Happy Campers

Obama-Hitler-Lenin

2010-07-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

Story from Yahoo News 7/14/2010

DES MOINES, IOWA- A billboard created by an Iowa Tea Party group comparing President Barack Obama to Adolf Hitler and Vladimir Lenin has been removed. Kent Beatty, the general manager of the company that owns the billboard, says a North Iowa Tea Party representitive called Tuesday night and asked that the sign in downtown Mason City be removed. Beatty says his company replaced the sign Wednesday morning with a public service announcement. The original sign showed photographs of Obama, Nazi leader Hitler and communist leader Lenin beneath the labels "Democrat Socialism", "National Socialism" and "Marxist Socialism". Some Tea Party members critisized the sign and North Iowa Tea Party co-founder Bob Johnson acknowledged the pictures overwhelmed the intended message of anti-socialism.

This is David's email answer to the Executive Director of the Tea Party organization in reference to the article:

Ms. Blakley,
My name is David Faber and yes, I belong to the Tea Party. Today I read an AP article about the Obama-Hitler-Lenin billboard in Iowa. I read that people are offended and upset. I read that even you, Executive Director Tea Party Patriot, did not agree with the posting of the billboard. Ms. Blakley, I must strongly disagree with those views when I see what is going on in my country, any country, your country. People need to wake up! We are in danger. Hitler was a leader that everyone loved at first, in a country that was suffering an economic collapse, high unemployment, lack of health care, lack of housing, high fuel prices, a country struggleing to stay alive. Much like our own country today. He came along and 'helped' the people with the peoples car, Volkswagon, with banks, housing, medical care and social programs. The government took over and everyone was so needy at the time they went along with the program. The government told them what to do, when to do it and where to do it. Hitler then owned them.
Does this sound familiar? Obama is doing the same thing. He is creating a country of people that are totally dependent on the government and people are hurting so bad that like sheep are going to follow this leader. People say they don't want the government so involved but when it comes to keeping your home, your job, or your lifestyle, they will follow this leader and then he will own US! Normal, everyday people are getting sucked in by this administration and going along with the program. Yes, we may complain to our neighbors, bitch to our friends but does anyone care? Did Hitler care? Does Obama care? No, he just keeps rolling out the plans to further enslave the people. If anyone were to put up a billboard decrying that Hitler was a Dangerous Leader, they would have been silenced, much like you are doing now. I ask you please, do not silence those who 'cry out' because you need to show 'political correctness'. That is why I joined the Tea Party, I thought finally the people will have a voice! If this is not the case, let me know and I will resign my membership today. Obama only wishes that he could make the changes that Hitler made. If this billboard offends people then so be it. It is only stating the truth and I thought the Tea Party was about truth. If this billboard gets people up to save themselves, then great. Ms. Blakley, check history and you will find that we are headed down the same road as Hitlers people and yes, like his people some will die because of the Obama agenda.
Thank you for your time. David Faber, California.

OIL SPILL OR GOVERNMENT CONSPIRACY

2010-07-05T07:53:00.000-07:00

OK, so here I go again.
I heard an interesting broadcast on the radio last night concerning the "oil spill" in the gulf. First of all, what a horrible disaster this is. Much bigger than even Katrina. In the aftermath of Katrina, Pres. Bush was not only berated because he didn't do enough, but his overall ratings went to their lowest point and people wanted him out of office. Along comes this even greater disaster and so far no one seems to be aware of the consequenses and they put no blame at all on O'Bama. Why is that?
In this radio broadcast there was a discussion on the potenial catastrophic dangers that could result from the accumulation of methane in the gulf. There seems to be evidence which suggests that a massive bulge of methane is forming under the ocean floor. If it suddenly bursts open, the methane could reduce the bouyancy of the water, causing any large ships in the area to suddenly sink and kill thousands of people. The collapse of the bulge would cause water to fill the hole and create a tsunami that would hit the coast within minutes. I suggest that the lack of action coming from Washington is because they know this is a potential danger by not letting the people fill the gulf with boats and in not letting journalsits in the near vicinity. Because BP's 'mud log' data is unavailable to anyone outside of BP, there is no way in predicting when such an event could occur. According to some people I have heard on the air, if methane gas is there then so are many other gases. Some of these gases are lethal if inhaled. If BP is giving it's clean-up workers gas masks then there is a chance that these gases will soon blow through the breeze to land. What are the people not only in these areas but even up to the midwest supposed to do now? And why isn't the government letting us know what is really going on?
So now the First Amendment has been suspended forbidding anyone including journalsits, bloggers, or photographers to approach any oil clean-up efforts, equiptment or any boats in the area. Anyone caught is subject to arrest, a $40,000 fine and possible felony charges. Anderson Cooper of CNN, a liberal, I might add, reported that there have been instances of strong arming to keep the journalists out of the area. Some of the things they and the government do not want you to see are the pictures of the wildlife, covered in such thick oil, they have no chance. Another image they may not want us to see is the actual size of the damage. Help has been offered by other countries but they have been turned down.
A Big Brother approach is being used in the gulf area by criminalizing journalists, censoring their stories and trying to keep the American people ignorant of what is going on. Our government no longer recognizes the Constitution or the Bill of Rights because the first right is Freedom of Speech, which includes the right to walk on a public beach and report on what is going on. It is one of our most basic rights as Americans. As we just celebrated the 4th of July, Independance Day, to be free of oppression, why are we standing for this obvious breech of our basic rights? The O'Bama administration has stripped away those rights without any fight from anyone. What rights are next? What happened to 'the land of the free'?

Big Brother or our elected Government?

2009-08-17T16:21:00.000-07:00

When we give government the power to make medical decisions for us—and force us to vaccinate and medicate our children in the name “health” and “policy” and for “the greater good” we, in essence, accept that the state owns our bodies, and, apparently, our children.Some of the new H1N1 (swine flu) vaccines are going to be made by Novartis. These shots will probably be made in PER.C6 cells (human retina cells) and contain MF59, a potentially debilitating adjuvant. MF-59 is an oil-based adjuvant primarily composed of squalene.All rats injected with squalene (oil) adjuvants developed a disease that left them crippled, dragging their paralyzed hindquarters across their cages. Injected squalene can cause severe arthritis (3 on scale of 4) and severe immune responses, such as autoimmune arthritis and lupus.

Ingredients of this H1N1 flu shot are as follows:

1. Egg proteins: including avian contaminant viruses
2. Gelatin: can cause allergic reactions and anaphylaxis are usually associated withsensitivity to egg or gelatin
3. Polysorbate 80 (Tween80™): can cause severe allergic reactions, includinganaphylaxis. Also associated with inferility in female mice.
4. Formaldehyde: known carcinogen
5. Triton X100: a strong detergent
6. Sucrose: table sugar
7. Resin: known to cause allergic reactions
8. Gentamycin: an antibiotic9. Thimerosal: mercury is still in multidose flu shot vials

You may not be given the choice but if you are, please do not let the government decide for you that your children need these vaccinations. Right now they are saying all school age children should have them. They will be in the form of 4 shots with a check up sometime after the shots. Remember, you are the parent and should have control over your childs life. I don’t know for sure but it has been said that the rise in Autism is due to the vaccinations we have allowed the medical profession to give our children. All I know is that 1 in 67 children are Autistic, 1 in 6 suffers some kind of developmental disorder. In boys the rate of Autism is 1 in 38. If the mercury in the vaccinations is the cause of this, besides the money spent in treating children with Autism (35 billion per year), the precious lives of our children are at stake.

The government can not handle itself yet expects us to believe they know what they are doing. Everything they get involved in they either ends up owning or making a complete mess of it. As far as the poor not having medical care, it seems to me there has been medi-cal programs in effect for many years, we already pay taxes for that. The current government says that people in this country are dying because they don't have medical care. Who are these people? As far as I know even people who are in this country illegally get medical attention. Who pays for that? If it seems that so many people don't have medical care then what will happen when everyone has the same insurance, waiting in line for weeks or months to see the doctors who no matter how they treat a patient, will be getting paid by the government? They will also decide if your medical condition is worth treating. If you are a senior it will be decided if your remaining life is viable enough to give you medical care.

In the new healthcare bill the administration is trying to slide through, is a section on the elderly and dementia. Seniors must submit to "advance care planning consultation" (a.k.a. end-of-life discussions) every five years, or more often if there is "a significant change in the health condition of the individual, including diagnosis of a chronic, progressive, life-limiting disease, a life-threatening or terminal diagnosis or life-threatening injury." Will these consultants advise seniors to hurry up and die because they are costing too much money?
Will someone else decide my Mother is not worth saving because she is elderly and has dementia?

Now as far as the town hall meetings are concerned, all I hear is how the conservatives are disruptive, shouting and loud. Gee, I guess that it did not matter when the liberals in this country did the same thing when they protested against the war in Iraq. We all have the right to stand up, protest or just let our feelings be known.

Now, on the White House blog dated 8/4/09, titled ‘facts are stubborn things’, O’Bama stated:There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can’t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we’re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to: flag@whitehouse.gov

For all of my friends who feel differently than I, feel free to turn me in as the President has requested. Sound a little like ‘Big Brother’ is watching?

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICHAEL

2009-08-13T17:39:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Michael. We love you very much. Thank you for being a great Son.

2009-08-13T16:50:00.000-07:00

Wyoming State Prison

Utah Olympic Park

Luge

Downhill Ski Practice

Beaver, Utah

It seems we have been on the road forever. Some of the big states take a long time to get through. We were in Montana a long time and in Wyoming a long time. There is so much open land in the U.S. that it is hard to believe some say we are over populated. Oh well, I'll save my politics for another blog.

The State Prison is closed now but we took a tour of it. This prison even had a gas chamber (I spared you having to look at it) and I couldn't believe the people on the tour put their kids in the seat and took pictures of them. There is just no figuring some people out. The prison is in Rawlins, Wyoming.

Next we went to Park City, Utah. It is the home of the 2002 olympics. We got to take a tour of the whole thing. They had the opening ceremonies costumes on display, all the pictures of the athletes, and even some of the medals. The luge is really something to see. It is much longer and curvier than I imagined. We also were really surprised to see the athletes practicing downhill skiing. They put on wet suits and get to the top of the track and ski down landing in a swimming pool. We got to watch them for quite a while. They did somersaults into the water. I guess Park City is the place everyone goes to party. It is very upscale.

We came south on 15 because we were going to meet some friends in Zion. It turned out they couldn't come because of truck trouble so we are just going to move on. We are now in Beaver, Utah. We will be here until Sat. and then go to Mesquite, NV. We are slowly making our way back home but not sure when. We are having a great time. The weather right now is thunder, lightening and rain.

Take Care

Happy Campers.

David and Carol

Bear Country

2009-08-05T16:06:00.000-07:00

Grizzly Bear

Baby Bear

Moulting Bear

Longhorn Sheep

Reindeer

Deadwood, Sturgis, Motorcycles and more Motorcycles

2009-08-05T15:52:00.000-07:00

Some pictures of Sturgis and Deadwood. I heard on the news there were 100,000 bikes there, at least. We were surrounded by bikes every where we went. These pictures were taken from the truck since there was no way to find a place to park here. There were all sizes, all shapes and some that didn't even look like a motorcycle. Of course, we picked this Sturgis Rally week to be here.

Just pictures

2009-08-05T15:11:00.001-07:00

Crazy Horse

Crazy Horse
still in progress

Of course,
Mt. Rushmore

Flags of every state

There is not much to say about Mt. Rushmore. It has been on my 'bucket list' for years and I was beside myself to see it. It was everything I hoped and more. It was bigger than I had imagined and it was beautiful. I am so happy we went there. The ride up to see it is in the black hills which is also beautiful. The Crazy Horse carving is still being worked on and seems it hasn't gotten very far in the years they have been working. It was also something to see along with the Native American museum next to it.

Montana

2009-08-05T14:28:00.000-07:00

Sheridan Inn

The bar

Braqdford Brinton

Memorial Museum

World famous Mint Bar

Going to South Dakota

Sheridan, Montana was a great stop for us. There was lots to see there and we kept ourselves busy looking around. The first stop we made was to the Sheridan Inn. This is a place where Buffalo Bill used to come to drink, eat, sleep and auditioned acts for his Wild West Show. It is a beautiful hotel still in its original state. We had dinner on the huge veranda in front where Buffalo Bill used to sit and look at the acts that auditioned. Inside there are 2 bars that are the original bars. They came from England, a gift from the Queen. They were shipped here in one piece. In those days women were not allowed in the bar(with the exception of those doing a little business), but horses were. Buffalo Bill liked to have the horses come in and rear up. Sometimes their hooves would come down on the bar and put marks in the top. There is said to be a ghost in the hotel by the name of Mary. She rented a room and stayed there for about 40 years until she had to move due to renovations. She died 3 years later, her only wish was that her ashes be put in the wall of her old room at the hotel. They were and she is still there.

Downtown Sheridan has a rope makers store called Kings Ropes. They are known worldwide for their rope making and their saddle making. Beautiful saddles, and a sort of western museum.

Next we went to the Bradford Brinton Memorial Museum. It is a tribute to western art and culture. There is a collection of western art including works by Remington. Alot of Native American artifacts, rare books and documents such as a Lincoln letter and Washington documents. It is all in a wonderful furnished house way out in the country. Got to say at this point, I am westerned out.

Next we went to the Mint Bar. This bar has been around about 100 years. Local ranchers all put their brands on the wall and there is every kind of stuffed animal you can imagine on the walls. Myself, I think it is pretty gross but here in the wild, wild west, it's a normal thing, I guess.

Soon after we are on our way to South Dakota, the main stop for me. Of course, Faber luck, it is rally week at Sturgis which is right where we are going to stay.

So until then, Happy Campers signing off,

David and Carol

Another New Place

2009-07-29T15:33:00.000-07:00

This morning we left Missoula, MT and headed East on our journey. We are now in Livingston, MT and headed to Wyoming tomorrow. We have seen beautiful, beautiful scenery. Some things just take your breath away. So many rivers and endless fields, mountains and open spaces. The weather has been perfect and we are getting to be pros at setting up and taking down.

Livingston is where they filmed A River Runs Through It. It is also where they filmed The Horse Whisperer. It is also only about 50 miles from Yellowstone National Park. The town was founded in 1882 as a place to set up the railroad to go into Yellowstone.

We will be spending 2 days in Wyoming and then on to Rapid City, South Dakota.
Of course, Sturgis is just down the road from there and this is the week of the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. And of course, David wants to go. I'll go but I really don't want to, too many people.

Molly is doing fine. We put her in the truck and she wakes up in a new place. Of course it takes her awhile to smell all the new smells. She seems to like to travel so I guess thats good.

I'm hoping to be coming back this way so we can go to Yellowstone on our way back West...whenever that will be.

For now, still Happy Campers,
David and Carol

SMOKE, BEER AND WATER

2009-07-26T21:14:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I look like a Smokejumper.

Hanging Parachutes

Plane that carries the Smokejumpers

Big Sky Brewery

Flathead Lake

Yesterday we went to take a tour of the Smokejumpers Academy. This is one of the places in the Western states that actually have Smokejumpers training. We got to look at the whole process. The information we learned was: You have to be between 120 to 200 pounds to qualify. You go through a training process that includes running for 2 miles with an 80 pound pack on their back, and be able to get ready and in the plane in 5-10 minutes. They take a sewing class because they make all their own uniforms, backpacks and jackets. If a hole developes in their parachute, they patch it themselves. They hang the parachutes after every fire to get rid of debri and smoke. While we were there, they got a call to go to Wolf Creek so we got to watch them get ready, board the plane and fly off. It was all pretty exciting.

Next we went to Big Sky Brewery. They have a tasting room so of course we had to taste. They make such beers as Moose Drool, Trout Slayer and Honey Bear.

It rained hard in the middle of the night last night but when we got up this morning it was clear. We took a ride up to Flathead lake. The lake is huge and the area and the lake look like Tahoe. It was a clear blue. It was a nice day so there were lots of boats and swimmers on the lake. On the way back we stopped at the Huckleberry Hut and bought some Huckleberry Honey, Huckleberry Ice Cream Topping, and Huckleberry Ice Cream. Yummy....

It was about 85 degrees when we got home. The Big Clouds in the Big Sky started coming in. Within 30 minutes the lightening and thunder started, then the rain. Wow, the thunder was really, really loud. Of course Molly was shaking in her boots. We had to medicate her a little. It is still raining as I write this. The sky here in Montana is very big and it is beautiful.

If at any time you would like to see more pictures, let me know and I will email them to you. On this program I can only post 5 at a time with each blog. We have lots more pics that are really good ones so let me know.

Well, goodnight for now.....

Very Happy Campers

David and Carol

A DAY LOOKING FOR JEWELS

2009-07-26T20:48:00.000-07:00

Clark Fork River

Gem Mountain

A Hawk with a Fish in its Claws

Beautiful Sunset

And then later, beautiful lightening

The day before yesterday, we took off in the morning to go Sapphire hunting.

We went to a place about 1 1/2 hours away. The road there had some of the most beautiful scenery I've seen. The Clark Fork River runs for hundreds of miles and it is such a pretty river. In places it just meanders and in others it is a rushing river. We also saw lots of property for sale along the river. I would live there in a hot second but David says it's too remote for him.

We arrived at Gem mountain and started in on our jewel hunt. You get buckets of rock and strain it out a little at a time. Then you go through it with tweezers to find itty bitty stones. I think between the 2 of us we brought home about 14 carats of sapphires. Of course, they are pretty small but they are ours.

On the way back we saw a hawk fly right off of the river with a fish in his talons. David was able to get a picture. It was a remarkable sight.

When we got back home there was a wonderful sunset. It was very colorful. Minutes later, the storm came. The last picture is one David took of the lightening storm later that evening. The weather here changes in minutes which is really nice. It can be 90 degrees and the lightening and thunder will start. The sky gets black and then it pours. In a few minutes it's over.

I'm going to do another blog tonight just to keep caught up.

Happy Camping

David and Carol

2009-07-23T13:18:00.000-07:00

Going into Idaho

Couer d' Alene Lake

Ending up in Montana

Our RV park in Missoula, MT

Nice huh?

Today is Thursday 7/23. We are in Missoula, MT. The ride here thru Idaho was really beautiful. There are alot of BIG hills on the way. Because we went thru the Idaho panhandle, it took us only a little more than an hour. There have been so many trees on our trip that it seems there is no end to them. Of course Northern Idaho is mostly all forest as is Washington and Oregon. As we came into Montana, you could see a real difference in the landscape.

So far this is what we see about Montana. The people here are as loyal to their state as Texans are to theirs. It is true, this is big sky country. Lots of rivers and lakes. The landscape is more large rolling hills and mountains. It seems to be alot hotter and dryer. Missoula has the University of Montana and is very liberal. The demographics here is very, very white. I think the internet said it is 98.5% white. Of course we are going into the mid west and that is to be expected.

The RV Park we are at is wonderful. So nice we have decided to stay a week and rest up a bit from the 1 night stands. We have the very best spot in this park, I think so anyway. We are on the very end, and away from other people. For those of you who know me, you know how I love that. We are in the pines with a little flower bed in front of us. Last night they had an ice cream social and some live music. Well, I'm not the social type but I do love music. Beside that David made me go. The guys that did the music were really good. LaGrande Harvey, the guitar player, sang some songs his brother in Nashville had written. One of the songs was Delta Dawn and the other was a song made famous by Kenny Rogers, Ruben James.

He also wrote the Montana state anthem. He has a website if you are interested. The other guy played mandolin and banjo. He is Indian and has been involved in alot of mediations between the tribes and the government. We ended up having a pretty good time.

Today we were supposed to go garnet hunting at a place an hour up the road but I slept in too late so we'll go tomorrow.

David is off exploring right now so I could have some alone time. He is thoughtful that way. Of course when I get alone time I have so many things I want to do that I end up doing nothing. We have decided not to go to Canada. Instead we are going to Mount Rushmore, Crazy Horse, Wyoming, Yellowstone, etc.

We really are happy campers right now.

David and Carol

WASHINGTON

2009-07-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

Going in to Washington

Tacoma Dome

Mt. St. Helen's

Mt. Rainer

Lake somewhere

We have traveled through Washington. It is a beautiful state but we have to say we liked Oregon better. We did get to see Mt. St. Helen's and Mt. Rainer. We stayed at Tacoma/Seattle KOA in Kent, WA. It was a terrible campground but a typical KOA. They are so overpriced for a place that is so hard to get into and then you are sitting right on top of your neighbor. We really hated it and couldn't wait to leave. We are doing alot of 1 night stands and we are both tired now so plan to take a little rest.

Michelle has offered to watch over my Mom so this is like a vacation for us.

The next night we stayed at Suncrest RV park in Lake Moses, WA. It was not too bad. Next we went on to Spokane, WA. It was a little tight fit there too. So these have all been 1 night apiece.

I'm going to follow this up with another blog so I can get in some more pics.

Peace

Cheese, Cheese and More Cheese

2009-07-18T22:07:00.000-07:00

Bridge leaving Charlie's

Tillamook Cheese Factory

David and Molly agate hunting in

Oceanside, Oregon

Beach at Oceanside

Beautiful road going to Cape Lookout

State Park

We hade da great stay in Florence, OR. It was really nice to see my brother, Charlie. It has been about 7 years since I've seen him. He hasn't changed much. He is still building things (houses and cabinets) and repairing things. We got to bar-b-que twice, went to his neighborhood bar and he came over for coffee the morning we left.

We then were going to go to Lincoln City for agaate hunting but decided to go on to Tillamook instead. We are at a cute little RV Park here in Bay City which is next to Tillamook.

Today we went to the cheese factory. Those of you that know me pretty well know that cheese is really my favorite food. So, this was a wonderful thing for me. Next we went to the Naval Air Museum. It is where they used to house blimps during WWII. The place is huge and now houses WWII fighter planes. David really loved it.

Next we went to the Blue Herron French Cheese Company. We got to do wine tasting and cheese tasting. Yummy!!! From there we picked up Molly and went to Oceanside Beach. When the tide goes out you can look for agates and Jasper. I don't know if we found any agates but I think I found some jasper.

When we got back to the RV, we bar-b-qued and cleaned up a bit. Now it is bed time.

Tomorrow we are going to Kent, WA. It is real close to Seattle. We have changed our mind about going to Canada. We've decided we want to go through Yellowstone instead. So after Kent we'll go to Spokane then to Butte, MT. We'll try to stay in a place called Livingston for about a week. It is close enough to the entrance to Yellowstone that we can take little day trips. Of course our main goal is Mount Rushmore, so it will be coming up soon.

So, goodnight to our friends and readers,

David and Carol

The Road to Charlies

2009-07-16T09:51:00.000-07:00

Going Over the Bridge to Florence

The Umpqua River

The Road to Florence, Oregon

Carol's Brother Charlie

Charlie and his friend Carrie

Today we are leaving Florence so I wanted to fill everyone in on the trip here.

We were held up one day longer than we expected in Canyonville, OR so we could get the truck worked on. It turned out to be some kind of fuel sensor.

We left there and took highway 5 to the turnoff 138/38 over to the coast. That road is great and the scenery is wonderful. The Umpua river runs along the road the whole way. We got to Reedsport then turned onto 101. We got into Florence in the early afternoon.

Charlie came over for dinner that night. It was really good to see him. I think it's been about 7 years since we have seen him. He hasn't changed much, just older (aren't we all?). There is a botanical garden here called Darlington. It has big plants that eat bugs, just like a venus flytrap. This is one of the only places it grows. We are staying in the Elks RV park. It is only $15 a night.

The weather has been beautiful. Yesterday it was a sunny 66 degrees. If you go towards the ocean 1 block, it is foggy. Last night Charlie brought over some wild salmon to grill. It was yummy.

Today we are leaving for Lincoln City to go agate hunting.

Hope all is well with you.

David and Carol

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

2009-07-12T13:50:00.000-07:00

Well, we are back to traveling for awhile. We really enjoyed our last stop. We worked for almost 6 months and loved the job but felt we should be on our way. Durango RV Resort was a great place to work. Thanks to all the people working there for making it a fun job. Bri and James, thank you for the laughs. A special thank you to Donna and Bill, the managers. You made us feel welcome and when it was time to go, made us feel good about our decision. Thank you again Donna and Bill, see you on the road.

We are now in Oregon. We are at a RV Resort called Seven Feathers in Canyonville, OR. It is really beautiful here, nestled in the mountains. David wants to get the truck looked at before we move on so we'll be here for a couple of days. Next it's on to see my brother Charlie on the coast. Hopefully, we'll make it to Canada soon.

I'll write more later but now it is off to the casino.....

Happy Campers once again,
David and Carol

FAST AND FURIOUS

2009-07-02T17:21:00.000-07:00

Ryan, Michael and Kristen at Sundial Bridge

David, Ryan, Kristen and Michael

at the Big Foot Museum

Samoa Cookhouse in Eureka, CA

Ryan and Kristen at the top of the tram at

the Trees of Mystery

David and Michael playing the Dulcimer

This week was a wonderful treat for us. Michael (our Son), Ryan and Kristen (our Grand Kids), came from Texas to visit us. Michael was on a tight schedule so we fit all we could into 2 days.

They got here on Monday afternoon. We all went swimming (it was soooo hot), went to dinner and then sat up at the lodge watching a movie and playing Mexican Train.

We all got up early on Tuesday and left for our road trip by 8 AM. Of course our first stop was breakfast. We started over highway 299 towards Eureka. The road is very winding but a nice ride. On the way we went to Willow Creek, home of the Big Foot Museum. There have been many spottings of Big Foot in this area so we were pretty excited to go there. As is our usual luck, they are closed on Tuesdays so we just got to look in the windows. Michael told us a great story of his own spotting of Big Foot and we were all drawn in to his story.

Next stop was an Elk Crossing. There were tons of Elk laying around so we stopped to get pictures. Soon, we were in Eureka. It was a lot cooler there since it is right on the coast. Our friends, Bill and Donna told us about a good place to eat, Somoa Cookhouse. The building is the oldest cookhouse in CA. It is a huge rambling building with rows of tables where everyone eats together. They have one meal per day on their menu. The meal is served on platters and in bowls so you can serve yourself and eat as much as you want. Our meal consisted of bar-b-que ribs, beans, soup, salad, vegetables, potatoes and chocolate cake. I think the kids had 3 pieces of cake each. It was a pretty good meal and something different than the normal eatery.

We continued up the road to the Trees of Mystery. Outside of the main attraction there is a huge Paul Bunion and Babe statue. God has made magnificent things for us to look at and this area is one of them. There is a path to walk up, I think it is 1/3 mile long. You then arrive at the tram station. The tram goes almost straight up through huge redwoods. Ferns grow wild and the forest floor is full of plants. When we got to the top, we could see forever. On one side is mile after mile of forest and on the other is the ocean. Beautiful. It was pretty freaky going up in the tram. The tram cars hold only so much weight so we tried to figure out the whole way if we were over the weight limitation.

After we left there, we continued up the coast to Cresent City. The kids got to go into the ocean and freeze their feet. The water was really, really cold. Our motel room for the night was in Cresent City so it was eat again and go to bed.

The next morning was up early again. We continued up the road into the most majestic sight ever. There are redwood trees almost as big around as a house. The sun was shining through the trees and it was stunning. There are no words to describe what it was like. All I can say is how could anyone not believe in God and the beauty He has given to us. We traveled on to Oregon. We went through Grants pass and of course, ate again. Then we headed back south towards Redding and Red Bluff. We were back home in Red Bluff by 4 in the afternoon.

Michael and the kids had to leave and go back to Sacramento so we had to say good-bye.

Just a little bragging note: Ryan and Kristen are really fun to be around. We laughed alot, sang alot and just had a good time. They are so nice not only to us but to each other. You can tell they really love each other and they get along so well. Michael of course is a good father and is doing a good job with them. But, my praise is for their Mom, Celeste. Thank you Celeste for being such a great Mom and raising such wonderful Grandchildren.

We will miss Michael and the kids but feel blessed we got to spend the time with them. I hope they had a good time, we did.

David and Carol

Happy Campers

2009-06-17T08:13:00.000-07:00

I would like to have something wonderful and exciting to say...but there is nothing like that.
Of course, since my last post lots has gone on but mostly just day to day stuff. I try to see my Mom once a week. I do call her every day and occaisionally take time off just to spend with David and get things done that need to be done.

The kids are all out of school now so families are traveling which means more business at the RV Resort. Yes, we are still here. We figure we may as well make a little money while we can. It really is a nice place to work so we will stay for awhile longer.

Molly has been sick again so we have to be careful she does not run or jusmp. She has a bulging disk in her back. She is on drugs so maybe she will get better soon. Anyway, thats all for now. When something really exciting happens, I'll let you know.

Happy Campers,
David and Carol

Nicky's week with us

2009-04-11T08:39:00.000-07:00

We brought Nick to spend the week with us. He got to go to work with us and make a little money. We had a great time and I'm sure Nick did too. He rode the golf cart with David all day, cleaned toilets and picked up trash.

We bought him a sucker at Casa de Fruita that had a scorpion in it. He ate it all until he got to the scorpion and then had us take a picture of him. We also took him up to the snow. We did not have to drive very far. He was suprised it was so cold. And as you can see, he was pooped out after a week of work.

Nick made a lot of friends here and everyone really liked him. They told us what a mannerly, nice boy he was.

We really miss him now that he is gone. Thank you Nicky for being such a good, fun boy to be with.

Happy Campers

David and Carol

A ROAD TRIP

2009-03-28T21:26:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from a recent road trip we took. We drove up to Mount Shasta and on to Shasta lake. It is sooo pretty up there and not very far from here. The snow is so pretty(as long as it is there and not here).

We took a trip home this week. We had some things to do and we also got to pick up Nicholas. He is going to spend a little over a week with us. So far it has been great. He worked with David all day today. He got the pleasure of cleaning bathrooms, lighting fire pits and escorting RV's to their site. We made him a little uniform shirt so he looked really cute. He held up from 2 in the afternoon to 8:30 when he came home with me. He is so excited to have a job that he will get paid for.

While we were home, we had Paula and her new husband up to the house for dinner. It was nice to finally meet Arnold. He is a very nice person.

A week from this coming Tues. Michelle is going to have surgery so I am going there to see if I can help her out. The week after that is our 30th anniversary. Who would have known?

It is late and my brain is dead so until next time...Happy Camping

David and Carol

Still Crazy after all these years

2009-03-18T09:34:00.000-07:00

No big news from here. We have been going to Sacramento now every day off and making the trek back to the RV. We got home last night around 11:00 after going to my Moms and doing more clean-up, bill paying, etc. We would like to make a trek home pretty soon but we'll see how that goes. We are both working 3 days a week and both of us just got a raise !! Today the weather is nice but of course it's laundry, cleaning, ironing and washing the truck for us. David had his bike stolen so he is really unhappy about that. It wasn't an expensive bike but he used it every day. Now all he has is his Trikke. He can ride that pretty good. I can't even get it going. Well, guess that's all for today.
Hope everyone is doing good.
David and Carol

2009-03-13T10:22:00.000-07:00

SNOW ON THE WAY TO RENO MOLLY'S FIRST LOOK AT SNOW

MY MOM RELAXING AT HOME GRAND DAUGHTER MIRANDA'S ROOM

MICHELLE AND RAYMOND'S NEW HOUSE

On this weeks days off, we

of course were going to Sacramento to see my Mom. At the last minute, we decided to go via Reno. We had never taken the road from here to Reno. We started out on highway 36, which goes thru Chester, and drove thru some beautiful areas. There was alot of snow still on the ground, in the trees and along side of the road. Molly got her first look and feel of snow. I don't think she was real crazy about it. When we got to Reno, we were able to find a hotel that would let us have Molly in the room.

We spent the night and then went on to Sacramento. We went to my Moms the next morning. I helped her get her checkbook balanced and some bills paid. Later in the day, we went to Raymond and Michelle's to see their new house. We had seen the house before they moved in but hadn't seen it since. They are still working on the unpacking but have all the painting, etc. done. Our Grand daughter Miranda is into the goth, vampire stuff so she designed her own red room. We got to meet Allison's new boyfriend, Anthony while we were there. Another 2 hour drive and we were back at the 5th wheel in Red Bluff.

Today is Friday the 13th. I hear everyone on the TV saying it is an unlucky day. For me it is a very lucky day. My son Michael was born on Friday the 13th and David and I were married on Friday the 13th. So here's wishing all a very lucky day.

David and Carol

ANOTHER LONG TIME

2009-03-06T11:43:00.000-08:00

I know it has been such a long time since I last posted to this blog. We are still in Red Bluff working. The weather here has been cold, wet and windy. But, today the sun is out and there is hope that spring will come soon.

We have been spending alot of time in Sacramento. My sister and her husband came out from Missouri to stay with my mom and her husband because they were not able to care for themselves. Yesterday, there was a big pow-wow with the county and the nurses to see if they were able yet to be on their own or if things would stay the same. My moms husband , of course, cussed out everyone.

My sister is leaving soon and as far as we can see there is no one else to care for them. Since he does not want anyone staying in his house, the best we can do is for someone to be there on a daily basis to check on them and to help them live their daily lives, we don't know yet how this is going to be accomplished.

The county said that it takes alot to change this and a great deal of time. I'm not sure what the outcome is going to be but I will post it when it gets here.

Other than that, we really haven't done much except travel between here and Sacramento. We haven't even been able to see our daughters new house in Sacramento because it's on the other side of town.

Today is the day that our friend Paula picks up her husband at the airport. This will be his first time being in the US. I'm sure it will be quite a culture shock for him. Best wishes to Arnold and Paula.

So as you see there has not been alot to write about so I haven't.

Kinda Happy Campers,
David and Carol

DURANGO RV RESORT

2009-02-11T08:32:00.000-08:00

This is Durango RV Resort where we are currently employed. It is a beautiful place to work and to stay. The staff here are very nice and very understanding of the time we have had to take off. So, thank you to Bill, Donna, Bob and Micki.

We recently received an email from our Son Michael. He is in Mambai, India, formerly known as Bombay. He is there to help coordinate security against terrorism for the hotel Taj Mahal. This is the hotel is the one that was held by terrorists not long ago. He said the traffic is crazy and it seems there is no rhyme or reason to the way they drive. He also said the food is great. He has lost 10 lbs though. Please pray for his safe return.

There is always things going on at my Mom's house. We have spent alot of time there. The county now requires that someone is with them 24My sister made it out from MO. to help out. David and I are very grateful to her. My Mom's husband, Jim has family but none of them would come and help out. They are upset at him because he changed his will when he and my Mom got married, even though nothing was changed pertaining to them. They told me they would wait until he dies to come here and only for the purpose of contesting his will. Nice kids, huh?

Our daughter Michelle and her husband Raymond just purchased a house. It is their first one and they are really excited about it. They will be moving in this week. Congratulations, Michelle and Raymond.

The weather here in Red Bluff has been very cold. It is snowing just up the road. There is alot to see here but it will have to wait until the weather is better. David has a pretty bad cold so we will have to wait until he is better. We hope everyone is doing well and encourage your emails to let us know what is going on in your life.

Still fairly happy campers

David and Carol

dcfab06@sbcglobal.net

2009-02-06T12:46:00.000-08:00

OK, I'm sorry for not getting a post out in all this time. We have been here (Red Bluff) off and on for a few weeks. First we had to leave for the little surgery thing and then we have been caring for my Mom and her husband off and on. Jim, my Moms husband, has had prostrate cancer and now has bladder cancer. He has had to be on a catheter all this time so someone had to be there to drain the bag, give meds, and help him around. My Mom on the other hand is very healthy. Her main problem is dementia. This causes a problem with her trying to help with Jim which turns out to be more of a hinderence. She tries to give him meds that he shouldn't have and tries to drain his cateter bag. She also wakes him up all night long to check on him. So neither one of them are getting enough sleep and in turn neither are we.

We were made aware that the county did not believe they could take care of themselves. We were also determined to keep them together, in their home. That requires 24/7 care. The adult protective services came out to make sure they were being cared for. I think we passed their test. Jim's family have not been around. We have asked them to come but they say they are all too busy. We have nurses coming, nurses aides coming and a group of people from the county. It is very stressful to know you are being watched and judged.

So, we have been working three days a week (finding people to fill in at my mom's) and then going to my Mom's for the other four. My sister finally flew in from MO this last week. We spent some time filling her in on what to do and going to Dr. appts. These all have to be in a taxi cab because neither my Mom or Jim can get in our truck.

Anyway, we have been pretty busy so forgive me for not posting. We got back here last night and will be going to work in about an hour. Thank you to all for reading this little bit of drivel.
By the way, CONGRATULATIONS to our friend Paula....Arnold was finally approved to come to the US and be with his wife, Paula.

We are now kind of Happy Campers
David and Carol

2009-01-19T10:43:00.000-08:00

Hello to All,
I still haven't gotten any pictures put on here but I will soon. We are still at home right now. Carol had a little surgery but will be up and running in no time. It has been great to see the Grandsons and spend some time with them. David was able to see alot of his work buddies and get some things done around the house. Carol will get her stitches out on Friday and hopefully we will be able to get back to Red Bluff.

The weather has been great while we have been here. Today it is supposed to be 79 degrees. Molly has a good time being home and she loves being around the boys.

So, until I get the pics done, this will be it for the
Happy Campers,
David and Carol

2009-01-08T11:36:00.000-08:00

Good Morning to All,

We are now in red Bluff and started with our training yesterday. Everytime we get someplace new, our first task is check out the area. Yesterday we went to a town called Anderson. It is about 20 miles from here but they have outlets and a Super Walmart(sorry Anna, but we love it). Anytime I can do one stop shopping is a good time for me. This morning I went over to the lodge for awhile and read. It is a beautiful room with a huge fireplace and leather furniture. Very quiet there and perfect for reading.

David has gone out to spend the day metal detecting. He took Molly with him, I guess so she could get out a bit. I'm going to start practicing the reservation system they have here so I won't feel like a complete idiot (just a minor idiot) when it comes time to actually work the reservation desk.

Hope all is well with everyone. We do miss home but are still anxious to travel and see new things.

Happy Campers,
David and Carol

OUR NEW HOME

2009-01-06T15:02:00.000-08:00

We have now arrived at our new home. We are in Red Bluff, CA which is in Northern Calif. It only took us 2 hours to get here from Sacramento. It is such a pretty RV Resort and we have a very nice spot on the end. The only drawback I can see may be the freeway noise but that is no big deal to me. We have Internet, cable, free propane and free laundry so that makes up for the freeway noise. The river is on the other side of the resort with lots of walking and bike paths....I know you are trying to picture me riding a bike...don't even try. David is the bike person in the family. He rides with Molly running alongside. While he is getting all this exercise, I am drinking my coffee, reading and smoking, no bike for me. I would fall and break something.

Yesterday was our oldest Grand daughters birthday. Allison is now 20 years old. It is hard to believe she is that old, time goes by fast. While in Sacramento we were able to do alot of family visiting. I got to spend alot of time with my Mom.

The sun is shining right now. It is a nice change from Sacramento. I really feel better when the sun is out. I hope I hear from some of you and hope your New Year started out good.

Happy camping,

David and Carol

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL

2008-12-31T10:45:00.001-08:00

Greetings to all and Happy New Year

David calls this my 'Q-Tip' look. It has been so cold here in Sacramento that a couple of days have been warmer in the mountains with the snow. We did see a little sun yesterday but for the most part it has been foggy. The whole Sacramento-San Juaquin valley is known for it's fog. I have seen it go 90 days in Sacramento without any sun.

We are looking forward to the New Year and hope to be able to travel as much as possible. We do know that we will be in Red Bluff for the next few months and then who knows. We have thought about maybe Alaska, east coast, or Mexico. Of course I still want to see Mt Rushmore.

We will be spending the evening at our Daughter Michelle's tonight with their family and my Sister Lenette and her Husband. We hardly ever make it to midnight so figure we will celebrate the east coast New Year. Tomorrow we will go to my Mom's to spend the day with her.

I make no New Years resolutions because I just can't stick to anything. So all I can say is that I hope each one of you have a safe New Years celebration and that the new year treats all with kindness and health.

Happy Campers

David and Carol

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL

2008-12-26T11:11:00.001-08:00

Even Molly has Holiday Spirit

David's Sister Mary and her husband Steve

David, Mary, and all the Nephews

David, Steve and our Granddaughter Allison

Carol's Mom

It has been a wonderful Christmas for us. We were very fortunate this year to be able to spend so much time with family. We are still in Sacramento so we have been able to spend some quality time with everyone.

Christmas Eve we went to David's Sister's. Mary and Steve have a very nice home in Folsom. Of course it was raining. Our Granddaughter, Allison went with us. Mary had invited family and friends for food and drink and so we ate and drank. David's nephews all came by with their families. He has not seen them in about 20 years so it was very special to him. As you can see by the pictures, David is the runt of the family. They have all grown up to be such nice men, have very nice and pretty wives and children. It was really the highlight of this Christmas for David and I think for his Sister also. All of this family rarely sees each other so it was very special. Thank you to Mary and Steve for having us and for making this time of year what it was meant to be.

On Christmas day we went to Carol's Mom's house where another special gathering was underway. Carol's Sister, Lenette and Husband Todd were here from Missouri and they brought Carol's Great Nephew, Kirk from Kansas with them. Our Daughter Michelle and her family were there and Carol's Nephew Eric, his Wife Christina and their little girl were there. Not only was it a great day for us but it was a wonderful time for Carol's Mom who had not seen her Great Grandson for about 7 years. Of course we ate and drank again. It was good for Carol's Mom to have 2 of her children and spouses, 2 grandchildren and spouses and 5 Great Grandchildren.

We have been able to do alot of things while we have been in Sacramento. Carol has been able to spend some time alone with Michelle and enjoyed every minute of it.

We will be here until Jan. 6th when we will be leaving and going to Red Bluff, CA. We took the job there at an RV Resort and will be there for at least 3 months. It is only 2 hours away from Sacramento, close to Shasta and MT Lassen and only 6 hours from Carol's Brother, Charlie and 6 hours from Paso Robles.

We hope everyone has had a great Holiday and pray for all to have a wonderful New Year.

With Love, David and Carol

Happy Campers

FAMILY

2008-12-20T15:41:00.000-08:00

Hello from Red Bluff. We are here looking into a workcamping position.
We were driving in Sacramento and saw a car with Durango RV Resort on the side door. We decided to call right then and see if they were looking for workcampers. The person that answered the phone said she didn't think so but would give our number to the manager just in case. 3 minutes later Bill called and said he may be interested and to please send a short resume. We emailed one off and he wanted to meet us. We made arrangements to come and visit 2 says later.

When we got here, Bill explained the whole place, took us on a tour, made hotel arrangements for us to spend the night and said he and his wife Donna would pick mus up at the hotel that night and take us to dinner.

The resort is fairly new but is very pretty and clean. It has a message room, lap pool, dog wash, beautiful club house with a huge fireplace and all leather furniture. The is an outside bar-b-que with fire rings and ponds with waterfalls and the best part, it is right on the Sacramento River.

We would work 2 days a week for full hookup, free laundry, cable, free propane and free wifi. If we like it, we could become full time paid employees.

So we are meeting with them tonight to give them an answer.

Last night we went to my Mom's to help wrap more gifts and to see my sister and nephew who just arrived from MO. We had a little dinner and talk then went back to our 'home' to get ready to come today.

That's all for now, we will let you know how the job thing comes out.....

Still Happy Campers, David and Carol

GREETINGS FROM THE HAPPY CAMPERS

2008-12-14T20:31:00.000-08:00

Snow started falling in Placerville

Yesterday we took a ride up to a place called Volcano. We went to look at a place that is looking for work campers. The bottom picture is the spot we would have. It is a little too primitive for us. It is near a town called Pine Grove. There is nothing there and it would be a little tight to get the 5th wheel in there. So, we decided that we wouldn't go there. While we were there it started to snow so we thought we should get back down the hill. Now there is really nothing wrong with a little snow but we know our luck. We took highway 49 and went to El Dorado. I grew up in this area so it was interesting to see the changes. We stopped at Poor Reds to eat lunch. Poor Reds has been there for as long as I can ever remember and is known all over the state. They have great bar-b-que. They are also known for their drink, the Golden Caddilac. When I was pregnant with Sarah, David would occaisionally go to Reds and get me pork dip. He would bring it home and we would sit on the floor and eat and watch soap operas. So, we went there for some pork dip. After that we went to Diamond Springs, the town I grew up in and lived the first years of my adult life in. Sarah was also born in Diamond Springs, at home. Diamond Springs holds alot of memories for me so it was nice to be there. We left there and headed to Placerville. As we were going down into town, it started to snow again. We ended up getting on the freeway and heading back down to Sacramento. Davids sister, Mary lives in Folsom so we stopped and visited on our way back home. It was a full day but we ended up staying up way too late and didn't want to get out of bed this morning. We got up to rain and it is still raining. Oh well, I guess I can't have summer weather all year long. Molly has been sick today. David bought her a new bone and she ate the whole thing. I think it made her sick. So she is now sleeping it off. Hopefully she will feel better tomorrow.

Hope to hear from everyone.

David and Carol

HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS

2008-12-13T10:50:00.000-08:00

I guess this about as close to home as we are going to get. The weather has been nice but a big storm is supposed to be coming in...snow and everything. Yesterday we went to my Moms. She had me wrap everything she had in the bottom of her hutch. These are all the things she has been saving for years. Last year we wrote everyones name on the bottom of each thing so it was easy to know who to make the tag out to. These were all placed under the Christmas tree. She has been telling all the family that she was having a big party on the 19th so I asked her about it. She didn't remember she had said it so I guess we'll do what we can to help her with the party. She is very happy right now and that is really good. My one brother that was coming from Oregon will not be able to come. He got layed off and is trying to get another job. So, I guess the party will be a little smaller. Well, we are off for the day, going to take a ride.
David and Carol

SUNSHINE

2008-12-10T08:43:00.000-08:00

This morning I woke up tp actual sunshine. This is the first morning since we have been in Sacramento that we haven't had fog. Of course, that is so typical of Sacramento. When we lived here, there were times when we wouldn't see the sun for 90 days. This time of year makes me think about those days when we lived here. We were so broke all the time that we had to go to the Salvation Army to get Sarah a Christmas gift. We also got a bag of food for our Christmas dinner. One year we gathered sleeping bags, coats and blankets from all of our neighbors and took Sarah downtown to the Greyhound bus station and handed them out to the homeless. I think that is something that Sarah will never forget and it gave her a more compassionate nature. We also went caroling with our church here in the foggy, cold weather. Sacramento is the place David and I met each other. That would be 30 years ago. Geez, I'm old....

Yesterday we perused the mall just to be somewhere warm. Too many people, too much stuff. I'm not sure what we are doing today but I'm sure it will be another exciting day. The good part is that we enjoy being together and I always have plenty to do. I'm making several Christmas gifts this year. Hopefully, I'll be done in time.

My brother, sister and nephew are coming to Sacramento for Christmas. My brother lives in Oregon and my sister in Mo. and nephew in Kansas. My Mom will be happy to see them. My Mom has dementia and we never know if she remembers if we are going to visit or not. Most times she does not remember. So the day they are going to arrive, I'll have to remind her. In alot of ways God has been good to her. I think sometimes it's a blessing to her not to remember everything, she is always happy.

So, I guess that's enough for today. Now I know every reader of this can hardly wait for the next post, being that we have such an exciting life. I'll try to spice it up a bit...maybe I can make up an exciting adventure..who knows.

We hope the sun shines on you today.
David and Carol

CHRISTMAS IN SACRAMENTO

2008-12-08T14:33:00.000-08:00

MY MOMS HOUSE

MY MOM AND STEP FATHER, JIM

Grandson Chris, Daughter Michelle

Grand Daughter Miranda

We have finally landed somewhere for awhile. We know we will be here for at least a month.

David came to our house to pick me up but we found out the laptop that was now in San Luis Obispo was not ready yet. He decided to leave me there for the Thanksgiving holiday since he would be done with his job and back in a week.

The company doing the new jacks on the 5th wheel finally came out and got that job done. So the next week, David packed everything up and headed for home. About 100 miles down the road he had a blowout in the middle of nowhere. He called Good Sam for assistance but we did not fall under their roadside assistance program (my fault, I signed up for the wrong one). So, Terry and his dad left our house and drove all the way to David. The tire was so torn up it in turn tore up some of the underneath part of the 5th wheel and wrapped itself around some bar up there. Anyway, between the Terry and David they got it fixed and drove to a place to put air in the spare. They ended up getting home around 3 in the morning.

David was able to go and get the computer and then we were on the road to a town called Meridian, near Sacramento. We were pretty excited to go to this place because it was on the delta and only about 1 hour from my Moms. So of course we went according to mapquest (worse map program ever) and soon found the map to be wrong. After driving the hour from my Moms, the map said to turn onto 3rd street. We passed 4th and thought 3rd would be on the other side of the river, it was not. I called the RV park and they said to turn around and take 4th. Now turning around a 5th wheel on a 2 lane road is not an easy task. David finally found a wide spot in the road (he is getting quite good at this) and he made a u turn. We went back to 4th and went forever on this road. I called again and they said yes, we were on the right road. We finally got up on the levee road and saw the sign for the park. The problem was...off of a levee road, the RV park entrance was up a hill and then a horseshoe turn down into it. Of course with a 5th wheel the size of ours, there was no way to get in there and looked like there was no way to get out. We passed it by and decided to go back to Sacramento. The main problem was that we didn't know where we were. We continued down the levee road winding back and forth on a 1 lane road. After about 20 miles, we saw our first car and pulled it over to ask directions. They gave us directions back to Sacramento.

We had planned to set up and then meet my son Michael, who was in town, for dinner. Michael, Michelle, and Allison met us at the new RV park. The plug here was different than any one we had come across so we had to go get an adapter. We finally made it to dinner and had a nice evening with our family.

The next morning David wanted to change spots because he couldn't get the 5th wheel level. So we moved to another spot. When he set up he still couldn't get it level and after some investigation found out we had a broken bracket on the suspension and the 5th wheel was resting on the tires on one side. He called Good Sam again (this time I had gotten the correct plan) and they sent someone out to fix it. $150 dollars later it was fixed. The guy that worked on it said it was pretty rare that it happened and usually when you've been driving on very winding roads. So them night before on the levee road must have done it.

After it was fixed we moved to a spot I really like. We are at the Cal Expo RV park and the new spot is right next to the horse race track so we can watch the harness races. Yesterday we went to see my Mom and Step Father and take them a Christmas tree. We stayed and decorated it and had a good visit.

We are again Happy Campers.

David and Carol

IS IT EVER EASY?

2008-12-06T11:02:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry it has taken me sooooo long to get to this. Of course, know us and our Faber luck, we have again fallen into the world of repairs. I will write more about this later. Right now we are in Sacramento for the month so we will be able to spend the holidays with my Mom and the rest of the family. It has been a hard go but we thank God that we are safe and we reached a destination where we can recoup for awhile. After we get a little settled, I will write more.

TO BE CONTINUED.......

FALL AT OUR HOUSE

2008-11-21T11:15:00.000-08:00

I know it has been awhile since I posted anything. I felt like I really didn't have alot to say. David came last Monday but we decided I would stay at the house for several reasons.

Of course..if it's not one thing it's another. The company that is supposed to be putting in our new jacks on the 5th wheel have so far screwed up everything they could. The guy that was doing it got into an accident, some of the bolts were not delivered and one of the jacks was not the right one. Now, those of you that know David, know how well he took all of this. He called, told the owner off who in turn said he would sue David for slander, etc. So, we still do not have the jacks fixed and I'm sure if it were a cafe, they would spit in our food.

Then David got a speeding ticket on the Arizona side. He said the guy was a real jerk, of course.

Next while I was gone the laptop went to blue screen and shut off. The only place we could take it was to Best Buy because it is still under warranty. There is no Best Buy anywhere around Laughlin and the closest is in Las Vegas. Anyway, David brought it home and took it to San Luis who found out it was a hard drive problem. At least it is on them to fix it. However, that means I lost everything in it. It should be ready to pick up some time next week. David will be finishing up his job at the end of the month so there is no point for him to come back and pick me up for just a couple of days.

We will be going to a town called Meridian. It is in Northern California. It is on the delta and about 1 hour from my Moms. We are going to stay there the month of December. After that in January, we are going to Quartzsite, AZ to the biggest flea market ever. We are spending a week there.

We got another job offer from a hot springs resort and spa in Death Valley and are considering that until we move on. There are so many places we want to see but need to wait until spring and summer.

So, I will be spending Thanksgiving here with the kids. I am sure they are probably real tired of me at this point but parents are here just to irritate their children, I know I am.

Fall has come to Lake Nacimiento. It is beautiful right now. We have a little coastal fog every morning and then it heats up in the afternoon. Can't complain about the weather. The Grandkids are all fine and growing, I'm always happy to see them.

Best Wishes to all. I hope you have lots to be thankful for this year, I know we do.

Happy Thanksgiving

David and Carol

HOME FOR AWHILE

2008-11-13T10:54:00.000-08:00

MOLLY AT HOME

MY WORK BENCH SITTING EMPTY

GARAGE AND CAR

BACKYARD

OUR HOUSE

I thought maybe I'd just show the house...don't ask why. I've been here almost 2 weeks. In that time, I went to Sacramento to see my Mom. Allison (my oldest Grand daughter) came with me and helped me clean house. We also went to dinner and helped Mom figure out her address book. After I came back home, I had a couple of Dr. appointments and then David will pick me up next Monday. The weather has been nice since I've been here.

Last night my friend Anna took me out to dinner. We had a good time talking and we even got to have a margarita. I do miss my friends.

It has been nice getting to be around 3 of our Grandsons during this time. When they are small they grow so fast, I'm afraid I'll miss something. Nick is doing good in his new school, smartest kid in class, Logan has learned to use the toilet, and Wyatt is continuing to practice his insane screaming...he is quite good at it.

David is not happy at his new job. They changed his hours to evenings so I guess this job will be short lived. We are now looking for a new place we want to go to. We're not sure if we want to go north or south. Molly was happy to get home but I can tell she is ready to get back on the road. Every time I get my purse she is at the door waiting. She also misses her Daddy David.

It has been nice to be able to drive my car for awhile and do some things I wanted to do but David and I miss each other and are anxious to be together again.

EASY ON THE EYES

2008-11-03T09:03:00.000-08:00

These are all pictures outside our back window. It is really nice to wake up to something this beautiful. Who knows, I may be able to get out the art supplies and paint one of these views.

It seems that the people over on this side of the RV park are more friendly than on the other side. I think the ones over here are more long time people. Yesterday when we moved in (which is always a chore), one of our next door neighbors came over. It turns out that he is from Bakersfield, CA and is here so his wife can go to some school around here. I met the ones on the other side this morning. They are in a big bus. You can just about see it all here when it comes to RV's. For some people it's like driving a semi truck with all your household belongings. Some of them have 40 ft. buses towing a 25 ft. trailer filled with motorcycles, golf carts and junk. I saw one 35 ft. 5th wheel pullin a double decker trailer. On the bottom was an ATV and on the top was a boat. I guess they kind of think 'just in case I need it'. There are some really old ones that look like they've seen better days too but I guess it really doesn't matter what you travel in, just as long as you can travel.

After David gets off of work today, we will be driving to Paso Robles. It will take about 7 hours. Neither one of us like that trip but at least it's close enough to do in one day.

As the pictures show, anywhere that pleases the eye can be a Paradise. So, I'm signing off from our little bit of Paradise.

David and Carol

ON THE SHORT ROAD

2008-11-02T07:15:00.000-08:00

Davids New Workplace

RV Park

Retro RV

Today we will be moving again from one space to another. Employees of the casino are given more permenant accomadations. So we will be moving about 3 rows over. I think our new space will be better. It backs up to the golf course so it's more private and nice to look at. Moving entails packing everything up no matter how far you are moving, so today is all about packing and cleaning.

Tomorrow after David gets off work we will be driving home to Paso Robles. David will drive back here for work and I will be staying in Paso for a few days. I'll be able to enjoy Nicky's birthday and be able to go to Sacramento to see my Mom. There are always those things to do like going to a yearly appt. to the DR. I'm exited to go home and check on everything. David will come back and pick me up in a week or two.

The motorhomes above are real vintage looking. They had a little rally here and there were about 6 of them. The orange one has a corvair engine. We thought they were all really cute. It looks pretty overcast this morning, like it is going to rain. The weather has been wonderful. It has been about 93 degrees this past week. Love the summer weather.

That's all from this little piece of Nevada Paradise.

David and Carol

Summertime....and the livin' is easy

2008-10-29T18:30:00.000-07:00

This is one Happy Camper Couple

TV and Dinner

Molly after her trip to the Beauty Parlor

Working Man

Sundown on the RV

Nothing really new for today. Well, since David was hired for this job,,,he got a raise before he started and then today during orientation, he got his hours changed to days. So I think it will work out for awhile. We are having to get new jacks on the front of the 5th wheel so there goes his first check and then tires for the truck which will be his next 2 paychecks. The weather here is really warm. It is just like summer time. It seems like everyone that travels has a dog. It is nice for Molly. She loves being around other dogs, doing dog things, sniffing each others butt, etc. I'm always busy with my projects. So, I guess that's it for now...

David and Carol

NEW MEXICO, ARIZONA AND NEVADA

2008-10-28T12:38:00.000-07:00

5. Coming into Nevada

4. Arizona

3. Almost to Arizona

2. New Mexico

1. Going thru New Mexico

We have been here in Nevada for awhile now. We just got to a place where the internet would work right. We are in Laughlin, NV and when you go across the Colorado River you are in Arizona. So just to go shopping you will be in 2 different states. The river is the real jewel here. It is really pretty and the casinos are right along the river. We are staying out of town aways. We are at the KOA which is next door to the AVI Indian casino. So the place we are staying is basically an Indian reservation.

We were not sure what we were going to do. So, we stopped here to regroup while waiting for some other things to come thru. David decided to go over to the casino and see if he could get a short time job. They hired him on the spot as a security guard so I guess we'll be here until something else comes thru or we get itchy feet. He figures he can work enough to pay for new truck tires when we need them.

I'm going to try to get home for awhile to visit family and pick up a few things.

Molly went to the beauty parlor today and got a hair cut, bath, nails and teeth brushed. She wasn't happy when we picked her up. She thinks we tricked her but she sure looks pretty.

The desert isn't what you would call Paradise, the sunrise and sunsets are different but they have their beautiful times too when they hit against the mountains. So, goodby from a place that's almost Paradise.

STILL HERE

2008-10-26T20:17:00.000-07:00

Our internet service has not been too great. Hopefully, it will get better. We are in Nevada but will be moving again tomorrow. Nothing much has gone on lately to talk about. The weather here is nice and warm so I guess we can handle it for awhile. I can't send any pics because of the internet so I'll try later.
Love to all,
David and Carol

THE GREAT STATE OF TEXAS

2008-10-23T11:16:00.000-07:00

Texas is definately the state we would move to if we could. Texans have so much pride in their state. We were really impressed by all the homes that fly the Texas flag. That is something you never see in California. Not only do they fly their flag but somewhere on the outside of their house, they tack up the lone star of Texas.

Texans work hard and they play hard. They are friendly and will wave or talk to anyone. We were amazed at even teenagers who would sit down next to us to eat and start up a conversation. One of the towns we went thru had a population of 400 people but they have 3 churches. It is a conservitive state where they don't talk about political correctness and think everything runs fine without it. God, family, country and guns are what they live by and what they think is important. No one can buy alcohol before noon on Sunday and some stores close, hanging a sign in their window that says they are closed so their employees can worship and spend time with their family.
There are big skies where the clouds are low because there is nothing to hide them. Texas is a huge state that is like a country all to itself, a place where young people say yes mam and no mam. Speed limit signs are posted for day(75) and night(65). It is the only place we've seen where a young girl can wear daisy dukes, play pool, have only one leg and no one gives her a second glance. A place where David can mistakenly go into the womens restroom, not notice that was where he was, come out and no one even notices.
Texans are proud of their sports. They love the Dallas Cowboys even when they lose(sorry Michael). It is a place where everyone makes you feel welcome, (thank you Celeste). We met nice, respectful people and had a lot of fun with some(Steve and Joy).
We are born and raised Californians and we love our state but we love Texas too and felt right at home there. Even though we are no longer there, we know the sun rises and sets in the paradise called Texas.

2008-10-23T10:42:00.000-07:00

NEVADA

ARIZONA

NEW MEXICO

ROSWELL, NEW MEXICO

I guess I got the pictures in the wrong order, oh well. Don't you just love that there is a UFO museum in Roswell? I think I am going to try to do 2 blogs today. I really just wanted to let everyone know where we are right now. It was a very long ride to get here and guess what? The wind is really strong here this morning. I have said this before but for those of you that know me, you know I hate the wind. The last time the wind was not blowing was when we were staying in San Antonio. Maybe that's why it is my favorite Texas city. While in San Antonio, we actually got to use our awning. That was over a month ago and we have not used it since because of the wind. I'm hoping I can get back to the blog page again today. The place we are staying does not have a great wireless signal. Until then....

WE ARE HERE....WHERE?

2008-10-22T21:33:00.000-07:00

I had so much to say tonight but it is now 9:30 and I just finally got online. I will say, we are in Nevada. The wind is blowing a little but not near as much as last night. Last night we were in New Mexico and got caught in the middle of a huge windstorm. We ended up with about 4-5 hours of wind the magnitude of an earthquake. It rocked our poor 5th wheel so hard we really did feel like we were in an earthquake. Of course, neither one of us slept. I had to lay with a pillow over my head because it was so loud. David came out to the couch. We both prayed. By morning the wind had blown so hard we had about 1/2 inch of sand on everything in the 5th wheel. We left as early as we dared to and drove all day to escape what they said would be another night of wind. So tonight, yes, it is windy but it is a warm gentle wind. Tomorrow I will write some more. I'm not really sure if anyone even reads this blog because there are no comments left. So please, if you read it, just leave a little note that you read it.
Until tomorrow,
David and Carol

....STILL ON THE ROAD...

2008-10-21T19:47:00.000-07:00

Tonight will be another short one. Traveling all day and getting ready to travel the next wears us out. We are in New Mexico today and plan to be in Nevada tomorrow. If you ever want to take a mindless ride on straight road with nothing to look at, try going Highway 285 thru New Mexico. Miles and miles of nothing. Who ever thinks our planet is overcrowded should come out to the middle of America and see the thousands of miles of empty land. We passed thru Roswell today. I didn't see any aliens (from UFO's) but I'm sure they must be there. My Mother spent some time here with my Dad when he was in the service and they had just gotten married. She remembers it very fondly. I called her as we were going thru the town and let her know how much it has grown. I took some pics to take back to her. Molly still has not pooped so I guess she misses Steve more than we thought she would. Hopefully, I'll be able to give a better story with pictures tomorrow.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN

2008-10-20T17:25:00.000-07:00

Well, we are on the road and movin'. Tonight we are in Fort Stockton, TX. Nothing much going on here. Tomorrow we are going through New Mexico. We will be going through Roswell so maybe we will see some aliens or UFO's. Tomorrow night we will be in Albuquerque. The weather is a little cooler here than it was in Magnolia Beach.

I also did not see the sunset tonight. The RV park we are at hires workcampers in their little restaurant. Pretty darn good food. Molly also misses Magnolia Beach. She is sitting at the door with her head hung down...all depressed. She misses her boyfriend Steve. She hasn't even been able to go to the bathroom because she only went when Steve was standing there.

So, for now this is as much excitement as I can muster up. Maybe tomorrow will be better.

It is with Sadness....

2008-10-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

SUNRISE
SUNRISE
SUNSET
STEVE AND JOY
It is with sadness that we will be leaving this beautiful place and wonderful people. Steve and Joy, we will miss you immensely . We have had a good time with you and hope to see you again and travel with you.

This area is really pretty to look at and the weather is still so nice it's like summer time here. I hope we have made a little bit of a difference here and we will miss seeing the sunrise every morning over the gulf and the sunset every night over the lake.

We will be leaving in the morning for parts unknown. We will let everyone know where we end up. Please keep reading and leaving comments.

David and Carol

Wonderful Weather Here

2008-10-19T13:08:00.001-07:00

Top Left-Pelicans
Top Right-Deck at Marina
Bottom Left-At Marina
Bottom Right-Sunset

Last night Steve and Joy took us to the Marina for cheeseburgers. The weather was perfect with no wind and lots of sun. We had a couple of drinks and just sat and enjoyed the nice day. People were fishing aff of the patio and they were actually catching fish. The marina patio edges right up to the water and while people are fishing, the pelicans are also fishing. After eating and drinking we came back and had another bonfire. It was a really nice evening in Paradise.

SHRIMP BOATS AND BOB..LIFE IS GOOD

2008-10-18T11:55:00.000-07:00

SHRIMP BOATS

MY BOB FLAG

The morning dawned with a great sunrise. David was kind enough to get up and go to the beach and get a picture of it. I'll put it on tomorrow.
The shrimp boats go in and out all day. I love watching them with their nets in the water. Of course, the only shrimp I have had was at Olive Garden last night. David does not like any kind of seafood so we don't really ever eat it at home.

David was out this morning working on the front fence and some plumbing. I stayed in and did some cleaning.
I ran to the beach this morning to get a picture of the shrimp boats and then on the way back I saw my Bob Marley flag waving in the wind and realized I had never gotten a picture of it. So, here it is.

The wind blew all night (surprise), and is still blowing this morning. It has been really nice at night though because it blows right in our bedroom. With the 5th wheel rockin' (because of the wind) and the wind blowin' it was another night in Paradise.

WAITING FOR FLAMINGOS

2008-10-17T07:41:00.000-07:00

'Our Keepers, Steve and Joy'

I know I mentioned that it does not seem like winter here. Well now I changed my mind. Yesterday and today have been kind of cold. Cold enough that I actually put on a long sleeved shirt. I could still wear shorts and flip-flops.

The lake behind us is where the Flamingos are supposed to come to. I haven't seen them yet but I know it will be exciting. I've never seen them in the wild.

Yesterday we had a problem with our computer. It would all stay on except the screen. I could hear it running but no picture. This had happened to us once before but it came on by itself. So yesterday after hitting every button we could think of, we gave up and called Dell support. They would not help us since we bought it at Best Buy. David was getting really angry so he called Best Buy. They would not help us over the phone unless we paid for their help. Needless to say David was beside himself and took everyones name and number so he could file a complaint. We then decided to take it to Victoria, 25 miles away. We got to Best Buy and David took it to the Geek Squad desk while I walked around. I came back in about 3 minutes and it was fixed. There is always something to make you feel more stupid than you already do. It seemed our computer was in hibernate mode and all we had to do was hold the button down for 7 seconds. Of course, no one could tell us that on the phone without charging us. That was just something we did not know. Now we know.

The evening was pretty slow so we went to bed early, it was too cold to do anything else. So, the lights went out in Paradise.

2008-10-15T16:15:00.000-07:00

THE LAUNDROMAT/OFFICE/LOUNGE I GOT THE PAINTING DONE

Despite the rain yesterday, we managed to get some things done between outbursts. They say rain for the next few days. In the evening yesterday it poured hard rain. We had of course closed all the windows. However, when I got ready to go to bed, there was a huge puddle in the middle of the bed. We had left the vent over the bed open. We were changing sheets and drying out the bed until about 11:00. So this morning we had to go into town and do laundry. A trip to town always means a trip to wal-mart, we love the sweet tea. New people came in to the RV park this afternoon. They are from Florida going to Mexico. They arrived in a 40ft. bus, towing a car behind it. That to me is like driving a semi truck.

We are watching another glorious sunset at the end of another day in Paradise.

TROPICAL RAIN

2008-10-14T11:46:00.000-07:00

THESE LARGE BOATS GO BY EVERYDAY HOUSE FOR SALE ON BEACH $150,000

I got up extra early this morning so I could get an unobstructed view of the sunrise. It was still dark so I hunted around for clothes, made coffee and went outside. I was so disappointed to find out it was so foggy I probably wouldn't be able to get a picture. I walked down to the pier anyway thinking it would clear at any time. I stayed there for quite awhile but no sunrise.

I began the painting on the side of the laundromat/office/lounge. I got my little boom box and played some Bob to get me in the mood. I almost got it done and then the rain clouds came in. I stopped right away so the paint could dry before the rain came. David and Steve dug a trench and put in the power to the little building. We all stopped what we were doing just in time. The rain came in huge gushes for awhile. Now I'm afraid to go look at the painting...hopefully it was dry. It was hotter after it rained than it was before. There are giant, ominous, clouds in the sky but I may be able to go and paint some more.

We are having a little get together at our place tonight. Just some appetizers and drinks. It will be fun. The ocean is a beautiful color today and it looks like another day in Paradise.

TECQUILA, TRIP AND TRAILER

2008-10-13T13:33:00.000-07:00

Last night we were invited to Steve and Joys for nachos and margaritas. They have very cute house built over the top of their garage. They get a lot of things off of ebay and other web sites. They got a huge stainless steel side by side refrig. and stainless steel stove for $1100. She also has a pounded copper sink that I love. Joy said copper kills any bacteria. I'm going to try to get one of those. Their little 900 sq ft house is decorated all in a tropical theme. They have a deck in the front that has a veiw of the whole shore and some of the lake. Beautiful veiw. We had a great time.
This morning Joy and I discussed me doing a painting on the side of their office/lounge/laundermat. We were soon on our way to town to get the paint. Going into town of course is always a trip. While there I also did some grocery shopping. After all this is a super wal-mart. Inside is also a subway sandwich place so of course had to stop there for lunch.
My next step is to paint. The theme will be palms, ocean and sunrise. I think I will start this in the morning when it is cool out. David and Steve worked all morning putting in electricity and water to the trailer. I think both of them are pooped out. So David and I are sitting in our 5th wheel listening to Freddie Fender (?) and David is working on a painting while I write.
Best wishes and love to all from our little corner of Paradise.

IT IS NOT WINTER HERE

2008-10-12T09:46:00.000-07:00

Steve and Joys House Part of the Yard and Palms

I know it may be close to winter other places but not here. This morning I got up just to see the sunrise. Every morning it is the same. It starts with a little sliver of orange and soon a full flouresent orange ball is hanging right above the horizon. It floods everything in sight in a warm glow. As soon as it turns its normal color, it starts getting warm. There can be a whole sky cloud cover but it is still warm.

David is out helping to move a deck from the front of the property to the back. They are taking it apart and moving it in 3rds on a tractor. I went out this morning and trimmed the palms, again. Since hurricane Ike, and the storm surge where everything was covered in 2-3 ft. of salt water, the plants were almost dead. So, I continually trim and water in hopes they will come back to life. There's about 25 palms and I think most of them are coming back.

Last night we all took the golf cart down to the marina. It is so nice there. You can get beer, bottled hard drinks and food. After ordering your food you go to the back patio where the sea meets the concrete patio. Alot of people fish off of the patio. We have seen some big ones caught there. Anyway, we had some drinks and some deep fried pickles. Yummy. As soon as I can I'll get a pic of the patio, I'll show it. The sea is beautiful this morning, as usual, with huge boats going in and out of the port. Life is good as we face another day in Paradise.

THE TROPICAL WEATHER

2008-10-11T09:26:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of the road we live on. To the right is a lake and on the left is the gulf. I looked at Paso Robles weather this morning and the low was 37. Our low this morning was 68. I'm going to send some pictures thru email because I can't get more than one on this page.

We took a ride along the beach road yesterday and took some pictures. One thing that we may have forgotten to talk about is how the houses are all on stilts. If anything is built under the house like a garage, it has to have break-away walls so that the water can just go thru. Of course the water would be from a hurricane here or the storm surge of a hurricane near by. Some of the windows here are still boarded up protecting them from the wind from hurricane Ike. There is still some water puddled up along side the roads and the county mosquito spray truck comes by every night. I don't know if it does any good or not. The wind is blowing pretty hard today and this morning we had some rain clouds but nothing happened. It's another beautiful day in Paradise.

BEAUTIFUL PLACE

2008-10-10T07:29:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of the sunset we see every night. This is over the lake that is behind us. We also get to see an incredible sunrise over the gulf every morning. Right at sunrise you can see all the pelicans diving into the water for fish. The shrimp boats come out early in the morning and drag their nets behind them. Cars go by with their fishing poles sticking up. Life here is all about the fish. However, in a place where fishing is everything, I have not seen any fish markets. So where are the fish and shrimp? Our people here(Joy and Steve) have left us alone to run the place for a few days. Nothing much is going to go on. Last week we had a couple here from San Antonio, a man we never see that works in construction somewhere and a grandfather that stays here just to fish. The people from San Antonio left and then we got in a couple from Oregon. So, there is not much going on. Our only job right now is to take care of Steve and Joys little dogs while they are gone. They have 5 dogs. They are really cute little things. Three of them are Yorkies and two are chiwawa's(I spelled it that way because I don't know how to spell it and I'm too lazy to look it up). Well, I guess that is all the news I have for today. If you read this blog, please leave a comment so I can get some feedback.

David and Carol

THE AWESOME STATE OF TEXAS

2008-10-09T16:01:00.000-07:00

nickers1
Today we went into the largest city around here, Victoria. It has all the places to eat, a mall, Lowes and all the other big stores. We ate at a place called Uncle Mutts Bar-B-Que. The sign on the door said they open about 10:30. One of the things we thought was kind of funny is that there is a store called Rent-a-Tire. You can go in and rent not only a tire but fancy wheels. I guess it's in case you want to impress someone. But all in all we really love Texas. It is a very people run state not a politically run state. Everyone is really nice, even the cashiers in wal-mart. They sell different kinds of things here than they do in California. Sweet tea is really big in the south. You can even order it at McDonalds. We have fallen in love with sweet tea and always keep some in the frig. Yes, we go thru alot of mosquito repellant, and the truck is always dirty but on the whole people smile and wave to everyone, say excuse me and hold the door open for you. We love the slow, easy going lifestyle. So, when we leave here we will miss not only Texas but the great people we have met here.

SWEET COOL BREEZE (WIND)

2008-10-08T11:24:00.000-07:00

Last night the wind blew really hard but it happened to be blowing in the right direction so we got it right inside the 5th wheel. It felt really great. Slept like a baby in a rocking cradle. Steve and Joy are moving things around this morning. Joy has a little trailer that she has wicker funiture in and has planned to make an office out of it. The county for some reason told her she couldn't have it there so Steve and David are moving it. I think they plan to make it the laundry room/office. Steve and Joy have this RV park up for sale. It is a cute little place and right next to the gulf but there isn't much going on here.
Everyday huge barges and boats go by. I think they go to the Alcoa plant. It really is a sight to see. They are really big. Yesterday we went to town to do some laundry and today I ironed. Busy life, right? I think we will be leaving in a couple of weeks. David has some plans up his sleeve, but we'll see.
Carol

DRAMA ON THE SEA

2008-10-06T09:41:00.000-07:00

This morning started out pretty darn warm and humid. We have storm clouds all around us with a sprinkling of rain. David took Molly for her morning walk to the pier. It seems that sometime in the middle of the night, someone was drunk and drove up on the pier and got stuck with one tire over the edge. Someone must have come and pulled them off but left alot of damage to the pier. Soon the police, sheriffs dept and constable were there taking a report. Who knows who did it?
Yesterday we really didn't do much. I fixed an early dinner and we played Scrabble. This morning I sat and watched the Pelicans dive into the water for their breakfast. Sarah and Terry have temporairily moved into our house and Nicky starts his first day of school up there. They both have tons of apps in for jobs and Sarah just interviewed for a position at Pleasant Valley Mental Health Care. The owners of their house sold the house so they had to move. Well, so far today that's it...I'll be sure to let you know if the mystery of the pier is solved.

Trucks, Batteries and Toilets

2008-10-04T13:35:00.000-07:00

It has not been a real pleasant day today. I mentioned this morning that we had to replace both batteries in the truck yesterday. So, this morning the toilet plugs and David can't get it unplugged so we were going into town to get a plunger. The truck started great and we were on our way. About a mile down the road we noticed that the air conditioning was not working. Of course we didn't know why. So, on our way to get the plunger, we stopped at the GMC dealership to see why. Well, $160 and an hour later we found out that if you take both batteries out it erases the computer thingies and it has to be reprogrammed.
We get back to the 5th wheel so David can work on the toilet and it would not unplug. I think he worked on it for 2 hours until finally he went down and banged on the pipes and it unplugged. Now this was after backflushing, using the plunger, having Steve backflush while he used a plunger and getting crap all over the bathroom. It was not a pretty picture. So I donned rubber gloves and went in. Yuck, what a smelly mess. Anyway, I got it cleaned up and now I'm just waiting for everything to dry. I have 2 fans going so hopefully it will be OK. David thinks that when we bought the 5th wheel no one had gone in and really cleaned the tank out so what makes it even worse, it could have been someone else's crap. So while ending this post, I cannot say it has been another day in paradise.

MOSQUITOES, MOSQUITOES, MOSQUITOES

2008-10-04T06:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went with Steve and Joy (our keepers) to Victoria. It is a pretty big town with all the bells and whistles. There is where you can find Home Depot, Red Lobster, etc. Of course when traveling something always breaks or stops working. This week it was both batteries in the truck so we had to go and replace both of those. After doing all of the chore things we went to Texas Roadhouse. We had great drinks and a nice dinner. When we got back Steve and David decided to have a bonfire to burn all the extra stuff hanging around on the grounds here. It did actually help with those blasted mosquitoes. They are everywhere and that is why there are so many dragonflies, they eat them. The mosquitoes never give up. Anyway, we sat and watched the bonfire and laughed so hard at Steve and David trying to talk in some language(don't know what it was). Steve and Joy are from Massachusetts. They have that Boston accent. So Steve tries to talk like a Californian and it is really funny. The OJ verdict came in last night as guilty. Can't believe they actually found him guilty. I was beginning to think he was invincible. Now let's see how many appeals he gets and how long he actually serves. By the way, another great day in paridise.

JAMAICAN WEATHER

2008-10-03T07:49:00.000-07:00

This morning I went out early and sat for awhile. The sun does not come up until about 7:30 Texas time. But I get a clear view of the sunrise over the water and it's beautiful. It reminds me of the time Perlow and I went to Belize. Every morning we were up in the dark and got to see the sunrise over the Caribbean. Since neither one of us pay any attention to time, we didn't know if it was midnight or morning but there we were drinking our coffee, writing and watching the sunrise. But today it feels just like Jamaica weather. It makes me come in and put on some Bob music and think about all the people we have met in Jamaica and all the people we miss so much. Big up to all our friends in Negril. Jah Bless.

Carol

A Day Looking Inward

2008-10-02T15:16:00.000-07:00

I was sitting outside today and realized how fortunate we are to be in this beautiful place doing what we like to do. I think we get so used to looking for the next thing to do instead of savoring this time, this day. I watched a show on TV today, a narration of Into the Wild. It is a true story. David and I had watched it some time ago but it really makes you think about the life we live. In this story there was a young man about to go to college. Instead, he gave his money to charity and headed to Alaska to live in the wild. The freedom and the knowledge in your head that this is the right thing to do is something I guess we all do but on a smaller scale. As you get older there is a fear that you don't have enough saved or that you won't be able physically to do something. I guess that is why you should really do all you want before you have those life responsibilities. I thank God for all He has given me. My children and grandchildren are everything to me and I am proud of each one of them and all of the talents God has given them. I am thankful I still have my Mother and I have David who is a rel blessing to me. I truely am blessed.

So Much for the Daily Grind

2008-10-02T08:58:00.000-07:00

Last night was so nice here. It had cooled down a little and a light breeze was blowing. Yesterday we went into Port Lavaca to do some laundry. We have only seen 2 laundermats in town. We went to the cleanest one. Of course, since we were in town, we went to super WalMart. I love that store. It is perfect for someone like me that hates to shop. I can do all shopping in one store.
I have the habit of listening to AM radio at night after I get in bed. I really don't understand why the only stations you can get is sports and Spanish stations. It really frustrate me.
Since there are alot of mosquitoes here, there are alot of dragonflies to eat them. There are hundreds of them flying around. I really like to watch them.
This morning David rewired the television or something and now the tv sound goes thru-out the 5th wheel in the speakers. I am not really sure what else we are doing today. This morning so far I have read, filed my nails, made the bed and talked on the phone. You never know what you will be doing. I am hoping for some big job to need doing. I'm going to need some kind of direction just to use my brain once in a while.
There really is no daily grind here since you never know what's coming.

Wonderful Weekend

2008-09-30T07:37:00.000-07:00

We just got home from a great weekend in Dallas. We went to visit our Son and Daughter-in-Law and our Grandchildren. We got there Saturday afternoon just in time to see Ryan play basketball. From there we went to Michael and Celeste's new house. Their house is really beautiful. It is a two story with the Tuscany look. We loved the whole house. They have a nice pool and hot tub in the backyard. We went out to dinner on Saturday night to a great Mexican restaurant. Then it was hot tub time. On Sunday morning we went to a place called Cracker barrel. I ate so much I thought I would bust. From there it was on to Kristen's soccer game. Both of the kids are really good athlete's. As far as we could see the two kids never fight (although we are told differently). On the way home from the game it was a quick stop to the grocery. We had to hurry home for the football game. Michael is a huge Cowboy fan. Sorry Michael, I guess the Redskins played better than the Cowboys. We bar-b-qued for dinner. Celeste has a special way to grill salmon. It was really, really, good. Yum. After dinner we played a game and laughed so much I almost wet my pants. We left yesterday morning and came back to Magnolia Beach. It was good to get off the road.
Celeste is a wonderful hostess and made us feel so welcome. We really enjoyed our time with them. Thank you Michael and Celeste.

David and Carol

Big Night Out

2008-09-26T08:41:00.000-07:00

Last night we went to Victoria, Texas. This town is pretty big compared to other towns around here. David took me to Olive Garden for dinner. It was really good.
From here at Magnolia Beach to Port Lavaca is about 10 miles. Victoria is about 25 miles.
Because the storm surge hit here from hurricane Ike, just about everything in this RV park was covered with sea water. Because of the salt in sea water, most of the plants died as did all of the grass. So my job for the past week has been to go around and either cut back the dead parts or pull them up completely. Most of the plants are tropical such as alot of different types of palms, banana plants and lillies. It's such a shame to take some of those out. Some have been here quite a while.
Again today, the wind is blowing and the mosquitoes are out. There are thousands of them and they are merciless.
Nothing really happens out here. The big talk of the day yesterday was a car that kept going by. Who is it? Why do they keep on driving by? We spent a couple of hours discussing that. David has been building a fence and helping to put in a water line for some new RV spaces that are going in. I don't think he is thrilled with it but he does it anyway. At least it is something to do.
We've been keeping an eye on what is going on with the economy and the big bailout. On the one hand you know that if you received a million dollar bonus from your job and then your company went broke, you'd be on your own. The government would not come and bail you out and ask the taxpayers to pay for it. However, if they are not bailed out it affects everyone and everything. What happened to responsibility with finances? I realize alot of lenders gave loans that people could not pay back. But would'nt those same people realize that there would be no way they could pay for these houses? Oh well, we will maybe see today what is going to happen.

David and Carol

Does the Wind Ever Stop?

2008-09-25T11:00:00.000-07:00

Most people who know me know that one of the things I cannot stand is the wind. I can take the rain, snow, sunshine and heat more than I can take the wind. Sometimes the wind will blow for a couple of days during a storm but here...it has not stopped since we arrived. Granted, it is beautiful here with a clear view of the Gulf of Mexico and great palm trees. When we first got here I noticed the wind blowing but figured it was because of some tropical pressure somewhere. However, after days of it, and I'm not talking about a little breeze but gale force winds, I asked if it ever stopped. The answer was, "this is nothing, it really gets bad in January".
So, right away some kind of allergies blew up my nose and now the eyes water, nose runs, sneeze and cough. I feel like I need to sleep all the time. But, we are here doing small jobs and of course all of the jobs are outside. So no, the wind never stops.

The Trials of Travel

2008-09-24T10:30:00.000-07:00

OK, so this is how our trip went. We left Paso Robles and went to Bakersfield to see Sarah. We drove from Bakersfield to Banning, CA. We stayed there for 2 nights. Then we went to AZ. While there, we went to see the town of Tombstone. We did all of the touristy stuff. We went to Boot Hill and of course took lots of pictures. When we got back, David noticed one of the tires on the 5th wheel was totally bald, showing alot of cord. He found a tire shop that would come and change the tire. We stayed there for 2 days. The next day we drove thru New Mexico. When people say the world is too overcrowded, they obviously have never driven across this country. Somewhere in the middle of nowhere, we blew another tire on the 5th wheel. We tried AAA.
They didn't know where we were and then we found out our 5th wheel was not covered. We did not know where we were either so David had to walk back along the road to find a mile marker. Along the road was thousands of huge grasshopper looking things. They were tan with coral colored bodies and blue in their wings. They were about 4 inches long. David had to walk on the road with them jumping all around him. There was a road sign in front of us advertising trinkets
so we tried information and she finally got 1 number in the whole town. The number he called was the trinket place. The only other business in this town (I use that word loosely) was a tire shop(good for us). The people at the trinket store did not like the people at the tire shop and would not give us their number. The only thing we could do was just hobble into the tire shop at about 2 miles an hour, we had 5 miles to go. The name of this town is Segar. There was one man there ( for sake of saving his pride, we'll calm him Bubba). Bubba is about 500 lbs of no nonsense. One word answers are all you'll get from him. He did show us where the other 2 tires that we haven't changed yet, were rotten. Of course Bubba wanted cash. We did not have enough cash so I walked to the trinket place and used the ATM. After spending $500 we were on our way. We made it that day to Van Horn, TX. We ended up staying there 2 days. We then drove on to San Antonio. We went to the Riverwalk and to the Alamo. Both of us really loved San Antonio. We stayed there for 3 days and then drove to the Gulf Coast. We are now at Magnolia Beach, TX.

Another Day in Paradise

2008-09-23T09:39:00.000-07:00

As we woke this morning, we knew it would be another beautiful day. The wind is still blowing. I'm sure it blows continually, some days stronger than others. You can see the Gulf of Mexico from our 5th wheel windows. We are in a spot called Magnolia Beach. Further up the road is Port Lavaca. The clouds are drifting in and later it will rain. There is not much to do here, actually there is nothing to do. We are here in a work camping position. There are no clear jobs to do so it is mostly just cleaning yards and odd jobs.
This is one of the areas that was effected by hurricane Ike. The wind did not do alot of damage but the storm surge ruined so much. There was 2-3 foot of salt water over everything. That means all the grass, tropical plants, and palm trees. Salt water killed almost all vegetation around. David and I are helping to clean up in exchange for our RV site.
More later on our trip here....it's always something.