over the country since there was little hope at this point in time of her riding it. I promised her when she is really ready we would buy her another one. I’m leaning toward an electric bike this time around. Well, the bike was sold.

In addition, I was able to sell our Pathfinder X2 Dish portable antenna since we no longer had any need for it.

Two less items to pack up and take with us. Sweet.

That was our day on The Road of Retirement. It started out as a bummer but ended up a winner in so many ways. One couldn’t have asked for a much better day. As for tomorrow, hopefully we’ll actually get the car fixed once and for all. I’m trying to keep an optimistic outlook on things. Time to wrap things up and call it a night. Sleep tight one and all.

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!