Back Home in GA.

The past few days were busy for Judy and I getting ready to leave Florida to return home for a while. We sure were not looking forward to leaving Adelaide Shores RV Resort. We will surely miss all of our new friends. Dee and Jim were great neighbors. Many folks stopped by to tell us good-by and wish us a safe trip. Jon and Kathleen stopped by Tue evening as well as Steve. Chuck stopped by earlier in the day and confirmed that he and Karen are going to stop by Blanton Creek Park (where Judy and I are workampers) on their way back to Indiana.  The shuffle board group and  card group also gave us a nice send off. We have made reservations for next year. Judy and I are missing everyone already.

Dee and Jim made it a point to get up early Wed. to see us off.  Judy and I are looking forward to seeing them in April when they stop by Blanton Creek on their way to points north. Thanks again Dee and Jim for making sure we had a great time and for getting up early to see us off.

Judy must have taken this, I recocnize her thumb! Thanks for seeing us off Jim & Dee

We had planned to go to Jacksonville for a two day stay at a RV park on the Naval Base at May Port. Due to an administrative snafu - no registration for the fiver, we changed our plans on the fly and overnighted at Crooked River SP in St. Mary's, GA. It is located five miles from Kings Bay Submarine Base. We did not even unhitch the fiver since we were only staying one night. We are very familiar with the area as our son was stationed on one of the subs there when he was in the Navy. Judy and I had a nice seafood dinner at Lang's Seafood restaurant on the St. Mary's River Wed night. Thurs morning we left the fiver at the cg and went to the base. I stopped by security and got DOD registrations for my truck and Judy's CRV. Now we can drive on any military bases without having to get a temp pass. We also checked out the base RV park and went to the base exchange to get a little shopping in. We got back to the CG at 12:45 and I hopped into the truck and we were soon back on the road.
Main gate at Kings Bay Sub Base

Views from Lang's Seafood Restaurant

 

 

The trip from Crooked River CG to our home is about 220 miles. I had a slight scare when we were about fifty miles from home. My Pressure Pro TPMS sounded an audible alarm and flashed the right rear tire position on the fiver. It also flashed that the tire pressure was down to 70PSI from 80PSI.  I muted the alarm and looked for a place that I could pull off the road. I was driving on HW 441.  It took me approx 3 min to get to a safe area. Judy pulled off behind me and I had already told her which tire was having a problem. She actually got to it before I did.  She told me air was coming out at the valve where the sensor was screwed on.  I told her to tighten it down. That stopped the leak.  I took the sensor off and used my digital pressure gage to check the pressure. It was at 53 PSI.  I reinstalled the sensor to the valve and check for leaks.  Once back in the truck I confirmed the pressure with the Pressure Pro system and it indicated 53 PSI also.  I decided to continue the last fifty miles. The rest of the trip went fine. I will inflate the tire back to 80 PSI Friday AM.

Judy and I arrived home at 7:45 PM. After a little unpacking we called it a day. We will off load some things of the Cardinal tomorrow. We will be opening Blanton Creek in three and a half weeks.

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog: Monday evening

 In the morning we got the fiver ready for travel so all we would have to do was

Ice Cream, Car Show, and Rollers & Sliders

Today was packed full of activities. The weather was wonderful.  Judy and I worked on our “getting ready to leave “ list this morning.  I even washed her CRV.  I also double checked the truck and Cardinal tire pressures with my Pressure Pro system. I drove to the Murphy Gas station near Wall Mart and topped off with diesel.

After 1:00PM we joined Dee and Jim at the park car show. There were 119 entries this year, up from 85 last year. One of the entries was a 1967 Ford Fairlane 390GT like I had when I was in high school. Looking back that was a lot of HP in the hands of a seventeen year old.

    

                                                           Best in Show – 1957 Chevy

   

After looking at the cars we all went to the clubhouse for ice cream and some social interaction.

At 4:00PM Jim and I fired our grills up to grill burgers, hotdogs, and some Johnsonville Brats. Judy and Dee served up some shrimp dip, baked beans, potato salad, Watergate salad, chips and assorted beverages. Our mutual friends Jon and Kathleen also joined us. We had a great time eating and talking.

They look ready to eat!

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Tue (maybe)

Leaving for Jacksonville, FL. Wed AM

Busy Week

Judy and I have been very busy this week.  We are into our last week here at Adelaide Shores RV Resort.  Next Wed we will be heading to the Jacksonville area for a couple of days. We have reservations at the Pelican Roost RV Park at the Naval Station, Mayport, FL. It is a five hundred plus mile drive to our base on Lake Sinclair and the two day stop will break up the drive.

Tue we went with Dee and Jim to see the Tom Cruise movie, Jack Reacher. I was surprised that I enjoyed it. It was not on my must see list. Afterwards we went to Jimmy’s Greek Restaurant in Sebring for a delicious Gyro sandwich. We have been eating out way too much this week.

My toe is getting back to normal now and I am able to walk ok without any pain. I am still keeping a small bandage on it though.

Now that we are within a week of leaving I am getting my pre-travel checks in on the truck and RV.  I took my air compressor out of the basement and topped off all the tires with the recommended air inflation. I plan to put my Pressure Pro TPMS sensors back on the truck and RV tires today or Sunday.

Today (Sat) Judy and I are going to go over to the clubhouse for breakfast hosted by the Horseshoe Club. It seems that at least every two weeks or so some club is sponsoring a meal. I just go to show my support!

The park is hosting a “Car Show” today from 12-5 PM. The show had over 85 entries last year and the organizers expect over 100 entries today. I’ll have some pics in my next blog.

That is all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Sunday

Trip to Urgent Care

Saturday was the day I decided it was time to confirm my suspicions about the pain in my right big toe.  I have been having quite a bit of pain in my toe for a couple of weeks.  I blamed it on my worn out sneakers, after all I had been wearing them for at least six years.  I thought they were just getting broken in good.

The weather was cool and overcast so I thought it would be a good time to get it checked out. Judy went with me to the nearest urgent care, only a mile or so from the park.  We checked in and had a seat in the waiting area along with the four or five people ahead of me. After a few minutes I knew why they were seeking medical attention. I would say they were well into the flu and their symptoms were clear. After I completed the required paper work I suggested for Judy to wait in the car. She was overjoyed to leave the waiting area for the car.

I waited another forty-five minutes until I was taken back. I told the PA my diagnosis and he confirmed it, an ingrown toenail. He told me he could take care of it quick, fast, and in a hurry. He said nothing about painless though. After about five painful numbing shots he went to work. Thankfully, I could not see what he was doing but I could feel him probing and clipping or cutting. If he sensed it was painful to me he just shot some more Novocain or whatever it was into my toe. Twenty minutes after starting it was over.  I went to CVS and got two prescriptions filled and Judy took me home and I have taken it easy since then. I am going in for follow up tomorrow (Tue).

To add to my misery the Falcons choked again ending their run for a Super Bowl spot.

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Friday

Day with Friends Bill & Treva

Friday morning Judy and I drove to our friends Bill and Treva’s home about an hour and a half from the park just south of Tampa. We always have a great time when we get together. We met Bill and Treva when we all lived in England in the Personnel Exchange Program. Bill and I was stationed with the Royal Navy near Portsmouth, England.
They recently sold their longtime home and bought a new home in a gated 55+ community called Valencia Lakes. Judy was very interested in seeing the new home.  We both like to keep our options open for the time we eventually quit traveling.  Needless to say, Bill and Treva’s home was lovely and the community was very impressive.
After touring the community and seeing all that it had to offer Bill had a surprise up his sleeve. He took us to St. Petersburg pier for lunch. Judy and I enjoyed our meal immensely. The panoramic view was awesome. We ate at the Columbia Restaurant, a Cuban cusine restaurant. We had the original 1905 Salad and roast chicken over a bed of yellow rice.  Bill and Treva always choose such great eating places!  After a two and a half hour lunch we headed back to their place to pick-up our car, but not before we stopped at a strawberry farm and had a delicious strawberry milkshake.  We can’t wait to get back to visit again.

Treva Bill & Judy                                                Me & Judy

     
Original 1905 Salad                                                   Our View
   
              Looking a little cool                                Enjoying a strawberry shake
   
Welcome new followers BJ and Jeff and Sheryl.  That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Movie and RV Show Gathering

Judy and I decided to have a movie day Wednesday on the spur of the moment.  We finished our morning activities before heading down to the theatre in Sebring.  We also invited Jim and Dee to go with us because JIm had indicated he wanted to see the movie also.  The movie we saw was “Zero Dark Thirty” (TRAILER). We all enjoyed the movie. The focus of the movie is one CIA agent’s pain staking search for OBL  The SEAL’s operation is part of the movie but a better understanding of the SEAL’s action can be found in the book “No Easy Day”.

No Easy Day – Gives a first hand account of the OBL

Today we rode with Jim and Dee to the Tampa RV show. We saw a lot of nice RV’s but we are not in the market. Judy and I like to go to the shows so we can keep up with the latest improvements in the RV industry. Dee had organized a meeting/lunch with fellow bloggers and RVers.  Judy and I enjoyed the opportunity to meet many new friends and fellow blogger Karen and Al. We have been following their adventures for a couple of years.
The weather could have been much better. A cold front came through the Tampa area and it brought lower temps and rainy weather.  We got to see everything  we wanted to see though but it was pretty cool and wet.
That’s all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog: Sunday

Useful Information

Monday the weather continued to be a little warmer than normal but no one here was complaining. I think it is awesome being in the low eighties in Jan. Judy and I enjoyed sitting out under the awning doing a little catch-up reading and visiting with people passing by.

The first thing on our agenda Monday was the weekly Park meeting. At the meeting a representative from the “Medical Air Services Association” (MASA). I had never heard of it or even thought about possibly needing the services they provide. That is why I am mentioning it in my blog. I think that the services the association offers has some relevance to RVers, particularly full-time or extended-timers. MASA Assist is a thirty-five year old established international organization that is dedicated to providing  members with lifesaving, emergency assistance while they are at home, on the job, or traveling the world.. I am not going to repeat the presentation here but I am going to provide a couple of links so if you are interested in knowing more details you can check it out. Accidents, health issues and even death are some of the things that can happen while we are on the road. If they occur, I hope Judy and I have made the correct plans.

Links: Medical Air services Association

          FAQs

          Video

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Friday

Red Hat Ladies Breakfast

One thing about Adelaide Shores RV Resort is there is never a shortage of activities. Today things got started early, real early. The park’s Red Hat Ladies sponsored a pancake breakfast this morning beginning at 7:00 AM. The breakfast included eggs to order, sausage, toast and coffee and juice also. All of this for five bucks. They sure know how to cook! Many of the parks residents showed up. Judy and I shared a table with Galen and Georgia who just happen to be from Milledgeville, GA.

Red Hat’s Breakfast

      

Maxwell’s House of Fruit

Today we went a little overboard eating out. Dee and Jim (Tumbleweed) joined us at a local Chinese restaurant for lunch. Then we all went to Maxwell’s citrus farm for a cone of orange ice cream. Judy and Dee also bought a couple of jugs of fresh squeezed OJ.

That is all now.  Thanks for stopping by.

Next Blog: Tue

Air Boat Excursion (Rev. 1)

We finally made it to our scheduled air boat excursion today after two postponements. The second attempt was cancelled yesterday but today was the charm.

Judy and I were invited by Archie and Anne to join them on this outing. We are so glad that they did. Thank you Anne and Archie for a great day.

The tour was provided by Alligator Cove Tours (Web Site) and they gave us a great nature tour. (Video) The air boat was operated by Capt. Darald and Capt. Dee took care of the administration duties. Capt. Dee also took a photo as we left for the tour and had each of us a copy when we returned, free of charge!

Thanks Capt. Dee for the photo!

Cattle grazing in the marsh

Blue Heron                                                  Where is the gator?

     

The tour lasted for two hours and covered about 22 miles in the marshes of Lake Kissimmee Basin. Of course we saw many species of birds and and lots of gators but I was surprised at the number of cattle we saw grazing in the marshes. Capt. Darald explained the history of this to us along with many other facts of the area. He did a great job and made the tour very enjoyable. I am sure this will be one of the highlights of our stay in Florida.

That’s all for now. Thanks for stopping by.

NOTE: This is the previous post with pics added.

 

 

NOTE: I am having trouble uploading pics via Blogger, will post when I resolve issue.

Air Boat Excursion

We finally made it to our scheduled air boat excursion today after two postponements.  The second attempt was cancelled yesterday but today was the charm.

Judy and I were invited by Archie and Anne to join them on this outing. We are so glad that they did. Thank you Anne and Archie for a great day.

The tour was provided by Alligator Cove Tours (Web Site) and they gave us a great nature tour. (Video)  The air boat was operated by Capt. Darald and Capt. Dee took care of the administration duties. Capt. Dee also took a photo as we left for the tour and had each of us a copy when we returned, free of charge!

The tour lasted for two hours and covered about 22 miles in the marshes of Lake Kissimmee Basin. Of course we saw many species of birds and and lots of gators but I was surprised at the number of cattle we saw grazing in the marshes.  Capt. Darald explained the history of this to us along with many other facts of the area. He did a great job and made the tour very enjoyable. I am sure this will be one of the highlights of our stay in Florida.

Thats all for now.  Thanks for stopping by.

NOTE: I am having trouble uploading pic via Blogger, will post when I resolve issue.

Washed Out

Judy and I had plans for a day trip with Anne and Archie on Friday but it was washed out due to rain.  Archie and Anne are visiting the park for a month and then will be moving further south. We were going to go on an air-boat excursion. The trip has been rescheduled for next Tue.

Judy and I just had a lazy day Friday because of the weather conditions. She did get her walk in though. I decided to take a look at the washer dryer combo that we have in the fiver but have never used. All the connections look right but the vent hose was not connected so I tried to reconnect it but it was about a foot to short. That probably explains why it  was not connected.  I picked up a new vent hose at Wally World today (Sat.) and will attach it tomorrow.  Judy and I finished off Friday  playing cards at the clubhouse between 7-9 PM.

Today was more of the same, except the weather was very nice. Judy walked about five miles and I walked about one and a half. While we were out getting the dryer hose we stopped in at a Chinese restaurant for lunch. We both were pretty happy with it. Tonight we are meeting with our card group for another evening of cards.

That's all for now. Thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog:Wed

Into the New Year

Judy and I spent New Years Eve with our park neighbors Dee and Jim.  We arrived at their RV after a grueling 20 second walk from our RV!  It was great not having to drive.  Judy and I got to Jim and Dee's rv around 8:30 with a few snacks, two wine glasses and a bottle of  wine. We passed the 3.5 hours until the midnight ball drop talking, watching TV and just having a good time. Thanks Dee and Jim for the invite.

Today after Judy and Dee completed their walk Dee taught Judy some EXCEL basics. Judy plans to work harder tracking our expenses, maybe it is a New Years resolution. I don't have any.

Today was movie day.  We went with Dee and Jim to the movies this afternoon. I think everyone enjoyed a little comic relief with "The Guilt Trip." To watch the movie trailer click. We capped off the trip to the movies with a stop at the Olive Garden for a great meal and conversation. We passed on desert at the restaurant but made a stop at the newly opened Dunkin Donut shop on the way home.

That is all for now. Thanks for stopping by.
Next Blog: Saturday